#idk anyone else’s dynamics yet but this is know For Sure

[bottomtim]

[Steddie abo | 1.2k | part 1/? (part 2 here) | rated T, possibly M in later parts | not mentioned in this part of the ficlet but steddie is omega/omega 😌]

“So,” Nancy starts on a Sunday afternoon. “I think we should ask Eddie to be in our pack.”

It’s early summer. It’s rainy and muggy. The Wheeler’s basement is cooler than the rest of the house, but not necessarily comfortable. The kids are sprawled around the couch, reading comic books together. Nancy, Robin, and Steve are convened by the washer and dryer while Nancy folds a load of blankets for their upcoming pack night. Which Eddie is invited to. Because Eddie is already a part of their pack.

“Well, duh,” Robin says easily. “Of course. He went to Hell and back with us, plus he hangs around with us all the time, anyway.”

Steve scoffs, “You say that like he’s not already in the pack.”

“Oh? You know something we don’t?” Robin asks, eyebrows raised.

“Come on, don’t be stupid. Eddie’s in the pack. Has been, for like, months.”

Robin and Nancy share a look, before Nancy narrows her eyes at Steve. “Okay… And are you sure Eddie knows he’s in the pack?”

“Don’t be ridiculous,” Steve says, crossing his arms and cocking his hip to the side to leave against the washer.

“Well we can’t just assume that he knows,” Nancy said, shaking her head quickly when Robin jumps in.

“We know it’s just been him and Wayne for a long time. He might not be familiar with big pack dynamics. Or, like, any pack dynamics. It probably works a lot different to be a pack of two.”

The logic is sound, it’s fair and valid, but then Steve remembers Eddie rubbing the scent gland on his wrist while they were falling asleep to the tv yesterday afternoon. Like pack mates do. Not just simple easy going friends hanging out.

“Trust me, he knows.”

“Fine. Great. So since Eddie knows he’s in our pack, and this isn’t news to him at all, then you won’t mind taking these blankets for him to scent for the next movie night nest?” Nancy gives him a tight lipped smile and shoves a stack of blankets in Steve’s arms.

“Oh, come on, Nance. He’s been to literally every pack gathering since he’s gotten out of the hospital. Not to mention, everything we did for him in the hospital and while he was recovering!”

There was a pack member posted at both Max’s and Eddie’s bedsides as often as humanly possible, usually Steve himself since he wasn’t in school and Family Video had been closed until further notice. And he’ll never forget Eddie waking up from his 2-week coma, shocked to be alive, possibly even more shocked that Steve was the one at his bedside, and professing his love for the pack through choked tears. If there was ever a chance that Eddie might not become absorbed into Steve’s ragtag pack before (not likely; they were bonded by the harrowing experience of going to the Upside Down, and Eddie just felt like theirs now), that little moment cemented his spot right there.

Steve continues, “He’s literally always with us. He smells like us. He just scented me yesterday when we were saying goodbye, for Christ’s sake! I know he failed, like, four times but he’s not that dense.”

So Steve might be getting a little worked up, so sue him. Eddie is theirs. It’s crazy that Nancy and Robin think they need to spell it out.

Nancy huffs and rolls her eyes before giving Steve’s shoulder a light push so she can get to the washer and switch loads. “Eddie was barely conscious in the hospital and had literally no one else to help take care of him when he got out. He could’ve thought we were just being nice.” When she’s done, she straightens up and looks at Steve with the hint of a playful smirk on her lips. “Besides, I think the scenting is more of a you thing than a pack thing.”

“Now you’re really being ridiculous.”

Nancy raises her eyebrows at Robin, a silent plea for back up, which Robin gleefully obliges.

“I mean, I can’t say I’ve ever been scented by Eddie.”

Nancy narrows her eyes and strokes her chin, a mimicry of deep thought. “I can’t say that I have, either. In fact, I’d deduce no one in the pack has.”

“Hmm, elementary, dear Watson,” Robin says with a bad British accent and mimes smoking a pipe, which causes Nancy to break character and giggle. Usually, Steve would think the two of them were cute, making each other laugh. But not now, when it’s at his expense.

“Okay, don’t be smart. He has to have scented, like, Mike or Dustin, or Lucas. They were in that nerd club together, he’s known them longer. Maybe he’s a little closed off, but… Look, there’s no way he doesn’t know. It’s honestly kind of insulting that you think he doesn’t, I really expected better of you two.” If his arms werent full of blankets, he’d cross them over his chest in a stance the kids had dubbed his mom pose (and damn those kids, but maybe it is a little reminiscent of a mother scolding their pups).

Steve can see the subtle irritation simmering in Nancy as she gives him another tight smile. “Right. Okay. So. Blankets. Go get his scent. Thanks.”

Steve turns to go and calls, “Hey kids!” as he walks toward the couch. “Which of you has ever been scented by Munson?”

Surprisingly, it’s only Dustin that raises a hand. “Henderson? Just you?”

Dustin shrugs, “Yeah. It was when he was still in the hospital, after… You know.”

Dustin, understandably, does not like to talk much about the events of March 1986, and no one really blames him. So they leave it at that.

“You know, you’re going to have to actually ask him,” Max says, without looking up from the comic she’s reading. “They’re right. He wouldn’t know.”

“Really, Mayfield, you ganging up on me, too?” How could they all have such little faith in Eddie to see the obvious right in front of him?

“Why are we ganging up on Steve? I want to gang up on Steve,” Mike pipes up, looking up from his book.

Steve sighs through his nose before he explains, “Rob and Nance seem to think Eddie needs a formal invitation to the pack. Because apparently, it’s not enough that he’s with us, like, 24/7.”

Lucas shrugs, “Maybe… It’s not enough for him?”

“What?! That’s crazy.” That was Mike. And he’s not ganging up on Steve, he’s agreeing with him. Ha! “He just is pack. He just is!”

“Look, I’m not saying he isn’t, but I agree with Robin. We can’t just assume he knows.”

El shrugs in her spot next to Mike. “I probably would not know I was in your pack if you had not told me.”

An interesting point, sure, but El was raised in a lab.

“See?” Max says. “And Eddie is just… Like, sure he’s got this larger than life personality on the outside and all this bravado, but his emotions seem more closed off. Yeah, he comes to pack nights, but he never gets in the nest unless asked, and even then he has to ease into it, like he’s worried he shouldn’t be there.”

Besides Steve being surprised that Max has paid that much attention to Eddie, Steve is even more surprised that she might be… Right.

“This debate is stupid,” Dustin weighs in, voice loud, ready to settle things. “Eddie is ours,” he says. He says it with so much finality, such surety, like if he knows nothing else in the world, at least he knows this. Steve’s heart feels warm with the truth of it. Because Dustin gets it. “But-“ Wait, but? But what? No buts!- “It doesn’t hurt to reassure both him and us of that fact. So, Steve, if you will.” Dustin gestures vaguely towards the blankets, then waves Steve off like a King on his throne dismissing the jester.

And just like that the kids shrug, going back to their comic books. Nancy is smiling and waving goodbye to him while Robin pushes him toward the stairs.

(part 2)

[taintedcigs]

— even if it’s handcuffed i’m leaving here with you

pairing: steve harrington x fem!reader x eddie munson

summary: steve asks eddie for his handcuffs to spice up things in the bedroom with you, and once things go wrong, the two of you turn to eddie for help… in more ways than one. (wc: 3.1k+)

warnings: MINORS DNI, smut smut smut, or*l (f!receiving), handcuffs duh, lots of praises, dom!eddie, steve kinda subby but also soft!dom? the dynamics are mixed LMAO, pet names (sweetheart, honey, baby, slut), mmf, three way kissing idk

authors note: so this is what happens when a girl mixes her three hyperfixations; 9-1-1, steddie and CHALLENGERS. i wrote this v long ago it is a bit shitty and not proof-read SO IGNORE ALL MISTAKES THANK U. (also this is sm more meaningful to me now bc i got this song as my surprise song like i accidentally manifested this WAIT.)

and please, if you wanna support me; reblog + like + comment ILY!!

Steve is embarrassed.

Embarrassed that he has to ask Eddie for this. For handcuffs to use that he has no idea what the fuck to do with.

And of course Eddie finds it all amusing, a smirk plastered on his face while he teases Steve, rosy-cheeks turning pinker.

And normally, it would've pissed him off, Eddie's teasing, his flirty comments towards you, towards him.

But for some reason, it doesn't.

The three of you have this dynamic that he can't quite put his hand on, it's different, exciting, new, it intrigues him, more than anything.

You and Steve had just started dating, a couple months in, the honeymoon phase and all, and of course, Eddie had been there for it all.

The first moment you caught Steve's eye, you caught Eddie's too, the dynamic settled in then with Steve charming you right away, while Eddie's flirty antics didn't go unnoticed by you.

Yet, somehow, someway, it snowballed into you dating Steve. But it didn't end there. The three of you hung out often.

Very often.

So much so that you had regular movie nights, always ending up high out of your minds with Eddie’s shitty weed, talking each other's ears off 'till the sun came up.

You knew everything about his life, his shitty band gigs (the one Steve dragged you to, and surprisingly his music didn't suck), his uncle, his girlfriends. Or the lack thereof.

Eddie always mentioned how he just hadn't found the right one yet, just a bunch of meaningless sex.

And he made sure to always come to the both of you afterwards, telling everything, in great fucking detail too. 

Maybe it was weird for anyone else. But for the three of you, it was your normal. 

Especially for you, because you enjoyed them. Enjoyed his stories as they made you squirm in your seat. Reactions not going unnoticed by Steve.

And it's what led to Steve wanting to spice things up in the bedroom with you. He knew the sex was great. He was obsessed with you, and you were with him.

But, fuck, there was something missing. Something he couldn't pin point exactly. And he was willing to try out anything, especially when he remembered how much you reacted to one of Eddie's stories with the handcuffs, later mentioning to him that you really liked the idea.

The idea of losing control, giving yourself fully to another partner, and Steve's knees almost gave out right then and there.

He didn't know where the fuck to obtain handcuffs, hence why he immediately ended up at Eddie's door, enduring his endless teasing, sort of hoping that he'd offer to help.

An idea that crossed his mind, but one that he'd never verbalize, unless, you mentioned it too.

The second he showed you the handcuffs you squealed in excitement, putting on your best lingerie, making a show out of everything before the two of you didn't hesitate to jump on each other. His clothes scattered in the room, you in your lingerie, hungry for each other.

His mouth lingered, scent so intoxicating that you could feel your thighs dampen, lips all over your skin and hands squeezing whatever he could grab onto, both of you feral.

“Y'know I didn't wanna have to do this,” he murmurs into your lips, bringing the cuffs in your view, playing into it, enjoying the giggles you give him in return. 

“Please, sir, promise I'll be good,” you pout with those doe eyes, making Steve almost cave in, cock stirring against his tight boxers, begging to be attended to. 

He gives a rough grunt before pining your hands above your head “That’s my girl.” 

“But you still have to be punished,” he hisses quietly, putting his weight on top of you, the cold metal off the first cuff making you shiver, he tightens it as soon as he locks it, making sure your other wrist is free, for now. “Don’t worry, I’ll go easy on ya, doll.” His hums make you whine loudly.

“For now.” You can feel his smirk widening when his lips attack yours again, hungry, as his bulge presses against your inner thighs, his hand holding your cuffed one in place, making you mewl desperately, kisses traveling down your chest. 

And of course, you use his distraction to your advantage, quickly grabbing onto his free hand, the second cuff clicking onto its place before he can even attempt to protest. 

“I guess we’re even now, pretty boy,” you tease with a sultry voice, but Steve’s head pops up to meet your doe eyed gaze with a panic. 

“Did you just handcuff us both to the bed?” He asks, shear dread overtaking his face, making you furrow your brows. 

“Yeah, baby, that’s the whole point,” you giggled, attempting to kiss him again but he pulled away. “Fuck,” he groaned, making you roll your eyes. 

“Oh c’mon, I know you have a thing for women being in control.” 

True, and it would’ve turned him on, almost made him bust out right then and there, if the context was any different, but instead he could just groan in panic. “Oh, sweetheart, I do, but fuck-”

“What?” You ask, face puzzled.

“The keys are in my pockets,” he murmurs, gaze trailing near the dresser. 

Your eyes follow his, the jeans you threw in a hurry were placed upon the dresser, far away from the two of you, and there was no physical way to reach for them. 

Both of you, cuffed to the bed, and no one there to save you.

“Oh, shit.” 

-

The two of you tried every possible position to get out, but there was no fucking luck, and that’s when you finally settled on calling someone for help. 

It was obvious the only person you could call for help was Eddie, but you knew his teasing would be relentless, curls bouncing each time a laughter rumbled from his stomach, making you huff out immaturely. 

“Seriously, Eddie, this isn’t funny!” Steve chided, a bit playfully considering he knew how stupid the two of you must’ve looked, and it just made Eddie chuckle louder and louder. 

“Are you kidding? This is the highlight of my week!” 

“C’mon, Eds, just help us.” Your soft tone caught his attention quickly, his smirk disappearing just as fast before he approached the two of you closer, now able to get a much better look at the two of you. 

“Oh, Harrington, what did you even do?” He rambled, trying to ignore that feeling he always got, but this time much stronger, you in your lingerie, and Steve’s obvious bulge that made Eddie gulp physically. Shit.  

“I totally should’ve offered to teach you both.” He didn’t even know where the fuck that came from. Word vomit.  

“Why didn’t you?” Curiosity got the best of you, and you didn’t even realize the implications of your words, until the two boys snapped their heads in your direction, like you’ve blurted out the most scandalous shit ever. 

“I- uh- what?” Eddie stammered, eyeing Steve carefully, not knowing if this was a joke. Or if both of you actually meant it.

He never thought it was possible. This. The three of you. Sure the dynamic between all of you had been tethering on something more. But never straight forward like this. 

It surprised both of you when Steve spoke up, lips twitching into a smirk. “Why didn’t you offer to teach us?” The two of you finished each other’s sentences, it almost looked intentional, as if the two of you have planned this, like the two of you ever talked about this. 

You didn’t, it was just natural. Something you both had been too ashamed to admit. 

Something even Eddie couldn’t admit to himself, other than a few jokes, and some drunken confessions here and there, but nothing like this.

All he ever wanted.

Eddie’s usual confidence was wavering, and it was amusing to see, exciting. Something you’d love to explore. Make him beg. God, you knew he’d sound pretty as fuck when he whined. 

“W-would you guys want that?” Stammering, again, yet you can’t get too cocky, because you know once Eddie fully wraps his head around what the fuck is happening, he’ll lean back into that domineering side. After the countless stories the two of you  have heard, it intrigues you both. So you and Steve unanimously help him to get there. 

“If we didn’t, we wouldn’t offer it, Munson,” you encouraged, watching the way his eyes oggle both of you, curious, ecstatic, that dirty mind conjuring something.

“So… you’re both sure about this?” 

“Sure that I want to be fucked by both of you? I think so, Munson.” You roll your eyes, so bored of the fact that you’ve been handcuffed for the past twenty minutes with no action, and because you knew it’d rile Eddie up. You’ve seen the flare in his gaze before, jaw locking in each time you rolled your eyes at him. 

And it works, like a switch, you see the dominance bubbling up on his face.

“Feisty that one, isn’t she, Stevie?”

“Mmhm, the dirtiest mouth,” Steve adds, soft hands squishing your cheeks with a smirk, insides feeling gooey with the way they both eye you. 

He tssked, “Haven’t you taught her some manners?” You whined slightly at that comment, they both knew what you wanted, what you desired, your boundaries… everything. 

A dynamic that’s been brewing for months… finally exploding into reality, and of fucking course you couldn’t hide your excitement, making Eddie grin. 

He’s quick to uncuff Steve, a groan leaving his lips at the relief from the cold metal against his skin, making Eddie’s cock stir at the sound. His two play things. And he’s going to have so much fun. 

“Wanna help me teach her some manners, pretty boy?” Steve didn’t even answer, holding you down and spreading your thighs while Eddie grabbed your other hand, cuffing you properly this time, tightening it and relishing in your pathetic mewls. 

Biting the inside of your thighs, Steve didn’t hesitate to tease you, spreading your pussy lips open to show it to Eddie, both of them grinning hungrily, “look how pretty she looks, Eds.” 

“Such a gorgeous pussy,” Eddie hummed, admiring, groaning with a deep sigh. 

All he fucking dreamed about. 

Glistening with your arousal, inviting him in, and those goddamn sultry eyes were driving him insane, making him blink twice to make sure he wasn’t imagining, both of you looking at him like you wanted to eat him up. 

A kind of attention he wasn’t used to, but it got him more and more riled up, confident, trailing his fingers by your inner thighs, the sensation of Steve’s lips brushing against your thighs while Eddie’s fingertips softly teased at your skin was something straight out of a dream. 

Eddie looked at Steve, a subtle need to get his permission to press his lips to you.

So new… boundaries blurred and unknown, and Steve was quick to nod, hungrily watching the two of you, cock straining so hard against his boxers that he was aching.

Desperate. 

Eddie was more or less the same, especially when you initiated the kiss, the softness of your lips brushing against his, making him whine pathetically. 

It didn’t take long for him to take control again, the dynamic between the three of you changing ever so quickly, Steve still ghosting inside of your thighs, stomach, chest, legs, everywhere.

And shit… Eddie was a good kisser. 

His lips were demanding, soft but somehow still teasing, attentive. His tongue didn’t meet much resistance as it danced against yours, smooth, on beat, the type that made flutters appear in your stomach, all the while Steve’s touches making your thighs dampen. 

Too much. But in the best way possible. 

If your hands weren’t tied up, it would’ve been surfing through their soft hair, demanding more attention, making you grew more and more frustrated, a smirk sitting on both of their lips at your pathetic moans. 

A light scruff of Eddie’s beard scratched against your cheeks before he broke the kiss, “Steve,” he hummed, gaining his attention, head popping up all ecstatic, “C’mere.” 

Both of them stick to your side, weight of the bed shifting as the gazes exchanged almost burned each other through the core. Full of longing, desire, and hunger.  

Eddie angled your face toward Steve, “Kiss her,” he demanded.

A demand that didn’t take Steve a second longer to obey, thick fingers brushing against your face as his big hands cupped your heated cheeks, with your lips parted slightly he didn’t hesitate to push his tongue inside your mouth, possessing you fully, completely, an uncontrollable whine slipping past your lips. 

“Fuck,” Eddie whispered, “you guys are so hot.” His breath fanned against your neck, hot hands running down your body, all three of you growing more and more impatient with each ragged breath, Steve’s tongue still shoved down your throat while Eddie played with your breasts, lips on your neck, making you squirm. 

You could feel Eddie’s needy cock pressing against your ass, while Steve’s was barely confined in his boxers, prodding against your thigh, you don’t know how or when it happened but Eddie had joined in on the kiss too, the three of your lips moving in synch, busy between each other’s hot mouths, tongues curious and on beat, all magical and tempting.

Dark depths you always wanted to explore but never could, sloppy and filthy in the best way possible, shutting your eyes close as you enjoyed it, felt it all. 

Unsure of who’s tongue was tangled in yours at this point but you could careless, disorienting you in a way that you couldn’t tell whose hands were hot all over your body, everywhere, messy, and uncontrolled. 

And fuck, did you need more. 

You could tell they did too, dicks twitching against you in a way that made you flutter. 

And it felt like the three of you communicated, telepathically, because both of them, somehow managed to break the kiss, making your face fall in for more, unable to do anything with your hands cuffed to the bed. Infuriating, and not helping the wetness that had well already pooled inside of you. 

“Awww, our pretty baby is needy, isn’t she?” Eddie mocked, both of them shifting down to your thighs, attention all on you as they spread you wider, mesmerized gaze following your every slight twitch. 

“Relax,” Eddie cooed, amber gaze dangerously warm, both making you whine and giving you comfort at the same time, and before you could think, Steve’s hands warmed you up as well. 

“Let us take care of you,” he added, and you couldn’t help but enjoy their squeezing, kneading, making you feel so fucking good. 

You nodded, squirming as Eddie’s bearded chin tickled your skin, planting kisses inside of your thigh, while Steve’s fingers teased you, and all you could do was whine, hips rising from the bed, lust overshadowing the initial doubt. 

“That’s our good girl,” Eddie praised, your thighs spread open, pussy exposed, completely. The two of them taking care of you, hands everywhere and one of their thumbs teasing your entrance, collecting your juices, smearing it around your lips, making you go airborne. 

You could barely comprehend what happened when fingers slipped inside of you, one at first, then two, slicked in your juices, teasing, pumping in and out of you.

Head thrown back, you embrace the euphoria, different fingers entering inside of you, both of them deeper and deeper, squelching noises and your whimpers so heavenly that Eddie could feel his cock twitching, while Steve pathetically rutted into the sheets, desperate for some friction.

Fingering you until you could hear how wet you were, opening you up. Fully exposed to them.

You were too fucked out to notice that they had both started kissing your pussy lips, lapping up your juices, drinking you in, Eddie on one side and Steve on the other. 

Heaven-sent.

You moaned like a bitch in heat, Eddie and Steve’s dripping cocks stirred at the sound, desperate to make you cum, to taste you.

Their fingers linked inside of you, thumbs continuing their rubs, and that hot white spot appeared behind your eyes. 

You wanted to cum.

Fuck that.

You needed to cum.

And who were they to deny their little angel? 

You had earned it.

Back arched, hands tight against the cuffs, all you could do was mewl as their fingers were stretching you, licks all over your hole making your breath ragged, “E-Eds… Stevie… I-I… shit!” 

Eddie was quick to pop his head to meet your gaze, fingers still continuing their movements, flicking your sensitive spots as he gave you that goddamn grin again. “You wanna cum doll… don’t ya?” 

Your body was frail. The most beautiful ache. Your entire nerve system felt like it was about to explode. 

Everywhere. All at once. 

“Come for us,” Steve  encouraged, his and Eddie’s fingers moving faster, Steve lapping up your juices while Eddie’s tongue found your clit, sucking on it like it was his lifeline. 

The softest tongue, but the roughest movements. Just fucking perfect. 

“Oh, fuck!” You hissed, “E-Eddie, S-Steve!” 

“That’s right, slut, scream our name while you come for us,” Eddie demanded. 

And fuck you wanted more, so much more. Just the idea of having two of them inside of you at the same time was enough to have your eyes roll all the way to the back of your head. 

But you couldn’t wait. 

“You-you’re both so… fuck… fu… fu… fuckkkkk…” Your words got caught in the back of your throat, pathetic noises was all they could make out, especially as Eddie’s tongue circled around your clit, suckling, fingers working faster as it finally brought you over the edge. Making you jerk and come so hard that white spots flew behind your eyes. 

The wildfire and the chemistry between the three of you burning your insides, that tingling warm sensation prickling every inch of your skin. 

“God, you taste perfect, sweetheart,” Eddie praised with a low hum. “Do you know how long I’ve been waiting to hear that fucking moan?”

“You’re so fucking hot, baby,” Steve growled, making you his while he gently uncuffed you, each of their praises sending warm tingles down your spine.

Fuck, they were good. 

And as Steve was about to get up, Eddie stopped him with a quick tut. “Okay, pipe down, sweetheart, you still have a lot to learn.” 

With that dumbfounded look on his face, he turned to face Eddie, making him grin wider. 

“Oh, Stevie you look so cute with that confused look on your face, such a pretty face isn’t he?” Eddie’s attention turned to you, still so domineering that all you could do was frantically nod. 

“Do you wanna help me teach him, baby?” You nodded, again, gaze glazed, overtaken by desire.

The two of you were quick to pin him down, skin meshing all together when you helped Eddie cuff him.

“Let us take care of you, pretty boy.” 

[thriftedtchotchkes]

the way we fight

pairing: joel miller x f!reader

summary: you and joel love taking your frustrations out on each other—in more ways than one

warnings: 18+ MDNI, language, drug use, canon-typical violence, slight spoilers for minor tlou 2 cutscene, jackson era, enemies to lovers, undefined age gap, sloooow buildup, smut, grinding, rough oral (male & female receiving)

word count: 6.7k

a/n: no idea how this got so long, but here we are! generally my fics are based on song lyrics, so this one goes out to my girl ari and social house. this honestly took a while to wrap my brain around and idk how the end got so filthy but alas, i really hope y'all enjoy! as always, thoughts and feedback are always appreciated 💕

It’s always an argument with him. He’s just so stubborn. Actually, Joel Miller might be the most stubborn man you’ve ever met. There’s never any room for disagreement or discussion with him—it’s his way or the highway. Half the time, you don’t even know what you’re fighting about, hurling callous, empty words at each other as if they don’t hurt. Immensely.

Maybe you really do genuinely hate each other. Or maybe it’s just for the fun of it.

It’s been like this for as long as you’ve known him, which, in hindsight, hasn’t even been that long. Probably a year? Year and a half? In all that time, you’ve never managed to crack his tough exterior and, as far as you know, no one else has, either.

The only things anyone knows for sure are that he’s Tommy Miller’s older brother and he’s got a daughter named Ellie. He hasn’t made a lot of friends here and it’s not hard to see why. He’s mean in a surly old man kind of way and rarely has anything nice to say to anyone—if he says anything at all.

Yet, somehow you still find yourself spending the majority of your time with him. It’s not something you do by choice. It’s a forced proximity thing.

You can’t tell if Tommy schedules you for patrols together because you’re the only one who hasn’t kicked up a stink about it or if he just thinks it’s funny to watch you both squirm. Most of the town thinks it’s hilarious, so you can only guess it’s the latter.

During your first few outings together, Joel wouldn’t talk to you unless it was absolutely necessary, and, even then, all you’d get was a grunt or some grumbled instructions. The silence got old pretty quickly. It wasn’t until you made your first mistake out in the field that he finally started communicating. Maybe a little louder than you’d hoped.

Now, Joel will pick a fight anywhere, usually over the dumbest shit. But his bark is worse than his bite—most of the time, at least.

On his worst days, his anger is explosive and it seems like he takes it out exclusively on you. It’s honestly a little ridiculous that you haven’t just asked Tommy to take you off his patrols already, but there’s a part of you that’ll never admit you actually kind of like your dynamic.

Not a lot happens in Jackson—it’s well-protected and even the community drama gets a little stale. Joel might be a dick, but he keeps things interesting, keeps you on your toes.

And it’s hard to ignore the fire in his eyes that makes you think he likes it just as much as you do.

It’s fucking freezing out and you haven’t even left for patrol yet before Joel’s muttering something condescending under his breath. Surprise, surprise—he’s in a bad mood and about to make it your problem. You throw him an unimpressed look over your shoulder, the best you can muster this early in the morning, and continue to saddle your horse.

“You wanna say that a little louder, Miller?”

He looks tired and annoyed and, god, you haven’t been awake nearly long enough for this shit. Today’s going to be trying enough as it is. You were assigned one of the longer routes and the clouds are already dark with the promise of rain or worse.

There are a few other patrol groups nearby gearing up to leave and their preparations suddenly slow, eyes darting between the two of you as if they can sense the impending argument. You barely notice their loitering, the small crowd inching forward to not-so-subtly eavesdrop.

“No, really, I’d love to hear to hear what you have to say,” you taunt him, hands settling on your hips. “Y’know, it’s really not like you to keep things to yourself. You sure you’re feeling alright today, old man?”

“Feelin’ just fine, sweetheart,” he grits through his teeth, rolling his eyes. “Just hurry your ass up so we can get this over and done with. I’m not tryin’ to spend any more time with ya than I have to.”

You quirk an eyebrow. Sweetheart? That’s a new one. It sounded sarcastic as hell and a little patronizing but, still, that’s not something Joel’s ever called you before. Useless and annoying, sure, but never sweetheart.

Your stomach swoops, but you force yourself to ignore it; that’s not even remotely something you want to analyze today.

“Uh, yeah…whatever,” you eye him strangely, and he abruptly looks away, shifting his focus back to checking his saddlebags. It’s like he’s purposefully avoiding your gaze, and it’s weird. He’s acting so fucking weird today.

Sparing him one last glance, you throw a leg over your horse and start toward the gate at a slow trot. You don’t bother waiting for him to catch up.

“What’s our first checkpoint?” you call over your shoulder, but he’s somehow already right behind you, his horse falling in line with yours.

“You should already know that,” Joel sighs, brow furrowed in what you can only assume is irritation. Oh, here it comes—the inevitable lecture. He does this every single time you're on patrol, whether you’ve done something wrong or not. You must’ve really pissed him off if you’re hearing it this early.

Except—he’s not berating you. Instead, he pulls a map out of his backpack. “Alright, look,” he says, leaning in closer so you can see. “This is us right here, and—,” his index finger traces a route from Jackson, winding along a road that passes through a small neighborhood, and lands on your first stop, located a few side streets off a main road, “—we should end up here in about an hour if the weather holds up.”

Nodding, you look up at him. You hadn't realized how close his face had gotten to yours, and your lips part around an involuntary gasp. His eyes drop to your mouth for a second too long before he pulls away, folding up his map and tucking it back into his pack.

You try to convince yourself that you imagined it, that Joel Miller would never intentionally look at your lips like he wants to kiss you, but you can still feel his warm breath on your skin and it’s affecting you more than you want to admit.

This is…not at all like your normal dynamic and it’s throwing you off. Joel hasn’t raised his voice once today and, at most, he’s only made a few snide remarks that weren’t nearly as bad as they usually are.

“I’m sure it’ll be fine,” you breathe out, creating a tiny puff of condensation in the air. “It doesn’t even feel like it's cold enough to snow, anyway. The worst we’ll probably get is some rain and we’ve ridden in way worse than that.”

All you get in response is a low grunt, and then he’s lifting the reins, leading his horse in the direction of your first checkpoint. You sigh. Guess you’re back to square one. You never thought you’d miss your spats, and can’t help but wonder what the hell happened to make him change his behavior so radically.

“Seriously, though, are you okay? You’re, like, really quiet today,” you prod, and his whole body tenses. He turns to you, expression angry, and it sends a shiver down your spine. There he is.

“Didn’t I already fuckin’ tell you I’m fine? What, you suddenly lose the ability to hear or somethin’?” He shakes his head in annoyance, and you’re glad he’s not looking at you anymore because you can’t suppress the grin that spreads across your face.

“This girl, I swear,” you hear him mutter as he trots away.

You don’t say anything to each other for the rest of the ride to the checkpoint. The crumbling attorney's office is basically the same as you remember from the last time you were here. It’s old, obviously, and musty, but it’s stocked with random provisions, like food and ammo, so patrol crews can replenish their supplies before heading out to their next destination.

There’s also a killer view of Jackson from one of the windows, and you get distracted looking out at the lights and mountains in the distance. It’s starting to flurry, so you drop your backpack on the floor and stick both hands out to catch some of the snowflakes in your palms. So much for rain.

“You dilly dallyin’ again? Just sign the logbook already so we can move the fuck on,” Joel’s voice startles you out of your reverie. Huffing, you turn away from the window, looking for the pen that’s supposed to be next to the notebook, but it’s nowhere to be found.

“You know what, asshole, you could’ve just as easily signed the damn thing yourself. You were there too, or are you getting forgetful in your old age?” you shoot back as you hunch down, getting on your hands and knees to search under the desk. You hear him scoff behind you.

You spot the pen towards the back, because of course it rolled that far, and bend down so you can reach out a little farther. Your fingers brush one end and then you’ve got it, sitting back up with your prize in hand. Looking over your shoulder, you just barely catch Joel’s eyes darting away from where you were a moment ago, basically puppy-posing on the floor. That’s…suspicious.

“The fuck? Were you just staring at my ass?” you ask incredulously. There’s no goddamn way. He snorts, arms crossed with an uncharacteristic smirk on his face, and you raise an eyebrow at him.

“You wish, sweetheart,” he says condescendingly, and there it is again. That fucking word. So, he’s calling you pet names and staring at your ass now? There’s something seriously off about him today and you want to know what his deal is.

“You wanna tell me why you keep calling me that? You’ve been acting weird as fuck all day and it’s giving me whiplash,” you glower at him, taking a seat at the edge of the desk and forgetting all about the logbook. He shrugs.

“Dunno what you’re talkin’ about,” he says simply, and you squint at him.

“Seriously, Joel? You've called me sweetheart twice today and now you’re checking me out,” you hop off the desk and walk over to where he’s leaning against the wall. “If I didn’t know any better…,” you glance down at his lips, moving closer, “I’d say you were flirting with me."

Well, that made him angry. "Fuck you,” he growls in your face, and his lips are soft where they accidentally graze your cupid's bow. He’s trembling now, fists clenched at his sides, and you think he’s about to push you away when he grabs you by the hips and shoves you against the wall. Your head lolls back and you laugh cruelly.

“Yeah, Joel,” you roll your hips into his and he grits his teeth, tightening his grip. “I think that’s exactly what you wanna do.”

But before you can go any further, there’s a crash just outside the door accompanied by a familiar sound that turns your blood to ice.

It’s unmistakable. The clicking, guttural and stuttered, is followed by a high-pitched shriek that echoes throughout the small space, and you both freeze. You look up at Joel, terrified, and he raises a finger to his lips, eyes telling you to be quiet or else.

There’s no way either of you can unholster your guns—and reload, in your case—without alerting it to your position. Joel reaches for the hunting knife strapped to his thigh, and you move to do the same, only to realize it isn't there.

Fuck, it has to be somewhere. Probably in one of the dozen random holsters you have attached to you right now.

Frantic, you pat at your sides and legs—anywhere it could be—as your panicked intakes of breath gradually increase in volume. A hand slaps over your mouth, and suddenly Joel is crushing your body against the wall, halting your movements.

"Quit," he whispers harshly, lips brushing the shell of your ear, and you nod quickly.

The creature abruptly changes course, jerking toward the open window, and that’s when you notice something familiar by its feet. It's—fuck, it's your backpack. And your knife is gleaming from where it sits, nestled in one of the side pockets.

Stupid, that was so stupid. If, by some miracle, this thing doesn't kill you, there’s no doubt Joel will once he realizes your mistake. His hand drops from your mouth and he glances back over his shoulder at the clicker, gripping his knife a little tighter.

He looks resolute, and it dawns on you that he’s about to make a move. It takes everything you’ve got not to grab onto his coat and pull him back to you as he slowly shifts away, but then something else stops him in his tracks.

Another screech rings out from the other side of the room, and now you know you’re fucked. There’s only one option left now. Either you run, or you get torn apart. He reaches down to take your hand in his, warring emotions of anger and fear in his eyes as he looks into yours, and squeezes; it’s now or never.

The path to the doorway you came through is somehow miraculously clear, and Joel takes off at a sprint, dragging you with him but, to his horror, you decide to do yet another stupid thing.

For reasons you can’t explain, you find yourself ripping your hand out of his, swerving to snatch your backpack from where it lies just a few feet from the clicker.

Joel is yelling, or at least you think he is, and you vaguely feel his blunt nails scratch the back of your hand as he reaches out to stop you, but he can’t. You’re moving on autopilot, can barely register your body moving at all, until your fingertips skim the strap of your pack and the clicker is shrieking in your face.

You don’t think you’ve ever been this close to one before, even dead, and it’s worse than you could’ve ever imagined. The world freezes for a moment and you freeze with it, unable to move or look away from the fungus erupting from its skull, teeth gnashing inches away from your throat.

And then you feel warmth—warm, strong arms wrap around your waist and tug harder and harder until you’re back out in the cold. Joel spots his horse a short distance away, likely spooked by the commotion, but you can’t see much farther than that. What was a gentle flurry less than a half hour ago has become a violent blizzard, and you’re both getting pelted by ice that burns as it scrapes across your skin.

There’s one horse—just Joel’s horse—but there’s no time to think about the fate of your own before his hands are on your hips, lifting you up and into the saddle, and he’s climbing on in front of you.

He urges his horse forward and you’re off without so much as a glance behind you, galloping away from danger and down a street that you realize you actually recognize.

“Joel,” you squeeze his waist and he ignores you. He’s shaking and it’s definitely not just from the cold. You can feel the anger radiating off of him in waves and it’s warranted. You fucked up big time. “Joel, turn right,” you say a little louder, and he’s still not listening. “Turn right! There’s a library up ahead, you have to turn now!”

He growls, and you think he’s purposely going to miss the turn until he’s yanking the reins to the right, nearly throwing you both off the horse.

“You better know what the fuck you’re doin’,” he all but shouts back, and you wrap your arms around his waist a little tighter.

“It’s safe!” you yell, struggling to speak loud enough for him to hear you over the wind. “Ellie’s been there before, loads of times, and she says it’s safe. “

And that’s all it takes to convince him.

The library’s completely boarded up and, with the wind howling against your backs, it takes more than a few hard tugs to yank enough of them off to get inside the lobby with Joel’s horse.

He hands you the reins before moving into the next room, crouching along the rows of aging books and knocked-over bookcases, and you peek in, watching him anxiously. Cracked bricks litter the ground, and he steps over a few as he crouches into place behind a broken book cart.

He picks one up and then shoots you a look, eyebrows lifting pointedly, and you realize he wants you to get back into the lobby, out of sight. You duck behind the wall, placing a soothing hand on his horse right as you hear the sound of the brick shattering against the ground, and wait. A few agonizing seconds pass before you hear him throw one more a little farther out, just to be sure.

When nothing startles or jumps out, Joel whistles and you know that’s your cue to come out from your hiding spot. Normally, that would piss you off immensely, him whistling for you like you’re a fucking animal, but you can’t find it in yourself to care right now.

You’re exhausted now that the adrenaline’s wearing off, and the only thing you want to do is curl up into one of the torn-up chairs in the corner and pass out until morning. But that’s not what Joel has in mind.

“Y’think you’re off the hook for the shit you pulled earlier?”

You sigh, head tipping back and thumping against the bookcase behind you. “Do we have to do this right now? Joel, I’m tired and hungry, and fucking cold, and I really don’t have the energy.”

“Seriously? Sure looked like ya had the energy when you were runnin’ straight into that clicker’s mouth,” he scowls, reaching down to grab something next to the book cart and throwing it at your feet. “Thought ya might want this back since you apparently decided it was worth more than your life.”

You inhale sharply through your nose, eyebrows pinching together. Joel…he—

It's your backpack.

You were so sure it got left behind when he saved you from that clicker and yet, there it is. You lean over to pick it up, but Joel kicks it out of reach before you get the chance. He looks livid and now, you realize, you’re about to get that lecture you dodged earlier tenfold.

"What the fuck is wrong with you?"

"Me? I'm not the one having an identity crisis! You’ve been nothing but distracting all damn day,” you scoff bitterly. “None of this would've happened if you hadn't had a complete personality makeover overnight.”

You can’t believe he…is he serious? There’s no way you’re taking the fall for this, not all of it. Yeah, you fucked up with the backpack, but Joel isn't entirely blameless, either. If you hadn’t been fighting again, you would’ve just signed the stupid logbook and moved on like you were supposed to.

"Yeah, alright, sweetheart. It's my fault you almost got us both killed. Maybe you’re forgettin’ I saved your goddamn life back there, somethin' I wouldn't have had to do if you hadn't gone and done something so fuckin’ stupid."

Sweetheart.

"Stop calling me that! I…fuck, Joel, I just don't get you. I get it—I know I fucked up, but…,” your voice cracks and you can feel your lower lip wobbling, but you can’t let yourself cry. That would only prove to Joel what he already knows—you’re weak. “I’m sorry, okay? What more do you want from me?”

He chuckles mirthlessly. “You really wanna know what I want from ya?” He crowds your space, leaning in slightly. His head tilts like he's going to kiss you, and your breath hitches. “I want ya to get your shit together and stop makin’ unnecessary mistakes,” he says cruelly instead.

Your jaw drops.

"No, you know what? Fuck this,” you seethe. “When we get back to Jackson, I’m telling Tommy to never put me on your patrols again. I can’t do this anymore.”

“Think I give a shit about that? Go ahead, you’d be doin’ me a favor!” he yells at your back as you storm away, and you flip him off over your shoulder. Behind you, he sighs heavily, sounding as worn out and frustrated as you feel.

What a load of bullshit. You don't deserve to be treated like this. There's a stark difference between the inconsequential arguments you normally have and whatever the hell that was.

And the worst part? It hurts so much more than you expected it to. Leave it to you to get attached to the asshole whose personal mission it is to make you miserable. This whole thing was fun while it lasted, but you meant what you said. You and Joel, it’s over.

You exhale wetly, tears still threatening to fall as you leave him behind in what the yellowing signs tell you is the romance section. Well, isn’t that ironic.

You quickly realize navigating the library in the dark is more difficult than you anticipated, even with your flashlight. Not even ten steps away from where you started, you trip over something protruding from the ground and almost land flat on your face.

Joel comes running over as you let out a frustrated noise and push yourself up onto your knees. His knife is at the ready like he was expecting danger but, no, it’s just you humiliating yourself even further. He lets out a relieved sigh, holstering his knife, but then just stands there glaring down at you.

“I’m fine, by the way,” you wave a hand from the ground. He shakes his head, reaching down to help you up, and his hand feels so nice in yours—big, strong, and calloused.

You curse yourself for still thinking about him like that, like anything at all, but you can't help it. And when his hand drops yours, it feels distinctly cold and empty.

Shaking it off, you aim your flashlight at the offending spot on the floor. “What is that, anyway?” you ask Joel as he crouches down to brush away some of the dirt and debris.

“A handle,” he mumbles, pulling out his knife again and digging it into a crack in the floor, tracing around what looks like…a door?

“Is that a trapdoor?” You lean over his shoulder to get a better look. He looks back at you and nods, looking a little less angry and a lot more concerned. “Well, should we check it out?”

Instead of answering you, he wrenches the door open and shines his flashlight into the opening. There’s a ladder leading down and you can hear something rumbling below that sounds like a generator.

“Stay here,” he eyes you sternly as he begins his descent down the ladder.

“Uh, yeah, that’s not happening,” you scoff, following him. The ladder’s longer than you expected, and once your feet touch the ground, you reach out to run your hands along the wall, searching for a light switch.

A few moments later, your fingers come across something vaguely switch-like and you flip it, a warm glow filling the room, emanating from about a dozen heat lamps hanging from the ceiling. Your eyes adjust and—

“No fucking way.”

Joel is silent beside you, and you glance over, his expression just as stunned as yours is. You step closer. “Is that…?”

“Weed,” he breathes out.

You didn’t mean to get this high. Really, you didn’t. But you're in a fucking grow room hidden beneath a library in some tiny, backwater town, and you almost just died. So really, what reason was there not to?

The blizzard’s still going strong outside and, at the very least, it’s nice and warm down here. There's also the added bonus of something fun to do while you wait it out.

…Yeahhh, so you might’ve found a mason jar full of already rolled joints between some couch cushions, literally just sitting there for the taking. What were you supposed to do? Not smoke them?

But what surprises you even more than the pot itself is that Joel is smoking it, too.

It’s cute how he coughs after every drag, eyes watering as you pass a joint back and forth. The air is thick with smoke and a strange tension that neither of you can really describe, but you’re not fighting anymore. Not yet, at least.

The couch you're sitting on is cozy and less tattered than the chairs upstairs, so you settle there for the night, sitting closer than you ever willingly have before. Enough time has passed that you’re beginning to realize neither of you plans on moving, either. That you’re actually enjoying each other’s company.

The warmth of him seeps pleasantly through your clothes, and he feels so solid and real against you. Unconsciously, you melt into his side, your fuzzy brain chemicals urging you to feel more, more of him, and he tenses only for a moment before lifting an arm to rest behind you on the back of the couch.

It's strange how readily he's accepting your touch now. With each drag, you feel a little braver and press more of your body into his, draping your legs across his lap and nesting your head in the crook of his neck. He goes boneless when you mouth damply at the skin just below his jaw, his throat rumbling under your lips as he lets out a ragged breath.

You’ve both loosened up so much since earlier. It’s an easy, comfortable sort of peace you’ve found down here, even after the horrors you experienced earlier in the day. Part of you wishes it could always be like this with Joel but, then again, that just wouldn’t be you and Joel.

Your relationship thrives on the way you fight, almost like you can’t exist together without the promise of battle. So, when the high wears off and the world feels less lazy and more dire, you’ll both remember with sharp clarity that you hate each other. The memories will fade away and the war will continue. That’s just how it is.

It’s a little sad when you think about it, but for at least a little while longer, you’ll still have this version of you and Joel. You’ll enjoy the way he feels pressed up against your body; the way he feels pliant and suggestible under your lips.

And you’ll ask the question that’s been eating away at you all day because right now, you’re positive your lips can convince him to do anything.

“Tell me why you keep calling me sweetheart,” you murmur against his skin. He freezes, clearly not expecting you to bring it up again. You lift the blunt to his lips and encourage him to inhale to calm his nerves. The smoke plumes from his nose like a dragon as he exhales, and you're enraptured by the way it swirls through the air before dissipating. He braces a hand on your thigh before responding.

"Well, I…uh—," he mumbles, his cheeks turning a deep shade of burgundy, and you can’t resist reaching out to stroke the heated skin with your fingertips. He breathes shakily as he continues, "I—had a dream about ya last night, and…you, uh—you were…"

He cuts himself off, and your mind goes fuzzy for a moment as you let that little bit of information sink in. So, Joel was dreaming about you last night…and now, he’s treating you so much differently. Calling you pet names, eyeing you up, touching you. It all makes sense—but now you need him to tell you everything.

"What was I doing in your dream, Joel?"

He meets your gaze, looking flustered and a little ashamed, and it's a far cry from the man who was yelling at you not even an hour or two ago.

"You, uh," he clears his throat, still hesitating. You bite your bottom lip in anticipation, sucking it wetly into your mouth, and his eyes darken. He lifts a thumb to your mouth, tugging your lip down just slightly, and you can see the moment his apprehension disappears. "You were on your knees for me," he murmurs. "Doin' such a good job, too, workin' that pretty mouth of yours."

You inhale sharply and his thumb drops, but his eyes never leave your lips. Gingerly, you pluck the joint still burning between his fingers and take one last deep drag before flicking the rest to the side and crashing your lips onto his.

God, they feel exactly like you thought they would, soft and a little chapped from the cold, but so fucking eager against yours. You hold his face in your hands, rubbing your thumbs along the roughness of his beard, and he groans as you exhale into his mouth, tasting the smoke on your tongue.

Sighing, you lean back slowly, heavy-lidded eyes roving over his face to take in his kiss-swollen lips and that beautiful burgundy flush. He's so pretty, and you can’t help but run your fingers through his thick, graying hair as he pants heavily below you.

You need to feel more of him, all of him, so you climb into his lap, straddling his hips and grinding down against where he's already straining in his pants. He grips you tighter in response, working you steadily across his hardening cock.

"Keep going,” you moan breathily. You're already so wet, and heat blooms in your belly every time your clit grazes the seam of his jeans. It's a foggy, hazy pleasure, what you feel when he speaks, and you're addicted to it. “Keep telling me about your dream—a-about my mouth…I wanna hear more.“

You feel rather than hear him growl low in his throat as he ducks his head down to your neck, sucking and biting bruises into your skin.

“Your mouth…so fuckin’ wet—s-soft and tight around my cock,” he sucks hard under your jaw, and you gasp. “Takin’ me all the way down, like I always knew you could.”

Your breath hitches, eyes rolling back. The thought of him dreaming about his cock down your throat makes your cunt pulse, and now you're positive you're soaking through his pants.

You bet he thinks about it when you're on patrol together, too—that when you're fighting like you've both got something to prove, he's thinking about shutting you up with his cock. Fucking your mouth to show you that what he says goes.

"M-more, Joel…ngh, fuck, I need more," you reach down to shove his shirt up so you can feel him, his stomach flexing and unflexing under your palms. He starts to buck into your clothed pussy faster, like he's fucking you through the fabric, and you whine pathetically as he tugs hard on your hair, yanking your head to the side.

"S’alright, n-needy girl, 'm gonna tell you exactly how I was fuckin' that sweet mouth of yours last night…h-how you were—," he groans raggedly in your ear, voice cracking, and you swear you can feel his heartbeat racing between your legs. "…c-chokin' and gaggin' around my cock while I was cummin' down your throat…"

He keeps giving you what you asked for, tells you all the filthy shit he wants to do to your mouth, and his hips start to stutter like he's bringing himself closer to orgasm with his own words. It would make a lot of sense—Joel's always loved the sound of his own voice, especially when it's directed at you.

But you can’t hear much of anything anymore aside from the sound of your own stuttered moaning, suddenly so, so close to hurtling over the edge with him. You’re sliding so easily over his cock now and you brace your hands on his shoulders as your thighs start to quake around his waist. He digs his fingers into the plush curve of your ass, pulling you down harder, but you squeeze his shoulders roughly to get his attention.

“Y-you—Joel, you can’t cum,” you whine into his neck, and he all but snarls in response. “No…no, no, no. Want you t-to fuck my mouth—you have to cum in my mouth—”

He abruptly yanks you off his lap, shoving you back onto the couch and wrenching your jeans and underwear down in two hard tugs.

You barely have time to let out a squeal before he buries his face in your cunt, honing in on your clit and sucking wetly. He flattens his tongue, circling once, twice, three times, and then you’re cumming with a loud exhale, gushing as you grind into his face.

Your pussy’s still pulsing, locking down around nothing, as you tug him off of you by his hair.

“Joel—jeans..o-off…now.” You help him push them down just enough to free his cock, and then your mouth is on him, sucking him down to the hilt.

His hips buck off the couch of their own accord and he groans pathetically as you gag around him. He’s petting your head and saying something raggedly above you, likely apologizing for hurting you, but it’s drowned out by the blood rushing in your ears.

Instead of pulling off to reassure him that you very much want him to keep gagging you, you guide his hands to bury themselves in your hair and squeeze his thigh, praying he gets the hint. His fingers tense against your scalp as he holds you in place and, yeah, he absolutely gets it.

Your head feels like it’s disconnecting from the rest of your body as he starts fucking into your mouth the way he was probably dreaming about last night. He’s just so fucking big, and you feel a weird sort of pride bloom in your chest at being able to take him like this.

Tears are streaming down your face from the effort and you’re drooling all over his lap but, fuck, if he wants to do this every time you patrol together, you’ll let him. You take back everything you said before—if Tommy ever takes you off Joel’s patrols, you’ll kill him.

His fingers start to tug harder, painfully at your hair and you can hear him moaning something above you, his words slurred and desperate.

“S-so fuckin’ good, sweetheart, you’re…ngh—fuckin’ perfect,” he grits through his teeth, breath hitching as you wrap your lips tighter around him, flattening your tongue along the underside of his length. “‘m gonna cum…fuck, fuck—need you t-to swallow it all, sweetheart… know you can do it…so goddamn good.”

Humming and swallowing around him, you reach up to cup his balls and he erupts, pumping thick cum into your mouth and down your throat. Deep groans are punched out of his chest with every spurt and you can feel his cock pulsing against your tongue.

There’s so much of it. You try your best to do what he asked, to be good and swallow everything, but it’s starting to leak out the corners of your mouth and down his cock. Slurping up as much as you can, you pull off with an audible pop and lick off the rest of the salty, white streaks remaining on his skin.

When your watery eyes finally meet his, he’s looking at you like maybe he really has been dreaming this whole time. He’s still a little dazed, from both the weed and the intense orgasm, and he reaches out to cradle your face in his hands almost as if to prove to himself that you’re real. It’s a surprisingly tender gesture that kind of makes your heart ache.

Your lips quirk up as you lean into his touch, aching to prolong the moment, and he leans forward to press a sweet kiss to them, mouth coaxing yours open to taste himself on your tongue. You whine softly as his tongue runs along your bottom lip, and then he pulls back, hauling you into his arms to lie back on the couch.

Those heat lamps feel unbearable now. You're both hot and sweating, chests heaving from exertion, but you still refuse to separate from each other. Your brain’s feeling a lot less foggy, so you’re probably coming down from your high, which means Joel is, too. The realization sends a pang of worry through your chest like you expect him to suddenly come to and push you away, but he doesn’t.

Instead, he pulls your back to his chest, positioning your bodies more comfortably before murmuring fondly in your ear, "You’re somethin’ else, y’know that?”

You breathe out a sigh of relief. Maybe you’ll get to keep this after all—and without sacrificing everything that makes you and Joel, well…you and Joel. You twist around to shoot him an unimpressed look, but the burgeoning grin on your face betrays you.

“What, you’re just figuring that out? Took you long enough.”

He scoffs. “Listen, sweetheart—“ But you gasp, cutting him off before he can finish his sentence. No, way. How are you just putting two and two together now?

“Wait…oh my god, wait—is this why you keep calling me sweetheart? Because it's what you called me when I was blowing you in your sex dream?” You’re grinning so hard it hurts. How the fuck didn't you notice that earlier?

There was plenty of time to work it out when you were all but fucking on the couch for the past hour. But then…he didn’t actually start calling you sweetheart until he was cumming, and the realization makes your cunt throb. You file that information away for now, but make a mental note to come back to it later—hopefully back in Jackson with Joel.

…who’s still mumbling irritatedly into your shoulder. You tilt your head back to press your lips under his jaw, and you're quickly learning that kissing that particular spot turns him to jelly.

“You can keep calling me sweetheart,” you start, thinking over your next words carefully. “But I’ve got conditions.”

“Oh, she’s got demands now,” you can hear the dramatic eye roll in his voice. You suck a bruise into his skin to stop the back sass and it works spectacularly.

“Oh, shut up. It benefits you too, asshole,” you glare up at him before continuing. “I want your dick in my mouth every time we patrol from now on. And next time, you have to fuck me.”

His fingers dig into your sides, and you’re pretty sure you just felt his cock twitch against your ass.

“…Y-yeah, I, uh. I can do that,” he stutters, suddenly demure, and it dawns on you how much you like seeing all these different sides of Joel. He’s been mean and angry, shy and tender, and so fucking sexy all in the span of a single day. It's not something you ever would've expected from him.

You used to think he was just some grumpy old man and that his one personality trait was being an obnoxious jerk, but tonight you were proven very, very wrong.

You pull his arms tighter around you, let yourself get lost in the steady thrum of his heartbeat against your back, and hum contently. You’ll have to thank Ellie and her weed-grower friend later.

“Y’know, I almost thought you were gonna say no more fighting,” he says after a few seconds of silence. You look up at him incredulously, and he chuckles.

“Nah, where’s the fun in that?”

thanks so much for reading! 🥰

[chevelleneech]

Leslye’s latest interview kinda makes me seem like a writer or something, idk🧐

J/k! But on a serious note, I do think my interest in screenwriting informs a lot of how I interpret the things I watch. I’m not pretending to be exceptional or better than anyone else, but I am going to pat myself on the back the tiniest bit, because I said something similar to what she said about Qimir knowing Osha wasn’t Mae in the apothecary. He knew, and her power drew him in almost instantly.

As well, in this post about Sol confusing Mae and Osha when they were younger, I said I was pretty sure it was done to highlight just how little Sol understood his emotions and his supposed connection to Osha. He felt one, yes, but that doesn’t mean he knew enough about the twins to decide he had a right to act on it.

Anyway, this was fun to read and kind of learn what I (and many other people surely) were right in our interpretations of. Sol meant well, yet acted wrong. And although Qimir was painted as the antagonist this season (even though I think the secret of what happened on Brendok is the true villain) he still sees Osha for who she is, no matter the fact that he wants her to tap into her power for personal gain, to an extent.

This understanding also informs why and almost how Leslye foresees Oshamir coming about. Because in other parts, she speaks about how Qimir still doesn’t say directly he is a Sith, and above she mentions how he feels the pull of her power and wants to train her same as Sol, and how that points to who her true Master will be.

If her words are to be taken at face value, Oshamir will happen, I think, because their Master and Pupil relationship won’t work. Sol was a Jedi raised on honor, peace, loyalty, control, and authority. Yet he struggled well into adulthood with most of those things, which caused mass murder. Qimir, based on what he’s said, was also raised on those things yet realized the latter three were unsustainable. Which Osha has felt since she was a child that unquestioned loyalty to authority figures whom only give you a semblance of control wasn’t what she wanted forever.

So Qimir is going to be training someone who is almost too much like him in beliefs, yet someone who likely isn’t as non-discriminate in her killing. Meaning they’re going to butt heads over what is right and wrong, and end up having to talk more to understand each other’s side better. And getting to know each other’s moral lines and triggers to avoid, inevitably grows them closer together. Therefore, their Master/Pupil dynamic is thrown out the window, because there’s already sexual tension between them and they haven’t even fought for real yet, lol.

[neverchecking]

Camboy! Hyrule

NSFW So...idk take that as you will.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who never shows his face on camera. He's a faceless figure among all the degenerates that go flocking to his page.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who loves dressing up in frilly, lacey things, anything from thongs to full lingerie just to rake in those tips. He loves teasing the edges, pulling them and letting them slap against his thighs.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who loves wearing little panties that can barely contain his cock, watching them stain with precum as he traces his fingers along the tent he's pitching.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who auctions off these panties at the end of every show and watches the numbers go up in utter glee.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who's dick is so recognizable. The moment you see it, with the curly bush and the delicious veins running up the shaft, you know it's his.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who keeps you, his most beloved treasure, away from the screen. You are his show and his show alone.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who doesn't keep his own show from you.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who sends you pictures of his new pretty outfits the second he's home with them. Or he sends you unboxing videos where he's wagging his ass at the camera while jumping to shuffle a new thong on, making sure the camera can see how his cheeks jiggle.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who drops these videos and pictures at the most random times because he loves keeping you on your toes.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who sends you links in the middle of the day to his show, where you have free, VIP access to.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who doesn't start until he sees you there and makes damn sure his audience knows they're waiting on you. He's sending you flirty little texts along the way with things like: 'They're getting antsy, butterfly <3 Better hurry.', 'What's the hold up? Don't tell me you're busy :(', 'You're making me wait? You know better than that, flower bud <3'.

・❥・ Camboy! Hyrule who, upon seeing you enter his show, gives a gleeful little smile and a welcome of "Glad to see you finally showed up, love bug!"

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who doesn't care if you're at work, he's expecting you watch his show start to finish. He doesn't care if Leslie from Human Resources can walk in at any time to see you slobbering over the cock you can't have just yet. He doesn't care if you're office is open and anyone walking by can see what you're looking at. He wants your attention on him. At all times, whenever he asks.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who moans out whatever nickname he had monikered you with that day while stroking his cock, leaning back to give you and whatever other filth watching him a delicious view.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who doesn't even do it for the audience, but does it because it feels like a dirty secret between you and him. He loves the attention, but he gets such a rush knowing you get off watching everyone else get off to him. It's as much for him as it is for you, knowing you get a kick off the power dynamic of knowing when all is said and done, he's on his knees for you and you alone.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who makes sure you have a say in every aspect of his show. The dildo he uses, the plug he finishes with, the vibrator he holds against his twitching cock. All of it is under your direction.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who has a special ringer for your messages and lets you run his show even from your office.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who doesn't come until you say so, even if his audience demand it of him. He lets you call every single shot and hangs onto your every word, as if you were a god-born being destined to rule over him and him alone.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who salivates over the thought of having you remain faceless and come onto his show, taking charge in person.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who begs and pleads for this, letting you sit in the corner of the room with a remote to control a vibrator that's attached to his dick while he's cuffed to the bedposts.

・❥・Camboy! Hyrule who doesn't do the show for an income or for an audience, but does it to make sure your attention remains on him.

・❥・At all times. <3

[dorims]

What kinks do u think Roman has?

I just know they’re weird (and I’d still be into them)

so if i have to be honest, ive never really thought about roman's kinks 🥲 HOWEVER you know how he shamed tom for swallowing back his cum after tabs sucked him off?? yeah he's definitely into that and you can't tell me otherwise.

and without further ado! a little brainstorm under the cut <3

tags. VERY SUGGESTIVE, MDNI, an overall masochistic vibe, degradation/praise, allusions to cheating, impact play, mentions of roman's low self-esteem

a/n. psa im not familiar with writing smut and if i gotta be honest im pretty vanilla myself so...do with that what you will LMFAO

masochism

hes a masochist, we been knew

its pretty much the central theme of these hcs too

degradation/praise

so definitely degradation bc its roman, cmon. but for some reason i cant help but think that he's really into being praised too?

could be wrong but i feel like he'd only let himself be praised after he's developed a solid bond with his partner, and it'd probably go from being degraded to a mix of degradation and praise to full praise in some occasions.

if theres not a smooth transition i feel like he would panic and shut himself out. like it feels too intimate or smth.

cuckolding (controversial)

i think he would like it bc it hurts. like his partner sleeping with someone else is kind of like a slap to the face

a situation that has him constantly thinking 'I'm not enough' and that kind of hurt i think he gets off on bc masochism <3

but thats only maybe with the condition he somehow gets the chance to prove to himself and to you that he is better than the person you're sleeping with

OR he's into 'pseudo-cuckolding' so he likes the idea that you COULD go and sleep with someone but you dont, kinda like what happened with grace and the server

SO MAYBE IM WRONG and he would actually hate this but you know, im trynna brainstorm

phone sex (is this even a kink?)

only the sound of your voice and his,

kinda like the romangerri situation LMFAO

because think about it, this way you dont have to actually see him. that would comfort him in some way because of his low self-esteem and self-image issues. that way you can picture anything you want and not be disappointed with the real thing, you know?

i also think that phone sex (or bathroom door sex????) would help him open up until he grows comfortable enough in the intimacy the two of you are building

love how this are supposed to be smut hcs yet im making them slightly angsty

impact play

i think this might be a little self-explanatory, but yes, getting hit in a sexual context turns him on

only when he is receiving ofc

dom/sub dynamics

he's a massive sub and no one can tell me otherwise

its literally on the show TT

ANYWAY, he's probably bratty at first but then just gives in to your every demand because he aims to please

still likes to get on your nerves though, like a lot and i think thats because even when he's been an annoying piece of shit in bed you still take care of him and that reinforces, in his head, that, sure he's being unbearable but that doesn't take away the fact that you care for him and love him, ya know?

also, he would probably call you mommy/daddy at first jokingly but the it kinda sticks??

freud would have a field day with roman roy

OOC BUT FUN TO THINK ABOUT: vanilla sex

hear me out, ik roman's character is pretty much the personification of the words 'kinky mf' but idk

i think vanilla sex would suit roman SOO much. i think for roman to reach the point of having sex with ANYONE there needs to be a established foundation of trust and respect and perhaps love too

and i know sex doesn't necessarily mean love, but we are talking about a man who's definition of love is pain - like love HAS to hurt for it to be love - and undoubtedly he would twist his perception of sex to fit that same definition of love because love is a branch of intimacy and so is sex, you feel me?

i just feel like it would show roman another side of intimacy. all gentle and kind and giggly sex and intimacy doesn't necessarily have to hurt for it to feel good.

like imagine just plain vanilla sex and its banter and laughter and quips and help me lol

vanilla sex and aftercare would solve all his problems, i said what i said /hj

[mf-headcannontap]

DREAMWORKS TROLLS: SUPER UNPOPULAR AND CONTROVERSIAL OPINION!!!

DreamWorks Trolls Opinion #1:

Branch's dynamic with Cloud Guy could have been great, if not for how they severely mishandled it for the sake of making Branch the punchline in the show.

Now hear me out!

Cloud Guy is an absolute menace to Branch who loves to prank and humiliate him, but in the end somehow makes Branch overcome something. This is putting a very toxic relationship on screen and making it seem like it's fine when it 100% is not. Now, I've never been a fan of Cloud Guy, but I do know the turning point of where Cloud Guy went from being a character that mildly annoyed me to a character I genuinely hate, and that was Apple Of My Ire. To understand this, let me give you a rundown of my feelings every time Cloud Guy is in an episode.

Laugh Out Cloud: This wasn't too terrible, seeing as how Branch was sort of intense in that episode, but that whole flood thing was really unnecessary.

Cloudy With A Chance Of Hugs: This was just funny. Only thing was Keith in the end. I love Keith, but Branch worked really hard, and Cloud Guy may have been the most annoying wingman ever, but he still got the job done. Although, he really needs to not break into Branch's house and respect his personal space.

Rainbowmageddon: This was just Cloud Guy unnecessarily humiliating and undermining Branch, but honestly I'm more upset with the Trolls because THEY'RE the ones the rainbow is affecting the most, and they're the ones who aren't taking anything seriously. Also, they were fine with just leaving Branch up there? Laugh Out Cloud was fine because I do think Branch was way too uptight about the drought, but here he was rightfully worried about the rainbow, and Cloud Guy and the gang were just goofing off. What's worst was the whole deathbed confession that proved unnecessary. In Laugh Out Cloud, it wasn't exactly a deathbed confession (and it would have been way better if Cloud Guy wasn't faking being scared) and Branch really didn't suffer all that much over it. But here, that was just mean. But honestly, it was the Trolls (Snack Pack in particular) that were the most frustrating.

Two's A Cloud: Now, this episode had potential. It was SUPREMELY irritating when Cloud Guy just moved in. It was also equally horrible when he was being an inconsiderate roommate, purposeful or not IDK but IDC. But them working together to get Cloud Guy's parents to leave was great. And even if Cloud Guy decided to ultimately not move in the bunker, it was still a pretty sweet episode. The Trolls just randomly bursting in his home, though, was awful.

Apple Of My Ire: This episode had me just screaming, and not in the good way. I don't know what in the world Poppy was thinking in finding someone new for Cloud Guy to harass, when she should’ve talked to him about reevaluating and changing their dynamic into something better. You know, something more healthy, or borderline brotherly. Because Branch is so little brother coded, and Cloud Guy honestly seems like a guy who would definitely mess with his siblings out of love. Not to mention, the last time they interacted was to team up to fend off Cloud Guy's parents. That's basically a brotherhood right there! But no. This episode ruined it. Because Branch was emotionally growing, and Cloud Guy pulled him right back to his old ways. And Poppy did NOTHING!!! What's worse is that the other Trolls were also in on this! Like why??? Do Trolls not understand harassment? They have a holiday dedicated to pranking one another, but constantly being bombarded by pranks seems like that would be terrible. Like, in Prank Day, POPPY was getting fed up with the pranks. And sure, she may have planned the prank she pulled on Branch, but she really wasn't taking being pranked constantly well, so why would she be okay subjecting anyone else to that treatment on a day that isn't a day dedicated to pranks? Better yet, if she cared so much about finding Cloud Guy a troll he could annoy, why didn't she volunteer herself? There have been multiple instances where Poppy has proven to be just as temperamental and easy to annoy as Branch, so why couldn't she be that Troll? She already had some practice when she was trying to help DJ with wrangling CJ's wooferbug. But what really took the cake was when Cloud Guy just openly admitted to planting a tracker INSIDE Branch, and no one did anything. Also, was that bit really necessary? When has Cloud Guy ever had to use the tracker? Rainbowmageddon aside, he always first interacts with Branch near or in his bunker. This episode turned their dynamic from frienemies-that-can-be-potential-brothers who annoy each other, to outright bully-victim where the victim gets shamed constantly for defending themselves. This episode made me hate Cloud Guy, and gave me such an ick, I can't even watch any of the previous episodes with Cloud Guy in them without feeling rage.

I have not seen Trollstopia. I do not have access to it. But I have seen people discuss the show online. More specifically, they discuss the episode Cloud Control. And what they discuss... I thought Apple Of My Ire was bad, this episode was infinitely worse, and I haven't even seen it yet.

The takeaway here is Branch's and Cloud Guy's dynamic had so much potential, but then Apple Of My Ire came along and every episode with Cloud Guy after that just cemented Cloud Guy as an antagonistic bully who gets away with it due to victim blaming and finding ways to make it seem that he was "helping" his victims all along, as well as a large dose of full on guilt tripping.

It all comes down to DreamWorks and their love of making Branch the punchline to everything. Even his trauma isn't taken seriously, as evidenced by Trolls: Band Together. Branch deserves better. Cloud Guy's character arc was brutally murdered so I guess he deserves better, too. Poppy and the Trolls need more character development and a crash course in healthy character dynamics. And DreamWorks needs to stop making Branch needlessly suffer for the sake of a joke.

[spyroforlife]

What are your thoughts on the latest Helluva Boss episode?

Personally, I loved seeing Blitzø not fully redeem himself, as that kind of mindset doesn't just go away overnight. Production wise, it's my favorite-looking episode of season 2. Vivzie knows how to make colors pop.

I liked it. Stolas and Blitz both clearly care about each other, but they have both been so bad about actually communicating their feelings and so they've both been operating on the wrong impression of the other, so it's good that they FINALLY hashed that all out and they can reflect on all of it on their own time, and decide whether they want to maybe give their relationship another shot in the future.

It feels too like a lotta people in fandom keep trying to push this abuser/victim dynamic on them, arguing about which one is The Bad One and who's the poor helpless victim, when it's like. They're BOTH at fault for how poorly the relationship is going. They're complicated characters who both have their own problems, and they're taking it out on each other. Blitz has commitment issues and can't bring himself to imagine that Stolas genuinely wants him, because why would anyone want him when he's so awful, so he insists it's just a transactional thing for fun, no deeper feelings. And the class disparity comes into play here too, Stolas is a prince and Blitz is just a lowly imp, there's no way someone like that would really love him. Stolas sees him as an amusement, a toy, and so Blitz refuses to believe there's anything there. He can't let himself think that. He doesn't want to get hurt when Stolas inevitably gets bored of him. So despite how much Blitz cares about him, Blitz pushes him away just like he did all those other people who dated him. Those people deserved better, and Stolas.. well, Stolas deserves someone who's not just a tiny little imp, huh?

Meanwhile, Stolas wants a romantic fairytale relationship and is blind to how his pet names and his behavior comes across as him talking down to Blitz, who is lower ranking and has the aforementioned commitment issues so why would he ever believe someone who belittles him actually cares about him?? And yet when Blitz points out how much Stolas talks down to him, Stolas is confused and grows defensive, insisting he's never done that. Because he has such a position of privilege he genuinely doesn't realize that's how he comes across, and that's something he needs to reflect on and come to terms with if this is ever going to work.

So it's like. idk I'm not good at explaining this stuff but they're both making assumptions and it's backfiring on them. So I'm glad that they finally both laid out their feelings, and Blitz can know for sure that Stolas truly cares for him and wants this sweet, romantic relationship, and Stolas now knows that Blitz has felt talked down to and struggles to accept that anyone could genuinely love him. Now it just comes down to what they both DO with that information.

For that reason, I love that the episode didn't end with them just deciding all is well and hooking back up. That would have felt cheap. I like that Blitz isn't with him right now and can think more on how he needs to address his own issues around commitment and self-loathing, and Stolas can spend time with someone who seems genuinely interested and wants to dance and chat with him. Someone who has no obligation to be with Stolas, Stolas isn't providing him a service, he's just attracted to him and wants to get to know him. At this point I think seeing someone else is the healthiest option for Stolas.

I still like Stolitz, they have chemistry and I can see them finding their way back to each other, but right now I think they can benefit the most from spending time apart. I hope Blitz will be able to work on himself, and I hope Stolas will more fully realize how condescending he was coming across, and when they next speak, it will be with a great understanding and respect for each other.

also I liked seeing other characters during Blitz's apology tour and Martha being with Mrs. Mayberry now cracked me up SO hard, three cheers for toxic yuri 🥂

[bubblybloob]

Which voices do you ship with eachother? I mean, I've already seen Opportunist/Skeptic (which I haven't seen much of in the fandom and I really like your take on them btw ^^) and Smitten/Cold come by, but are there other pairings or dynamics you haven't got to draw yet, but would like to?

Haven’t been too big on the Voice shipping scene aside from jokes but sure, fuck it, let them by gay.

The Opportunist Skeptic comic was meant to be interpreted however people liked, but I think Skeptic’s inquisitive nature and somewhat reassuring presence by sounding like he knows what he’s doing, and Opportunist’s need for validation and to be wanted go pretty well together.

Contrarian and Hero sound fun, because of the Stranger route it’s almost like they know each other the best, except Contrarian is still a little shit, but Hero has a relatively high tolerance given what he puts up with, so they’d have fun banter probably.

I think Cheated with anyone would be funny, particularly Stubborn, they’re like drinking friends that had a little side thing that went a little two far and now they hold hands and they both love hate it.

Smitten and Cold is like a crack ship to me, if you lot are more invested in it y’all can try to change my mind on that one, it’s not like I’m deep set on that opinion.

Paranoid’s a really fun character, I guess he’d get along well with Hunted, they’re both so afraid of everything, might as well be afraid together. Or get kidnapped in winter, that works too I suppose.

Hero and Paranoid too btw, their dialogue when you choose to go upstairs with the Nightmare is fantastic, their tense yet silly quarrel and back and forth with the Narrator was amazing and part of it was even one of the first things I drew for stp. Them arguing was also my first impression of the game, so yeah, they can be gay too.

Idk what else at the moment, these are just the thoughts I had at the moment. I try to go in depth with my responses because if I like to read that kind of ramble shit, I know others might too.

[the-director]

My Tav Calder! He is a half drow bard.

Bonus info specifically: (contain spoilers for the endings and epilogues.)

Gale: when I started playing Calder (he is my second playthrough) I had the intention of romancing Gale. So I pursued him hard. And then... oh and then karlach came onto me. And I fell. Hard. Had to break up with gale. I think that. In the story of this playthrough, this breakup is the reason why I wasn't able to convince him to give up the crown.

Lae'zel: despite being a bard, Calder does enjoy a good fight as I picked college of swords for him. But that is not the reason why they are friends, they are friends because they relate to their pasts. Calder does have a noble background, but he was also sold into slavery (long story short he is in a bit of a zuko situation. But instead of finding the avatar, he got sold and is told to "work to earn his place among his family") so. They both understand the weight of high expectations. But also I like their dynamic due to what lae'zel says to you in the epilogue if she goes with Orpheus. That you taught her diplomacy, and I think that's very fitting for her and Calder (or rlly with her and a bard/high charisma/pacifist tav)

Shadowheart: honestly I feel like shadowheart is so... older sister? The way that she tries to be above everyone, the way she is so sparky to you, but also becomes loyal and trusting of you. Idk it reminds me of older sisters in like early 2000s movies. As a result, when I'm not romancing her. I tend to view her and my tav as feeling a kinship to eachother. I think this is also because of both of them being half elves.

Wyll: I actually have a lot of thoughts about Calder and wyll, specifically because of Calder growing up in this rich upperclass family, they probably met eachother while they were younger, or at least both of them are aware of their families (I'm still deciding how old I want Calder to be, and how long he was a slave) so there's like. Both of them know eachothers childhoods, but then both have to wonder "what happened to you for you to wind up here" I imagine they have a heart to heart with wyll talking about the pact and getting sent away by his father, and Calder talking about his wild magic that got him rejected by his family and then further being betrayed by them.

Another component of this relationship is the "karlach protection squad" I feel like it's basically canon that wyll and karlach, whether or not they romance eachother, will be very close and have a friendship together. And so especially with karlachs infernal engine, they both feel this need to protect her, to find a way to save her life. Which is just. So neat yknow? This strong durable character who is yet so vulnerable due to this replacement for a heart she has, something imposed against her. That she tried to make work for her, and it did, for a bit. Until when she finally thinks she can get her life back. She instead finds she's a dead girl walking.

Anyways. Both wyll and Calder are devoted to her in this way. And so even though they're kind of in that space of "so similar to eachother that we hate eachother since we can see every fault and flaw that we hate about ourselves in the other" they put aside their similarities and work towards this goal.

Astarion: Calder is, ngl, highly morally dubious. He is. Incredibly two-faced, or more precisely 6 faced. He's very much a people pleaser, a liar one may call him. He breaks every law for his own gain. Which astarion can get behind. Calder reads astarion like a book moreso than anyone else, which is why Calder trusts him. Astarion may be seen as "untrustworthy" but Calder trusts because he knows what he does, he can rely on that. I'm thinking this is especially in the early game. Where Calder might not have been too sure about the other ones and their true intentions.

I think, perhaps this trust is also due to their shared background. Of course I made calders backstory specifically so that it could parallel everyone else's and deal with the similar themes of "lack of autonomy" and "authority" and so on. But I think other than wyll, calders background is the most like astarions. And so since he is familiar to this. Desperation and fear for safety that astarion feels all the time. That is why he *knows*

Halsin: Remember how there was that glitch where gales approval was super easy to get, and as a result he would hit on every single tav regardless of how much you talked to him and as a result he came off as a huge creep and people hated him? That's how I feel about halsin.

Jaheira: similar to shadowheart, but in this one I JUST. LOOK AT JAHEIRA AND I HEAR MY MIND GO. "PLEASE ADOPT ME" if she adopted me everything would be right with the world (it wouldn't but) my mommy issues. Just. (I have three moms, which one would think would mean I have no mommy issues. No I just have three different types of mommy issues)

Anyways. Seriously. I think that at first Calder would kind of have the karlach fangirl moment, he wouldn't externalize it. But it would definitely happen. Overtime though they develop the bond of cub and crow. And I think. The definitive good ending for Calder is one where he joins the harpers. (I'm just now realizing that then he would be Chris pines character in dnd and karlach would be that one barbarian lady)

Karlach: she snuck into my heart, and I think she snuck her way into calders too. I think at first, it starts with passion, it starts with warmth and comfort in eeachothers arms. Then it evolves into late-night talks around the campfire. Of him singing her favorite songs, telling her favorite tales. Maybe they do it together. Him on his lute and just her singing. Or them acting scenes together. I imagine them fighting together, him inspiring her, healing her maybe, her defending him and beating anything that hurts him into a pulp. I imagine them entering the city together. He took the tadpole, she is so worried for him. She tries not to let it show. His ego is bruised. He's hurting inside. They open up though, they find solace in eachothers arms again. That one scene happens, they talk about the future they'll never get. The cabin, with the goat. Oh how he wished he could perform for her forever.

I finished the game before patch 5, before going to hell meant finding a cure. And even then, I think Calder wouldn't force her to go. I think Calder always gets wyll out of the contract and wyll decides to be Duke. And so she dies. On the docks.

And Calder is ruined.

But he develops a plan. Undo timeline.

[quirkle2]

no way, you haven't seen train to busan yet? i say you're definitely in for a ride 🤩

also hhhh ritsu finally getting his big bro back.. iwnxowmx i love them sm i rarely came across wholesome kaegbros content so thank you for your service 🛐

((i don't think anyone's ever asked this but what are zombie mob's dynamic with reigen and teru after they reunite bcs i am in need of dad reigen and angsty platonic terumob sobs ((also teru and mob's special hand shake hHHHHH SOBS))

-🪻

i have not i should watch it ! looks sick as hell :]

both reigen and teru are ... a little distant with mob as soon as they see that he's a zombie, mostly out of fear of getting bitten, but also just... genuine grief and uncertainty on how to move forward

after just a few days of spending time with him though, they both see a Lot of mob in him, and like i said in that other ask a while ago, they Start To Believe. teru is a lot quicker to warm up to mob, and a lot more willing to get near him sooner than reigen. he misses hugging mob a lot, but he doesn't dare try for a while

when he Does get comfortable touching mob, and when mob seems unbothered by it, he kinda goes full swing into it and reverts back to his old clingy self. mob never seems to mind, though he doesn't do it back except for basic hugs. and also the handshake <3

teru Is a bit starved for returned affection—he desperately wishes mob could like .. compute that and Realize that and at least Attempt to do it back. he misses talking to him, and holding conversations, and seeing him smile. teru misses his smile a lot—he doesn't seem to smile as a zombie

reigen is frankly fuckin devastated bc he's rly not one to believe in a cure (at first, anyway) and this right here feels like a Fraction of what mob used to be, so it's rly rly hard to look at the kid and not get upset about what he Could be looking at instead, had reigen had a better handle on the kageyama's whereabouts when they got separated

reigen calls him "mob" out of instinct and mob, despite going a full year without hearing that name once, instantly turns to reigen in response, attentive. he thinks it's a fluke at first, but over time as it happens again and again he realizes that Yeah, mob recognizes that name and knows reigen is talking to Him specifically, and mob is trying to listen. it's a small piece of proof, for him, that mob is there

when reigen gets more comfy with the circumstances, he settles back into old habits. he ruffles mob's hair and the first time it happens mob looks comically bemused and he like.blinks several times like What The Hell Was That but the second time he does it he seems to recall the sensation and leans into the touch

HILARIOUS to think about mob latching onto old memories, and occasionally he'll stand next to reigen and hold his hand out. and reigen kinda stares at him, a little lost as to why, and on instinct reigen just kinda puts whatever he's holding atm in mob's palms and he seems satisfied w that and simply walks away ???? idk How long it takes him to recognize that mob is holding his hands out waiting to be paid, but it's gonna be hilarious when he realizes it . his memories r rough atm so he doesn't rly remember What he's waiting for, so when reigen gives him literally anything he thinks "ah, that must be it" and carries on.

teru and reigen don't realize it, but tome and ritsu catch on quite quickly—mob actually seems happier, after the reunion ! tome mentions that shigeo seems kinda chipper lately, and more alert, more talkative. ever since seeing teru and reigen again, sections of that rusty brain have turned back online to rifle through memories, and even though it's a little hard to tell, they can see it in his eyes, The Joy

makes ritsu think a lil bit. ritsu had sorta defaulted to the idea that mob didn't recall ever being with teru or reigen to begin with, beforehand. he's not sure why he came to this conclusion—he just never rly thought abt it too hard, over everything else to consider

makes him wonder if mob had been quietly mourning teru and reigen this whole time, quietly missing them, but never having the ability to show it or vocalize it, even to ritsu. or if it's like an out-of-sight, out-of-mind thing, where mob didn't rly think about them until they appeared in front of them, and now he's happy they're here. it's hard to tell

[spaceyflowerswriting]

HII idk if u write for gun ( lookism ) but would it be alright if I request a gun x reader fluff? That’s all! Ty:))

beauty in you (gun park x reader)

details: fluffy drabble, gender neutral reader written in 2nd pov, general canon au, you and gun are coworkers dating

summary: a silly conversation with kouji makes gun realize you've become a very dear part of his life.

a/n: i do <3!! he's one of my faves to write; thanks for requesting!!

inspired by the last prompt on this post 💖

×

"...Really?"

"What?"

Kouji pointed to the headband Gun was currently wearing, the fluffy cat ears on them being a large contrast to his serious demeanor. "If I asked you to wear that, you would've asked me what color I'd want my coffin to be."

"Hm. Really?" Gun smirked out of amusement when the purple haired highschooler gave his arm a light slap.

"Seriously, I've never seen you make so many exceptions for someone before." Kouji huffed and pointed with a thumb at you, which you didn't notice because you were too busy singing with Crystal. "They've really got you wrapped around their finger."

"Please," scoffed Gun, "Is it so strange I enjoy the company of someone? And it's not as if I don't do these things with Goo, either. Just the other day we were at a karaoke like this one."

"Yeah, but you kinda grumble when you agree! With them you just agree right away."

"Your point?"

Kouji let out a deep sigh. "You know what it is? I think they made you soft, at least towards them."

Soft...? Soft?

Never in a million years would Gun ever describe himself with such a word, nor would he imagine someone else would use it in reference to him. Yet at this moment, he could sort of understand why Kouji would say what he did.

He shook his head anyway, turning his attention back to you, adoring your bright smile that even his sunglasses couldn't protect his eyes from as he said, "They made me appreicate something I've yet to experience, that's all. I see no problem with it."

When Kouji made a gagging sound, Gun turned his head back to see him grimacing. "Am I hallucinating? Gun wearing cat ears and saying the most disgustingly cheesy ass thing I've ever heard?"

Gun just chuckled. "Is now a good time to ask what color you would like your coffin?"

"Man..."

[below is extra characterization stuff i started with but then realized i was just rambling instead of writing a story but i liked it enough to keep it]

When others say that beauty was found in people, Gun could agree, but perhaps not in a way one would usually think. For him, it wasn't the kindness or smiles humanity shared that he found beautiful, but physical talent instead--people so skilled, they were on the tip of almost being non-human.

The most flexible gymnast, the fastest swimmer... and most of all, the strongest human; particularly when it came to fighting. Yes, to Gun, there was just something beautiful about the way one could perfectly move themselves to inflict maximum damage, through technique and knowing the right weak spots. Not to mention, knowing there was hard work put behind to maintain such strength and knowledge made it even more beautiful to him.

Of course, there was also talent in itself that fascinated Gun. Anyone could achieve enough through hard work, but not everyone was born with natural talent.

So... why did he find beauty the "normal" way in you? As far as he knew, you couldn't fight, and all you've done was just be yourself. Your personality achieved some sort of dynamic with him where for once he enjoyed the company of someone in a peaceful way. In fact, he wouldn't mind spending the rest of his life with someone like you. It was a strange feeling, but he was sure of it. Emotions weren't too complicated for someone as straightforward as him, after all.

Nonetheless, perhaps he could argue that your talent was making him smile, and for that, he could appreciate the beauty in you; your talent.

[mythicamagic]

have you played Love and Deepspace and what is your review on it??

Hello! Yes I have. It's sitting in my homescreen right now on my phone.

I think my opinions on it might be quite mixed or controversial? So just bare that in mind before reading.

I've played a looot of otomes. I think I started playing them in 2009. I can very much say that LADS is a unique experience. It's not like anything I've ever played before in terms of graphics, cinematography and interaction with your fictional boyfriends.

The Great:

I think the interface and design is really nice in certain aspects (the combat is a bit iffy). This is a very pretty game imo. Also can I just say, having a customisable MC is really great! I like that you can change not just her skintone but her voice settings as well. I also just- LOVE the 4 and 5 star cards content. They hold some examples of lovely scenarios written with care, and some good ole fanservice to boot as a treat. Whoever does the lighting for the 5* cards does a marvellous job, as the animations really feel 'alive' sometimes. Great direction with using the MC as the POV so the 'camera' swings or moves closer according to how she's reacting. Love that.

The LIs:

I think having a varied cast is important in otomes but a common vibe or theme can often be shared between their contrasting personalities. For Piofiore its mafia/crime lords and domestic life, for Cafe Enchante cosy coffeeshop vibes. With Love and Deepspace I'd say its cosy vibes mixed with action, mixed with angst. The cast supports this, with all of them having serious or sweet sides. I am definitely not drawn to some of them, but that's okay! I think anyone going in new should know they won't like everyone and that's common for otome. What I find uninteresting might be wonderful to someone else and vice versa. I will say Sylus took the spot as my favourite and he has a very different vibe to the others even when he's doing cosy domestic stuff. I very much enjoy his scenes and how dynamic they feel (also its really nice the whole cast is in their twenties)

The Bad:

The worst casualty in Love and Deepspace is...the main story. I can't overstate how much of a confusing, poorly written and badly executed mess the main story is. In terms of setup, establishing lore, world building and stakes, it somewhat limps from one chapter to another. Scenes can begin and end abruptly with plot threads seemingly dropped. Secrets can often be intriguing, yes- but by continually withholding answers the game can get a bit frustrating. As a new player with no knowledge of the game, I didn't understand why Rafayel kept referring to himself as a fish during the crane game and kitty card mini games. It was like they were referencing something that hadn't happened yet in game, so I was like - okay, I'll wait. I'm sure it'll be explained (spoilers: it was not explained).

Essentially if you want backstory and context to the boys you NEED their cards to unlock their content, and I'm not a huge fan of that. I think the main story should still at least give you a bit more to work with about the boys. (This is especially bad when the lore is locked behind gacha luck). And I get that the whole story is space/time themed but sincerely I did not know the world of Love and Deepspace was capable of casual space travel until I read Sylus' anecdote story. This is not good worldbuilding. Sure it throws loads of terminology at you but you'll have to read the notes yourself to understand what they are. It's a lot of telling and not showing. For an example of how this could've been done: Cowboy Bebop is about bounty hunters in space. It has scenes of them...in space. You're telling me someone as rich as Sylus, who offers MC to go on his motorbike, yacht, and private jet, wouldn't offer her a circle around the planet in his spaceship? Idk it feels like a lot of worldbuilding details have been overlooked.

There is also the issue of voice acting. This can again come down to personal preference but in general I always give English Dubs a fair chance, and enjoy many of them. Voice acting has come a long way since the wooden performances of older animes and games. That said, many of the boys, especially in the earlier chapters and content sound extremely flat. This goes double for the NPCs (who can be laughably bad). It's not even a matter of 'oh this person is just reading lines with no emotion' no the inflections in their voice are off- the context of what they're supposed to be emoting to can feel a million miles off base. I barely felt like they were in the scene with me. That said - this was likely a voice direction issue, because more recent content allows the boys to sound more relaxed and involved in the scene. Sylus' English VA knocks it out of the park in his performance though and I really appreciate how much he embraced that role. A lot of people could get embarrassed having to voice ASMR type content but he got fully immersed so 10/10 for that. I haven't tried any other languages apart from Japanese but c'mon, we know the Japanese VAs are like celebrities over there and will crush any role so no notes there except they're all great.

TLDR:

With all that said I do not hate the game, I really enjoy it! (I wouldn't have ranted so much here if I didn't care) I just wish certain aspects were tightened up more for storytelling purposes. It feels a bit jarring when some aspects of the game are SUPER polished but then easy mistakes are made. So I'd say if you're interested in playing - to just embrace the fluff and spicy fanservice. Treat it as your main meal as I do. If you end up enjoying the main story and combat then that's a bonus! I really hope this game continues to be successful because their recent content and chapter has been super intriguing - and in general its just nice to have an otome reach the spot of 3rd highest grossing mobile game during some months (below the giants like Genshin and HSR)

[samwpmarleau]

Thinking about the dynamic between Keeley and Jamie throughout episode 8, and while much has been made of the accountability aspect, what I also find really interesting and compelling is the level of trust. We’ve seen that often from Jamie’s side in the series but not as often from Keeley’s, and it’s the latter that’s most on display throughout this episode.

Putting this under a cut for length (aka the result of overthinking and insomnia) and gifs:

Gonna start from the beginning.

It’s not like Keeley doesn’t know who she sent the video to. Of course she knows. Yet, she doesn’t jump to anger or betrayal, both of which would be perfectly understandable. “Shit. How did that get on the internet? A private video that —” is what she asks to herself (she’s then cut off by Jack).

She’s upset, but what she is most is baffled. She’s wracking her brain to think of a reason it would be out there. The idea that Jamie would leak it of his own accord is so improbable as to not even cross her mind, or else confusion as to how it got out wouldn’t be the salient emotion.

Then we get her odd order of priorities as to who would see the video. Family and friends first — then the team. Not the office, of which she’s the boss, that comes last.

Some of that is likely embarrassment/reputation, especially because the team is all men, but not the entirety. Personally, I think there’s another element of realizing that even though people may not put it together that it came from Jamie’s email, he was a victim in all of this as well. Not to mention the Roy of it all, which, as we found out, did not go well.

Speaking of which, her reaction right before this is quite reminiscent of her reaction in 1x03 regarding the photos of her and Ted:

Whether that’s intentional or not I don’t know, but nevertheless, both instances are intricately tied to Jamie. In 1x03, she says, “Jamie would have been so pissed off with reporters poking around in our love life.” While in this case it was hackers who leaked the material (though reporters wrote about it), the concept is the same: people poked around in their love life.

Then we get to Jamie finding out about it.

At first, he’s just got the same sort of sympathy/confusion that the rest of the team has. However, it’s quickly followed by dawning horror as he has the realization of, “Oh fuck. The emails.” Fabulous acting by Phil there, both with the face journey as well as the nervous fidgeting that manifests with the aforementioned realization.

As a side note, I also find the framing of that shot interesting.

Sure, it’s the furthest thing from a secret that Jamie and Keeley dated. But that was two years ago. Will wasn’t even there. I’d think they’d look at Roy long before they looked at Jamie, particularly because the video doesn’t appear to be timestamped. For all they know, Keeley sent the video to Roy, or even Jack. Jamie had just gotten done telling everyone his policy of deleting exes’ photos and videos and here is a leak of a video from one of his exes, so it might be that they find it a strange coincidence. But they’re not looking at him accusingly; they’re concerned, almost wary, checking for his reaction. Idk, it’s just a curious directorial choice to have his teammates focus on him.

(Unrelated, the fact that Keeley’s method of distracting herself from the situation being making designs out of sprinkles I think is so cute.)

Something I also like about all of this, and which no doubt contributes to Keeley’s confidence in Jamie, is that while we have to take him at his word that he deleted stuff from his phone since we’re not privy to it, it’s believable — he’s walked the walk for the public stuff, so it would track that he’d do so for the private stuff, too. This is his locker while they were together:

Full of photos of her (and only her), photos that from her conversation with Rebecca we know she gives the green light for. Those photos were her choice, they were in magazines anyone could find. They weren’t personal photos, even though it’s safe to assume she sent Jamie plenty of those. Is it the classiest of displays to have in one’s locker? Obviously not. He could have put up pictures where she’s more clothed, or pictures of the two of them. But there’s nonetheless a level of respect there in that those are photos she signed off on. And more importantly:

This is the very next episode after she breaks up with him. There are no photos of her at all; he’s taken every one of them down because she’s no longer his girlfriend and so it would be inappropriate to keep them up. (Yes, that’s like the bare minimum of decency, but Jamie was at peak asshole at that point. I don’t think anyone would’ve been surprised if he kept them up.)

Moving on to the ending. Here she is right before he shows up:

A mix of anger, frustration, and sadness. Between the video itself, Roy’s shitty response, and the presumed breakup with Jack, she’s had a really rough time of it. She definitely doesn’t look to be in the mood for visitors. Yet this is her response to seeing Jamie on her doorstep:

(And his in return, which I’m including for no other reason than that it’s adorable.)

After all that emotional turmoil and the knowledge that the video came from Jamie, that’s how she looks at him. She’s delighted. Why? Because, again, there is no doubt in her mind that he didn’t do it voluntarily. She may not know why he still had the video available to be hacked, not until he explains it to her, but ultimately that part doesn’t matter. What matters is that not only did he not leak it on purpose, but he hasn’t watched it since (or shortly after) they broke up. She trusts him unconditionally. Even when he tells her that his email password was “password,” she’s not pissed off or devastated. At worst, she’s exasperated.

Should he have had a better password? Of course. But it’s still not his fault. He was hacked, alongside a bunch of other people. There may even be explicit photos or videos of Jamie himself that got leaked.

Lastly, most poignantly of all, is her reaction after he gets done apologizing.

Roy and Jack both said they were sorry she’s in this situation, that it sucks, etc., but they both subsequently dropped the ball. Jack wanted her to apologize for something Keeley shouldn’t have to apologize for, and Roy’s insecurities and jealousy made the situation about himself when he asked her who she sent it to (which I don’t think was OOC or makes him a bad person, for the record, as I talked about here). Jamie was the only one of her past significant others who handled things correctly.

(I’d also like to point out that instead of deciding not to have the conversation at all due to him being too nervous to text her, he comes to her house to have the conversation in person.)

He acknowledged the shittiness of the situation, asked her how she was holding up, apologized for something that wasn’t even his fault, didn’t allow her to let him off the hook, overexplained why he still had the video, and if anything expected a negative reaction. So, although this may not have happened if Jamie had had a stronger password or remembered to delete the emails, he’s the only one of the three who gets a smile and a hug that they both needed.

And it is exactly that — what they needed. Even in her conversation with Rebecca (who was certainly a great friend), Keeley was feeling unsure. She didn’t know whether she should feel ashamed and regretful or not. Which makes sense, of course; not just because of the video itself, but because of the person it was sent to. Her and Jamie’s relationship crashed and burned, Keeley was a different person then, someone she wasn’t proud of, and she thought she’d put all that behind her. To have it all dredged up, be reminded that once upon a time he was the one she wanted to send videos to must have made her feel incredibly conflicted.

So to have not only anyone but Jamie in particular shoulder the “blame” and validate her without any qualifying of it, who understands because even though it was her video, he was the one who was hacked and thus would have a similar feeling of violation, well, the relief would’ve been — and, as we saw, was — overwhelming. Not only that, but Jamie is the only one in her life who knew her before the series began. Before Ted came into the picture, before she was friends with Rebecca, before she dated Roy, before she became the boss. Jamie’s been there through it all, for better or worse. And he’s gone through a parallel pattern of growth. Seeing him on her doorstep contrite and commiserating? It provided her a sort of grounding post amidst the chaos.

I just love the way all of this played out. That Jamie feels the gravity of what happened and his inadvertent role in it, and that at no point does Keeley think he did it on purpose.

She’s always had unwavering faith in him, and this is a beautiful example as to why.

[fffrost]

Please please share ur kenlao headcanons n stuff🙏🙏🙏🙏

AHAHA OH BOY! I didn’t expect my KenLao shit to hit it off so well- but yeah totally. I haven’t had a ton of time to give them much more thought than the surface level stuff. A lot of it relates to the way I personally view the characters so I hope it’s good.

Pre relationship summary:

They both kind of make the first move with each other, the current dynamic (and fic) I’m working on right now has it where gang reunites every so often as a whole group. Kung Lao and Kenshi end up hitting it off at one, and gradually over time while they mature and grow more comfortable with themselves and each other they talk more outside of these meetings.

Kenshi and Lao I think are both confident in a manner that manifests in being very forward with other people- which for them ends well. Kung Lao likes to flirt, and Kenshi isn’t against it, it doesn’t bother him. He warms up to Lao and they end up really enjoying each others presence.

For Head-canons, Particularly Kenshi, because of how I characterize him:

- Kenshi eventually (idk how to word this well) accepts his blindness- and doesn’t often use Sento to see. Partially because I hc it would be pretty jarring to have that weird mindfuck of the souls of your ancestors which live in your sword directly beam visions into your brain- and also because he straight up just can’t have a sword out all the time.

- just adding this: he uses sento while fighting. Of course, so most likely he uses the sight it grants him almost exclusively in combat.

- I haven’t gone super in depth into more head-canons on what sort of aids he would use, because I need to do more research, but I think he uses a cane when walking around, and maybe later he has a service dog.

I want to point out that I’ve seen a lot of people brush off his blindness in favor of just pretending he can see like normal because of sento… which really fails to see the full potential and worth of his blindness in his character arc. I don’t know much about blindness and I am going to do research to be able to characterize and write him correctly!

Anyway moving on since I just talked about Kenshi so much (I love him) here’s some basic hcs for them:

- they alternate who is the big spoon/little spoon often.

- Kung Lao (later in life, when their relationship starts) has tattoos! He also grows his hair out, and gets a few more (bridge piercing cameo) piercings.

- Kenshi obviously has a beard

- Kung Lao can’t grow an epic beard and instead just fawns over Kenshi’s. Kenshi is mildly annoyed by it (he loves it.)

- once they’ve built trust Kung Lao trims and tidies Kenshi’s beard.

- Kenshi likes to tie up Kung Lao’s hair

- Kung Lao picks outfits for Kenshi sometimes, once Kenshi has drilled the importance of cleaning up and looking good into him enough.

- Kenshi steals Kung Lao’s clothes. A lot.

- over time their relationship develops from casual to serious, Kung Lao is the first to realize it. It grows to the point where Kenshi can’t imagine spending his time with anyone else, or trusting anyone else with that side of himself.

- Kung Lao yearns for an active and dramatic life at first, and Kenshi knows how painful it can be, so it worries him.

- over time Kenshi mellows out Kung Lao, and Kung Lao introduces Kenshi to positive excitement.

- ^ Kenshi dislikes large gatherings (such as concerts) and amusement parks.

- Kung Lao loves training with Kenshi, due to the unique techniques Kenshi’s fighting style provides. Kenshi also helps Kung Lao with coaching Shujinko after the first time he biffed it, which was pre relationship.

- takeda comes into the picture also, but I am not sure how I want to fit him into their familial dynamic yet….

[bored-dom]

Long post:

An undertale Au that I'll never work on because I don't have time. But because its been living in my head for a while I'm just gonna lay some things out in hopes it leaves my mind.

For clarification I don't ship Frans (I don't really ship anything) but I made this and wanted to be part of the story for some reason. (Its also a better version of a terrible Frans au I made a while ago)

Well technically its more of a UTDR Au becuase plot: Frisk is the seventh soul (eighth if you count Chara) Frisk makes it through the ruins and ends up killing Toriel. Frisk tries to make it through snowdin and waterfall, dies a bunch of times, gives up, resets and stays in the ruins. (Yes Toriel is still dead)

Frisk stays in the ruins, then many years later another human falls (Kris? I'm not sure if I want it to be a UTDR AU honestly) and Frisk is like, "yeah I'll help you make your way through the underground"

Ignoreing that part though, from Frisks time in the ruins, they're the one who ends up talking to Sans threw the door. Frisk ends up confessing to Killing Toriel, and Sans is something like " bro why tf would you do that? She was my friend" and Frisk is like "She tried to kill me first" eventually Sans just kinda gives up on caring about it since there's nothing he can really do about it. They talk to each other through the door, up unit the last human falls.

Thats when they finally meet each other face to face. Sans wasn't the judge yet when Frisk first went through the underground. Sans, at this point, doesn't really consider Frisk a Friend or anything like that, just someone he can talk to when he needs to. He is annoyed an slightly concerned that since Frisk left the ruins they might end up hurting other people so he keeps an eye on both them and the human Child.

Frisk on the other hand is aware of Sans suspicions and purposefully makes him worried about what they might do (when in reality they have no actual desire to harm anyone else). The reason Frisk does this is because they like him and his reactions, but they're 100% aware that Sans doesn't like them, and probably won't like them. So they just annoy him for the fun of it.(Their logic doesn't make sense I know)

I know this may not sound like Frans, but it is. It involves one of my favorite ship dynamics: Annoying "psychopath" X Someone too apathetic/tired to care.

When Frisk first fell they were 12, by the time the next human fell they're around 22

Here's the Kris vs my idea for an original Fallen human (Their name is Chance or Nova idk)

Poorly drawn because it was done quickly. If I did Nova/Chance their soul would be Justice.

Frisk would still have control over the timelines and would be the one bringing the human back to life, and giving advice on how they should continue.

The reason Sans doesn't have a Jacket in the first picture is because he gives it to the kid.

The fallen child is around 11-13 I'm honestly not sure about the age.

Honestly I want to work on this AU, but there is so much to it, I doubt I ever will. And if you made it this far and read all if this then... thank you! And if you have any questions please ask, I kinda want to talk about this for a littlebit. But I know it was a lot so I highly doubt anything will come from this post.