#it feels weird not to tag this for the prompts

[hawkinsbnbg]

honeysuckle

prompts: breeding kink, slap, loud, vibration | @steddiesmuttyseptember

tags: established steddie, soft dom Eddie, good boy Steve, breeding kink, daddy kink, face slapping, cock cages, prostate milking, barebacking, creampie, voyeurism, multiple orgasms, overstimulation, spit kink.

word count: 2k4 | rated: E | ao3

After they went through an almost apocalypse four times together, movie night at Harrington's residence had kind of become a tradition.

The kids were always a delight; loud and boisterous, filling up the previous big and empty house with their seemingly endless energy and excitement; while the older teens made sure to remind Steve that his friends weren't only the children he had been babysitting for years.

And by remind, it meant they would gather in Steve's living room the following night to drink cheap beers and smoke the stash of weeds Argyle brought over.

Normally, it was enough to brighten Steve's whole week. But tonight, though, he was distracted because his boyfriend had a different plan for him.

Steve gnawed his bottom lip as he tried not to squirm, or worse, moan out loud when the vibrator inside him was activated.

Steve exhaled harshly, feeling his cheeks burn with the amount of blood rushing south. He wanted to drag his hand up his thigh and give himself some relief, but he knew he wouldn't find anything except the cockcage Eddie had put on him hours ago.

It felt weird—the good kind of weird—to be so aroused with his dick still remaining placid. The measured, constant buzzing against his prostate made him drool in his briefs, wetting the soft fabric like he was peeing.

It was embarrassing. Reduced him to a sweating mess and filled his mouth with cotton.

Steve silently thanked his lucky star that everyone (except Eddie) was too busy chatting and smoking to notice his face. Because he must've looked quite fucked out right now.

Steve took another big gulp of his beer, his hands trembling minutely. The cold fluid followed his blush and traveled down his navel, spreading wildfire to the very tip of his fingers and toes.

Sitting beside him, Eddie was warm and solid, big hand stroking Steve's knee absently like most men did to their lovers. Like he wasn't driving Steve insane with the tiny controller in his pocket.

Eddie threw his head back in a carefree laugh when Jonathan said something, showing the column of pale throat that Steve wanted to sink his teeth in.

Tearing the delicate skin and sucking blood like a vampire. The ichor would turn honey on his tongue, streaming in his veins and melting his inside to molasses. Cloying and sweet. Red and golden.

Hot. Scorching. Feverish.

"D'you know that female octopuses will die shortly after giving birth?" Robin leaned over from his other side and whispered in his ear.

"What?" Steve turned to give her a ridiculous look, their noses nearly touching. "Really?"

"Yeah," Robin nodded sagely, voice raspy and eyes red due to the weeds. "They'd waste away and die by the time the eggs hatch."

"That's hardly fair," Steve frowned, pouting a little.

He fidgeted and shifted on his seat slightly as his hole pulsed around the vibe. The sedate thrumming made his head fuzzy. It was torturous to sit through it but Eddie instructed him to behave. And who was Steve to disobey his boyfriend?

"Life's never fair, babe," Robin patted his cheek.

Steve swallowed the moan that almost slipped out at the cool touch on his heated skin.

"What about their mates and children?"

"Male octopuses will be either killed and eaten by the females, or also dead months later," Robin poked at his jutted-out bottom lip. "As for the little ones, they do just fine on their own."

Steve mimed biting her finger, which got him shoved. He jolted and let out a yelp when the movements put more pressure on his prostate.

Robin cackled at his pleasure-induced dilemma.

"You okay, Steve?"

He blinked owlishly at Nancy.

Of course, she would be curious about his odd behavior. Besides Robin and Eddie, she was probably one of those who could read him like an open book.

Not so much anymore, a gleeful voice in his head whispered.

Because Steve realized that she hadn't figured out what was happening to him, yet.

Unlike Robin who was sniggering at him. She had been insufferable ever since she caught Eddie dry-humping him last week next to her right on this couch.

It wasn't Steve's fault that Eddie was an energizer bunny, okay? Nor was it Steve's fault when Eddie pulled him into his lap and temped him with that foul mouth, either.

And no matter how many times Robin griped about him being a slut, he still wanted to keep his dignity intact in front of people who weren't her and Eddie.

"Uhm, y– yeah," Steve cleared his throat, tongue heavy now the entire attention was suddenly on him. "I'm fine."

"You sure?" Nancy squinted at him, looking as suspiciously as her current state managed. "Aren't you sweating too much?"

"Thanks, Nance, but I'm oka–"

Steve doubled over and choked out a wheeze, biting back his strangled moan when the vibrator's intensity abruptly kicked up.

Fuck. He could feel it in his fucking teeth.

And then it was cut off. Steve let out a whine. Frustrated and close to tears, he glared daggers at Eddie who only smirked at him.

"Whoa, you got a cramp, brochacho?" Argyle voiced his concern from where he was sitting by Robin's feet.

"He's not a girl, dude," Robin guffawed. She seemed always tickled by the simplest things every time she was high.

Steve wisely didn't remind her that guys could get cramps too, but not in the sense she was talking about.

Because the dull ache in his pelvis and his guts made Steve want to roll his eyes back. Made him want to mewl and spread his legs like a cat in heat. Present himself for Eddie without caring about what the others might think about him.

As Robin started telling a blissful Argyle that boys didn't go through periods, the vibrator was turned back on and Steve breathed in slowly. He couldn't lose his shit here. Especially when Nancy was looking at him thoughtfully. Her observation skill was still sharp even in her drunken state.

He stood up on his shaky legs, vision blurry slightly as his prostate was being abused mercilessly.

Eddie stood up as well and reached out to help him, but Steve slapped his hand away before he could think it through.

For a moment, they both stared at each other in stunned silence.

Eddie didn't look upset per se. He looked—

Amused. Like he knew exactly why Steve acted that way and was more than ready to make it worse.

Steve shivered as a slow smile stretched on those plump lips. His inside twisted in a sick thrill, knowing he would've been disciplined by now had they been alone.

Eddie raised his hand again and Steve knew he wouldn't get punished with their friends watching them, but his breath still hitched in anticipation out of habit.

When Eddie cradled the side of his face, gentle and kind, Steve found himself smiling softly.

"Still green, babydoll?"

Nothing mattered anymore. It was just the two of them against the world. And Steve would die in this warmth, in this fondness, in this incredible thing that was love.

"So green, Eddie," he leaned into the touch, needy and shaking. "So green."

"Good boy," Eddie smiled.

The vibration was turned to the max, and Steve stifled his moans with his forearm. Tears welled up in his eyes as they rolled back before squeezing shut.

All Steve could hear was the device's humming in his ears, reverberating throughout his nerves. It was so loud. And he wondered briefly if that was why Robin could tell he was playing Eddie's little game.

Steve felt like he just got sucker punched in his guts. There was too much stimulation and tension that his caged cock couldn't contain.

His knees gave out beneath him and he clung to Eddie with a whimper, sounding small and confused.

Eddie shushed him gently, two strong hands sliding under his thighs and lifting him up as if he weighed nothing. Steve wrapped his limbs around Eddie like an oversized koala, hiding his face in the crook of Eddie's neck and letting his mind drift.

"Guys, feel free to crash overnight. Steve's gotta head to bed now," he dimly heard Eddie announce with a voice that brooked no argument.

———

When Steve returned to reality again, he found himself lying on his bed. Naked and delirious.

He remembered Eddie taking out the vibe from him and dropping it on the bundle of their clothes on the floor.

Eddie kept kissing him, licking his tears and dotting his skin with ardent affection. And Steve held onto him, tilting his chin up to let Eddie deepen the kiss, feeling more inebriated and higher than he was supposed to be.

"Hit me," Steve mumbled, gazing up at Eddie with his big shiny eyes. "Pretty please? I was so bad–"

Eddie slapped him across the face.

Causing Steve's head to turn sideways as his cheek burned with the stinging pain. Eddie did it again to his other cheek and prompted another breathless gasp from him. He wished Eddie still kept those rings on.

"Don't talk about my baby like that," Eddie grabbed his jaw and shook it lightly. "Say: I'm a good boy."

Steve whined, tears clinging to his eyelashes as he sniffled.

"'M a good boy."

"That's right," Eddie smiled at him, tender and sweet, and pried his mouth open with a thumb. "You're a good boy. My good boy. Who deserves a reward for staying on his best behavior all night."

And then Eddie spat onto his tongue.

With a shudder, Steve swallowed it down because it was what good boys did.

"Daddy–"

"Yes, baby?"

"Fuck me."

Two rough taps landed on his red cheeks.

Steve rolled his eyes back with a loud moan. He couldn't tell if he had come or not when his mind slipped further and further down that cottony place.

Settled between his legs, Eddie slid a pillow under his lower back and poured too much lube on him.

"Look how wet you are," Eddie pressed two fingers inside him easily given how loose he already was. "So desperate to get knocked up, aren't you?"

Steve nodded dumbly. He wanted to carry Eddie's babies. Would give Eddie so many babies. Would even let Eddie name them all. As long as Eddie kept him.

"You're mine, pretty baby," Eddie pressed a fond smile on his mouth. Like it was old news and Steve just caught up to it. "Gonna be stuck with me for life whether you want it or not. Don't even think about leaving, sweet boy."

And Steve held the promise close to his heart. There was no place he would rather be than in Eddie's arms.

He heaved out a weak sob when Eddie added a fourth finger and kept stroking his prostate relentlessly.

A quick glance at his cock made him realize that the cage was still on.

He couldn't come like this. But he wanted to. Badly.

"Wanna come–"

"Then come," Eddie kissed him chastely. "Be a good boy and come for Daddy."

Steve listened.

Except, instead of shooting off like usual, he just kept dripping and dripping, forming a puddle on his tummy as his hole pulsed like a heartbeat.

It didn't stop, and if the fluid flowing out wasn't opalescent, Steve would start thinking he was wetting himself.

But no. He was coming without any end goal.

It was new and overwhelming and the best thing Eddie had ever done for him.

"Oh god– I can't–" He gripped his hair to ground himself and failed miserably. "Please–"

He didn't know what he was begging for anymore. Mercy or more.

But Eddie got it, somehow, and slammed home inside him, keeping him from drifting away by the scalding force.

Steve screamed and writhed under Eddie's weight. Too much. He was too sensitive for this. And yet, it still wasn't enough.

"M off my birth control this month," he babbled before Eddie could grow worried and pull out, not wanting the endless onslaught of pleasure to stop. "'My parents will let you have me if I get pregnant with your child–"

Eddie groaned against his neck and hiked his legs higher before setting up a bruising pace, fucking into him deep and brutal as if truly wanting to reach his nonexistent womb.

Steve could barely stay coherent, wailing and scratching his blunt nails on Eddie's back whenever he felt like passing out. Which was a lot.

"You sure your parents won't pull a gun on me, princess?" Eddie panted.

And Steve wanted to die when he pressed a hand on his tummy, holding it possessively.

"Nuh-uh," Steve hiccuped. "They– uh– they won't do that. Would make m– me sad."

"Then we shall get along just fine," Eddie kissed his brow and eyelids, tracing his cheekbones with a hot tongue. "You know why?"

Steve shook his head.

"'Cause we all love you so much, baby boy."

And he came again, or perhaps he had never stopped in the first place. The orgasm rolled over him incessantly, perpetually, hurting his crotch and balls. And Steve just lost it, clenching down on Eddie and moaning his throat hoarse.

Eddie groaned and gave a few stuttered thrusts before filling him up with hot cum, pumping him full to the seams.

"Don't wanna be an octopus," Steve mumbled incoherently, suddenly thinking about the semelparous animals and their one-time pregnancy fate. He wanted to be pregnant all the time however impossible it was.

"You won't be," Eddie brushed a thatch of hair behind his ear gently, reassuring him without questions. "I won't let it happen to you, sweetheart."

"Promise?" Steve rubbed his eyes sleepily.

"Cross my heart, angel," Eddie kissed him softly.

———

When he blinked his eyes open again, Eddie was holding him and humming softly, counting his vertebrae with soothing fingers and caressing his body tenderly.

It seemed Eddie had cleaned them both up while Steve was out.

The cockcage was nowhere in sight and he silently mourned the loss of it. At this rate, he would get addicted to the prostate milking if he wasn't careful.

"Missed you, baby," Eddie kissed the tip of his nose.

Steve scrunched his nose in a drowsy smile.

"Missed you, too, Daddy."

He sipped the water Eddie got for him in a cerulean mug before sinking back into those loving arms.

"Wanna stay here for the rest of my life," Steve sighed softly, burying himself in the warmth of his boyfriend's chest.

"Your bed?"

"Your arms."

"They're already yours, darlin'," Eddie chuckled. "Eddie Munson is the freebie, though. Hope you're happy with him."

"Very much so," Steve closed his eyes and pressed his lips on Eddie's chest. "I'm really lucky to have him."

"We're both the lucky ones, sweet boy," Eddie kissed the top of his head.

And Steve wouldn't want it any other way.

[thisapplepielife]

Written for the @steddieholidaydrabbles pop-up Anniversary challenge.

Out of Sight, Out of Mind

Prompt: Anniversary | Word Count: 1000 | Rating: T | CW: Language | Tags: Future Fic, Eddie Munson Lives, Or Did He?, He Definitely Did Right?, A Glitch in the Matrix, Shifted Timelines, Parallel Universes, Sliding Doors

"What are you doing?" Eddie asks sleepily. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught the familiar shape of Steve crossing along the foot of bed, heading towards the window. 

That isn't unusual. If Steve hears a siren, or a dog barking, anything, he crawls out of bed and heads to the window to look. But tonight, Eddie hadn't heard anything. 

"Huh?" Steve responds, from bed, next to Eddie.

Eddie looks again, expecting to see Steve bent over at the waist, looking out the window, but there's nothing there. Instead, Steve's in bed, and has clearly been asleep.

Eddie swallows. Maybe he was dreaming, "Sorry. I think I was dreaming," he says, hoping he can convince himself of that. He looks at the alarm clock on the nightstand, and it's just after three.

Steve chuckles, voice rough with sleep, and pulls the comforter up over his shoulder.

Eddie thinks, weird. 

But then it continues happening. 

All day, he's felt like there's someone just out of his line of sight, and that person seems a whole lot like Steve. Eddie isn't scared, per se. He's unnerved, for sure, but it feels like Steve. Not a ghost or a demon, or anything sinister. 

It's just like a second version of Steve is moving around the house, dancing along his peripheral vision, and Eddie is forced to only observe. 

It's not until later that he realizes the date: March 27th, 2006. 

It's the anniversary of his near death in the Upside Down. That can't be a coincidence. That's the day he was sure he was dying, if not already dead, and then he suddenly wasn't. The bites weren't that bad. All superficial. He barely even needed any medical attention at all.

Dustin had overreacted.

And, yeah, it felt hazy at first, but they all just blamed it on the stress and adrenaline he'd been pumped full of. Blamed it on the near death experience that wasn't actually that near death at all.

And now, he's seeing an echo, a ghost, of someone very much alive. 

There's a glitch in the matrix. 

Like when you see two people, strangers, on public transportation wearing the exact same shirt, sitting one row in front of the other. Only, Eddie's seeing Steve. A different version of Steve.

Eddie does a deep dive on the internet. Decides it's not a glitch in the matrix at all. Instead, he's pretty damn sure he's shifted timelines from the one where he died, to this new one where he didn't, and now they're bleeding together. All these years later.

Steve listens, patiently, and then kisses him on the top of the head, "Honey, I was there. You lived. I promise. 'Twas barely a scratch."

Eddie nods. 

Of course. Of course that's true. 

But he thinks maybe the other outcome was true, too.

Shadow Steve is getting more vibrant, and now Eddie can follow him around the house. Not really able to look at him straight on, but if he keeps the corner of his eye trained in his direction, he can see him for longer stretches.

He's the same, but different. 

Quieter, sadder. More alone. 

And there's no Eddie there. Eddie is 100% sure of that. 

He's gotta do something about this.

Eddie's sitting outside of Nancy's office when she comes out of the door.

"Eddie!" she says, surprised, but happy to see him. He's about to rain all over her parade.

"I'm dead. I'm in the wrong timeline," he says, and her face falls. She reaches out, and puts her hand on his forearm.

"C'mon," she says, and he gets in her car, and looks down at his hands.

"What's going on?" she finally asks.

"I'm seeing Steve, in the house," he explains, and she raises an eyebrow, and he laughs, "Not that Steve. Not my Steve. But he's there, too. He's good," he promises. Because he knows she'll worry.

"Start from the beginning," she urges, and he does. Telling her everything.

"It's just a glitch in the matrix," she assesses, and he shakes his head.

"It's not. It's too frequent. It wasn't a one and done deal. It wasn't a trick of the light, or a shadow. He's there. Just outta my sight. Like he's in a parallel universe."

"And you're sure it's Steve? Not something Upside Down-related?"

"It's Steve. I'm not scared of him. Because it's Steve."

Nancy follows him all the way back to Hawkins, then sits on the bed beside him. 

"Eddie," she says, and he shushes her. Taking her cheeks, forcing her to look in the direction he wants. It doesn't take long.

"There!" Eddie says, and Nancy gasps. 

Fuck. He was kinda hoping he was just losing his mind.

"You can see him?" he asks.

"I can see him. Barely. Out of the corner of my eye. It's definitely Steve."

Eddie sighs, "Told you. What the fuck do I do now?"

Steve can't see him. Eddie can. Nancy can. Robin can. Dustin can.

But, Steve? He just can't.

Nancy thinks it's because it is Steve. The same Steve. Just minding his own business in another timeline, that's now somehow bleeding into theirs. 

"Do you think this is lingering weirdness from the Upside Down?" Eddie asks.

"If it is, we should get El," Dustin suggests, and they all agree.

El takes one look at him, "That is Steve."

"Yes, we're aware," Eddie says, "how do we merge the two?"

"You cannot."

"Can we at least close the damn curtains?" Eddie doesn't want to keep seeing this Steve.

El thinks about that, "Maybe."

She forces Steve to hold her hands, and while reluctant, he's willing. For Eddie.

It's quiet, then Steve says, "Oh, whoa. That's me." Then, "Tingly."

And Shadow Steve fades away. Disappearing, like he'd never been there.

"Is he okay?" Eddie asks. He doesn't want any version of Steve to disappear. 

"Yes. Now you cannot see him. Not gone, just invisible again."

"Out of sight, out of mind?" Eddie asks. 

She nods, "Exactly."

If you want to write your own, or see more entries for this challenge, pop on over to @steddieholidaydrabbles and follow along with the fun!

[the-angst-chronicles-fanworks]

Omega Eddie always hates having to take his bedding and nesting material to the laundromat after his heats. It’s not just embarrassing, the looks he gets from the Alphas that are in there sometimes puts him on edge.

When Steve and Eddie start hanging out and Steve finds out about this, he of course offers for Eddie to bring the stuff over to his place and do it there.

But it’s not just good intentions, Steve really wants to smell the slick-soaked sheets as Eddie drags them to the laundry room, and see the pretty pink flush on his cheeks. And from time to time if Eddie has to leave his stuff in the wash and leave, and Steve goes to retrieve an item so he can bury his nose into it and jerk off… well, who’s the wiser?

Eddie kind of has an inkling, think. Not to the extent of what Steve’s doing… but, well, he gets the same look and smell of those Alphas at the laundromat. It’s Steve, though, so Eddie’s more than okay with it. He’s had a thing for Steve for a while. But he assumes it’s just an Alpha reaction to omega slick, not that Steve has a thing for him specifically.

Still, the idea of Steve getting horny because of Eddie is hot as shit. So maybe Eddie “accidentally” drops a pair of slick-soaked briefs for Steve to find here and there, or gets himself just worked up enough before visiting Steve for Steve to smell it on him.

It drives Steve absolutely crazy. He’s jerked off more since he’s met Eddie than in the rest of his life, probably. Soon, Steve starts coating shit in his scent for Eddie to put in his nest, because the idea is Eddie being surrounded by his scent while working himself through his heat gets Steve all worked up too.

Until eventually Steve starts leaving his clothes and stuff coated in his scent with Eddie even when Eddie’s not in heat. (Eddie absolutely uses them to get himself off sometimes). And Eddie returns the favour, leaving stuff over at Steve’s place too. Way more than just normal pack scenting on both their parts.

At some point, the party just start assuming they’ve gotten into a relationship because they smell like each other literally all the time. They don’t even realize until Robin congratulates them on their one-year, and they’re like… “oh” . Because yeah, they’ve been leaving their scent all over each other for a while, to the point where anyone smelling them would think “taken”.

So they finally get on the same page and then go to Eddie’s trailer and have the sloppiest anniversary sex. And then do it again the next day in Steve’s bed while Eddie’s sheets are in the wash.

[new-revenant]

During patrol Nightwing found a handmade doll that resembled his hero persona, this wouldn't be so weird if it weren't for the fact that he finds dolls resembling the other members of the batfam's hero personas scattered in odd spots throughout Gotham and Bludhaven. The weirdest thing happens when one night he finds a doll of someone he doesn't recognize. It's a pale teen with white hair and bright green button eyes wearing what looks like a black and white hazmat suit. Nightwing picks it up and the doll immediately bursts into Lazarus green flames. Nightwing finally decided to tell the fam about the dolls not knowing that Phantom, who was sealed in a sarcophagus by treacherous observents several years prior, was now awake. The problem is that the sarcophagus is in the batcave as a trophy, needless to say everyone was surprised when the lid suddenly blew off and out stepped a teenager. Danny is a mix of anger and confusion because this definitely isn't Amity Park

You know. This is almost the exact plot of another, non-dp-related-AU I’ve seen. It’s @/ovegakart doll AU, it’s an AU of Linked Universe, which is itself a LoZ AU where a bunch of Links have come together across time because reasons I won’t get into. In the second ever LoZ game, Adventure of Link, there are these dolls that are scattered across the map. They give you an extra life. So, in ovegakart’s AU, the Link from the first game and AoL(it the same link)finds dolls of himself and the other Links while in his own time. Then, in a well, he finds a doll of a Link none of them have ever seen before. He picks it up and it bursts into flames. I checked, that’s what happened, here is a link to the page. Oh, and Nightwing not telling his family about the dolls until he gets Danny’s? The same thing happened in this AU, where AoL Link doesn’t tell the other Links about the dolls until he comes across the mysterious Link doll. That mystery Link is the First Hero btw, he’s from the Skyward Sword manga.

I would’ve liked it if you, I dunno, credited the idea? Or at least make it not so obvious by changing the doll into something else? Or make it so that Nightwing only finds a Danny doll? Maybe have it melt into ectoplasm even? I have a couple posts already about how I’m a LU fan on here, and if you’ve seen that before, then did you think I didn’t follow ovegakart, one of the biggest LU/LoZ creators? Listen, I’m not mad at you, I’m just confused at your thought process here. This AU idea wasn’t made for dpxdc, it doesn’t even make much sense for it. Yeah yeah, people can do whatever they want, whatever, but at least credit it my god. Or change it up to suit dpxdc more, or both.

How many other people have just taken AU ideas from others and pawned it off as their own, thinking that no one would find out since they’re from another fandom? It makes me feel gross. Please, just credit the idea. If I just posted this with some writing adding onto this, not knowing about this idea coming from another fandom and another person. I think I might need to close my asks for a bit, I don’t feel great, sorry.

[whitherwanderer]

4 // reticent

Accessing Everkeep Data Terminal Network . . . Please remain still for regulator scan or insert identification tag. Verifying user registration . . . User PYR-0562 registration verified. Access granted. Welcome back, Pyrite. Memory storage shard detected in port A. Displaying memories. IMG_1051 IMG_1052 IMG_1053 IMG_1054 IMG_1055 IMG_1056 > IMG_1055 Loading IMG_1055 . . . Loading failed. Memory corruption detected.

Blue light from the terminal screen cast a sickly glow across the room, making a sleepless Pyrite look all the more weary as her eyes strained against the blocky remnants of a corrupt image. Despite the distortion of the image turning the figures pictured into little more of a hint at a person, she could recognize herself in one of them; the suggestion of a smile on her face, her arm slung around a brunet man that could be none other than Galena, though she had no recollection of this moment preserved in light.

He had long since awoke and found her there, alert but not wholly present, as she delved into their personal records. She could still feel the press of his lips on her cheek before he left their darkened apartment to begin the long trek out to the driftdowns. She only opened the image back up when she was sure he was long gone.

Between them in this disembodied memory, observed secondhand through a broken lens, was a third figure.

Younger. Much younger. Not more than ten years old. Held in their arms with a certain pride she could almost remember feeling once. Blonde, like her, but otherwise featureless. The conclusion was as obvious as it was maddening. But when? How?

The longer she stared, the more it ate at her how much was missing. A name she wanted to call out in a long-learned habit, though her tongue could never quite form the syllables. A face she could almost see in the white, flickering moment as her eyes closed, but something always pulled her away from recognition of a face. Everyone was aware of the cloud. Everyone had these holes in their memory. So why did this eat at her so?

The blinking prompt beneath the image tempted her sorely. She had already found the futility in taking up its offer, however…

Repair IMG_1055? [Y/N] >  Y Repairing IMG_1055 . . .

What is it they say about the definition of insanity?

She watched the loading bar fill, tick by painful tick, until there came a chime at the door that, for all its intended pleasantness, nearly sent her to the floor with a jolt. “Who’s there?” she calls.

“Pyrite? It’s me,” a young woman called over the comms unit just outside, “Sphene.” Pyrite froze in her seat, her blood set to ice. She clapped the terminal closed and kept her hand atop it as if it might shout her secrets if she didn’t, then looked down to examine herself.

“I apologize for calling upon you at this hour. I haven’t woken you, have I?”

“No,” Pyrite calls back urgently. “No, I was already awake. Just- just give me a moment to get myself decent, your Majesty.”

“Oh! By all means.”

Fully clothed, but caught obviously unprepared for any guest, let alone the bloody Queen of Reason herself. Not that Sphene was known to judge, but the impropriety of greeting her barefoot did cross Pyrite’s mind. So too did the thought of keeping her waiting at the door.

Pyrite hurried to the entrance, pressing her hand to the pad beside it that saw the shades open and the lights of Solution Nine to fill the room before another press lifted the door, revealing the young queen’s expectant, spring green stare and warm smile. Coiffed, crowned, and poised, wide eyes and the wringing of the young queen’s hands indicated something was troubling her, but she brightened the moment Pyrite smiled back at her, however wearily.

“Sorry to have kept you waiting, your Majesty,” she Pyrite offers, harried though it is, and the queen’s eyes close with a gentle shake of her head.

“Don’t be, my dear Pyrite. It’s still quite early,” the regent assured. She paused, looking back over Pyrite’s shoulder for a moment before smiling to politely inquire. “May I come in?”

Pyrite was keenly aware she’d been sorting through the records and attempting repairs for hours now. The Everkeep administrative systems would have caught it, wouldn’t they? The visit from the queen couldn’t be a coincidence.

Her smile widened from ear to ear. Why did this feel like a guilty conscience on display? “‘Course. Please, come in.”

As Pyrite stood aside to let the young queen enter with polite thanks, her hands were kept folded neatly at her middle. Her scintillant dress cast prisms of light about the floor, turning as she did once she reached the middle of the room. Pyrite touched the pad against the wall once more and the door slid closed, quieting the distant sound of Sphene’s name called down the hallway.

The resulting beat of silence frayed Pyrite’s already buzzing nerves.

“Restless morning?” she asked the queen. An attempt at smalltalk to soothe the nerves. It was not so long ago that they gossiped like schoolgirls after all.

“Restless is… one way of putting it,” the queen tone nearly touches upon sardonic humor. This does little to put Pyrite’s nerves at ease.

“...How have you been, Pyrite?” Sphene asks tentatively, turning to look upon Pyrite with a smile that spoke of genuine concern. Like a check-in after an illness. Why did the queen’s once-comforting visits now feel like interrogation? “You look well, and that is heartening enough. I hope the same goes for dear Galena?”

“I am, and so is he,” Pyrite said cooly, motioning towards the sofa. She didn’t take a seat until the queen accepted the offer, happily perching on the edge of the cushion and smoothing her dress over her lap.

“But somehow I get the feelin’ you didn’t come by just to tell me I looked well,” Pyrite remarks lightly, and Sphene’s eyes glint with delight.

“Ah… subtlety has never been my strong suit, has it?” the queen admits, casting her gaze to her knees. Her smile remains warm. “In truth, I was rather worried about you and Galena.”

Play dumb, instict told her. “Worried? Why for?” Pyrite asks, sitting back. Was this too casual? Did it read as too confident?

“I heard a spot of troubling news from the hunters afield in the Thunderyards. That one of our valiant huntresses had suddenly handed in her notice of resignation…” Her Majesty hints, jeweled gaze lifting to the fool’s gold of her host’s.

Pyrite clicks her tongue. “Loudmouths, the lot of ‘em,” she jokes, and Sphene lifts her fingers to her lips to giggle. The apparent ex-huntress sighs, her head tilting to one side. “They speak true, I’m ‘fraid. I’m lookin’ fer new work. Somethin’ to keep my edge honed. And the change is… welcome, I suppose.”

Not a complete lie. Not the whole truth, either.

“Ah, so that’s the way of it. New employment,” the queen surmises with approval in her tone. “Blessed are we to have ambitious people like you seeking new challenges and finding more ways they might serve our fellow Alexandrians. I do not doubt your skills can be put to good use elsewhere, within the keep or without.”

She pauses, her hands folding on her lap again to wring gently. Here it comes, Pyrite tells herself with an inhale. Surely this wasn’t honest trouble, was it? It was only their personal records, their rightful property, And she can’t have been the first to go digging through the past. She certainly wouldn’t be the last. Could it really be so dangerous to go fishing for memories lost in the cloud?

“...I gather Galena also seeks such new challenges?” comes a tentative worry, and the young queen’s smile is one of honest apprehension. “I spied him at Mosaic this morning and I couldn’t help but notice that he had forgone the use of a regulator.”

Pyrite’s lip is pinched between her teeth, but she manages to finally exhale. So that’s what drew the queen’s attention to them. Washed over with the relief that her prying into the past would have consequences for herself and her husband, she could speak to the Queen of Reason with some degree of candor. Sphene, for her part, did seem honest in her concern. Her delicate hand pressed to her chest as she made plain her case.

“Just this month we’ve seen a one hundred and sixty-eight percent increase in soul use among the reforgers. Of course we cannot accurately capture full scope of the risk with so many who don’t wear regulators, but we’re still seeing a rate of nearly ten accidental deaths per year on average, seven of which are caused by aggressive wildlife and the other three—”

She stopped herself short, and Pyrite realized how deeply furrowed her brow must have been as Sphene began to cite statistics they were both fully, painfully aware of. Galena wasn’t just taking a risk in choosing not to wear the regulator and continuing to operate in the field; it was downright recklessness. But it was still his choice, and Sphene knew this.

Both took a beat to release their tension, the queen adjusting herself to face her host fully, her smile apologetic. Pyrite obliged her with a tired smile of her own.

“I’m sorry,” Sphene laughs, pained but earnest.

Pyrite forgives her with a shake of her head. “You care for him. Couldn’t possibly be cross with Her Majesty for worrying over her subjects’ well being.”

“I do care for him, just as I care for you, Pyrite,” the queen agrees quietly. “Queen or not, you are dear friends to me, and I would do anything within my power to make your lives as happy and fulfilling as I can, even if that means merely providing a listening ear. So please, know that if there is anything you would like to talk about—anything at all—you may confide in me as you would any other.”

Her plea is honest, heartfelt. Pyrite knows well that the queen’s word is her bond, even as she smiles cooly. “I appreciate it, Queen Sphene. Truly, I do,” Pyrite tells her. A part of her doesn’t lie. “Might be I’ll take you up on that someday.” Both know, of course, that the offer would remain on the table. Untouched.

Sphene’s smile wanes, gladdened, but plainly disappointed. She seemed to recognize the appropriate time to leave her host to her thoughts, and rises to her feet. Pyrite follows suit.

“I shan’t press. Ever have you kept your counsel, and to ask it of you now may well be brazen indulgence, I fear. I ask no more of you except that you forgive me if I’ve overstepped.” Sphene’s expression wanes pleasantly apologetic before she takes a determined step towards the door with Pyrite close behind.

With the press of the door panel and the hiss of hidden hydraulics, the sound of conversation down the hallway fills the silence once again. Pyrite soaks in the relief of nearly having her privacy once again, until Sphene’s hand catches the door.

She turns, her voice lowering. “If I may be brazen once more, might I prevail upon you to ask Galena if he would reconsider the use of a regulator? I wouldn’t presume to disrespect his choice but…” It’s she that bites her lip this time. “It would break my heart to learn that tragedy had struck and I was powerless to keep his memory safe.”

Pyrite blinks, unmoving. It takes a moment for her to remember to offer some sort of condolence in the form of a nod and a smile. “I’ll talk to him, Queen Sphene,” she promised. She did not promise the content of that conversation, but Sphene smiled gratefully nonetheless.

“That is all I ask. Thank you, Pyrite. Be well.”

Pyrite watches her depart, motes of refracted light following her across the floor as she is excitedly flagged down by the small group conversing down the hallway, eager to catch up with the young queen. She pushes off the door and closes it, breathing in the silence.

But a few steps to her terminal to check on the progress of the repairs, and she is unsurprised to see it report failure to repair yet again. The error code is frustratingly familiar. 

Unable to repair. Error code: ORIG-0053

But perhaps it wasn’t a dead end. She taps at the display, punching the code into the database for a workaround or some other solution—bootleg or otherwise. She couldn’t have been the first to attempt this.

Instead of solutions, however, she is greeted by a message.

Please, do not despair. Your precious memories are held in the Cloud for safekeeping until such time as you are ready to reunite with them. Until then, I ask only for your patience. All will be well.

The terminal is slapped closed again, and Pyrite silently seethes for reasons she doesn’t quite understand. There must be others who went looking and shook with silent rage for all the answers that seemed to slip through their fingers. There must be.

She just had to find them.

[tadpolebobatea]

Day 6 - Favourite Quote - "i think what you need isn't ruthlessness, its love"

This entire section is incredibly good. But I figuring shortening the quote is alright, this part was the easiest part to draw.

i get the sense fuuko is referring to love on a more cosmic level but ough billytella.

but i just... he did in fact need love. look at him now, hes so much happier now

the entire quote about a build up of love reaching god is so good and reflective of undead unlucks themes as a whole . and uh

nope i got nothing. i leave the analysis to the rest of you.

My stupid ass : i wanna try screen tones. i don't have time to shade properly. day 7 is gonna be super time consuming.

Me, on day 5, super behind : oh no. oh no.

lesson learned. will not be doing that again.

Timelapse

[reallilystuff]

happy birthday !

[sailor-aviator]

.

[firstelevens]

We're coming up on the first anniversary of my Sam/Bucky Bake Off AU fic and I'm looking to write a couple of very short fics from that universe in what I can only describe as a Rocky-style training montage for something bigger.

SO. If you have pressing questions (hypotheticals welcomed), prompts (just a word is plenty), or scenes you just desperately want to see from within this universe, please feel free to drop a message in my inbox and I'll see what I can work up!

Thank you for assisting in my proverbial training montage! Alexa, play "Gonna Fly Now."

[sotvtaughtmehowtofeel]

Febuwhump Day 8: “Why won’t it stop?”

Fandom: Prospect (2018)

Relationship: Cee and Ezra

WC: 1182

[cherry-bomb-ships]

Oooooh got tagged in this game by my bestie Behe @clawfull :3

I'm actually gonna do this with Bowser cuz I been thinking about him recently 🥺💖💖💖

Directions : highlight/bold the tropes that apply to your relationship with your f/o

height difference · mutual pining · first kiss · first love · married · inside jokes · lgbt+ · family disapproves · friends disapprove · would die for each other · fake relationship · arranged wedding · physical affection · pda friendly · and they were roommates · secret relationship · opposing world views · opposing personalities · opposing goals · getting a pet · have kids · grow old together · relationship failures · rest head on shoulder · share a bed · token dummies · relationship doubts · they have a song · first date · it's cold, take my jacket · sharing a blanket · mutual interests · study buddies · bathing together · crash into hello · accidental nudity · laundry · same hobbies · cooking together · big fancy gala · sibling rivalry · hair stroking · late night dancing · cloudgazing in the grass · watching stars together · watching the other sleep · shared values · friends to lovers · enemies to lovers · lovers to enemies · childhood friends · slow burn · love triangle · toxic relationship · sitting on each other’s lap · can’t be together · hugs · forehead touches · neck kisses · car/motorbike rides · compliments · petnames · falling asleep together · late night talks · spontaneous gifts

That was actually more fun than I thought it'd be! >w< I'll be tagging @rexscanonwife, @lovebugexe, @scroldie, @adoredbyalatus, @kittyandco, as well as anyone else who may see this and want to play it! I mean it, if you see this and want to do it, consider yourself tagged! 💝💝💝

[nyaskitten]

I found out something today so I'm just gonna share it Ig. I found out that apparently someone a few years back ALSO headcanoned the surname Jiang for Kai and Nya, like four-ish years ago.

I don't know who it was, I just know someone else did coin it before me, and I happened to come up with the same idea years later, unaware of them, their hcs, or anything else related to hc'ed surnames (minus Smith and Rayson ofc).

I chose the surname Jiang both because I thought the meaning was fitting

and it was a cool alternative to the surname Xiang, which I saw someone use on Ao3 before.

[artsysurvivor]

[Image ID: Morgarath, with white hair and dark eyes, and wearing black armor with a tunic over it containing a yellow lightning bolt, is on a balcony. The camera is underneath the balcony facing upward, allowing the viewer to see wargals who are carrying maces, axes, and swords. The lighting is coming from the windows of his castle, lighting up the stones that make it up. Dark clouds surround the top of it. Everything besides what the window light touches—the back of Morgarath and some of the middle stones— is heavily shaded. /End ID]

[peachieprompts]

Dialogue Prompt #267

“I have to be honest, I really like you two together.”

[arumbleinthedark]

Last night I had the most fucked up experience, I got up out of bed and suddenly my entire body felt tingly and heavy like pudding and I got hot and sweaty with this pain right in the middle of my chest and my head felt like it was being squeezed open and I felt like I couldn't move and was probably gonna die

And yet, as I laid there in my bed with my fan pointed at me, at least one of my thoughts was:

"This would make for great whump content."

So do with that what you will...

[micwrs]

「tender love & care ♡」 「@ncwmessage」

— It’s vulnerable. He feels it, that vulnerability, manifesting in his body as a sort of anxiety. Swimming through his blood stream in a desperate attempt to reach his brain and have him lash out, pull away,— something. Anything to stop the vulnerability he was feeling. To cut it off at the source and return to his usual state of mind. 

He doesn’t like it one bit. Feeling so exposed. Being percieved in a state he didn’t even allow himself to properly look at. Doesn’t like that he can feel Mishima’s eyes on him. Fingers tracing over scars he knows are messy. (It’s hard, you know. To stitch your own wounds. But Akechi hadn’t had a choice in that matter, really. He was a solo act, after all, and had no healing ability to his name outside the first aid kit awaiting him in his bathroom after every trip.)

But, he bites his tongue. Lets out a shakey exhale— the kind he would beat himself up for, any other time, because it would constitue a crack in his mask,— and sits there, with his eyes shut. Allowing Mishima to take in the scarred expanse of his body that his conservative clothing usually helped cover up. Well aware the sight of the messier ones, the ones on his back, were probably enough to cause Mishima to want to stop. To finally tear his gaze away from the mess the past years had left on Akechi’s body. 

He swallows thickly at the thought, catching in his throat for a moment. How odd.

— ❝ Impressive , isn’t it ? ❞ 

The question is posed with a clear tinge of bitterness. His years of working for Shido had resulted in more battle scars than one might expect, no? Surely, the Phantoms didn’t look nearly as bad, even with all their fumbling. They had healers, could keep each other from recieving unnecessary scars from their early activities or careless mistakes. And while Akechi’s mistakes weren’t nearly as plentiful as they could have been— he wasn’t covered in the scars, head to toe, they were just scattered across his body, a few looking particularly repulsive,— they were more than enough. Each one a reminder of his carelessness, his failure.

The bitterness wells in his throat, mixing with the anxiety, the discomfort of the vulnerability. He has to bite his tongue even harder to keep from snapping that enough is enough, show’s over, instead only tensing as Mishima’s fingers (leaving goosebumps in their wake, though he wouldn’t admit,) trail towards his back.

— ❝ Each one serves as a reminder not to lose focus . ❞ A bitter laugh, paired with a tight smile.

— ❝ I lost mine far more than I would’ve liked to . ❞