Tumgik
#mistoff
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Where have all the good men gone? || Mistoff
@mighty-mitte
Kristoff didn’t know exactly what time it was, but he knew it was late. They’d been called out to one of the houses out in the farmlands, a barn on fire that to be honest hadn’t been a huge fire, it had just been kind of tricky. And he wasn’t even really doing much -- he was more there getting experience more than anything, barely two weeks into the job and not at all ready to start running into burning barns to save Old Man Bernie’s chickens. 
Still, he was exhausted. It was the adrenaline wearing off, he knew that. He also knew that he wasn’t exactly looking his best, still a little dirty and grimy from the smoke and the sweat that had beaded his skin, a small streak of black under his jaw from where he’d brushed it with his soot-covered glove. He could’ve showered at the fire station, but he hadn’t really wanted to hang around; he just wanted to get home. And besides, it was the middle of the night - the moon was still high in the sky, illuminating the streets in a pearlescent glow. There wasn’t going to be anyone out at this hour, and if there were they’d probably be too drunk to remember seeing him anyways.
The streets were quiet as he treaded the path to home, rucksack over his shoulder. He tended to find these walks were good, anyways - even on days when they’d just done drills at the fire station, when they hadn’t even gone out on any calls, the walk home helped to clear his head. It gave him time to digest everything he’d learned that day, and compartmentalise it before he got home. He liked to do that as often as he could - he didn’t want work to be playing on his mind when he was meant to be relaxing. He’d probably just drive himself insane.
And though his eyes were mostly on his feet, he managed to spot the form of someone, leaning against the wall in an alleyway just up ahead. He frowned softly; they - she - seemed to be kind of... well, at least tipsy, Kristoff presumed. And if she was out on her own, anything could happen--
As much as Kristoff wanted to go home and rest, he stopped, unable to make out much but a silhouette in the darkness of the alley. “Uh, ma’am - you okay? Need any help?”
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ambyandony · 11 months
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i also love the Rum Tum Tugger - Mr Mistoffelees dynamic yes i do ship them they have a good dynamic and good chemistry
"jellicle cats come out tonight" u first mistoffelees
one of my favourite parts is how in the last bit of The Rum Tum Tugger when the girls are squealing over tugger, if you look in the background u can see Mistoffelees on the pipe on the left side and if you watch his reactions it's just so KLNCFLNVNS there's so much tension at first he's shaking his head disapprovingly but then if you look at the second bit he's making little hand-wavy motions (kinda like how the girls are) like he's trying so hard to control himself. and then at the last note tugger holds you can see him sort of take a deep breath and look bewildered
hes like "tch.." and then he's like "oh..." and then he's like: Oh.
(THE ITALICISED OH)
and then you get this
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its giving "…am i interruptin somethin 🤨 " "UHHHHHHHHHHHHHH"
literally the funniest screencap of the whole musical i think especially bc not only does mistoff make this startled expression as if he's been caught doing something he's not supposed to be doing (despite literally just vibing (he has anxiety)) he also completely freezes up and the other cat (not sure who) just lets go of his hand and continues on like nothing happened KLDVNFKLDNVDKLNVKLSFNL
ALSO SOMETHING THAT MAKES THE MISTOFFELEES TUGGER DYNAMIC SO SO GOOD TO ME IS HOW MISTOFFELEES LIKE. he embarrasses himself at the start of the old gumbie cat and is visibly distressed and the kittens make fun of him for it. but he opens the trunk with his magic anyways and then like hides behind it
and hes directly said to at least appear shy and i definitely get a meek read on him. this boy is the shyest drama queen this side of the heaviside layer. he loves to perform and then any time he's not performing he's self-conscious and nervous,,,
and rum tum tugger sings an ENTIRE HYPE SONG FOR HIM
the "please listen to me... and dont scoff" at the start i might mention, 'dont scoff at my boyfriend he is very sensitive and i will kill you dead'
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also in Magical Mr. Mistoffelees, rum tum tugger says "i've known the family to call him in from the garden for hours / when he was asleep in the hall " so like are they living in the same house with the same family or does tugger just frequently break in because the latter is my personal belief and way funnier
he makes this motion like cmon baby during the line and mistoffelees is like . hang on why were you at my house for hours ?
(mistoffelees vc) "why, just the other day, i had to help rum tum tugger out of a bedroom drawer, but im not terribly sure why he was in the house to begin with" rum tum tugger (famously prone to getting stuck in drawers): 😎
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tugger is basically flirting with mistoffelees the entire song NEVERMIND the lyrics but the way he moves towards him and the way he articulates when interacting with mistoff,,,
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gives him a little look like 'are you sure you're confident in my abilities' 'OBVIOUSLY????'
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look dad thats my boyfriend. yeah he appearified you out of nowhere. yeah he does that a lot.
also on the subject of Magical Mr Mistoffelees its SO funny the way Mistoff acts he seems very surprised by his own capabilities / unsure of his own power so of course he just starts blowing shit up
Rum Tum Tugger: hey everyone have you heard of Mister Mistoffelees. hes fucking incredible. super talented. smart. bit cute Mr. Mistoffelees: so anyways, i started blasting
i also love Tugger getting really close to Misto and then backing off, I imagine because he snaps out of it last second and remembers that misto has been going around blowing shit up for the past 3 minutes so maybe he should give him a little space "i know he can do incredible shit. im not really sure what all he could do, however i am aware that he could set me on fire or blow my dick off, which is something id like to avoid, yknow i kinda value having that so ill just uh, stand over here for a bit"
anyways, i think theyre very cute
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gaylittlewizardcat · 2 years
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Asking the real questions
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pr3st0 · 4 months
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who casually has a pic of misto's legs i need the mistoffe-legs i need them for my art
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torley · 1 month
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Watch Cats (1999) here: https://www.uphe.com/movies/cats-1999The greatest magician and original conjuring cat gives a spellbinding performance in Mr. Mistoff...
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bearisatwunk · 5 years
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me, slapping my thighs: HE'S GONNA DO THE THING HE'S GONNA DO THE THiN G
mistoffelees: presto!
me:
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dynamoe · 2 years
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↑ Li'l Billy dominates the talent portion of the Koios Society "Sons of Blaise Pascal" pageant
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“I'm a kitty,” Li’l Billy whispered to himself in the wings, an elementary school take on method acting.
↓ Under the fold, read a preview of the next chapter of Boy Genius ↓
“Maaaaaahhhmmmm,” Li'l Billy droned as he trudged onto stage, “The unitard is too long.” His feet were crammed into what would have been the knees of the spangly bodysuit while its floppy fabric shins and actual feet dragged behind him like a train. The neckline was stretched from Li’l Billy forcing his melon-like head through it, giving him daring decolletage for a 7-year-old, but the lacy cravat of the full costume would cover it.
“Let me see, water-baby,” his mother beckoned him over, “That's an easy fix. Just scrunch them up. The legwarmers will cover all this, water-baby,” she said as she worked the loose spandex up into bunches at his ankles, making him look more like a clipped poodle with pom-pom feet than the cat he was supposed to be portraying.
“We only have the stage for 20 more minutes, baby, so let's run the blocking.”
“Dancsching around like an idiot is not a good use of my tremendousch intelligencsche,” Li’l Billy griped.
“What have I told you about little boy geniuses who only study science, technology engineering, and mathematics and neglect the arts and humanities?”
“They grow up to be schupervillainsch.”
“...They grow up to be supervillains,” Rose joined, saying it with him, “We need our genius to be well-rounded and be complemented by empathy. The arts teach us to FEEL.”
“I feel like a big schtupid idiot,” Li’l Billy muttered under his breath, tugging at the legs of his catsuit and getting into position.
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“I'm a kitty,” Li’l Billy whispered to himself in the wings, an elementary school take on method acting.
As the kindergarten prodigy on stage bowed after playing Chopin's Étude Op. 25, No. 6 (*snooze*) and was ushered off, the MC announced “Billy Whalen, from Washington DC,” to a round of polite applause.
His backing music started on the sound system as Billy pranced to center stage, did a couple standing leaps, squatting mid-air so his heels nearly touched his butt (a move way harder than it looked; something adult Billy would blame for his creaking joints twenty years later). 
“Preschto!” Li’l Billy sang.
The black velveteen unitard and leg warmers from rehearsal now joined by a sequined tuxedo jacket and frill-fronted dickie and cravat around his neck, finished white gloves and white capezios— the Great White Way’s glitzy interpretation of a black-and-white tuxedo cat.
🎶
He is quiet and schmall He is black From the earsch to the tip of his tail He can creep through the tiniescht crack He can walk on the narrowescht rail 
And you'll all schay: Oh! Well I never! Wasch there ever A cat scho clever as magical Mr. Mischtoffeleesch!
Oh! Well I never! Wasch there ever A cat scho clever as magical Mr. Mischtoffeleesch!
🎶
After the pageant organizers nixed setting up 200 feet of ramps and track for their tribute to Starlight Express, this number from Cats was the compromise Billy and his mother settled on as his talent.
Master Billy Mistoffelees pointed left and triggered the flash-pot, setting off a small explosion of light and noise and a cloud of silver glitter. He did another standing jump and pointed right— another flash-pot boomed. He removed a rainbow-colored streamer from his pocket and waved it in the air like a rhythmic gymnast as he bounded around the entire stage and into the audience, leaping and spinning: barrel rolls with a few fouetté en tournant for a touch of class.
He stopped in front of the judges' table and fanned a deck of cards. The confused judge pulled out a card, showed it to the audience,  and put it back in the pack while Li’l Billy over-exaggeratedly looked away to sing another chorus of his song. Magical Master Mistoffe-Billy nodded thanks, vocalizing a little “meow,” before climbing back on the stage. He pointed to his right and set off another flash-pot, which might have been overkill as flash-pot fatigue was setting in on the audience.
The recorded music reached a crescendo. The dozens of hidden LEDs in his tuxedo jacket switched on (wiring the circuit into the fabric was Billy’s only solo contribution to the act. He burnt himself twice with the soldering iron.), turning him into a twinkling star field on the semi-darkened stage. 
The pre-recorded voice of his mother announced:
Ladies and gentlemen I give you the marvelous Magical… Mister…. Mistoffelees! 
Billy ramped up into his big finish— a standing back flip into a mid-air twirl landing with his back to the crowd. In the middle of his jacket’s back, outlined in red LEDs was the card— Ace of Diamonds. The crowd exploded in thunderous applause. (The audience was so impressed they forgot the Judge's card was actually the 11 of Spades.)
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to be continued... sooner rather than later...on AO3...
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Debut Reboot
Saturn Devouring His Son
Chatty Breakfast (animated)
Halloween Pumpkin 2.0 🎃
Li'l Billy Aces the SAT 💯
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snailtiddies420 · 2 years
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If cats 2019 had been a decent movie Mistoff would have been everyone’s blorbo. Sad little meow meow.
The missed potential
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naturepointstheway · 2 years
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Autocaptions Tries its Best once again.
Inspired by having done this before for Rum Tum Tugger and Magical Mr Mistoffelees, I decided to see what it did with “Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats” on the “The Show Must Go On” youtube channel. Incidentally, they also recently put out a couple videos of each of the cats’ songs and naturally I had to see what happened with auto-generated captions there too for RTT and Mr Mistoffelees.
First up: Jellicle Songs for Jellicle Cats
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I meaaaan...no I’m not lying when I say I’m not bored. Definitely not a lie. I would never.
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Sorry Demeter, I haven’t seen your pan, but I’ll let you know if I find it.
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Chorus Tugger challenges you on the quality of your restaurant food compared to your bar. (Also highly fitting considering apparently John Partridge was on a cooking show thing.)
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Bomba wants you to follow her on her social medias and Misto’s a bit confused about his familial relationship to his papers.
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The sphinx is FAKE. I knew it was supposed to be a giant spoon, not a lion with the face of a man!
Now onto the RTT and Mistoffelees songs in their new compilation
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Tugger looked into the future from 1998, saw future rap!Tugger and was summarily unimpressed.
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MOOD. Tugger gets it! (Technically a correct lyric but it just stopped and gave up at “I like to lie in”). Also had to screencap him crawling to the screen like this because damn.
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“Wait, his name is...Mistoff...no wait, it’s Mus...Mufasa? Wait wrong cat. Mustapha. Yeah. That sounds right.”
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Oh is THAT what you’re calling it now, Tugger? (Somewhere, Munk is rubbing his temples with a long-suffering sigh)
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Tugger: “His own lands upon myself!”
Other cats: *pretends to be understand but are really confused inside*
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I meeean, Mistoffelees can shape shift into a bunny if he wants. As a treat.
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I love that it just said “cats” this whole time this snuggle was going on because yes cat snuggles! Also, adorable screenshot of Misto and Old Deut.
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Plot twist: That’s his third name that no one should know that Misto confessed to Tugger, and Tugger goes and reveals it to EVERYONE.
Dammit Tugger, you had one job!
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rumtumfucker · 3 years
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My Cats Fanfic AU/Headcanons
I'm currently working on a cats fanfic au, of which you may remember from this post, so I thought I'd come on and explain some of the thoughts behind this au! Since it's not too obvious from that one clip and I really like talking about this au hehe.
For the basics, this is a human au (I'm too much of a coward to write cats kissing) , and set around 15 years after the plot we see in the Jellicle Ball of the musical, I refuse to acknowledge the impact this will have on old deut and the other oldies. (You cannot force me to write this but it could be interesting?? Maybe??)
This means that Rum Tum Tugger, Munkustrap and Mistoffelees are all around their late 30's, kittens like Pouncival, Victoria and Electra are in their late 20's-early 30's (I don't have a clear time frame for them just yet but in human years I imagine them being around 16-19 for the Stageplay.) I am also focusing on a light-hearted, slice-of-life tone so please don't worry about any dark themes surrounding the aging cast.
This also means lots of new kittens!! I'm not very good with creating ocs, but I plan to have a good mix of kitten ocs and existing characters. In this au, all of the characters live close to each other/in the same town! Currently unclear, but they do all interact quite often.
Ship Shenanigans!
One of the fun parts of this concept is I get the chance to explore the character dynamics of Cats in a human context, but also with the knowledge of these characters knowing each other for many years. As such, there's plenty of ship/marriage content! I'll explain some of the ships/families I have planned out so far:
- Tugger and Mistoffelees have been married for around 10 years and they have 2 kids (I wanted to include the 7 kids I really did but it got very difficult to write quite quickly), Tugger is currently a music artist/producer and loves to strum little songs for Mistoffelees. Speaking of Mistoff, he's in a little bit of a worse position. After years of being a successful stage magician, he's found less and less success and money in the profession, and nowadays mostly spend his working time at children's parties showing off magic tricks. As rewarding as seeing their faces light up is, he can't help but feel he's letting himself down, seeing his past. (THIS IS THE PLOT OF THE CURRENT IN WORK CHAPTER BTW) Tugger is definitely more of the family man, but both of them love adventure and spontaneity, so their time together is not often boring. Factoring in the kids, they both live happy and fulfilling lives with each other. God I love their dynamic.
- Munkustrap and Demeter live much more structured lives than their brother/in-law respectively and his husband. I don't have clear jobs for them yet, office work seems plausible for both but I could totally see Munkustrap being the local child-minder also. Looking after kids is his talent after all. Demeter was never one for kids really so they never ended up having any themselves, but Munkustrap ends up spoiling his niece and nephew as if they're his own. As the woman of the Family, Demeter has also been given the job of helping out Tugger and Mistoff's daughter where possible. Demeter and Tugger also have a close relationship outside of being in-laws. Tugger is a very good listener and great at giving advice, more so than his more logical brother, Tugger excels in helping his friends talk out their frustrations, and that's exactly what Demeter has needed often in her life. This goes for most of the Jellicles also, but Demeter and Tugger turned out to have a very similar sense of humour, strangely enough. Mistoffelees and Munkustrap often enjoy ganging up on Tugger together, but Tugger isn't one to hold a grudge over something silly.
- Bombalurina has remained single throughout the years, she never did find the perfect person, but she doesn't mind because she has a fulfilling social life. Her, Tugger and Demeter are exceptionally close, in duos or all together. I don't have too much planned on her yet? But I would like to write a chapter around one of her errand days, involving brunch with Tugger and grabbing a coffee with Demeter, I may also draw some parallels to Grizabella in her aged up? Since in the musical Bomba was supposed to represent everything that Griz had lost. It's something to think about at least!
-In truth, I haven't really thought about characters like Alonzo, Plato, Cassandra, Pouncival etc. Although I would love to explore as many characters as possible within their own chapters. I'm also trying to stop using a character's relationship to Tugger as an anchor point but what can I say, he's a socialite!
- I would like to explore Macavity also, but I don't have a clear idea of him. I imagine he's in his early 40s, the idea I had was somebody, perhaps mungo or rumps, visiting him while he is in jail? Or maybe a new, younger cat who he is training as a criminal? Like a mentor trope but they're thieves. I made that on the spot while writing this but wow, I wanna use that now.
That's everything I have planned for this au/fanfic so far! I'm very excited to start releasing it but I'm such a slow writer 💀
Thank you for reading! Whew, that was long!
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fluffytuffles · 3 years
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*john partridge voice* mister mistoff-o-lees
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the spy who loved me 2: electric boogaloo || mistoff || valentines au
In Kristoff and Mitte get sent on another mission which, after Mitte becomes jealous of Kristoff being used as a honeypot to get more intel on their mark, quickly becomes more about their relationship than the mission...
Notes: first of all this is NSFW so read at ur own discretion. second of all i know valentines was 3 months ago but i don't want to hear it. third of all this is a sequel to an old valentine's au which i now dont know if we ever posted bc i cant find it but the tldr is that childhood besties and super spy duo kristoff and mitte got sent on a mission, tensions were high, things got steamy... and they never spoke of it again. and that's waht you missed on glee!
@mighty-mitte
KRISTOFF
It had been a little while since he and Mitte had last worked together – not too long, not long enough for him to have forgotten the… events of that last mission, but long enough for things to feel disjointed. Like they were out of sync. It was a strange feeling. The two of them had never been out of sync before, things had never been strange between them. Kristoff kept wondering if maybe they should talk; maybe they should have a conversation about what happened. But he sat through the briefing, silent. And he sat in the car on the way to the hotel, silent. Only now that he was standing in front of the mirror, debating whether he should undo another button at the top of his shirt or not, that he was considering saying something.
Because presumably when you’d accomplished a mission and then slept with your partner/childhood friend it was normal to discuss things? Even if it was just a line or two, something about seeing where things go or letting things drop or…. Anything. Kristoff would take literally anything if it would help him figure out how he was supposed to act around Mitte. For the most part he was just trying to keep his mind off of memories of a similar hotel room with a similar non-descript bed and a similar Mitte, with her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist and–
Kristoff shook his head at himself, skin flushing pale pink. He had to get himself under control. Maybe talking about things would help. At this point, it couldn’t make them any worse.
He turned, looking at Mitte. “Feels kind of dumb that I’m the one that has to flirt, right? Kind of more your forte. I don’t even think I know how.”
Hm. That wasn’t what he meant to say at all.
But it was a genuine concern. Their mark for this evening, or his mark, anyways, was Eliza Goodfellow, the wife of an up-and-coming businessman who was quickly making a name for himself and definitely bringing weapons and stolen goods into the country and risking national security. Kristoff’s job, as given to him by his handler, was to try and charm Mrs. Goodfellow (who was apparently known for not being exactly faithful, which Kristoff thought made sense, ‘cause her husband didn’t seem like a nice guy at all) into giving them information on her husband’s whereabouts. By charming, they meant flirting, and Kristoff wasn’t good at flirting.
“I might scare her off,” He commented, head tilting as he considered the button situation again. He didn’t want to come on too strong. “Any tips?”
MITTE
Mitte could not believe they were here again. Arms dealer, hotel- a nicer one this time at least- and one goddamn bed. At least there was a refreshing twist; Kristoff all dressed up, ready to flirt for the information they needed. It was actually kind of nice to not be the honey pot for once. 
She was bugging Eliza's hotel room whilst Kristoff got the update on her husband, so Mitte got to wear jeans and think about security, instead of worrying about whether her dress was the right length, or if her hair was falling right. Almost every other guy they put her with suggested dangling her like pretty bait before they bothered to come up with anything smart. That was why she preferred being partnered with Kristoff, who didn’t look at her through the lens of how best he could use her, but how best he could work with her. Because they were friends. Best friends. Who had seen eachother naked. And hardly talked since. Well, hardly talked for how much usually talked, and frankly Mitte was surprised Kristoff's head hadn't exploded with the need to discuss their little tryst. Perhaps she should've taken mercy on him and brought it up, but she didn't want to upset the balance of their friendship any further, and she knew if the organization heard about what had happened they'd never work together again. 
But Mitte wasn't thinking about that right now, because the mission was what mattered, and Kristoff was nervous about his part. "If we had any indication she played for the right team, I'm sure I'd be the one getting all dolled up." She offered Kristoff a sympathetic smile over the top of the magazine she was pretending to read and let her eyes wander his appearance, assessing as much as appreciating. 
"You won't scare her off." She told him, stern but warm as she slipped off the bed to walk over and adjust his shirt collar, close enough to realize he'd put on cologne. He smelled good. "Tips… Tips…" Mitte cleared her throat and paid attention to his hair a moment, tussling it a bit with her fingers. "Don't let your words run away from you. Don't gesture too crazily, but don't stay too still. Smile. Hold eye contact." Which she had not done since she walked over here. Honestly she was tempted to ask if he'd rather a demonstration than an explanation, but that probably wouldn't end well. 
Finally, she looked up at Kristoff as she took a step back, considering that shirt button he'd been toying with. She thought he'd look better with it undone, but he wasn't trying to seduce her. Sadly. "You're better at this kind of thing when you don't think too much. Just let her do most of the talking while you try to steer the conversation. Keep your voice soft so she has to lean in, and a hand on her arm will work wonders." Mitte said, turning to rifle through their briefcase for earpieces. "if it sounds like you're really floundering I should be able to talk you through it, but I think you'll be fine.”
KRISTOFF
It wasn’t often that he was the one tasked with being the honeypot. To be honest he wasn’t sure he had ever been given that job before, not in all of his time as an agent– it was always Mitte. She was the one who went out there and batted her eyelashes and bit her lip and got all of the intel they needed, whilst Kristoff bugged hotel rooms and hacked into computers or tailed a mark. And it was no surprise as to why; Mitte was gorgeous. It was all too easy for an unsuspecting man to fall under her spell. Kristoff, on the other hand…
He swallowed thickly as Mitte’s hands reached for his collar, the brush of her knuckles against his neck enough to make him look up, focus on the sconce on the wall as he ran through the information he’d been given. Infiltration was nothing; he had done that before. Pretending to be a new hire at the office, or an international billionaire looking to do business, whatever it was, he had done it. He knew that you had to go in with as full a picture as you could, and then give absolutely nothing away. He was just worried, that was all. What if he slipped up? Screwed the whole thing over entirely?
He took a deep breath, looking down at her. Her eyes didn’t meet his, and he thought he was glad of it. He wasn’t really sure what he would do if they met. When she stepped away, heading for the case, he dropped his gaze to the floor. He ran a hand through his hair, and then glanced hastily in the mirror. He had made it look a little more tousled than he meant to, but never mind. Maybe that was a good thing?
“Well, I’m glad someone’s confident,” He said, taking the earpiece when it was offered to him. It was small, high tech; he slipped it into place with practiced ease, and checked once again in the mirror. It was invisible, unless you were really looking for it; no one but himself would know. “If anything happens, though, if you need any help… I mean, I’m sure you won’t, but.” He paused, blinking at her for a moment. “Just in case. I’ve got your back.”
MITTE 
She still knew all his twitches and tells so well, even with the distance that had stretched out between them. Kristoff wasn't the guy who reached out first to shake your hand, or bumped his knee against yours under the table. Being touched always surprised him, even when it was Mitte, who was probably more consistently hands on with him than most people.
(Once, way more hands on. Hands all over; pulling his hair, digging nails into his shoulders, running down the muscles of his chest. Christ, it had felt so good to see him lost to her touch like that. Even better to lose herself in his.) 
"You're always nervous right about now." Mitte pointed out to him, still going through the case for the bugs she would need and hoping her face hadn't turned beet red. If her voice came out a little strangled at least she could chalk that much up to her own nerves. God, what was wrong with her? It was just sex. They'd both had plenty of it. Hell, Mitte was more than familiar with the fine art of hooking up with a friend. 
Kristoff was more than that though. He was her partner, the guy in the chair watching the room and keeping her safe while she flirted for information, the only person she had a codeword with incase one of them was compromised, the only person who knew where to find her if everyone else thought she'd vanished. Kristoff was the one guy she’d always trusted, and it was an immense relief their slip up didn’t seem to have stopped them working together well, at least, but she could feel the tension of words unsaid. The question was whether it’d be better to air things out or lock the door tight on it all and hope for the best. “...And I know. I’ve got your back, too.” 
It was a friendship she couldn't afford to fuck up, which meant despite how good the sex had been, she was just going to have to stop thinking about it. Mitte leaned across enough to catch her face in the mirror and put the earpiece in, then turned properly to face Kristoff again. "They could've partnered me with someone else." She reminded him, "the chief knows you can handle this, Kristoff. You've got more game than you think." Mitte patted his arm and then moved past him to find her shoes, "worked on me, didn't it?" She cackled, even though the quip drove a bus right through her intention to not think about that night. Oh yeah, it worked alright. Thought if she remembered correctly- and how could she not, with how often it had played over in her head- she’d kissed him first. To be fair, she’d always been the first one to take the leap when they were involved in anything risky. 
Once Mitte had her trainers on and a backpack full of bugs slung over her shoulder she felt a lot more ready, bouncing on the balls of her feet and giving Kristoff’s seduction suit one last lookover. Honestly? She liked him a hell of a lot more in his post workout look, with his sweat making his already tight t-shirt cling to his abs while he poured half his water bottle over his head to cool off, but this was a nice look too. “Ready to turn on the charm?”
KRISTOFF
Kristoff almost choked on nothing at the comment, thrown out there like they had been regularly joking about the ending of their last mission since it had happened rather than furtively avoiding any mention of it at all. Once again he blushed, the link spreading right up to his ears this time and Kristoff loosened that button he’d been debating on, if only so he didn’t feel so claustrophobic. 
It was a good thing, right? That she was joking about it? That was what he and mitte did, they joked about things — they were friends. Best friends. Being with Mitte, whether it was hanging out or working or whatever, had always been as easy as breathing. And knowing Kristoff, knowing his track record, he was gonna ruin that eventually. He was very good at putting his foot in his mouth.
He knew he couldn’t go downstairs looking all flustered so he took a deep breath, ran a hand nervously through his hair which thankfully made it look kind of tousled and teased rather than messy, and gave Mitte a crooked half-smile. “As I’ll ever be.”
He headed for the door, sparing her one last glance before he was gone, heading to the elevators and then down to the ground floor, and into the bar.
The hotel was fancy, the type of place an arms dealer’s cheating wife would be spending the night. There was the low hum of chatter, tables of women in dresses more expensive than the suite they were staying in, men in suits so starched it looked like they could barely move. It was sort of depressing, honestly, but not the first glitzy affair he and Mitte had attended in the line of duty. He spotted their target across the room, sitting at the bar— he hadn’t expected her there, but he supposed it was a good spot to meet someone, if you were looking to.
“I’ve got eyes on Eliza,” he said in a low voice, enough for Mitte to hear in her earpiece, but no one else. “Heading over there now. Wish me luck.”
And with that he headed across the floor to the bar.
MITTE
On a scale of devious to diabolical, where would Mitte fall if she was to just… Skip talking about it, and start joking about it? Kristoff would play along. He’d splutter and he’d huff and then one day he’d crack a joke of his own and it’d become another chapter in the book of shit that happens when you’ve had the same best friend since you were ten and had done so much together now it was hard to tell exactly where the boundary was. Sometimes they made out when they got drunk, sometimes they stole food off each others’ plates, they spent Christmas together, they lived and breathed a job that required nothing less than absolute trust. 
So yeah, the boundary was… Well, flexible. They weren’t even drunk that night, but Kristoff had done a much better job of taking the edge off than whatever cheap little bottles of booze that minibar would’ve stocked. Thankgod there was an actual bar at this place. Still, sweeping what had happened under the rug felt a bit selfish, and Mitte was trying to be better about that, so she should at least ask if Kristoff wanted to discuss it. After the mission, obviously. Neither of them needed that kind of distraction right now. Once the Goodfellow’s were handled, there would be time.
They went their separate ways, and Mitte’s first objective was to find a maids cart, and a master key. This much at least was incredibly routine, even for her, and she could pick the lock of a utility closet in her sleep. “Go get ‘em tiger.” She said softly to Kristoff, glancing both ways down the corridor before slipping back out with the necessary key card and heading towards Eliza’s room.
The work she had to do was quiet, quick, and didn’t require more than one person. Still, she missed Kristoff’s presence, the way they’d silently orbited around each other, him effortlessly reaching for all the high up places she found it tricky to get to while she worked on the more fiddly hiding spots. As it was, this time around there was a lot of dragging the desk chair around the room and climbing on things that shouldn’t be climbed on. At least the furnishings were more structurally sound than the last hotel. (They’d have to go at it really hard to cause any damage here. Which they weren’t going to do. At all.)
“I’ll say this, these guys really know how to secure a clock to the wall.” Mitte huffed, mostly to fill the lonely quiet, “how’s things your end- is she swooning yet?” 
KRISTOFF
He did his best not to laugh. He had been there, done that. Trying to slip bugs inside of lampshades and into the soles of high heels and behind mirrors fixed to the wall. He knew it was, at the best of times, a ball ache. But he thought he would maybe rather be up there doing that than down here launching into… whatever this was.
This being walking up to the bar, striding across the room with as much nonchalance and casual grace that Kristoff could muster, which was a surprising amount. He didn’t seem like the type of person who could be graceful, but spy academy beat any clumsiness right out of you. He approached the bar, only one seat left — conveniently, right next to his mark.
“This seat taken?” He asked, drawing her attention from the drink in her hand.
Without any shame at all she looked him up, down, and over once more, and then smiled coyly. “What would you do if I said yes?”
He took a deep breath, looking up at the ornately painted ceiling for a moment. It was the type of thing Mitte would say; if it were Mitte he’d already have some kind of comeback. “Leave, I suppose,” he said after a moment. Eliza looked back at him, gaze curious, assessing. “Very disappointed.”
She smiled, a small, tucked-away sort of smile. Coy, honestly vaguely threatening. “Good thing it isn’t, then.” She nodded for him to sit; Kristoff took his cue. When the barman came over he ordered a martini, slipping the cash out of the inner pocket over his jacket over the bar. Eliza followed the movement of his hand with her eyes, and Kristoff pretended not to notice, mostly because he had no idea what to do about it just yet.
“And what brings a good looking guy on his own to this kind of bar on a Friday night?” She asked, leaning her head on her hand, elbow propped on the bar.
“Business,” Kristoff replied, smiling simply, hoping he looked as earnest as he could be. Not exactly a lie. He just couldn’t tell her what business.
She hummed, eyebrows arching. “So not pleasure, then?”
He really had not expected things to go this way this fast. He felt like he fumbled, reaching for his drink when the bartender slid the glass towards him. “Well, I…” 
MITTE
It was quite nice to feel like a real spy instead of a pretty doll put on display to distract the bad guy, honestly. Not that it felt that way every time, but the circuits her mind had to run to make sure she was sitting up straight and smiling and pushing her tits up just enough, and the way those guys could leer– god, the things they could say that she just had to giggle at, the way their fingers could dig in when they grabbed at her– well, she was always grateful for whatever quips Kristoff could make down the line to help stop her snapping them like a twig.
Thinking about all that did get her blood going enough that Mitte was finally able to wrench the clock free of its setting to slip a bug in the back before replacing it, and she snickered quietly at Eliza’s forward approach. It did sound like the way Mitte might challenge a man, though coming from Miss Goodfellow it just sounded like a woman not interested in wasting her time. That worked in their favor in the long run; she knew what she wanted and she’d answer slightly strange questions without too much forethought to get it. Kristoff was probably going to need some help, though. Upfront women tended to intimidate him- she would know.
Mitte resisted the urge to rib him about the drink choice- she could call him James Bond later, when he could afford to be distracted- and just listened, whistling through her teeth at Eliza’s continued no nonsense approach. “Stay cool, Casanova.” She hummed, “...Smile at her like you smile at me when you’ve caught me in a stupid lie, and tell her you’re a busy guy and pleasure wasn’t part of the plan, but since you’ve found her you might just have to make time for it.” At least, that was what Mitte would like to hear, that she was worth ruining plans for, so Eliza would probably be all over an ego boost like that.
She wasn’t going to think about whether or not it was a bad idea to imply to Kristoff that she thought the smug little smirk he sometimes threw her way when he won was sexy as all hell. It would be fine, he wasn’t the type to use his powers for evil. (He didn’t even know he had powers. Maybe after Eliza he’d realize.) “Tilt your head a bit… Check her out. And then ask her why she’s all alone, too. But pitch your voice kinda low, like when you’re doing your quiet and angry cop routine.” Secretly, she called it the Sexy and Pissed off cop routine, but absolutely no need to tell him that.
Hey Mitte, what’d you do with your Friday night? Ah, I talked my best friend through seducing an arms dealer's wife. God, she loved her job. She slipped a bug into the tissue box in the bathroom, “I shouldn’t be much longer.” 
KRISTOFF
There was no outward sign of him listening to Mitte’s chatter in his ear, he was too well trained for that, but he took in everything she said without questioning it for a second. Mitte wouldn’t get him into trouble, nor would she jeopardise the mission, and honestly? She was way better at this than he was, so if she had advice, he was going to take it. It was just a case of assembling all the information he’d been given and using it correctly, and he was good at that.
Quiet and angry cop routine– he was good at that, too. Or at least, it had never failed him yet. It also had never been used for seduction before but hey, there was a first time for everything. He gave a soft laugh, like it was amusing, just how forward she was, and directed that smile at his drink. The dumb part was, he played different characters all the time. Quiet angry cop, new guy who just started at the firm, bartender with a shoulder to cry on; being a spy was also a part-time acting job, and he had never worried about it before now. It was just like those other jobs – he just had to keep telling himself that. 
He looked up at Eliza, glad to find her still looking at him, waiting for an answer. That smile was still in place, a little crooked, amused, almost disbelieving, but hopefully charming. “I’m a very busy guy,” He said, parroting Mitte’s words back at Eliza. “Pleasure wasn’t exactly the plan, but..” He pursed his lips and tilted his head, just as directed. He thought he should maybe feel embarrassed, having Mitte in his ear, no doubt making fun of him up there whilst she bugged the room, but honestly? It was good to know he had back up. He made a deliberate show of looking her over, which served not only to make her smile, small and pleased with herself, but to give him more information, too. If she did a runner, he had a pretty good description of her. “I might just have to make time for it.”
He turned to his drink again – for the record, he hated martinis, but he was hoping the vodka might make him feel a little less self conscious. “But what about you?” He asked, looking back up at her again, turning a little to show she had his full attention. “What’s a woman like you doing here all alone?”
“A woman like me?” She asked, one eyebrow arching. Not offended, no – fishing for something, Kristoff assumed.
“C’mon,” He said, earning another smile from her, like they were old friends, having a laugh. “You don’t need me to tell you what you are.”
“It would still be nice to hear it,” She countered, sipping from the glass in her hand. 
“Alright,” He acquiesced, “What brings a good looking woman like you on her own to this kind of bar on a Friday night?”
She laughed, amused, so he did as well. She turned a little towards him in her seat, her own head tilting as she looked at him. She sighed deeply, dramatically, and said, “Looking for company, I suppose. A knight in shining armour, maybe.”
MITTE Quite suddenly, while listening to her sweet talk and imagining her batting her lashes at Kristoff, Mitte decided she hated Eliza Goodfellow. They dealt with a lot of terrible people every day, real nasty criminals who had done unimaginable shit– but Eliza Goodfellow was just a woman who didn’t care how her husband made his money as long as he had a lot of it, and didn’t care where he went as long as it gave her time to flirt with hot strangers at bars!
She shouldn’t be here, flirting with Kristoff. If she just wasn’t here, then it could be– well… It wouldn’t be anyone. If Eliza wasn’t here, then they wouldn’t be here either. Beyond that, getting too emotional over a target was a terrible idea, even if that emotion was hatred, so Mitte had to swallow it all down, but she could not suppress her displeased huff in response to Eliza’s fawning. She was about as subtle as a brick. “Tell her…” Actually, this wasn’t fun at all. But it was her job, so she could do it. “Tell her you don’t own a sword but you do know how to ride a horse.” Mitte frowned, listening to the two of them carry on whilst she did one final sweep of the room to make sure she hadn’t missed any good hiding spots. “And ask why her husband hasn’t swept her up to ride off with her into the sunset, if you think working him into the conversation so early would be okay.” Kristoff seemed to find his groove, which was good for the mission and Mitte refused to think about it beyond that, ignoring her own grimace as she passed the wardrobe mirror on her way back out.
Initially, she’d planned on just heading straight down to the bar to drag Kristoff out of whatever mess his flirting got him into, but something drove her back to their hotel room- two beds this time, because Mitte had personally promised violence if they pulled the same shit again- to dig through her suitcase, and pull out a nicer top. The one with the ditzy kind of floral print she liked, and a sweetheart neckline that always made Kristoff’s eyes drop for just a second. It was a nice bar, so looking like she’d thrown on whatever old thing was going to draw attention that she didn’t want to have. She was just trying to blend in a bit. “I’m on my way down.” Mitte told Kristoff as she stepped into the lift, “you get what we need yet?” 
KRISTOFF
“Well, I don’t have a sword, but I do know how to ride a horse. That good enough?”
It earned a laugh from Eliza, all breathy and coy and maybe she was acting, too. Or maybe she wasn’t — maybe Mitte’s advice was just that good. He couldn’t be sure, but he tried not to act surprised when Eliza leaned a little bit closer, reaching again for her drink. “Close enough.”
He chuckled, shuffling just a little closer himself, almost imperceptibly, but enough for the conversation to feel a little more intimate. Hopefully, anyways. He kept his voice low and soft, hoping he wasn’t about to ruin the entire thing when he said, “So, what? There’s no dashing husband coming to sweep you off your feet and carry you into the sunset?”
“Who said anything about a husband?” Eliza asked, her voice low and sultry, a small smirk on her lips.
Kristoff nodded to the hand she was leaning her head on. “Your ring.”
“Ah,” Eliza murmured. She shifted to set her hand on the bar, looking at the ring. It was a pretty sizeable rock — the guy was definitely rich. “Well, my husband would rather do business deals in Shanghai than take a vacation with his wife.” She tapped her fingers against the bar, looking at the ring for a long moment. Kristoff waited, not wanting to spook her. When she looked up again, she asked, “Does it bother you?”
He hoped Mitte was taking notes. Shanghai— they could look into his dealings, see who he’d done business with there, who might be looking to collaborate. They could be on a flight in a matter of hours. 
Eliza was still waiting for an answer. “No,” Kristoff said, shaking his head. 
Eliza smiled, her other hand shifting, settling on his thigh. “Good.” 
MITTE 
She wondered if Kristoff hated it too, hearing her flirt and giggle with targets. Maybe it was just that, no one really liked hearing lies. Yeah. But seriously, she knew it was useful for their mission and all, but was a stupid rich husband who hardly bothered you not enough? Call Mitte crazy, but it sounded like a decent set up, what did she have to go crawling all over guys like Kristoff for? 
And Mitte meant crawling in the most literal sense, when she walked into the bar and saw them sitting so close together, her hand on his thigh like they'd been flirting all night and not for five minutes. Still, they got Shanghai out of her, and that meant Eliza Goodfellow had fulfilled her purpose. 
She swiped a half finished cosmopolitan- shame she didn't have the patience to order her own and enjoy a few sips- and flagged down a passing waitress, who already had a few half empty glasses on her tray. Mitte pulled a couple of fifties from her purse- would she ever be so used to having money she stopped spending it stupidly?- and set one of them down on the tray, along with the glass. "See that blonde guy over there?" She asked quietly, head tipping towards Kristoff and the vile woman still leaning closer. (He wouldn't know how to stop her, how to end their interaction without a fuss. She had to do it.) "That's my boyfriend. If you happen to trip on your way past and spill these over the woman trying to sit in his lap, I'll give you the other fifty on my way out." 
Now see, Mitte knew hospitality staff. Even in a place like this they didn't make enough for how mad the job drove them. She'd happily pay £100 quid to watch Eliza suffer, and the waitress only had to make a simple mistake. 
So Mitte sat back to watch the scene play out, Eliza and Kristoff so close to each other, and then; Eliza rearing back in horror, screeching like a banshee about whatever stupid designer made her stupid dress. She sidled over, surreptitiously slipping the waitress that second fifty, and grabbing Kristoff's hand to pull him away before he could start fussing over her with napkins. Miss Goodfellow, so consumed with misplaced rage, barely noticed him leaving.
Mitte didn't speak until they were in the elevator again, alone, her tone the epitome of innocence. "I think that went well. Shame about Eliza's dress." 
KRISTOFF
Oh yeah, he had no idea how to extricate himself out of this one. He could do the classic, excuse himself and climb through the air vent in the bathroom, or maybe say he had to take a call and pull the fire alarm on his way out. He had options, he just had very little time to think about them, because Eliza’s hand was at his knee and then his thigh and inching ever higher—
And then it was gone, and he was leaning back, Eliza screaming about useless staff and dry cleaning bills. Kristoff looked down and realised he had faired a bit better, but not by much. His shirt was wet, sticking to his abdomen as Mitte grabbed his hand.
At first Kristoff looked up, wondering if he’d been made — but then he saw Mitte, or rather the back of her head as she made a beeline for the elevator — and felt an overwhelming wave of relief. He was fine and she was fine and they had their intel, and they were going. No shots fired, no covers blown.
He leaned back when the elevator door closed, back to the wall. “Never mind, I guess. Not like she can’t afford another one.” He paused, looking at Mitte for a moment. “You couldn’t think of another way to get me out of there?”
MITTE
She had not thought about Kristoff being in the splash zone. Now, Mitte had seen him in just about every state of undress, distress, and duress a person could be in, so this should not be a problem. And it wasn’t. Except she kept sneaking glances at his abs, and remembering how the muscles had twitched under her hands. Mitte swallowed thickly and turned to look in the mirror instead, fussing with her hair for no reason apart from needing something else to focus on. 
The truth was, yeah, there were plenty of ways to get Kristoff out of the bar, most of them cleaner and cheaper, things they’d done dozens of times before when she’d played the honeypot part. She shrugged, feigning indifference. “It was the first idea that came to me.” At least, she wasn’t lying, but Mitte knew that wasn’t really why she’d gone that route. Subtlety had never really been her style, anyway, so as far as she was concerned this was all very typical behavior, regardless of motive.
The elevator dinged and the doors opened, and Mitte made for their room without waiting or looking back. “So, Shanghai.” She said once they were back in their own space, flopping down onto one of the beds and staring at the ceiling. “Makes sense. A little predictable, but that works for us, I guess, means we stand a chance of finding…” 
Mitte made the mistake of glancing over at Kristoff, who had shucked the suit jacket and was unbuttoning the wet shirt, her sentence trailing off. “Um-” She blinked, and quickly wrenched her gaze back to the ceiling, clearing her throat. “Well, we stand a chance of him working with one of our old informants, right? Not super likely, but I could send out a few messages, see if anyone is down to talk to us.”
KRISTOFF
She was lying, he knew it. Her nonchalance was too forced, not quite right, and it caused a small crease to form between his brows as he frowned. They had much more efficient, much quieter ways of getting each other out of tricky spots like that. They were trained to do it — extraction and destruction were key parts of spy training. Getting yourself out of a situation with as minimal fuss as possible was just what they did, and yet Mitte had chosen to bribe a waitress. Presumably, anyways. Kristoff couldn’t see any waitress working in a place as fancy as that just tripping over nothing.
The doors opened and he stepped out after her, still frowning softly as he watched her walk back to the room. He looked both ways before he slipped inside, making sure no one was watching, and he locked the door once he was in.
He flung his jacket on the bed, untucking his shirt and working on the buttons. He’d have to get changed if they were going to get on a flight. Couldn’t go to the airport looking like he’d spent all of last night and today in a bar (and smelling like it, too). 
He let his shirt flop on a heap on the floor and reached for his duffel, looking for something to wear. “Why’d you do it?” He asked, ignoring her completely. He looked up at her, pausing his search for a clean shirt. “You don’t do the first thing that comes to you — you want to, but you’re trained better.” He knew her, too well. Mitte was impulsive but not dumb. “So why the tray of champagne?”
MITTE 
Yeah, alright. Kristoff's insight shouldn't have surprised her. The fact that he hadn't cottoned on to her reasoning was likely because he couldn't see his nose for his face. The day Kristoff Bjorgman realized he was as hot as he was smart would be a dangerous day for women everywhere. 
Even now he somehow managed to be oblivious, shirtless and huffing at her like he wasn't insanely distracting. It wasn't like she had any right to feel this way. Kristoff was just doing his job, and even if he hadn't been he was allowed to flirt with whoever he wanted. 
Just… Not while Mitte was listening. "Jeez, Kristoff. Allow a lady to have a little fun." She stood back up to get out her laptop, to see about starting to put out feelers in Shanghai, and to have something to hide her face behind. "We both know it would've taken you forever to get yourself out of there, and it's not like she didn't deserve a little karma." 
KRISTOFF
He snagged a t-shirt, plain black and nondescript, a spy’s best friend; they were going to need to blend in. He paused with it in his hand, watching as she went to the laptop. Evasive. And like he said, he knew Mitte to be impulsive, but he didn’t know her to be sloppy. And maybe she was right, it would have taken a while for him to get himself out of there, but he could’ve done it. Or Mitte could’ve done it, just in a subtler way. He frowned softly, wishing she would just talk to him, and then remembering that talking about important things wasn’t really something they did nowadays. If they talked about whatever this was then they might have to talk about their last mission and Kristoff didn’t even know where to begin with that–
He pulled the shirt over his head, crouching down again to begin shoving things into his duffel. Might as well get ready to leave – they would be gone sooner rather than later. He paused, looking up at Mitte, still focused on her laptop. It wasn’t– the two things couldn’t be related. Could they? If Mitte was hiding something then that was strange, but it wasn’t strange if she was hiding something because it was something they weren’t talking about…
Kristoff, having confused himself, shook his head. “I guess.” He said eventually, watching Mitte for a moment. “Though, y’know, I don’t appreciate you doubting my skills. I was starting to get the hang of it.” 
He was only joking – he was waiting for her to look up, grinning just a little.
MITTE 
To say her face felt hot wouldn't be accurate, rather, there was some fiery thing pulsing behind her eyes that she didn't really understand. Mitte liked being friends with Kristoff. It was easy, it almost always had been, so whatever silly ideas her brain was conjuring up now it could just bloody well stop. The last thing they needed was complications. 
Things were fine. Nothing needed to change, she just had to get a grip. (But things were already changing, weren't they? If she noticed him tugging on a t-shirt out of the corner of her eye and wanted to tell him to take it off again.) It wasn't like it mattered that she was feeling so nuts anyway, maybe Kristoff could fool the rest of the world but he couldn't fool her, and if he's ever felt this way watching her flirt with targets she would know about it. 
So, he dropped it, but then he picked up something just as bad. Mitte huffed, still hiding behind her screen. Work. She was meant to be working. Shanghai contacts. "...You did great, Kristoff." She told him, honest, if a touch bitter about admitting it. "Pat yourself on the back. Top notch flirting, she was eating out of your hand." Mitte reached for her hoodie and zipped it all the way up, feeling stupid she'd even bothered to change her top. What did she want from Kristoff, anyway? "Well we got her room bugged, so if he moves on from Shanghai we'll probably hear about it. It'll probably take our contacts a while to get back to us. We should just pack up and get going." 
KRISTOFF
She was teasing him, which was a good sign, but she wasn’t looking at him, which made him frown again. He hated feeling like things were off, like there was something standing in the middle of them. He hated to think that he had ruined his and Mitte’s friendship, that he continued to ruin it by not being able to talk about it, and risked ruining it further by keep thinking about it. It being the urge to kiss her, to throw that laptop out the window and ask if she remembered what they did last time they were in a hotel room together—
He pursed his lips, nodded. Right. They had a job to do. He had a job to do, he was a professional. He took a breath and then cast his gaze around the room, reaching for the last few bits and pieces that he needed. He swapped his dress shoes out for his boots and grabbed his jacket, ready to go. He didn’t exactly want to — he wanted to know why Mitte was so sullen. Was she regretting this? Working with him again? If she was, he wished she’d just tell him. If she left after this and never spoke to him again… he didn’t know what he’d do.
“I’ll call us a cab,” he said, lingering by the door. “You can check us out — I’ll meet you outside.”
MITTE 
What would he say? If Mitte came out with the ugly truth of it, her unreasonable possessiveness, would Kristoff even believe her? Would he care? Would he think she was being ridiculous? Just another of Mitte’s silly mood swings, another this is how it is and you just have to go with it. Kristoff had taken a lot of her absurdities in stride over the course of their friendship, every stupid whim and bit of self sabotage. Something would have to break the damn eventually, and Mitte would hate for it to be something she couldn’t even pin down a reasonable explanation for. 
So she kept her mouth shut, packed up her stuff, and checked them out of the hotel. 
They’d been on countless plane journeys, and depending on their individual moods their interactions ranged from driving each other up the wall, keeping each other entertained, and companionable silence. This… Was none of that. This was stony and awkward and Mitte nearly jumped out of her damn skin every time their elbows brushed on the shared armrest. 
She called their boss when they landed to get hotel details and give him a rundown of their plan, chattering away as Kristoff navigated the streets- still so busy, even at this time of night- to get them safely to where they were staying. Even annoyed at her as he must be- and she could practically feel it radiating off him- he directed her without comment, making sure she didn’t run into anyone or turn down the wrong street.
Being the booming center of business it was, their room here was even more upscale than the last place, all sleek and shiny, and Mitte wondered how many of the little liquor bottles she could snatch from the fridge before Kristoff said anything. “Okay… It’s pretty late, so, boss said we can just hole up in our room tonight doing research and hit the ground running with our search properly tomorrow.” 
KRISTOFF
Kristoff wasn’t quiet because he was annoyed or mad or anything like that — Kristoff was quiet because he was thinking. 
Alright so maybe he was overthinking, or maybe he was reading too hard between the lines but he just couldn’t shake the feeling that something was wrong. Mitte was hiding something from him. And they never hid anything from each other, at least not until all this. Besides, he didn’t feel like he was really hiding anything. The way he had to look away sometimes when she was all dressed up ready for the mission, the way he had blushed when her hand had brushed his neck. He was a spy, he was good with secrets, but not when it came to Mitte.
She had seemed… normal, before they’d gone their separate ways. They’d had the same kind of banter they always did and then out of nowhere she was sullen and closed off and Kristoff didn’t know what had happened. Something, he supposed, between Mitte going to bug the room and coming down to join him in the bar. He could’ve gotten more intel probably, if he’d been left to it for a minute longer. Shanghai was a big place, maybe he could’ve narrowed it down, or gotten an idea of where he might be headed to next, but Mitte had swooped in pretty quickly and had shut everything down before—
Oh.
The lightbulb flicked on above Kristoff’s head somewhere over Russia. He glanced at Mitte out of the corner of his eye and said nothing, staring resolutely at the airplane seat in front of himself.
He was being stupid. He’d added two and two and gotten five. There was no way that Mitte— that she— he couldn’t even really articulate it. He pushed it to one side; he got them to their hotel and checked them into their room and was so decided that he wasn’t going to say anything at all until he was stood there, watching Mitte eye the mini bar.
He wanted to say okay, sounds good, but instead he said, “Were you— were you mad at her? Eliza?”
MITTE
She hated this. She was a talker! Especially to Kristoff, who she’d seen curled into himself in a corner in highschool and decided, yeah, I can probably fuck with that guy. Then he looked up, and he smiled at her, and for whatever reason Mitte decided to just… Talk to him. And he listened, and then suddenly they were friends. 
Before now she’d always known what to say to him. But now there was a stupid little voice in Mitte’s head, telling her to ruin some lady’s dress just because she put her hand on his leg, or to run her hand over his abs, or kiss him just to wipe the frown off his face. God, this was why friends didn’t sleep together, it didn’t just blur the line, it put all sorts of experiences in your head that you shouldn’t have. How was she supposed to be indifferent to someone else leaning in to kiss Kristoff, when she knew how good kissing him felt? 
Mad. Mitte sat with the word for a moment, eyes narrowed a bit at Kristoff, thinking. Was she mad? No, no, mad wasn’t the right word. Eliza was just doing what she probably did every night, cheating on her husband. Mitte didn’t care about any of those other guys. It bothered her because Kristoff was part of the equation.
…Ah. Oh god. Jealous? No. Maybe. That was ridiculous, she had no right. Kristoff was just doing his job. This worked. This was good, they worked better together than with other partners.  "No." Mitte said after a few beats of quiet, going about getting her laptop and shoving her bag under one of the beds, "no, I wasn't mad at her. You wanna listen to her room recording a while and see if she's said anything useful? I'll see if anyone got back in touch with us about her husband."
KRISTOFF
No, he didn’t want to listen to the room recording. He doubted Eliza was going to say anything too useful except for a lot of swearing and angry ranting about useless waitstaff, so he figured it could wait. They had time, and besides, it wasn’t like he’d be able to focus. Mitte wasn’t mad, fine. Which meant that there was really only one other thing it could be, as far fetched and ludicrous as the idea was.
“You were jealous of her.”
He said it so matter-of-factly that he almost startled himself. Listen, he could only work with the intel he had, and what he had was Mitte instructing him on how to flirt and then coming downstairs and seeing her good advice out to work and sending a waitress to ruin the mark’s dress. She wasn’t mad, and Kristoff honestly thought he might be kind of upset if she really doubted his ability to get himself out of a tricky situation that much—
“Right?” He asked, immediately doubting himself. But then, no— he couldn’t leave any room for doubt, or Mitte wouldn’t admit to anything. Stronger, he said, “I’m right, aren’t I?”
MITTE
Unfortunately, for as hapless as he could come across, Kristoff was really the brains behind the partnership. Mitte wasn't surprised when he figured it out so fast, and she tried not to react, but she could feel her face heating up. 
She couldn't say nothing. That was as good as admitting it anyway, and Kristoff sounded too adamant to be distracted. Mitte closed her eyes for a moment and heaved a soft sigh before looking at him over the top of the laptop, "...You don't have to tell me I'm being ridiculous. I already know." She glanced again at the minibar, and wondered what he was thinking. 
Alright, so the reason they'd never talked about what happened at the last hotel was because Mitte had never brought it up, and she knew that, but Kristoff… He'd never shown that kind of interest in her. Before or since. And even if he had, they both knew what a terrible idea it was. Messy and dangerous and easy to take advantage of. "You were doing your job. I just… didn't like hearing it. Or seeing it. I should've gotten you out of there quieter, I wasn't thinking. It won't happen again." It was stupid and dangerous and he'd have every right to decide to work with someone who wasn't going to cause that kind of fuss. Still, selfishly, Mitte wished he wouldn't. 
KRISTOFF
He looked at her for a long moment, watching Mitte as she looked everywhere but him. His gaze didn’t shift, and though he was listening to her it took him a second to actually register what it was she was saying. She hadn’t come out and said yes, but she wasn’t saying no — Mitte was stubborn enough that Kristoff knew she would never come out and say it outright so this was probably as good as it was going to get.
It won’t happen again. Why did she think he would be upset about it? She had to know how he felt about her. It wasn’t like he could hide it, though he tried his best to. His opinion most of the time was that Mitte was the smarter of the two of them but right now? 
He should just nod and say okay and let it go. They had a mission to complete, intel to gather. They knew their mark was in Shanghai but Shanghai was a big place, and they needed to try and narrow that down. 
He didn’t do that, though. He crossed the room in a few quick strides and took Mitte’s face in his hands, kissing her like it might be the last chance he got. More like making up for lost time, he supposed. How much could they have been doing this since the last mission they’d gone on?
He pulled away after a moment, one hand falling to her waist. He didn’t go too far, keeping her close as he looked down at her. “You’re an idiot.”
MITTE
She wanted to kick herself. Or jump out the window. Or run across the room and put her hand over Kristoff’s mouth before he could say anything that made this worse, tell him to just forget she’d even talked. How long would they be able to keep it up this time? If Mitte shut this down before it started and they returned to their own homes and their own lives with her uncertainty creating a rift all over again, would they find their way back to each-other a second time? The truth was, Mitte was pretty uninterested in life without Kristoff, and she’d take whatever he wanted to offer her. It might not be easy, but she’d be able to keep the jealousy under wraps, even if the feeling of it had settled in her gut like a lead weight.. She’d do practically anything to keep him. 
But then he was grabbing her and kissing her and kissing him back was easy. Like breathing. Mitte made a small noise of surprise, and all the tension she’d been carrying since before they even left for Shanghai melted off her shoulders. Her hands crept up Kristoff’s abs until her palms could settle on his chest, and she resisted the urge to twist the material of his shirt in her fists until it could be ripped off. 
For a moment after he pulled away, Mitte stared up at him with no clue what they were supposed to do next. They’d crossed this line before and they knew how it ended. But then her brain caught up to what he’d said, and she huffed. “I’m the idiot? Tch, it took you all the way to Shanghai to figure out what the issue was!” Nevermind that it had taken her just as long to name it. “And, may I point out, a smart man wouldn’t have called me an idiot right after kissing me, if he was hoping he’d get to do it again.” Though, she barely made a move to get out of Kristoff’s grip, only gently pushing her hands against his chest. 
KRISTOFF
“It was a calculated risk,” he argued with a grin, leaning down to kiss her again, a little softer this time but just as heated, the same desperation behind it. He knew she would let him— because she had been jealous. Because she didn’t want anyone else flirting with him, because she wanted him. The thought alone was enough to make him giddy. “You’re the idiot because I’ve liked you since— I don’t even know since when. And I suck at hiding it.” 
He did. He was obvious, at least he thought he was. Blushing when she touched him and finding excuses to be with her and a million other little things that gave away just how obsessed with her he was. He dropped his other hand to her waist, both hands sliding round to the small of her back so he could pull her closer again, even with her hands on his chest, pushing back a little. “We could listen to the room recording,” he said, looking down at her. “Or we could make up for lost time?”
MITTE
He kissed her again and Mitte didn’t move or protest, all but melting against him. She’d never had a lot of friends. Mitte’s temperament wasn’t exactly easy to handle, and she was picky to boot. Kristoff was the only person in her life who she had let stick around for so long. So when Kristoff said they were best friends, well, she took that and ran with it. She didn’t care if other people said they were too close, or they did things best friends didn’t do- Kristoff was the one she trusted, and he’d never kicked up a fuss that they were doing this or that wrong. But apparently he’d liked her for who knew how long, so of course he wouldn’t have an issue with that stuff! Stuff Mitte had never had an issue with either, admittedly. All the touching and the secrets between just them and how boring it was to do anything at all if they weren’t doing it together. 
Her blood hummed with satisfaction at having him so close, and really, her possessiveness wasn’t new. Whenever Kristoff worked well with another agent she managed to find at least some small and silly thing wrong with them, so that she could point it out to him, and maybe he wouldn’t work with them again. This of course was all under the guise of looking out for him, but maybe… Yeah, it was possible she’d been jealous this whole time. 
“Okay.” Mitte said softly, conceding to perhaps the only person she was happy to lose an argument against, her arms sliding further and up around his shoulders, bringing him closer. “Your poker face is better than you think. But…I’m the idiot.” And then they were kissing again, Mitte popping up on her tiptoes to be closer, to press their bodies together better, as her hands carded through Kristoff’s hair. 
KRISTOFF
He didn’t think it was just her, for the record. He was pretty stupid too. It had taken him a very long flight to figure out what was going on and even then he hadn’t been too sure of himself. But he was too busy kissing her to really think about telling her that — in fact, as her fingers ran through his hair he stopped thinking about anything, everything falling away except for Mitte’s hands and the heat of her body, pressing up against his own.
He reached down, hands slipping over the swell of her ass to grip the backs of her thighs, pulling her up so she could wrap her legs around his waist. He thought that was going to be easier than trying to stumble backwards towards the bed. He twisted, stepped towards it until he could lay her down onto it, kissing over her jaw and her neck as he shifted to hover over her. 
“Is this okay?” He asked, pausing once again to look at her. Wanting to be sure, before they took things too far, and did something else they couldn’t talk about in the morning.
MITTE
He liked her. He liked her, and he was kissing her, and Mitte’s head was spinning with ‘what if this’ ‘what if that’ scenarios. Things she didn’t want to think about right now– things that could wait. The present felt far more urgent than any of that, especially as Kristoff was scooping her up, and she was so familiar with the calluses of his palms she could practically feel them through her jeans. 
The pent up frustration that had driven their last encounter- at least, it had driven Mitte and she’d thought they were on the same page at the time, but now she was curious to know from Kristoff’s perspective- was missing, replaced with a desperation that felt more real. She’d barely registered they were going anywhere until the plush mattress was against her back, all her limbs tangled around Kristoff’s body, head tipping to the side to offer him more of her neck.
Is this okay. Mitte turned her head back to look at him, already a bit out of breath. She could say no. It would be a lie, but she could say it and Kristoff would stop and they could get back to work and this might never happen again. Maybe that was what should’ve happened last time. Once was an accident. Twice was a decision. “Actually, no.” Mitte’s brows furrowed, but the rest of her face couldn’t stay so composed, a smile already stealing her mouth as she gripped at the material of his shirt where it bunched a little around his shoulders, “this thing is really throwing me off. It’s gotta go.” 
KRISTOFF
For a second his brow creased, a small frown appearing. Of course if she meant it, if she didn’t want to do this that was fine, he would understand. They had to work together, and if this was going to complicate things, or it was going to ruin their friendship… he didn't want to make things difficult. Even though it felt easy — as easy as breathing, with Mitte.
But then she was tugging at his shirt and Kristoff rolled his eyes, breaking into a grin. He leaned down to press another kiss to her lips, feeling already like he’d gone too long without it before he sat back until he was kneeling, pulling his shirt up and over his head and away to one side. “This better?” He asked, eyebrows arched. He didn’t move back to lean over her, looking down at her instead, committing the sight of her beneath him to memory just in case.
MITTE
She was cackling at Kristoff’s response until he silenced her with his mouth, and her hands came up to cup his face for just a brief moment- a thankyou, for his sweetness, or for taking her seriously- before he was pulling away to take off the t-shirt. God, the things she’d thought about doing to those abs. Seriously, how did she miss it? How many people get distracted fantasising about their best friends’ abs? “Much better.” Mitte’s smile was satisfied as she reached out, though her arms weren’t quite long enough to touch him where he’d settled, so she surged up to kiss him again, her hands skating down his chest and over his abs. 
“I didn’t tell the waitress to spill the drinks on you, too.” She thought Kristoff might like her candidness, so she made the confession between little kisses peppered along his jaw, her arms circling his waist to map the muscles of his back. “I only told her to get Eliza. I think you looked better when the suit was wet, though.” Maybe that was just Mitte; she liked her men a bit dishevelled. 
KRISTOFF
He was glad when she rose up to meet him, kissing her hard enough to take his breath away when she pulled back. His stomach twitched under her touch, muscles tensing for a second before he relaxed, pushing her hair over her shoulder. 
“Yeah, I figured,” he murmured, bringing her close for another kiss, one hand on her neck, the other at the hem of her shirt, fiddling with the fabric between his fingers. He had figured both that she hadn’t meant for it to happen and that she had preferred it — she hadn’t been able to look at him, after all. He kissed her again, slipping his hand fully under her shirt, skirting over the soft skin of her stomach to the small of her back.
MITTE 
Kristoff was so reactive. It was unsurprising, because he always was, and yeah, she'd missed it. How? She spotted liars for a living! 
It was at this point Mitte remembered the bra she was wearing. Nothing wrong with it, yknow, definitely clean. But she'd been in work mode, so it was also definitely function over style, plain white, boring. Obviously the same had been true last time, and Kristoff would not care less. Still, it was a shame she wasn't wearing something sexier. Maybe next time. 
(Next time?) 
Mitte nipped at his bottom lip, "got me all figured out now, huh?" She hummed against Kristoff’s mouth, pushing gently on his shoulders so she could shift to straddle his lap. She leaned back enough to tug off her top and toss it away, then pressed into him again to kiss down his neck. 
KRISTOFF
He wished that was the truth. Mitte was the type that seemed all mysterious and aloof but she wasn’t, not really, not in the way everyone assumed she was. No, Mitte was a mystery in other ways. The intricacies of her heart were still something Kristoff couldn’t quite figure out, only chipping away at the first little bit of them today, and he’d needed a long haul flight and a taxi ride through Shanghai to get there. He didn’t have Mitte figured out at all.
“Trying to,” He replied, muffled against the newly exposed skin of her collarbone. He sucked a mark into the skin there, not one that would last for too long, fading by morning, probably, but long enough for him to feel proud of his work. He pressed a kiss over it, tilting his head up to catch her lips again, hands skirting over her ribs to grip onto her hips.
MITTE 
A soft moan escaped when he sucked at her skin, and for a moment Mitte thought of their training together, the smug look that would flash across Kristoff's face whenever he managed to leave a mark. She muffled a small laugh in his neck, then he was kissing her again and it stopped being funny, her hips rocking into his as he grabbed her. 
"I gave you the clues already.." Mitte reminded him, her fingers trailing lightly down his stomach  they hit the waistband of his jeans, "or did you think I'd somehow done research into how she liked to be flirted with?" 
KRISTOFF
Okay, Kristoff hadn’t actually thought of it that way.
At the time he was just working under the assumption that Mitte was being a good friend, and giving him the tools he needed to get the job done. Plus, he’d been so nervous he wouldn’t have even realised if she’d spelled it out for him. He wished he could say it was because he was focused on the job, but… no. Definitely nerves.
Now he tried to think about what she’d told him, and he tilted his head, eyes roaming over her slowly. When he spoke he did his best not to sound too strangled (difficult, with her hand in the waistband of his jeans), keeping his voice low and firm, that Sexy Pissed Off Cop voice — and yeah, he knew she called it that. Angela in Tech had told him once. “And here I thought you were just helping out a friend.”
MITTE
This wasn’t like last time. For Mitte, at least, it had been like scratching an itch. A way to deal with all her energy while they were stuck in that hotel room. What had it been for Kristoff? Had he been into her already back then, or did it start that night? She supposed it didn’t really matter, since they seemed to be on the same wavelength now. 
A little thrill chased down her spine when Kristoff dropped his voice, and Mitte found herself sitting up a bit straighter. Nothing called her to attention faster than that tone. Obviously most of the time when he used it there was an interrogation or the like going on, but now it was directed at her… Well, hopefully Kristoff would only use the power for good. “I was helping.” she promised, her face projecting a picture of perfect innocence, like she wasn’t toying with the button of his jeans. 
“I didn’t realise I’d hate hearing it until you’d already started flirting.” Mitte pouted and shook her head, “I don’t know how you do it, listen to me sweet talk targets all the time. You’ve never bribed a waitress to spill drinks on me.” 
KRISTOFF
Yeah alright so he couldn’t keep it up for long, the way she sat to attention making him smile against her skin, nose skimming her collarbone as his head dipped lower, kisses pressed over the curve of her breast. He huffed softly, trying to look as unamused as he could when he was met with her best innocent act, though that didn’t last long either. Couldn’t, not with her hands skirting around the waistband of his jeans.
He didn’t really know what to say to that, though. He would be a liar if he said it didn’t affect him. The slight pang of jealousy that he had for so long mistook for protectiveness, curdling in his stomach whilst some creep ran a hand over Mitte’s thigh or leaned in a little too close. He shifted to run his hands over her hips, dipping his head again. “You get used to it.” He said finally, his right hand lingering at her waist whilst the left ran up the length of her body, fingers skirting up and over her ribs to cup her breast, thumb rubbing over her nipple through the thin fabric. “Probably ruined that now, though. Maybe next time I’ll bribe the maitre d’ to pull the fire alarm.”
MITTE 
She was quite quickly becoming frustrated with how many clothes they both had on. Maybe it was her fault– she was always the leader when they did something reckless, Kristoff was probably letting her set the pace. Especially in this arena where he’d been waiting, she didn’t know how long, for her feelings to catch up with his. Had their feelings caught up? Mitte- she hadn’t really had time to think about hers too much, except to realise that they existed. Though he’d probably been denying them as much as he could, Kristoff must have a better idea of just how deep his feelings ran. All Mitte could say for sure right now was that she wanted more.
As much as she loathed the idea of getting used to seeing him in these situations- and she did very much, giving a displeased huff as he voiced it-  she knew Kristoff was right. They were going to have to get used to a lot. Seeing him get hurt– god, it had always been awful, but now? Mitte didn’t even want to think about it, actually, certainly not right now. Her body arched into the touch of his hand, head falling back as she hummed in pleasure. “Fuck, I’d like to see that.” She said, her voice a breathless laugh, picturing Kristoff all wound up over someone putting their hands on her. Mitte slid her hands up into his hair and got real close, until their mouths were almost touching, a coy smirk on her lips. “I bet it would be hot.” And then she kissed him, leaning back and pulling Kristoff with her until she’d collapsed back against the mattress, him hovering over her, so she could finally get at the zipper of his jeans properly and start pushing them down. “Off.” She demanded against his mouth when she’d moved them as far as she could reach, taking her hands off Kristoff long enough to start removing her own jeans. 
KRISTOFF
He went easily, more than happy to situate himself over her, too busy kissing her to even notice the change in position at first. He wasn’t going to argue — he shifted only so that he could get his jeans off and throw them blindly onto the floor, crumpled in a heap somewhere, probably. He wasn’t really thinking about that either, too focused on getting back to Mitte so he could help to wrangle her jeans down her legs, tossing them to one side as well once they were out the way. 
He settled again between her thighs, running his hands over the soft skin of them, up and over until he came to a stop at her hips, thumbs rubbing over the fabric of her panties. “It would be stupid,” he informed her in the same low voice, leaning down to kiss her again, slow and deep. He pulled back, kissing across her jaw, down her neck, a trail of kisses and gentle nips until his lips met the same material that his thumbs were still toying with. “We’d get in trouble.” He added, speaking the words into her skin.
MITTE 
They were going to have to play catch up in the morning, and Mitte didn’t care one bit. She hoped none of her contacts got back to her and Mr Goodfellow was the most impossible to find man in the world, so they had plenty of excuses to stay cooped up in a hotel in Shanghai, far away from their boss and their real lives. The two things that would put the biggest strain on this. Whatever this was. But of course, they were too good at their jobs, and they’d probably find the bloke by tomorrow afternoon. 
So, Mitte was just going to have to soak all this in right now, and it was easy to focus up, especially when Kristoff dropped his voice again. A shiver ran through her whole body when he spoke and Mitte opened her mouth, intent on saying something cheeky, but he stole her mouth first and her want to antagonise him crumbled under the intensity of their kiss. 
As he made his way down her body the only sounds Mitte managed to make were those of pleasure, soft little moans and catches of breath. Eventually though, her voice did come back. “Are you trying to discourage me?” She asked, voice a touch strangled, as one of her hands found its way into Kristoff’s hair again, "you know how I feel about trouble…"  Her hips shifted of their own accord, impatient for whatever he had in mind to do next, “wouldn’t you like to see me punished?” Mitte pushed up onto her elbows to look down at him, one brow arched. 
KRISTOFF
Yeah, he had expected exactly that reaction from her. He hid a smile in the skin of her stomach, looking up at her when she sat up a little. He could go for the innocent act, he supposed — he was good at playing dumb, usually because he was, in fact, pretty dumb — but it was so much more fun to see the way she reacted to that voice. It was meant to be gruff, intimidating. It was gruff and intimidating. She just liked that, he supposed.
“Sure,” he answered, shifting up a little so that he wasn’t resting on his elbows, hooking his fingers under the fabric of her panties so he could begin to tug them down her legs and out the way. “If I can do the punishing.”
Now that might have been his best performance yet— he didn’t even know where it had come from. Mildly embarrassed, mostly rolling with it, he kept his eyes down, hands running over the inside of her thighs until he could run his thumb along her slit, just brushing over her clit. “And anyways, I’d get in trouble too.” 
Mitte 
Yeah, Mitte did like gruff and intimidating. Kinda funny that she had ended up as one of the good guys, honestly. It was Kristoff that made all the difference. One of the only constants in her life, and one of the good guys through and through. Mitte’s moral compass had a polarity problem, Kristoff was the magnet that brought her back to true north every time she strayed. 
Hey, she didn’t need real bad guys if he could put on the voice and make her feel like she was melting into a puddle on their hotel bed. Mitte lifted her hips a little to help him with her underwear, her eyes going wide at what he said. Oh, yes please. She stared down at him, all hunger and anticipation, but her head lolled back when he finally touched her, pleasure shooting up her spine. 
"If this is how you punish me I'm gonna do something bad every day." Mitte moaned, one of her hands already twisted in the sheets. "Fine." Though she would have enjoyed him being jealous enough to cause a scene, she never liked getting Kristoff in trouble. "No more bribing waitstaff." She sighed, trying to wriggle closer to his teasing hands. 
KRISTOFF
This was so different to last time. Last time had been a flurry of clothes flying off, hands and mouths everywhere, no time for talking cause they were far too preoccupied— this was different. More intimate somehow, and Kristoff wanted to draw it out. He wanted to take his time. The way she moaned, her white knuckle grip on the sheets. He wanted to drink all of it in and commit it to memory, just in case.
He stifled a laugh against the inside of her thigh, the pad of his thumb rubbing slow, teasing circles over her clit, wanting to take his time but desperate to hear her make those sounds again. “I don’t think you mean that.” He said, if only because he knew her — Mitte had a habit of getting herself into trouble.
Deciding he had no more argument to make, he shifted, bringing his mouth down to replace his thumb, humming softly at the taste of her.
MITTE
He was so pretty. Mitte was staring down at Kristoff between her legs, his mouth pressed into her thigh, his blond hair falling into his eyes… And thought he was so pretty. She'd noticed before, obviously, but in this context it made something in the pit of her stomach feel funny. When had this happened? When had how she cared about him become this, and with such ease she hadn't even realised?
She was going to protest- to be surely or seductive, something about being a good girl, that might have tripped him up, but as she was watching him Kristoff dipped his head and the only noise Mitte managed to make was a strangled gasp.
"Kristoff." She moaned, needy and soft as she fell back into the mattress fully again, writhing and rocking her hips up into the pleasure of his mouth. One of Mitte’s hands slid down her body to tangle in his hair and she pulled gently, gauging how he'd like the encouragement.
KRISTOFF
The way she said his name was one thing, the kind of her voice making heat pool in his stomach, but he groaned as her hand slipped into his hair. The grip on her hips tightened just a little, not wanting to hold on too hard but wanting her to know that yeah, she could do more of that. Maybe things were a little less slapdash than they had been last time but that didn’t mean they had to be gentle, either. Not as far as he was concerned, anyways.
He lapped at her clit, tongue stroking small circles around it before he shifted a little, dipping his tongue inside of her just enough to properly taste her, humming low in his throat when he did. He didn’t linger, though, moving his mouth back to her clit so he could slip a finger inside of her instead, looking up so he could watch her as he did his best to make her moan like that again.
MITTE
Oh yeah, Kristoff liked that. Good to know that it hadn’t been an anomaly that first time. (Something that crossed her mind far more often than it should: the way he’d scooped Mitte up and slammed her back against the wall, like he just couldn’t contain himself.) Mitte’s fingers slid against his scalp and she pulled more firmly at his hair. 
Her toes curled as Kristoff pushed a finger inside her, and Mitte tried to be conscious of keeping her noise to a reasonable level, but they’d just have to hope that a classy joint like this had decent soundproofing. “More more more.” She asked- pleaded, maybe, perhaps whined- her hips grinding into his hand and mouth. 
While he teased, Mitte reached around her back with her free hand to unclasp her bra finally, letting go of Kristoff’s hair only long enough to pull the straps off both arms and toss it to the side. 
KRISTOFF
As nice as it was to hear her asking for it, he wasn’t going to make her beg. He slid a second finger inside of her alongside the first, crooking them just a little so he could find the spot that would make her forget all about how well soundproofed the room may or may not be. He couldn’t have cared less, really — if anything, it was good for their cover story.
He looked up again when her hand slid from his hair, already missing the feeling of her nails scratching across his scalp. He was easily distracted, though, his gaze following her bra as it was tossed across the room. Somehow, in his haste to get to where he was now, he had forgotten all about it. Stupid of him, really. Next time (because there would be a next time, there had to be, he was sure of it), he wouldn’t be so careless.
Especially not now, knowing what he had been missing. The urge to shift, to kiss his way back up her body until he could run his tongue over her breasts, take the sensitive flesh of her nipple into his mouth and roll his tongue over it just to see her reaction was kind of overwhelming. He did pull back just a little, though, when he saw the light glinting off the jewellery there. “Are those—“ he was a little breathless, and just a little bit at a loss for words, hair falling into his eyes. The rhythm of his fingers slowed but didn’t stop, pressing into her almost leisurely. “Yknow those piercings have gotta be a safety hazard.”
MITTE
She didn’t have the focus needed to stop the sharp, open mouthed cry of pleasure that Kristoff teased out of her so easily with his fingers, her hips bucking up into the sensation, chasing the feeling that was starting to make the muscles of her thighs shake. God, if he kept this up she’d be a boneless mess before they even fucked. 
Since getting them, she had experienced a range of reactions to the nipple piercings. Kristoff, out to break the mould as always, was the first person to call them a safety hazard.
Mitte managed to gather enough of her wits to huff, hauling herself back up onto her elbows. “If you can’t find something better to do with your mouth than talk about my tits being a safety hazard, I’m putting my clothes back on.” Mitte warned, though the threat was lacking any bite, breathless and wanton as she still was, her hips still rocking into Kristoff’s fingers, all the more maddening for the pace he had slowed to. She cocks a brow at him, a challenge. “Be normal, and tell me they’re sexy, or shut up.” It’s a facade which lasts all of a few seconds before the push of his hand has her head rolling back again. 
KRISTOFF
He knew that was an empty threat; there was no way she was putting her clothes back on, and no way he would let her do it anyhow. Alright, so he hasn’t really meant for that to be his only comment — but excuse him for having his brain short circuit when he learned about the piercings. Had she always had those? Surely not, cause he would’ve noticed, so when—?
His brain was still sparking out trying to comprehend it all so in the finish he gave up, focusing instead on the way her hips rolled into his hand, movements synchronising. 
“They’re sexy,” he informed her, because it was true, they were sexy, enough to hold his attention completely for a few seconds longer before his mouth found its way between her legs again.
MITTE
Now, she was rarely happy to admit defeat, but in this one instance, Mitte gladly conceded to Kristoff. His mouth, his hands, the way he gave her what she wanted. He could win every day of the week if this was her consolation prize. She gave up on the idea of coherent sentences, the warmth that had started to stir in her gut way back when Kristoff had kissed her bubbling all the way up until it was boiling, making her whole body arch and twist in whatever direction brought the most pleasure. Mitte’s hand reached down into his hair again, pulling and desperate as sensations built, her moans reaching a crescendo as she came undone, going very still for just a moment before collapsing back into the mattress, all but boneless and satisfied and panting.
Well, satisfied? Maybe not the right word. Sated temporarily, perhaps. Certainly not finished. The rush of adrenaline made her hands a little shaky, but Mitte pulled at Kristoff’s hair again with what strength she could gather, trying to drag him back up. “C’mere.” She said softly, a bit dazed and blinking up at the ceiling. “Kiss me.” 
KRISTOFF
The hand in his hair and the feeling of her clenching around him, coming undone around his fingers and under his tongue was almost too much. Another thing to try and commit to memory, though; he watched her as she fell apart and then waited for to come back again, pressing soft kisses to the inside of her thighs until he felt the tug on his hair.
He didn’t need to be told twice — he shifted up onto his knees so that he could hover over her, shelter her in with one hand by her head and the other skirting over the soft skin of her ribs. He was already hard and aching with wanting her but when he kissed her it was slow, deep, deliberately taking his time.
MITTE
She had a renewed appreciation for Kristoff’s ability to follow orders so well. Sometimes it was kind of a buzzkill, but she might never complain about it again after tonight. (Or if she did, he’d have to remind her how much she really liked it.) 
Mitte’s hands splayed out on his chest as they kissed, then slid around to his back, where her nails scratched lightly up and down. She hummed her pleasure against his mouth as the kiss slowed for both of them to take a breath, and smiled up at Kristoff, something soft and dreamy that became far cheekier as she spoke. “Can you guess what I want you to do to me next?” She asked, trying to pull him down more firmly on top of her while her hips arched up to grind against his, the hard length of him such a tease against her oversensitive skin that it made Mitte whimper. Her hands roamed down to his boxers, to start pushing them down.
KRISTOFF
The scratch of her nails over his skin made him shiver, the muscles of his back twitching, shifting under his skin. It was enough for him to catch his breath every now and again, pulling away for just a second before he would find himself being pulled back in again, drawn towards her, her lips. He kissed her slowly, almost lazily, as if they had all the time in the world.
They didn’t, of course, but the mission was the last thing on his mind right now. He gave a soft, strangled sounding moan when she rolled her hips up against his, letting her pull him close, firmer as he hovered over her. He knew exactly what she was wanting, and though he didn’t bat her hands away from the waistband of his boxers he didn’t help her either, nipping at her jawline instead. “I’ve got an idea,” he admitted, “but I’d still like it if you told me.”
MITTE
He kissed her and he kissed her and he kissed her and Mitte felt almost dizzy off of it. What would happen in the morning? She didn’t think she’d want to slip quietly out of bed to get dressed and start on their day’s work like last time. She didn’t think Kristoff would let her, either. Not after what had been admitted tonight. Her jealousy, his long held fondness. At least, he’d admitted it, and Mitte had danced around her own emotions as close to the words as she’d been able to get.
Kristoff’s desire to draw things out clearly extended beyond his kisses. Mitte made a frustrated sound in the back of her throat, already so thoroughly wound up and writhing. Maybe she had drawn things out long enough, herself. “I was jealous of her.” She said, all of it coming out in one rush of breath, one hand sliding all the way up to Kristoff’s chin to angle his face up to look at her, the smile she wore expectant, “and I want you to fuck me.” 
KRISTOFF
He liked the little frustrated sound that she made, grinning against her skin as he found a new spot to sink his teeth into. He knew he wouldn’t let it, he wouldn’t let this be the last time this happened, not after he had admitted to Mitte how he felt about it, but just in case it was the last time, he wanted to hear her say it. Another thing to commit to memory, just to be on the safe side. 
He went easily when she tilted his chin, his eyes finding that gentle smile and softening. He looked at her for a moment, just a few seconds though it felt like longer, before he leaned down to kiss her again, deep and slow. “Okay,” Was all he said, because it was all he could really manage, shifting backwards until he could pull his boxers off and throw them to one side, taking his hard cock in hand with a low hum.
MITTE
He was her person. That was what came to mind as Kristoff looked up at her. If that was selfish or possessive or over dramatic Mitte didn’t really care, because it was the truth, and they both spent so much of their time dealing in lies. No room for those here, with Kristoff finally shedding the last layer between them.
Mitte stared across at him, her gaze hungry. “Okay?” She repeated, shaking her head as she hauled herself up to reach for him, her arms winding around his neck, “if I didn’t have hard proof I’d be starting to think you weren’t too enthusiastic about the idea.” Mitte was smiling all coy as she shifted back onto the mattress, pulling Kristoff down with her again. It was a good thing she didn’t really want him to be good with other women.  
She kissed him, and in the brief gaps where their mouths parted, “actually- wait.” Mitte put her hands on his chest to push gently, rolling them over ‘till Kristoff’s back hit the mattress softly and she could straddle him. “Perfect.” That was a nice view, for sure, Kristoff with his pretty blonde hair framing his face so nicely, his whole focus on her. She sat up after trailing a few more kisses down his neck, her hands bracing on his chest so she could sink down slowly onto his cock, her head rolling back as she did. When their hips were flush again Mitte was still for a moment before starting to move, nails digging into his skin.
KRISTOFF
He wanted to say something funny about actions and how they speak larger than words, or maybe something about reading between the lines or maybe just anything at all that would make it seem like he wasn’t totally at a loss for words. The truth of it was, though, that Mitte was looking at him with those big, soft eyes, and for a second the desperate ache in his groin was secondary to the ache in his chest, his ribs feeling too tight against the beating of his heart.
He didn’t say anything in the end, only rolled his eyes and smiled like he couldn’t believe her bullshit and then, when she pulled him closer, he buried his face in the crook of her neck. His lips found the pulse point there, thrumming over his tongue, about to suck another mark into her pale skin when she pushed back.
Kristoff frowned, momentarily confused at why she was pushing back and not pulling closer but he went anyways, letting her manoeuvre them. As soon as he was on his back his hands found her waist, one reaching up higher, taking her breast in his hand and squeezing momentarily before he gave a soft, strangled sound. The feeling of her, warm, tight, and wet around him was enough for him to see stars for a moment. “Fuck, Mitte—“ he groaned, breath catching as she rolled her hips.
MITTE
It seemed impossible that she would have forgotten how good he felt, considering how often it had crossed her mind since the first time this happened, but memory really didn’t have the same impact. If Mitte ever really believed that just knowing what this felt like would be enough, being so desperate for him all over again- maybe moreso, even if it wasn’t quite as frantic- sure killed that delusion. She wanted to do this over and over until she knew every contented sound, every muscle twitch, everything about Kristoff in these moments, as well as she knew him in every other. 
“That’s more like it.” She panted when he spoke up again, every breath cut through with soft little whimpers. Mitte moved slowly at first to enjoy the sight of him underneath her, and study the ways pleasure washed over his  features when she tipped her hips just so at a certain angle, let her nails bite into his skin a little harder, trailed her hands up and down her own body. After a while she shifted to lean more of her weight against her hands, palms flat against Kristoff’s chest again, so she could move faster. “Tell me-” Mitte said soft and breathless, leaning down enough to kiss him, interrupting herself because he looked too damn good, “tell me you get jealous. Tell me what you want.”
(Her, obviously, and if he was too pleasure drunk to say anything else it would do, but she wanted to hear whatever would tumble out of his mouth when he wasn’t thinking.) 
KRISTOFF
For a second he didn’t say anything, caught off guard by the change of pace so much that it was all he could do to tip his head back against the cushions beneath him and groan, jaw slack. His hands gripped her hips, her sides, keeping her close to him as he kissed her back clumsily.
“Of course I— I’m always jealous.” He managed to get out, his voice sounding harsh and rasping even to his own ears. He couldn’t quite catch his breath, not with her nails digging into the skin of his chest and her walls clenching down around him as she ground her hips down against his. He wasn’t much of a talker, not really, but Mitte had a way of drawing it out of him.
“Want you,” he managed, reaching up so he could kiss her again, catching her mouth with his own. “Always you.”
MITTE 
Whatever problems came of this, it was worth it. The sight of Kristoff underneath her right now, the feeling of his fingers digging into her hips and his cock throbbing inside her, god, she’d betray everyone and everything she knew for this. Well. Not for the sex alone. But for him, yes. Which was exactly why romances between spies were very much discouraged, but Mitte had never been a stickler for the rules, official or unspoken.
Always he said, and for once she wasn’t terrified of that, of the unending expanse of always laid out ahead of them. “You’ve got me.” Mitte promised against his mouth, breathless as she trailed more kisses down Kristoff’s neck to leave a mark of her own against his collarbone. 
“Oh fuck, Kristoff, I’m…” Words were quickly abandoned as the steady rhythm of her hips started to stutter, and Mitte could do nothing but moan, her face buried in the crook of his neck as she came apart with a shudder. Her motions slowed while she caught her breath but she didn’t stop, pushing gently on Kristoff’s shoulders ‘till he was flat against the mattress again. She let her body melt into his and then she kissed him softly, hips still rocking as her hands slid into his hair. 
KRISTOFF
He looked up at her, his gaze a little hazy, to be honest. Still, he saw the look on her face, the expression she wore. Mitte was an incredibly good liar — they had to be, both of them, in their profession — but he could see through it. He had always seen her for who she really was, and right now she was genuine. She meant it; he had her. She was his. A moan escaped him when he felt her lips against his collarbone, knowing somewhere in the bad of his mind that she’d left a mark there, that he was hers just as much as she was his.
He held her tightly as she tipped over the edge again, coming with a shudder, tightening around his cock in a way that had him seeing stars for a moment. He was so close, about to tell her so but she had come back to him, catching his lips in a kiss so that all he could do was let out a strangle groan. He pulled back just a little way, not far at all, really, feeling her breath against his cheek as he panted into her jaw. His hands found her hips, fingers pressing tight into her skin as he held her close to him. The scratch of her fingernails against her scalp, the incessant rhythm of her hips— he came with her name on his lips, panted into her skin, the feel of her around him, on top of him, the scent of her, the only things he was aware of.
His hands slipped from her hips as he came back to himself, sliding up her sides, over her arms, her neck, to cradle her face. He kissed her again, slowly, tenderly, and pulled back to look at her. “You mean that.” It wasn’t a question. Just a statement; letting her know that he knew she meant it. “I’ve got you.”
MITTE She was boneless and breathless and warm, one forearm pressed heavily into the mattress by Kristoff’s head, doing just enough to hold her up so she could look down at him, all of her muscles burning and her head spinning. It was akin to the feeling after a good sparring match. Only if it had been with Kristoff, of course. No one else had ever matched her quite so well. 
It had been true for a long time, one of those things Mitte couldn’t dispute but had refused to acknowledge. He had her. She had said it without pausing to think, yes, but Mitte didn’t feel any less certain as the two of them finally stilled, sated. Kristoff had always been the one to inspire her most honest reactions, the waitress debacle was proof enough of that. The only concerns she had were centred around the agency, and what the reaction would be when this got out. Because it would, even if the two of them did everything in their power to keep a lid on it, and then what? Would they be split up? They did their best work together, neither of them would’ve even taken the job in the first place without the other. 
Kristoff was kissing her again, and Mitte decided it wasn’t worth worrying about. “Who else could ever?” She pointed out softly, relieved her face would already be too beet red for any blush to show through. That too, was true, though it did make the enormity of this whole thing harder to ignore. There was nobody else. “I suppose I don’t have to ask what you intend to do with me.” Her mouth tipped up in one corner in a lazy smirk, and she dipped her head to press a kiss at the base of Kristoff’s throat, settling with her head against his chest.
KRISTOFF
He ran his fingertips over her side as she looked down at him, feeling the racing over her heart as his hand brushed over her ribs. He smiled softly, maybe just a little bit smug. Who else could ever, she said, and maybe he had known it all along but it really was nice to hear her say it out loud.
When she settled against him he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her just a little bit closer. He kissed the top of her head, settling back so that his gaze was tipped up at the ceiling. It would be complicated. The agency would throw a fit, probably. They’d have to fight to go on missions together. But they could make it work; he was sure of that, at least.
“I have a few ideas,” he admitted, smiling to himself, since she couldn’t see it. “We should probably stop the bad guy first, though. Then at least we can say we’re still capable of doing our jobs.” 
MITTE
Bad guy. Right. They had a bad guy to catch, so they were gonna have to do that before they could do this again. Ugh. “Work sucks.” Mitte mumbled into his chest. Were they crazy for doing this? Were they crazy for not doing it sooner? Sometimes, these things really did have to hit you like a grand piano falling out of the sky in a cartoon. A glimpse of how she would feel if he chose someone else. 
“But you’re right.” She sighed, “that’s the first line in the book they’ll throw at us, so if we can handle this quickly it’ll be harder to stop us.” She frowned against Kristoff’s skin, her hands curling a bit tighter around him. “Not that they won’t keep trying.” Mitte wondered what the play was here, if they should out themselves immediately upon return or try to keep things under wraps until it inevitably spilled out. The latter afforded them the chance to sneak around which was fun, but the likelihood of a punishment- and not the sexy kind Kristoff had already claimed an interest in- was high. 
Mitte just… Didn’t want the outside world muscling in on whatever this was before they’d even had a chance to settle into it. But she supposed that was the sensible way to go about things, the proper way. Everyone would figure them out no matter what they did of course, and then it would begin, the comments and questions and bothersome nudges that Mitte truly hated. “...What are we gonna do?” She asked softly, not sure he’d have an answer but searching for something anyway, about more than the next couple of days.
KRISTOFF
Kristoff took a deep breath, casting his gaze to the ceiling for a moment as he thought, his thumb brushing backwards and forwards over Mitte’s skin gently. Of course the agency would hate it – they would never let the two of them work together again. There weren’t very many couples at the agency, mostly because it was a stupid, terrible idea. And Kristoff knew that it was; getting involved with your partner was the best way to make sure that you would eventually slip up, get emotional, give the enemy some leverage over you. And yet, he couldn’t quite bring himself to care.
“We review the audio you got from Goodfellow’s room,” He said, knowing it wasn’t what she meant. Still, in terms of next steps, that was what they had to do. “Figure out where exactly he is – he must have some kind of meeting set up out here. We intercept, we take him in. And we keep this,” He looked down at her, kissing the top of her head again. “To ourselves. Just for now. Everyone thinks we act like an old married couple anyways,” He added, smiling ruefully. “They probably won’t know anything’s different. We’ll tell them eventually, just… on our terms.”
MITTE
It was strange, how not strange this was. Even last time, when the frenzy had ended and the two of them had stayed tangled together, and Kristoff had been overthinking it so hard that Mitte had practically seen the steam coming out of his ears, she had not for a moment felt uncomfortable in his arms. Every soft brush of his hand now just helped work out the lingering tension in her muscles, and she could feel her eyelids starting to droop. 
“They’re going to have a field day when we eventually tell them…” Mitte sighed, leaning up enough to kiss him again, because there probably wouldn’t be a lot of time to do so tomorrow. Her thumb brushed gently across Kristoff’s cheek as she looked down at him, trying not to picture the teasing. It only meant she’d suffer twice, and she knew he’d be right by her side when it did all eventually have to come out. For Kristoff, she’d endure it. Hopefully without killing anyone. “We should get some sleep.” She said, pouting and surly, shifting some of her weight off Kristoff to snuggle into his side. “Promise I’ll still be in bed when you wake up this time.” Mitte pulled the duvet up around them, and gave him another last kiss, and then another for good measure. “Goodnight.” She murmured against his skin, tucking in real close before closing her eyes and finally letting sleep take her.
KRISTOFF
Yeah, they would have a field day, and it wasn’t just teasing and jokes that he was worried about. Kristoff and Mitte always worked together, and they were some of the best. If anyone could begin to doubt them they were going to do it, try to throw a spanner in the works to get the two of them stuck in an office or chasing petting criminals rather than taking the big jobs. The two of them had worked too hard to get to where they were for that to happen, which was part of the reason why Kristoff wanted to wait. So that they could make sure this was done on their own terms, to prove that it wasn’t going to change anything. They were a team, same as they always had been, just… even more so, now.
He smiled softly at the promise she gave him. He didn’t doubt her, either. He held her close, listening to her breathing go slow and even before he let sleep pull him under as well – they were going to need an early start in the morning.
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grailfinders · 4 years
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Fate and Phantasms #35: Mephistopheles
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Today one Fate and Phantasms we’re making someone from who the greatest magicians have something to learn, the magical Mr. Mistoff- sorry, wrong one. We’re building the demon of deceit and clown prince of crime, Mephistopheles! This is a very unusual build. Some characters are held back by restraints like “ease of play”, “being powerful”, or “not peaking at level 5″, but Mephistopheles laughs in the face of all of them.
There’s a spreadsheet if you want to rip this band-aid off right away, or you can savor the pain with a level-by-level breakdown below the cut. I’m sorry.
Race and Background
Homunculi aren’t a player race in DnD, so if we can’t be accurate, we can at least be thematic. You’re doing a very good impression of an Asmodeus Tiefling, adding 1 to Intelligence and 2 to Charisma. This also gives you 60′ of Darkvision, Hellish Resistance to fire damage, and an Infernal Legacy, which currently lets you cast the Thaumaturgy cantrip. 
You’re most certainly a Charlatan if I’ve ever seen one, dragging down anyone you can get your hands on. This gives you proficiency with Deception (saying you didn’t slip a bomb into someone’s jacket) and Sleight of Hand (slipping a bomb in someone’s jacket).
Stats Your highest stat is your Intelligence: you’re clever enough with clockwork to make bombs that run around on their own. Next is Dexterity: you’re a clown after all, capering around is what you do. Third is Wisdom, which should be lower, but we’ll need it for multiclassing. Your party will probably thank you for this: they’ll be within blast radius enough without you getting charmed too. Next is Constitution- you haven’t blown yourself up yet, so you’re probably at least a bit tougher than that bore, Andersen. After that is Charisma: you have a forceful personality, but honestly when was the last time you convinced someone you weren’t up to no good? Finally, we’re dumping Strength. You may have some pretty good pecs in your final art, but that’s nothing by servant standards.
Class Levels
1. Rogue 1: You general lack of strength and habit of ending up on the wrong side of morality make you quite a roguish caster. At level 1, rogues gain proficiency in Dex and Int Saves and four rogue skills, here being Acrobatics, Perception, Stealth, and Intimidation. Your capering and sneakiness let you slip bombs into places others might not notice, and let’s be honest, a clown in a skintight leotard is just plain terrifying. 
Rogues also gain Expertise in two skills (Sleight of Hand and Acrobatics), a Sneak Attack (1d6 extra damage if you’re using a ranged or finesse weapon and have advantage or another enemy is within 5′ of the target), and Thieves’ Cant, a language indecipherable to anyone who isn’t a rogue. A dagger can be reflavored as a giant pair of scissors easily enough, so sneak attacks work fine for you.
2. Rogue 2: At second level you have a Cunning Action, letting you dash, disengage, or hide as a bonus action for extra mobility. 
3. Rogue 3: Arcane Tricksters can blend their love of breaking the law with magical skill, learning wizard spells to augment their natural skill. Most of those spells aren’t explosions though, so we’re not taking that. You are a Thief, which at third level means you have Fast Hands which adds sleight of hand checks, thieves’ tools uses, and Use an Object actions to your list of Things You Can Do In Your Bonus Action. You also learn how to do Second-Story Work, enhancing your capering by adding your dex mod to running jumps, and climbing no longer costs extra movement. Also, your Infernal Legacy kicks in again, and you can now cast Hellish Rebuke as a second level spell once per long rest. All spells from your Legacy use Charisma as the casting ability.
4. Wizard 1: I mentioned we’re peaking at level 5 earlier, so it’s time to wrap this up. You studied under (and then killed) a skilled alchemist when you were alive, so you have some magical knowledge as well. As a first level wizard, you learn Spellcasting, using Intelligence as your casting ability, and Arcane Recovery, which will let you recover a 1st level spell slot on short rests in a level. 
When you first gain your spellbook, you get three cantrips and six first level spells. Create Bonfire and Thunderclap are mere firecrackers compared to what we’ll get next level, and Mending will come in handy in the second half of the build. Cause Fear and Tasha’s Hideous Laughter play up your clownishness, Color Spray, Earth Tremor, and Grease will make it much harder for your enemies to get around. Finally, Chromatic Orb is a very versatile spell that can play into your strengths without leaving you locked into only fire and thunder spells.
5. Wizard 2: At second level, your Infernal Legacy kicks in again, and you can cast Darkness once per long rest. You also become a Conjuration Wizard, becoming a Conjuration Savant for cheaper conjuration spells, and more importantly, you learn Minor Conjuration. This lets you use your action to make an inanimate, nonmagical object appear in your hand or within 10′ of you. There’s a limit on the size and weight of this object, but not its cost. That’s important, because things are about to get a little silly. 
In the Dungeon Master’s Guide, there’s optional explosives you can add to the game. You’ll need help from your DM if you want these to be viable at higher levels, but they’re very strong at level five, which is where you are right now. With Minor Conjuration, you can create a Bomb, Horn of Gunpowder, or a full Bundle of Dynamite as your action. Then you can use your Fast Hands to use these explosives as your bonus action. The bombs and gunpowder aren’t that strong, but Dynamite can deal 10d6 Bludgeoning Damage to creatures within 20′ of it, and its dex save only halves damage. It can even be made with a fuse if you want to get to a safe distance first. That’s a silly amount of damage to have every turn, for free, this early in the game. This even beats fireball, and doesn’t require a spell slot.
6. Cleric 1: You pursue your goal of making people explode with religious fervor, which is just enough of an excuse to make you a Zeal Cleric. At level 1, clerics get their own Spellcasting, using Wisdom as your ability. You also become a Priest of Zeal, giving you some bonus proficiencies with heavy armor and martial weapons, as well as letting you attack as a bonus action after attacking with your main action a number of times equal to your wisdom modifier per long rest. If someone’s attacking you in melee range, you should probably put the bombs away. Or don’t, you have fire resistance after all. 
Clerics can prepare their spells, but as a zeal cleric you also get Searing Smite and Thunderous Smite to make your scissors really cut deep. For your cantrips, you learn Sacred Flame and Toll the Dead (which despite the names, neither of them do fire or thunder damage), and Light, because the best thing to do to someone after they stumble out of a cloud of darkness is shine a flashlight in their face.
7. Cleric 2: At second level, you can Channel Divinity in one of two ways. Turn Undead sends undead packing with a wisdom save, and Consuming Fervor is why we’re here. With this feature, you can use your Channel Divinity to maximize any fire or thunder damage you cause. You can only channel your divinity once per short rest.
8. Cleric 3: Third level clerics gain 2nd level spells, and yours include Magic Weapon to further improve your scissors and Shatter to start using up your Divinity uses.
9. Cleric 4: You finally get your first ASI, and we’re using it to get the feat Flames of Phlegethos. Whenever you cast a fire spell, you can now reroll any ones in the damage, and also wreathe yourself in flames until the start of your next turn. This causes any melee attackers to take 1d4 fire damage when they hit you. You’re going to be the epicenter of explosions anyway, but some extra protection never hurt.
10. Cleric 5: Your Turn Undead becomes Destroy Undead, instantly killing any undead of CR 1/2 or lower when they fail their wisdom save. You also get third level spells, including Haste, so you can attack and throw bombs in the same turn, and the ever-popular Fireball, which at this point is still outclassed by dynamite.
11. Cleric 6: You can now channel divinity twice per short rest for extra powerful fireballs, and you can make a Resounding Strike. This means that every time you hit a large or smaller creature with thunder damage, you can push them away from you up to 10′.
12. Now that we’ve taken all the best goodies from the clerics, it’s time to head back to a more reasonable class: Artificer. First level artificers can use Magical Tinkering to add minor magical effects to tiny objects, like making sounds, shining a bit of light, or displaying small pictures. You also get a third kind of Spellcasting, this one using Intelligence as your casting ability. You get two cantrips (Poison Spray and Shocking Grasp are rather clownish), and can prepare first level spells from the artificer spell list.
13. Artificer 2: You learn how to Infuse Items, turning them into magical items. You know four infusions from the infusions list, but can only have two of them active at once. They’re all very useful, but none of them are bombs, so I’ll let you decide which ones will work best in your campaign.
14. Artificer 3: You know The Right Tool for the Job, letting you create one set of artisan’s tools over the course of an hour. The tools are nonmagical, and last until you make another set. In more fun news, you become an Artillerist, gaining Shield and Thunderwave as class spells. You can also make an Eldritch Cannon, a small or tiny construct that you can command as a bonus action. You can make a Flamethrower, which shoots 15′ cones of fire, dealing 2d8 fire damage on failed dex saves, a Force Ballista, hitting targets with spell attacks that deal 2d8 force damage and pushing them 5′ away, or a Protector, adding 1d8 + your intelligence mod temporary hit points to nearby creatures. Regardless, the cannon has 18 AC, HP equal to five times your artificer level, 10 in all abilities, and can be made once per long rest or by using spell slots. It’ll live for an hour or until you dismiss it.
15. Artificer 4: Use your second ASI to round out your Intelligence and Wisdom for more and stronger spells.
16. Artificer 5: You can now tactically carve your wand, turning it into an Arcane Firearm. This adds an extra 1d8 damage to a single creature hit by each spell. You also gain second level artificer spells, including Scorching Ray and Shatter. Again.
17. Artificer 6: You now have Tool Expertise, doubling your proficiency with any check involving tools. You could mix this with your rogue expertise if you wanted to be obscenely good at breaking into places, but I’ll leave that to your discretion. You also gain two more known infusions, and have have one more item infused at once.
18. Artificer 7: You now have Flashes of Genius. When you or another creature within 30′ of you makes a check or saving throw, you can use your reaction to add your intelligence modifier to the roll. You can do this a number of times equal to your intelligence modifier per long rest.
19. Artificer 8: Use your last ASI to add some Dexterity to make yourself harder to hit and harder hitting.
20. Artificer 9: Your capstone level turns your cannon into a proper ticktock bomb! You can command the cannon to detonate, dealing 3d8 force damage to creatures within 20′ of it. All other damage is also increased by 1d8.
Pros: Mephistopheles is very adaptable, with a great deal of low-level spells that can be swapped out each day. The sheer number of things you can make out of thin air is also admirable. He can also be a very strong damage dealer at low levels if your DM doesn’t remove bombs entirely.
Cons: This build is overcomplicated even by my standards. You have four spell lists using all three spell abilities, divinities and infusions to keep track of, and even a second body to deal with in combat! This build seems almost designed to drive you mad trying to play it (which would be in character, admittedly). Summoning explosives is nice, but you have to wonder if it is worth removing any chance at higher level spells. Finally, the most annoying drawback is the lack of consistency in explosions. The DMG uses bludgeoning damage, the cleric uses thunder damage, and the artificer uses force damage, all to represent the same thing, meaning they don’t quite mesh together if you’re playing rules as written.
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stawbebbiess · 5 years
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@amethyst-labyrinth this is why tumblr mobile sucks ass, Anyway HERES the whole story i wrote im so sorry it prematurely posted))))
“Oh, darling, look!” A tall woman held her hands to her heart, gazing fondly outside, “Mr. Mistoffelees has a little friend! Isn’t that sweet?” The two cats were jumping about the garden, chasing bugs and, occasionally, each other.
A man stepped in view of the window and looked out to where his wife was gazing, furrowing his eyebrows. “Who’s cat is that? Better not lay a scratch on ours else I shall not be happy with the vet bill.”
“Oh, calm down now,” she tried to persuade as her husband unlatched the window, “they look like they’re having fun, and the cat has a collar, dear, I’m sure they’re fine.”
He wasn’t listening. “Mr. Mistoffelees!” He called out the window, and the two cats stopped in their tracks, backing toward a bush. “Mr. Mistoffelees, you get back here right now. Hear me?” The little black cat darted into a bush, with the other following quickly.
“He doesn’t speak English.” The woman rolled her eyes.
The Rum Tum Tugger ducked under a leaf, pouncing on Quaxo as the two rolled in the mud in joy. They settled after a second, Quaxo stretching his paws out before flopping onto his side.
Tugger licked his paw clean, “hang on a second,” he was biting his claw as he spoke, and Quaxo’s ears perked up. “What did they call you back there? Mister... Mister fleas?”
Quaxo’s rested his chin on his paws, “Mr. Mistoffelees! That’s what the humans call me, isn’t it fun?”
“Mis... Mist-loft-eleez?”
“Mistoffelees.”
“Mis-flof-el-teez.”
“Mistoffelees.”
“... Mistle-toe-fleas?” Tugger tilted his head.
“No,” Quaxo snorted, watching Tugger trip over his own tongue. Tugger found amusement in it too.
“Why do they call you that?” He took a few steps closer to Quaxo and plopped down next to him, letting Quaxo paw at his mane gently (since he knew how much the little tom loved to idly play with it).
“Oh, I don’t know. Why do humans do anything? I guess they like the sound of it,” Quaxo couldn’t help but purr a little, letting the tips of his claws tug gently at Tugger’s fur, “and it is fun! Mr. Mistoffelees! Makes me sound like a real magician, doesn’t it?”
“You are a real magician,” Tugger said with a voice like silk. It was quiet for a moment, just the sounds of purrs and the birds and the bugs outside this little bush of theirs. Tugger looked softly at Quaxo, who’s eyes had fluttered shut a couple of moments earlier. “Teach me how to say it.” He was determined.
Quaxo blinked his eyes open and looked at Tugger, “it’s alright if you can’t get it, you know, you can always just call me Quaxo.”
“I want to say it, though!” Tugger was beaming, “my little magician, the mystical, the marvelous... Mr. Miss-loft-toe-fleas!”
Quaxo was cackling, “okay, okay, fine!” He sat up a little, taking his paws off Tugger’s mane and staring intently into his eyes. “Repeat after me.” Tugger nodded.
“Mister.”
“Mister- I got that part already-“
“Sh! Mist.”
”Mist, Mr. Mist?” Tugger’s head tilted a little.
”Mhm! Off.”
”Off.”
”El.”
”El.”
”Eeeeeez...” Quaxo sounded silly, and Tugger possible sillier.
“Eeez?”
Quaxo beamed, “Mr. Mistoffelees!”
“Mr. Mistletoefleas.” His tongue practically tripped over his teeth, and his ears flattened from embarrassment. Quaxo was highly amused, though. “Misfofeleez! Did I say it right? Mister Mistlofteleez!”
“Okay, okay!” Quaxo rubbed his cheek affectionately across Tuggers, then sat back on his hind legs, “let’s try again, ready?” Tugger nodded.
“Mister.”
”Mister.”
”Mistoff-“
“Mistoff.
“elees.”
“elees! Mistoff... Elees.... Mistoffelees? Mistoffelees!” Tugger almost jumped with joy when Quaxo’s face confirmed he’d gotten it right. “Mr. Mistoffelees!”
“That’s it!” Quaxo’s tail swished happily, as the two toms bonked heads affectionately, Tugger taking a moment to groom the top of Quaxo’s head by his ears. “I knew you could do it.” He gently pressed his head against Tugger’s muzzle.
“The magical Mr. Mistoffelees!”
(((thank you for the prompt! this was fun and cute to write!!! also im sorry its kinda a long post idk how to do a read more)))
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ask-cat-morgan · 5 years
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@thatmysticaltuxedocat-rp @ask-victoria-jellicle
“Mistoff! Victoria! My kittens I have wonderful news!” 
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fluttering-by · 4 years
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I’ve just spent the last hour watching various Mr Mistoffelees...... Mistoffeleeses....... Mistoffeli? I’ve just spent the last hour watching various conjuring turns. It was an hour well spent. 
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