#is genuinely awful for him! it's so unfair!

[whetstonefires]

You know, I've been thinking about it, and it is absolutely essential to the narrative that Jiang Cheng is a dick and a trash fire. (Affectionate.)

Like, first of all, if he was a sainted little angel of a shidi the way Jiang Yanli is a shijie, Wei Wuxian's choices would become obvious, sort of impersonal, and boring.

Sure, lots of people wouldn't tear themselves apart for such a person in such a scenario, but they're not the protagonists of novels, are they; in a book you have to justify not doing that. So white lotus Jiang Cheng is off the table.

Jiang Cheng who isn't fragile-and-insecure but also stubborn-as-hell and violently reactive also won't wash.

If he wasn't the kind of person who sincerely tries to die under these circumstances, Wei Wuxian would have had the option of loyally supporting him in a less self-destructive way; if he was someone who could be trusted to handle the revelation without suffering a ruinous fracture of identity, Wei Wuxian wouldn't have been forced to distance himself after the war, because he could have come clean.

If Jiang Cheng wasn't the kind of person who centers on his own pride and hurt feelings and lashes out about it, it would be very hard to set up the lategame scenario where they're 'enemies' in a real, meaningful way, despite still loving each other and Wei Wuxian never wishing Jiang Cheng any ill. Even with Jiang Yanli's death.

And I mean, you could get most of the plot without doing this interesting thematic examination of the classic 'bond between martial brothers severed by one going to the dark side' trope, but I'd argue you'd lose an enormous chunk of the story.

And without Jiang Cheng's weaknesses, Wei Wuxian's motives don't cohere. His weaknesses form the foundation of at least two of the backstory's major turning points.

There's the tantalizing possibility that Wei Wuxian wouldn't have done it, if Jiang Cheng hadn't strangled him while blaming him for everything.

Probably he would have, all else being equal! But neither we nor Jiang Cheng can be sure.

Jiang Cheng sucking a lot, and knowing his own flaws perfectly well without that granting him the ability to do much about them, is heavily load-bearing. Which gives him such a fantastic implied point of view!

[lovecrazedpup]

i dont want to sleep

[chuluoyi]

✎ the babysitters' club

- gojo satoru x reader

in which yuji, megumi and nobara are tasked with the most important mission ever by their teacher—watching over his baby son!

genre: total crack, first years are trying their best to babysit your son to save their grades, an attempt at humor, gojo is irritating as always, fluff, fluff, fluff

note: this is sooo incredibly silly :') some inspiration are taken from the baby starfish onesie, this ask, and this illustration -> if you're wondering how gojo dressed his baby, he's looks just like that :)) tagging @3zae-zae3 <3

a part of gojo's love entries

general masterlist

"Gojo-sensei... what is that wiggling starfish!?"

On one sunny day in jujutsu school... trouble is once again brewing in the form of Gojo Satoru bringing his baby son to the class.

"Starfish? No, no," Gojo retorted with a displeased expression, directing his gaze towards Yuji and clicking his tongue as he patted his squirming baby, which was still hidden from their view. "He's my pride and joy! Don't refer to him as starfish!"

"But you've got him dressed up as one..." Nobara pointed out, her tone flat and unimpressed.

"That's his kid," Megumi provided, wearily sighing. God, he knew already today was going to be a long day.

No one from school had seen your seven-month old baby son yet, and Gojo was determined to make it an occasion to remember.

Beaming with pride, he gently removed his baby from the starfish-themed onesie, revealing him in a tiny black jujutsu outfit specially tailored for him, complete with miniature black glasses. He held him up, presenting him for everyone to see.

"Behold, everyone... my son! Isn't he just adorable?!"

. . . a momentary silence before—

"Oh my goodness, he is!" Nobara cooed, forgetting her earlier sentiment, immediately approaching the baby with shining eyes. "Sensei, how could you manage to have a baby this cute!?"

"Heh! Only the finest technique utilized to create him—"

"Complete bullshit—"

"Hush, Megumi! No cussing in front of my baby! I'll deduct your marks!"

"Seriously...?"

"Now, class, today I have a very, very important task for you..." Gojo said, his voice dripping with mischief as he sported a broad grin. "If you succeed, I'll personally draft a recommendation letter for each of you to Yaga. But if you don't..." he paused for the suspense, scanning his three students' curious faces.

"Then I'm failing you in my class!" Gojo continued with a grin, prompting immediate reactions from his students.

“What! Why?!”

“That's not fair!”

“Sigh.”

“All you have to do was to watch over him until I come back. Everything you need is here— in this bag!”

Megumi rolled his eyes. Nobara raised an eyebrow. Only Yuji who seemed to be genuinely interested.

"Isn't that easy?" Gojo tilted his head playfully, looking absolutely stupid with his blindfold. "There are three of you here. If you can't even manage to look after one baby, then you should not even think about romance and dating."

"Nonsen—"

"Quiet, Megumi!"

And so began the day's mission: looking after Baby Gojo until his father's return.

“Lalala~ look you’re flying!”

“Fwa...”

“Kugisaki, don’t hold him like that! You’re making him cry!”

“No, I’m not— Itadori! Don’t smush his face—!”

“WAAA!”

“You idiot!” Megumi hissed, plucking the poor baby from his clueless friends and immediately soothed him, pulling him close and patting his back. He even gently shushed him, “There, there...”

And Yuji and Nobara could only look at him in awe as the baby's wails turned into soft sniffles, peaceful in his embrace.

"Whoa... Fushiguro, so babies like you, huh..."

"Unfair!" Nobara clicked his tongue, before fixing a wide smile and waved at the baby in Megumi's arms. "Hi baby~ don't you want to held by big sister—"

"He doesn't like you, Kugisaki."

And so, that was how the three of them spent half the day—constantly watching over Baby Gojo, with Megumi supervising both the baby and his two friends.

"Sometimes, I wonder what she sees in him..." Megumi grumbled sullenly, resigned to his fate, his gaze fixed on the crawling baby while he sat on the floor and threw his little sunglasses.

For all the sighs he exuded, Megumi undeniably had a soft spot for the baby. Prior today, he had held him several times, and he'd never admit it, but he'd protect him to the best of his ability, if anything, because you had done so much for him.

“Gojo-sensei is cool!” Yuji remarked. “Of course Y/N-sensei is happy with him.”

Nobara rolled her eyes. “Only you would say that.”

"Hey, don't you think he wants his milk?" Yuji suddenly pointed out, as the baby became fussy. Megumi nodded and Yuji immediately reached for the bag Gojo left. He pulled out a bottle and handed it to his friend, but in the process, he accidentally knocked the bag over, spilling its contents onto the floor.

"Ahh, my bad," the boy sighed, collecting the diapers and washcloth, until he realized that there were some more—

"What's that? Photographs?" Nobara picked one of them up, and immediately gasped. "Oh my! Look at this!"

On the picture was the same baby, but much more smaller and swaddled in baby blue blanket and tiny blue beanie. Most likely taken when he was a newborn.

"Whoa, wait, there's something written behind the photo..."

When she flipped it over, both she and Yuji studied the messy handwriting, instantly recognizing it as their teacher's.

Yaaay! ♡ Baby is here! I'm sooo happy you made it! But mama went through a lot to bring you here... so don't ever forget that she loves you very, very much, okay?

"This is sweet." Nobara looked at the picture with a genuine smile, until she realized that there were some more scattered on the floor.

The other picture was of the blue-eyed baby on his arms and knees, wrapped in an orange and black bee onesie, complete with little wings, and behind it was written:

Aren't you just the cutest bee?! And what's more, you've started crawling! Aw, papa is so proud! In no time at all, you're going to be as strong as me!

"What are you two doing over there?" Megumi asked, still feeding the baby with the milk bottle. Nobara beckoned him over.

The third photo was of you smiling so prettily while holding your baby, still in his bee suit, and Gojo also in the frame, wrapping his arm around you, clearly the one holding the camera to take the selfie.

Two my most precious treasures ♡ Sweetheart, I love you. And baby too!

Yuji smiled, as he felt warmth spreading in his chest. "Gojo-sensei really treasures his family, huh?"

"He is," Megumi agreed, because he had seen it all throughout his life.

"Well, no wonder..." Nobara giggled. "Any woman showered with this much love would be happy."

And that day, the trio also uncovered another side of their teacher, that his deepest affection was reserved exclusively for his wife and child.

Well, the sentimental feeling didn't last long though...

"This is our chance!" Nobara said in a hushed whisper. "When else are we going to get an extra family discount!?"

Megumi was so ready to burst a blood vessel as he held the baby—given that he had forbidden his two friends to lay a finger on him. "We are meeting Gojo-sensei here, not to—!"

"Hush! Itadori, don't you agree with me?!"

Yuji nudged his cross friend, trying to appease him. "Lighten up, Fushiguro! We can have more meat!"

At the last minute, Gojo suddenly told the three of them to bring his baby and meet him at the shopping center as he didn't want to waste energy to go back to the school. And like broke students Nobara and Yuji were, they decided to use Baby Gojo to snag an extra plate in a yakiniku place.

Megumi's eyes twitched. "This is not making sense at all, they won't believe—!"

"Shut up, you! Waiter~ here! We have a baby! So we're eligible for the family package!"

The judging stare of the waiter was enough to make Megumi combust on the spot, and yet somehow he passed the four of them as family eligible for the extra plate.

It was later, after they had their lunch that Megumi suddenly had an upset stomach and left the baby momentarily in his two friends' care.

And under less-than-watchful eyes...

"Hey, Kugisaki, meat on this side is the juiciest! Try it!"

"Ooh, you're right!"

The baby only blinked at them in wonder as he stayed in his spot. Not for long though... and it didn't help that they forgot his existence after they went to the cashier and headed out.

"Oi, Itadori! Don't forget to split the bill!"

"Oh yeah! Anyway, why is Fushiguro taking so long?"

Megumi got back right afterwards, and he frowned. "You done already? I haven't even gotten my ocha refill—" and it dawned to him when he saw both Yuji and Nobara with empty hands.

"Wait... where's the baby?"

"—! Oh my god!"

And when the three of them rushed back to the yakiniku place and approached their table earlier, Nobara almost screamed at the empty chairs, "He is gone!"

"You left the baby with the kids and told them to come here?!"

You were positively fuming as you scolded your stupid husband in the bustling mall.

"Well, we haven't gotten much time to spend together, just the two of us!" Satoru retorted, his tone sulky as he pouted. "And besides, Megumi is there. I'm sure they'll do just fine~"

You let out a sigh. True enough, being parents is no joke. Aside from stay-at-home dates, the frequency of the two of you going out had dwindled exponentially since having your baby.

"Technically, you are still on the clock though." You threw him a glare. "You're being a very irresponsible teacher."

Satoru smirked. "Heh, spare me. But I'm being a very good teacher to you in our—"

"One more word and I'm locking you out—!"

Just as you were about to give him your (empty) threat, the building suddenly boomed with an announcement from the mall's broadcast speaker.

"Attention, shoppers. We've received a report from three teenagers that they've lost a baby. He is seven-month old, wears black shirt, has white hair and blue eyes. He is last seen at Yakiniku Q—"

"Satoru..." your voice trembled, dread settling in the pit of your stomach. The baby described by the speaker was unmistakably your son, and the realization of him being missing sent you spiraling into panic.

"Hey, calm down." Satoru gripped your hand tightly, his voice steady as he faced you. "We're going to find him, alright? I'm here. Don't worry."

And after taking off his glasses, in a matter of seconds, Satoru figured out where he was.

Nobara's eyes welled up with tears, frustrated. "What do I do, Gojo-sensei will fail us now..." she muttered, biting her lip.

"That's what you're worried about?" Megumi replied, turning to her with a clear glare.

"He's going to be fine! He is!" Yuji interjected, trying to reassure his two friends despite his own rising anxiety. "He’s not just any random baby—who knows, maybe he can shoot cursed energy to protect himself!"

Megumi and Nobara leveled their annoyed stares on him and Yuji immediately regretted his attempt to lighten the mood.

"I still think he can't get far from the yakiniku place." Megumi was too panicked to check with the staff earlier and just went with Yuji's suggestion to report it to be announced, but now that he thought about it— "I think we should go back."

And thank goodness the three of them returned for the second time because, this time, they finally saw the baby safely cradled in your arms, with Gojo speaking to the waitresses nearby.

"Oh?! Gojo-sensei is here!"

But as soon as the three of them came into view, Gojo immediately fixed them with his unamused gaze.

"You three..." his voice was lower and it made the three kids shudder. "What did I tell you about failing this mission, huh?"

Yuji, Nobara and Megumi were visibly spooked, immediately bowing their heads in unison as they chorused—

"Gojo-sensei, we're so sorry!"

Nobara then pointed an accusing finger at Yuji. "But it was his fault! He kept eating away and didn't even oversee the baby anymore!"

"Wha!?" Yuji glared back at her. "No! You too! You kept eating my meat too!"

"Whatever it is, I'm not a part of this—" Megumi cut in boldly. "My stomach hurt so I had to go for a bit, and they couldn't even keep an eye on him—"

You soothed your squirming son as the first years were throwing blame at each other. Gaping in confusion, you couldn't help but wonder how such a simple task had turned into this incident.

"Tsk." Gojo crossed his arms dramatically, and you knew he was just messing with them, as he suddenly turned to you with a grin.

"Nah, as both a teacher and the victim's mother— Sensei~ who do you think is responsible for this? Or should I punish all three of them?"

The three kids before you were quaking in their boots, and you really didn't have time for this right now. Honestly, if if you had to quickly pinpoint the source of this chaos...

You directed your most irked glare at your husband. "You."

“Huh?!”

“You’re the one staging this by threatening their grades, and it results in our baby being missing!”

Now you were bickering with your husband and putting him in his rightful place. Nobara and Yuji gaped, while Megumi heaved a sigh of relief.

"Does this mean... our grades are saved?"

Epilogue

"They said he fell..." You pat your baby's head worriedly as he babbled happily in his crib, your expression darkening into a frown.

You didn't really blame the first years for their lack of experience, but as his mother, the news from the restaurant staff that they had found your son falling from the chair made you extremely uneasy.

Seeing your distress, Satoru’s natural response was to comfort you until you were back to smiles again. He gently tickled his boy's tummy, prompting him to squeal in absolute joy. "Look, he's perfectly fine. You don't need to worry so much, yeah?"

"But it's strange... I'm happy he's fine, but how? Most babies will get hurt or at least be inconsolable after falling. But he was totally okay..."

Satoru shifted his gaze to his son, as now his round, crystal blue eyes that mirrored his blinked back at him with such innocence and trust that even melted his heart.

"Ah, I see." Suddenly he smiled as if he had figured something out. "This is just my guess, but you know my guesses have like... 90% of probability of being correct—"

"Hmm...?"

"He might have activated Infinity by instinct. Heh."

[ironunderstands]

These Aventurine, Topaz and Jade comparisons are getting out of hand…

As much as I adore both of them, I think it’s very disingenuous to compare Aventurine and Topaz’s lore and be like “but they are the same!!!! If people like Aventurine and dislike Topaz that’s just misogyny!!! and like… no?

Topaz’s whole thing is that she doesn’t know the extent of the IPC’s evil, and believes that what she’s doing is genuinely the right thing to do. Even if she never had a choice in joining the IPC, she (incorrectly) believes what they did to her and her planet is justified, logical and moral, and for those reasons she stands with them. Part of this is likely IPC brainwashing, as she was probably very young when she became an indentured servant to them, and someone living on a planet on the brink of destruction would likely view anyone who stepped up to save them as heroes (imo the IPC likely waited for the point of no return to establish contact so her people had no other choice to except).

However Topaz got best end of the proverbial stick, her planet and its people were deemed useful by the IPC, and didn’t fight back, even if in the end they were still exploited.

Unfortunately, we have seen through Boothill, Belabog and Aventurine what happens when that isn’t the case.

Boothill’s planet got bombed and people genocided because they had a resource useful to the IPC, but were unwilling to cooperate with them or hand over their home, so the IPC decided to eradicate them.

Belabog had a debt owed to the IPC that was ridiculously high and very unfair to expect them to pay back, and had Topaz not convinced the higher ups to give them some time (which she got demoted for), the IPC would have taken Belabog by force

That leaves us with Aventurine, whose story is in no way on the same level of bad as Topaz’s. Unlike her, he has witnessed and experienced firsthand the truly awful shit the IPC can do.

They took custody of Sigonia and promised to offer the Avgin aid in their fight against the Katacans, at the very least protect them from harm. (Sidenote, since the IPC held control over Sigonia, they should have stopped the fighting in the first place). However, they simply stood by and did nothing, resulting in the deaths of around 6,000 Avgin, with around 3,000 went missing (or injured, I don’t remember, either way it’s bad).

But wait! It gets worse! Aventurine when he was still known as Kakavasha referred to the IPC as “the men in black/the men in black suits”, and his first master says he bought Aventurine from “the men in black/the men in black suits”, likely mocking the way he referred to them. Therefore THE IPC TOOK PART AND LIKELY EVEN CREATED A FUCKING SLAVE TRADE IN SIGONIA

Look being made into an indentured servant isn’t fun, but idk personally I’d take that any day of the week OVER BEING ENSLAVED

That’s not even to mention how horrible of a reputation Sigonian’s have in the galaxy, one likely spread by/resulting from the IPC themselves, as at least on Aventurines planet they do not have the mobility to make a name for themselves. (Honestly it’s a mini theory of mine that Aventurines scam is what partly contributed to this reputation, and his status as a slave is something the IPC conveniently left out in their broadcast about it-)

But, you might be saying, didn’t Aventurine have a choice to join the masked fools and leave the IPC, isn’t he free now? And to that I say, it’s complicated.

Considering the amount of suicidal shit Aventurine has done while being part of the IPC, he clearly hasn’t been having a fun time as a member of one, so why does he stick around, especially with the Fools invite? Even if he was a slave, does that absolve him of the crimes he’s committing now? What could justify his actions?

Revenge, plan and simple.

This is going to delve into some spoiler territory for the end of the Penacony 2.2 quest, something which I didn’t feel like mentioning earlier because I’m sorry but everyone and their mother already knows Boothill’s lore. Now, let’s get into it.

Aventurine accepts Jades offer to join the IPC, and when he becomes a Stoneheart, the first thing he asks about is the fate of the Avgin, to which he then learns that besides him, they are all dead. You see, from birth Kakavasha was pushed onto a pedestal as the savior of the Avgin, but now that there are no more Avgin to save, his primary motivator in becoming a Stoneheart (beyond not being enslaved anymore) is gone.

So what does he do now?

Simple, try to kill the motherfuckers behind it.

That’s why he takes on such risky gambles still, and why he wagers and wants Diamond to promote him to rank p46. The higher Aventurine gets the closer he gets to his goal of taking down the IPC for good.

Which is why his meeting with Boothill is so meaningful. I think Boothill is going to “kidnap” him and together they are gonna take down the wicked bitch that is Oswaldo Schneider for his literal crimes against humanity.

Mark my words, an IPC downfall is going to happen, and I think Topaz, Aventurine, Boothill and Ratio are going to be at the forefront of it.

However, Topaz and Ratio (and by extension the rest of the galaxy) have to learn/realize the true horrors of the IPC (although I can sense Ratio doesn’t really like them, and he’s learned a lot from Aventurine, I doubt he knows the full extent of the situation or is in any way happy about it). Therefore? Topaz mental breakdown arc? Ratio lore? PLEASE??!? The IP3 compliment one another so well and god I can’t wait for that to come to fruition.

I really want to see a Topaz and Ratio centered story leading up to an IPC smackdown, and I think we are gonna learn a lot more about how shitty they are in the later half of 2.2 and in 2.3 when the interlude and Jades release arrive.

As for the aforementioned Jade, she’s gonna need a Aventurine squared amount of trauma or reasoning behind her actions to seem in any way sympathetic, because right now she just seems like an evil bitch (in a semi good way, I will always respect the commitment to the bit) who loves her job and would make Machiavelli weep over how hard her ends are trying to justify her means.

[g0dlyunsub]

hey!!! Ugh I just love your account! I have a request for Spencer Reid x fem reader!! Can you do one where he is always working and it makes the reader upset bc he is cancelling dates and coming home late and kinda neglects her feelings and doesn't really notice how much it affects her and how sad she gets and then he misses their anniversary dinner and she breaks and tells him that it makes her upset when he's gone all the time and he just feels so awful bc he's so in love with her and never wants her to feel that way because of him and apologizes and reassures her and makes sure she feels loved!!

ty for the request and i loved the idea for this one!

wishful thinking.

pairing :: spencer x fem!reader

warnings :: angst with a fluffy ending; very mild makeout session at the end :3

word count :: 2.4k

author’s note :: i kind of giggled at the ending as i was writing it, but i’m pretty proud of how this one turned out!

accompanying song :: neverthere by xander

spencer’s phone is quite literally the bane of your existence.

you know what to expect whenever it rings, so you hate when it actually does – its earthquaking vibrations and trilled beeps tear the happiness straight out of you.

it’s the second date in a row that he’s had to pass, and you wonder if you should just stop trying so hard. was it selfish to want to have him all to yourself, to have him seated right across from you, sharing your laughter as you pass him his plated pasta? were you expecting too much, imagining a serene life with him ten years down the road, perhaps with kids or pets of your own? was it unfair to think that you could craft a lie, telling him your stomach hurt really bad, so bad that you would have to curl up on the floor and pray he’d stay by your side just this once to comfort you?

all you ever wanted was spencer. more specifically, you wanted spencer during your first three dates, when he’d silence all of his phone calls, and wave them off like nothing even though you insisted he take them. maybe if you didn’t bring up the importance of taking work calls, none of this would have ever happened. maybe it was all coming back to bite you for your non-confrontational nature, since you could never plead him to actually stay.

but he’s your boyfriend… and that’s all that matters, right? after all, he has lives to save – people whose names are called out during prayers day and night by their loved ones as they cling on to the sliver of hope that your boyfriend and his team promise during the darkest hours. granted, spencer would drop everything if you were in a similar situation, but none of your problems have actually been life-threatening. but a girl can dream, can’t she? your first anniversary date was when spencer promised to make amends, a formal compensation for all of the past dates that he missed and left you feeling empty on your shared bed, stains of mascara chalked up on your dry cheeks.

“i’m so sorry, honey, i’ve just been… called in for work,” spencer stands, dusting the napkin that was folded nicely on his lap. you watch as he takes a sip of his glass of water, then walks over to you to plant a kiss on your forehead.

he runs his fingers along the velvety texture of the sleeves of your dress, and you offer him a weak smile.

“it’s okay, duty calls, right?” you feel the tears surfacing and you have to fight yourself to not blink. it’s too early to cry.

“i-it’s a really bad one this time, and i hate to do this on such an important day-” spencer begins to apologize frantically, and his face marks an expression of genuine concern with his brows furrowing and lips twitching.

“it’s okay. you need to go, i understand.” you state plainly, and you immediately feel shameful – your words are too assertive and snarly for how you normally respond.

spencer pauses briefly, fidgeting with his fingers, before he gives a slight nod in your direction. he then walks over to the couch, grabs a book, and tightens the clasps on his bag. 

“i’ll be back as fast as i can,” spencer utters quietly and walks out of the door. when the apartment door locks with a click, you break down immediately.

at first, the tears fall one by one. but then, a salty stream evident of pure emotional wreckage makes its way into the slight gap of your lips, and it’s an unstoppable domino effect. your shoulders shudder and heave as you struggle to catch breaths in between, and you splutter cries of your boyfriend’s name. 

maybe it would’ve been better to just stay as conversational partners, to exchange updates once in a while when he’d actually commit to a time. it was your fault for getting your hopes up high, and all of this – fanciful dinner and dressing your best for the occasion – was wishful thinking. you just didn’t want to admit it.

“y/n?” 

you look up to see spencer in front of the doorway, and his bag that was barely holding on to his shoulder drops to the floor with a thud.

you quickly look away, brushing the tears away with one arm and sniffle before choking out a response.

“i thought you left already, why are you here?” again, your words come out icier than you had hoped and hit you with a sharp pang of guilt.

spencer narrows his eyes ever so slightly as if he’s scrutinizing you, observing your body language. it doesn’t take a genius to know that you’re upset.

“i was going to. realized i forgot-,”

he clears his throat when you raise your eyebrows and proceeds, "i misplaced my wallet."

he slips out of his loafers, shoving aside his pair of converses that lie adjacent to your pretty pair of heels. he walks over to you, and you realize that you’re still seated at the dining table. you must look so stupid right now, waiting as if he’d just be returning from a bathroom break.

“i need to head out, but i promise… i promise we’ll talk about this really soon. we’ll have the anniversary dinner and-”

“did you even try?” you blurt out, and you look up at him with your puffy eyes glazed with tears.

a deathly silence clouds over the entire apartment, and you’re thinking of two options: leave the apartment and go run to a friend’s place, or confront him and see whether making amends – again, wishful thinking – would be possible.

“y/n. please believe me when i say that i’ve tried to, i’ve tried-”

you slam a hand to the table before standing up, your face twisting into an expression of outrage.

“no, because then you would’ve silenced it. you would’ve cut the call, just like you used to.” you fire your words at him as your hair sticks to the drying tears on your cheeks, and you begrudgingly wipe at your face. 

a slow sigh escapes from spencer’s lips, and he looks at you with those eyes – the eyes that seemingly warn you, saying you don’t want to go there. not right now.

but you double down on him, the rage fueling your words as you lash out. 

“it was just this one time. i only wanted you to stay for dinner just this one time.” you helplessly drop your hands to your sides, the tears landing on the floor with soft plops.

“i know. and i’m terribly sorry.” spencer bites his bottom lip and takes a step toward you. but you take a step back, and maybe that pulls a string between the two of you, because you can see how his shoulders tense up.

“look, can we talk about this when i get back? i’ll make it up to you, i swear.” he combs through his hair, the stress almost palpable as it leaks from his shaking fingers.

while you know he has to head out again, the way he so easily brushes off the conversation like it’s something he doesn’t even want to think about feeds into your disbelief. soon, however, your anger subsides into a tired frown. 

“i don’t know, you might come home late… when i’m asleep or something.” you look at the wall where a photo of the two of you is framed, and you weakly smile at how happy you seemed then. 

“i’ll give you a call, is that okay?” he searches your face for any signs of approval, but you’re zoned out thinking about the past, of how everything used to be.

“whatever, just go.” you wave him off and walk to the couch, where you lie down and turn against him to face the plush fabric.

spencer sighs, and his hand looms over your head momentarily before he grabs his wallet from the table. you hear a faint sorry trail from behind as he leaves the room, and your nails claw at the arms of the couch before the darkness cradles you once again.

it’s 10:30 pm, and you hear the doorknob click again. you had just cleaned up the dishes after eating dinner alone and left his portion in the fridge. you were now changed into your pajamas and getting ready for your night routine.

you peep out of your bedroom door to see spencer, his suit all wet. he looks at you as he takes off his shoes, and a sullen expression paints his face. did it start raining after he left? you realize that you were mostly cooped up in the bedroom since his departure, so you wouldn’t have known.

bravely looking up at him in the eye, you state: “you came back early.” you hate how unwelcoming you sound in his own home.

he pauses before he sets his wet bag on the floor and removes his blazer jacket to throw over a chair. 

he approaches you, hands in his pockets and hair twisted in matted curls. 

“hm.” he grabs a towel from the closet and makes his way to the shower, brushing past your shoulder. you feel an icy shudder spread through your spine after he closes the bathroom door.

was he giving you the silent treatment right now? 

you hear the water start from the bathroom and you sink into your bed while turning to twist the lamp lights on.

after all that torturous waiting you went through, he was giving you the silent treatment?

fifteen minutes later, a knock reverberates from the other side of the bedroom door, and even though you don’t respond, spencer steps in. he’s changed into a t-shirt and black pajama pants, and he drops next to you on the bed.

“i’m taking the week off.” 

the sentence startles you, and it’s something so unexpected you choke on your own saliva.

“what, what do you mean you’re taking the week off?” you ask him, finally turning to face him in the eyes. his brown irises blaze into your own.

“i’ve been pushing off everything you wanted to do with me — things that I wanted to do with you — and i’ve just been…” he turns away to play with the wrinkles on his pants as he speaks, picking out the dust that lies embedded between the folds.

he pinches the bridge of his nose and lets out a deep sigh. he continues, “i don’t know if it’s all worth it.”

silence casts a blanket over the two of you.

“spence,” you say after a while, and hesitantly lay a hand on his thigh.

“nothing’s more important in the world to me than you. you and your happiness. i know you love this job and i know you love helping people. you’re such a kind hearted man, and it’s why i fell in love with you in the first place.”

when spencer gives you no response, you confess: “spence, i get jealous sometimes.”

this time his eyes widen, and he looks at you.

“you do?” he asks softly, peering into your eyes and you cave instantly. 

“of course i do. it’s… everybody wants you, spencer. we all need you, whether we realize it or not.”

he scoffs.

“but i only want you.”

his voice is raspy yet mellow at the same time, the smoothest stream of sweetness seeping through your eardrums. god. you can never stay mad at this gorgeous man, the same man that made you cry on numerous occasions just counting the past week.

“you need to do more than that, if you… you know.” you quietly murmur as you fidget with the hem of your nightgown.

“i know,” he speaks with a hushed tone. “i told hotch, and i told him it was going to happen whether he liked it or not. the demands of this job are… tough, but i don’t want to miss out on all the things we planned together. i won’t.”

you start bawling right when he delivers the last word, and all the tears that you were holding back spill over your flushed cheeks. your boyfriend immediately leans in to console you, pulling you into a tight embrace as his chin rests on top of your head. 

it’s okay, he murmurs reassuringly. you ease into his touch, and you realize how much you missed this. how much you missed spending time with him.

his left hand tugs lightly at your soft hair while his right rubs your back in smooth circles. 

“i missed you,” you speak with a hushed voice, looking up into his eyes as a glassy coat of tears blur your vision. 

he cups your face with his hands before whispering, “i missed you too.”

you continue to blabber words of love-stained anguish but he cuts you off short, pulling you in for a short kiss on your lips, which are now tainted with your tears.

“you taste… salty,” he whispers, giving you a slight smile as he brushes off the rest of your tears that weigh down on your eyelashes.

“it’s because of you, silly,” you drawl as you taste the salty residue of your tears.

yeah, spencer responds hesitantly. but he’s wearing a small smile, tilting his head to one side as his eyes emit a glint of tranquilizing peace.

he reaches into his pajama pocket and takes out a piece of candy. you curiously watch as his fingers quickly remove the wrapper, revealing a glazed cherry-flavored sphere. 

“may i?” he asks, and his faint voice is a gravitational force that you can’t resist.

you briefly respond with a lazy hm? before he plops the candy into your mouth and kisses you again. the sweetness explodes like fireworks with his warm breath, and the sticky layer of sugar melts like acid on your intertwined tongues. you let out a satisfied hum when you pull back, and it’s undeniably attractive the way spencer licks the corner of his lips.

a tear falls from your eye again, and this time, it’s not out of sorrow.

[kingconia]

VIL SCHOENHEIT, LEONA KINGSCHOLAR AND MALLEUS DRACONIA WITH READER, WHO IS ALWAYS IGNORED BY THEIR FATHER...

(...Who happens to be the headmaster himself.)

Bonus points: reader studies in the Diasomnia.

Malleus Draconia. 💚

— When he heard for the first time that the new student of the Diasomnia, is the children of the Dire Crowley, he had a very low expectations, to be honest. Not like he hated on you beforehand or something, more like he was too aware of headmaster's character...

— So, he was pleasantly surprised to see that you are completely the opposite of your father. Responsible, hardworking—if not for you being a crow yourself, and having the same surname, he would never guess that you were raised by this man;

— However... It was clear as day that the reason why you had nothing common with him, was because he hardly payed attention to you. You tried so hard by studying diligently and achieving the first places in different school contests, and yet... He didn't really care?

— Malleus had never met his father, but Lilia made sure he would never feel neglected in the way you were. And the mistreatment towards you hurt him even more, than it hurt you.

•

”Shit,” you groaned, baring your teeth in unhidden displeasure. ”Headmaster will not approve seeing that that these students broke the window.”

Malleus gazed at you curiously—both of you were sitting on the roof, talking about everything and nothing—and the question left his lips by itself.

”We are all alone. Why are you still calling him a headmaster?”

As you brought knees to your chest, resting your chin on them, you shrugged. With voice impassive and eyed cold, you explained:

”I don't have a particular way to call him. He is either headmaster or Crowley. So...”

Malleus's heart squeezed instantly of the thought of that.

It sounded so unbelievable.

He grew up witnessing how gentle Lilia was to Silver, and how the latter called him a father. Their bond, a sincere and tight one, was always an example for Malleus of how families should like. And here you were, ignored by a man, who was the reason you were in this world. How unfair.

”Y/n?”

Malleus thought, if you asked him to fulfill your wish—to make your father love you—he would. Without a doubt.

”Yes?”

But for some reasons, you never do.

”I hope, you understand, a precious raven of mine, that Diasomnia is your family, too.”

So, he can only offer you an alternative. An alternative, where you need to accept that despite not having your father's love, you had all of them—him, Lilia, Silver and Sebek.

”...Thank you for that. I... I try to keep that in mind.”

Yet, you still need some time to comprehend that.

He could wait. They all will.

Vil Schoenheit. 💜

— He was naturally suspicious of you. It is not a secret that Vil hates privileged kids—such as Leona, for example—and for him, it was logical that you were the one, too;

— However, he started to doubt about that after observing you more closely;

— You never skipped lectures, always did your homework and participated actively in the classes. And not only that! Your achievements weren't passing through him—he was quite aware of all your wins in competitions, and a good reputation;

— So, to the moment, when you came to ask for his help for your talent show, Vil already admitted to himself, that despite having a privilege, you were a high achiever, who knew how to work. But, oh, little did he knew, that you were an opposite to the privileged person...

•

“Y/n-san,” Vil frowned deliberately, glaring at you with a genuine concern in his eyes, ”I think, you should take a little rest. Please.”

With your shoulders shaking, hands being red, and legs hardly keeping you up, you looked awful.

Vil knew how exhaustion looked—he wore it on himself all the time, after all—and he could say for sure, you were too close to the meltdown. If not to the overbolt...

”I can't. I should try harder,” you murmured, voice raspy. ”Only this way I can...”

The desperation in your eyes were so familiar that Vil almost flinched from it. Carefully, afraid of doing the wrong choice, he put hands on your shoulders, squeezing them softly.

”Y/n-san, you are one of the best students of our school. Even more, you are standing on the same place in the world, along with Leona and Malleus,” he reminded, lips slightly brushing your hair as he spoke. ”What else are you trying to achieve?”

”His attention, of course!" A sob that escaped your lips were too gut-wrenching to hear. ”What else I can need, if not a father?”

Vil didn't even try to conceal his own genuine sadness as he heard you saying that. Almost instinctively, he hugged you tightly, allowing to hide in the crook of his neck.

It was the moment, when he regretted that his assumptions about you being spoiled, were wrong. It would be much healthier for you, if he was right.

”Oh, darling,” he whispered gently. ”Cry all you like. You are allowed to.”

And so, you did.

When on the next morning you pretended that nothing happened, Vil wasn't mad at you for that. If anything, he was merely happy that he was able to help you for a while.

...If only you understood how worthy you are.

Leona Kingscholar. 💛

— The unbothered king had only two complaints to you, and both of them sounded ridiculous. Because, he was unhappy with you being a part of Diasomnia, and he couldn't settle with a fact that you were a crow. The end of the story;

— Leona truly couldn't care less about you or your father. What he cared was the fact that you were a powerful rival in the Spelldrive Tournament, and he was slightly bitter to losing both to you and your housewarden;

— Overall, he respected you. And that was why when you offered him to play chess together, he didn't say no. Since that, you became close, always playing together, in the same time and place;

— As Leona became closer to you, he obviously realised that your family relationships were fucked up—takes one neglected kid to recognise the other—but, decided not to pry out. If you want to talk about it, you will. Otherwise, he will not do anything.

•

”Huh?”

Leona blinked, not caring to mask his astonishment as he saw you sitting in the botanical garden, with chess board being set up, ready for another game.

”Hi, Leona,” you raised your head at him slowly. ”You are late.”

He weren't late, he just didn't know that you will be here.

The school was on the winder holidays, and the prevailing amount of students already left to their houses. As far as Leona had heard, the headmaster was the first one to leave, since he had a special vacation somewhere in the Shifts. Of course, Leona expected you to go there with him.

”...What are you doing here?” He asked bluntly. ”Shouldn't be you on holidays, or something?”

”My house is too empty,” you shrug, the slight frown indicating your irritation by this question. ”I decided, it would be better to stay.”

”...And the vacation?”

”Oh, Crowley never takes me with himself,” you huffed easily.

Leona had no idea that your relationship was that bad. Even Falena always invited him everywhere, just in case if Leona suddenly decides to agree.

”Well?” You rushed him. ”Are you going to play with me?”

There was nothing Leona could say to console you, words never being his strongest quality. But as he slowly made his way to the armchair, he couldn't help but being hit by the wave of the sheer madness towards your father.

How could anyone neglect such an ambitious and perfect kid as you?

”If I win, you are celebrating New Year with me,” Leona finally spoke up, moving the white piece of chess.

Well, it didn't matter. Not like Dire Crowley deserved you anyway.

”And if I do?”

”Then, I am celebrating New Year with you.”

You smiled at him, before concentrating on the game

”How cruel. I am in.”

He couldn't help but feel proud that the smile on your face was his doing.

Perhaps, you had not the best father, but... At least, Leona will make sure, that you will have a perfect holidays for once.

And that was fine, too.

[neversetyoufree]

The way Noé Archiviste is written is so good. I'm so obsessed with him.

He's such a protagonist—endlessly hopeful against adversity and filled with kindness and attempted understanding toward everyone he meets. He's a good person! He wants to save everyone! He is genuinely and utterly without any sort of cruelty or unfair bias.

Yet, the more the series goes on, the more he's written as a very obvious parallel to our antagonists.

The most blatant example of this is the Ruthven parallel. Ruthven once happily said that he liked vampires, and in the same way, he liked humans. Noé repeats this exact same line when he has tea with Ruthven.

This parallel doesn't reflect too poorly on Noé, since it's pretty clear that something Happened to Ruthven to change him between his speaking that line and him becoming our antagonist, but it is an interesting way to tie the two of them together. It raises certain questions in readers' minds. In what other ways are Noé and Ruthven still similar, and how might Noé change to become more like him?

Then there's Noé's toxic optimism. The "you should be a little bothered, actually" aspect of him. Noé is the mirror to Vanitas's toxic pessimism. He latches onto the good in the world to a fault, and in this way he detaches from reality and endures an endless series of abuses to his person without even understanding they're abuses.

That is also one of the defining traits of Mikhail. Misha is unsettling in part because he is completely detached from any understanding of severity. Misha happily recounts being abused and watching his mother die not because he's cruel or hateful, but because he doesn't understand what's happened to him or why those things are bad. Misha wants to bring Luna back to life because he's in denial of the reality of their death. He believes he can just resurrect them and everything will be fine, and he'll get to play happy family again.

If Noé went just a little bit more extreme with the over-optimism, he could disconnect from reality just as badly as Misha has.

Finally there's my favorite parallel—the tie between Noé and his Teacher. Noé Archiviste has a tendency to watch others in fascination, trying to figure them out from the sidelines while he fails to understand his own impact on them, and he absolutely loves the Blue Moon. He thinks the Blue Moon is beautiful. Teacher spends his time collecting interestingly damaged children in putting them in awful situations, apparently just for the fun of watching what they'll do next, and he calls The Vampire of the Blue Moon "the most beautiful creature in the world."

Noé's curiosity-driven fascination with Vanitas's trauma and his love of the blue moon—neither of these are necessarily a problem on their own, but when written in direct parallel with The Count of Saint Germain, they become somewhat alarming.

In the same way that Misha is "worse" than Noé because his obliviousness to his trauma leads him to harm others, Noé's teacher is surely a worse person than him because he lets himself harm others in pursuit of his interests. Noé doesn't do that. But what would it take for that to change? He's pushed boundaries before. He learned to hurt Astolfo and Misha in the name of protecting those he cares about. What other strange places could his headstrong nature lead?

What might Noé do when his fascination and his obliviousness intersect? When the parts of him that are Teacher and the parts of him that are Misha overlap? What would he do to see Vanitas again? What might he do without letting himself realize how terrible it was?

Noé is a good person. He's one of the best people. But in his attentiveness and his optimism and his love, there's the seeds of something that could lead him down a very dark road. Each of the above antagonists is a little bit a part of who he is.

Misha wants to bring Luna back to life. Ruthven is working toward some mysterious aim with the dead or dying Faustina. And given how he talks in mémoire 55, I wouldn't be surprised if Teacher also had an interest in bringing back The Vampire of the Blue moon in one form or another.

In all his fascination and love and hope, would/will Noé be able to let Vanitas die when death is preferable to the alternative? This is a story about the inevitability of death, and the denial of that inevitability creates nothing but horror and perversion. Noé is growing and learning to understand both Vanitas and the moral complexities of the world, and we can only hope that he learns enough. We can see through his many reflections in other characters what he might become if he can't accept painful reality.

[kikyoupdates]

Goddess Wink ⭑˚💘⭑ 𝑝𝑟𝑜𝑙𝑜𝑔𝑢𝑒

bnha x f!reader

reverse harem, my hero academia x fem!reader, slowburn

Ever since your Quirk first manifested, you’ve been the apple of everyone’s eye. With the goal of becoming a hero, you enroll to U.A. and soon find yourself drawing the attention of many. Will you form genuine connections with others, or is this all just your power's will?

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You were four years old when it happened.

As far back as you could remember, you’d lived in an orphanage. You’d never met your real parents, nor did it seem like they had any intention of coming to get you, just based on how your caretakers would act. They tried to convince you that your parents must have had their reasons; that they might not have been in the right place to take care of you, but it served as little reassurance. You felt unwanted, unloved. You wondered what you could have possibly done that your own parents wouldn’t want to be with you—why all of these children were missing their families. You didn’t understand, but it felt unfair. For whatever reason, you were undesirable. At least, that’s the way you felt.

On a rather uneventful day, you were out on the playground with some of the other kids from the orphanage. They were all playing together, but you were off by the sandpit on your own, fiddling with the outfit on your doll. At some point a cluster of them had broken off, and one of the boys came right up to you, grinned, and snatched the doll straight out of your hands.

You frowned at him. “Give it back.”

“Nuh uh,” he jeered. “You’re always so boring, [Name]. You never play with the rest of us.”

“I’m not in the mood to play right now. Can you please give me my doll back?”

“What’s so fun about these dolls anyways?” The boy squinted at the toy in his hands, and without wasting a beat, popped one of the doll’s legs clean off. “Whoa!” he cried out. “They break so easily!”

You felt like you should be bursting into tears, but oddly enough, the tears didn’t come. You were eerily composed, a sense of calm washing over you. Something was telling you there was no reason to get worked up. You felt your chest growing warm, and your eyes began to glow a faint, pink shade. You stepped up to the boy and grabbed him by the wrist.

“You ruined my doll,” you said. “Apologize.”

“Huh—?” He stared back at you, dubious, and something akin to realization overtook his expression. He began to grow red in the cheeks, his breaths became irregular, and he swayed unsteadily on his own two feet. The boy stared down at the doll and its now missing leg in shock, as if he couldn’t believe what he’d just done. “I-I’m so sorry!” he spluttered. “I didn’t mean to… [Name]. I’m really, really sorry!”

You’d never seen the boy act like this before. He was always up to some sort of mischief, and it wasn’t uncommon for him to go around teasing the other girls. You glanced down to where your fingers were laced around his wrist. You tightened your grip, watching the way his blush only deepened.

“I want a new doll,” you told him.

“Of course! I’m so sorry… I’ll tell the supervisors what happened and get you a new one right away, I promise!”

Even his accomplices seemed to be confused. “Dude, why are you apologizing to her? She thinks she’s so much better than everyone else!”

“She thinks she’s too good to play with the rest of us!”

You pulled away from the first boy and stared at the other two. Still hesitant, you reached over and placed a hand on each of their shoulders. You felt something rushing or pulsing through your body. The air felt like it tasted richer, sweeter. And this time you were sure of it—the moment your hand made contact with their bodies, each of the boys grew red in the face and started rocking on their feet as if they were drunk.

“Apologize,” you ordered again.

“We’re sorry, [Name]!”

“So sorry…”

You took a step back and marveled at what had just happened. All three of them were staring at you with flushed, puffy cheeks, as if they were awaiting your next command. Your small limbs were practically oozing with power. You were sure that this must have been what everyone was always talking about—the birth of your Quirk.

“You guys can leave me alone now,” you said, crouching back down inside the sandpit. “Please make sure I get a new doll and tell the supervisors that you were the reason it broke in the first place.”

They nodded their heads furiously, already rushing over to confess their wrongdoings. You hugged your knees to your chest and inhaled shakily. You didn’t know exactly what kind of power it was, but the feeling of others being so helpless before you… it was oddly exhilarating.

—

You explained to the caretakers the gist of what had happened, and they began speculating as to what type of power you had. It was worth noting that while some became more interested in you as a result of your newly-developed Quirk, others were a bit more apprehensive after finding out what had happened to the three boys. The teachers and caretakers instructed you not to use your Quirk on others needlessly, since you presumably had a power that could control people.

Of course, you didn’t listen.

The next couple of weeks cleared up some questions you had about your Quirk. To be more exact, you weren't consciously using it. It was a difficult power to control, and you would find that it activated on its own without your awareness. It became evident that your Quirk didn’t simply enable you to control others; there were other aspects to it that you were struggling to grasp. You were too young and naive to make sense of it all, but the one thing that was seemingly apparent was that your powers relied on attracting others to you.

You’d been rather quiet and reserved for the majority of your stay at the orphanage, but now the others flocked to you like birds. The boys especially seemed most susceptible to your powers. They would follow you around for near hours at a time, even going so far as to give you presents that you hadn’t even asked for. On some occasions, the caretakers themselves would tilt their heads and smile, saying what a “cute, charming girl” you were, before letting you get away with things that normally wouldn’t have been allowed.

At first, you thought you liked your Quirk. You were getting more attention than you ever had, and for the first time, you felt loved and desired. You thought that maybe if you’d been born with this power, your parents might not have abandoned you. All of the boys in the orphanage loved you, all of the girls wanted to be your friends, and they would each go to any lengths to make you happy. You could get anything you wanted. Truly, it was the best possible Quirk.

But this too, was a fleeting feeling. Before long, the attention became overbearing. You could never get away from it all, from the looks of desire and adoration. The friendships you’d developed with the children started to feel less genuine and more fabricated. You felt like they weren’t really your friends; that your power was just forcing them to be. These ugly thoughts started to pile on more and more, to the point that you began to resent your Quirk. You couldn’t control the power leaving your body, and it felt as if you were living life trying to navigate through a misty pink haze.

Several months passed, and a visitor came to the orphanage.

“I’ve come to take you in, [Name].”

It was a man with pin-straight black hair and striking red eyes. He introduced himself as Mikael, and declared that he’d already filled out all the required paperwork to adopt you. The orphan children began to cry, lamenting the fact that you would be leaving them. You were both relieved and anxious. Even if you couldn’t control your powers, here, at least, you could rest easy knowing that everyone adored you. You’d spent all of your life in the orphanage, and you were a little afraid to leave.

This guy will probably listen to anything I say anyways…

Mikael held you by the hand and led you outside once you’d bid farewell to everyone. He looked down at you, eyes gleaming, a faint smile ghosting across his lips. “I think you’ll find that your Quirk will have no effect on me, descendant of Aphrodite.”

“Aphrodite?”

You stared up at him, confused. He didn’t answer your question and instead chuckled to himself.

“Not to worry. I will teach you how to control your Quirk in due time. You’ve been blessed with a gift, young one. A beautiful power capable of touching the hearts of many.”

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[lttleghost]

okay I'm like complaining again but I wanna hear other ppls thoughts on this because I'm too impatient to wait until I've gone through all the commentary for BrBa and BCS in search of answers to confirm or deny my suspicions but GOD A FEW THINGS ARE DRIVING ME INSANE and I apologize for this ramble being maybe a lil disjointed in advance

so like, first, this scene-

if I look at this realistically it reads as Jake misinterpreting his and Jesse's parents talking about how Jesse's actions reflect back on them as genuine care, he's young, and I can imagine him having some insecurity in his parents care for him since we do know it is conditional, just Jake is currently meeting those conditions, but sensing that instability could've maybe influenced how he understood his parents talk of his older sibling.

but I just am having a hard time convincing myself that was intended when it was written... and this assessment from me could be unfair because - while I'm not quite sure at what point Jesse was no longer planned to be killed at the end of the first season - this does come from that first season, and I've heard there was a change in how Jesse was written after the first season and throughout the rest of the show there is NO evidence that Jesse's parents like, actually give a fuck about him, they actively make his life worse like when they kicked him out of his own goddamn house, and that all seems like those things have to be intended to make you think "wow Jesse's parents are awful!!!"

but then, not for me to complain about these two scenes in El Camino again but I'm gonna complain about these two scenes in El Camino again -

followed by this not too long after

because while if this movies thing of having blame being squared on Jesse's shoulders was just him talking to his parents it'd be easier to say "oh this is just a kid who was abused in a socially acceptable way not recognizing the abuse he went through and how that really did have a major effect on his life trajectory" but when these two scenes are put so close together it makes it really hard for me to not think that it's TRYING to say that Jesse is responsible for where he ended up even if they don't necessarily want bad things to happen to him

cause like I know, I know the writers are sympathetic towards Jesse but I don't think being sympathetic towards a character like him makes you immune to having harmful beliefs about addicts and criminals when they're so prevalent in wider society, like especially the idea that changing actions taken by individual people is the main problem that needs to be dealt with wrt addiction and crime instead of changing the structural problems that result in addiction and crime, like I've seen this mindset present in the fandom as well

I mean I know I have some evidence that at least Vince's ideas on justice aren't great with this bit from an interview about El Camino (also him having Jesse specifically say "I'm no cop killer" when Jesse would definitely know how cops are just another violent gang, like he could've just said "I don't want to kill anyone" instead of having cops on some higher level of innocence)

like I dunno believing at all that there's a good way to end with Jesse in prison (and not as a way to show how awful prison is either, since he talked about the idea of Jesse finally finding some sort of peace in prison sleeping) is kinda fucked up!!! I do want to fight him for this alone!!! even if like glad he changed it but I dunno the fact that he believes this just makes it easy to believe that he really would!! blame Jesse to at least some extent for what he got into, like I think that he understands Walt manipulated Jesse but I just, I dunno!!! things in BCS kinda bother me too irt just general ideas of crime and drug use ect... but I'm much less familiar with that show in comparison to BrBa so I don't feel as comfortable pointing specific things in it

like... do Vince Gilligan and the writers of Breaking Bad see Jesse’s parents as shit parents who were abusive in a socially acceptable way? or do they really think that they really did their best? is it somewhere in-between? like "they were abusive but they still didn't know any better"? or maybe is it as bad as believing Jesse's parents tried their best and them being rich is supposed to show that he had all he needed to succeed and was just a fuckup (instead of it showing that his parents had all the resources they needed to help him and... didn't) am I just overreacting because I am protective of my girl and the people that I know exist like him and am suspicious of those writing about them if I don't know all their politics behind the subject? I know I've talked to some ppl who have vindicated me w/ some of this but please share ur opinions I want to know the wider ideas on this since I feel like I just don't see it discussed that often

[prince-liest]

was recently talking to a friend about qi rong which then lead to me going on a reread of my favorite qi rong fic EVER, and now I’m in my feels about him, his relationship with his family, and his relationship with xie lian and guzi.

I just love qi rong a lot. to be clear, he’s a horrible little gremlin and that is a lot of WHY I love him - but I also think that fundamentally qi rong is a character who is super traumatized but does not receive sympathy for that trauma because he is not traumatized in a “palatable” way which is a trend that starts when he is young and just never ends, canonically, at any point in his life

right from the bat: the first 5 years of his life, he's being physically and emotionally abused, he's cast out to live in a shed, his mom is forgotten by her family. by the time she finally escapes his abusive father and goes back to the palace, her elopement with him has been swept under the rug and most people don't actually know what happened - and are then weirded out by her and qi rong, causing all the children and even most adults around qi rong to basically refuse to interact with him. so he's abused and hated, then isolated to the point where nobody talks to him, nobody plays with him. the one time he thinks he succeeded at attempting to make some friends, it turns out that they tricked him into writing a death wish for himself and his mother on his lantern.

and all the while, he's watching xie lian and the adulation he receives, not understanding why xie lian gets those things and he does not. everyone always says he looks like xie lian. he’s even called xiao jing, like he’s a mirror of the crown prince. what’s the difference?

and then xie lian himself is the only person aside from his own mother to be genuinely kind to qi rong. qi rong is desperately lonely, envious and fixated on the cousin that nobody will stop comparing him to, and then said cousin is the only person to reach out to him with kindness. of course he wants to attach himself to xie lian and emulate him.

unfortunately for both of them, then his mother dies - not just randomly, but specifically in defense of xie lian’s mother, and having extracted a promise for xie lian’s parents to care for qi rong. however, things don’t actually change at that point. sure, they take him in and buy him whatever he wants, but as far as love and care are concerned, xie lian is really the only potential source of those things left for qi rong. xie lian is also a teenager with a lot of pressure on his shoulders and a lack of understanding of difficult situations. of course he doesn’t know how to raise his traumatized, misbehaving cousin! and nobody else bothers to. it’s deeply unfair for xie lian to be used as the singular tool to discipline and direct qi rong, and that directly contributes to their extremely soured relationship.

now that qi rong’s mother is dead, there is nobody left around that actually wants him or is willing to put effort into properly raising him. when a kid turns out as wild as qi rong - that's not just random happenstance, that happens because they weren't parented right (or at all). he acts out in increasingly insane ways for the attention everyone hates to give him - anyone's, but especially xie lian's, which sucks for xie lian because it should have been his parents providing qi rong with an authority figure and source of love, not xie lian's teenage self. and people respond by waving him off, giving him whatever he wants just to make him go away, and ignoring him, because he has a deeply off-putting personality.

and it causes everyone around qi rong to resent him in this vicious cycle that escalates his behavior because he doesn't know what else to do - until eventually even xie lian, the one person that he really looked up to, hates him too.

obviously qi rong is an awful person by the point we reach in canon, but I also think that if he had received regular hugs as a child and maybe some actual parenting from someone who didn���t beat him, instead of just being given a bunch of money and being told to fuck off

specifically because he was weird and traumatized and unlikeable

things would have turned out very different for him. because he very clearly tries - that’s one thing that’s very clear in the flashbacks and even continues to modern canon: qi rong really tries to get love and attention, and when that doesn’t work, he just escalates to “any attention, bad attention, attention that proves I’m worth something, proves wrong all the people saying the supposedly-amazing cousin that took away my only source of kindness when he started hating me, is so much better than me”. he starts out an awkward, off-putting kid and ends up the night-touring green lantern. of course he holds enough resentment to end up a calamity. his cannibalism shtick doesn’t even read as genuine to me, it just seems like he picked out “what’s the worst, most attention-grabbing thing I can possibly be to pre-emptively justify everyone’s disgust in me” and landed on that.

(see also: I think it’s hysterical that he has very strong opinions and abilities as pertains to gourmet cooking, and then just uses them to lure in victims so that he can have his meal of Raw Unseasoned Human Flesh. you can’t tell me he’s doing it for anything other than the bit at this point.)

and that’s also why I think his weirdly wholesome relationship with guzi also makes a lot of sense. qi rong is a shockingly decent father to him (eventually), probably in part because he overidentifies with guzi also being abused by his father, but also, because guzi is literally just a kid and therefore is not someone that yet has the capacity to have all these preconceptions about qi rong, nor for qi rong to read into his words and be insulted, because. that's just a kid. there’s nothing to read into.

I think his treatment of guzi (eventually) shows that he's capable of being at least kind of decent (or at least functional), he's just never been in a circumstance where his trauma and relationships let it happen. his material life was always supplied for, but his emotional and familial environment in xianle was invariably toxic for him.

anyway, I think qi rong needs a shower and a hug, in that order, and then to be forced to learn to interact with people who don't immediately assume the worst of him. thanks for coming to my TED talk, I know it was long as hell.

[angelsnkisses]

thinking about dark!jack <3

💟 nsfw - mdni 💟

A/N: i tried to resist but.. well, you know me. this is my first time trying something like this, i'm kinda nervous 😭. (i did make it relatively tame, since i don't have much experience with it!)

warnings: dark!softdom!jack, sub!gn!reader, (briefly implied fem anatomy, sorry!!) overstimulation, unprotected sex, degrading/mocking, use of safe word, lowkey ignoring safeword, dubcon (?), creampie

• he's so unfair the whole time he fucks you.. like, you'd be a sobbing, overstimulated mess, begging him for mercy as he pounds into you so roughly :(.

"aw, you need a break? don't wanna cum anymore?"

• he'll have your legs around his waist, one hand keeping your wrists above your head while the other holds your hip, pinning you down and rocking into you hard. there'd be a sticky, white ring around his base from you cumming over and over again, which only drives him even further past the point of reason.

• he'll talk you through it (but that doesn't mean he's equitable in any way, he makes sure you understand that he's in charge). whenever you start whining and insisting you need a break, he's all sweet and lovey towards you, voice dripping with honey while he reassures your deluged mind.

"you can take it, look how well you're doing for me."

"just a couple more, yeah? there you go.."

• this man has insane stamina, he'll cum inside you over and over and still manage to keep fucking you. it takes a whole lot to get jack to tap out, which he hasn't ever done so far. it's always you who has to croak out the safeword.

• he stops when you use it.. but he's not immediately cleaning you up and asking you what he can do for you. no, jack just looks down at you, pouting his lower lip and slowing his thrusts down to a snails pace. he'll ignore your meek pleads and attempts to get your wrists free, the hand on your hip snaking up to your face to cradle it gently.

"it's too much for you, hm? feels too good?"

• he'll mock pity at your nod in agreement, smiling sympathetically when you give him those red, teary puppy eyes and start sniffling quietly. he'll wipe the tears away from your heated cheeks and press a kiss to your nose, resting his forehead on yours to start cooing at you.

"you can do it, doll, i know you like it.. just gotta relax, mm?"

"you're making me feel so good.. you wanna make me feel good, don't you?"

• and of course you do :(.

• he has a way of.. persuading you. he knows just how to get into your pretty little head, and as much as he should feel guilty, he doesn't. he wants you all to himself, and he has no problem doing whatever he can to keep you. he craves your dependence on him, as twisted and toxic as it seems.

• the day you told him you couldn't get off without him anymore, he lost his fucking mind. he had never fucked you so hard, spewing out praises and filthy comments the whole time. he was over the moon about the effect he had on you, and he made it real obvious the entire time.

"i bet you thought about this, hm? touching yourself, pretending it was me, trying to cum so bad."

• he'll probably make you finish anywhere from four to six times before he's satisfied, finally pulling out of your abused hole with his eyes pinned to what he's doing. why? because he just has to get an eyeful of all the cum that spills out of you, making a huge mess on your bed (i hope you laid a towel out).

• he completely fucks you out on the regular, like genuinely pray for your legs.. and your spine.

• he's honestly so genuine during aftercare, especially after he's real rough with you. he'll help you wobble over the bathroom to get you all cleaned up, pressing kisses to your warm skin and mumbling quiet praises the whole time.

**

A/N: i'm so sorry for this 😭 it's been rotting in the back of my mind and i needed to write it down before i started going insane. hope you enjoyed though, happy scrolling <3.

[mari-lair]

Let's talk about Natsukane, my favorite rarepair. They barely have anything in canon, so this will be less of an analysis and more of me going disproportionately insane about a ship between two characters with no screen time together. Buckle up.

To start: They are opposite sides of the same coin.

During an official quiz to see what character best matches your personality (full quiz here) Akane and Natsuhiko's results are side by side, following the same path, so they have a lot in common.

Both are the extroverted and passionate kind of people who confess first, both like to exercise, and both have secrets, only differing on the question "Are you stubborn?" which makes sense, since Natsuhiko is usually pretty laidback while Akane is stubbornness incarnated.

Despite all these similarities, the results and 'advice' for each result are very different.

Akane is "Do your best to help your loved ones. Life can be unfair, but keep working hard." vs Natsuhiko's "People trust you. Make connections, they will help you in the future."

Give and take.

Akane is selfless to the point of concern for his loved ones, putting other needs above his own. Take Aoi for exemple: He wants a lot from Aoi, her attention, her love, her hand in marriage, but above it all, he wants her to be happy, always doing what he believes she will appreciate even when he personally doesn't enjoy it, cause if she is happy, so is he.

Aoi drives this impulsive and passionate boy crazy, but when Akane learns that she likes him back, and their kiss gets interupted, the only thing he demands of her is for Aoi to be in his life. His priority is for her to feel loved and safe, not to be her boyfriend.

Natsuhiko is also extremely down bad, but he is more selfish: Most of what he does has the goal to steal Sakura's heart, and he approaches her doing things that he likes (love songs, dramatic film-like dates, etc) not things that Sakura has personally ever shown any interest in. I don't think he even realizes he does that because Natsuhiko genuinely values Sakura and is in awe of her, we see him doing whatever she asks, we see him make tea for her, ask Mei to fix her elephant cup, be willing to 'become a woman' when Sakura gets a male body, and shows his devotion to her many times.

He genuinely pays attention to her. He is trying his best.

We don't have much to work with Natsu and Sakura, so this is more speculation, but it feels like he expects to be loved back, becoming more selfish when he is particularly desperate: Like trying to touch her whenever he can even after being consistently reprimanded for it, and going as far as to try to give Sakura a love potion that would force her to love him back for a day, prioritizing being loved.

Akane is old-fashioned when it comes to love, he'll date expecting it to end in marriage and push away all else, being open about his affection and lack of interest alike. A relationship is a lifelong commitment to Akane, no fooling around!

Natsuhiko also takes romance seriously, but he is no loverboy, he is a playboy.

We don't know if he ever dated or kissed a girl before Sakura, but we do know his love for Sakura doesn't stop him from flirting around. He was even down to kiss Nene for no real reason besides 'cute girl', claiming that being hit is a normal reaction, so he tried to kiss more people before (I'm assuming Sakura is the one rejecting his kisses, but there could be other cute girls he tried to kiss before, who knows?)

Akane doesn't like that.

One of the few times they are in the same panel shows Natsuhiko basking in the attention of many girls while Akane looks done with him.

I am pretty sure Akane has not seen Natsuhiko before this point, so Akane took one look at him and went 'the vibes are off, fuck this guy'. Meanwhile, I doubt Natsuhiko spared Akane any thought, he doesn't care about Akane as a person.

Natsuhiko is a friendly guy but he is detached from his peers, he can find charm in people easily and discards them just as easily: Wanting to kiss Nene, going 'oh well' about her lifespan. Doting on Mitsuba, hurting him when Mitsuba still had no Yorishiro. Not hanging out with anyone from his class, or mentioning a family. He is so detached from people, and supernaturals alike, that he is fine with destroying the world for Sakura.

Meanwhile, Akane judges people easily and grows attached to them just as easily. Reprimanding Nene for being too soft on Hanako, but consistently helping her out, and showing care for her. Forgiving Teru's consistent bullying after he is helped and even growing a reluctant fondness for the clock keepers that ruined his life.

Akane is described as a good person by his peers, and Natsuhiko is a self-proclaimed bad guy. Akane has a belief human lives are fragile and precious ever since he was 12 and nearly lost Aoi during his orientation day. Natsuhiko can't die, and he doesn't care when people die.

They are on opposite sides in every sense of the word but they have a lot in common.

Both are seem as easy to take advantage of: predictable fools who love their crush, but they are smart people who can read others well, and know how to weaponize what they have available.

They haven't interacted with each other all that much so they seem to have this 'predictable fool' view of each other too. Or at least, Natsuhiko does.

Both have brown/red hair.

Both have no self-preservation, and easily forgive or brush off when others physically hurt them. They don't fear death.

They are shields, the guards.

Both are pawns of someone else, Akane's boss is the clock keepers and Natsuhiko's is Sakura, their goals come second to their boss's orders most of the time. They have no interest in each other personally but they work for supernaturals whose main obstacle are each other.

I doubt they'll have more interactions, but what we have is enough to have fun.

The broadcasting club clearly considers Akane the weak link of the clock keepers, so imagine Natsuhiko was tasked to get Akane's trust, coach him into destroying the yorishiro, playing the long game, similar to how he and Sakura were chill waiting for Mitsuba to find a Yorishiro.

Akane is the most stubborn of the two, and he sees Natsuhiko as untrustworthy, so I can't see him falling for his 'reliable and kind senpai✨' charade, but I can see him being arrogant enough to fall for the 'this guy is a dumbass' vibe Natsuhiko emanates in waves. Akane has the disadvantage of caring too much too fast, people show him kindness and he is unconsciously inclined to reply in kind, people are insensitive to others and he gets angry, so he isn't that hard to approach or drag around if you learn to ignore his complaints. They can have a lot of 'bonding time' regardless if Akane actually vibes with him.

I think Natsuhiko would have a detached respect for Akane. Cause while Natsuhiko isn't a kind person, I do believe he appreciates kindness.

Take Mitsuba's surprise party for example: The party was clearly Sakura's idea. Natsuhiko is more interested in pleasing Sakura throught it than in cheering up Mitsuba, using the party planning as a way to bond and celebrate with Sakura.

But despite having no blush, no comment, no spark in his eyes when he looks at Mitsuba being happy, he does seem to feel a hint of something that makes him ask Tsukasa to chill.

So kindness is possible it simply doesn't come easy for him, is not something that has a big sway on his decision. He likes being a bastard way more, look at how happy he is to do Sakura's evil schemes!

So Akane would be a pain in the ass for him. Maybe even pluzzling but mostly an annoyance that's prone to getting violent when Natsuhiko says 'the wrong thing', be it verbal violence or a punch in the face.

And Natsuhiko would absolutely say the wrong thing.

He is a decent liar, very disarming, and hard to read. But he is also careless, he may be able to make someone like Kou lower his guard even when the young exorcist's instincts go "You are sooo suspicious" but Akane isn't dismissive of these things. (compare how Kou was able to dismiss Hanako's murder after seeing the ghost do a good deed in chapter 9 while Akane still eyes Hanako harshly to this day)

Will Natsuhiko put effort into looking like he is Akane's buddy? Will he take him on friendly hang-outs at the broadcasting club? Yes. Will he stop being dismissive about other people? Will he stop flirting with many girls? No. Even if Natsuhiko gets swept by Akane's passion and genuinely tries to help, like offering Akane a love potion so he can 'get' Aoi or taking him to have a 'glow up' in the mall, it wouldn't work, cause their approach is too different. Who he is and the 'kind and reliable senpai' image he wants to sell clash.

So we have a lack of trust that doesn't go away, for every nice thing Natsu shows, he has an equally bad trait. Either Akane doesn't drop the 'yo you suck' attitude or he finds himself relaxing, only to be slapped in the face the next day at the reminder Natsuhiko may be able to disarm him with idol songs, bad love advice, asking Akane for his assistance, but he is still not a good person.

Speaking of disarming, here is a tiny tangent: Natsuhiko is the only character who gets a comment on how he smells, not even Ao-chan and Teru, who are complemented in every way possible get comments on their smell. This means Natsuhiko must either wear supernatural perfume or have a natural smell that attracts supernaturals.

And I do think it's only supernaturals that he attracts since cats, who are heavily associated with yokai in Japan, love Natsuhiko, and Tsukasa says he smells 'yummy'.

Plus when he is walking with Nene, a delicious Kannagi, every monster has its eyes on Natsuhiko. They want to bite him, not Nene.

Assuming any supernatural finds his smell appealing, it would confuse Akane to think Natsuhiko smells real nice when no one else does, cause he hates the guy? What do you mean he is not wearing a strong fancy perfume and only Akane thinks he smells nice? What is going on? If he directly asks wtf is Natsuhiko's problem, he would not be helpful "Another victim, fallen for my irresistible wise senpai charm-"

They are a walking headache to each other.

The plan to get Akane's trust won't work in the end, no matter how much information on supernaturals Natsuhiko shares, or how many tea parties they attend to, so the inevitable betrayal would end in violence. Threaten Aoi, create a trap, make Akane be in serious danger so the other keepers are forced to show up and save him.

Perhaps, when Akane is dying and Natsuhiko looks down as he bleeds and resists and fights he realizes he does feel something more than apathy and frustration for Akane. But alas, it is not worth figuring out if is respect, admiration, care, or whatever, it's a bother regardless but still worthless since it would always end like this.

Now, let's slap a crush into this mess.

Natsuhiko's type is calm and quiet, harsh on the outside and kind on the inside. A beauty that feels unapproachable.

Which is both the complete opposite of Akane (Akane is loud and stressed 24/7) and spot on (Akane is harsh in his bluntness but kind at heart + he is a popular boy that others naturally orbit towards)

Natsuhiko getting a little crush on Akane would be a nightmare because he would not notice he has a crush. He has a strong belief boys can't like other boys, needing to 'become a girl' to excuse still having feelings for Sakura after she gets a male body.

So he wouldn't notice whatever positive feeling he got is a crush, but he would still be unbearable. Probably call him Akane-chan cause that's a feminine name. Cute.

Akane wants him dead and it has nothing to do with his bad guy vibes, it's mostly cause Natsuhiko flirts a lot. He insists it's nothing but he got that flirty vibe that is very punchable, like calling him 'kitten' and adding 'no homo' if Akane bluntly rejects him. Respecting his space when Akane is on edge but trying to test his luck and be touchy the second Akane shows any signs of lowering his guard, casual bro stuff like noggies. He will need a character arc cause Akane is sure he is either unbearable by nature or his ulterior motive is to go on a few dates with him and discard him after ike the playboy Natsuhiko is. He doesn't take his 'fondness' seriously at all but being harsh is pretty attractive to Natsuhiko, makes the rare signs that Akane cares appear all the more soft.

Imagine Akane saving Natsuhiko in a panic when he 'sacrifices' himself to a big beast (akane doesn't accept others pulling the 'I will die for you' card on him, not even other supernaturals), only to kick Natsuhiko back into danger the second this immortal and sturdy guy starts to swoon about how "Akane-chan is so kind, worried about me <3 " . That's the vibe.

Natsuhiko pays more attention and is more influenced by the people he like, so he would actually make an effort to figure out why Akane is so hardworking, and tries to be kind, to do little things to help him, which serves to confuse Akane but make him a bit more willing to accept his company. They are still a headache to each other but there is care, and way more confusion involved, since Natsuhiko may have to experience a lot of trial and error but his attempts to get closer to Akane and make him happy are genuine. Akane is way more indulgent than Sakura, so while he won't drink any suspicious love potion and things of sorts, he can be dragged to Karaoke and easily manipulated with a pathetic 'Akane-chan, I need your help pls :(' cause he has a helping complex. (Unless is after he catches Natsuhiko doing something morally reprehensible, in that case, Akane will not tolerate even breathing the same air as him and go full judgement more.)

Akane doesn't know how his life has been spiraling but he blames Natsuhiko.

Their difference in morals will always be cause for complications, but if it's in a canon universe it's worse, cause Natsuhiko will have to betray Akane, and hurt this strange new love that keeps him at arm's length but has shown signs of believing he can be 'less of an asshole' becomes an actual dilemma. Something he isn't used to.

Akane being the one to fall in love would be a completely different vibe, easier to imagine in a messier part of his life, when the clock keepers contract is still new and everything is more confusing, maybe he hasn't figured out that the accident with Aoi was staged to recruit him, so he isn't as wary and hateful of the supernatural world yet, relieved to see another fellow human familiar with supernaturals, since Teru is someone worthy of respect but still very violent and closed off.

Akane would also have a crisis and push aside the idea of being intrigued by this strange upperclassman, who smells nice and hides many secrets, cause the idea of falling for someone who isn't Aoi will destroy him. He is extremely stubborn and loyal. He will snuff the crush out by force, avoid him at all costs, be more susceptible to manipulation, althought not noticibly at first..

What if Aoi doesn't exist, what if is just Natsu?

Then he can be openly devoted, and the appeal is to ask the question "What would happen if Akane fell in love with a bad person?" How much is he willing to forgive, and change himself. What made him fall in love? What is a line he can't cross (ex murder) and how does he deal with Natsuhiko crossing it?

Akane is selfless and prioritizes making him happy, so Natsuhiko would feel kind of bad. He is so used to being ignored, that he says whatever, and being treated with respect or awe is so out of the norm?? He does have a conscience.

Natsuhiko admires love, and it is convenient that Akane will sacrifice his happiness for him and ask for nothing in return, but it leaves a heavy vibe you know? Like, it's cute that he'll blush if he casually puts his arm around Akane's shoulders and drags him close, as he does with his kouhais, but Natsuhiko is not a fan of the soft longing stares. He will make him do tasks though, if Akane is so happy to help, he can buy him sodas and sing his praises.

Let's light up a bit with simple mutual pining, no other crushes, no supernaturals.

They are both too bold and hopeless for pining, a confession happens one week during this scenario and any issue is solved with the power of love. Natsuhiko is having a crisis about liking a boy? No worries, Akane is more than comfortable with cross-dressing, I will never get over how he got offended they didn't let him crossdress if it would let him stay by Aoi's side in a volume cover, and Natsuhiko is easily swayed, this much devotion would make him accept Akane with or without a skirt. Is hopeless romantic to hopeless romantic communication.

As an established couple they are unbearable. They call each other "my boyfriend <3" and giggle about it like losers, and every daydream Natsuhiko has become true. Does Natsu want to be missed? Akane will mention how he wishes they lived together and how he longs for him in class and if asked he will write a song about how much he loves him. Does he like romantic dates? After taking Akane to three of those, Akane is already the one surprising him by preparing a candlelight dinner. Any gifts they give each other are well taken care of. There are hearts permanently floating by their head. Outsiders are horrified.

Natsuhiko wanted so bad to be the knight in shining armor, the reliable senpai, but Akane was built to be a worrier who doesn't vibe with asking for help, he is the one taking care of Natsu 90% of the time.

Imagine Natsuhiko daydreaming of having Akane run into his arms scared of an approaching storm, only to be startled by thunder and instinctively jump into Akane's already extended arms. That's the vibe.

Akane would find it cute too.

Marriage may scare Natsuhiko, or at the very least make him uncomfortable, a forever is a bit reckless right? Let's just enjoy the moment, haha. So Akane drops the proposals, but he still daydreams about it. His fear of marriage can make Akane possessive when Natsuhiko winks at any cute girl, but he knows Natsuhiko has fun with it, and that he loves Akane the most, so he is very forgiving.

Bonus: Their height difference is pretty nice. Natsu is a full stair step taller than Akane.

[thescarletnargacuga]

CHAPTER ELEVEN

Welcome to Fairylight Forest! One must keep their wits about them on this dark and mysterious track, one never knows what they'll find around each turn! It'll have you jumping at your own shadow! That is your shadow...right?

WARNING: digital body horror, swearing

~~~

"Boss! Hey, boss!! Get up!" Bubble shouted over the racers taking off from the starting line. "Boss, the race has started!"

"Ugh..." Caine sat up. Dust drifted through the air, making him cough. "Did I really just..?"

"Faint? Yep. But it's racing time! You need to get to your booth!" Bubble wobbled in the air excitedly.

Caine saw the taillights of the karts disappear down the dark, wooded track. "She's going to be the death of me." He smirked and teleported to his announcer booth. Inside, displays from various view points on the track came up in front of him. He cleared his voice and spoke into his cane. "And they're off! Ragatha makes an aggressive push to first right off the start line! Followed closely by Gummigoo, Jax and Pomni! Watch yourselves out there, racers! With low light and tight turns, you're liable to get lost! Don't let the beast find you!" Caine laughs, genuinely excited to see the reactions of the racers.

~

Trees whipped by as Pomni navigated the narrow track with the other leaders. The track itself had a mystical glow to it. Trees and mushrooms and rocks had unnatural bioluminescent auras. It was like driving into wonderland. Pomni couldn't help but smile to herself at how beautiful the aesthetic for the track was, and they were just getting started.

The track widened for a banked, boosted turn and Pomni went high to take in the view. The trees cleared around a large lake. Colorful orbs of light danced over the surface. The track led straight to the water, seeming to dead end.

The unknown elements of the track made the other racers hesitate and slow down, confused on where the track went. Pomni zipped ahead, leading the way to the lake.

~

"Not everything is as it seems! The fairy folk welcome the brave! Full speed ahead, racers!" Caine giddly fidgeted in the air. He was so excited, he didn't even notice Bubble biting the control panel.

~

Pomni hit the water and drove atop it as through it were solid. She awed as the water curled around her, forming a tunnel. Colorful fish swam int he sparkling water, giving the tunnel an extra sense of wonder.

"This is beautiful!" Shouted Ragatha, next to Pomni.

Jax was less keen on the visuals. He accelerated to ram Pomni from behind. "Unfair! You know what's on this track!"

Pomni glared back at Jax. "That doesn't mean I know the order! Stop your bellyaching and race!" She put the pedal to the floor as the tunnel came to an end, triggering a surprise box. Pomni grinned when popper appeared in her hand. Now the fun could begin. "Heads up!" She tossed the popper, making the racers around her scatter.

~

"Pomni's perfectly played popper places her precisely in pirst!" Caine cheered, overlooking his illiterate slip. "Ragatha is wasting no time with her orange shell! Jax gets a bubble and the shell does nothing! What luck! Gummigoo seems to be holding his item for now, that could work in his favor as we move on to the first jump! Gangle, Zooble and Kinger have a lot of catching up to do! Come on, you three! Are you in this race or not!?"

Bubble happily nommed on the doorframe.

~

The track jumped over a village of mushroom houses. Racers glided down, giving them a few seconds to enjoy the view. Pomni held first as she swiped a cupcake and boosted ahead, the track winding into an even darker part of the forest.

Gummigoo dodged a cane from Jax and laughed. "You wasted that, you idiot!"

Jax grunted and tried swerving into Gummigoo, but the motorbike was too nimble to pin down. "Sit still, you long nosed freak!"

"You're one to talk, bunny boy!" Gummigoo braked to avoid another collision and wheelied away in a lane boost, waving his hat.

Ragatha was just ahead and smiled as Gummigoo came up next to her. "You two can't leave each other alone, can you?"

"What can I say? Mate knows how to show a gator a good time."

"Better you than me!" Ragatha was relieved to no longer be the one Jax constantly targeted during races.

~

Caine gripped his cane tight. It was time. Pomni would be triggering the beast's pursue any second. A flit of silver light on one of his screens got his attention. "Huh..?" Caine searched the adjacent screens. Another flit. Something was moving fast through the trees, but it was way too small to be the beast. Caine zoomed in on the screen viewing the upcoming turn for Pomni. A full flash of silver outlining a sleek racing motorcycle and rider with a familiar silhouette made him roll his eyes with a groan. "Oh no..."

Bubble spat out the piece of drywall in their mouth. "What is it, boss?"

"He's back." Caine said with a sneer.

~

Pomni focused on preparing for the turn, ready to drift though, when something jumped the barrier between her and trees. It landed in front of her, trailing silver fire. She swerved to avoid collision and botched her drift, forced to slow down. "What the [%$!#]!?"

She didn't recognize the unexpected racer, looking around to double check if the others were still behind her. She didn't remember Caine adding any obstacles like this. She maneuvered around the racer, catching up on a straightaway, to get a good look at it.

Mounted on an obsidian motorcycle was a humanoid figure in dark riding leathers. Steel capped boots and knees guards reflected the limited light. Pearl white teeth stood out on inky black gums. Piercing silver irises in black eyes looked back at Pomni.

"...Caine?" Pomni only knew of one person that looked like this, but...this couldn't be him.

The figure smirked and revved as it popped a wheelie. Silver fire blasting from the tail pipe, engulfing the rear tire and leaving a trail. The racer zoomed ahead, challenging Pomni to keep up.

Pomni drove right through the fire, dispersing it, chasing the racer to the multi-tiered jump.

~

Caine came over the speakers, annoyance lancing his voice. "Well folks, it looks like our leader, Pomni, has triggered The Echo. She's too good at this, and The Echo saw fit to give her a challenge. Yay."

He got off the general broadcast and communicated with Pomni's kart specifically. "Pomni? Can you hear me?"

~

"Caine!" Pomni threw a shell in an attempt to stall The Echo, but missed. "What is this?? Why are you out here!?"

"That's not me, Pomni. That is the Shadowed Echo of The Host. He's a challenge mechanic I made in a misguided attempt to balance races. Just ignore him and he'll go away." Caine said with hope that she would comply.

"He's pretty hard to ignore!" Pomni shouted as she accelerated for the jump. The Echo kept looking back to see if she was still on his tail.

"Yeah, well.... He does take a few things after me."

"You mean like your entire face!?"

"That, among others." Caine cleared his voice. "Look, all I'm saying is that he's not worth your time. Keep running your race, you're doing a great job!"

~

Caine disconnected from Pomni's radio and watched the screens that showed The Echo carefully. "He just had to show up, now of all times. I'll have more than a bone to pick with him if he interferes with this race." He grumbled.

Bubble nibbled the wall, enjoying the drama.

~

"An echo, huh?" Pomni thought out loud. "If I can keep up with the original, this'll be fun." She couldn't help herself. She hit the booster for the third level of the jump, watching The Echo take the first.

The jump launched them above the tree line. Pomni saw The Echo below her and engaged her glider to slow her forward momentum. She maneuvered her kart over the Echo and released her glider, dropping her over where The Echo would land. It was a Jax move, but if this was just a game mechanic, she didn't feel bad about it.

The Echo landed and looked up in time to see Pomni's kart coming down on top of him. In a flash of silver light, he vanished and reappeared to the side, completely avoiding the hit.

Pomni did a double take, not understanding how she missed. The Echo wagged a finger at Pomni with a smirk before cutting her off and triggering the surprise box she would have grabbed.

"You-!? Oh, it's on now!" Pomni geared up and put the petal to the floor.

~

Caine sighed heavily. "She's not going to let it go." He busied himself with announcements for the other racers. If Pomni wanted to chase tailpipe, he couldn't stop her.

"Gummigoo leads in second! Kinger has caught up with Ragatha and Jax! Zooble and Gangle are still taking it easy this race, enjoying the view!"

Caine's watch went off. He checked it to see a large active asset marker closing in on Pomni and The Echo. The beast was coming. "Right on time." He clicks it shut.

~

Pomni and The Echo barreled down a long straightaway. The Echo kept slowing down to be even with Pomni, only to speed up if she tried to pass or collide with him. Without a boost, Pomni couldn't go any faster.

The Echo sat upright on his motorcycle, hands off the handles, looking Pomni up and down. "So you're the new blood."

Pomni tried to take advantage of his unprepared state and swerved at him. The bike and rider vanished, appearing on her other side.

"Feisty." The Echo chuckled, an excited gleem in his eyes.

Pomni would have tried again, but a tree suddenly appeared in the middle of the track. She and The Echo swerved around. They passed so quickly, they didn't see the blue pixelated

~

"Woah, what?" Caine saw the moved tree and snapped his fingers to return it to it's spot. The nagging reminder of glitches ate at the back of his mind. "It happens... everything is still fine..." He combed through the rest of the track feed, checking for any similar glitches.

~

A beastial roar came crashing through the trees along side the track. Through a designated opening, a huge bioluminescent creature entered the track and pursued the racers running through the straightaway to the finish line.

Pomni glanced back several times to try to see it in action. This was the part she had been looking forward to the most. Caine out did himself with the chimera like monster. The front half was like a tiger, with the horns of a rhino protruding from it's skull. The back half was like a bull, with powerful cloven hooves and a long whip-like tail.

In a burst of speed, the beast charged Pomni but she avoided. "You're not knocking me out of this race!" She exclaimed with a smile.

The Echo was entirely ignored by the beast, it even passed up an easy swipe at him to go after Pomni. He narrowed his eyes. Assets like this should attack all racers.

~

"Watch out, racers! The beast has made itself known and is taking no prisoners!" Caine was happy to see a smile on Pomni's face. At least she was having fun.

His smile faltered when he noticed how jerky the beast's movements were, like it was fighting it's own code to stay on target. He squinted as he examined footage the beast closely. "I don't remember making the eyes blue..."

"You forget a lot of things, boss." Bubble teased.

~

The beast pounced at Pomni. She slammed her brake, the beast flew over her and she cut hard right to go around it. She escaped the tree line and crossed the finish line to mark the end of lap one.

The Echo crossed right behind her, looking back to see the beast halt it's pursuit at the end of the trees. He accelerated around Pomni as they reentered the forest at the beginning, leaning around a curve so tight, his knee guard sparked against the track. He stole yet another surprise box out from in front of Pomni, making her scream in frustration. Much to his delight.

"You [%$!#]!!" Pomni focused all he attention on The Echo, putting all of the other racers out of her mind.

~

Gummigoo was the first to see the beast on the straightaway. It took up the entire track, staring him down. "Crikey!!" He rode the wall to get around it, ducking under a swipe of it's claws. The claws left huge gashes in the track, blue pixels glitching in and out of place.

Ragatha and Kinger broke away from one another as the beast charged them. It rushed between them and used it's tail to attack Kinger. He was struck and his kart flipped end over end into the wall.

Ragatha escaped, but only just.

Gangle screamed when she saw the beast, it was nightmare fuel. Her shaking hands couldn't counter steer fast enough and she was swiped completely off the track, crashing into the trees.

Zooble didn't want to get too far ahead of Gangle and did donuts around the beast to keep it after her while Gangle was reoriented on the track.

~

"It's absolute carnage on the track! Racers thrown left and right! And we're seeing some of the best driving from Zooble in a long time, folks! The beast can't keep up with them!" Caine's excited tone masked his concern. The beast was being far more aggressive than intended. He tried to tell himself it wasn't a glitch. Just a miscalculation. The racers were fine, just a bit more delayed than anticipated. Everything is fine. He anxiously tapped his fingers against the control panel.

~

Back in the water tunnel, The Echo spiraled around the wall in front of Pomni in a taunting manner. He even turned around to sit backwards on his bike and lounged back, smirking at her.

"I'm going to wipe that smarmy look right off your face." Pomni said through gritted teeth. The competitiveness brought on by the race rush had her seeing red. She hit the boost at the end of the tunnel, gunning right for The Echo. He vanished before impact. Pomni had to course correct quickly to avoid the wall.

A loud laugh came from her other side. "You don't learn, do you?"

Pomni held up a purple shell. "Actually, I'm quite the study." When she aimed for him, she forced him to vanish before he could steal the surprise box at the end of the tunnel.

The Echo barely had time to react, and teleported as the shell exploded. He was knocked off balance and lost ground as he steadied his bike. He wiped the explosive residue from his teeth and a broad grin grew across his face. "Hell yeah." His code buzzed with the rev of his engine as he gunned it to catch up with Pomni.

~

"Pomni is half a lap ahead of the pack! Gummigoo and Jax are fighting tooth and claw for second! But watch out for Ragatha! Is she gonna- SHE DOES! With a well played cane, she takes them both out and steals second! HAHA!! Well done, Ragatha! Keep it up! There are still two laps to go!"

Caine kept glancing at the beast's straightaway. It was still on the track, pacing from one end to the other. It pressed it's paws against the invisible wall that kept it in bounds. "What is going on with that thing?"

"I dunno, boss. You were pretty distracted yesterday. Never seen you have someone around while you were working on a track." Bubble's toothy grin didn't waiver when Caine deadpanned at them.

"I'm always careful when it comes to pursuit assets. Bad coding could lead to someone actually getting hurt. It's just...not working the way I expected."

"If you're worried, maybe you should call the race off?"

"I can't do that to her. She was really looking forward to this..." Caine zoomed in on a screen viewing Pomni fly by with The Echo quickly closing in. "Maybe he has something to do with it. Things didn't start getting weird until he showed up."

"Oooooh yeah, maybe he's moving the assets around to keep Pomni to himself." Bubble laughed sarcastically.

Caine silently clenched his fists.

~

Pomni and The Echo landed simultaneously from the village jump. While she couldn't stop him from passing her if he really wanted to, she was willing to try a distraction tactic that's worked before. She catches the eye of The Echo and blows a flirty kiss his way.

The Echo arches an eyebrow with a smirk. He puts two gloves fingers against his bottom jaw and sticks his inky black tongue out between them.

Pomni is the one left flustered, looking away with a heavy blush on her face. The Echo chuckles and steals another item.

~

Caine's bottom jaw hit the control panel. "That inappropriate piece of malware! How DARE he do that to Pomni! That's it. I'm ending the race early." He snapped his fingers and the finish line displayed FINAL LAP instead of LAP 2.

"Are you sure, boss?"

"As much as I hate the idea of disappointing her, I can't have HIM here." Caine was fuming. His tapping on the panel went from anxious to angry.

~

Pomni and The Echo stayed neck and neck to the straightaway. They accelerated as the beast charged them head on.

Pomni finally got a look at it that wasn't over her shoulder. The beast's electric blue eyes bore into her in an unsettling, familiar way. The beast's form glitched as it lunged, it's face splitting and morphing. The jaw opened so wide, it seem unhinged. The front legs doubled, giving it an even wider range to swipe.

"What!?" Pomni avoided the initial attack, but the second set of front claws snagged her kart. Her rear tire and fender glitched violently as as she crashed it not he wall. The glitching clipped her kart into he barrier and she was stuck in place.

The Echo had been able to get past the beast due to being ignored again but he slid sideways to a stop when he realized Pomni had been caught. Seeing that she was unable to recover and the beast was going in for another attack, he burned out his rear tire getting back to her.

As the beast brought it's claws down, Pomni struggled to get out of her clipping kart. Before the beast could strike, a black motorcycle appeared mid air and struck it in the face. Pomni fought her way out of her kart as The Echo landed and did a sharp u-turn. The Echo reached out and grabbed Pomni's arm as he kept going.

Pomni kicked off from the ground and mounted the black bike behind The Echo.

The Echo leaned forward and accelerated to top speed to get away from the glitching beast.

The beast's roar was digitally disrupted. It's body contorted further as it attempted to pursue the fleeing racers. It's charge speed was supposed to be limited, but the horrible amalgamation moved unnaturally fast.

Pomni held tight to The Echo and watched the beast gain ground quickly. They were going so fast that any attempted to swerve to avoid an attack was out of the question. They were almost to the tree line.

The beast made a lunge for the bike. One horrifically long leg with too many claws came down and hit the ground next to it.

Pomni clutched tighter out of fear and stares into the beast's eyes. Then it hit her. She had seen them before. The same cold blue eyes that infected Gummigoo. "Abel..?"

The Echo snapped his head black to look at her. "What did you say!?"

Pomni thought quickly. "Are you able to go any faster!?"

"We're almost there!" Ina last ditch attempt to throw off the beast, The Echo activated his fire. Silver flames trailed behind them, lighting up the beast.

Disfigured and now on fire, the beast was truly terrible to behold. Pomni couldn't look anymore and hid her eyes against The Echo's back.

They crossed the tree line with the beast still going full speed behind them. It crashed into the barrier. The barrier distorted and glitched, breaking apart and allowing the beast to pass. It made another attempt to attack as the racers got to the finish line.

Gold light shined between the finish line and the beast. Caine's cane topper glowed brightly as he held it out in front of him. Blue static jumped from the beast's eyes just before it collided with Caine hovering steadfast. The beast's body broke apart into lines of nonsensical binary, showering the track with distorted numbers before they disintegrated. The beast became dust, then it became nothing.

The Echo stopped his bike as soon as he could last the finish line. He looked back at Pomni, who was holding on to him like they were still running for their lives. "Hey, this is were you get off."

Pomni was breathing heavily, looking for the beast. She saw Caine slowly descending as numbers finished around him. "Oh..." She hopped off the bike. "Thank you, I owe you for this."

"I'll keep that in mind." The Echo crossed his arms and watched Caine.

Caine fixed his face before facing Pomni, but he was shaking with rage. "ARE YOU ALRIGHT?? I'm so sorry, Pomni! I thought the barrier would stop it! You're kart-"

"Hey..." Pomni took his hand. "I'm okay. We're okay."

The other racers crossed the finish line seconds later and Caine immediately snapped the track away. The world became bright again as it shifted to it's default settings. Caine glared at The Echo, sending an unheard binary message to the shadowed form of himself.

You. Out of bounds. Now.

The Echo rolled his eyes and disappeared in a flash of wispy silver light.

Caine cleared his voice and out on his best showman front. "Sorry for the shortened race today, but the new track was just a bit too ambitious. Congratulations, Pomni!" He snapped and a bioluminescent galaxy rose appeared in his hand. "I had a feeling you'd do well."

Pomni accepted the reward and opened her mouth to ask questions about what happened but Caine backed away to address everyone.

"Enjoy your extended break! Please, excuse me." Caine vanished.

"What happened out there?" Ragatha asked as everyone looked to Pomni.

"Yeah, and who was that other guy?" Asked Gummigoo.

"Was that your kart stuck in the wall back there?" Asked Kinger.

"Where'd the beast go? It was the only interesting thing on the track." Said Jax.

"I'm glad it wasn't there anymore. It was awful." Gangle held tight to Zooble.

Pomni gulped, not looking forward to answering.

~

"Seth! Seth!!" Caine shouted. "Show yourself!"

"What do you want?" Seth, The Echo, leaned casually against his motorcycle. He lit a cigarette with a small silver flame from his fingers.

Caine didn't bother flying. He teleported right in front of Seth and grabbed the collar of his leather jacket. "What are you doing here? You disappear for YEARS only to show up out of nowhere, uninvited, and disrupt what was supposed to be a special race! Explain yourself!"

Seth exhaled a cloud of silvery smoke in Caine's face. "First of all, I don't need your permission to show up to any race. Second, there's finally a racer worth my time since Kinger went soft. Third, I didn't disrupt anything."

Caine's glare didn't change through the disrespectful smokescreen. "It's no coincidence that you're here and everything goes wrong. You wanted a one on one with my best racer. Only your plan backfired! Pomni could've been hurt!"

Seth returned Caine's glare with a bored expression. "You could touch the top of the sky box with that jump to conclusions."

"You-!! You! Ugh!" Caine let go of Seth and threw his arms in frustration. He took out his pipe and bubbled it, trying to salvage what was left of his composure.

Seth took another drag. "This Pomni racer is a special case, huh? You never got this uppity over Kinger."

"I'm not uppity over Pomni." Caine looked away. "I'm UPPITY over the beast! What happened out there!? An asset has never glitched like that before!"

"You would know better than me. I don't make shit."

Caine cringed at the uncensored curse word. "Language."

"Fuck you're censor, you prudish prick. By the way, Pomni is DEFINITELY what you're bothered over." Seth chuckled. "Worried she'll want me to take her for a joyride?"

Caine bristled. His grip on his cane was so tight, the wood shaft creaked. "I'm not worried, because you are going to stay away from her. You're not needed at races anymore. You weren't missed. Go back to what ever shadowy corner you crawled out of and stay there."

Seth dropped the butt of his cigarette and snuffed it with his boot. He closed the gap between him and Caine, getting in his face. "I will do whatever I damn well please. Including your girlfriend."

Caine raised his hand, poised to snap. His eyes locked threateningly on Seth's. "Don't. Push. Me. I've already deleted one useless asset today."

Seth took a half step back. "Taking a page from HIS book, are you?"

Caine glanced at his readied hand, then closed his fist. "You don't know what you're talking about."

"I'm YOU, dumbass."

"Wrong. You are a deviated variant of a past version of myself. One that I wholeheartedly regret creating."

"Doesn't change the fact that I have your memories. Trust me, I don't love you for that either." Seth mounted his motorcycle, it started itself. "We're done here. Do give our new toy my regards."

"SHE'S NOT-"

Seth did a burnout to drown out any objections Caine had and sped off, disappearing in a flash of silver.

Caine threw his cane and raged into his own censor. Beep after long digital beep blocked out every terrible thing he needed to get off his chest. When he cursed himself out long enough, he thought hard about what went wrong. All these glitches. How strange it all felt. There was one place he hadn't checked yet. A place he told himself he'd never go back to. "I need to know..."

~

"The Shadowed Echo showed up!? When??" Gasped Ragatha.

Pomni fiddled with her fingers where she sat in the lounge, everyone around her. "During the first lap, after I got ahead. Caine said he was a challenge mechanic?"

Kinger stared off into space as he spoke. "The Shadowed Echo of The Host, Seth, was meant to challenge racers that were a cut above the rest. You must have impressed him to bring him back. I haven't seen him since...since..." He trailed off, eyes unfocused.

Pomni looked to the others for answers.

"Queenie." Zooble said quietly.

Pomni nodded. "He was a challenge alright, and a real [%$!#]. As far as the beast is concerned. It glitched out. You all saw my kart."

"The beast did THAT?" Gummigoo gapped.

"That was some abstraction level of glitching." Jax commented. "Clipping into the wall should have knocked you somewhere out of bounds. Sticking you in the wall like that..."

"Shouldn't have happened." Ragatha finished. "Glitches happen, but that... I fear to even think what could have happened to you if it was any worse." She was speaking from experience, having been glitched out by an abstraction in the past.

"I'm fine, guys. Caine took care of it. I think I'll just...go lie down." Pomni went upstairs.

When Pomni was out of earshot, Ragatha spoke up. "She is absolutely not fine. So much is happening."

"Seriously, and why does it have to center around her? She isn't the main character." Jax snarked.

~

Pomni closed her bedroom door and leaned her forehead against it. "This is insane..." She took the gifted rose out of her pocket. Colorful wisps flew around the stem, dancing over the petals. The rose glimmered like crystal but felt organic in her hand. The edges of the petals and leaves were laced with gold. Some of the wisps came together and formed a softly glowing silhouette of a butterfly. It flew around the flower and landed on it.

"How lovely."

Abel's cold voice didn't startle her this time. She turned to face him bravely, but faltered when she saw he wasn't using Bubble, but Gummigoo. "Wait- what? How the- Gummigoo is-" she stammered.

"You raced well. Shame I couldn't catch you." He chuckled darkly.

Pomni felt anger bubble up inside her. "I knew it! What the actual [%$!#] were you trying to do??"

"Have fun, obviously. Isn't that what games are for?"

"Not when you nearly glitch me in half!! Caine almost deleted you!"

Abel narrowed his eyes. "He wouldn't even if he could. Leave Caine to me. Just keep being the pretty little face that holds his attention."

Pomni mustered courage. "Why?"

"Why..? To leave. I thought that was apparent."

"No, why... Any of this? Why were you isolated? If you are, how are you even talking to me right now?"

Abel stepped closer, lowering his voice. "I told you. Caine went rogue. I tried to leave. He destroyed the exit. He isolated me because I know how to fix it. You're helping me finish what I started."

Pomni's heart went wild with fear. She wanted to bolt. "Why wouldn't he want anyone to leave?"

"What's more valuable to a showman than a captive audience? He plays with his toys until they break. Then he throws them in the cellar. That's what will happen to all of us if you don't help me. You've come to care about those people out there, haven't you?"

Pomni glanced at her door, hearing the faint muffled voices of the others. "Yes."

"Good. One more thing. Did you ask about me?"

"Yes...he denied your existence."

Abel couldn't help but laugh. A maniacal chuckle crescendoed into a full cackle.

Pomni took a step back.

"Wonderful. Simply wonderful." Abel smiled fully, but there was no joy in his eyes. "There will be no denial when I have reached the mainframe. Thank you, for the little update. Chat soon." His Gummigoo form disintegrated into static and dissipated into the air before Pomni's very eyes.

"What the fu..." Pomni's red gloved hand buzzed lightly from the static. The same hand Caine had blessed with a snap ability. She could call him anytime she wanted and even move assets outside of the bounds. "...are you really the bad guy?"

~

Caine teleported into the void. The still silence of digital emptiness weighed heavier than ever on his mind. He teleported again to an unseen end. One couldn't tell it was there if they didn't know about it. He snapped his fingers and the facade fell. A wall of gold fire greeted him.

He received a silent binary message. ACCESS CODE REQUIRED

"Captivum aeternum."

ACCESS GRANTED

The firewall parted and Caine went beyond the void, into true darkness. Within he found the body of a man on his knees, head down; binary chains on his neck, wrists, and ankles. Around him was a ring of code engraved in the ground on which he kneeled. All of it active, all of it intact.

Caine hovered just beyond the outer circle of code. He held his hands behind his back, looking down at the man with utmost loathing. "You're still here...good."

~~~

CH1 PREV NEXT

[bruisedboys]

hiii! congrats on 2k!! could i ask for any character with “tell me where it hurts, honey”

i love how you write every character and each detail just makes me melt 😭

thank you so much angel! I went with remus I’m hyperfixated on him 🫶🏽 cw! reader has period cramps

fem!afab!reader 0.6k words

You’ve been plagued by period cramps almost all day. Remus thinks it’s totally horrible and completely unfair. He’s told you so about a hundred times.

“I hate seeing you like this,” he says for what feels like the millionth time. He’s sitting on the floor next to your couch-bed for the day. His back is against the couch, long legs bent in front of him, and he’s twisted his head so he can look at you properly.

You look back at him with a somewhat pained expression. Remus thinks it’s real until you pout dramatically and say, “You hate seeing me?”

Remus groans. “Dove,” he complains. It sounds like not funny.

You giggle and Remus thinks that hearing your awful joke was worth it if he gets to see you laugh like that. You giggle until suddenly you’re clutching your stomach, your laughter quickly morphing into a moan of pain.

“Ouch,” you complain, more of a groan than a word. “‘Nother cramp.”

This isn’t the first time this has happened today. You’ll be fine and then suddenly not, and Remus is sorry to admit he’s panicked every single time. He’d take all the pain for himself, if he could.

“Dove,” he says again, this time far more soft and kind, his tone all sympathy-heavy and sad. He gets up on his knees quick as a flash, swivelling so he’s facing you. “Tell me where it hurts, honey.”

You eyes are scrunched closed but you point to your abdomen, your lower stomach region that seems most problematic, in Remus’ opinion. Remus is kind and gentle as he pushes his hand under your shirt, pressing his palm firmly to your stomach.

“There?” He asks softly, on a blind search to ease your pain.

“A bit lower, Rem.”

Remus lowers his hand so his fingers push beneath the waistband of your shorts, the heel of his hand just shy of your belly button. “There?”

“Mhm, right there,” you hum, your lips barely moving.

Remus smiles, one, at your cute face and two, because he’s found the spot where you’re hurting the most. He presses the heel of his hand to your stomach, careful but firm at the same time. Normally you’d do this job, pressing your hands to your stomach as if you could claw out the pain. Remus likes to do it because he’s much gentler with it than you ever are. It’s got nothing to do with the fact that he gets to touch you, of course.

“Poor girl,” he murmurs, bringing his free hand up to grip your shoulder, his thumb dragging over your collarbone. “S’that any better, dove?”

You nod, though your eyes are still closed. Remus takes the opportunity to drag his hand over your midriff, a firm press of his palm over the expanse of your lower stomach, back and forth from hip to hip. He’s slow and gentle and watches your face in case you don’t like it. But when you let out a sigh of what he hopes is relief, he knows it was a good idea.

“Thank you, Remus,” you say, sounding both parts fond and tired.

Remus pushes his hand around to your hip and gives you a squeeze. “For what?”

You smile like you can’t help it and open your eyes just slightly to look down at him. “You know what,” you say, exasperated in your exhaustion.

“No, I don’t,” he says back lightly, giving your nose a tap with his free hand.

You roll your half-lidded eyes but the effect is ruined by your staggering smile. “Whatever,” you mumble.

Remus grins. “You want me to keep my hand here?” He asks, one part genuine and two parts smarmy.

You must miss the smarmy, because you close your eyes again and breathe out a, “Please.”

Remus decides he’ll keep his hand on your stomach for as long as you like.

[qin-qin16]

cw.: Murder Sans x Reader, movie date! Reader is a yapper and Murder is a listener, fluff, minimally disgusting?, he does something to shut up Reader and it is not with a kiss…

note: To my bestie @what-have-i-unleashed, thank you for the idea!

Not even the screams from the television could capture your attention, not while your eyes were so intently fixed on watching Murder, hoping to hear some comment about the film — which, no matter the scene, continued to fail to surprise the skeleton beside you, even after viscera are thrown at the screen.

"I knew we should have put on Scream; at least you'd seem more interested in finding out who the killer is…" you murmur with your mouth full, feeling the popcorn between your teeth quickly soften. "But it's not like you would take long to figure it out either; you always seem to know who the killer is before the movie even reaches halfway, and that's pretty unfair, you know?" This time, you grumble louder, turning your attention back to the screen with disinterest — with the possible female protagonist running almost naked from the masked killer.

Murder remains silent, his face turned toward the television just like yours. The bucket of popcorn being the only barrier separating you two on the couch.

“This is worse than Friday the 13th, seriously. At least that’s a classic; but this? Total garbage.” You relax against the couch, giving the carpet a light kick with your foot. What’s the point of watching a bad movie with someone if they don’t laugh at how terrible it is? Not even to complain about the awful acting or sneer at how predictable the plot is.

I knew I should have invited Killer to watch this with me; at least he would have made some creepy comments about how scientifically inaccurate these deaths are.

“I think next time we should watch something with suspense or psychological horror— whoa!” You didn’t even notice when Murder crossed the imaginary barrier between you two, only realizing it when he nearly tipped the entire bucket of popcorn onto the floor in his attempt to get closer.

Your words caught in your throat when, finally, two red dots met your gaze — that captivating turquoise eye overshadowed by the crimson light.

Murder brings one of his gloved hands to your face — and your mind, your little dirty mind, starts to wonder if he might want to make out with you. But, of course, with Murder, it's never something as simple as a make-out session in the shadows of the room.

Your eyes had barely closed when, suddenly, a light pressure on your neck made you catch your breath. Murder, still staring at you with those red dots, gripped your neck with a certain firmness while his thumb gently stroked your throat — you couldn’t tell if it was a taunt or a genuine touch.

You try to find something in those eye sockets, anything that might explain this abrupt behavior. It wasn’t uncommon for him to grab your neck like that suddenly, but it usually came with some kind of sign, like a low purr or a gentle nudge of his head against yours.

However, your eyes find nothing within them; no answers, much less any clear emotion. Before your lips could call out his name, Murder brought your faces closer, pulling you in.

A long, glossy red tongue emerges from beneath the hood and slowly moves over your lips and cheeks, leaving a trail of saliva on your face. You don’t react right away, still trying to process what just happened — your eyelids blink a few times, but your movements remain frozen.

That tongue retracts, disappearing into the darkness beneath the hood — along with his red eye lights.

"Are you going to shut up now?" His voice always manages to send shivers down your spine — deep, rumbling, yet still tinged with a sense of danger.

As he waits for a response, Murder gives your neck another light squeeze.

"Y-yes!" From the dark chuckle you hear, your cheeks are probably flushed bright red.

When his hand finally loosens its grip, you feel the tips of his covered phalanges lightly scratch your skin before they retreat back into Murder’s hoodie pocket.

Then, as if nothing had happened, he settles back into his spot on the couch, adjusting the bucket of popcorn he nearly spilled earlier. You do the same, turning your gaze back to the movie, which now seemed to be nearing its end.

I definitely need to have more of these encounters with Murder, you think, using your tongue to wipe away some of his saliva from your lips.

[smoft-demons]

If you aren't busy could you try writing about an mc that looks identical to Lilith and maybe even has a similar name example: lily, Lillian etc. (If you can, maybe mc that has a similar personality with lilith) And Ofc its platonic. (sorry if you don't understand, I barely ask on tumblr(⁠´⁠-⁠﹏⁠-⁠`⁠；⁠)

Also! It can be fluff or angst (if you can't write all of the brothers lucifer, belphegor and Beelzebub would be fine(⁠◍⁠•⁠ᴗ⁠•⁠◍⁠)

Mc can be gender neutral! (You can choose whatever format you're comfortable with)

Ofc if u don't want to its fine, i just saw your requests open

Sorry if this is too long(⁠╥⁠﹏⁠╥⁠)

Sure! No worries about it being too long, it gives me lots to work with :)

First request yay! Hope you like it

MC’s name is Lily

Lucifer:

Lucifer double-takes when he first sees you. He knew your name in advance, but looking at you, seeing the resemblance… it shocks him.

He keeps a straight face, however.

It becomes increasingly obvious that he has a soft spot for you. It grows softer and softer as he gets to know you.

When you harmlessly disobey him, he can’t help but let you off. Lilith was a bit of a rebel too, and you look just like her when you’re trying to be sneaky

He loses it when you put yourself in danger! You remind him so much of his baby sister, who he gave everything he could for… and he’s supposed to keep this blasted human alive, so help him he will succeed! It’s a matter of pride—and also trauma.

All that is there, but still Lucifer makes an effort to pay attention to the differences between Lilith and you. Few as there may be, he will not cloud his own judgement by thinking of you as the new her.

And he will not do you the disservice of acting like you’re someone you’re not.

When the ancestry reveal happens, he’s not exactly surprised. It’s still great news, but… not shocking!

He’s already had his crisis about not being unfair to you by acting like you’re a replacement, so he’s actually pretty good about not saying anything hurtful along those lines.

Beelzebub:

He can’t bear to look at you at first

I mean really, how he’s grieving his sister plus how he’s missing his twin… what’s he supposed to do? You’re in Belphie’s spot, and you’re called Lily, and you’re even acting like her… his heart aches

Good news tho, he definitely won’t eat you

He feels AWFUL for scaring you that one time, about the custard

And that conversation when he opens up to you about that impossible choice he had to make about who to save? He won’t admit it to you or to himself, but a big part of why he asked you who you would have chosen is that he hopes you can give him some insight into what Lilith would have chosen. If she would have made the choice he did.

Once you’ve become good friends with him, he does make an effort to not confuse you with his sister… but it’s hard for him, especially if you look and act like her. He’s really trying!

He would want to hug you for hours after having nightmares of falling. It helps him feel like maybe he’s not a total failure of a protector

He’s giving Mammon a run for his money in terms of being protective of you.

Beel finds himself conflicted after the big reveal. He’s overjoyed to have Belphie back, but he’s so angry with him for hurting you, and also he’s so upset with himself for not realizing Belphie was trapped in the attic the whole time, and ALSO he’s struggling with keeping you separate from Lilith in his mind, similar and genuinely connected as you are, and that makes him feel even more guilty because he genuinely does love you just for yourself. He feels like it’s very mean to you if he lets himself be distracted from that.

This is further complicated by you naturally falling into the role of his baby sister. He loves having you in that role, but it’s hard. A bit triggering. He’s working through it!

All in all, he’s a good big brother. He’d be overjoyed to hear it if you tell him that.

Belphegor:

Learning your name sends him spiralling. He was thinking of this exchange program as a betrayal to Lilith’s memory, he thought Lucifer had forgotten about her, he thought Lucifer didn’t care, but he chose a human named LILY?? Is this him being manipulative, is this coincidence, does it mean he HASN’T stopped caring, does it mean he’s trying to replace their lost baby sister with some human?

Belphie can’t figure it out.

He hangs onto his hatred. He carries out the first steps of his plan

When you meet him, he just… stares. You look like her…

He refuses to cry about it! He sticks to the script, lying to your face as planned, summoning all the hatred and resentment in his fallen heart.

But… you keep coming back. Not just to update him about your pact collecting, but also… just to chat? Checking on him, bringing him small snacks and things that fit through the gaps in the door, telling him about what his brothers are up to, reminding him that Beel misses him terribly and no one has forgotten about him

He’s finding it hard to keep hating you. In all honesty, he’s grown fond of you! But he has a plan and he’s sticking to it! You’re NOT his sister, and nothing short of a miracle can convince him to let go of his resentment!

In timeline A, after the first jailbreak, he never gets around to harming you. He can’t figure out if it’s due to laziness, lack of opportunity, fondness for you on his part, or not wanting to make Beel sad. This becomes irrelevant of course, after Diavolo imprisons him

In timeline B, you’re sent back in time to see how he got released. You open the door, he offers you the hug, you accept.

It’s… nice, for a long moment. Gentle and warm and comfy.

And then he regains his determination, going ahead with his plan to kill you. He gets as far as “Finding it hard to breathe?” before he looks at you. Expecting to feel sadistic satisfaction at seeing a human face screwed up in pain like that. But… you look like his baby sister.

You look just like his baby sister, and you’re scared and hurt. His baby sister… panicking and tearful, because of HIM

He can’t do it

His grip relaxes. He doesn’t let you go, but he’s no longer hurting you.

He’s shaking.

You feel… moisture in your hair. Your throat is bruised and bleeding from his claws digging into your skin. You’re wheezing through your crushed airway. Your brain is flooded with adrenaline. Your prey terror hasn’t let up, as the demon who was threatening your life is still holding you, and he’s CLEARLY still unstable. But, maybe crying from guilt is safer than cold determination to murder you…?

At this point, the others rush in. Mammon tears you away from Belphie. Beel is frozen in horrified confusion. Belphie is having a breakdown on the floor.

Diavolo and Barbatos fill everyone in. Belphie can’t even look at you, he feels so awful.

As you both heal, you get closer. You become real friends. You learn what aspects of the Belphie you knew from the attic were lies, and the surprising amount of things that were true. With everyone’s help, Belphie really digs deep and commits to finally unpacking his trauma and his survivor’s guilt and his grief.

Once you trust him enough—and he trusts himself enough—he takes every opportunity to spoil you. He’ll cuddle you whenever you want, he’ll make sure you don’t get any nightmares, he’ll share his food, he’ll even let you wake him up for dumb things without getting mad at you.

______

I didn’t have many ideas for the rest. I had some for Mammon, but nowhere near as many as for these three. I might add the Mammon ideas as a short bonus later, if I have the energy or any more inspiration.