#laughter and smiles a keysmash

[beastofmoss]

Here's a little tidbit about me:

I choosed kindness out of pure spite of the world.

[zzoupz]

OKAY HERE ARE SOME VARIANTS OF THAI LAUGHTER

you all know about 55555, basic. or if you don't

the number "5" in Thai is pronounced "Ha" so a laughter would be 5555555 (hahahahahaha)

back when the internet became a thing for the first time and people were still using messenger to text each other, they had to shorten a lot of stuff, thus "555+" was born

on pc, there are buttons for traditional Thai numbers, some people jokingly uses ๕๕๕/๕๕๕+ to look more formal or something I guess

the "5" button on the left side of the keyboard is under the same button as the letter "ถ" so "ถถถถถถ" became a thing (it could be read like "tototototototor" which is pretty funny)

there are also instances where we uses other random letters. "ฟฟฟฟฟฟฟ" is my favorite (FFFFFFFF literally like that one rage comic face), or even keysmashes (หสหสกด่สฟหาสหฟ) but is less laughing and more like rolling in the dirt

AND OF COURSE! the newest one, the 555 keysmash edition, 55764756674517546516416 if it starts with two 5's, we know what it is

so yeah... I guess when they say Thailand is land of smile it really is true

[birbleafs]

[fic] Stasis

Series: Genshin Impact Rating: T Characters/Pairing: Kavetham. Al-Haitham, Kaveh, Cyno and Tighnari. Also, very brief mentions of Al-Haitham’s grandmother and parents. Additional Tags: Canon Divergent, Mild Hurt/Comfort, Mild/Bittersweet Angst (but there's a happy ending I promise), essentially a what-if scenario with the Divine Knowledge capsules. Summary: Al-Haitham and Kaveh run into several anomalies, and are trapped in a cyclic stasis. A/N: I lied, I do have a short birthday ficlet lol. Inspired mostly by that one hauntingly gorgeous fanart on twitter. The idea wouldn't leave my brain for weeks, so I had to keysmash out some feels :'') Also, happy birthday to my favouritest weirdo cat, Al-Haitham ❤︎ Fic can also be read on AO3. _______

It’s the seventh time they have walked down this narrow path through the dimly-lit underpass. The seventh time they have passed by too-familiar faces, too-cherished voices; ghostly whispers and distorted laughter that creep closer at every turn, at every flicker between shadow and light. The ceramic tiles lining the walls of the underpass are a polished bone-white, void of any pixel or colour. The overhead lamps are humming with a persistently piercing drone that crawls down his spine, prickling glass shards beneath his skin. Nonetheless, Al-Haitham doesn’t cease from stepping in just as Kaveh reaches an arm out towards the beckoning silhouettes; never hesitates to prevent Kaveh from pursuing guilt and being ensnared by long-dead memories that only mimic fleeting shadows of happiness without the warmth, always dragging Kaveh away to safety, again and again and again… even if it means both of them remain trapped in a cyclic stasis, in this repetitious melancholy of despondency.

He may not have realised it yet— (He does; he always does) Or perhaps he can’t quite bring himself to steady the tremulous disquiet within his heart. To accept and acquiesce to reason, to the unfaltering truth— (He must; this… this isn’t like him at all!) Al-Haitham trudges on, his brow creased into a barely imperceptible frown as he tightens his hold around Kaveh; presses his fingers against the pulse thrumming brightly along Kaveh’s left wrist. He’s not letting go of Kaveh again (Al-Haitham's already lost him once before; already lost Teyta… lost far too many too soon, these little pieces of his own, of home). He can’t, he won’t… “—isten, Al-Haitham! Haitham!” Kaveh’s troubled voice startles him then, breaking through the fog of nebulous thoughts, the rising surge of emotion and memories. He flicks a furtive gaze over his shoulder, head angled in confusion. Kaveh is heaving, inhaling deep breaths as though he had been running miles within the labyrinthine twist of tunnels, even though Al-Haitham is certain they had only walked less than thirty paces ahead on this one straight path. “I’m sorry, Haitham,” Kaveh says as he lifts his head; meets Al-Haitham’s perplexed teal gaze with a wry and near-despondent smile. “But I have to save you too.” The knife is already buried deep within his chest, the bitter surprise only a lingering aftertaste when Kaveh closes the distance between them in a whirl of crimson, gold and blue. “Kaveh…?” Al-Haitham chokes at the wrenching pain, unresisting as Kaveh pulls him into a stifling embrace. His vision is already flickering with dark spots, pain searing beneath his skin when Kaveh drives the sharp blade further into his flesh. Blood trails bright and crimson beneath the jewelled piercing in Al-Haitham’s chest and he relents completely, giving into the darkness.

※

When he blinks awake once more, Kaveh is brushing grime and the smudged kohl from the corner of his eyes, trembling but warm hands still cupping at his face. “We’ve confiscated all the lost Capsules and shut them off. That should've severed the link completely. There might still be some residuals, but there shouldn’t be any serious effects remaining from these forgeries.” The… General Mahamatra’s voice drifts from somewhere behind Kaveh. Another figure glances over him briefly, long furry ears twitching in concern—someone that Al-Haitham thinks he should recognise easily but he can’t quite sieve the exact name from the dregs of this mental fog. “His heart rate is a little elevated, but his breathing looks to be normal. We should still get him checked at the Bimarstan, however, just as a precaution. But it’s all right, Kaveh; he should be relatively fine.” “Kaveh,” Al-Haitham says hoarsely, when the mist gradually recedes from his mind and he finally remembers. He presses Kaveh’s trembling left hand closer against his cheek, and exhales a slow, deep sigh. “You fool.” Kaveh’s voice is low and strained, raw with the conflicting meld of emotions, even if he doesn't recoil from Al-Haitham’s touch; doesn’t release his hold. His fingers curl tight into the dishevelled strands of Al-Haitham’s matted hair, drawing Al-Haitham close to his chest once more. “You arrogant, reckless fool. It could have been worse. You could have been trapped in a coma, your mind broken forever… You could have died, Haitham, and I would have lost yo—! I—Ugh—Don’t you ever go off without me again!” For once, he doesn’t refute Kaveh’s flurry of accusations; doesn’t brush away the stray tears that drip from Kaveh’s crumbling expression to his forehead as the clouds of worry and apprehension finally burst and solace washes over both of them. “Thank you,” Al-Haitham huffs a soft, ragged laugh instead as he returns the embrace, grounding himself once more in the warmth of Kaveh’s hold. “For coming back for me. For saving me.” —End— _______ End Notes:

- Teyta/Teta [ تِيتا ] = Arabic for "grandmother". The formal way of addressing your grandmother in standard Arabic is jaddah [ جَدَّ ] but there are many variations depending on the region and dialect used. Also iirc, teyta is informal and commonly used by children. I like the headcanon that Al-Haitham likely still addresses Grandma (in his head anyway) the way he did as a child.

- I had actually planned to write and post a longer AU oneshot for Al-Haitham's birthday. But work has been eating my brain/energy and keeping me too busy, so I've decided to let this other WIP percolate and simmer a little longer. Hopefully it'll be ready for posting by Kaveh's birthday? Then they can both share a birthday gift fic - they’re already joined at the hip anyway lol.

- When I wrote this short fic, I didn't know anything about The Exit 8 game and have only seen different fanart versions of the redraw meme. So I wrote this from the perspective of Al-Haitham not being aware that his mind was slowly being corrupted by (seemingly) forged Divine Knowledge capsules which turned out to have residuals of Forbidden Knowledge. And of course, the plot-twist of him being saved by Kaveh instead (you save the ones you care for and are saved in return)...

- Sorry but also not sorry lol about the (literal) knife of feels to the heart :") Something something, the symbolism of Kaveh being the one to sever the grasps of Forbidden Knowledge from completely overwhelming and breaking Al-Haitham's mind. Yeah.

- Comments are always lovely; if you've enjoyed this, I'd love to hear what you think. Thank you for reading!

[yonkimint]

Still Want You [Jin x Reader]

12. Diabolical ✎

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Jin doesn’t bother knocking as he slips through the back door into your dark kitchen but his stomach does a little flip when his eyes fall on you. You had perched yourself on the counter beside the stove, scrolling on your phone while you absently stir a sugary sweet concoction over a low flame.

Your eyes flicker up from your phone at his entrance, your stomach doing a flip of its own, and a nervous smile spreads across your face.

“Hey,” you whisper, setting your phone down.

He lifts a hand in greeting and crosses the small space to come stand in front of you. Without thinking, he takes the spoon from your hand, his fingers brushing your palm ever so lightly, and takes up stirring for you. Concentrating on the pot of hot chocolate, he teases, “Fancy meeting you here.”

You give his shoulder a gentle shove.

“Shut up, SUCKjin,” you mutter under your breath but his shoulders shake with quiet laughter so you know he heard you anyway. You try to fight your own smile but it grows ever wider on your face. 

Instead of acknowledging these fledgling butterflies that your best friend’s older brother is somehow managing to spark in you, you slide from the counter to grab mugs from the kitchen cabinet. You select two of the biggest from the very back of the shelf and chuckle. Your parents used to stop you from grabbing these ones because you never finished your drinks but the funny pictures printed across the ceramic made you happy so you always asked for them anyway.

“I call the Hello Kitty one,” Jin says when you return to his side. You scrunch your nose at him but hand him the bright pink mug.

“Good,” you tell him, cradling the remaining mug close to your chest, “because I always get the Garfield mug.”

He reaches for a ladle and you think you hear him say, “I didn’t forget” but you can’t be sure. He fills up the pink mug first and then holds out his hand for the one you’re holding hostage. You give it to him and then gasp when he fills it up and takes a long sip from it before handing it back to you.

“Shhhh!” He holds a finger to his lips and glances around the kitchen. “You’re gonna wake your mom up!”

“I hope you burned your tongue,” you pout.

“C’mon, y/n! Don’t say things you don’t mean,” he whines, gently poking at your cheek. You turn your nose up at him and hold out your mug again.

“Top it up,” you say.

Jin rolls his eyes but fills up your mug to replace the little bit he stole, “Is that better?”

“Yes, thank you!” You hate the way your tone pitches up a whole octave but the exasperated look in Jin’s eye is worth it. You gesture for him to follow you to the back door and leave his side to slip outside.

While you waited for Jin to get here, you had snuck up to the roof with several blankets and a few pillows to insulate you against the cool night but you didn’t have time to arrange them into anything cozy before he arrived. So when he scales up the ladder propped on the side of your house and sees the pile of blankets, he hands you his mug and immediately starts laying them out properly.

It doesn’t occur to you until he flops down on the makeshift pallet that this is the part where you lay down next to him. This is worse than a bed, you think to yourself, trying not to notice how his white t-shirt sits across his shoulders and chest. You take a deep gulp of air and kick off your sandals before lowering yourself down beside him.

“Thanks,” he says when you hand his mug back to him. You’re both silent after that, sipping hot chocolate and staring at the city skyline against the black horizon. It’s peaceful and you feel warm despite the chill settling in the air but you shiver anyway when Jin’s arm brushes against yours.

He reaches for one of the extra blankets and wraps it around your shoulders. For a second you think he might leave his arm wrapped around you too but once he’s sure you’re securely insulated, he pulls back, staring into his mug.

“This really does taste like your dad’s,” he says, taking another big swallow and releasing a contented sigh, “I forgot how good it was!”

“I still think he made it better but I’m glad he taught me how before…” you trail off. Jin knows this part of the story well enough.

“He’d be really proud of you,” Jin says and you look up at him with a frown. Proud of you? For making hot chocolate? He continues before you can crack a joke, “I know your mom said he'd be disappointed with you for reaching out to your uncle but I don’t think he would. I think he’d be proud of you for taking initiative. I think he probably would have liked to be with you when you did but I think he’d be proud.”

You pat Jin’s arm through your blanket.

“I wanted to tell you last night but I was too drunk,” you begin, “I think he sent you to be with me instead. I think that’s why we picked the same bar.”

You don’t look at him. You don’t want to see his reaction in case he thinks this is silly. It does sound a little ridiculous now that you’re saying it out loud but you’ve already said a lot of ridiculous things today so why not one more?

“You shouldn’t be at any bars,” he chides, “Your uncle is probably the most irresponsible person I know for suggesting meeting you there.”

“Yeah, I guess I’m not too bright either for going there anyway,” you mumble.

“I’m glad we picked the same one too.”

You look up at him now and he’s watching you with some unknowable emotion in his dark eyes. All you know is he has never looked at you like this before and you don’t want him to stop but it’s too intense a look. You lower your gaze.

“y/n?” Jin asks softly.

Your eyes flicker back up, “Yeah?”

“Why did you ask me to stay last night?” he asks and then, fidgeting with the mug, he rephrases, “Why did you want me to come tonight?”

The question doesn’t necessarily catch you off guard but you find that you don’t have an answer for him. You can’t just tell him there’s no reason, that you just liked having him there, that it just made you feel secure and happy. Can you?

You press your lips together, your brow furrowing as you study his face. You’re going to counter with another question and you already know it’s going to annoy him. You turn and set your mug down carefully on the slanted roof, composing your expression before you turn back to him.

“Why did you? Want to stay, I mean.”

Jin is already rolling his eyes but you dart your hand out from the warmth of your blanket and place it on his knee, forcing him to look at you. He can’t miss the earnestness of your gaze. You need to know what could possibly have compelled him to want to be with you when prior to this, you only existed in each other’s lives on the periphery.

He hesitates only for a moment before placing his hand on top of yours. Tingles race across your skin at his touch and your breath hitches when he flips your hand over and laces his long fingers through yours.

“It was in the taxi,” he tells you quietly, “It was like I had known you forever but was seeing you for the very first time.”

You search his face for some kind of hint of what he’ll say next but he’s concentrating very hard on your joined hands and you can’t quite make it out in the dark. He swallows hard and then laughs to himself, “That’s so cheesy, isn’t it?”

You squeeze his hand tighter, “I think I know what you mean.”

And you really think you do. You think about the carnival again when Jin was the one who kept you safe. You think about last night when Jin sacrificed his own night of celebration to look out for you. And in between those two events are a thousand other encounters where you should have seen him but never really did.

It’s like he’s coming into focus for the first time.

“Jin, are we crazy?” you ask. He looks into your eyes bewildered but then he throws back his head and laughs.

“Probably!”

You shake your head, “But what’s gonna happen? I mean, if we pursue this and it doesn’t work out, that’s not a big deal, right? We aren’t really in the same social circles and it won’t be that awkward when we do run into each other… like we’ll get over it, I mean. But if it does work? If we keep wanting to be around each other and it turns into something?”

“Are you worried about how Tae will react?” Jin asks. He’s already been going over the pros and cons of either scenario since his talk with Namjoon and Yoongi. He feels terrible that he hasn’t been as close with Tae as he used to be before college and that he doesn’t know how Tae will feel. 

But you shake your head again and say, “Tae will be supportive after he gets over the newness of it. We used to joke about it when we were little!”

“Joke about what? About me and you?” Jin asks, a little embarrassed by how much he wants to hear this story. You nod at him, a little laugh escaping your lips.

“Yeah! Whenever my mom wouldn’t let me come over, Tae used to say he wished that I were family so that my mom couldn’t stop me and I always told him that I’d just marry you and that would solve that! It’s kind of embarrassing now that I think about it…” you trail off, your cheeks flooding with color at the memory.

Jin leans forward, his eyes twinkling with amusement in the low light, and asks, “Why didn’t you just plan to marry Tae? Then you could live together forever.”

Your nose wrinkles at the very thought of being married to Tae. He’s very attractive, of course, but he’s so chaotic and you feed off that energy. You both would spiral out of control and besides, you’ve never thought of him romantically before. Then again, you’ve also never thought of Jin romantically before and yet here you are.

“Absolutely not,” you say, “Never in a million years.”

“Does he feel the same way?” Jin asks, wondering if he’s stepping on his brother’s territory. You nod your head emphatically. In high school, you had constantly been mistaken for being in a relationship anyway and Jimin had forced the two of you to talk it through. Communication, communication, communication, his words echo in your head.

You and Tae had always agreed. You were never going to see each other that way.

“One hundred percent,” you assure him.

He nods, mulling this information over, considering where it fits in the scheme of things. Knowing that he won’t be hurting his brother by pursuing his new feelings for you is a greater relief than he expected. But then the situation with Hobi interrupts his relief.

“So if Tae’s not the issue…” he trails off and you press your lips together.

“Hobi hates me,” you finish for him. Jin flinches. He hadn’t expected you to be the one to come out and say it but he doesn’t like having it out in the open. Why on earth would his best friend in the world hate you?

“Why?” he asks.

Now it’s your turn to flinch. You pull your hand out of his, wrapping your arms tightly around yourself, and turn your face away. “I can’t tell you.”

Jin reaches for you and his fingers catch your chin, pulling your face back towards him. There’s worry and a little tinge of disappointment in his dark eyes and it makes your stomach twist a little but you really can’t tell him. You promised.

“Was it something he did or something you did?” Jin asks, looking for hints without pressing you to tell him directly. You bite your lower lip and drop your gaze but he presses his palm to your cheek and whispers for you to look at him.

You do. The look he’s giving you isn’t fair. It makes your heart leap into your throat and your whole face heat up. You know he must be able to feel your blush under his palm but he doesn’t comment on it. He just keeps staring into your eyes like he’s searching for the answer you won’t give him.

“You had a crush on him before, right?” Jin tries a new tact and the fluttering in your chest abates a little.

Because this is a question you can answer, you smile and nod, “Unfortunately, yes. There was a brief moment back in high school when I had a crush on him.”

“So what happened?”

You shrug and pull out of Jin’s reach. As much as you love the feel of his touch, it’s doing nothing to help you focus. Instead, you lay back on the roof and stare up at the night sky. There’s too much light pollution to see the stars but the haze of the city lights against the black horizon helps you to imagine them up there.

Jin sighs but settles down next to you. Whether he does it on purpose or not, he presses his arm right up against yours and you smile to yourself. So much for focusing!

“I’m just going to assume you made a fool of yourself and he rejected you and things got awkward so you made a pact to never see each other,” he announces. You gasp at the accusation and whip your face around to pout at him.

He grins up at the sky.

“You can assume whatever you want!” you snip and scowl up at the sky. Jin’s laugh fills the night which only irritates you more. That is, until he rolls up on his side and slings an arm around your waist.

“C’mon, y/n, I’m only teasing!” he says, pulling you close and resting his chin against your shoulder.

You should be freaking out. Because the two of you have never been close, he’s never been this physical with you. You should be freaking out but you find that you actually want to snuggle closer and laugh the night away with him.

“Can we not talk about Hobi tonight?” you ask him. There’s a brief pause before you add, “I know we’ll have to talk about it eventually and I promise we will but can it not be tonight?”

“Sure,” he agrees, “but only if you share that blanket with me. It’s getting a little cold!”

You bite your lip to conceal your excitement at the idea of actually cuddling with him on your roof while the rest of the world sleeps around you completely unaware. Sitting up a little, you pull the blanket from around your shoulders and fling it over the two of you. Jin pulls you into his side again, this time wrapping your arms around his middle and guiding your head to lay against his chest.

“Mmm,” you hum as his body heat warms you up, “I could get used to this!”

His whole chest vibrates when he laughs and then his fingers are in your hair, smoothing it away from your face and he whispers, “I think you’re gonna have to because I don’t plan on leaving anytime soon!”

[etchedstars]

indescribable feelings

- my best friend’s couch and the blankets that are perpetually on it, sweltering but i can’t bring myself to get up 

- the one sweater i have that’s warm and fluffy and has rainbow cuffs, wearing it when they pass by in the halls

- the backseat of the car at night with the head and the heart playing

- under the tree in the school’s garden by the woodchips and the chickens. 2:15. there’s four of us.

- the silly little doodles that i find in my notebooks when i’m clearing them out. cutting them out and adding them to my collection in the small teal box in my bedside table

- [person] edited this document, 12:18 AM 

- the tree at the elementary school behind the y. we weren’t supposed to cross over the cones and we did anyways

- my bike. passing the houses i know people i love live in. waving at my best friend’s house, even though i know she can’t see. slowing down past his and theirs, just a bit. 

- the whirring of the fan and quiet music late at night

- the way my friends hug me and get excited to see me. it’s like they missed me, like they wish they never have to get this excited again because i will always always always be there.

- dancing in sync -- israeli dancing at shabbat

- the turtle emoji (black and white)

- photos app, scrolling all the way through

- the floor of the beit am (+ watching heartstopper + the allnighter + )

- keysmashes, but only from that one person 

- i made you something and finding it again after a couple months/years

- anyone with their hairstyle and their smile 

- opening spotify for the first time every morning 

- the vent chat bolded 

- several people are typing...

- i love you. written out. 

- sitting by the side of a rushing river, picking out blackberries warmed by the sun

- the laughter i tried not to make too loud because people are trying to sleep, rocks under my back, they said they were going to stay in this one

- inbox (2) / the blue dot on inbox / dms 

- stupid jokes at 2 pm in a (mostly) empty school 

- being awake past 12:40 am

[sidecarghost]

Destiel fluff is [watching westerns on Dean’s laptop while sitting up in bed together] [eye rolls when Dean is being frustrating or Cas is being obstinate] [holding eye contact to tell each other things they can’t properly verbalize] [shoving each other into walls and pinning each other] [Cas growling and Dean sucking hickeys into Cas’s neck] [wrestling each other to the ground without either of them giving an inch to the other] [pinching and biting and groping being indulged in by both] [Dean being touch-starved and Cas wanting nothing more than to hold on to Dean forever] [relaxing on the couch with Dean resting his head on Cas’s lap, and Cas carding his fingers through Dean’s hair] [a rerun of a Dr. Sexy episode playing on the tv that has Cas complaining about unresolved plot holes and ooc absurdity] [Dean arguing against Cas’s reasoning because he enjoys pushing Cas’s buttons] [Cas getting worked up until he realizes that Dean is deliberately goading him] [Cas shoving Dean off the couch and Dean laughing over Cas’s prior righteous fury] [Cas raising an eyebrow at Dean that kills Dean’s laughter and has him gazing back at Cas until his lips go dry] [Dean licking his lips and the heated kisses from Cas that follow] [meeting Saileen to go bowling on a double date where upon Sam and Dean get very competitive about beating each other’s scores] [Eileen getting the highest score because she is a badass, and Cas getting the lowest because Cas would rather have Dean rub up against him to show Cas proper form than knock over a bunch of wooden pins] [holding hands walking back from the farmer’s market on a breezy day where Cas’s trench coat is tousled by the wind] [lightly kissing each other’s knuckles while holding hands] [Jack drawing pictures in crayon of his family that are hung on the fridge] [Jack drawing Cas with rainbow wings and Dean with black Batman wings] [Dean stopping himself from telling Jack that Batman has a cape and not wings because the wings look badass] [Jack drawing Sam and Eileen playing catch with Miracle] [and Jack drawing Kaia and Claire carrying decapitated vampires to burn in a bonfire that Jack drew himself standing beside roasting marshmallows] [Cas falling into the habit of calling things awesome and Dean falling into the habit of saying something is not of import] [Dean nuzzling his face in the crook of Cas’s neck while Cas bakes] [Dean planting kisses along Cas’s neck and nipping at Cas’s earlobe] [Cas humming while Dean is kissing him] [Jack collecting fresh eggs from their chickens to cook pancakes] [Jack using his god powers to put out a stovetop fire when he can’t find the fire extinguisher] [Dean telling Jack that he will teach Jack how to cook] [Dean cooking for Cas even though Cas doesn’t need to eat] [Cas savoring every bite of food that Dean cooks] [Cas being grumpy if he is awake early, because he is not a morning person] [Dean being careful not to disturb Cas, when he gets up at dawn to take Jack fishing] [Cas finding a fresh pot of coffee after waking up, because Dean set the coffeemaker’s timer to brew before he left] [Cas texting Dean emojis to express his happiness and love] [Dean responding with an emoji keysmash because Cas always smiles over them] [Cas weeding their vegetable garden when Jack and Dean get back home] [Dean showing Cas a photo on his phone of the really big fish that Jack caught, because Jack wanted to release the trophy fish to go back to its family] [listening to the Led Zeppelin mixtape Dean made Cas on a stereo cassette player Cas purchased from a thrift store] [Cas bringing his mixtape and stereo outside to play quietly every time he is tending to their garden, their chickens, or their honeybees] [Cas letting Dean pull him away from his work, so they can lie beside each other in the shade of a tree and watch the clouds roll by overhead] [falling asleep nuzzled together in mid-afternoon cradled by blue sky and green grass, while rock music is still audible from a cassette tape playing on a loop in Cas’s stereo]

[astringofmadhousefloozies]

Magicam Live

Vil’s guest is a pest. Contains coarse language, people being catty bitches, and more telling than showing.

You want more, check my Twisted Wonderland Fanfiction tag. If you liked it, let me know!

~*~*~*~

Transcript of Last Week's Magicam Live From *schoenheit_official

Vil: Hello my dearest fans! As promised, I will be showing off my newest capsule makeup collection, to be released this Monday exclusively at Feathersweep Cosmetics. However, due to high demand, instead of simply demonstrating on myself, I thought I would show that anyone could be half as beautiful as me with these!

[He holds a hand out to the side.]

V: Please welcome my fellow student at Night's Raven College, Yuu.

Yuu: Yo.

[A girl with short, dark hair and tired eyes sits down beside him. Spotty and plump, with a notable double chin. She's notably underdressed, compared to Vil.]

Y: I am she. I'm *donegotisekaid, if you haven't seen yet. Full of genuine memes from another universe, as well as me figuring this place out, and pictures of my not-cat.

V: She's simply been begging me for a makeover!

Y: He asked me if I'd do it, actually.

[Vil stops and takes a deep breath, clearly irritated.]

V: Yes, well. You've prepared?

Y: I scrubbed my face real good and managed to leave most of my pimples alone, if that's what you mean.

[Vil sighs]

V: As much as you're capable of, clearly. We'll start with the primer.

Y: [with a smile] Didn't you already give me one on how to act in this?

[Vil pinched the bridge of his nose, regret pouring from every cell in his body.]

V: Just lie back and be quiet until I'm done with you.

[Yuu looks at the camera, but says nothing. There's an audible snicker from behind the camera.]

[There are a few quiet minutes where Vil prepares her face, before selecting a foundation.]

V: So, is there a reason you don't wear makeup? You could look quite nice with it.

Y: Few reasons. It's a lot of effort, and I tire easily. I don't really like the feel of it on my face, and I tend to touch my face a lot anyways, so it doesn't last. It's a lot of money, and I break out very easily.

V: I can see that. Don't you use face wash?

Y: You should have seen me when I did use it! Much worse.

V: Ugh. I'll give you something later. And none of these have a good tone for you.

Y: Just pick the closest! I'll end up wrecking it by a few hours from now anyways.

[Vil rolled his eyes.]

V: Rook, any questions from the chat?

[A familiar accented voice from offscreen]

Rook: *stellargems wants to know how Yuu found herself at NRC.

Y: Transdimensional bullshit. I'm here until we figure out how I can get home. It's not bad, I don't miss it much.

V: Yuu even has her own dorm so she doesn't have to bother anyone.

Y: Not that it stops me.

V: [sotto voce] Don't we all know.

Y: If they kept you in a building with four usable rooms total and no electricity, you'd be out and about too. At least the ghosts there are really nice and help me out.

V: Do you kiss these ones too, or was that a one time thing?

Y: If I hadn't kissed her we'd be down a student and you and half the people I hang out with would be paralyzed, so don't make fun.

[Vil stops to regard the camera.]

V: To clarify, there was an incident with a ghost princess causing a lot of trouble at the school a few months ago. Yuu decided to kiss her to fix everything, because she's both stupid and deeply strange.

Y: It was really fun until I started dying.

V: All her blood was on the outside. It was disgusting.

Y: It did work though!

V: Keep telling yourself that, you didn't kiss the one you really wanted to.

[Yuu gives him the finger, and Vil shoves her hand down.]

R: *vilpleasefathermychildren asks-

[Yuu sputters with laughter. Vil just winks at the camera with a smile that doesn't reach his eyes.]

R: They want to know if there'll be a coupon code for the new release.

V: There will! It'll be released via the official fanclub email Sunday night.

Y: It'll be a whole three percent off and you have to pay to access it.

V: Stop that.

Y: [sweetly] No.

Rook: *getterbackback wants to know what your shirt says?

Y: Yeah, hold on.

[She stands and pulls the shirt out to be seen better. It says in large letters, I'M CUTE AND I BITE]

Y: You can do one yourself if you take a dark shirt, tape the parts you want covered, and scorch the area around it with diluted bleach. I've done a few of these, a few designs more than once.

V: Destroyed them?

Y: Nah, Lil wants at least one of every one I do.

V: [to the camera] That would be our fellow student Lilia Vanrouge, from Diasomnia.

Y: He's pretty great. He's *elderbatbrat if you want to look him up.

V: Sit back down so I can figure out which blush to use.

Y: Pinks and corals work best for my skin tone.

V: I thought you didn't wear makeup?

Y: Why do you think I know wearing it tires me out? It's not something I ever did a lot because of the effort.

Y: Except for highlighter. it's basically sparkles and it's light, so I like that.

V: You remember that, but not your proper name?

Y: Ain't life grand.

R: I'm getting several questions about that. Would you care to elabourate for the chat?

Y: Yeah. I don't remember a lot about where I'm from. Culturally? Lots. What I like? What I don't like? Everything. Names and places specific to who I was? No. And don't ask me to think about it too hard, I get the worst fucking headache and I stop seeing right.

V: You've never seen right in your life.

Y: Oh, fuck off, Vil.

[Vil stops blushing one cheek to point.]

V: Stop that.

[Yuu responds by biting at his finger with an audible click when her teeth meet, laughing hysterically as Vil pulls back in shock.]

V: !!! Dreadful little monster!

Y: Yeah, but you're the one who thought you'd get more views if I was here.

R: We indeed just surged another 20,000 views and counting! Excellent work, Yuu.

Y: Thank you, Rook.

[Vil looks ready to explode.]

Y: I won't bite again, that was just too easy. Please continue, I do want to see what magic you can do.

V: This is regular makeup.

Y: Metaphorically, you jackass. 

R: *rosemassacre wants to know if you're always like this.

V: She's always this horrible.

Y: Vil first saw me and called me a dumpy little potato. I told him it's because I'm great all ways and everyone wants a taste, and slapped my ass at him. He's been obsessed with me ever since.

V: I am not obsessed with you.

R: You go into a rage over her at least once a week.

V:  She can't go a week without being a pest.

Y: I went three after you kicked me out of the movie club.

V: You can't just project violence on the walls of Pomfiore because I said we weren't going to watch it!

Y: Vil, it was The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, and it is art.

V: A man gets sawed in half in the first ten minutes.

Y: To an absolutely bangin' soundtrack. Oh that reminds me. Ad time, hold on.

[She wiggles a little before puting on her best customer service face.]

Y: If you want to access media that is quite literally from another world, please go to MonstroMedia dot com and sign up! There's ebooks, movies, tv, music, and more. Much of it is horror, sci-fi and fantasy, as it's from my person collection of media brought with me on my laptop and backup drives. You can use the code SHOENHEITSAYSWHAT for the first month free!

[She put her hand up and lowered her voice to a conspiratorial tone.]

Y: I completely understand piracy, but I'd appreciate if you paid because this is the only way I get spending money, and I can only bat my eyes at these boys so much before they expect something in return for gifts.

V: How'd Ashengrotto talk you into that one?

Y: He was going to make me start paying for all the food I eat if I didn't.

R: *waterwitchesbetgitches says, and I quote, "so like if ur the only gal at NRC how many boyfs you have"

Y: So many. At least twenty. Even more if there were girls here.

V: That is a gross exaggeration. She has maybe three, if we're being very generous on the definition.

Y: [points] And he's mad he's not one of them.

V: [squinting] You are absolutely dreadful and I can't understand how you're so popular.

Y: I like you too, Vil.

[Vil pauses, visibly taken aback.]

V: ... Thank you.

V: You know you're going to have paparazzi on your tail now, right?

Y: Aw, shit.

R: *insertmagicamhandlehere wants to know what's on your neck.

V: An antique chain with an attached charm specially made for me by Soleil Atelier.

R: I believe that was for Yuu.

[Yuu snickers, as Vil looks for himself. When her collar is pulled down, it fully reveals a vicious set of hickeys with visible toothmarks.]

V: Eww.

Y: You should see the other guy.

V: Eww!

[Vil takes a moment to recover, while Yuu laughs.]

Y: That could be a second part! Everyone needs that tutorial. "Bruise Coverup How-to by Vil Shoenheit: For when you just can't keep them off of you."

[Vil mutters something under his breath that sounds suspiciously like "nerds shouldn't be allowed to fuck"]

Y: Then where would your fans be?

V: At least there's only setting spray after this and then you can leave.

Y: Won't you get bored without me here?

R: One last question! *shroudstreaming has asked... well, there's a lengthy keysmash and an all-caps "why".

Y: Ah. Hi, babe!

Y: Hey, everyone go follow him, he's a total fucking babe and he refuses to take my word for it, no matter what I do to him-

[Vil sprays setting spray directly in her face, leading to Yuu coughing.]

V: No taste at all, and gross to boot. 

Y: Asshole.

[Vil offers a mirror]

V: No. Miracle worker.

[Yuu looks... well, the same, but with an even, well made-up face.]

Y: ... Aww. You remembered I like sparkles.

V: Less likely to scrub it off if you actually like it.

[Yuu's admiring herself for a few moments in silence, with Vil watching, quite pleased.]

Y: Hey, can I do you next?

V: Absolutely not.

Y: Ask the chat.

V: No.

R: Chat says yes.

V: [With a visible eye roll] Ugh, fine. 

Y: Aight. Take your shirt off.

V: What.

[Yuu brings up a case and flips it open. Inside is a magazine with a gory cover, and various things like fake blood and liquid latex.]

Y: Alright kiddies. You wanna learn how to slit a man's throat?

[Vil gets up and walks away without another word.]

Y: You said I could! Get back here!

[Yuu follows. Rook emerges from behind the camera.]

R: That's it for tonight, ma belles. Next time.

[Magicam Live ends, but not before audible yelling and scuffling, quickly cut off.]

[catsnraincoats-archive]

I AM made of love. I am made of daisies and wild roses and I am nade of the laughter of my friends, of the smiles abd "I love you"s we share. I am made of the feeling if pink hearts bursting out from inside of me. I am made of the shows abd comics I saw because my friends mentioned them, I am made of every moment we've spent talking about axolotl and cats. I am made from the keysmashes sent in response to cute animals of drawings of mothman. I am made from the promises of "when we meet" and the times we miss eachother across the world. I am made of the flavors of cake or ice cream or candy they like and of my friends favorite colors and the imagery they use in poetry. I am made of love.

[oliviaischillin1204]

cuddlebugs

Pairings: Romantic LAMP

Word Count: 3,903 words

WHOOPS this is self indulgent lmao. there’s also a lot of chit chat and light kissing/flirting before we get to the tword stuff, but i think it’s cute aksgdhsj

“Logan, it should be my turn in the middle tonight!”

“You were in the middle two nights ago, meaning your next turn in the middle will be tomorrow night.”

Roman blinked. As soon as the words registered, he groaned dramatically and fell back against the bed, an arm pitifully thrown over his eyes. “Ughhhhh.”

Logan quirked an eyebrow. “Don’t give me that tone. It’s our schedule.”

“It’s your schedule, and I hate it,” Roman retorted, lifting his arm to glare at Logan without any real malice.

Between them, Patton sighed in fond exasperation. He peeked over Logan’s shoulder, and yep-- there was Virgil, giving Patton the exact same look: the look that said, ‘our boyfriends are fighting over their love and affection again, and it’s so cute but also please’.

Logan scoffed, reaching an arm over Patton’s head to fluff Roman’s pillow. “Well, that’s certainly an unbiased opinion to have. Sarcasm.”

Roman scoffed back, removing Logan’s glasses from his face and placng them on the bedside table. “Oh, and of course you’re totally unbiased by the fact that your schedule means you get to cuddle with both Patton and Virgil tonight. Also sarcasm.”

“Get fucked, Princey,” Virgil interjected. “If I have to sleep on the outside, then you have to sleep on the outside.”

That statement only seemed to spur on Roman’s pity party.

“But you’re so far away!” he whined. He reached over Patton’s and Logan’s heads to make grabby hands at Virgil, who rolled his eyes before leaning forward to press a quick kiss to Roman’s knuckles.

“There. Happy?”

Roman pouted again, pulling back his freshly-kissed hand and cradling it to his chest.

Patton clicked his tongue in sympathy. “Come on, sweetheart, you’ll be back in the middle before you know it! Plus, at least you can see all of us at once,” he finished with a small pout, pulling the blankets up closer to his chin.

Logan patted his hand comfortingly. “Patton, no one here will blame you for not being able to look both at your left and your right at the same time.” Indeed, one of Patton’s greatest reasons to dislike the scientific field was the fact that no one had invented the technology to let him keep all of his boyfriends in plain view at all times.

Logan continued, “Additionally, we all know how much you like to lay your head against Roman’s chest when you two are sleeping next to each other. I cannot blame you for that.”

Patton sighed, looking mournfully at Logan as he replied, “Yeah, but I really like wrapping my arms around you, too, Logan!”

Logan’s face softened into one of a shy fondness. “I enjoy that very much, as well, but please don’t worry about me. Just feeling your presence by my side is enough.”

“Plus,” Virgil added, his voice light and playful, “now I get to keep Logan all to myself.”

He suddenly wrapped his arms firmly around Logan’s torso, pulling him even closer to his chest. The logical side squirmed under the affection, a light blush dusting his features.

“Silence.”

“What?” Virgil asked. “Don’t like me bragging about how awesome it is to cuddle with you?”

“Be quiet.”

“No, I think we’d all have to agree with Virgil, there, Logan,” Roman interjected with a smile. Patton nodded, making the bed bounce with his enthusiasm.

“Yeah! You’re the cutest cuddlebug in the whole gang!”

Logan’s face was quickly starting to resemble a tomato. “I-- you-- shut up!”

He gasped lightly as Virgil rested his chin on his shoulder, a huff of amusement making the serious side shiver.

“Make us.”

He pressed a small kiss to Logan’s shoulder, and the cool touch sent goosebumps down his arm.

“Well--” he stammered, “if anyone is a... cuddlebug, it’s Patton!”

Roman snorted, giving Logan an unimpressed, yet amused look.

“Well, of course he is, Logan! I mean,” he said, holding Patton closer and nuzzling into his hair with his nose. “He’s warm, soft... squishy...”

With the last word, Roman’s fingers gently pressed into Patton’s sides, and Patton squeaked, batting at his hands.

“Oh, Roman! Stop!”

Roman grinned, not looking sorry in the slightest.

“What? I’m just helping Logan prove a point. You are, by all accounts, a perfect, adorable cuddlebug.” He finished with pressing a small kiss to Patton’s forehead, who was still slightly breathless from the compliments and the light tickles.

“Exactly,” Logan said with a decisive air. “In conclusion, Patton is the cuddlebug of our relationship. Period.”

He moved to rest his head back on the pillow, but Virgil’s grip around his torso suddenly tightened, keeping him firm in place.

“Hold up, L,” he said lowly, and Logan did not trust the mischievous tone in his voice. “You think there can’t be two adorable cuddlebugs in this group?”

Logan’s brow furrowed. He opened his mouth to retort, but then Virgil, of course, began spidering his fingers all over Logan’s stomach. Whatever words were on the tip of his tongue vanished in an instant, as Logan fought desperately against his restraints in order to curl up and protect himself.

“Don’t! You-- Virgil!”

“Hm?” Virgil asked innocently, using his two index fingers to wiggle into Logan’s most ticklish rib at the same time. “Sorry, can you repeat that?”

Logan certainly could not repeat that-- certainly not when Virgil began scratching his other fingers all over his lowest ribs at the same time-- and Virgil knew it, the smug bastard. Logan pressed a hand to his mouth, uselessly trying and pitifully failing to prevent his sweet giggles from escaping his mouth.

“Hm, I didn’t catch that, either,” Virgil remarked. “But still, I’m pretty sure that only adorable cuddlebugs get all giggly from just a couple little ticky-tickles, so--”

Logan made a noise not unlike a verbal keysmash, hiding his burning face in his hands as much as he could.

“No, he’s right, Logan!” Roman interjected. “Look!”

Again, his hands moved to squeeze at Patton’s sides, this time with more intention. Patton gasped, his own hands shooting down to grab Roman’s wrists.

“Ah-ha! Romahahan!”

Roman merely smiled at Patton’s immediate laughter. “Don’t worry, Patton, I’m just showing Logan how the two of you are both the cutest, sweetest, most preciously fluffy little cuddlebugs we’ve got!”

He pressed another kiss to Patton’s forehead as he continued to mercilessly tickle his sides, kneading with expert precision the little divot at Patton’s waistline.

Patton squealed, kicking his legs as much as he could under the blankets. “Ro-man!”

Virgil laughed lowly at Patton’s giddy panic, and the sound sent tingles down Logan’s spine.

”Paying attention, Logan?” he murmured directly into his ear. He gently cupped Logan’s chin with one hand, turning his head so he was looking at Patton.

“See how cute Patton is when he gets all squirmy? With all of those tickly-tickles, tingling and prickling under his skin? All those butterflies in his little tum-tum? Isn’t he cute?”

Virgil’s fingers slowed their ticklish brigade until they were merely circling around Logan’s bellybutton.

“Yeah...” Logan managed through his giggles.

He felt Virgil grin against the back of his neck.

“So if I do this--”

Without warning Virgil shoved a finger into Logan’s bellybutton, and an embarrassingly high-pitched noise escaped his lips as his squirming increased tenfold.

“And you react like that, too,” Virgil continued casually, as if he wasn’t tickling Logan half to death, “doesn’t that mean you’re just as much of a cute little cuddlebug as him? Right? That seems like some good logic, huh, Logan?”

Each of his questions was paired with his index finger vibrating rapidly in his bellybutton, and Logan cried out, throwing his head back as his desperate giggles poured out.

Meanwhile, Patton was releasing his own stream of nervous giggles as Roman’s fingers began skittering down to play right above his hipbones.

“Roman! Not there!”

Roman quirked his head, the picture of innocent confusion (aside from the evil smirk on his face). “Not there? Not where? Here? Or did you mean right here?”

With each word, his fingers darted between spots, from his hipbones to his bellybutton to the stretch of skin between the two, moving too fast for Patton to anticipare or prepare himself for. He squealed again, jolting with each new tickle spot that was poked and prodded by the creative side.

“No, no, no, nohohohoh!” His hands flapped in the air, as if he didn’t know what to do with them, until they finally came to rest back on Roman’s wrists, not pushing or pulling in the slightest.

“Aw, you’re still not trying to get away!” Roman cooed, watching Patton’s blush spread all the way to his ears. “You just love the tickles so much!”

Virgil chuckled. “I think they both do, Roman. Look at Logan.”

Roman’s eyes darted away from Patton’s face, before doing a genuine double take. His jaw dropped as a delighted grin grew on his face.”

“Oh, my stars,” he said reverently. “Patton, look how red Logan’s face is!”

Roman’s fingers slowed just enough to let Patton turn his head, gasping in delight at the blush that adorned Logan’s face.

“Oh, honey--!”

Logan groaned, squirming under their gazes. He went to hide his face yet again, but Virgil abruptly grabbed both of his wrists with his own hands.

“Uh uh,” he teased. “No hiding for cute little cuddlebugs.”

Logan gave an flustered whimper at the compliments. “No!”

Roman sighed happily, propping up his head in his hand to gaze dreamily down at Logan.

“You have the most adorable tickle face in the entire universe,” he said with finality. Logan’s shoulders shook with the giggles that were still threatening to build up inside him, but to his suprise Virgil interjected with a questioning hum.

“Well, what about Patton’s face, Roman?” he teased, and the moral side stiffened as the group’s attention turned to him. “He’s got that giggle-high smile right now, the one he gets when he’s all loopy? It’s so fucking cute on him.”

Now it was Patton’s turn to whine in embarrassment. “Virgil!”

Virgil quirked a grin. “What? You don’t like my teases?”

Patton shook his head, an unshakeable smile on his face. Virgil pretended to pout.

“That’s too bad,” he said, trailing a finger up and down Logan’s side slowly and making him squirm in place, “because I sure do love to tease you...”

Roman quickly caught on to what he was implying. His smile grew even wider.

“Hey, Virgil?” he called, catching the anxious side’s eyes. Roman didn’t even bother to hide the shit-eating grin on his face as he continued to speak.

“Wanna trade?”

Patton and Logan gasped in unison, but Virgil’s eyes gleamed with satisfaction.

“Oh, hell yes.”

In the next second, both Patton and Logan were released from their holds, but neither of them had time to react before their respective partners literally switched them around. Logan gave a choked gasp that teetered on a cackle as Roman grabbed him under his arms, hoisting him up and over Patton so he could lie next to him. Virgil then took the opportunity to grab Patton’s wrists, gently sliding him across the mattress until the two of them were face to face.

“Wait-- no!” Logan exclaimed, another panicked grin rising to his face. “This-- this isn’t fair!” 

Roman wasn’t sure whether he meant the rude violation of his ingenious cuddling schedule, or the way Roman was now drilling his thumbs into his armpits while his fingers scratched as much of his back as they could reach.

Either way, he merely smiled cheekily before pulling Logan closer to his chest, his mouth inches from his ear as he cooed, “Can’t hear you over all of that gorgeous laughter, Specs!”

On the other side of the mattress, Patton was already giggling up a storm, and his laughter certainly didn’t abate as Virgil wrapped him in his arms and pulled him even closer.

“Hey, Pat,” he drawled. “Ready for our snuggle time?”

His face dipped forward until he was nuzzling into Patton’s neck, and the moral side squealed, squirming with reckless abandon against the tingly sensations.

“No! Please! It tickles!” he begged, eyes screwed tightly shut and grin practically splitting his face.

Virgil huffed a laugh, and the rush of air had Patton gasping and snorting in ticklish agony.

“Yeah, it tickles, that’s the point. Hold still.”

He sniffed, snuffled, and sighed all over Patton’s sensitive neck, sending him into helpless giggles that left him feeling even loopier than before.

Beside him, Logan was seemingly trying to play the quiet game with Roman, who was playfully poking at his cheek like a child with a new toy.

“Logan,” he cooed, “aren’t you gonna laugh for me? You know your laugh is just the prettiest sound in the whole wide world.”

His words made Logan’s face flush even more, and before Roman could stop him he raised both arms to cover his cheeks.

Roman gasped in mock offense. “Logan, don’t hide your blushy-blush from me!”

The only response to his words was a stubborn headshake. Roman gave a deep sigh of disappointment.

“Don’t make me count to three.”

Logan peeked an eye out from behind his arms. “You are evil.”

Roman raised an eyebrow, unimpressed. He made sure Logan could see him as he slowly lifted his hands into the air, fluttering his fingers in the direction of his now exposed armpits.

“One.. two...”

Logan threw his arms down with a strangled choking noise.

“Wait! Fine!” He crossed his arms across his chest as best he could, doing everything in his power to keep the frown on his face.

Immediately Roman dropped the angry schtick, his own grin blossoming in delight. “Aw, there he is! Cuddlebug Logan, reporting for duty!” He gave a mock salute to the pouty side that laid before him.

Logan cursed under his breath, but he couldn’t hide the smile that was desperately attempting to rise to his face.

Roman tsked. “No more pouting, cuddlebug! Let’s put a smile back on that face!”

Before Logan could react, Roman darted his hands back down to his sides, but this time, he actually wormed them up under his arms in order to tickle at the protected spot. Logan actualy managed to hold out for a few seconds before falling into bright peals of laughter.

“Dohohohohn’t!” He weakly tried to raise his hands to push Roman away, but every movement of his arms made the wiggling feelings in his pits even worse.

“Aw, what? Logan doesn’t like my tickly fingers in his sensitive armpits?” Roman cooed, leaning close to Logan’s ear to tickle his neck with his breath. “Is somebody just too ticklish for some little scratches? Boy, I hope this doesn’t tickle you as badly as I think it does. Because I certainly don’t plan on stopping anytime soon.”

Logan’s head fell backwards, his laughter coming unrestricted as he writhed against Roman’s hold.

Virgil watched Logan’s ticklish torture with amusement for another second, before turning all of his attention back to Patton.

“How you feeling, Patton?”

His boyfriend wheezed, shaking his head and making his curls bounce. “Please! No!”

Virgil stopped, looking down at himself wrapped around Patton’s body, before bringing his gaze back to Patton’s with a bemused smile.

“I’m not even doing anything,” he said. Patton shook his head again, too flustered to even open his eyes.

“It still-- still tihihickles!”

Virgil’s smile turned evil. Oh, he loved when Patton got hypersensitive like this. It made this next part so much more fun.

“It does?” he asked innocently, pulling Patton even closer in order to keep him perfectly still. “Boy, that sucks. I don’t even have to tickle you, and you’re still so giggly. All I have to do is lie right here and watch all those butterflies tickle-tickle in your tummy-tum. Hey, try not to imagine what it’ll feel like when I start tickling you again. I think I’ll start with some nice, slow scratches up and down and up and down your ribs-- you have a lot of fun spots there, right? Then I’ll go for your sides, especially because you’re so cute and chubby, there’s so many tickle spots for me to choose from. Next is your tummy-tum. Maybe if you’re good, I’ll only give you a few raspberries on that bellybutton, instead of a lot. I know they just make you wanna giggle so badly, but I think you can handle that, right? And if I’m not too sleepy by the time I finish there, I might even have to give you some soft little tickles along your hips. Isn’t that your number one tickle spot? Anyways, just don’t think about all that, okay?”

Patton laughter was endless; he threw his body as far as he could, doing everything in his power to rid himself of the phantom tickles that ran up and down his skin.

“Virgil!” he pleaded through his joyful torture. “Help me!”

Virgil’s eyes brightened. “Help you? Okay, Patton, I’ll help you.”

And he began spidering his fingers up and down Patton’s ribs, just as he said he would.

Patton screamed, beating his feet into the mattress as his torso was assaulted with tickles. “That’s not what I meant! Ahahahahahaha!”

“It’s not?” Virgil asked cheerfully. “But I thought you loved the ticky-tickles? I mean, don’t you love it when I tickle your ribs... and your sides... and your tummy... and esecially your hips...”

Patton nearly shrieked as his fingers traveled between each location he listed. “No!”

Suddenly, Patton managed to break Virgil’s hold, and he threw himself backwards out of his grip. Virgil stared at him with wide eyes.

“Uh oh,” he said lowly, in that awful tickle monster voice that made Patton want to run away and hide. “Did someone try to escape? Huh? Pattycakes thought he could escape my tickles?”

Patton giggled and didn’t respond, merely attempted to crawl backwards across the bed. Virgil easily followed him.

“Patton, why are you running? I just want to tickle-tickle-tickle you!”

“No!”

“Yes! Now hold still, wiggly!”

As the two of them engaged in the world’s giggliest game of cat and mouse, Logan and Roman were rather busy with their own game; the game, of course, was ‘how long can Roman tickle Logan before he actually passes out?’, which was one of Roman’s favorites. 

Logan gasped as yet another tickle spot on his stomach was hit with Roman’s prodding fingers. “Romahahahan!”

“Yes, Logan?” Roman asked, voice perfectly innocent as he mercilessly tazed into the soft stretch of skin where Logan’s stomach met his sides. His entire body jerked at the sensation, so of course Roman repeated it three more times in unison.

“Enough!”

“Hm,” Roman replied, looking contemplative. “Interesting, but I think I’ll have to disagree. Between your blush, your smile, and your laughter, I don’t think I’ll ever have enough of tickling you.”

His fingers once again attatched themselves to that extra special spot on Logan’s side, this time pairing the ticklish squeeze with a sloppy kiss on the underside of his jaw.

Logan screamed, the double attack being all too much for him, and he finally managed to gather his strength and push himself away from Roman’s tickle attack.

Except-- except he didn’t actually go anywhere.

His eyes burst open as he felt a familiar pressure against his back-- Patton. He pressed backwards again, but it seemed that the moral side’s escape plan had merely resulted in both of them getting trapped together between their two lers.

As soon as Logan processed this, his eyes darted to back to Roman’s wiggling fingers, which were getting closer by the second.

“No-- wait!” he begged. “I can’t move!”

Roman paused, his fingers mere inches away from Logan’s tummy. His head quirked as he seemed to take in the situation, both Patton’s current predicament and Logan’s own reaction.

Then his face split into a slow smile.

“Oh, you can’t?” Roman asked. He paused for another dramatic second before shrugging. “How unfortunate.”

And his fingers dove into to thoroughly squeeze, taze, and vibrate all over his exposed tummy.

Logan howled, back arching and head falling back as far as he could. Virgil glanced over Patton’s shoulder before dropping back to Patton’s desperate smile.

“Patton, you troublemaker,” he playfully scolded. “Keeping Logan all trapped and vulnerable for his tickle time, and you still couldn’t even get away from my tickles? Sucks to be you.”

Virgil kept one hand skittering all around Patton’s tummy while the other crawled down to squeeze and squeeze and squeeze at those ticklish hips of his. Patton shrieked, pushing back against Logan’s back, but he, too, had to go through the shock and horror of realizing he really couldn’t move anywhere.

Logan and Patton’s wild wails of wordless laughter rose and fell together, creating a sweeter sound than Virgil had ever heard. It was addictive, and it was amazing, and it was... adorable.

“You’re adorable,” he murmured without meaning to. Roman caught his eye over their boyfriends’ heads. Virgil didn’t even know if he had actually heard what he said over their shreking laughter, but the warmth in his eyes certainly shared the same sentiment.

“Our adorable cuddlebugs,” he finished. He began to gradually slow his hands and lighten his tickles, finally giving Logan the chance to once again take deep, uninterrupted breaths.

After a few seconds, Virgil did the same, pulling his hands away from Patton’s sweet spots and folding them under his head, watching his boyfriend weakly attempt to compose himself.

“Thahahat was-- that was--”

His words fell off into helpless giggles again, and he smooshed his face into the pillow in a weak attempt to hide his giddy flusteredness.

Roman chuckled, reaching over Logan to rub Patton’s forearm.

“I’m glad you had fun, Padre,” he said. His hand trailed slowly from Patton’s arm to Logan’s, who immediately melted under the touch. “I’m glad you both did.”

Logan’s face turned pink once more. “Yes, well--”

He coughed, not making eye contact with Roman as he stated, “I... may have to concede the previous debate to you and Virgil. You are... not incorrect.”

Virgil snorted. “That’s probably as close as he’ll ever come to admitting he’s a cuddlebug. Right, Logan?”

Another whimper escaped Logan’s throat as he buried his face in Roman’s chest. The creative side awwed, wrapping his arms even tighter around the logical side.

“If you think I’m gonna let you go just because some stupid schedule says I have to,” he murmured, smiling at the way Logan’s shoulders shook with exasperated laughter, “you’ve got another thing coming.”

Patton finally lifted his head, grabbing Virgil with one arm and tugging the two of them even closer to Logan and Roman.

“Come on, gang,” he said in a sleepy voice, “this cuddlebug says its bedtime. Everybody snuggle up.”

Vrgil laughed as he allowed himself to be pulled back into the cuddle pile. He reached over Patton and Logan to find Roman’s hand, and the two locked their fingers together, holding both of their cuddlebugs safely between them.

“Tomorrow we’re getting back on schedule,” Logan insisted, voice muffled through the pillows and blankets and bodies he was snuggled between. Roman and Virgil met eyes over their heads, smiling at the adorable sight between them.

“Sure, Logan,” Roman whispered, pressing a kiss to his head. Virgil did the same to Patton, stroking his hair with a gentle touch.

“Now get some sleep, cuddlebugs. Love you.”

[beelsnack]

Hi! I saw your requests are open and I was wondering if you could write a little reaction of the bros + undatable (if you do that) in hearing mc singing or seeing mc dancing and and find out they're very good at it. Thank you in advance, lots of love!❣

*bursts through the wall* Choir kid mode, activate!!

Hope you like it, Nonnie!

Lucifer: The human tended to be...noisy.

That wasn’t the right word, and Lucifer knew it wasn’t the right word, but he couldn’t think of another way to phrase it. They were always humming a Human Realm song he didn’t know, tapping their foot to a beat he couldn’t hear, swaying to a rhythm he couldn’t feel.

So he shouldn’t have been surprised to discover that they had quite the siren’s voice.

He had been in the process of leaving the House of Lamentation to attend a meeting with Diavolo. The fact that the human’s bedroom door was left slightly ajar didn’t even register to him until their voice reached him, making him pause.

Although they were merely singing for themself, and thus not putting all of their power behind their voice, he could still tell how strong it was. Clear, bright, and mid-range. Without fully meaning to, Lucifer closed his eyes and listened. He didn’t know the song or the lyrics, but that didn’t make their voice any less captivating...

Until a harsh clattering interrupted both of them.

Their D.D.D vibrated against their desk, cutting off their singing and breaking Lucifer out of his spellbound state. With a shake of his head, he continued on, smiling softly. Their human was just full of surprises, weren’t they?

Mammon: “Nu-uh, you’re lyin’ to me.”

“Swear to Go - oops,” the human cut themself off with a laugh. “Guess that’s not a thing I should do down here. But for real!”

Mammon snorted, folding his arms behind his head as he flopped back against the human’s pillows. “I can’t see it.”

The two of them were parked on their bed, having long since tuned out the high school anime that Levi had begged them to watch. They had managed to make it to the part where the main love interest stumbled upon the shy nerdy character practicing in the choir room and revealing that they had some Broadway-worthy pipes before they got bored.

“I’m telling you, I was a hardcore choir kid!” the human smacked Mammon on the shoulder with the pillow they had been cuddling with. “I did competitions and everything!”

“That might be the lamest thing you’ve ever told me.” Mammon snickered. “Did you wear robes and shit too? Ow, hey, stop hitting me!”

The human gave him one final pillow-smack to the face. “Well, I WAS going to show you the video of the solo I did, but…”

“Aw, hey, don’t be like that.” he whined, popping up. “You know I’m just messin’ with you.”

After a few more minutes of poking and prodding, Mammon finally convinced them to pull up the video. All of the choir members were dressed smartly in black, but even in uniform, his human outshone them all. They stood apart from the rest, in front of a microphone, and belted out the most heartfelt lyrics Mammon had ever heard. It was a little bit tear-jerking - not that he was tearing up or anything!

“Well?” the nudged him with their elbow as the video finished up. “What do you think?”

“I’ve heard worse.” he shrugged, pointedly turning his head away so they wouldn’t see the awestruck look in his eyes.

“That’s Mammon-ese for “you’re the best singer in the Three Realms,’ right?” they grinned impishly.

“Oh, shut it, human.”

Leviathan: This was all Levi’s fault.

About a week ago, one of his idols had released a video of their dance practice, and, like the incorrigible fanboy that he was, Levi had proceeded to geek. He had sent the video to them, accompanied by flurry of keysmash and emojis that came in so fast that their D.D.D had vibrated off of their nightstand before they could catch it.

After the initial fangasm, Levi demanded they watch the video and tell him what they thought. They had learned from experience that he wouldn’t shut up until they gave him a thesis paper about the video, so the tapped on the link.

It was definitely interesting choreography, and it looked fun. After watching it - with copious amounts of bouncing and swaying to the catchy beat - they flipped over to their messages.

Human: Man, that looks so cool! I kind of want to learn it!

Leviachan: Hah! Good luck, normie, this band is renown for their intense dances. Even I couldn’t do it!

Challenge. Accepted.

With a satisfied smirk, they watched as the file sent to Levi. It definitely could have been better quality, but considering they filmed it with their D.D.D camera perched on a stack of books, it looked pretty damn good.

Levi hadn’t been kidding, the dance was intense. Their muscles were sorer than they were after they worked out with Beel. But, nothing motivated quite like spite, and it was completely worth it when Levi responded.

Leviachan: You…but…how?!

Leviachan: It’s only been a week!! How could you have memorized it that quickly?!?!

Leviachan: More importantly, how were you able to do it?!

Leviachan: I know demons who have injured themselves trying to learn these moves!!

Levichan: *gasp* Don’t tell me you were an idol up in the Human Realm?!

Levichan: Hey, answer me already!!

Satan: He has definitely seen this in a movie somewhere.

The human was looking for a specific book - they were struggling to find research for their Ancient Curses course, and if anyone had a helpful book, it would be Satan. He had offered to help look, but they insisted that they could do it themself.

He doubted that, but never let it be said that their human wasn’t a tenacious little thing.

Watching them climb up the library ladder made his anxiety spike, but they handled themself just fine. Slowly but surely, he went back to his reading, keeping one ear tuned into the sounds they were making somewhere behind him.

That’s when he heard it.

He thought he was imagining things, or maybe the human had stumbled upon one of the books that spoke to you when you opened it. But, as he listened closer, he realized it was their voice.

“Here’s where she meets Prince Charming,

But she doesn’t know it’s him ‘til chapter three…”

There was no holding back his laughter even if he wanted to. He didn’t even need to look to know that they were sliding around on the ladder like that scene from Beauty and the Beast.

“What are you doing over there, Belle?”

“I want much more than this provincial life!”

Asmodeus: He couldn’t believe his luck.

Every time he had invited the human out to The Fall, they had staunchly refused him. They fed him every excuse in the book - they had to study, they were tired, they weren’t feeling good, etc. Even if he couldn’t work his magic on them, he could tell their reluctance was a result of fear of being surrounded by intoxicated demons.

Being around the brothers was one thing - they trusted them quite literally with their life. But other low-class, desperate demons with no such loyalty? Asmo didn’t blame them, and he didn’t push the issue.

But this time, they had said yes.

He didn’t know what changed, and frankly, he would care about that later. For know, he reveled in the fact that he got to see his cute little human all dressed up to go out! Ooh, they looked absolutely delicious.

And drunk.

“Well?” he asked over the pulsing beat of the music. “Are you socially lubricated enough to join me on the dance floor?”

For a moment, they stared at their cup before knocking it back and setting it on the table with a pronounced thunk. “Yup.”

Just as they arrived, the music changed. Slowly, sultry, and sexy. For a moment, Asmo thought they were going to shy away, but that liquid courage was doing it’s job phenomenally.

They moved with grace and elegance that reminded Asmo of the devotees at the ancient temples of Greece. He hummed a little when they accentuated the beat with a teasing roll of their hips.

“You’ve been holding out on me, darling,” he pulled them close to murmur in their ear.

“You think so?” they giggled. “If you like this, you should see me give a lap dance.”

Beelzebub: There was a little corner in the kitchen that had officially become the human’s herb garden.

Little pots with all kinds of green growing out of them were lined up neatly on the windowsill above the sink, and the plants from the Human Realm that needed sunlight that the Devildom didn’t have were placed against the wall beneath them, basking in the sunlamp they had bought on their last visit home.

It was a nice addition, and Beel could always tell when the human used their herbs in cooking. Something about it just tasted..better. He couldn’t quite figure out why.

Well, until now, that is.

He had just finished his morning workout and decided to grab a little pre-breakfast snack. With the sweat he worked up, he earned it. Swiping his forearm across his face to wipe off some of the sweat, he rounded the corner into the kitchen.

The human was standing with their back to him, tending to their garden. No matter how many times they reminded themself, they still forgot to buy a watering can, so they were still using a cup to water the plants. They took their time at each pot, giving them the appropriate amount of water and…

Singing to them?

Beel paused, hand around the door handle of the fridge. Yup, they were definitely singing to the plants, gently inspecting the leaves as they did so. Their voice was soft and sweet, and as Beel watched them,he could have sworn the plants looked a little more cheerful as they passed over them.

Beel felt a little more cheerful too.

Belphegor: “Did you seriously ask me to come over just so you could use my lap as a pillow.”

It was more of a statement than a question, and Belphie barely opened his eye enough to give them a lazy glare. “Yes.”

“Why.” they sighed, slumping back against the wall.

“You have a comfy lap.”

“You have, like, fifty pillows.”

“And none of them are your lap.” Belphie rolled over onto his back to look at them fully. Despite the bored expression he had, they could see the twinkle of mischief in his eyes. “If you’re going to keep making noise, sing me a lullaby.”

He had been almost entirely joking. So when they started to actually sing, he felt his heart do something funny.

They had a soothing voice. Not too high, not too low…a perfect lullaby voice, actually. Without really meaning too, he felt himself start to doze. Before he actually fell asleep, he nuzzled closer to them.

“I wasn’t expecting you to actually be a good singer. Keep going.”

Diavolo: “I thought you said they didn’t teach ballroom dancing in Human Realm schools anymore.”

They couldn’t help but laugh at the situation they were in. Lord Diavolo had taken to having weekly “meetings” with them that were a thinly veiled excuse to grill them about whatever human custom he found himself fascinated with. Now it felt more like a gossip session instead of a meeting with the Crown Prince of Hell.

The week prior, they had lamented the fact that they were attending all of these formal gatherings as the Human Representative of the Student Council, but didn’t know any of the waltzes or other dances that seemed popular. It made them feel out of the loop.

So, they shouldn’t have been surprised when they arrived at the Demon Lord’s Castle to find Diavolo waiting for them in the ballroom.

“They don’t,” the human giggled as Diavolo spun them around. They had long since given up on memorizes steps and were now basically just twirling around the dance floor. “I guess I’m just a quick learner!”

“I should say so.” Diavolo’s smile was nearly blinding. “If I didn’t know better, I would say you were classically trained!”

The human spared a glance down at their beat-up sneakers and jeans with a hole in the knee. “Really?”

“Clothes have nothing to do with it, my dear,” Diavolo suddenly pulled them closer before lowering them into a dip. “You could be dressed in rags and I would still find you mesmerizing.”

Simeon: “May I have this dance?”

Lucifer was still trying to hide them behind his back, but the human was having none of it. They ducked from beneath his arm and took Simeon’s offered hand. “Of course.”

It was hard not to burst into laughter at the angry sputtering and protesting behind them. Even Simeon couldn’t quite hold back the amused grin on his face. “I think you were supposed to refuse me.”

The two of them stopped in the middle of dance floor as the music started. “I like to keep things interesting.”

Simeon laughed, taking the lead. The dance wasn’t too complicated, almost boring. Until Simeon leaned down to whisper in their ear.

“What do you think? Shall we have some fun with them?”

They followed his gaze over to where the brothers stood fuming. Based on the air changing colors, they would bet good money that Satan was attempting to curse Simeon.

“Let’s.”

Simeon led them into a spin, and when they came back, he pulled them flush against his chest. He looked like he was about to give them instructions, but they leaned into him with an impish grin. His blue eyes widened slightly as they put their weight on him, sliding their leg up to his hip in a decidedly scandalous manner.

It didn’t fit the song at all, but the angry squawking from Mammon and the whine from Asmodeus was music to their ears.

“You catch on quick.” he laughed.

“I have to use those dance lessons for something, don’t I?”

[passable-talent]

GOOD AFTERNOON I AM CROWDSOURCING MY RESEARCH

so I’m writing an essay about our generation’s patterns of typing and how it replaces tone / body language / facial expression for cleaner communication.

I’m gonna put all of the points I already have under the cut, and if y’all are in a good mood, lmk if I have anything wrong or if I’ve missed anything super important?

So I’m only looking for punctuation, capitalization, and spacing. no emojis or images pls, and nothing involving actual bold or italics or w/e. Basically only things that can be done in Twitter, but no emojis or images. I think I’ve gotten a lot of it but I’m curious if I’m off or theres anything more.

Emphasis

slashes beside a word- mimics traditional italics: “you /have/ to listen to me” (slight emphasis)

Capitalize one word to emphasize that word: “you Have to listen to me” (slight emphasis)

Mixing all caps + all lowercase for more emphasis: “you HAVE to listen to me” (strong emphasis)

Misspellings to indicate rushed or excited tone, enthusiasm: “you habe to losten to me” (mimics the way a person may trip over their words when speaking quickly) -> Special case: “I”. To emphasise the word “I”, which is already capitalized and cannot be capitalized further, it is replaced with “EYE”: “EYE cannot believe”

Volume/Excitement

All-caps for volume: “LISTEN TO ME” (Loud speaking/shouting)

Letters capitalized halfway through a word to indicate gaining intensity: “listeN TO ME” (getting louder as the phrase continues)

Speed

Space between letters to indicate a word said slowly /vs/ Adding the last letter multiple times for a fun version of a word said slowly: “l i s t e n” (slow and serious tone) vs “listennnnn” (slow and whiny tone) vs “LISTENNNN” (slow and forceful tone. This uses capitalization for volume, but in the circumstance of capitalization and extra letters, there is more of a forceful yet playful tone that is not attributed only to volume)

Extra spaces/ellipses to slow down the reader/create suspense: “I cannot…. believe …. “ (mimics the slowness one might use in speaking for disbelief or suspense)

Period in the middle of a sentence to create a sharp pause: “I should be free by like. four.” (creates the pause for contemplation a person may have while giving this example)

Emotion

Space between word and punctuation for a more relaxed tone: “listen !” (may have a happy facial expression, rather than an angry one)

Types of laughter: “ahfkvjsa” (raucous laughter) vs “ahahah” (polite but genuine laughter) vs “lmao” (amused laughter) vs “lol” (polite and not genuine laughter) [and no let’s not go into the prevalence of key smashing specifically among gays]

Abbreviate words, unless they have importance or the tone is serious: “lmk when you’re free” (casual tone) vs “hey, let me know if you're okay” (serious tone) | “I know what you’re doing” (forceful, confrontational tone) vs “i know what ur doing” (playful tone) | “ofc i’ll come over” (casual tone) vs “of course I’ll come over” (serious, reassuring tone) | “don’t talk abt it” (casual, playful tone) vs “don’t talk about it” (serious tone)

Lack of subject in a sentence to portray sullen tone: “that would be sick” (genuine excitement, excited movements or facial expression) vs “would be sick” (possibly still genuine excitement, but in a sour mood, sullen facial expression)

Sarcasm: “gO tO bEd EaRlY tOnIgHt” (the facial expressions that come with sarcasm)

Extra punctuation to make the emotion stronger: “I’m happy!” (small smile, reassurance) vs “I’m happy!!!!” (bright smile)

Words devolving into keysmash to indicate a laughing while speaking tone: “Bruhskdjvbsk” (A word that does turn into a laugh)

Perfect grammar (lack of all these queues) reflects flat/disinterested/slightly hostile tone: “You’re upsetting me.” (firm tone and facial expression) vs “you’re Upsetting Me asjvdf” (playful tone and facial expression)

If you made it this far thank you and congratulations. lmk if there’s anything I should add or if you think I’m off about anything. I’m trying to reflect how the internet en masse uses this stuff so feedback is appreciated!

-🦌 Roe

[takara-kaneko]

Fluffweek Day #1: Firsts

FLUFFWEEK!!! I have been so excited for this for three reasons: 1. If you can’t tell, I absolutely love fluff. Like it’s amazing and it warms my heart and any time I can write it 2. This is my first Mysme week submission! Being able to participate in this was so much fun, and I can’t wait to do all of the days!  3. This is also my first collab with my love and soulmate, @deijnar​ !!! Her OC Vivian is such a wonderful character and the perfect pairing for my Seven. She is his whole galaxy- Not to mention, his esteemed Wizard Princess! This piece had so many blushes, keysmashes, and affectionate screaming; so I hope you will enjoy it as much as I enjoyed getting to write it. Without further ado, I hope you enjoy 💕

Sevian Day 1: The First Date Extravaganza! 

(Seven’s P.O.V) Today is the day. Just knowing makes my heart pound with a strange mix of excitement and nervousness. It was hard to rest last night knowing that today marks Vivian’s and my first date. Of course, I have spent so much time making sure she has no idea what is going on. Just a regular hang out, she believes. Little does she know that I have planned out the whole day!... Well, loosely.

The two of us have always talked about a night under the stars, and at first, I thought maybe stargazing. But why stop there? We could explore all of the stars and space!! After all, space is one of the coolest places of all time, and I want my Wizard Princess to have the most fun as possible! 

The planetarium is the destination, but how to get her to not know about it until it’s too late? Well, what is a magician without a little distraction? But best not to reveal all my tricks before it happens lol. 

3 o’clock passes and I wait in anticipation until I can see Viv’s strawberry blonde hair and her bright smile. Immediately, my heart starts racing as my smile widens. She looks so pretty, so happy, just seeing her makes me feel so much brighter. She is truly magical.

I stand up and approach her, the butterflies in my stomach only making me feel more bubbly than usual. “Fancy meeting you here, madam!”

“Ah, I’m sorry, my dear subject, but I’m waiting to be picked up by my knight in shining armor. I fear I have no time to spare to talk with you.” She states with a fake sense of superiority as her laughter slowly breaks her act.

Her words make me stop, before bowing at her and gracefully grabbing her hand. “My Wizard Princess, I have searched the whole expanse to find you. Surely you must recognize your loyal knight!”

I rise once again, keeping her close to me. My cheeks begin to heat up as she leans fowards. “I have to act like the evil wizard’s spell worked on me. Of course, I will always know who my one and only Defender of Justice is.” 

Her whispers tickle my ear, but it’s surprisingly pleasant. She stays there for a moment, but as I open my mouth to reply, I feel her lips softly peck my cheek. Once again, my heart hammers in my chest, I start to wonder if Viv can hear it with how close she is.

As the blush on my face refuses to go away, I return the gesture, kissing her lightly on her cheek, before quickly backing away. No more distractions, it’s time for the ’First Date Diversion Plan, #1’ ”So, what baked goods are we going to try to find today?” 

Vivian doesn’t speak of a moment, the hue on her face probably as red as mine is. It takes a moment for her to reply, “Uuuhh…” She shakes her head and I can’t help chuckling silently at how cute she is being, “I thought, uhm… Maybe- uh, jelly-filled donuts?”

“Well, my lady, your word is my command!” I exclaim, offering my hand out to her, “I happen to know a place that offers great donuts! If I can lead you to my noble steed?” I gesture towards my car as I approach it, opening the door for her to get in. 

The smile she gives me as she looks at me sends me to the moon. “Thank you, my knight!” With a light squeeze to my hand, she gets into the seat. 

Getting in the car, I begin heading toward the planetarium. Keeping it a secret was so much fun, but I have a feeling she might catch on to the idea that we aren’t going to any bakeries. This marked the time to begin ‘First Date Diversion Plan, #2’!

I glance over towards Vivian for a moment before looking back at the road, “Hey, Yoosung asked me if I could drop off his bag for him real quick. Mind if we take a detour?” I ask, pointing to the bag in the back. It was just stuffed with another bag. bagception lol

She looks in the direction of the bag and smiles, “Did you guys have a sleepover?”

“Yeah, stayed up playing some LOLOL. He’s still trying to take my ranking. We stayed up all night and he just forgot to grab his stuff.” I even made sure Yoosung was aware this was my plan, though I’m not too sure how believable he’d sound if she called him. 

Her gasp catches me off guard, and I look to her again to see the concern on her face, “Does that mean you didn’t sleep at all? We can postpone the donuts if you need to sleep!”

With a soft laugh, I shake my head. While it was true I didn’t sleep, LOLOL was hardly the reason. “Nooooo, it’s fine! God Seven is more than capable of staying awake after only one restless night.”

As we pull into the Planetarium, I stay in the car a moment. Would she want to? No, now isn’t time to get nervous. As her knight, I know she’ll love it. Turning to Vivian, I can’t help the blush heating up my face. “So… I may have lied about a few things.”

Huffing softly, Viv furrows her brows to seem angry, although we both know she isn’t… It’s really cute. “I knew it! You ARE too tired!” She reaches over, her concern beginning to show through, and softly cups both of my cheeks in her hands, “I think you even have a fever…”

My eyes widen at her response, this is not what I meant to happen.  “No, I am more awake right now than I could ever be! Because, well… you see, I… Wanted to take you to the stars...” I mumble as I gesture towards the building, my face now probably as red as a tomato. 

“This trip, Yoosung,” I continue, “It was all made up. Although, we are totally going to go get donuts after this! What do you say, Wizard Princess Vivian and her Godly Knight 707 being space cowboys for the day?”

We sit in silence. For a moment, I think that maybe she didn’t want to, but she quickly turns towards the planetarium, then to me, then back to the planetarium, and back to me. It was adorable to watch, but it was nothing to the look of bliss on her face as she leans over to me for a hug. “Yes! I say yes, it would be an honor to be space cowboys with my sweet, godly knight 707!” She exclaims, still wrapping her arms around my neck. I hug her tightly against me, committing this moment to memory. 

Staying in the car for a little longer, neither of us are wanting to stop out embrace. With her with me, I feel as if I have everything I could ask for in the world. But as I remember why we started hugging in the first place, I relax my grip on her. “Then climb aboard, madam! The fun is about to begin!” 

I step out of the car and quickly move to her side, letting her out of the car and offer my arm to my dazzling princess. Side by side, we make our way into the building. To show her the sun, the moon, the stars, and everything in between. All the things I want to give her.

Feeling Viv lean softly against me, my smile only brightens, “This is a wonderful idea, Seven. Thank you so much for bringing me here.”

There are no words I can say to express my feelings. Instead, I place a soft kiss onto her forehead before entering the building. 

★゜・。。・゜゜・。。・゜☆゜・。。・゜゜・。。・゜★゜

(Vivian’s P.O.V) Being so close to him and feeling his lips lightly pressing against my forehead sets my head into the clouds. I feel like I’m flying; his warmth and the fluffy comfort of the hoodie he’s always wearing adds to the feeling of floating close to the sun. I only find myself back in my own body on the ground of the earth after we already entered the planetarium.

It’s breathtaking. Of course, we’re only in the foyer so far and it’s probably a foyer like any other, nothing special, some might say. But just being here with him, being here because he put so much thought into where we can go to spend an extraordinary day… There’s nothing more special I can possibly think of.

After looking around in awe, never letting go of his arm to bring a single inch between us, I turn to him. “Have you ever been to a planetarium before? Or only in real space?”

“This is an experience for us both. I’ve only been launched into space, never got to look at it from afar!” It’s an answer exactly like I expected of him and I mirror his goofy smile before we huddle together, chuckling. We probably look like two happy kids and, really, I can’t remember a time I’ve been this carefree and happy since I’ve been a child. Seven makes it extremely easy to be happy around him…

Before I can dwell on that thought, the big door in front of us gets opened and I gasp, buzzing in anticipation. “It’s starting!”

His warm, honey eyes reflect my excitement. “Come on, we have to be first to get the best seats!” Without any further hesitation, he nyooms into the room and drags me with him. I still can’t stop giggling as I follow him, never letting go of his arm. 

Eventually, he deems two seats that he ensures me are exactly under the middle of the dome above us worthy to be our seats for the presentation and I just agree, not caring where we sit at all. Even sitting on the ground would be perfect as long as he is sitting beside me.

We get seated and I still hold on to his arm, not willing to let go just now.

“To be honest I don’t know anything about the stars except that they are pretty.” I look at him, hoping my smile can express the endless joy I’m feeling better than my words can. “This is so exciting, I can’t wait to learn something new!”

He leans in and gives me a meaningful look. “They won’t teach you this here or anywhere else because only the wisest specimens of mankind know this, but Saturn is actually the Beyoncé planet.”

My eyes widen as I lean in as well. “Are you allowed to share this well-kept secret with me?”

By now, his voice is nothing more than a whisper. “Because it has the rings on it.”

Unable to keep up the act, I dissolve into a fit of giggles while the lights dim around us. Suddenly, this feels extremely intimate and I’m glad Seven isn’t able to see how intense the blush on my cheeks is, thanks to the darkness in the giant room. Before I can say anything more, someone turns a magic switch and an infinite wave of stars washes over us, causing my head to turn to the ceiling immediately.

“Wow… This is incredible.”

I feel his eyes on me and shoot him a very short smile before I look back up. All these bright speckles around us are truly enchanting and I can’t bring myself to turn my eyes away for longer than a few seconds. A friendly voice starts to echo through the room and I have half a mind to try to find the woman with the microphone standing somewhere in the room, but I really can’t look away. So, instead, I just take in all the information presented to me and try to memorize them. 

The moment only gets better when his hushed, soft voice reaches my ears. “When we go stargazing for real, we can know where all the constellations are.” This time I take longer to look at him and nod, trying to let my eyes speak for myself, hoping they reflect the happiness that is filling every inch of my body. I look down, looking for his hand. I hesitantly take it, lacing our fingers together. Not daring to look into his eyes anymore, I give his hand a light squeeze before looking back up, letting the voice guide me through the Milky Way. 

Prepared for what’s coming, I put on the most serious impression I can pull off.

“And here you can see Saturn-”

I nod solemnly. “The Beyoncé planet.”

Out of the corner of my eye, I see Seven returning the serious nod. “You’re learning well, my space padawan.” He turns back to the screen before laughing at himself and I have to place my free hand over my mouth to not let the giggles become too loud as well.

After that, it doesn’t take the planetarium long to cast its spell over me once more and while I keep my eyes glued to the dome for the entirety of the show, I let my hand rest in his. 

When we get back into the foyer after the presentation, it seems to be even more beautiful than when we came in. Because now, I’m holding his hand. Being with him tends to make me lose any sense of time so I’m a little surprised when we step back outside and find the sun already setting. Not willing to part from him yet, an idea pops up in my head. “If we wait a bit longer, you can test the knowledge I gained today immediately, space sensei.”

“About that….” He shyly turns his head away and I think I spotted a hint of pink on his cheeks. “Care for a drive? I may have a spot picked out for your space test.” With a smile on his face, he looks at me and his cheeks are definitely pink. Maybe almost as pink as mine.

I nod. “I’d follow you to the end of the universe.”

★゜・。。・゜゜・。。・゜☆゜・。。・゜゜・。。・゜★゜

Ahhhh! I hope that you enjoyed it! 

If you enjoyed this, check out @deijnar​’s page! If you want to read more of my works, see my Masterlist! Interested in a commission? Click here!  And maybe get me a ko-fi?  And remember, look at @mmfluffweek​ for tons of more heartwarming content! 

[bluesflame]

🌻     𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐘 𝐁𝐈𝐑𝐓𝐇𝐃𝐀𝐘 𝐉𝐔𝐋𝐈𝐄     🌻  @capitae

                              where  to  begin  ...  we’ve  only  been  friends  for  a  few  months  but  it  feels  like  a  lot  longer  ..  and  i’m  forever  grateful  you  decided  to  join  the  same  group  and  stick  around  with  me  after  🥺  and  since  then  we’ve  spoke  everyday  ,  it’d  almost  feel  strange  to  not  talk  as  often  as  we  do  now  and  i  sincerely  hope  we  never  do  stop  talking  because  i’ll  never  get  tired  of  your  emoji  keysmashes  ...  or  even  the  chihuahua  gifs  (  despite  how  often  i  complain  about  them  😋  )  .  you  make  me  smile  and  physically  cry  with  laughter  and  i  hope  your  birthday  is  filled  with  the  same  ..  lots  of  laughter  and  joy  and  you  have  the  day  you  deserve  !!  i  think  i  could  write  a  whole  novel  here  with  all  the  things  i  still  want  to  say  but  i’ll  save  it  for  another  time  and  end  it  here  ...  i  love  you  very  much  💘💘💘

[bluepenguinstories]

Remoras Full Chapter IV: Funiculì, Funiculà

It’s been over a year and a half since the incident. To think that so much time passed and yet I find myself unable to say “a lot has changed since then.”

Still, as my therapist often told me, it was all a process.

That I had a therapist was, in of itself, a process. One which took much deliberation. Sensible or stubborn, I refused to seek help from my old place of work, and instead sought out a private therapist who would come visit every other week. There were other places I could have gone, I realize, but I was just too afraid to venture outside. Even with the idea of a brighter future ahead, I was just so afraid of the outside world and its potential to be cruel.

Our most recent session in particular was rather devastating (but each one was, just as it was devastating to have an earnest conversation with anyone) and left me drained afterward. It had went something like this:

“I thought things would be better from here on out,” I told her, who sat across from me on the sofa, and jotted notes down as I spoke. “Like, I was finally free – and I am, don’t get me wrong. But in spite of that, I’m still so scared that there are still people out there who mean to do me harm. Or that I may snap and cause them harm. I feel like such a mean person, but I don’t want to be.”

“There are scary people out there, for sure,” was her reply.

“That’s all? No ‘but’?”

She shook her head.

“But I don’t want to live in fear!” I protested.

“It’s normal to have such a response to the outside world, given what you’ve been through.”

“It’s just...I feel so weak, you know? I feel like I used to be so strong, but now I can hardly do anything. This was supposed to be the start of better things for me, but instead I’m finding it difficult.”

“It is difficult, and the start of better things often are.”

“But it feels like I’ve regressed, rather than moved forward.”

“Why is that?”

“Because I break down easily. I think about how I used to act and it appalls me. But at the same time, I miss aspects of who I was. How I could keep in all these feelings and keep a face of someone calm. I would do whatever I felt necessary in order to do the things I wanted in my life. But...I knew it was coming to an end, even then. I just couldn’t sustain myself that way. I was starting to give up. Even back then, I missed who I was before that: someone who could fight and say whatever was on her mind. I thought I accepted the idea that if I were to die the next day, I would be content, because there nothing else I could do.”

“But here you are. You’re still strong. You need to see that just because you’ve dealt with traumatic events in your life doesn’t make you weak.”

“I know, but I don’t want to be this way.”

“Battles often aren’t without their scars.”

“I guess…” I looked away for a bit. The apartment really was small. There were so many thing I still didn’t feel ready for, yet I wanted to dive right into them. “Is there nothing I can do?”

“I wouldn’t say that. It may be difficult, but I think you can live a better life. You’ve already made so much progress, I hope you see that.”

My initial thought was to ask “such as?” Instead, I thought about what kind of progress that could be.

“Yeah. I moved into a new apartment. I still don’t feel like I can work a job, but I’ve started to cultivate some plants out on the back deck and I think I want to have an orchard eventually. This apartment is really just a first step. I want to live away from the city, have a garden in a remote area, growing my own fruits and vegetables. I’m not sure if, or when, it will happen, but at least I have someone who supports me.” I took a deep breath. “I managed to seek therapy. Talk to someone other than who I live with.”

“I’m glad you acknowledge that.”

“Yeah, I, I just don’t know,” my voice started to crack. Come on, hold back the waterworks for just five minutes. She’ll be gone soon. “I want to be able to go outside without being so afraid.”

“You don’t have to go into crowds, you know. Even just going to the back deck is something.”

“Yeah, but what if I need to, like, to get groceries or something?”

“Hmm…” She pondered, tapping the end of her pen against her chin. “Maybe you could start slow. Would it help if you held your wife’s hand and took a walk around? You don’t have to go very far.”

“Yeah, I think that could work. I’m afraid of crowds, but I think I could even visit her every now and then at the Saturday Market. She’d probably like that. I think I’d like that, too.”

“Oh yeah, you told me about that last time.”

“I’m the one who encouraged her to do so, since she’s always making things, anyway. It’s surprising, but enough people like what she does that we’re able to pay rent with the earnings.”

Why is it so surprising? You wouldn’t have encouraged her if you didn’t have confidence in her skills.

“That’s great. See? That’s a strong thing right there.”

“Mm,” I looked down. “I guess. It’s just hard. Like I’m learning to be the person I want to be.”

“Life is a constant learning process.”

There were other talks after that; back and forths about mindfulness and acknowledging each moment. By that time, however, I had already zoned most of it out and was just nodding along. I was too emotionally drained. She could tell as well, so we wrapped up our session, arranged a time for our next session, and I saw her off.

Then, I leaned my head back on the couch. One problem that never got brought up was a recent development: gaps in my memory have started to resurface. Things from long ago, and even things that by all accounts, I should’ve remembered. Like the early days with the one who I would end up spending the rest of my life with. Speaking of, I decided to text her:

Me: I’m done with my session jskjsksjksjskjskjs

Then I passed out.

I woke up to feel someone nudging me.

“Oh my! I thought you were keysmashing but turns out you fell asleep with your thumbs on your phone!”

I rubbed my eyes as I groaned. “Therapy is exhausting,” I informed her, my voice groggy.

“Uh, yeah? Everyone knows that.”

“How did I ever manage it?”

She shrugged. “Beats me. You were never that good at it.” “Hey!” I retorted.

“Well, okay, you were good at making people think you were good at it. You did what you thought would help with what little knowledge you had. Presentation counts for a lot, so your colleagues probably never thought to question it.”

“Why did you ever let me go through with it?”

“I think I said at the time that you didn’t have to, but you were pretty insistent.”

Sounds about right, given what I knew about myself.

“It’s not fair,” I grumbled. “I always end up crying during these sessions. I bet therapists never cry.”

“How much you got?” She took to a sly expression. “I bet they do. They probably wait after the session and then bawl their eyes out.”

We both laughed at that remark.

“So what’d you two talk about, anyway?”

I crossed my arms. “I don’t really want to rehash it.”

“Okay, fine by me! But I’ll be around if you do.”

“...It was just about how I’m scared to go out in public and she suggested you come with me and we could hold hands.”

She gasped. “You just breached confidentiality! You have to go to jail now!”

“What?! No! That’s not how that works!” I protested. “It’s the therapist who can’t talk about the things said without express permission from the client! I volunteered that information to you!”

“Nope. Do not pass go. Sorry, babe. I don’t make the rules. I’ll miss you, but I promise to write.”

“Oh my god! You’re too much!” I burst into laughter.

“So, wanna try it?”

“Hm?” I looked at her.

“The handholding thing. Sounds fun.”

“We’ve held hands before. Practically all the time.”

“Yeah, but wanna do it...therapeutically?”

“Yeah. I think it would help.”

“And, y’know, if it helps, I could sit in on one of your sessions sometimes. Hold your hand while you tackle tough emotions.”

To that, I shook my head. “This is something I want to confront alone.”

“There you go again, bein’ all stubborn. That part of you’s never changed,” she wagged her finger.

“Well, if you want, you could sit in on me...in the bedroom…” I covered my hands over my face. “That was phrased weird. I can’t do suggestive talk.”

She rolled around the couch in hysterics, laughing it up.

“Will there be biting?” She asked, once she finally calmed down.

“Lovingly.”

“Yay!”

We walked together into the bedroom and curled up, our legs tangled in each other. She tittered, ran her fingers through my hair, and smiled. That she acted so giddy every time we would lay together made it so that I couldn’t help but smile as well. First, we started off by kissing, arms wrapped around each other, then we sat up; I watched as she unbuttoned her blouse, and I, in turn, slipped out of my shirt.

Everything was going well, with me giving her light pecks across her neck, down her chest. But then, from the corner of my eye, I saw the scar on her shoulder and remembered the cause of her injury.

“I’m sorry,” I pulled away. The tears were already starting to work their way down even though I knew she didn’t think ill of the whole thing. “I don’t think I can continue.”

“Aw, it’s okay.”

Instead, I leaned in close, and she held me tight against her. The image would have been an odd one, had I the ability to see outside of myself. Although I was taller, often times I thought of her as the bigger person.

“Would you like to take a nap?” She asked.

“Not yet,” I muttered.

“Would you like me to take over and help you feel better?”

Weak, I nodded, then I leaned back and let her shower me in affection and pleasure. It felt wrong, selfish of me, not to reciprocate, but it was just like that: images of the past come to mind and sometimes they affected me, while other times I was able to take a more active role and exist in the moment.

At least there was no desire to be aggressive. No itch for greater and greater levels of intensity. Instead, I could take my time and let it come in its own time. There would be another opportunity to bring her pleasure later in the evening. For the time being, I found myself brought to a high, and then, as I reached my peak, I fell back. She kissed my cheek, then, snuggled up to each other, we both fell asleep.

Needless to say, there were still a few difficulties to overcome. It was all an adjustment process, I knew that. But I didn’t want to find myself so needy that I couldn’t do the most basic of things, like going outside in public, unless she was around.

So a few days later, I got up out of bed, after having slept in. She had already left earlier in the morning to go work at the Saturday Market. While home alone, I bathed, then slipped into a bath robe, made myself a bowl of oatmeal for breakfast, and after, took to the couch and read a book.

Around noon, I began to grow restless. I knew that if I just waited a few hours, she would come back home, but that wasn’t it. I wanted to try going out on my own. After changing into a tie dye shirt and jeans and slipping on some shoes, I inched toward the door, my heart pounding all the while.

Once out, I started to feel more and more agitated. I wasn’t very far from home, but the thought that there were other people nearby already got to me.

“Not much further. I don’t need to go far,” I told myself under my breath. But each step, I thought to be more daring, and soon, I was near where the crowded streets began. Soon, the sea of others’ voices drowned out my own thoughts and both my mind and my heart were racing. I was about to turn back when one voice stood out among the others.

“How long does it take to do such a simple assignment? ‘Divide and conquer’, she said. Well, I’ve already taken care of my targets, so what’s taking her so long?” Came a low and icy voice, from someone who sounded rather annoyed.

Assignment? Divide and conquer? Targets? This isn’t good; I’m having irrational thoughts of what the implications of those words could mean.

I looked around to find whose voice that belonged to, and at last, I saw her: someone about as tall as I was in stature, with a thick red vest, who stood in the middle of the sidewalk, as if everyone around her didn’t exist. She shivered, was hunched over, and seemed to be typing at her phone.

Images of that incident flashed in my mind, but rather than run away and cower, I found myself approaching her, and then the words escaped from me:

“Rhea? Is that you?”

“Huh?” She turned around. It was more clear that it wasn’t her from up close: she had darker hair, almost blackened, but with a hint of red to it. “Do I know you?”

“I’m sorry, I thought you were someone else, but you couldn’t be her, since she died.”

“I see. That’s rather strange to come up to strangers and mistake them for dead people,” she remarked as she slipped her phone back into her pocket. Beside her were a couple of bags. “Do you do that often?”

“No, I –”

“Also, I’m Remora. Not whatever you just said.”

“Sorry. Really.”

She went back to her phone. “Seriously? She still hasn’t replied?”

“Um...may I ask what’s wrong?”

“Just my partner. We were going grocery shopping and we decided to split the list, but she’s taking forever. I’m considering just leaving without her.”

“Partner? As in couple?”

She glared, almost a scowl.

“No.”

“Oh. Sorry.”

I considered walking away, since I had already troubled that Remora person enough, but I figured she was frustrated and I thought I could try to help diffuse the situation.

“Are you in a hurry?” I asked. “If not, maybe you could find something to do in the meantime.”

She looked around, her arms still huddled as she shivered, then returned her gaze to me. “No. None of these things are perishable. What would you suggest?”

Crap. I just put myself on the spot. Great.

“Well, you could, uh...sit at a park, maybe?”

“No.” She shot me down. “Hm…who are you, anyway?”

That took me by surprise, but I told her my name.

“I see. Do you want to get a drink?”

“Like, at a bar?”

“No, at the denist’s office,” she replied. Okay. I could tell when someone was being sarcastic.

She waited for a response, but when I didn’t know what to say, she spoke again: “yes, I meant a bar.”

“Maybe I should let my wife know first. I don’t know.”

“Do you need your wife’s permission to do everything?”

“It’s...It’s not like that!”

“Well, are you coming or what?” She tapped her heel.

“Y-Yes!” I didn’t know why, but I felt like I should accept the offer and hang out with her.

She started to walk off and I hurried behind, my eagerness to interact with someone other than the person I lived with outweighing my anxiousness of being out in public.

“Sorry again, by the way. You really did seem like her from a distance, you even talk and act a little like she did.”

“People don’t come back from the dead, Vesuvius.”

“Right! I know that!”

“Pick up the pace,” she instructed. I didn’t know what it was about her, but there was something there that itched at me, as if no matter how hard it was to think otherwise, it really did seem like I was face to face with Rhea with the key exception being that we were doing something so normal as going out drinking together. It both excited and terrified me.

At the bar, we next to each other at the counter. Few other occupants resided; it must have had to do with the time of day.

“Get me a cold one,” she told the bartender.

“A cold what?” He replied.

“I don’t know. Whiskey? Vodka? Does it matter? Something strong and cold.”

Just like you?

“What about you, missy?” He turned to me. That annoyed me. ‘Missy’.

“Miss is just fine,” I replied. “I’ll just have a pomegranate martini.”

“My bad, miss.”

“Good. You’re sticking up for yourself,” she commented.

That took me by surprise. I turned to her. “I try my best. People scare me, but I still need to assert myself.”

“It might irritate other people, but that shouldn’t matter,” it sounded like she was agreeing with me. “Others can deal with it, if it’s what matters to you, you should speak up about it.”

“Um, thank you?”

“Just stating facts.”

Well, in that case, I prefer Ves.”

“What?”

“My name.”

“Oh. Then why didn’t you tell me that was your name?”

“Vesuvius is my name, it’s just that I like Ves more.”

“All right, then. Ves it is.”

“Thank you.”

She shrugged. “I’m just here to kill time. I can spare a few courtesies.”

Right, and I was just there because I mistook her for someone who used to want me dead and who I, in turn, caused her death. But yeah, let’s just say we were both killing time and I wasn’t nervous as all hell.

I turned to her and noticed her arms crossed as she rubbed her hands against her upper arms while her back was hunched over. Her back was hunched over and I watched her take labored breaths.

“Are you all right?” I asked her.

“It’s the atmosphere,” she replied, brisk and low in her tone.

“You were shivering when we were outside, too.”

“I’m not used to the climate, that’s all. I live up north.”

So that’s what it was. For a second, I thought…Ah. Here I was, sitting next to someone I had just met and all I could think about was someone I barely knew for three days before said person died. To think that the time we met was so short, but I found myself so affected by her. Not to mention, how we were enemies.

“What? Why are you crying?” She sounded genuinely surprised. I reached for a napkin to wipe my eyes with.

“Sorry, I...sometimes I cry when I get sad,” I tried to explain.

“Isn’t that normal for most people?” She gave a perplexed look.

“Yeah, I suppose it is,” I replied with a soft laugh. “I’m just not used to it.”

“I see. Why is that?”

I shrugged, then tried to explain.

“Much of my life was spent on edge. Either fighting, running, or hiding. After a while, it started to weigh on me. So I kept my emotions hidden and laid low. My pain, my rage, I just held it down and instead carried a calm demeanor.”

Our drinks arrived. Hers, a glass of whiskey (not just a shot glass, either, a rather tall glass) and my pomegranate martini. I took my finger to the rim of my glass and licked the sugar off of it.

“Mm. Yeah. That’s no good. Holding in emotions is unhealthy,” she replied after downing her drink.

“What about you?”

“I don’t have many emotions to begin with. Not much to hold in.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Why? Doesn’t bother me.”

“Maybe so. Sorry, you seem okay, but I still can’t help but think of this other person. I guess I’m still not over her.”

“What was she to you? An ex or something?”

“Not exactly. She tried to kill me.”

“Huh? What was her reason?”

“Well, she was hired to do so and she said I was a threat to humanity. Truth is, I could see her reasoning, being that I was pretty sick at the time and it was affecting people around me.”

“You’re better now, though, right?”

“Mhm.”

“Good.”

There were many things that filled my mind then. The events of those fateful few days – how I attempted several means to give myself a better life, but they ended up only making things worse for me. Then, I found myself saying:

“I know we were enemies, but it seemed like she was just as exhausted of fighting as I was. Even if circumstances led us to being opposed to each other, I really wish I could have gotten to know her better. Maybe I could have helped her somehow.”

She took another swig of her drink, then wiped her mouth with her sleeve and set the glass down.

“Sounds like it was for the best. Everyone has their own ideas of a ‘happy ending’. Sounds like that was hers.”

I wanted to say how it was she died, but I knew it would have been incriminating. Especially in a public place.

“I take it you killed her, huh?”

“Wait, what?” I blinked.

“If you two were enemies and she’s dead, that’s how I imagine things went down.”

“Yes, but I didn’t want to. I just think she wanted me to. At least it seems that way.”

Remora looked like she was about to speak up again, but then we both heard her phone buzz. She pulled it out from her pocket.

“Oh. Great. It’s her.”

“Your partner?”

“Hold on.” She began texting. I could hear her say under her breath what she was typing. “You do not need a sombrero. That is not why we’re here.”

Cue a few seconds later, she jolted, as if she was getting pissed off.

“No. You don’t need a set of neon green throwing knives, either. What’s taking you so long?” Then she glared at me. “See what I have to deal with?”

The phone buzzed again, and again, she recited what she was typing.

“How is that relevant?”

Puzzled, I leaned over. She must have noticed, so showed me the conversation. The first thing I noticed was the contact name, which simply said ‘Pest’:

Pest: Someone’s selling sombreros! I want one!

Me: You do not need a sombrero. That is not why we’re here.

Pest: Send me money so I can buy some neon green throwing knives! I need them to look badass! ;_;

Me: No. You don’t need a set of neon green throwing knives, either. What’s taking you so long?

Pest: I just realized that my name is so close to ‘dementia’! I need to change my name! D:

Me: How is that relevant?

Pest: YOU MAY AS WELL PUT EBONY DARKNESS IN FRONT OF MY NAME AKSJKSJFSKJF ;_;

I blinked. That sure was something.

“I can see how your guys’ personalities clash.”

She shook her head. “Too high energy for me.”

“Hey, I’m married to someone who’s high energy.”

“Married couples annoy me.”

I looked down at my drink. Still hadn’t even given it a sip. Maybe I just wasn’t in the mood for it. Shame, too. It probably tasted great.

“Hey,” she poked me. “Give me your address.”

“Why?”

“So I can tell her to meet me there.”

“Oh. Uh, I guess that’s fine. She’s not dangerous, is she?”

Remora laughed. “She’s only a danger to herself.”

“That’s a relief.”

I wrote down my address on a napkin and passed it to her. Remora went ahead and texted it to her, then she ordered another drink.

“We’re not gonna head over there?” I asked.

“Knowing her, it’s gonna take another hour before she shows up.”

“Oh, well in that case…” My thoughts drifted once again to Rhea. “Can I try something out?”

“What?”

“Can I pretend it’s Rhea sitting next to me? I know it sounds weird, but I think it would help me move on.”

“Sure, if you think it’ll help.”

“Thank you,” I cleared my throat. “Okay, here goes…”

I thought of the right words to say, as if I was having a conversation with someone I could never have. How would I address them? I figured starting with their name was a good starting point.

“Rhea,” I began.

“Yeah? What is it?” Remora replied.

“What?” I paused.

“I wasn’t sure if you wanted me to pretend to be her or not.”

“You can respond if you want. I’d mostly like it if you listened.”

“Okay. Go on.”

“It just pains me to know that there’s so much about you I’ll never know. Like what life must have been like for you. I know you gave off the impression of a cold and merciless mercenary, but for whatever reason, you showed me mercy. Even though I killed your partner, Douglas Fir. I still wish I hadn’t done that to him, even knowing how he terrorized my home, I’m still disgusted at myself for that.”

“Eh, he had it coming,” she replied.

“What?”

“Oh. Nothing. He just sounds like a sleazy guy. Carry on.”

“Now that I think of it, it wasn’t that you simply showed me mercy. You offered me a choice I could not accept. When I refused the first time, you tried to stop at nothing to kill me. When that didn’t work, you decided to try to talk with me and see if you reach a different solution. I don’t really understand why. You could have killed me while I was recovering. I wish I could have known what it was.”

She didn’t respond that time. I continued.

“You knew about me through files written on me. Could deduce my personality just through a few sentence descriptions. But I, even from what little I saw of you, still didn’t really know you. I knew you had a condition. It fascinated me, truth be told. Thoughts like ‘I wonder what it is that made you this way’. Even if I knew, I don’t think I could have helped you, as much as it pains me to say. Whether it was a physical or mental condition, I don’t think I would have known what to do. Whether or not there really was a cure, it didn’t seem like something I could have figured out.”

“Why should I feel sympathetic when our roles were more antagonistic? I cannot say. Maybe I saw us as kindred spirits, in spite of our roles. To me, it looked like you were in pain, just as I was. It may have been expressed differently, but I still sensed a pain, a certain tiredness in you. I think that’s what affected me so deeply about your death.”

“I wonder...did you really mean it when you said I was a disappointment? I know, such a strange thing to dwell on.”

She took another drink. “If you want my opinion, the only person you should worry about disappointing is yourself.”

“Well, I’m rather remorseful of how I used to act.”

“Hmm...Remorseful...Gah! I should’ve changed my last name, too! I just couldn’t come up with a pun, so I decided to leave my last name as is!”

“...What?”

“Nothing, nothing,” Remora waved her hand away. “Just frustrated. I could’ve worked with that! I only chose this name because I saw a remora at an aquarium and they seemed interesting.”

“Wait, is Remora not your real name?”

“It is. I just had a previous name. I liked to work with name puns. Giving myself this name, it felt like a sense of freedom for me.”

“My birth name was Etna,” I told her in an attempt to relate.

“Yeah, but your name is Ves. Just as mine is Remora. We don’t need to worry about past names.”

“Yeah, but what about past actions? Experiences?”

“You said you acted with the intention of being happier. Well, are you happier now?”

I had to stop and think. Was I? In a way, I had made myself unhappy. But through that, I was able to experience what I had been missing for so long, so in that sense, I found it worth it.

“Yes. It’s taken me a while to get there and it’s still a long journey, but I’m in a much better place now. It’s just been a slow process.”

“Good. That’s all you need to worry about. Is making sure you keep moving forward and realize that the journey has been worth it.”

“What about you?”

“Eh. Same. It’s an adjustment, but I’m open to it.”

“That’s good. I’m glad for you.”

“Why? You just met me.”

“I don’t know. I just feel like I’ve known you already.”

She pointed at my glass. “You haven’t finished your drink.”

“Oh. Lemme do that right now,” I held up the glass and downed it in one big gulp.

“Isn’t that the wrong kind of drink to be chugging down?”

My head was already starting to feel funny. “Yes. I. Think I’m ready to go home.”

“Oh, bother,” she held her palm to her forehead and shook her head. “Are you going to be all right?”

“I should be fine.”

Besides the fact that I felt like I was going to collapse on the sidewalk.

“Here, let me walk you home. That’s where I’m meeting my partner, anyway.” She slipped a hundred dollar bill on the counter, then stood up.

Before I could object, she carried me on her shoulders as I felt myself start to get drowsy.

While we walked home, through my sleepy voice, I continued to try to strike conversation with her.

“Do you and this person live together?” I asked.

“If you’re referring to the grocery partner, no. We just happen to work at the same place and the manager asked us to go shopping here.”

“Oh? What do you do for work?”

“I work at a restaurant. I never thought I’d see myself doing that kind of work, but it’s better than my old job.”

“What was your old job?”

“I killed people.”

Ah, for whatever reason, that didn’t sound so bad. Probably because I was just hazy enough that I didn’t think much of it.

“I used to work as a therapist, myself. But I think I did more harm than good. It’s a real shame. I think I’ve done better for both mine and others’ mental health since I quit,” I droned on.

“Sometimes you just gotta say ‘fuck work’,” she replied.

“Yeah,” I agreed, then smiled. “Fuck work.

We arrived, and she let go. I managed to stand on my own. Already, I felt more clear.

“Say, would you like to meet my wife?” I asked, rather on a whim.

Remora looked around, then shrugged. “Sure. She’s still not here yet.”

I went up to the door, unsure if she had come home yet. I could have texted her, but I figured if she didn’t show up after I knocked, I’d have my answer. After my knock, she came up right away.

“Oh hey, look at you! You’re outside on your own!”

I nodded, a bright smile upon my face. “Actually, I ran into someone.”

“Oh? Who?” She leaned her head over. After she gasped, she turned back to me. “Is that the weird stalker lady?”

“No, but the resemblance is uncanny,” I whispered. “She’s friendly. Her name is Remora.”

“Oh!” She shoved past me and ran out to see Remora up close. “It’s nice to meet you!”

“Why?” Remora asked in response.

“Because if Ves says you’re friendly, you must be friendly!”

“You’re cute,” Remora stated. It could have been interpreted in a sarcastic manner, and yet it came out so plain as to be nothing more than a general statement.

“Thanks! So are you! So is Ves!”

Remora looked like she was about to get a word in, but before she could, someone came running up with a backpack on and a shopping bag in their hand. I focused on the figure, she was someone small, didn’t even look five feet tall. Her hair, dark green and wavy. Plus, she wore a sombrero over her hair. The creature didn’t notice my wife and I, and instead focused on Remora.

“Found you! And look! I got it! There was a dollar on the ground and I was able to get it! Still missing the throwing knives, though…” She looked down at the ground, as if she suffered a great loss.

“Good for you. Did you get the groceries?”

“Of course! They’re in my backpack! What have you been up to?”

Remora pointed her thumb toward me.

The girl (pardon me for referring to her as “creature” just a bit ago) looked over and gasped. “I was too late! You seduced them both!”

“What are you talking about?” Remora asked.

“Or...maybe it was those two who did the seducing!”

“I’m lost.”

Me too. Did I know her? Did she know Juniper and I?

She took off the sombrero and set it on the ground, then reached into the shopping bag and pulled out a blonde wig, then placed it on her head. The wig in question had pigtails. With furious motions, she pointed at my wife, then herself, then looked up at Remora and opened her mouth, but didn’t make a sound, just had it open wide as if she would have yelled had she made a sound. But as she looked at Remora, she continued to point at the woman beside me.

“What is she doing?” Remora asked Juniper and I.

We both shrugged.

“I think it’s called pantomiming?” Juniper suggested. “I’ll be honest, though: I was never that good at charades.”

“Yeah, me neither,” I admitted.

The girl looked furious, took off the wig, then undid the pigtails and tried to straighten up the wig. Then, she took out a pair of glasses from her pocket, put them on, and then put the wig back on. This time, she chose to point at me, just as furious.

Her finger, at first at me, then back at the one beside me, then she faced her thumb at herself.

“Is she your guys’ daughter?” Remora asked my wife and I.

We both shook our heads.

She tore the wig from off of her head, threw it on the ground and stomped on it.

“I can’t believe you guys!” She yelled at last, as I assume she had been holding it in. “That’s my cousin!” She faced Remora, then pointed once again at my wife. “Juniper Bark!”

Wait. Something dawned on me. But before I could say it, Juniper spoke up instead.

“Oh, I remember you! From the wedding, right? Demetria!”

“Bingo. And I came to stop you!”

“From what?”

“From stealing Remora! I saw her first!”

Juniper clapped. “Good job!”

Demetria blinked. “Oh. Thanks. I mean, I’m not actually into her. I just think she’s cool. Yeah. That’s all.”

What was with her demeanor? At one point she really was high-energy, like the impression of her I got from Remora suggested, but now she seemed stunned.

“Uh, well, anyway,” She looked away, embarrassed. Of her previous actions? Hard to say. “Juniper, your brother’s still a doctor, right?”

“In a sense!”

“Is he here? Can I talk to him?”

Juniper shook her head. “He lives at the same apartment he did before, Vespiquen and I just moved to a new one. Why do you ask?”

“I wanted to ask him what the condition was when you see this tall, strong lady and your whole personality changes and all you can think about is being in her strong arms and how hot she is. I was wondering if he could diagnose me.”

Juniper put her hand over her mouth and had a devilish grin on her face. “Ohoho, I can tell you that right now.”

“What? You can?”

“Mhm. I’m afraid it’s terminal.”

“What?!”

“Yup! And there’s no cure!”

“That’s horrible!” Demetria cried out.

I nudged Juniper and gave her a glare.

“Oh, all right,” Juniper relented. “I diagnose you with gay.”

“I can’t believe you! You had me in quite a shock! I’m going to remember this!”

Although the focus had been on Demetria, I shifted my attention back to Remora, to which a scowl was forming on her face.

“Ves.”

Startled, I asked, “what is it?”

“Does the name ‘Clara Waters’ mean anything to you?”

I took a minute to think about it, but then it came.

“Actually, yes. That was one of the names Rhea had used.”

“Figured as much,” the last syllable on her breath had a tinge of a snarl to it.

“Which city was it that she died in?” Was the next question from her.

“This one. Why?” She seemed to be piecing something together.

“I see.”

“Is there something that I’m missing, here?” Demetria looked at all three of us.

“Demetria,” Remora growled.

“Eep! Was It something I did? I’ll behave!”

“Can you wait for me at the airport?”

There was a definite anger to her voice, though it didn’t sound like it was directed at Demetria, but someplace else.

“Oh. Yeah. I can do that.” Demetria picked up both the bag with the wig as well as the bag of groceries that Remora had carried just a bit ago. “Um, see you later?”

Remora nodded.

I opened my mouth, curiosity or concern having overtaken me. “What is this about?”

“I’m about to find out. It was nice to meet you. Now I must meet a corpse.”

“Huh?”

“This was never about grocery shopping and the fact that I didn’t figure it out sooner disgusts me.”

That didn’t clear anything up for me, but what was clear was that she was about to take off.

“Um, before you go…”

“Yes?”

“Would you like to be friends?”

“Why?”

“I think it’s what Rhea would have wanted.”

It felt rather manipulative of me; a dirty trick. Even if that was the case, I just couldn’t bring myself to tell her that the reason was that I saw it as a second chance for me. To befriend someone so similar to Rhea.

“What does this person’s wishes have to do with me?”

Oh no. Her words sounded hostile. But then, she let out a sigh.

“All right. Fine. I’ll put your number in my phone.”

“Ooh!” Juniper jumped up. “Me too!”

“Ladies, one at a time.”

After she entered our names into her contacts, we waved goodbye to her. It was somewhat of a relief to see her off, just as it was to meet her in the first place.

“So, that was interesting, huh?” Juniper observed.

“Mhm. Didn’t expect to run into Demetria, either. I thought she was pursuing her Master’s degree. Maybe she graduated already.”

“Oh! I didn’t even think about that!”

Juniper locked her fingers within mine, and the two of us went back into our apartment. The day had turned out to be quite overwhelming, though a large portion of it was a good kind of overwhelming.

Once we were both on the couch and curled up next to each other, I pieced something together of my own.

“Remora really was Rhea.”

“Huh?” Juniper looked up at me.

“Well, not the one that we knew. If I had to guess, I’d say it was similar to how I met another you once.”

Though such a thing wasn’t something I expected to encounter ever again. Still, there was no doubt in my mind; Even if I had deduced without total confirmation, since I believed I had an answer as to why I thought of Rhea so much around Remora, I also believed that was all the more reason to treat her as if she were someone new.

[louhearted]

this is a PSA!! everyone stop what they are doing and listen!!

today is @styleslouis​ birthday and that is the most important day of the year and it needs to be celebrated!!

okay so. olivia. babu!! i have no idea what to say. a) i love you so much i don’t know how to put it into words, and b) like every year you already wrote me the loveliest birthday message and i don’t know how to top that. but i will try!!!

so first of all: every day i hate that there isn’t a quick way of texting: you GENUINELY just made me laugh out loud in public and i’m GENUINELY making weird happy noises right now because of you. like i feel like at this point keysmashes don’t express that anymore. but it’s important that you know that it is true!! you make me smile the most! you said your heart had a felix shaped space in it, well i feel like i’m just living in a liv shaped world!!!

i hope that today you’ll get to eat ice cream for breakfast and will get to cuddle with some puppers even though your children left you today :( i hope your bf will surprise you with a surprise sign up to queer eye brazil sdlkgndfh and i hope that the world is going to shower you with love tomorrow! i hope next year is going to bring you a lot of laughter and joy and happiness and love!!! and that our demon sons will behave for once! i mean you are turning 28! that’s the SACRED number in this fandom. 2020 better be your YEAR!!

I hope we can see each other again soon! we are missing eachother so closely this year, but at least we’ll both be breathing european air dlkfgnfh that’s... ALMOST a hug.

i love love love love you!!! thank you for being one of my best friends! you make my life a bit brighter every day! <3 <3 <3

[j-ellals]

MERRY CHRISTMAS MERU !  ⋆  (( @solofelt​ )

                                              —   ☆ ☆ ☆   —  

I know, I know, it’s not Christmas anymore. I’m fashionably late, no surprises there. But I thought about it, and I came to the conclusion that New Year’s Eve was the perfect day to post your gift — especially since I know you’ve had it rough recently. I thought that this could perhaps start your year of 2019 on a good note. That, and I’m just really fucking excited to post this drawing AGSJSGSJS.

...Oh damn, where do I start. There are so so so many things I want to write down for you — some I already said, some I haven’t, some I have but don’t remember doing so ( which happens WAY too often; memory, pls do keep up ).

Uhhh FIRST OF ALL, I want to talk about your contribution to this RPC — which is how we met. I wouldn’t be writing this to you if it wasn't for me finding your blog through a promo. Your Gray quickly found his way to my heart — the vast understanding you have of him, the accuracy of your portrayal and your amazing writing & aesthetic making it so that you became, quite fast, one of my favourite usernames to see on my dash. Through you, I became much more attached to his character than I first was. It’s always a joy to write with you, and I hope we can do that more throughout the next year. ♥

AND OUR KIDS, GOD. Together, we built a ship that ( quickly ) rose amongst my favourites. I cannot put into words just how much I ADORE Jellal and Gray and their chemistry. I love exploring all these facets of their bonds, I love exploring their future, I love writing and drawing for them…. but above all, I love that we created this together. Jelray wouldn’t be as wonderful and as close to my heart if it wasn’t for the fact that we wrote them as a team — a good one, might I add.

I’m so, so so glad that we could make them work out on Discord. I love them with all my heart, and I love that you’re just as excited and motivated as I am. It’s amazing. You’re amazing.

     --- NO, SERIOUSLY. YOU REALLY ARE. 

Meru, you’re an amazing writer, a fantastic artist, a wonderful Gray — the only Gray that matters to me — and above all else, you’re an irreplaceable, priceless and remarkable friend.

Over the course of the last eight months, you’ve become my closest online friend, my confident, my safe space. You’re kind, always ready to listen to me rant or scream, you’re understanding, talented, funny, bright and creative. You’re passionate and friendly and accepting. I love talking to you about anything and everything, whether it’s about our muses, our ship, online or irl — and each and every single one of our conversations brings a bright smile on my face.  It’s incredible how easily you cheer me up when I’m feeling down. It’s mindblowing how LUCKY I am to have met you, and everyday I’m thankful for the place you allow me to have in your life.

I also want to talk to you about snow. Snow has been a part of my life in Canada for years, for so long it’s become mundane. You, however, have never gotten the chance to see some — not real one, not in real life.

So to you, I sent pictures of my snow-coated backyard and of snowflakes up close, making me appreciate the beauty of nature’s cold again. With you in mind, I was able to summon the motivation to build a snowman. To show you what it was, I threw myself in the snow to make a snow angel — which I hadn’t done in *years*. To see you admire something I never thought of as exceptional made me find beauty in snow, in snowflakes, in the white winters. Your love for snowy winters was contagious, and it brought back my love for them, which had faded over the years. 

My thankfulness isn’t about the snow, however; this is merely an example. It’s about the place you’ve taken in my life, and the impact you’ve had on it. You made me look at life from a different point of view; you allowed me to find the beauty some everyday things. You’ve given me so much, Meru. You gave me brilliant advice and a shoulder to lean on. You gave me an amazing ship, an amazing writing partner ( spoiler: it’s u ), a precious friend ( spoiler #2: it’s also u ) and hours, days, *months* worth of happiness, of laughter and of INCREDIBLE MEMORIES. You gave me, through your appreciation of my writing and my art, motivation to create and confidence in my abilities like no one has ever done before. *Seriously*, your screaming and keysmashing makes every damn second spent creating something worth the hard work. 

You gave me so much. To know that I can give back even an inkling of the happiness you gave me by bringing even the slightest of smiles upon your face — whether it’s by a bad joke, by creating something or by being myself,,, it makes me so happy??

And can I just add, you’re the first person I feel so comfortable genuinely being myself with? To such extent, without restraint?

To be able to scream and fangirl about my weird special interests without feeling the need to apologize. To be able to confide in my issues and anxiety, to be able to break down and show my weaknesses, to be able to open myself to talk about deep-ass stuff. To be myself, at 100% —— it is incredible to do all that stuff and feel you being so welcoming, so accepting. It’s priceless. It brings tears to my eyes just *writing* this.

Throughout the years, I’ve met many people. Whether it is online or in the flesh, many of them have left their mark upon my life. You, however — I know you’ve left a big one. And while I know that eventually our paths may part ( not soon tho,,, pls ), I will forever remember you, keep you in my memory and be thankful for the amazing presence, friend, confident and writing partner you’ve been throughout my teenagehood.

Because you, Meru, didn’t just become my friend. You became my best one. Distance and age gap be damned, you showed me what a best friend was. Not just the closest kid you hang with in school, no. The real stuff.

You showed me what a real best friend was meant to be, and that spot absolutely belongs to you.

I hope 2019 is good to you. I hope you get some rest and some happiness --- and I hope I can provide some to you as well. 

( *waves a glass of apple juice bc I know you don’t want me getting drunk* )       HERE’S TO ANOTHER YEAR OF FRIENDSHIP.

Merry Christmas, sunshine  ☀️ —— because truly, that’s what you are. You light up my life like a ray of sunlight, you make the clouds part and the flowers bloom.

                                                                  With lots of love, KAAT.❄ *

@solofelt / @w-olfcry