#i wish i had these to post on his actual birthday but whatever

[rammingthestein]

Paul, Till, Christoph and Oliver at Paul's 42nd birthday party, 9th December 2006 🎉

[love-lilly02]

The Challenge Pt. 3

He had never been so fucking aggrivated in his whole goddamn life.

Countless times, he was able to track down anyone based on the smallest piece of information. You give him a first name, he has their social security number. You give him a face, he has their entire family lineage lined up and ready to go.

With birth certificates to confirm.

And now he had your personal records - your full legal name, birthdate, parents name and occupation , plus whatever else was required to enlist in the military. It was all right at his fingertips, readily available, prime for the taking.

And he had found absolutely. Fucking. Nothing.

Price exhaled heavily, running his hand over his face. The computer glared at him angrily, blinding him against the dark of his office. Your records sat in front of him, multiple copies spread out and annotated to point out different information. Your full name, family names, birthdays. Anything that he could use to help find information on you.

All of it was worthless.

"Still up?" Gaz walked into the office, flicking on the light. "You won't find anything if you overwork yourself, you know." Price groaned internally, glancing at the younger man in front of him.

"Better than having to wait for a lead." Price said. Gaz hummed, moving to stand behind the captain's chair. " 'Fuckin hopeless. This girl's got nothing on her. I've been looking for a week nonstop and the best I could figure out is that she's got siblings. Not even who they are, just that she has them."

Gaz massaged his captain's shoulders, reveling in the relived groan he let out. " Jus' ask her, cap. I'm sure she would be willing to-"

"Gaz I can't just ask. That defeats the purpose of the challenge." That wasn't exactly true, but he didn't care. He was determined to win this challenge on his own.

"Soap tried and he got a few good answers. You said it yourself, we work as a team, well get her as a team." He could do nothing but nod along to the man's words.

"Just wish it could be faster."

It had been a week. 

One entire week of absolutely nothing, no questions, no pestering. 

Nothing. 

Part of you was relived. Maybe they forgot, or just gave up. Another knew that this has to be some kind of ruse, these men were entirely too stubborn to give up on something like this. 

Every second of silence had you questioning your skills. You could go back in and double check, do a run over of your parents accounts to be sure they hadn’t posted anything. But going in on the base’s wifi guaranteed getting caught so that was out. 

Your phone was essentially useless, just another way to track down your movements, and it wasn’t like you could call someone and ask them to do it for you. 

So you waited. and waited. and waited. And nothing happened. Save for a few curious glances from Price, all seemed to be well. 

The next lead actually came from Gaz, of all people. 

You were all sitting in the rec room, watching Soap yell at some rookies over a soccer game. Every so often he would look back at the team for assistance, but it was very seldom that one of you would nod or side with him. Otherwise you stayed quiet and watched the entertainment. 

“You ever play sports?” Gaz asked, sipping his drink carefully. The question sounded casual but you knew the weight behind it, and as if a switch flipped off both Price and Ghost leaned in closer to hear your response. 

“Tried a few different ones.” You passed it off with a shrug. “None ever really stuck.”

“How come?” It was prices turn then, and at some point Soap had been flagged back over to the couch to listen. All four of your teammates were now sitting attentively around you, looking like children during story time. 

“ ‘Dunno. I’d do a sport for a while, get good and then loose interest.” You take a sip of your drink. “I’m sure if I tried any of them now I’d be shit.”

A loose chuckle flew through the room, and you saw Price roll his eyes. The four of them shared a look, though you couldn’t quite pin down what it was. 

“What was your favorite?” Soap prompted, shuffling closer. “I’m a soccer guy myself - obviously - but I can see you doing volleyball.”

“Or track,” Ghost spoke up this time, lifting his glass in a salute almost. “ ‘Runs so fast you’d swear she’s on fire.” 

That made you roll your eyes. “I got recommended for track but turned it down. The coach said-“ They all waited for you to finish, but you shook your head. “No, no I’m not talking about this.”

Soap groaned. “Awh, come off it lass. Just a bit of small talk, eh?” 

“Yeah, so you can get more information outa me.” You responded, setting your glass on the table. “That night was the last time i get drunk and blabber off to you lot. You want those photos, you’ll have to find them yourselves.”

Instead of a laugh there was a groan, even Ghost looked disheartened at your words. 

“Come on, luv. you gotta give us something.” Soap pleaded, giving you the biggest puppy dog eyes ever. 

“We have something. She’s got siblings, a brother and a sister by the sounds of it.” You whipped around at Prices words, staring at him with a mix of shock and horror. 

“How did you-“

“Your files. Did some deeper digging a few nights ago. The problem is, I can’t find anything related to you or them. Got your parents stuff just fine, nothing on your siblings.” He pauses, eying you up and down. “Like they don’t exist at all.”

There’s a tense silence in the room, and you stare at your captain with a blank expression. “Dunno what to tell you. Look harder, maybe?”

The tone of your voice is flat, and the team sees an emotion they haven’t seen on you in a while. 

Fear.

“Maybe." Is all Price says, reaching in his pocket to grab a cigar.

Things from there go somewhat back to normal, although you’re significantly more quiet than usual. Finally after what you deem is an acceptable time you turn in for bed, Making a B-line for your rooms. 

“That’s not normal.” Is all Ghost says. “People aren’t scared of their families.”

“Hypocrite,” Soap calls back. A pillow is flung at his head shortly after. 

“Simon’s right. She seems to come from good sort, why doesn’t she want anyone finding out about her history?” Gaz ponders quietly, tapping his hands against the arm of the couch. 

“That’s for us to find out, apparently.” Price places his hand on top of Gaz’s, silencing the rythmic taps. 

The soldiers sit there for what feels like an eternity, pondering over the mystery that is their teammate. 

You don’t sleep at all that night. Tracking be dammed, you have to make sure that everything is clean. You knew that your files could be a huge risk, as you were required to list all family members, but you didn’t think Price would lay that much attention. You didn’t think anyone would pay that much attention.  

Just shows how inconsiderate you are. 

All of your socials and your parents socials are clear. Your siblings are something you don’t have to worry about, as they aren’t allowed phones till they’re older, much less social media. you check over all of your old friends stuff too, ensure that all pictures with you in them were taken down, anything with your name was removed entirely. 

You avoid the main problem. In the event that they’re somehow smart enough to figure out they can track your search history through the wifi. 

The less they could find the better. 

Here she is!! Thank you so much to all the people who left a note (even if it's just a like) your interactions helped so much with getting motivation! I hope to have the next chapter out sometime this week, but there wont be any promises <333

My Masterlist

[nwjws]

10 months (TEASER) - SJY

; SYNOPSIS - when you first meet your best friend’s brother, your first thought is, “holy shit, he’s gorgeous.” your second thought is, “holy shit, he’s a baby.” younger guys aren't exactly your thing, but jake insists that your age gap of 10 months really isn’t that big. 

; PAIRING - jake x fem!reader

; TAGS - one-shot, fluff, angst, younger!jake, older!reader, not by much though, high school au, inspired by their song, best friend’s brother trope ; WARNINGS - cursing, umm nothing else (for the teaser at least)

; WC - 1k (teaser) full fic est. idk probably more than 5k

; RELEASE - hopefully november 15 (on his birthday!) but may have to post pone a little bc i've got a terrible cough

holy shit, he's gorgeous.

jake sim, your best friend's brother, might just be one of the most attractive men you've ever seen in your almost-nineteen years of life. his flawless skin combined with his wild hair gave him that carefree teenage look; the poster boy of a cliché summer fling, coming-of-age movie.

jaena had asked you to join her family at the amusement park, to celebrate jake's birthday. and while you'd known that she had a brother, you'd never actually met him - until now. you suddenly found yourself wishing she had told you to prepare to be blown away by his looks.

you smile at him, giving him a half-hug. "happy birthday!"

jake, snapped out of whatever trance he'd been caught in ever since he first laid his eyes upon you, patting your back. "um, thank you."

your best friend catches him in a headlock, giving him a noogie. "aww, you're eighteen now! no more lying about being an adult online," she teases him.

your heart stops, ears catching on one word in particular. "wait, he just turned eighteen?"

"yeah, he's my younger brother," jaena says.

that has you sitting back against the backrest of your seat, blowing out air as you digested the new information. you glance back at jake, who's eyes are pinned curiously on you.

holy shit, he's a baby.

jaena snorts. jake's eyebrows raise up behind his bangs. did you say that out loud?

"i'm not a baby!" he protests.

"yeah, you are," jaena shoves him lightly.

"woah, my whole perception of you has just changed," you tell him.

jake's jaw drops impossibly further as jaena barks out more laughter.

"what?! what was your first perception of me, then?"

you shake your head, amusement pulling at your features. "doesn't matter now."

as expected, your day at the park was well spent. jaena and jake's parents had gone off somewhere and left you three (and heeseung, who was invited by jake) alone. you guys had ridden the rollercoaster twice, gone on some spinning ride, and a game of laser tag - which, by the way, jake and heeseung had severely lost ('jake! stop staring at y/n!' 'i wasn't!' 'then how did you miss your sister pointing her gun at you when she was right in front of you?!').

when the four of you lined up for bumper cars, jake walked over to your side.

"hey, you wanna share a car with me?"

"me? with you?" you asked in confusion, tilting your head to the side. "why?"

"stealing my best friend from me, jake?" jaena asked.

"precisely," he smiles at her, and takes your hand as you guys reach the front of the line. he pulls you into the passenger seat of a car.

buckling the seatbelt, you jokingly ask jake, "do you need me to hold your hand, you child?"

jake frowns, before his face swiftly contorts into a smirk. "if you feel like you need to hold onto me for support, then sure!"

you roll your eyes at his playfulness. if he'd been older than you, you would have definitely blushed at his reply. instead, he came across to you like a little boy trying to impress an adult. how cute.

it's a fun round, with you and jake bumping into jaena and heeseung's car several times, getting them caught against the edge. when a random pair of strangers you guys didn't know bumped your car, the four of you teamed up and went after the poor kids. you all left the bumper cars ride laughing to the point your stomachs hurt.

after that, jaena dragged you and two boys to the stall games. you and jaena had fun playing one of those shooting games, whilst the other two did something else.

when you met up again, jake handed you three big plushies, a smile as big as them on his face.

"for you!"

jaena scrunched her nose at her brother. "ewww jake are you trying to court my best friend or something?"

"i'm not courting her! what is this, the 18th century?" he maturely poked his tongue out at his sister. "i won these for y/n, you know. do you like them?"

you took one and hugged it. "aw, thanks jakey," you cooed at him, pinching his cheek. "but i think these would find a better place on your bed. you can hug them to sleep."

jake huffed out in annoyance. "why do you keep treating me like a child?"

"because you are a child."

"i'm literally eighteen? i'm a full-grown adult!"

"sorry to break it to you, but eighteen is barely an adult," jaena snorted at him, taking the plushie from your arms.

"how old are you then?" jake asked you, his head tilting to the side. you had to stop yourself from letting out another 'aww'. he looked like a cute puppy asking for attention.

"i'm almost nineteen."

"so you're also eighteen? we're the exact same age."

"no we're not! i'm ten months older," you protested.

"but we're still both eighteen right now! and for the next two months! you're acting like you're my grandma or something..." he muttered.

"well, our age gap was big enough that you were placed in the lower grade. so i do feel like your grandma."

"ten months isn't even that big!" he rolled his eyes.

"why does it even matter?" heeseung shrugs, slipping his hands into his pockets as you guys walk towards the rendezvous point you'd be meeting jake's parents at before going back home.

"because she's treating me like a baby!"

"keep whining like that and i'll start to think that you really are," you tease him, jaena laughing at your bickering.

you purse your lips, suppressing a smile as you watch the cute boy leave his sister's side and move over to yours. a whiff of his cologne attacks your nose, but you don't fight it. it's oddly attractive, until you remind yourself of who it belongs to.

no, no, no way. you gulp down your thoughts and feelings, trying to keep a light-hearted expression on your face. 'keep calm and carry on', or whatever it was that old meme said.

you couldn't let your conflicted feelings show. so you pushed away any and all thoughts that you might be falling for your best friend's brother.

; AUTHOR'S CORNER! HII this is scheduled but anyway i hope i can complete this fic within the next 5 days (pray for me) but if not please excuse me my immune system isn't fighting whatever pathogen i have fast enough

; TAGLIST (open!) perm . @lovelovelovebts @miyseung @babyy-bambii @haechansbbg @gweoriz networks . @kflixnet @k-films @/k-labels . send an ask or comment here to be added!

[accio-victuuri]

Bunny laoshi’s 1005 birthday CPNs Part I 🎂

I am giving it this title cause i’m pretty sure we will have more in the next releases or whatever. So yeah. First, I wanna thank you xiao laoshi for all the shiny presents he gave us for his birthday! we have been so blessed! I mean those photos from XZS? and the biggest CPN of the day which is him featuring the Leica camera we have been screaming about for the past days. Personally, we can skip all of these and that sugar alone is enough. But apparently, there’s more….

I will start with my favorite which is related to the birthday cake he was holding in one of the photos.

The person who designed the cake shared info on their creation. No problem. Anyone would be proud for making a cake for a celebrity like XZ. Yes, it’s camping themed. Which is a recurrent CPN in this fandom since both of them suddenly became camping enthusiasts around the same time.

This time the customer wanted to make a camping model, so I started looking for some pictures from my colleagues. But because Master Fang doesn’t make other store models, He finally decided to use the scene of Xinjiang grassland then add with other camping accessory of ours~

AND THIS CAKE SHOP IS LOCATED IN HANGZHOU. Who is in HZ? Who frequents HZ? Definitely not ZZ. So who had this commissioned??? I’m sorry but as soon as I heard Hangzhou, what came to mind is WYB. I swear. He is that city’s adopted son or something.

Out of all ZZ’s “hobbies” who would decided let’s do camping. I can only think of Bobo. And the delivery fee is 3k. There is really nothing top expensive when it comes to each other.

Next is how photos were with him holding the Leica. Kind of like how the camera was posted in WYB’s photosets in Paris. They are both showing off. Clearly.

When you put the bday messages from their studios side by side — it appears that the theme and pattern is the same. 😂😂😂😂

lament about how time flies >> one year role review >> talk about life >> good wishes

I mean it’s not the most unique format but it’s so cute seeing how similar. even how it’s split in paragraphs.

Tho I have to say wyb’s was very very special. That message made me tear up.

WYB is about to go home, Paris to China and he is wearing Ralph Lauren. Yes, ZZ is endorsing the fragrance but it’s still an interesting choice.

I am cackling tho cause you can see that WYB was online at midnight! HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! It got some people nervous. Will he greet XZ? Will he comments on XZ’s bday post? I mean what’s going on???

Turns out, WYB posted about his experience with the Chanel PFW. This is the perfect time cause he is literally leaving Paris. What’s funny tho are the people commenting. It’s BXGs. Because come on, who’s awake? It’s us. We are awake cause it’s GG’s bday. I took a screenshot, just look at the pfps. I think by the time I publish this post, it will be overtaken by so/os cause one fan club asked other so/os to comment. Lol.

Some are saying the first words he used to describe the show are actually for ZZ’s photos but i really don’t buy that. and well, he is gonna see the love of his life soon ^^ I really hope they get to spend sometime 1005 or over the weekend 😌😌😌

and well the repost on ZZ’s birthday post on his own weibo is another story too 😂😂😂

==================

AND SOME LAST WORDS ABOUT ZZ PULLING OFF THIS CAMERA CANDY TODAY. It’s actually a joint effort. Intentional or not, I’m all for it. It goes to show that the way we speculate on things actually make sense and are not too out there. They could easily hide the camera if they want to block all the cpf talk but they didn’t. It was displayed proudly.

It’s one of those things where I think they/their team really listen in on what’s going on in the turtle fandom and they get to decide which ones will be given more fuel or not. Again, their relationship is between them, but imagine them willingly sharing this personal part of their life to us is making me 😭😭😭.

Whether it’s the exact same camera or not. XZS’ posting closed the loop of doubt. It’s not all on WYB’s side, ZZ claimed it too. and that to me is an iron clad cpn. No one can say that “WYB is just trying to feed the cpfs…”. It’s mutual.

It’s a lesson on believing in them. A couple of times this year, I’ve seen people question them. Always throwing tantrums for “lack of candy” and being annoying. Be patient. You will be rewarded if you just wait — appreciate them as people and enjoy the content they put out. It will come to us in time. Trust them. 🤍

-END.

[joylovesfluff]

Trouble

Dabi x reader. Angst.

A/n: ngl i didn't have an actual plot for this when i started writing it, but fuck im inlove now with dabi and him just being a little obsessed with you.

NOT PROOF READ !!

Lovesick! Part 2 (in progress)

Troublemaker touya! Who would throw rocks on your window (taylor swift style) just to suprise you on your birthday even if it ended 2 hours ago.

Troublemaker touya! Who would give the world to you just to make you happy, but for now he had to settle for flowers he just picked fresh from his neighbour's backyard, he gives them to you with a small smile hoping that they'll be good enough for your special day, and he prays to whatever god is up there that you aren't allergic to any kind of flowers cause this sure as hell wont be the last time he'll get scolded for plucking out flowers at 3 am.

Troublemaker touya! Who goes to you before finally disappearing for years, he tells you all about his plan in a form of a joke, he'd definitely be like "and yknow what? Maybe one day id finally kill him, that would be a nice birthday present right?" and you'll cluelessly reply something along the lines of "one life sized endeavour packed in a coffin bow coming right up!" You laugh at the silly imagination you made, not even thinking of the odds of it happening.

Troublemaker touya! Who lowkey stalks you all the time to see how youve been doing in life, he wont admit it but he would do anything to make you happy even if it includes killing all your academic rivals for you, as long as he can see you with your awards and certificates on your social media with the caption 'i made it!' as your graduation post.

Troublemaker touya! Who wouldve loved to graduate with you and to finally confess his feelings for you so you both can live in a beautiful apartment like you have always dreamt of, but now all of it is impossible now that he has his eyes set on his new career.

But as he was watching you walk home in the dark alley ways, definitely not stalking you. He caught onto a sight that shattered his heart and soul into millions on pieces.

"oh hi i thought you weren't ganna come haha"

"ofcouce i would, who in their right mind would let their girlfriend walk home in the night?"

Girlfriend? When? How? He was sure that you weren't seeing anybody, but now you have a boyfriend? How could this happen???

He stopped on his tracks, and started panicking but why would he? Its not like youre his girlfriend or anything, he didn't even got to tell you how he feels which felt much worse than the sight he's seeing.

As he continues to look at your back wishing that this would just be one horrible dream. You and the guy your boyfriend stop walking, dabi panics again worried that you might see him but as he was about to hide at a near by alleyway he looks at you as you bend down to pick something up from the ground.

"What happened?" He asks as he hold your hands so gently like you would break any second.

"oh its nothing i just dropped my phone" you replied after you picked up your phone from the ground.

"you good to go?" He frantically ask looking around the dark streets as he hold onto your hands tighter, 'hes a fucking pussy' dabi thought.

"Yeah, i just thought i saw something" you say as you look behind his shoulder to the dark alley way that looms the corner.

He whisperes something to you as you both start to walk, if dabi remembers correctly your apartment would be somewhere near here, he remembers as the time where he was the one to walk you home after long class hours especially that time where the school was preparing for the sports event.

Lovesick dabi! Who would get excited at the thought of meeting you again, showing his new self, his true self to you. But then he'll remember that maybe you'll hate him for what he has done, for leaving you, for hurting other people. So maybe one day you'll meet him again, maybe one day you'll be able to understand and you both would be able to exchange stories of what youve been through without each other.

He just hopes that youd be able to wait for that day, to wait for him

Lovesick dabi! (Coming soon)..

[hrts4hanniehae]

Take a Chance with Me || twelve

*mostly written parts

WARNING: implied aftermath of 18+ content

remember to comment and reblog

yn stirred, feeling an unfamiliar warmth and the slow, steady breaths of another.

fuck... what happened last night... her whole body was sore and she could feel the person stir.

"morning, yn." oh. last night wasn't a dream. she couldn't help but hold back her tears. he was here. he was in her arms.

"morning, cheollie."

she felt him stiffen. perhaps it was too soon to call him like that. but after what they did last night, why would it be?

he planted a kiss to the top of her head.

"my yn, does this mean we're together again?"

"i..." she breathed in.

"yes, my cheollie."

after that, seungcheol had to go. his comeback album, 'Face the Sun" was released.

"so are you both going to do a slow reveal soft launch thing or hard launching it?"

"i'm letting yn make that decision. if i had to choose, i'd hard launch right now but i don't think yn is comfortable with that yet."

"isn't she coming over today? for like a tiktok dance collab thing?"

"no hoshi, it's a special darl+ing recording ft. yn"

"oh."

it had been so long. Seventeen hadn't actually spoken to yn for so long. so when she stepped into the recording studio, they finally realised how much they had actually missed her presence.

jeonghan missed her crafty personality. joshua missed how she laughed at all his antics. BSS missed how she was like their older sister. wonwoo missed gaming with her. woozi missed discussing music with her. jun and minghao missed eating chinese food with her. vernon missed their silent movie nights. dino missed his "noona".

they didn't know it, but they all had already bonded with her over those few years. she was there since their start. they'd known her since the start, when she had been a trainee -- their friend.

yn was home. she was home and there for their leader.

"i want our relationship to hard launch now, cheollie. I'm ready."

they had been dropping hints for months, starting with his voice in her special title track release. their most recent one was of their beach date (with the 12 wheels of svt)

"are you sure?"

"yea."

"but the hate comments you've been receiving..."

some... lesser fans of svt had been leaving hate comments on yn's posts, claiming she'd ruin SVT's image. popular ones were

"stop stealing our idols." "bitch." "lame. your songs don't even make sense." "cry me a river..." "stop ruining svt's image." "leave svt alone..." "whore."

she didn't care. she had THE alpha leader, Choi Seungcheol wrapped around her finger. why would she care? this leader let her buy whatever she wanted with his money to "make up for every birthday he missed". this leader went soft in her arms and held her like she was the most precious thing on earth. this leader loved her. not them. so why would she care? she had him and they didn't.

"whatever you want, jagiya."

"i love you cheollie."

note to my taglist: please reblog and comment abt the chpt so i know that you're actually reading my stuff.

summary: 3 years after your breakup with seungcheol, you release an album to cope with your still-broken heart. you didn't expose his name but quickly, your fans and fans of svt begin to connect the dots to the past you wish you could relive. little did you know, the man you loved so desperately would begin to chase you back with the same desperation you so very much desired

inspired by: take a chance with me

pairing: idol!choi seungcheol × fem!idol!reader

genre: past relationship, fluff, angst, best friend!booseoksoon, smau, miscommunication, pining, 2nd chance

warnings: implied self harm/depression, hate comments, updates irregular but will finish because i cried when i thought abt this idea

started: 13.12.23

taglist: fill out the form in my pinned post to be added to the taglist (specify this smau in the pw section)

smau masterlist

smau socials

previous I next

tags! @fairyofhour @megseungmin @sun-daddy-yoriichi @woozixo @euphoric-univers @christinewithluv @haowonbins @ocyeanicc @asyre @cynthiaaax13 @superhoshisvt @bangantokchy @chimmy-bts @angelarin @daisawa @writingbarnes@jeonghansshitester

@belladaises @wonwootakemyheart @wonwooz1 @luchiet @atinybitlonely @kookssecret @caratsland @peachescreamandcrumble @thepoopdokyeomtouched @isabellah29 @leah-rose03

[donnerpartyofone]

I saw this post a few weeks ago that was like a chart from a psychology text that described how different sorts of childhood trauma can produce different dysfunctions, one of which was (I *think*) Emotional Neglect -> Magical Thinking. I was so intrigued by that. Magical thinking is sort of an umbrella term for the belief in a causal relationship between two unrelated factors; it can include wishing on a birthday cake candle; the feeling that The Universe is telling you to call your ex because something reminded you of them; OCD-type rituals that you believe will ward off misfortune; the deeper meanings mis-assigned to mundane events that can be produced by schizo-affective disorders; and also religious convictions to some degree, although those are rarely considered a clinical problem as with anything that helps or doesn't seem to hurt the participants. There seem to be as many potential causes of magical thinking as there are forms of the thought pattern itself, and trauma is an interesting one.

It might be better to think of "trauma" as "helplessness" here. Magical thinking can help impose a feeling of organization where there is chaos and loss of any sense of significance. There was a lot of magical thinking going around in the gritty, depressed town where I'm from, and I often thought it was because of the persistent economic pressure. It's relatively normal for kids to be susceptible to spooky ideas, but many of the adults were also full of ghost stories and superstitions. I have one very sensible friend who is smarter than I am, who grew up there too, and we often reflect on this, which helps me know that this isn't strictly an idea I have due to my own social choices. My friend doesn't live in that town anymore either, but she's always digging up interesting stuff related to it, and one day she showed me the website of someone there offering his services as a paranormal investigator. He was in his 20s, and the site included a lot of unconvincing photos and a long, vigorous testimonial by the guy's mom. Part of me was dying to put it on tumblr, but it would only have resulted in unnecessary cruelty. I was as much a victim of magical thinking as anybody, and I think even when I was pretty young I was aware of what motivated me to be so naive and gullible: that a world full of ghosts and vampires and UFOs and such was preferable to what I normally experienced, which was a consistent sense of boredom and meaninglessness and drudgery and embarrassment and pain and suffocation in an ugly, flavorless universe whose nicer side was not going to be available to me. I had a lot of really damaging friendships with manipulative assholes and pathological liars because I was so very willing to believe the crazy things they told me, just in case any of them were true, because such a truth could change my whole life.

Sometimes I think it's amazing that I never wound up in a cult, although I guess those relationships were sort of like little one- or two-person cults. Once in a while I read about some crime involving young people who think they're vampires or something, and I have a deep feeling of pity, because I think I know what they were going through (except for the part where they think they can do whatever they want to other people). The sad story of Shanda Sharer involves a whole group of badly abused and underprivileged teens, some of whom thought they were witches or vampires, and it just makes so much sense to me that they would be overtaken by these fantasies of secret meaning and power. Recently I watched Bad Vegan on Netflix, something that I avoided at first because I thought it was just about rich douchebags humiliating each other--which is like, what else is new--and to some degree it is, but actually it's way more disturbing than that. Ambitious young raw food entrepreneur Sarma Melngailis was manipulated, isolated, and ultimately kidnapped by this sadistic freak who preyed first on her loneliness and financial fears by pretending to be a rich suitor who could solve all of her problems; then he preyed upon her feelings of personal insignificance and failure by convincing her that he and she had been selected by a cabal of extraterrestrial illuminati who would make them immortal. Sarma seemed completely broken down to me, and I was amazed by her courage in describing the scam she fell for, that she must have known would invite derision. Part of the documentary explores her youth as a kid who always believed she could become something special, and then mundane tragedies like her parents' divorce brought her back down to earth in a painful way, and it seemed like she spent the rest of her life haunted by the idea that she might just be an ordinary failure of a person. I think that's part of what made her so vulnerable to this psychopath, that he was able to access her secret dream of having a special destiny. I got one of my friends to watch the show and she was very frustrated by it because she just couldn't figure out what Sarma's problem was that would cause her to ever believe the things she was told. I tried to reiterate what I've said here, but it didn't seem to mean anything. Ironically this friend is a practicing witch with formal beliefs in the supernatural, including that people can awaken special powers within themselves, but I guess one man's magical thinking is just um not another man's magical thinking.

I still have a lot of magical thinking going, but it doesn't have the same character it once did. I tend to think of it more as "symbolic thinking"; I have a hard time accessing senses of meaning and hope, let alone any kind of self-belief, and sometimes symbolic gestures and concepts can provide that access better than my own direct, practical attempts ever could. It helps that I have a basic agnosticism about the invisible structures of the world, like it's easy for me to believe that there is more to life than what comes in through the five senses, even if I don't pretend to know entirely what that "more" is. That may help me believe that "anything is possible" and I shouldn't give up, even if I direly want to and I know I'm being kind of irrational. Magical thinking can be a double-edged sword, but maybe it's better than nothing.

[williamkisser]

🐟> A Poem Worth of Remembering: Orpheus x reader

[🎣] word count: 1371

[🎣] warnings: g/n reader, fic turning into headcanons, fluffy, ooc Orpheus, i don’t even write for him ⚰️⚰️

[🎣] author’s note: Lord… it’s been SO much time since my last fic. I’m very sorry for the break since so much stuff happened both in real life as well as here (rip in piss, williaml0ver account </3) I originally had slightly diffrent plans for my comeback post yet i simply couldn’t miss this wonderful opportunity. Happy birthday to my AMAZING POOKIE which i dedicate this fic to! Thank you for being the first person to welcome and support me on here:)

EVERYBODY SAY HAPPY BIRTHDAY @fishermanshook @octopaii !!

Ah…?

You slowly woke up after what it seems like a long nap. Nobody would be surprised, however! Who WOULDN’T be tired after such a romantic date? Oh yes… you get it now. Earlier today, your dear long time boyfriend, the novelist Orpheus took you into a forest near Oletus Manor - you felt slightly confused until you noticed a big table and two chairs with fancy carvings on them, surrounded by many roses and carefully placed decorations. That’s how he wanted to celebrate the birthday of the love of his life, in solitude and peace. He truly appreciated privacy.

Orpheus, surprisingly, never was the type of person who’d be very extravagant, despite the funds from his art certainly made him one of the wealthier people in the manor. Whenever your birthday was approaching, you’d wake up to a breakfast in bed, with thoughtful note attached. Later that day, you’d receive a trinket, such as a small necklace, sometimes even a special poem. He’s someone who wants to make his partner feel special all the time, not only on some occasions, hence the birthday gifts were never exactly all over the place, lavish gestures, not like if you mind, of course. What was possibly be the reason for this exception today?

Whatever the cause was, you felt flabbergasted. A nice, warm noon you could spend with your boyfriend. It was all yours, you could discuss everything, not worrying he’d go away to focus on his work. Today it’s all about you. You’ve spend so much time together, simply talking about worries, hopes, thoughts… life, at some point you both didn’t even notice a few hours already passed. Well, they say, if you don’t feel the time passing, you must be very happy. That was indeed true. After all, you decided to head back. As much as you wish this moment could last forever, you kept feeling sleepier with each moment. You insisted on helping him clean the place, but he assured you not to worry about it. The novelist took your hand and leaded you to your dorm while gently caressing your palm. You couldn’t even feel the butterflies in your stomach anymore, yawn after yawn, your replies to him kept getting less specific and detailed.

Even the sunshowers peaking through windows couldn’t awake your senses. Orpheus whispered sweet nothings into your ears before nicely tucking you in, leaving the room after giving you a small peck on both of your cheeks. You had no idea that when he closed the doors, he instantly began completing his secret plan.

A performance.

Oh yes… few minutes after waking up you started slowly gaining consciousness again. You’re feeling awfully nasty after sleeping in your prettiest clothes, but it was all worth it, wasn’t it? One way or another, you got up and took a sip of water to ease your dry throat. You couldn’t help but notice a pink card laying on the table. It wasn’t there before. Picking it up, you noticed something strange - it’s an acting performance leaflet, a very fancy one too. Seems like it’s also been scented, the smell of vanilla is very refreshing. But who are the actors? As far as you remember, there are no actors in the manor… well… at least REAL actors… who would be performing? Surprisingly enough, the stage is marked for today, just in like… an hour? You felt actually intrigued - the information given were too vague to figure the theme out, until… hold on! Looking at the bottom of the card, you notice it stating that there’s a special invitation… on top of that, you’d recognize this handwriting everywhere.

You quickly connected the dots. The small description talking about the plot of this play is strangely similiar to one of your boyfriend’s novels. He specifically mentioned he based the main characters on him and you. The realization hits you almost instantly. Orpheus brought one of his novels to life for your birthday. Jesus. You frantically started putting on some elegant clothing, making a huge mess in your wardrobe at the same time. We’ll take care of that later. Either way, seems like Orpheus carefully considered every possible obstacle, as you waking up too late, for example. Just when you were about to decide which shoes to wear, you heard knocking on your door. Strangely, when you opened it, no one was standing in front of them. Or so it seems?

🎣

🐟 Orpheus would send Robbie to lead you to the event. He didn’t specify the place where the performance will be happening. He’s got it all planned.

🐟 The axe boy is wearing a small, green suit with a red bow tie. He looks adorable!

🐟 Robbie doesn’t waste any time and keeps pointing at the huge grandfather clock to remind you to hurry. When you’re ready, he holds your hand and begins to lead you. You have to keep leaning so you can reach his hand. Feels uncomfortable to bend this way, but hey, at least now you know where to go.

🐟 To be frank, you were convinced the stage will be placed somewhere in the manor, but little did you know. You gave Robbie a confused stare when he kept walking towards a forest. His silence wasn’t helping you, either. You wouldn’t complain that much if you knew what’s coming next. Your heart nearly dropped when instead of avoiding that one scary cave, you were forced to enter it. Are you getting abducted?

🐟 You decided to not question Robbie anymore, however, you really wanted to. When you saw that the particular corridor you were in was divided by a huge underground lake. In order to get to the other edge, you had to use the boat. What’s worse, you noticed two silhouettes already standing on it. Robbie kept leading you there. Closer and closer. My God. It’s over.

🐟 While entering the boat, you’ve already repeated a few prayers in your mind and apologize to everyone who’s been ever hurt by you. But, to your surprise, the two new faces were actually very, VERY familiar. The man holding the oars was wearing a long cape. Yet, when he turned around, everything clicked. It was all Orpheus’ plan. Turns out the scary and mysterious man who was about to get rid of you for good was Naib himself. And his companion? The man holding the old map knowing the best places to hide you in? No other than Jose.

🐟 Robbie paid Naib with chocolate money. When the cruise began, Jose started to act like a real officer and kept ordering Naib. He seemed very annoyed. You’re sure he owed Orpheus something serious, because there’s no way he’d agree to this without anything in reward.

🐟 You all continued walking after arriving to the second end of the lake. Later on, you were approaching a huge, open area. The only trouble was that, sadly, the light couldn’t reach there. It was all dark, yet Jose encouraged you to go further.

🐟 You began taking small steps, at the same time noticing that the boys are standing behind you. You almost felt like they’re sacrificing you for some ancient deity. You’re heart was again beating like crazy, until light suddenly filled the entire place.

🐟 Your heart dropped, but this time because of the wonderful sight. To your surprise, this scary cave had a small theater inside! It was filled with decorations and most importantly, with other survivors and hunters from the manor. Everyone rushed to wish you a happy birthday!

🐟 The only person you didn’t see yet was Orpheus. That will change soon. Jose led you to the theater seats. He specifically made sure that you arrive to the VIP one. Shortly after, everyone took their seats, except a few people. You assumed they were hired to be the actors.

🐟 The show finally started. It began with Orpheus and his speech about his play as well as his partner’s impact on it. You felt absolutely moved. When the story started, he was the one narrating it. It contained so much references only you and him could understand. Some scenes were even based on real events. You felt absolutely touched by his gesture.

🐟 When Orpheus falls, he falls hard.

First of all i’m sorry for the random fic-hcs mashup i’m aware this is rushed but i sadly don’t have time yet i really wanted to do something on your birthday 😔😔 i HOPE YOU HAVE A GREAT DAY!!!! LOVE YOU!!!

[chaifootsteps]

Armchair Psychology Anon (not a real Psych just notice patterns)

I dunno if you've seen the new poster for Brandon's new show, Class Acts? It's actually pretty melancholic and depressing.

The tag line is "its never too late to dig up dead dreams".

"Announcing my next series: He's been teaching how to achieve the dreams he can't, since 2009"

But the tombstones on the poster all reflect his inner fears as an artist/actor.

"Be taken seriously" "act better" "teach theater" "be a star" "be respected" "win an oscar" "make money" "find fame" "inspire someone" "be on TV" "find love" "make a difference" and so on

He's talked about having these feelings when Seeing Stars came out. Blitz breaking down about being on a show and not taken seriously as an entertainer as a child and an adult are definitely derived from Brandon's real feelings. I think that's why he was uncomfortable with Stolas (didn't he say he based him off his ex at one point?) being in a relationship with his character.

I've also noticed his social media posts aren't very lively. I'm not sure if they used to be, but he just seems very drained/depressed. The only happy posts I've come across are about his dog or family.

Hell, he just wished his friend Trevor Wallace, a happy birthday online. And this is what he said:

"Trevor it is your birthday."

And under the post, someone was kind enough to say: "Still love that you two are buds makes me hope for Trevor to have a guest spot on Helluva Boss"

This made me cringe. I'm sure it makes Brandon cringe as well.

He can never get away from these shows now.

The low views on his og content vs. his HB content must be depressing for him. I don't think he's particularly excited to be voicing Katie either. I think he's just taking a paycheck for it and hopes he can continue to stay relevant.

Viv probably had him do it to get away with saying misogynistic things. I'm very worried about it.

I think he used to do comedy shows around the US, too. I don't think he's done them in awhile? I really think Viv is sucking the life out of him.

I don't know how to feel about Brandon as I obviously don't know him, but his socials do say a lot to me. I can't help but feel like he could also potentially be a bad person (as you never really know anyone through social media), but as an artist myself, I can relate to his struggles.

If his depression is Viv related, then I hope he can find the strength to cut ties with her.

Jesus...that's absolutely fucking heartbreaking.

Whatever's behind Brandon seeming so down lately, people need to let him -- let everyone associated with this show -- breathe and stop treating them like gumball machines that dispense content. I don't care if HH/HB is your favorite thing in life and you think Vivzie is the second coming, let Brandon have a life and a career outside of Helluva Boss.

[happiest-hotch]

Hello! I know you just posted something and i'm about to go read it now, but tomorrow it's my birthday and i was wondering if you could write something about Hotch with a younger s/o that turns 25? Althought you don't have to mention the age if it's too specific, if you make it clear that they have an age gap is more than enough. Maybe the team teasing him about the fact that he landed a young badass woman like her? Idk 🙈🙈

I hope I haven’t missed your birthday with this one

You’re not expecting the team to do anything for your birthday, especially when you’re freshly back from a case. Just getting some sleep and being back at home was enough for you to be more than satisfied, and waking up next to your wonderful boyfriend was an added bonus.

So when you walk into the conference room and there’s a banner, flowers, cake, a gift, and most importantly, the whole team, you’re throughly surprised.

You thank them with hugs, leaving your boyfriend until last. He’s not concerned about any FBI PDA policies when he pulls you in for a hug, holding you tightly against his chest and kissing the top of your head. “Happy birthday, gorgeous.” He whispers.

“Thanks.” You reply, beaming up at him.

“Make a wish.” Penelope interrupts you two, probably for everyone’s benefits since even you know the ‘I love you more’s are cringeworthy.

She’s holding your cake out for you to blow out the candles. It’s a mouthwatering cake, decorated perfectly with two candles on top displaying your age. Aaron doesn’t let go of you when you step forward, opting to keep a hand resting on your back instead.

They all cheer when you blow them out. “Are you really that young?” Emily asks. “That means you were still a baby when I was in middle school.”

You laugh with a nod. “Just when I was feeling old you say that.”

“You know you’re probably closer to the inverse of her age, Aaron?” Rossi reminds him.

You’ve had the conversation so many times when Aaron was freaking out about if your relationship was inappropriate and if he was a creep. Every time you meet him with reassurance, so much so that he doesn’t flinch anymore when people comment on it.

“Reid?” You fact check with the genius.

He doesn’t even need a second to think about it. “Closer to your age by a few months.” He reports.

“I’m just saying, respect.” Rossi offers him a fist bump. Aaron fist bumps him hesitantly, not sure what he’s actually done. He’s still confused about how he managed to get you to go out with him, much less fall in love with him. Whatever it is, he’s more and more grateful each day.

“I’m sure you’ve dated people with a much bigger age gap than us.” You remind Rossi. There’s enough rumors that you’re inclined to believe them.

“Dated? No. Slept with? Yes.” He says.

You turn back to look at Aaron with a smirk before speaking a comment that makes him shake his head while everyone else hoots with laughter. “Well he gets to do both.”

[evertidings]

yes, i meant to post this three days ago. yes, i technically missed [A]'s birthday. and yes, i feel absolutely terrible about it. i've been so so busy lately that i've been losing track of my days and ah, it's horrible. but i managed to whip up a little birthday drabble for my favourite sunshine angel for the occasion, which is below the cut.

enjoy !! and thank you for being so patient with me <3

contrary to Blane’s popular belief, [A] doesn’t actually think their birthday is the greatest holiday to exist. they much prefer Christmas, when they can give out gifts to people as much as they want without hearing complaints about prices. or Halloween—the one day they can wear whatever the hell they want without being violently judged.

when it comes to their birthday, all they truly want is a cake and some birthday wishes. they’re simple like that.

as much as they like to go all out for other people’s birthdays, they’ve never cared much about theirs. of course, constantly reminding people how many days there were left until their birthday was not exactly reflective of this, but deep down, [A] has never cared much. a warm wish from their family and loved ones is all they truly need.

though they can’t deny that the royalty treatment is a bonus.

on this particular birthday, [A] wakes up to a barrage of messages from a variety of people, you included. you’ll see each other at work, but seeing the message on their screen before hearing it in person somehow makes it better.

they insisted on no gifts, but unsurprisingly, you didn’t let up. they arrive at work to see a latte in your hand and a carefully gift-wrapped box, both extended to [A] with warm eyes.

friends drop off gifts throughout the day. Blane hands them a card that says “happy birthday. you’re one year closer to dying” and a gift card. [N] beams at them when they reveal their gift—a video game [A] had been wanting for months. [K] tells them they’ll give them their gift after work and Rylan sends a giant paragraph with dozens of emojis to make up for the warlock’s lack of enthusiasm, promising they’ll also give their gift later.

having hosted many surprise parties themself, they could see one coming from a mile away. but when they opened their apartment door that night to a dozen balloons, streamers, a three-layered cake that [K] baked and [N]’s dog Radar bounding up to them with his tongue out and tail wagging, all [A] could do was smile.

[moonlight-prose]

FIRST LIGHT

➛ #01. ETERNAL DARKNESS

a/n: this fic has been shoving its way to the front of my brain for months now. so i finally decided to sit down and write the first chapter. tommy miller somehow snuck up on me in 2023, and now there's really no going back with this man. i love him and all his agonies. this is a fic that i'm really connected to and terrified to post actually. it's also a level of angst i've never put out before so i'm handing tissues to y'all now.

summary: tommy miller never thought he would end up alone. not when he had family behind him - a life that wasn't perfect, but good enough. yet there he was, kneeling on the cold forest floor - bloodied and bruised - asking to die. until light streams through the trees, and he sees you.

word count: 2k+

pairing: tommy miller x f!reader

warnings: not explicit, grief, angst so much angst it's actually painful, tommy wants to die, tw suicide mention, blood, death, grief, the horrors of living through an apocalypse, IF YOU DON'T VIBE WITH A TON OF ANGST THIS IS NOT FOR YOU.

NEXT CHAPTER | SERIES MASTERLIST

There was no light in a body split down the middle. A body filled to the brim with splinters and jagged edges. With a hollow emptiness that created an opening—a chasm.

He could feel how the darkness soaked in, filling the spaces where light once belonged—where hope used to be. But nothing could exist if pain—grief—reigned free. A wild ruthless thing, cracking apart whatever remained. Feeding off the shine that once thrived there.

There was no light.

Not anymore.

He ran through the woods, the heaviness of his boots snapping twigs and branches as he went. The cracking echoed through the air, sharp and loud, accompanied by the heaviness of his breaths. Each one, more painful than the last. His fingers clenched around the ripped leather wrapped around the blade’s handle so tight his knuckles went white. At one point it was brand new, perfect. A birthday gift from his brother. He called it special—once.

Now it dripped red.

Wild eyes darted around the surrounding area, his breaths coming in slower—an attempt to slow the erratic beat of his heart. He could still taste it. The pungent sting of copper that built up in the back of his throat like bile. He couldn’t tell the difference at this point. They burned all the same.

Sucking in a breath, he felt his chest tighten, his eyes red with exhaustion. The nights were desolate, sleep no longer a priority when nothing but memories of a past he couldn’t get back to plagued him. What he wouldn’t give to go back. Maybe then he could save himself; end it before it even began.

Birds no longer chirped the same. He noticed that three days into being alone. As if nature had taken her beauty away; an act of punishment for the selfish behavior of humanity. They took her for granted. Used her up until nothing remained; until her grounds ran red with blood. And this was their consequence. An eternity of misery, of reaping what they sowed from her poisoned grounds.

He stopped breathing, stilled every limb of his body, and listened. For the signal of people coming after him. Or something worse. For a blissful numbing moment, he wished for the latter.

At least then he’d have an excuse.

His palm was warm, slicked and sticky with the color of crimson that stained his skin. A red right hand for the man filled with nothing but regret. If he could feel anything, he might have laughed at the sheer irony. Once upon a time he wanted to save the world. Now he was ready to watch it burn.

Silence spilled out of every corner. A deafening echo he yearned to find relief in. His body had other ideas though.

Clambering forward, he pressed himself against the nearest tree. The bark scraped his palm as he clutched it, tight enough to draw blood. But the bile had built and built and he could feel his body beg for something other than pain. Tilting forward he went dizzy as he dry heaved. His stomach was empty—the food he stole burned a hole in his pack.

Would it set him on fire?

Would he turn to ash here in the middle of the woods?

A sickening hope entered his chest. As thick as tar and black as night. Yet for a man who had nothing to cling to—this was enough. This would have to do.

He’d take what he could get. In a world ruined by death, a bitter hope was all he could carry. He would continue to push this boulder of grief up the hill paved with the souls of the past. The ones who could no longer sustain the heavy weight of their own heart. Some days he wondered if he could keep going, yet every morning he still woke up.

A bit more numb than the day before.

But still alive.

He used to feel hopeful at the realization. Now all that remained was bitter disappointment.

He bit down on the inside of his right cheek hard to stave off his pained shout. Copper flooded his mouth, but this was familiar. As if his body recognized a taste it’d grown to know. Clutching his thigh and waist, he stumbled away from the tree. There was nowhere to go, no place to hide, but the drive to keep moving kept him alive. The need to be anywhere but here.

Blood coated his once white t-shirt, his jeans a darker hue of blue as the wound on his thigh continued to drain out. Tommy knew he didn’t have long—spots of darkness peeking into the corners of his vision. The threat of oncoming blackness.

“Fucking shit,” he hissed, squeezing his eyes shut as the burn of pain spread through his veins.

Images of the man flashed behind his eyelids. Blood, so much of it, filled his senses. He could still smell it, the hot flush against his skin as he pressed down on the blade hard enough to sever that link between life and the human body. How ruthless he’d been was sharp in his mind. And for the first time in a long time, Tommy was afraid of himself.

He killed the man with his special knife. The engraving Joel placed there—a reminder that his brother was always with him—glared back. I’m proud of you, coupled with the offset reflection of a man he didn’t recognize. There was no life in his brown eyes, no light. Only a thrill he’d seen before—a darkness he locked away the second it crept to the surface.

A piece of him that wasn’t human.

He bit down harder on his cheek, tearing through the flesh with ease. Would Joel be proud of him now? Would he look at him with the eyes of a big brother? The promise to protect him lingering in the brown Tommy knew better than his own. Or would he leave him alone all over again; claim he was a lost cause. After all, there was no use in saving the soul of a man this far gone.

Tommy’s breaths came in short, quick little gasps as he fought to stay upright. To push his boulder a little further.

But what was the use? What did he have left to offer the world? The man’s blood began to dry to his skin, into the grooves and lines of his palms. His fate line, heartline, and everything in between now coated in the essence of another being. A reminder that what he had done—what he’d taken—would remain with him until the end of his lifeline.

Being alone wasn’t new to him. Not when his only sibling had to grow up faster than he expected, leaving Tommy behind to figure out shit on his own. But this…the aching pit of isolation was something he didn’t know how to handle. He could still see Joel’s face, the lines of disappointment suddenly deeper than when he was younger. Pity in the brown that once used to shine with hope.

They both changed. They had to with the way things shifted so quickly.

Except Tommy never thought the only thing keeping him sane—the only tie he had to his past—would leave him alone.

He felt that overwhelming despair begin to swell in his throat, clawing to his chest like a beast starving for more. There was no one here to see him fail. No one here to save him from the darkness.

There was no one here to watch him die.

“Please,” he breathed, his voice ragged and raw from not needing to use it. As days came and went he remained silent. His words, trapped in the empty cavern of his chest.

There was no reason to speak when no one would hear his agony.

“Please.”

The beg morphed the longer he stood there, repeating it softly. Swaying on his feet. He wasn’t sure who he was speaking to. Who his plea was going out to, but Tommy didn’t care anymore. The pain that he tried to control—keep at bay for as long as he could—finally began to seep into his mind. Cracking the final pieces of his soul off like a bottle shattering on the floor. He begged for the release of this anguish, for time to turn back, for his brother to return to him.

He begged for death on a silver platter.

Unashamed, unabashed, and unafraid.

His knees slammed against the forest floor as he fell, his body sagging forward slightly, hands clutching onto his waist as blood spilled down his leg. If he didn’t patch himself up and chose to remain this way, he’d eventually bleed out. Right here on the dirt. He’d return to the Earth, become one with the moss that would eventually grow over his body.

Even that seemed like the better choice than this.

Fighting to live without end. In a world that would be happy to see him get snuffed out like a candle. Entirely blown away with nature’s breath. Her viciousness finally coming to fruition.

He gasped for a breath. Hot tears spilled over his scraped cheeks, his blood split lip from fighting now burning with the salt. Only this time he didn’t try to stop himself, sober his emotions and gather his surroundings. This time, he sunk into the darkness that ate away at his soul, consuming him bit by bit like a decadent meal it wanted to savor. He was its sustaining life force.

Until there was nothing left of him.

“Please,” he whispered, his voice cracking from the strain of the truth.

Tommy had never known an emotion quite like this. He never knew what welcoming death meant. Although he supposed a man would never know until he was faced with its truth; until something pushed him far enough.

He’d seen Joel go through it. Watched as his brother grappled with the decision to stay alive, and he would have joined Sarah soon enough. If Tommy hadn’t shoved his hand out of the way. Joel claims he flinched, Tommy knew the truth. He didn’t flinch, he stood still as stone with his eyes closed…he never saw Tommy’s hand coming.

But Joel would never know the truth.

A soft grin played on his lips as memories of his brother and niece flashed behind his eyes. Like a movie reel playing in a lonesome theater. He was the only person sitting there, transfixed to the screen. And Tommy would have spent the rest of his life there, watching. At least there he felt joy, hope. Emotions he thought he’d never have again.

“Please,” he sighed, his eyes fluttering open to see the light that filtered through the branches.

It fell on the floor like a spotlight, playing along it like water, and he found himself breathless to its beauty. Nature was extending her hand gently, offering him the last bit of beauty he’d get to witness. Placing a small amount of peace at his feet in retribution for what he’d gone through; what he was giving up. Tommy’s wounds continued to bleed, but for that brief moment…he didn’t feel a thing.

No pain, no hurt.

Just peace.

Something cracked in the distance, a twig breaking under the boot of someone, but he felt no need to react. The blade lay on the ground beside him, still bloody, still tainted with his guilt and regret. But there was no use picking it up now. He was already too far gone. Another helpless soul lost to a world on fire.

He could see it now. The sunlight illuminated behind their body, a soft voice echoing in the distance, and his lips curved into yet another smile. Was this nature? Had she come to lead him? Tommy gasped in another breath, forcing his eyes to focus, and yet all he could see was a blurred sight of this being. They practically glowed as they approached quicker than before.

“Hi,” he murmured, eyes wide yet unseeing.

Soft warm hands cupped his face, tilted his head, and replied something he couldn’t hear. But the light was too bright, too welcoming, and Tommy was so fucking tired. More words came, questions. He heard nothing. Just the softness of their touch, the gentleness of their nature, until it all faded. And nothing remained.

[mangoposts]

that anon that said something about creepy stalker bsf matt is onto something...

hear me out......

matt is so sweet around you, but his looks always linger for too long and make you lose your breath at the intensity of them.

he'll follow you to like work or something, allways a fw steps behind or just off to the side, just watching you.

he's in awe of you. you two have been friends for what feels like forever, but's always been obsessed with you. stalker obsessed. like im talking, if you go out on a date, he's seeping with rage as he follows you to the restaurant, but obviously when you first told him about it he acted like he was fine.

he'll put a camera in your room or something, "to make sure you're fine". he know's damn well you're fine on your own, he jus likes looking at you. has one in just about every room of your house or apartment, even the bathroom.

he follows you to hangouts with your friends, listening to you talk about wanting whatever it was you wanted. day or so later, matt's handing you whatever you were talking about, covering it up with the same old bullshit excuse he always used when you said you were just talking about wanting it.

"it reminded me of you."

and despite your suspicions, you always fell for it.

anytime you're hanging out with nick over at their house or a group hangout, whatever, he always had to refrain from staring at you. had to act like he didn't watch you get yourself off the other night, or watched when you got fucked by some random dude. matt wishes he were him.

but he's always so loving and very good at covering up what he does. man is the master of persuasion too, always gets you to believe whatever bullshit lies he makes up about anything.

loves getting off to like your instagram or something. always going to the same post, the one of your birthday. when you wore a really short and tight dress; he loves that dress.

(this awoke something in me i didn't know was there omfg)

MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW MEOW STOP IM NOT MENTALLY NORMAL WHY DOES FHIS TURN ME ON IM ACTUALLG OMFGGGGGGGGGGGGGG

Bye stop this is actually making me panic this is … Hollon 😂💯Hollon….😂😂😂Sum is cooking 😂😂💯✍️Hollooonnnnnnn yall 😂😂💯✍️✍️👩🏻‍💻👩🏻‍💻👩🏻‍💻👩🏻‍💻📝

𝕬𝖓𝖔𝖓 𝖞𝖔𝖚’𝖛𝖊 𝖆𝖜𝖔𝖐𝖊𝖓 𝖘𝖔𝖒𝖊𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓𝖌 𝖜𝖎𝖙𝖍𝖎𝖓 𝖒𝖊.

[toxictoad]

In furtherance of my agenda to make Tavs that are sorta cringe but that I love...

Wouldn't it be fucked up if Tav was Gale and Mystra's kid but he never knew about them until they both get tadpoled. Like wouldn't that provide so much potential for angst

(Obscenely long rant about my take on this under the cut, as I tend to do. Also trigger warnings for SA adjacent topics, grooming, brief pregnancy mention, parental neglect, and suicidal thoughts (Of the 'I wish I didn't exist' variety). I'll tag things accordingly)

As a member of the "Fuck Mystra" brigade (As we all are) she's gonna suck as a mother and a lover and all, HOWEVER, for the purposes of this post, I'm making Tav 19, because that's young enough to make a certain amount of sense (Forgotten Realms lore being put to the side for a moment) and making Gale 37, because even if you subscribe to the idea that Mystra was a nonce I don't feel like going there right now. Okay? Okay.

That being said; Mystra only wants a kid for like shits and giggles. Kids are inconsequential to a goddess and she doesn't tell Gale because who fucking knows. Maybe she thought if he had someone other than her to care about he would realize she sucked or something.

So Gale just never learns that he has a whole ass child out there for whatever reason.

With the math Tav (I named him Cosmos because I can do whatever I want) is born when Gale is at least 18, and deities are weird so I imagine that pregnancy is either not like a noticeable physical thing or it's accelerated or there's just something ephemeral about it, so it's not like Mystra is gone or actually physically pregnant or anything.

I think it would be funny if she just gave the baby to Elminster and was like "Hey I'm your goddess so you have to raise my kid also don't tell Gale bye" Because like... He's fucking Elminster. He's an immortal archmage and one of the most powerful people in the Forgotten Realms, and now he has to take care of a baby?! He doesn't know how to do that! He doesn't know what babies need! And what is he gonna do when this thing gets older?!

(Yes I know that Elminster has canonical children but as far as I can tell he didn't raise any of them so it tracks probably)

So Cosmos is raised by Elminster and grows up in a hazardous wizard tower and gets taken on perilous adventures in one of those baby slings because I think it's funny. Also, I think that Cosmos is a sorcerer and it lowkey pisses off all of his weird fucking parents. Cause he's an Aasimar. A child of a goddess. His blood is hella magical and he has an ego about not having to learn spells and shit. He has Gale's disposition but also he has actual charisma to back it up and it's a terrible (Read; Funny as hell) combination.

The result of Cosmos having actual charisma, confidence (Highkey arrogance), and skill is that he is... Well, he's a lush. Not in any practical sense because he is a teenager and lives with a bajillion-year-old man, but like... He's the guy from your high school who was nice enough but also he had a new girlfriend every week and does a little too much partying. He's a playboy and we support him in that endeavor. It really is a miracle that he isn't super obviously weird because he was raised by a cooky old wizard, never knew about his father (I think when he asked Elminster would just tell him he didn't know, because he does care about the kid and doesn't want to burden him with the knowledge), and got a visit from Mystra like... twice. She's literally your dad who texts you every six months and doesn't remember your birthday (I hate her so much).

But somehow he's kinda well-adjusted, and he moves out of Elminster's tower to go do sorcerer things and maybe go on adventures, who knows?

And then he gets fucking tadpoled.

And at first, it's like "Okay, I'm definitely adventuring now. Maybe it wasn't planned but I'm gonna be alright" and then he meets a wizard who was stuck in a rock and is obviously a devotee of Mystra, and he's like "Oh, okay. He could be cool to have around. The dynamic is a little weird but fuck it we ball" and then the wizard is like "Hey I need to eat magic or I'll explode can't tell u why tho" and that's a little sketchy, but he likes the guy and doesn't want him to die, so he gives him his magic shoes.

And things go... Well. He gets the hang of this whole adventuring thing and saving people is pretty cool, actually. And he does kind of indulge in the wizard/sorcerer rivalry because he thinks it's funny, but ultimately he just... likes these people, even if they're all kinda keeping secrets (Him included, because how in the hells is he supposed to unload all of that Mystra baggage to his new tadpole buddies?)

He's the youngest but Lae'zel and Wyll are close enough in age that they get kind of clique-y (I'm a Wyll simp so they're gonna end up married sue me)

And then the tiefling party happens, and he talks to Gale... and oh my god this is so awkward I do not wanna hear you talk about my estranged goddess mom. And like he indulges Gale in his magic trick but the whole thing sets off some warning signs that he's like... HM.

And he isn't sure yet, but he thinks that, maybe, Gale might be his father.

And that is just... Ah. That is both kind of cool and also makes him a little sick.

Because he doesn't know everything, but he does know that Mystra is maybe not the best when it comes to mortal men. And he might've been born out of some stuff that was ethically dubious at best.

So he has the brilliant and not at all stupid plan to never tell anyone ever.

And he tries his absolute hardest to not talk to Gale at all the entire time they're going through the Underdark (The order of the adventure is optimized for maximum drama). Everyone notices but he just... pretends that absolutely nothing is wrong and Gale eventually comes up to apologize like 'Hey man sorry if I was like too much :(' because he's a sweetie and will feel bad about things that are not his fault. And Cosmos tries to say that it isn't about that but it also kind of is, so he just accepts the apology and goes back to being a bit of a dickhead.

And the party is getting ROCKY by the time they get through the Underdark. Everyone knows some shit is up but they also all have their own issues so it's a mess. A hot goddamn mess.

...And then they go through the Mountain Pass... And Elminster is there...

And Cosmos sees him and wants to turn around SO badly but that would be weird and then Elminster sees him...

I cannot paraphrase this accurately to my vision so have a snippet of writing here;

*****

He feels like he might anxiety vomit, but hopefully, it doesn’t show on his face. Gale walks a little faster and waves, “Elminster. Fancy running into you here”

And he doesn’t look very surprised to see the younger wizard, but he does look surprised to see Cosmos. He prays to every deity he can think of that Elminster says nothing.

But who the fuck listens to prayers anyways.

“Gale, my boy… I have some, um, business to attend to with you, but…”

He turns his eyes onto Cosmos and he knows that his face goes white right then.

“How did this-?”

“I haven’t said it yet” He blurts out, swallowing bile, “And you aren’t going to”

Elminster blinks in surprise, glancing between him and Gale for a moment.

“What- You know Elminster?” Gale looks incredulous, and he wants to snark back with some taunt about wizards and sorcerers and useless teachers but he just bites his tongue and nods. He is… so fucked.

He and Elminster are locked in some bizarre staring contest, and Cosmos communicates as much as he can with his eyes that he will try to punch an old man. They say nothing, and Gale is growing increasingly exasperated, “I’m sorry, can someone please explain what’s going on? What have you not said?”

He looks at Cosmos with sad eyes- the same way he’s looked since the Tiefling Party. He can see it out of the corner of his eyes, but he doesn’t acknowledge the words. Cosmos grits his teeth and feels his breath catch in his throat.

“Camp. Now”

He is… so fucked.

*****

And then the big reveal happens and Cosmos is emotionally stunted and maybe has a panic attack or something and runs away for an hour and Gale finds him and tries his best to be an awkward dad. It works, somehow.

And then Cosmos finds out why Elminster was there, and...

Well in short he decides that he's going to punch his mother in the face. Divinity be dammed. It's an incredibly awkward situation at best, but fuck, man. He actually likes Gale- his dad- whoever you are- and immediately jumps on the 'Fuck Mystra' Train. He just got this parental figure and you want him to blow himself up? Yeah, no. Not happening. He has no mother anymore.

(Sidenote; I think that concurrently with all of Cosmos' shit Astarion and Gale would have a thing. This is mostly irrelevant but at some point, Cosmos is like 'Bloodline ended with Mystra. Astarion is my mom now' because it would be funny. Astarion can't take care of a child but he CAN be a weird step-dad to an adult child and give advice about how to get blood out of cotton shirts)

And Gale reacts... more or less like he does in canon, but it's a little different because like... Shit, this is his child. His child who... doesn't want him to blow up. He's devoted to Mystra, but I think an inkling of doubt would emerge with that. It's a little strange, finding out that your companion who you thought was just uncomfortable around you is actually your son with your ex-gf/goddess who is now righteously angry on your behalf. It feels... kinda nice, in a weird way.

I think Cosmos has enough charisma that he can make things sort of not awkward. He just makes jokes about Gale being his dad and everyone is just like 'Well I guess this is how things are now?'

Gale doesn't know how to be a parent, much less to an adult child who also has Mystra baggage, but fuck it if he doesn't try. Awkward conversations about love interests ensue (I like to imagine Gale trying his hardest to give Wyll a shovel talk but it ends up as just him and Wyll having a nice chat. He's trying to be intimidating, dammit!)

I do think Gale would have an 'Oh shit' moment at some point in the Shadow-Cursed lands. If Cosmos gets too low on health, or gods forbid if he has to be revived? Maximum angst potential there. Maybe it makes him start to realize how valuable his life is or something who knows.

Cosmos yells at his dad for even considering blowing himself up at Moonrise Towers (He says sorry later, but still)

A lot of Act 3 is getting through awkward conversations tbh. But it's good for them. But Gale's confrontation with Mystra... Oh boy.

Like Cosmos obviously doesn't approve of the whole crown of Karsus thing, but more importantly; he will scream at Mystra for as long as Gale will let him. Some very choice words are thrown around. But also (And this is where we get some of my own indulgence in angst) I think during this... very amicable conversation between adults... Cosmos would end up saying something akin to 'I wish I was never born' and... Oof. I don't think he would realize it at first, and Mystra wouldn't really care, but it sticks with Gale.

Like the man just kind of realized that his life means something other than benefitting other people, and now he hears that? Heartbreak. Immediate heartbreak. He doesn't know how to broach the subject and just ends up standing around Cosmos' tent until he finally asks what's up.

Cue Gale blurting out that he's glad Cosmos exists and that he wouldn't change any of the bs with Mystra because even if it's new and awkward he's his son and that means something and he doesn't want him to think about his own life the way Gale did and-

Cosmos... genuinely does not know what he's talking about at first, but when he gets it he's just like... Oh, that? Yeah no I just wish I didn't exist because I hate the way that I was made and it feels like my existence hurts you lmao

I think that Cosmos legitimately does not realize that most people don't feel that way sometimes. Like he knows, but he doesn't really internalize that there's something "wrong" with the way he feels

And... Okay why is Gale crying what did he say oh shit-

He had to hammer it into Gale's head that he's deserving of life and love, and now it's Cosmos' turn! Get loved, idiot

(I have so many feelings about so many other bits of Act 3 but this is SO long now so I'm just gonna skip to the epilogue or I'm never going to post this because I just keep adding things)

So Bloodweave happens, because tbh I don't see Gale with any of the other companions in this scenario (Spawn Astarion, obvi) and... look, I LOVE Karlach and I love Wyll's Blade of Avernus ending, but I just want them to be a weird fucked up little family, okay? Karlach got a Deus Ex Machina and her heart is fine for some reason in this case idk.

I just really like the idea of Wyll and Cosmos adventuring around the Sword Coast and occasionally popping into Gale's tower in Waterdeep to visit. The dynamic between Gale, his morally grey Vampire boyfriend, his dumb magic son, and his dumb magic son's hero husband who is also his friend is just... Mwah. Chef's kiss. Weird gay family over here I love them. Wyll's father is so confused. Christmas dinner is insane. Morena Dekarios is thrilled to have a grandchild. Tara is basically Cosmos' aunt. Withers is there sometimes. It's pure chaos and I can't get enough of it.

[thatdeadaquarius]

Sobbing and crying just saw your post of us sounding like a Sim, and I am DYING.

What if it went the other way? They can understand us, but we can't understand them!

Us : hey so what the fuck is happening why tf am I in genshin impact

Them : OMG ASKSKSKSKS FEDERRRALL MEERKK TREEESO! (Omg it's the divine God I'm shittinh myself oml) or whatever idk)

Us: excuse me what the fuck did you just say about my mother? (US mishearing or maybe the words are randomized? Who knows)

Everyone just being confused and frustrated on why you can't understand them. Is it because they aren't worshipping you enough? Maybe some friendship level BS where obly those who are lvl 10 can understand u or smth? Who knows, certainly not the Creator.

I highkey am thinking about writing smth for this now but having it be for like each archons reaction or smthin but who knows. I just wanna see a bunch of divine beings confused outta their mind in like whatever cities square and it turning into a "holy game of charades"

Also happy early birthday ajdjdjkdkdkdk

I”M SO LATE SO THANK YOU FOR THE BDAY WISHES LMAO SORRY KARMA MY BELOVED

AHHHHH U INSPIRED ME BY THE ARCHONS HOLY GAME OF CHARADES-

AND OH NO LVL 10 ONLY FRIENDSHIP UNDERSTANDING-

(づ ￣ ³￣)づ here have a hug for your patience- sorry karma!! :')

LMAO this inuyasha gif- obviously everyone else guessing what ur doing and the 2 others r like ppl like Venti or Kaeya who r just fucking with ppl by joining you lol

OK BUT WHO DO U HAVE LVL 10 FRIENDSHIP?!

BC I GOT NOBODY 😭

ITS RLLY HARD TO DO OKAY-

I HAVE TO PUT ACTUAL EFFORT INTO THE FEW THAT ARE LEVEL 4-5 

ID BE SO FUCKED-

Oh no.

Oh god (you??) no.

What if you had the highest friendship with little d**ks like Scaramouche.

noooOOOOOO

He’d be like, “Eh, I don’t feel like translating today.” 💀

Also I’m rolling with the idea that 

perfect understanding = lvl 10,

Most words 7-9

Some words 5-6

Kinda ?? they get 2 words per sentence or smth 3-4

Basically nothing 1-2

◇

Anyway ornery bitches like Scara/Xiao/Alhaitham/Rosaria/Diluc (all for diff reasons like diluc/xiao would just be overwhelmed and dont like ppl that much lol, whereas haitham doesnt give a fuck lmao) would kinda suck to have as translators

OH NOT THE PEOPLE WHO WOULD JUST LIE ABOUT WHAT U SAID ON PURPOSE TO DECEIVE THE MASSES LIKE Heizou/Yae Miko/Kaeya/Venti 

They pull something like “oh well the god of gods said I could have the last slice of cake/an extra glass of wine hehe”

For different reasons these people would also be ROUGH translators: FISCHL OH NO- , Zhongli, Albedo (he simply would omit “unnecessary details”, cyno, ITTO PLEASE, Raiden (puppet) bc shed take stuff too far/too literally u would never be able to communicate jokes, Razor (im sorry bbyboy), Shenhe

THE CHARADDEEESSS

THE CHARADES OF THE GODS 

You may or may not get another title of a jokester god bc of these SILLY charades 💀

The people u have higher levels of friendship with giving hints LMAO

♤

“Uhhh….. Oh! Oh! Greatest Lord wishes to see a dance performance!” 

Nahida’s sweet voice rings out in Yujing Terrace, her tiny hand waving in the air like an elementary student who’s really excited to answer. …Which isn’t that far off honestly.

“Hmm, I disagree Buer, I believe the Hundun Emperor is saying they wish to take a bath perhaps. I am also attempting to use context, as it has been a long day for them.” Zhongli is in his classic “majestic thinking gentleman” pose, and you’d admire it more if it weren’t for the fact that they don’t seem to be getting what you’re saying.

You hadn’t yet found someone with a higher friendship level than 2 or 3 (hey, don’t blame yourself, you really have to put effort into friendship levels to get them anywhere and you were still busy screwing around in Sumeru when you got spirited away).

So needless to say, most people were getting “the, me, I, you, etc.” rather than the actual important keywords you needed them to, hence the godly charade game now.

As you “hold” something, you throw your hands up in the air, still keeping your hands wrapped around nothing. You think if somebody told you last week that you’d be playing charades with the archons in Genshin Impact so you could actually communicate with them… well you don’t know what you would have done. Maybe just gave them a really awkward laugh.

“Oh! Are you asking for a weapon? Akitsu Mikami, my emperor, we or our nations will surely provide protection from any harm that might befall you. Hm, I suppose we should offer something anyway… I wouldn’t want to displease them…” Ei mutters to herself, having taken over her puppet once more for the occasion.

She and Buer, still retaining their authority status, had asked for the area to be cleared in order to try and get closer to communicating with the Divine First, or you.

“Ha! What idiot would try to hurt the All-Parent in their home, unless they wish to get thrown?” Venti cheekily says, as you don’t understand him, but judging by Zhongli’s clenched jaw, Ei’s sigh, and Nahida’s giggle, you can guess.

You give your own sad sigh… it’s already been 3 hours. 😭

How hard is charades for 4 archons??

Well… apparently very hard.

You put your face in your hands, and you hear the (retired) archons start to debate something, you can tell it’s getting a little passive-aggressive between Venti and Zhongli by their tone alone. 

…Okay, now it’s just aggressive.

The archons eventually give their attention back to you so you can go back to your charades lol

You tried opening your mouth and closing it, very obvious, they can’t go wrong. 

…Turns out they can. 

Somehow you find yourself with a hot tea brewed by the geo archon. 

(Venti attempted to offer you Dandelion Wine, or Osmanthus Wine even, and only god, well you now, knows where he pulled them from. Ei swatted his head, he looked so offended, and his cheeks were all puffed up, heh.)

Giving up, you just try to motion for them to stay still, your hands gesturing like trying to calm a wild animal.

They give you questioning looks, and you begin to walk off, they all seem to immediately start discussing something with each other. All of the gods look very conflicted, and after a minute of you getting further away (yes, you’re almost home free, Xiangling here you come! ) Nahida skips to catch up with you.

She gives you a beaming smile, and you can’t bring yourself to not return it. She's so much cuter in real life, even the official art didn't do her justice.

You make your way towards the restaurant, finally.

And apparently you’re happier than you thought to smell the savory scents flowing out of the kitchen because your stomach growls loudly.

You’re too hungry to even attempt to stop it, no one will care, except Nahida’s eyes go wide. She begins to sputter, and flail her hands desperately trying to charade an apology at you.

…you were just trying to tell them you were hungry. 💀

☆

Ask box open again! :] 🎊

Pspspspspssubliminalmessagingyouwillsendthatdeadaquariusanaskpssppspspspspssss

✨️Hope you guys got smth out of this rough draft✨️ ♡

:D hope u guys have had a good weekend!

My senior art exhibit is april 6th so wish me luck and prayers (from any religion im not picky pls)

Safe Travels,

💀♒️

♡the beloveds♡

@karmawonders / @0rah-s / @randomnatics / @glxssynarvi / @nexylaza / @genshin-impacts-me / @wholesomey-artist

[kazumiwrites-fanfiction]

Fish Can't Tell Fortune

SUMMARY: You show a mysterious fish to Azul. WORD COUNT: 400+

WARNINGS: I wrote this in like ten minutes, spoilers for the fortune telling fish if you haven't done this in chemistry??? Idk A/N: I literally had this experiment and I was immediately like "This would make a good fic idea!!" Lmfao. Technically I was going to write something for my event but that's going to (hopefully) happen later this weekend (also my birthday weekend woohoo) Uh yes anyways I did kind of submerge my fish in water yesterday and I don't know how that ended (because I've been too scared to see if it still works) so that is fun- Anyways I can already tell that I'm going to dislike Chemistry just because- yeah. I enjoy it but also memorizing stuff is going to be a pain (I wish Azul tutored me (I'm broke though))

© kazumiwrites - All rights reserved; please do not steal, edit, copy, repost (etc) my work without my express permission.

Azul never believed in fortune-telling. It never told the truth; only hard work could show it.

But when he saw you being all excited with the small red and white packet in your hand… He couldn't say no.

He listened attentively as you talked about how this toy used to be popular with children in your world; apparently it was now a novelty. It was… Interesting. And this could show him his 'fortune'? Well, he had to try it out - even if he didn't believe in it.

He took the bag from your hands, looking at the outside. "Fortune Teller… Miracle Fish. Mhm." He nodded slightly, before pulling the small red fish out of the packet.

Doing as instructed, he placed the fish on the palm of his hand. It immediately started to move, and the two of you watched intensely.

"So… It turned over. What does this mean?"

You read the small text on the packet (that you had snatched from him after he took the fish out) before you stifled a snicker. You turned and showed him the words.

"False? What do you mean I'm false?" Azul looked irritated to almost a comical amount. "I am not- what does it even-"

You shrugged, just telling him that the fish said what it wanted to say.

Azul let out a soft huff, shaking his head. "I'm not believing this. What about you? What does it do when it's on your palm?"

You took the fish from his hand, holding it in the palm of your hand. It moved, albeit slower this time; it curled up entirely.

"…Passionate?" Azul read out loud, a soft frown on his face. "Well, I suppose I can see where that comes from…"

You laughed, telling him that the fish never lies.

"Whatever you say. Now, give me that. I want to figure out exactly what's going on with this."

And a few days later, he had actually figured it out.

It hadn't been hard for him; he thought it was either heat or moisture. As the fish didn't react to any type of heat-related thing, that was out. However, the water did make it move faster.

And after testing some more and remembering old bits of information, he deduced that it was some sort of chemical reaction that was going on that caused the fish to move in the way it did.

Even as you told him it was no fun if he figured it out, he shook his head.

"Now I know that science - not a miracle - powers this fish. And it was interesting to research as well. Thank you for showing me this, kantokusei-san."

As always, reblogs and comments are always appreciated! ♡ Send your thoughts grr

This post has details for requesting, and I also currently have a writing event going on here. Please check it out! (And request stuff for the event please I am running out of motivation-)