#neither of these fuckers are fit to be parents

[vamp-a-day]

day 64

@sparkvampweek day 4; Sparkling's birthday

"Happy birfday I made you brekast :] Don't go in the kitchen"

[beybaldes]

trace the outlines of your dreams

summertime sleepover masterlist

dad!roy kent x mum!reader

summary : “Exhausted parents kiss” requested by anon.

an : takes place in the same universe as my fic ‘no thing defines a man like love that makes him soft’ because anon wanted Nell and I did too <3

“Come on Nell, you can do it. My little superstar.”

It was just you and Nell at home this weekend. Roy was at an away game with the team and Molly had the weekend off so unless she got called in for an emergency surgery, you doubted you’d be seeing any of Phoebe either.

From 10 months old, Nell had started throwing herself about in attempts to move around faster, so she’d picked up walking pretty quickly. But now she was bordering on 15 months old and had yet to get more out then a babble. Since the perfect opportunity to practice had presented itself, you’d spent the entire weekend trying to get her to say ‘Dada.’ She wasn’t taking to it.

“Come on, Nelly. Just one time, okay? Da-da.” Nell ignored you, stuffing as many of her tiny fingers as she could fit into her mouth. Knowing you weren’t going to get it out of her now and that Roy would be home soon, you left her to her toys, getting a head start on making dinner.

The sound of the door closing and a high pitched squeak alerted you to Roy’s arrival. As you walked to the front door, picking Nell up on your way, you greeted Roy with a soft smile. “Hey handsome, we missed you.”

“My two favourite girls.” Roy pressed a kiss to Nell’s forehead as she began to babble at him. “You have a good weekend?”

“Dada.”

The two of you stilled, both turning to Nell as she gave a toothless grin, clapping her hands together. “Dada, dada, dada.”

“The little shit.” That seemed to break Roy out the trance he’d been put into by Nell’s first words. “I’ve been trying to get her to say that all weekend, and the little fucker waits until the moment you walk through the door to say it.” You wrapped one arm around him, pulling you and Nell so that the both of you were pressed against him in a hug. “You were right, she’s a total daddy’s girl. Isn’t that right Nell?”

“Dada.” Apparently ‘dada’ was Nell’s new favourite word; she babbled it all the way through dinner, bath-time and her bedtime story, whispering the word over and over until she knocked out cold in Roy’s arms. Roy, however, had remained pretty much silent from the moment he’d walked through the door.

When he’d finally lay Nell down, and crept slowly out of her room, you practically pounced on him, wrapping your arms around his neck and pulling him in for a long, proper kiss. As you pulled apart, the both of you let out long sighs, the weight of the weekend spent apart, each filled with hard work, finally catching up to you. “Hmmm, bed?”

“Bed.” Roy confirmed with a grunt, throwing you over his shoulder and carrying you to the bedroom. Neither of you wasted time getting into your pyjamas and throwing yourself into bed, settling under the duvets and into each others arms.

One of your hands came to cradle Roy’s face, your thumb running over the apple of his cheek. “What’s wrong, handsome? That was the most I’ve heard from you since you got home.”

“She fucking called me Dad.” He whispered, the proudest smile you’d ever seen forming on his first. “I was her first fucking words.” Roy placed his hand on top of your own, running his thumb over the side of pointer finger. “Sometimes it just doesn’t feel real, y’know? All of this.”

“But it is.” You assured, pulling him flush against you so you could press another long and firm kiss to his lips. “And she worships the ground you walk on because you’re such a good dad to her. Of course, you were her first words.”

“I think you forget only one of us carried her for 9 months.”

“Hey, it’s just like you said.” Roy’s eyes were dropping closed, with each stroke of your thumb across his cheek. “She’s a real you girl, just like her mama.”

Roy pressed a sleepy and soft kiss to your jaw, then nuzzled himself against your chest, noticing the way your body shuddered at the scratch of his beard against your skin, trying to aid it by pressing a kiss to the top of your breast. “That she is.”

[florsial]

*THROWS BOOKS ON TABLE*

There isn't enough Bartylus content, I'm throwing a fit

And here's a lil playlist i made and realized gave off slight bartylus vibes<3:

Spectrum and Hot Gum gives off such bartylus vibes!!

Here are some Bartylus hcs!!!

-I do believe in canon Barty is younger than Reg by about a year but I don't really like that, so I imagine Barty is just younger than Reg by about a few months (i do what i want)

-Though they first met at a pureblood event when they were both 8 years old and Barty finds himself being pushed to talk to the sickly-looking boy who clung to Evan Rosier while his brother was being pulled away by Walburga and Orion. He didn't get to talk to Regulus at all that night, but Evan was nice.

-When he sat with Evan and Reg on the Hogwarts Express for the first time, Regulus still didn't talk to him. Just starred. It was then that Evan explained that Regulus didn't know any English, only French.

-So Barty tried to teach some to him, but since he was pretty stumped on English too, being used to Italian most of his life, it didn't do much for Reg. Though it did make him laugh.

-They started dating in their 4th year, at first it was just casual dating, neither of them actually thought they would last so long but that did. Though with a few split-ups here and there.

-Once when Regulus got extremely sick, Barty took a walk to pass the time (since Reg insisted that his boyfriend keep a distance so he wouldn't get sick too) and ran into a stray black cat. It reminded him of Reg so he took it with him and presented it to Reg who opted to name the cat Artemisia

-Regulus likes to write letters and poems so he can slip them into Barty's bag for him to read.

-Cue soft dancing between the two, they def do it in private as a way of comfort

-Barty finds random shit he thinks Reg will like and just bring it to him like a cat, Reg a has about 2 boxes for it all

-They both know exactly when the other is lying. Both of them grew up in households that would lie often so they would see through each other so quickly. This is why surprises between them are basically useless but Reg likes to do so anyway because it's the thought that counts in his head

-In my little head they ran away to elope and just never told anyone. In canon compliant, I would imagine them eloping in the middle of wartime and planning to announce it when everything was over, but it just never happened cuz Reg died.

-I think it would be more fun if it was in a muggle/modern au where shortly after Sirius runs away, Reg and Barty run away to elope and they just disappear until years later when Sirius sees his little brother who he thought was still living with his parents and the little fucker is married to the psychotic bitch who threw knives for fun in high school (i might actually write a fanfic on this holy shit)

-wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses wrist kisses tehe

-Regulus paints Barty's nails cuz Barty has shaky hands that can never keep still

-Partly blond Regulus who lets Barty dye his hair

-They like to play tag together, while on the outside it's just a sweet thing, it is always a bit more symbolic than what people think

-Regulus knows how to sew so when he sees that some articles of Barty's clothes are ripped, he takes them and fixes them up. When Barty takes notice of this, he takes care to buy Reg a bag of candy and extra kisses as payment

-I don't really see them as super chaotic more like, unnerving in the sense that someone will be like: Evan: Yo your boyfriend is creepin me out Barty: K, he does that Barty: anyways you wanna see this macabre painting I made of someone getting eaten Evan: . . .yk what sure

-Painter Barty/Writer Regulus who are each other's muses hehe

-Barty learned how to make rings out of paper clips so he would make them and just throw them at Regulus. He started making them in 3rd year and has yet to just give them to Reg. He has to throw it. Barty says it's tradition, Evan calls bullshit, and that Barty just likes seeing Regulus confused about where the ring fell on the ground (it's true)

-Regulus likes to sneak up on Barty but over time Barty has become more aware of Regulus sneaking up on him.

-They share jewelry but the vibes are always the complete opposite when they wear it so people don't realize they are wearing the same piece. Regulus would wear it in a fancy and sophisticated way and Barty would wear it in what I think of as the "dirtbag" way (idk how else to describe forgive me)

[fantasy-relax]

Brain rot about Cassandra Part 1.

Be a gentleman with Cassandra and court her. Show support and help her to sleep more.

Kill the Stans the fuckers deserve it

Tell alcina that good parents keep their children away from dangerous cults, you stupid bitch. Burn alcina art room again

The dimitrescu movie night was a tradition in this loop, sometimes Angie and you will hang out with them because neither of you can say no to the redhead puppy eyes.

It was normal seeing the three of them in the couch when you came back from being a menace to society. They will be bickering, laughing and just having a good time. That's until a day you come back to Cassandra crying almost hyperventilating in the couch there was a lot papers in the floor and table, Daniela was hugging her while Bela was talking to her trying to ground her.

"Cass, it will be okay we are going to find a way out, it will be okay, breath with me please, 1,2,3 please Cassandra breath"

"IT WILL NOT BE OKAY, MY FIRST ROMEO GOT INJURED AND NOW THE OTHER JUST GIVE UP! HOW I SUPPOSED TO RUN THE SHOW NOW! IT'S ONLY A MONTH AWAY!, I-I"

You freeze, this never happened before, well at least you think so. The few times you have gone to the play everything had gone perfectly. Maybe you missed something is not like you have photographic memory and not all loops go exactly the same. Tuning back in you see that Bela manage to calm down Cassandra enough to breath correctly but she was still crying.

You pick a paper, is the a page of the script for the play. Your brain tickles, maybe you have been in the play before you gained the ability to remember the loops, taking a deep breath you close your eyes reaching for that feeling and put a little show in the living room.

When you focus again, is like you could hear a needle fall in the room with the silence that fill it. The three girls are looking at you with surprise.

You should be offended but sincerely you are surprised by your acting too, it was vastly different from the time you were in high school, now you're sure you have been in the play.

"umm I can take the role if you want?, you worked hard Cassandra I don't wish for that to wast-UGH"

You are in the floor with a very excited Cassandra above you hugging your neck.

"PERFECT, YOU ARE PERFECT THANK YOU, THANK YOU SO MUCH."

She was crying again this time of happiness.

"I thought they were just a idiot"

"Don't ruin the moment Bela"

After that it was a rush of motions, fitting the costume, rehearsal before you know it, the day came.

It was a total success.

You see how watery Cassandra eyes become when she look at the first row were her family was, Dani cheers were the loudest and Bela little smile was full of pride, the big bad art professor was a just one step for weeping.

You don't remember if Daniela or Bela had gone to the play in the loops before.

You kept your mouth shut when alcina got close to you. You hate her for all the shit Daniela have to deal with her but this was a family moment between them, so you would play nice with her, for now.

"It seems you have a few talents hidden"

You nod.

"I will allow your friendship with Daniela" is all she says before she is gone.

"I don't need your fucking permission" you whispered.

Alcina says something to Cassandra you hear the scream of happiness and the sad but proud faces of her sisters. Alcina seems cautious like she want to say more but she just nods and walk away.

Daniela jump to hug Cassandra talking excitedly about her favorite scenes, Bela was just smiling at them but it feels like she was thinking the same as you.

I wish this could go forever.

That was one of your favorites loops.

Now back to the start. What would you do this time?

All the loops you have been either doing things alone or with your roommates.

You were thinking for a while. After what happened in that past loop, you can help to feel a little guilty about the way you treated Cassandra and Bela, maybe you could find the answers to mend their relationship faster without blackmail if you known them better.

So choose the arts course, to the theater you go, ready for the Resident Diva.

[bluespiritshonour]

I’m so curious what’s going on in the Revenant au!

Thanku for the ask 😊

At first I thought it would be the Blue Spirit haunting Zuko—but in true horror fashion you won't be able to get “rid of him”—anymore than you can get rid of Tui and La (we all know how that went down) or, say, Koh. They're kinda like, idk, nature spirits? Not all of them, but you get the point?

And I drew Zuko getting shot at and I put him in white so I decided I'd just kill off Ozai and he's exactly the kind of bitch that would come back to haunt his kids.

He just wants to erase his bloodline at this point and neither Zuko nor Azula have any kids so it's just the two of them. He starts with Zuko either because he's the firstborn or because he hates him that much—like, he definitely doesn't care for Azula, but he doesn't love her either and would definitely try to kill her too—but Zuko needs to be out of the way first.

And Zuko's like “this fucker can't leave well enough alone even in death.” And he knows the moment he's dead, it's Azula's turn. So he sort of—holds onto Ozai like “It can work both ways, old man.”

And he just has the sort of willpower to pull it off. He just... refuses to bite it. Despite ghost!Ozai’s best attempts. And now he can't redirect his attention to Azula either because Zuko just won't let him go.

I thought about this especially because Azula has moments when she seems to care about Zuko in the show, but Zuko reciprocating it? Not so much. So, let him be a good brother for once.

As for Mai, she's gifted in that she's always been able to see spirits and ghosts and all the other stuff. But her parents hated that and tried to hide it so she never talked to anyone about it. She's gotten used to it at this point, as if ghosts and the rest are fixtures; part of the landscape.

And then Ozai starts haunting Zuko and she's like “yeah, I can see this bitch buzzing around like flies.”

Piandao is also someone who can see the otherworldly stuff and he's just... So much better adjusted than either Zuko or Mai. Anyways, he suggests that Mai should help him help Zuko. And it's Zuko so of course Mai agrees.

And in the course of it she and Piandao strike a friendship and it's lovely. And with the war over and her parents off her back she realises that she actually enjoys this stuff and soon enough she's shaking down every non-corporeal being in existence and they hate her. She discovers Koh and it's like she's found a new hobby.

I might just give her a guardian spirit for safety reasons. I haven't thought of it yet.

She and Piandao would make for a real good pair in that they'd flip the dynamic where the apprentice is taciturn and the master is... not exactly cheerful, but Piandao strikes me as a very normal™ man. Y'know?

(I'm kinda trying to project them into Sanyeong and Prof. Yeom from Revenant; except that here, Mai's not the one who has ghost problems, Zuko is).

There's so much potential to the spirits in ATLA. I'm kinda sad I couldn't work the Blue Spirit into it; Ozai just fits better. I might try to shoe-horn him in though. Idk. I love to force things.

But I'd have loved more spirit world stuff. Aang facing Koh is one of my favourite episodes. The execution was GREAT!

P.S. I actually had the Blue Spirit’s silhouette behind Zuko and it was kinda lame. I don't like to think the dark water spirit is humanoid but I'm not creative enough for anything else so it was just... Zuko in the theatre mask. 🥴 Ozai even looks better/more sinister.

[shwarmii]

how can you like drunk angst over first kiss?? 🥺

anon is regarding this post here, specifically my tags

characters discussed belong to @dakotawritesif / @disenchantedif

omg, so easily lol

bc its not just drunk angst, it is drunk angst about knowing their ex is gonna DIE, UNNATURALLY, AND SOON and pining/having never made up with them

but also im an asmr/audio-roleplay connoisseur*, so like, uh, also the following here. yeah. this primes me up to LOVE drunk ex scenario regret/pining shit lol (you'll have to excuse all these audios being men btw, i have a soft spot for deep voices and there isnt many deep-voiced women VAs in the audio-roleplay community (unfortunately foR MEEEE UGHH), much less many that have a video involving this niche Drunk Ex trope anyway lmao rip (same with the audios all being either "for Anybody" or "for Females". i don't currently have any "for Males" in this niche, even tho im the type of enby that listens to all three types of "for [you]" audios. alas. boo hiss))

none of these are "Luci-Inserts" btw, moreso "Evidence of why OF COURSE I AM MORE HYPED FOR DRUNK HALLWAY OVER FIRST KISS", like a vision board kinda sorta lmao

When Your Ex Drunk Calls You (I Miss You) (Slurred Speech) (Funny) (ASMR) (M4A).. (Fun fact: this VA is Scottish. also M4A = Male For Anyone, not just M4M (male for male) or M4F (male for female))

(this one is by the same Scottish VA) When You Drink With Your Ex (Kissing) (Exes to Lovers) (Drunk) (Regret) (Wholesome) (M4A) (ASMR)

(more of this Scottish VA bc he makes me laugh) When Your Crush Drunkenly Confesses To You (Singing Idiot) (Taking Care Of Him) (Silly) (ASMR) (M4A) (bonus there is a morning-after part two to this one yay)

Your Drunk Best Friend Wants You Gor Valentines [M4A] [Tsundere] [Confession] [Sober Listener] (and this one has a part two about the morning-after too)

ASMR Voice: I Should Have Told You [M4A] [Drunk Voicemail] [Ex-boyfriend] [Missing you] [Regret]

Audio Roleplay for Women | "Orbit" | Drunken Confession

Audio RP: Your Ex-boyfriend Asks For Another Chance [M4A] (not drunk but i love this one) (also it has a part two as well yayyy)

this one ((M4A but he does say you have a "pretty face") bc i do like Luci being upset someone is going to hurt the MC) and this one ((M4F) because i like the frustration lmao rip) also fit the vibe but neither are drunk or exes lmao rip

like, you would think as someone who is chronically ill to the point that my meds say "absolutely no alcohol (and one used to say no weed, idk if im still on that one, id have to go check)" that i would not give a shit about drunk scenarios buT I DO LOVE IT IN FICTION SO MUCH. my irl friends also like getting drunk on/off, or high, and my forced sobriety due to meds (and also family history, let's be honest. i do come from a long line of addicts, apparently, best i dont get involved, and i never have been) means i get to play Designated Driver pretty often. so i do recognize some realities/fantasties in the scenario. but also, god, i love the trope because it allows for such forced vulnerabilities, i fucking love whump fics, and a drunk ex fic is really just a whump fic with no bruises

and, ngl, i do think it is more likely we will get a First Kiss pov somewhere down the line if it loses than i think we will get a Hallway pov if it loses

plus, they were like what, 10?? 11??? idk how old they were when Luci/MC got together. but i know these fuckers are fresh out of high school and Luci is getting drunk, which means biTCHES ARE UNDERAGE DRINKING (which is an interesting characterization for Luci that i think reveals a lot about the Rivera parents as well as Luci's connections to wealth/alcohol), so there is that drama of "hide, hide, hide!!" if nothing else

and, again, then there's not only the angst of "ah, my ex-partner and/or -best friend" and the wanting to make up platonically/romantically but there is also the angst of "i knOW YOU'RE GOING TO GET MURDERED SOON AND IM NOT READY TO GO TO YOUR FUNERAL BUT I DONT KNOW HOW TO STOP THIS" kind of "lost time", "call for rain-check until you can't" angle too. plus, i could see Luci being protective or frustrated or terrified, there are so many fun angles no matter the platonic/romantic additional feelings involved. and, because of how this pov works, there isnt going to be a kiss or anything happening. so it's just going to be slow-burn (to friends or lovers, idk your mc) and pining (platonic pining is a thing), i love that for me specifically lmao

but i do, like, get it. i get what you mean. if i thought this ask was mean-spirited, i wouldve deleted it and not answered; but i read this as "lol yeah that is fucked of me huh lmao you right". bc, YEAH, first kiss is romantic, drunk in your shared hallways is NOT lmao rip but i dont care if its romantic or not, i care that its making my guts get all twisted up. and the angst of (1) drunk ex that needs to taken care of (or needs to run away from you, either or) (2) thinks youre going to be murdered/in an accident and die soon and (3) may/may not still be in love with you and (4) knows they dont have enough time to reconcile with you and make-up for lost time... ngl, that is going to impact me more than a first kiss. im ready for the tragedy. fucking love this kinda shit

also i have my own hcs about my mc, Giselle "Gigi" Kraven, and Luci Rivera's first kiss. so. that probably also plays a role in all this bUT HEY!! IM STILL TRYING FOR THE 50/50 LMAO RIP WE ARE HELPING EACH OTHER, MY COMRADE 🤝 YOU GET (DOOMED) FLUFF AND I GET (ALSO DOOMED) DRUNK ANGST, THAT'S A WIN-WIN LOL

*i would like to add: i have no idea if any of these VAs have drama or something. i dont pay attention to the fandoms, except vaguely for Redacted Audios because of the theories and world-building happening there (which the video here doesnt have much to do with), but otherwise i am so fucking ignorant bc i do not look these people up, i just watch their videos. i have been burned too many times by the Steven Universe fandom and other such communities and whatnot to get involved in fandoms i am only casually into, so i just only stick my nose into fandoms/creators i am die-hard into and dont delve into the rest, thanks for understanding if i may be out of the loop ✌️

[sarcasticassian]

Robin, Chrissy, Vickie and Nancy are in a rock band, Robin sings, Chrissy and Vickie on guitar and bass and Nancy drums, Steve is their manager and Dustin, Steve’s little brother is their number one fan and tags along to gigs all the time, Mike is more reluctant but even he can admit his sister is kinda cool for being in an all girl rock band that slaps, Lucas is their best friend and so he comes along for the ride, holding back Dustin when he gets too enthusiastic and underfoot until he also gets too excited and they cause a small amount of chaos and Erica is an admirer of the band so she squeezes her way into events as well

Corroded Coffin are currently the world’s biggest new metal band, Jonathan is their actual manager but Max, Eddie’s little sister, likes to follow him around and tell him what she’d do instead, Will and El encourage her much to Jonathan’s dismay and Eddie’s delight, they’ve just dropped a killer album (Satanic Panic) and they’re organising a tour, Max suggests the rock band she’s always listening to and after checking out the discography Corroded Coffin agree it would be a good fit

Steve switches off his hearing aid before he tells the girls about CC reaching out because they’re all big fans and CC is a small influence on their work, Robin and Eddie share the same raspy vocal quality, and he was thankful he did because they all scream, he snarks that he’s assuming they’re up to be CC’s opener and he’ll get back to Jonathan

Max and Dustin connect on social media before the band’s get together and it’s the meeting of two of the most chaotic minds and they’re already causing trouble, I just want them to cause shenanigans and that leads to them deciding to parent trap several members of the bands and teams because then they’re forever intertwined and Dustin and Max can keep going to both of their concerts for free, Lucas thinks its a little manipulative, Mike and Will think it’s genius and El would just like to go to concerts and learn about girl power and fucking the patriarchy and Erica knows a lot about that

the adults don’t know they’re being moved around like chess pieces until it’s too late and then one day Steve sits up in bed, accidentally elbowing Eddie on his way up from where they were spooning, and he’s like those little shits they did this on purpose, it’s 3AM but he’s calling Dustin and making Eddie call Max so he has them both on the phone because he knows they did this only for the two fuckers to laugh and say they really only meant to get Vickie and Jeff together because the two of them had openly stated that they thought the other was cute, everybody else just fell into place after that so they can’t be punished but they’ll take the credit

Gareth and Argyle, who are both still happily single, neither ready to settle down, will take it to the grave that they helped the kids by passing on info about any crushes or hook ups with in the adult group, they just sip on their drinks that the kids money bought them because the information came at a price as well as their silence and enjoy the peace and quiet now that nobody is moaning about being in unrequited love or never getting laid

it went something like Vickie and Jeff started to date which made Chrissy realise Robin wasn’t in a secret relationship or pining after Vickie and Robin realised Chrissy was interested so they make a move on each other, Steve gives Robin some space to date Chrissy without him hanging around and ends up ferrying his brother to hangouts with Max who just happens to be getting dropped off by Eddie despite the fact that both of them can drive but Steve and Eddie make plans to hang out and they make it complicated because it’s them but eventually they get together properly and while all this was happening Nancy and Jonathan were slotting into place quietly but sweetly and it works and now the kids have four couples for the price of one and their favourite bends are gonna be able to collab forever

[canyouhearthelight]

Nihilus Rex, Ch. 28: Deal with the Devil

Writing this chapter was... interesting to say the least. Creating such a disgusting character with @baelpenrose was both more and less of a challenge than expected. But hey, Bael got to brush off his knowledge from his troll hunting days, so that came in handy.

Guy still gives me the creeps, though.

I don't need no arms around me

And I dont need no drugs to calm me.

I have seen the writing on the wall.

Don't think I need anything at all.

No! Don't think I'll need anything at all.

All in all it was all just bricks in the wall.

All in all you were all just bricks in the wall.

Pink Floyd, “Another Brick in the Wall, Part III”

Lash

A couple days later, after Nils and I had agreed to take some space and get some social ‘fresh air’, I was in my parents’ apartment, listening to Baba snore gently when my phone buzzed.  Nils’ name popped up on the screen, which wasn’t unusual since we did check in each day.  I ignored it for the moment, deciding to clean the one or two dishes from Baba’s lunch.  However, no sooner had the water started to heat up in the sink than my phone started buzzing more urgently.

I sighed, dried my hands, and answered. “This is new. You never call.” 

“Neither do funny AIs, but times are changing.” Nils’ voice contained the self-satisfied tones of a man delivering an inside joke. “I think we really might want to check our place of business to work on the breakthrough.” 

“Exciting times,” I murmured, trying not to wake Baba in my shock. Our little pestilential question mark had already made contact. “Let me leave a note for Baba.  Mori should be home in about an hour, but I don’t want him to wake up and panic if I’m not here.  Or, you know… do something stupid in a fit of toxic masculinity.”

“No worries. We have a little time before the meeting with the investors.” Nils’ voice was quiet, and he sounded for all the world like an insufferable young man going into a tech startup with his girlfriend. “Let’s sell it, babe.” 

He disconnected, and I took a deep breath.  First, finish these dishes or I’ll never hear the end of it from Mori, I decided.  Mama was still in the hospital due to a respiratory infection - nothing major, the doctors swore, but they wanted to keep a close eye on it to be safe.  Less than fifteen minutes later, I had a note left by Baba’s bed and was out the door.

Getting to the abandoned mall was a journey in and of itself, both as a consequence of public transport and because I took a few unnecessary routes out of sheer paranoia.  I finally got there, and Nils was waiting for me with a surprise.

“Bishop!” I gasped in excitement, trying not to scream.  The gruff-looking older man took the bag out of my left hand and hugged me with his free arm.  “Hey, Baklava.  Good to see that face in one piece.”

“He’s been briefed, and he’s spent the last several hours helping us set up the VPNs - far as our mark knows, we’re not in the same country. He’s here to monitor the connection and make sure the fucker doesn’t start tracing us through it as we talk.” Nils spoke, quickly. “You play yourself but more grandiose, I have to play the asshole as we sound him out, but if he’s wise to the game, we drop the act a bit and try for more subtlety, and we can play a little more open and hook him in. Stay noncommittal and keep our cards close to the chest no matter what - Bishop and I already physically debugged the place, but if there’s digital bugs we didn’t get or coming from his end, we can’t give them anything that’ll hold up as a confession. When in doubt, look at Bishop, or glance to me, I’ve been reading my mother’s legal shit nonstop for days now.” 

Anxiety immediately spiked through me. This was happening. I nodded. “Okay, got it.  Let me drop off some of this food, and we can get on it.”

Bishop made a mockery of a fake pout. “You mean this isn’t all for me?”

I glanced at the huge bag of food he had, and the one in my other hand. “Sure. I am completely certain you can eat twenty pounds of food. Especially since it’s mostly veggies and carbs.”

That made him do an about face. “My plumbing thanks you for the warning.”

The guys helped me drop off food to the storefronts where people were most likely to camp out, and we made our way to the breakroom in the old Sears.  I flopped on the same beanbag I used last time with a puff of dust and started unpacking my laptop.  “Let’s get me through all the VPNs, and I’ll be ready to go.”

Nils and Bishop helped me get set up, with Bishop exaggeratedly and pointedly looking away at Nils’ whispered apologies to me for his snipiness, and him holding out a hand for me to take.

We had just barely finished getting my audio set up when Nils looked at me. “We got this, Lash.” 

“We got this,” I agreed, adjusting my mic. “Time to turn ‘on’ our online mad hacker personas.”

He walked over to his computer and hooked in his audio. As I saw his signal, it was the familiar black chess king icon, but the “ANothing49BC” was gone. Beneath the icon was the screenname “Nihilus Rex.” 

I looked at him, quizzically, and said, “New handle?”

“Same old, really. Just a bit more gravitas. If I’m gonna be the king of this shitshow, I have to remind everyone I’m still King of Nothing.” His voice sounded manic, nervous, but with an underlying tension to it.

“Nihilus Rex.” It did have more gravitas than his original handle, and it suited him better, if I was being completely honest.

Then the call started. 

The pfp I was looking at contrasted both with my highly stylized Phoenix and Nils’ Black King - it was a skull with a dagger spiked through it, vertically. Underneath, the handle - MostDangerousPlayer. 

Didn’t that say lovely things about the person we were going to be meeting with. 

No one spoke. No one spoke, and I was half convinced there was some sick white people power play going on. 

Then Nils finally spoke, and I was absolutely certain. “Hello, you asked for a meeting to discuss certain…collaborative opportunities?” His voice was light, easy.

“I have questions about your work with the banks.” The voice on the other end was calm, flat. It almost sounded fake, and I was inclined to think it was.

“That’s interesting. We have questions about any potential partner - our work with banks is a bit sensitive. Clients worried about confidentiality for obvious reasons.” Nils was obviously playing multiple angles - if this was a fed, it would look like Nils was being careful to avoid being fished, as we’d discussed, but if this was for real this would look like an abundance of caution. I heartily approved, especially in light of my previous gaffe with the FBI agent.

“Alright. Then can we talk about roles within the…organization, I’m looking at? I feel that that should be safe enough to discuss, without violating client confidentiality. And I’d like to hear both of you speak.” The voice on the other end seemed bemused - and like it understood what was happening. What we were concerned about. 

Nils glanced to me and mouthed, “give just a little.” 

I put on my customer-service voice, pitched down slightly. “Apologies. I am dealing with some delays in the audio, but I am here.” That should be safe enough.  If anything, it would emphasize the theoretical distance between us. “What roles were you most interested in?”

“Oh, I think I would be interested in determining if your enterprise is real. If it is, I have…interests, in the field of corporate discipline. Helping targets get met, helping logistics be organized, all that.” He emphasized the word discipline ever so slightly, with stress on the wrong syllables to give no mystery as to what it meant. He’d already twigged we were playing, that the Disciples weren’t entirely real, but that he was offering to help make them a real thing.  “But I think you misunderstand my question - what roles do you two play?” 

I turned to Nils with wide eyes, just in time to catch Bishop shaking his head at his screen. Not a good sign, and Nils clearly caught it as his expression darkened.

Then he carried on, undeterred. “I’d say that the phoenix is…unorthodox, one might say, but something of a diversity coordinator and invaluable to our efforts, and that I am more or less the corporate executive. Thus far everyone pitches in on the technological side - there is also a chief of system security.” Nils’ voice at the end took on a mocking edge. 

The guy at the other end of the call chuckled. “Ah, that’s the way of it. This seems like a project built on a dream. And unless I’m missing my guess - you’ve already had some results.” 

“One could say that.” 

I chose that moment to speak up a little. “You seem to have at least some idea of our…goals.  It only seems fair to ask a bit about your background.”

“Did human intelligence for the military for a while, got out back in 2013, realized that for all the military promises to teach you marketable skills the two skills they taught me that’re more marketable than anything else in this day and age aren’t something I can put on a resume. You guys’ marketing campaign for new talent said you were looking for security, cyber and physical, and I can do both. You want smart, I already proved I can run you down and crack the codes you came up with that were cyphered across a bunch of different communities and worldviews. You guys seem smart and capable, and willing to work from a bunch of angles, and I want to get in on the ground floor of something like that, rather than getting caught with a bunch of useless eunuchs stuck in an echo chamber.” 

I gave Nils a skeptical look. To my knowledge, our ‘campaign’ hadn’t said anything about physical security - we had Nils’ fucknuckle minions for that.  But the level of crazy this guy was giving made it clear we definitely needed him on our side rather than against us.

“Our campaign didn’t say anything about physical security, but I don’t have complaints about your application.” Nils said, slowly. “That was clever. Question, though: what echo chamber did you leave to find us? And why did you leave them? Be honest.” 

“I appreciate the question, actually. So, I was stuck with a bunch of white supremacist dipshits for a while. I kinda got the “white power” thing, but they were wrong about the reasons - white people didn’t rule the world because we’re better, we ruled the world because we conquered it and that’s how power works. When they started talking about white genocide or great replacement I started losing my goddamn mind that I was putting up with them. If they really thought they were better, they should have relished the chance to prove it by competing rather than try to use the government to crack down, and if they couldn’t do that, then obviously whites aren’t the master race and it's our turn to be subjugated. Natural selection, rules of nature. Essentialists are idiots.”

My eyes got wide again. Oh, he’s crazy crazy. I looked at Bishop again, and he looked just as concerned as I was.  Nils, on the other hand, looked like this is exactly what he had expected.  Which, again, tracked.

“I won’t pretend that isn’t deeply concerning to me. I have a question: if our aim is partially to prove that the ‘rules of nature' don't apply along racial lines, but along different axes entirely, do you see yourself objecting?” 

“I’m open to not supporting or disputing your theory until I see it in action. And I’m open to helping convince the idiots who aren’t good for anything else to do what you tell them if you’re correct.” 

I muted my mic and gestured for Nils to do the same.  When he nodded to confirm, I was still barely above a whisper when I spoke. “This is really feeling too easy,” I wondered. “For someone who has spent weeks undermining us and trying to get your army out from under you, he’s caving entirely too fast.”

“He did fail to get my army out from under me,” Nils mused. “Think about his offer. He wants to be the lieutenant that helps coordinate my army for us, and at least for right now, our interests and his genuinely align. Throw the government into chaos, right? Let the world return to ‘rules of nature - predator vs. prey, social darwinist, not…actual rules of nature’ - and see who wins. But he’s spent the last several weeks getting dribbled by me in those spaces because I’m smarter than he is overall. But give him that access…what’s to stop him from taking his orders until our interests diverge and he can take the army we handed him and Order 66 us?” 

I held up one finger and unmuted my microphone. “What are you willing to offer as a gesture of good faith that we can believe you?” I muted myself again and shrugged at Nils while Bishop stifled a laugh. “Worth a shot.”

“The current screen name attached is my more used handle - trace it back and you’ll find more about me. Well within your skills from what I’ve seen. I also have cold evidence of something you’re very interested in. I’ll send you a sealed file in a drop if you provide a place for me to drop it. If you find it interesting, you know where to message me.”

Nils paused, muted his mic, and looked at the trace for the screenname. “Wow. This is…not well sealed.” Then he unmuted. “I want it perfectly clear that you cannot begin to imagine the level of hate I will rain on your motherboard for the rest of time if I open a malware packet.” 

“I would still scrub whatever you find like it has STDs,” I murmured.

Nils gave the code for a blank webdrive we had access to. Then a file was dropped in. Contained in that closed file was a zipped video of a molotov attack on a cafe with two semi familiar individuals and one stranger  cursing at each other to run. The cameraman’s arm was visible, with a very familiar swastika tattoo.

“Opinions?” Nils voice was quiet. 

“Christ…” I swore, rubbing my face. “That’s… Scary, but definitely a show of good faith.  Were there any strings?”

Bishop stood and started pacing and cursing under his breath. “There’s a fourth one.”

“That is neither here nor there,” I forced out, as much as it was killing something inside me.  “Was there anything attached to the file? Tracker, virus, anything suspicious?”

“No,” Bishop replied, slowly. “It was clean. For what it’s worth, this guy is interested in joining up.”

“I’ll be honest, he gives me two heebs and a jeeb, but it’s pretty clear Bishop’s right,” I admitted. “Nils?”

“If we can use him, and he’s not trying to fuck us over, we can make do, yeah.” his response was terse. 

Bishop took his seat again, combing his beard with his fingers. “Then it’s unanimous. Reluctant, but unanimous.  But I do plan on keeping tabs on this guy with as much time as I possibly can carve out, just so the two of you know.”

Nils nodded, so I unmuted my mic. “Package received and reviewed. Thank you for that.  Everything looks good on this end.  I think we can do business together, pending a second review.  I’m sure you understand.”

[hello-there-world]

hey, thought about William's backstory in the Rewrite...and Boy is it sad, but it Does explain a lot about why he's...Like That.

like...i have a few categories that my favorite villains go into. two of those are:

Sympathetic, But In The "You Understand How They Got To This Point, But It Doesn't Excuse Their Actions" Sense.

Sadistic Fuckers Who Are Doing Evil Shit 'Cause It's Fun To Them.

Rewrite!William technically fits in both of these categories, but the latter one is much more prominent post-Springlock.

like. his backstory is tragic, but that doesn't change the fact that he, y'know, 1) Killed A Bunch Of Children, Including His Own Son, and 2) After He Was Springlocked, He Straight Up Killed MULTIPLE Fazbear Employees, Maimed Several Others, And Attempted To Kill Both His Former Business Partner's OTHER Kid, As Well As One Of His Last Living Children.

with all that out of the way, let's get started with this man's horrible start to life:

so like. he was born to this really wealthy family in England on Feb. 14, 1941. had three older brothers and an older sister. off to a great start, right?

uh...wrong. parents? Sucked Ass. they're physically and verbally abusive, and care about Perfection above all else.

and William, the incredibly autistic child he was...well, he wasn't having a good time.

one of his few joys at home was the fact the property they lived on had a lot of rabbits and hares. Will would just go out there and play and chase the animals around. the fact that rabbits and hares became one of his special interests isn't surprising.

his other forms of escapism included drawing and reading in his room, especially picture books that had animals as the protagonists. drew a lot of furries cartoon/anthropomorphic animals

this guy's only real friends were his teachers, his older brother Joshua, and his younger sister Mary Anne. his other siblings were rather distant, We've Already Gone Over His Parents, and other kids his age think he's annoying/a Teacher's Pet. like. This Dude Was Lonely As A Kid. I'm Sure This Isn't Gonna Give Him Attachment Problems Where He Practically Clings To Anyone Else Who's Nice To Him!! Surely Not!! (see: Henry, Henry's kids, Claire, and the Afton Children)

but...William did have one other friend.

you see, for William's sixth birthday, his parents got him a pet rabbit (mostly so he'd quit fucking asking them), and William fucking adored that rabbit. loved it like it was his baby. i cannot overstate how much losing this rabbit would fuck him up.

for three years, William cared for that rabbit, treated it like it was a part of the family, and gave it the best life he could (William's parents told him that the rabbit was his responsibility). everything was going well.

...until some of Josh's friends came over one night.

it was an accident, ultimately. they came into William's room while he was in the middle of drawing and talking to his bunny. they made fun of him, about how much he seemed to care for this "stupid rabbit," and they picked up the rabbit and started messing around with it, despite Will's constant warnings to put it down and to be careful with it.

well, they weren't careful enough.

by the time Josh got into the room, William was screaming and crying, practically inconsolable, and the rabbit was laying on the floor, limp and lifeless. he pretty much told his friends "get the fuck out, what the hell is wrong with you?" as he tried to comfort his brother.

William never fully recovered. his parents were never much help, and his siblings just...didn't really know how to help. neither did his teachers.

but...he had his ways of coping. mostly, through drawing. William eventually came up with a concept of a children's book of his own, complete with a character: O'Hare, a lovely golden hare that lived in the countryside. they was silly, goofy, gave facts about hares and rabbits, and...they were loved by the creatures around them. it was William's own escapism fantasy, whether he realized it or not. it was his way of coping with everything, really.

but his father, upon finding William's many assorted pages of this hypothetical storybook, didn't see it that way. he saw it as a sign that there was something genuinely wrong with William.

the way his parents saw it, they had two options: send William off to an asylum or something to get him Mental Help (probably would've made things Much Worse, let's be real. considering shit's already pretty bad nowadays, i can't imagine it would've been ANY better in the 50s-60s. if anything, it was probably SO MUCH WORSE), but it would risk their reputation being ruined if news got out about it (because to my knowledge, if the family members of any well-known people were sent to asylums/had any major mental health problems, they kinda just tried to cover it up and make sure the public never knew), which, considering how close Josh and Will were, Josh would've made sure people knew. and their other option...send William off to Boarding School and just claim he was an "unruly child" if anyone asked.

they picked the latter (neither Josh nor Will were happy about it)

okay since it's getting late, quick summary of rest of the timeline:

William Has A Bad Time In Boarding School (starts fights, has a lot of breakdowns at night, staff is concerned)

William turned 15 and the Boarding School went "yeah, we aren't dealing with this kid on the Adolescent Hormones" and sent him back to his parents.

William's got more volatile emotions now (can get VERY sad and VERY angry quickly)

parents move the family to America because they think it'll help (it didn't, but now William can have a fresh start since no one knows him over here).

William turns 18, and his parents just kinda got him a car, threw a lot of money at him, and went "go to college or don't, we don't care, just gtfo of our house" and then he did that. kinda wanted to leave anyway.

drove to Utah and went to college there because it was pretty far from his parents (and family, but mostly his parents, who lived over in maybe NY), and then he just took some classes to see what he was interested in.

he learns he has a dormmate. Enter Henry Emily.

alright, there's the short version of the timeline. anyway it's late. have this.

Ooh! I really love this. I'd imagine all that kinda messed him up. I also bet he absolutely loved the pizzarias when he was working there, since he was more allowed to just be a kinda weird guy who loves rabbits and hares.

Until he started killing, of course.

[charlizard91]

Welcome to our blog!

Okay so this may be confusing to explain, but i'll try my best. My friend Austin has this strange computer that can... connect to the future internet? Ok well to you guys it's not the future. For reference, i am from the year 2006, and yet whenever Austin over here accesses the internet, it's 2023??? Wowzas! Anyway, neither of us are really certain on how this works, but he always uses weird future internet slang that i don't quite get, so he let me create this blog to learn more about the future LOL? But at the same time, i don't think its our future? Cuz if so, then where's my future 31 year old self XD

Oh yeah, and Austin told me i should say my pronouns, which is something i never really thought about. I'm a guy, and you can just call me a he i guess? Sorry i'm still learning about this stuff, my best friend Reverie is transgender, so i'm glad i have her to rely on XD

Anyway, enough rambling from me, i'm gonna let everyone else introduce themselves! Feel free to ask us any questions about anything, this is going to be such a funky future experience LOL!

hey, i'm reverie, known online as elegyEstranger (though all the social networking websites i use are from 2006 lmao). not sure what to really put here, but here are some of my interests: computer programming, making music, video games (nothing anyone would recognize this day), and whatever stuff my friends drag me into.

Yo! I'm Jessica Hendrickson, but everyone just calls me Jess. My parents are pretty strict about letting me be on the interwebs, but Austin let's me borrow his computer in class. Everyone says I'm the big sister of the group, which is only really accurate if you exclude the many new friends we've made recently, haha. You never would've guessed this based on my outfit, but I like to knit, paint, and write, mostly because there's nothing really modern to do in my house. Man, I sure do envy you future dudes.

[OOC: sorry the jessica and austin drawings are a bit messy, i just really wanted to post this before goin to bed xD. expect better drawings and more characters in a few days]

HAHAEHEHEHAEHEHAEHA WHATS UP CHUCKLEFUCKS its me. austin. call me CRAZY or CRINGE but i AM the ceo of funny. the most infamous escapee from the [REDACTED]. AND IT IS MY HOLY MISSION TO BLESS THESE fuckers WITH THE i wear a mask with a smileforhoursatatime!!!!!!!!! THIS IS modern internet humor BiTCH!!! take yo sensative ass back to 2006. laughing emoji laughing emoji laughing em

Okay this is Charlie again... Austin is having another one of his laughing fits. Honestly, him being able to access the internet 17 years into the future is the least strange thing about him. Anyway, we're all super looking forward to your questions, and i hope to finally leave the realm of being a newbie when it comes to internet memez XD

[neuromuse]

FINALLY I CAN TALK ABOUT MY AU

This has been rotting in my head for like a year at this point, and I am not gonna do justice in this one post but!! Let's talk about Percy's Mercury!Bart Allen Au.

So the idea of Bart taking Max's mantle is not my own original idea, I see it all the time on comic book twitter and tumblr and it's a very common concept and it makes a lot of sense. Given how Bart failed Terrifically at being the flash, and so if he were to grow out of the Impulse title and role, I think this would be that story (if that makes any sense??). Cue: my rambles

So there's a lot of parts where I could start this AU, but hear me out, what if we start with an alternate ending to Mercury Falling? Inertia pulls a rotting Max Mercury into the speedforce and Impulse barrels through to try and save his parental mentor figure. Bart canonically wants to save both Thad and Max, and I think at the state Bart was with his training meant that the ability of him saving either of them when all chaos breaks loose in the speedforce is incredibly thin. In a good ending Bart ends up saving Thad and Max and there is a possible start of Thaddeus redemption arc, in the real ending we got Bart saves Max and Thad poofs into speedforce dust, and in a bad ending Bart watches Thaddeus and Max fade in front of him.

Can you take a guess at which one I'm gonna pick for this AU? What can I say, fuckers love angst (I am fuckers).

Ok so Bart crawls out of the speedforce, torn in shambles and in front of him is Helen and Max's colleague who was attempting to treat him. They all stare at each other with thick disbelief of what had just happened, and neither of the adults can find it in themselves to ask the quivering teen in shambles the thick details. All they can manage is to pick up the boy and comfort him, rest assured he is safe at the end of the day. The rest of the details follow out similar to the end of Impulse, where when Max goes missing the Allen family decide to assign Jay Garrick as Bart's caretaker since he can continue mentoring him and be the best fit. When Bart moves in with the Garricks, across the country and away from his school friends and Helen, he is still injured and recovering, which he shouldn't be injured since speedsters usually only take like what? a few hours and they're back on their speedy feet? Jay speculates Bart still has broken bones because they not only settled in the wrong spots, making it impossible to make a proper recovery (unless he wants to repetitively break the same bones until they set them in the right spots) or because the injuries forming in the speedforce threw the body and metabolism in for a loop.

Either way, from this point on the canon stays loosely the same. Bart stays with Jay, learns with him, and some Young Justice shenanigans ensue. Up until we get to around the Flash Rebirth comic, I'm gonna mess around with this point. Wally notices that when Barry comes back the speedforce is acting very strange again, and so does Barry as they both hear the souls of Max and Johnny Quick in the speedforce. This peaks Bart's curiosity, and just like when he was a younger kid he's gonna try to make a run back into the speedforce to check it out. Everyone advises Bart not to run back into the speedforce, a whole dictionary's worth of reasons why it's not a good idea, but Bart will stay stubborn and keep working his way up into breaking that barrier.

Bart eventually enters the speedforce looking for Max, and he enters the speedforce a handful of amount of times before finding him. He treats these visits like entering a containment zone, enter for only a short time and once anything feels funny evacuation ASAP. When he finds Max, on his seventh run through, the man is ethereal, what was a conduit of the speedforce is now a spectral image of what the speedforce captured him as. The two manage to hold conversation in a thick maelstrom of kinetic energy, which now limits their time as Bart is starting to get battered up for being a freshie to the intense form of travel.

It was obvious that Max couldn't go back to earth with Bart, as his body wasn't the same and it would put the two in a whole bunch of unnecessary issues. When it's getting to that point where Bart is hitting that upper limit of speedforce exposure, he asks Max if he could see him soon. In the typical always cryptic Max manner, he just laughs and puts a phantasmic hand on Bart's shoulder and tells him that he'll know where to find him. This is what I'd consider to be the transfer of "zen speedforce master" powers to Bart, and it kinda fucks him up you know, it's a lot of beyond radioactive energy being transferred into one of the most unstable conduits. He's gonna knock out and wake up on the floor of Jay's basement with the ability to feel everything moving, and at what speed they're moving.

The shuffling of Jay and Joan cooking dinner together is magnified in a sense that even Clark Kent couldn't understand it, he could clock down Wally running to the Titan's tower, he could feel Tim Drake grapple building to building. It's a lot to take in, but he could also very faintly feel a swirling force in him, a very soothing force that reminds him so faintly of that house in Manchester, Alabama.

[mejomonster]

Chapter 100 still these two are So Fucking Funny. Luo Wenzhou is at once the Most Loving Doting daddy type ever and also a tsundere who Literally self admits he was also a "sleep around without affection" player but still roasts Fei Du internally when he's embarrassed he loves this flirt! LUO wenzhou gets overwhelmed when HE is losing the flirting "battle" (even though he was just winning moments ago!) So he's gotta roast Fei Du mentally lmao! Luo wenzhou: soooo do you care about me, being all respectful of the law for me? -3-)/ Fei Du: so you wanna go confess at lovers mirror since this is a Date you took me on (you caring sap) -3-)/ Luo wenzhou: he's playing with my heart he's a complete bitch he's a bastard how dare he say I Care like a sap when I was saying how HE cared like a sap I swear to the fucking Heavens he's not boyfriend material he's TROUBLE WITH A CAPITAL T (alright sure you tsundere fucker, like you're not gonna tuck him into bed later with milk and a kiss on the forehead once you think he's asleep! Look I get it.. it's part self conscious fear Fei Du doesn't love him as much, justifiable in a way since Fei Du keeps secrets, is simply younger and less mature generally, and Luo Wenzhou also used to be a playboy and knows the perspective this relationship Could Reasonably be from Fei Dus side. But it's also like BRO you love him SO much more than even a usual lover! Trust me, he knows!! I mean he DOESNT cause he's literally SO DENSE about real feelings he kind of is oblivious to your intense amount of care for him! But also like it's not a big deal if he knows you're smitten, as stated he's Too Oblivious to actually call u out on all of it anyway):

Luo Wenzhou said, “Let’s go up ahead and have a look. What do you think is the motive for the cover-up? Schoolyard romances ordinarily get hidden from teachers and parents. Not many people would hide from the die-hard followers who ran away with them?”

Fei Du went along with his topic, saying, “Two possible circumstances. Either he felt the relationship was beneath his dignity, or it was to protect her—since Feng Bin expended so much effort to take the girl to see the Lovers’ Mirror, I surmise that it’s the latter.”

“Oh, so—” After Luo Wenzhou gave a seemingly absent-minded nod, he suddenly changed the subject. “You didn’t use to care about getting a little fine for parking against regulations. You were always hanging around parading yourself at the City Bureau’s gates. Why is it that lately when you come to the City Bureau driving my car, you’re paying attention to the rules and going to the parking lot? Is it the former or the latter?”

Fei Du paused.

Luo Wenzhou raised his eyelids, looking at him, pointing to his own ears. “Why don’t you take the opportunity to own up? I’m listening.”

“Neither.” Fei Du pulled himself together and smiled ambiguously, touching Luo Wenzhou’s waist and lowering his voice. “Isn’t it a public security bureau? I’m afraid I’ll be arrested for being an ‘uncertified driver.’—Mr. Policeman, when are you coming with me to receive certification at the Lovers’ Mirror?”

Luo Wenzhou: “…”

The asshole had known all along! He’d been playing dumb!

Fei Du was as bothersome as could be, not at all lovable. Right now, Luo Wenzhou thought that there wasn’t a single adorable thing about him, from the roots of his hair to his heels. What had he spent these past few months constantly thinking about him for? This bit of goods was only fit for dragging home, stripping naked, and throwing on the bed.

[melatonindepicts]

Stuck Together (Ulquiorra Love Story, Chapter #2)

Word count: 4,865

Character count: 26,844

                                          Chapter Two; Learning

Liz collapsed onto the ground in front of the door as Andrew left. Ulquiorra said nothing and just continued to scan the bookshelf, but Grimmjow walked over and crouched next to her. “So that jerk was your partner, I’m assuming?” he asked, putting his hand on Liz’s shoulder. Liz just nodded and squeezed her eyes shut, trying to hold back the tears. “Alright, let’s get you upstairs,” Grimmjow said, helping her up. Ulquiorra watched as the two walked upstairs. Once they were gone, he walked over and sat down on the couch, and instantly Kurai climbed on his lap, curling up into a ball. Ulquiorra slowly petted him as he opened the book and began reading.

Grimmjow sat Liz down on the bed, then sat next to her. “Listen, I’m not the best with all this romance and breakup shit as I’m an Arrancar, but I will say confidently that guy doesn’t deserve you, he’s just an attention thirst guy that finally snapped with his short patience. His first reaction was to try to punch Ulquiorra, which isn't exactly something you want in a guy.” Grimmjow said, rubbing her back. Liz looked at Grimmjow with small tears welling up in her eyes, but he did raise a good point. Andrew had always been a bit abusive, and very clingy. It had already taken its toll on her mental health, so maybe this wasn’t all bad. She’d have to explain to her parents, but right now she didn’t want to talk to anyone except Grimmjow.

She laid down on her bed, stretching. It was already 2am at this point, so she was exhausted. This night had been all over the place. “The chicken tenders are probably done by now, if you want some you can go ahead and grab some, I’ll be up here and probably sort through all these messages.” She said, looking at her phone. Grimmjow shrugged and stood up off the bed. “Would you happen to have something like… an extra jacket?” He asked, looking around. Liz nodded and pointed towards the closet in the corner. “Yea, Andrew left one of his dark blue jackets in there, it should fit you.” she said, putting her arm over her eyes. Grimmjow opened the closet and pulled out the blue jacket, a pair of jeans and a white t-shirt. He turned around with them and walked into the bathroom, before coming out a few minutes later.

“Sheesh Grimmjow, you look good in that outfit” Liz said, giggling a bit. Grimmjow unzipped the jacket and left it like that, before turning around and walking towards the door. “I’ll be back in a second, gonna grab some of those chicken tenders ya made” he said, walking out. Liz let the smile on her face fade as she lifted up her phone. She first looked through all the love and worried messages from Andrew, but didn’t for long before blocking him. Next she ran through all her parents’ messages, and her sister’s. Most of them were just asking how she was, nothing too worrying. Next she went to her best friend’s texts, Maya. At first they were asking to hang out, then to worried messages, then to frantic ones. She had messaged an hour ago saying she warned Liz’s parents, and that Maya couldn’t find her at her house. Liz frantically video called her.

“Hello? Liz?!” Maya shrieked over the phone

“Yes! I’m here! I’m ok!” she said quickly. She always knew Maya was a strong ghost believer, and anything supernatural that is. But she wasn’t sure if she should take the same approach she did with Andrew.

“Where the HELL have you been?! I’ve been messaging, calling and visiting your house to try to find you. I thought you had just gone off with your parents or Andrew but neither of them knew where you were. Good thing you called when you did because I was about to call the police!” She yelled over the phone, but Liz just let out a quiet sigh. “Andrew and I broke up just a bit ago.” she said quietly, causing a gasp over the phone

“That fucker! What happened?!” she asked.

“It’s.. hard to explain. I had two guys over and one of them spoke while I was explaining to Andrew what happened, and now he thinks I was cheating. The reality is a very, very complicated one.” She said, pinching the bridge of her nose

“I know you didn’t cheat if you’re worried, you’re not that type of girl at all.” Maya said reassuringly. “But if I may ask, why did you have two guys over?” she asked, letting Liz let out a sigh. 

“Let’s just say I was kidnapped, and they saved me. Yes, it’s sorted out, yes the kidnappers are gone, and there’s no need to worry, I’m fine.” She said. She wasn’t fully lying, Grimmjow and Ulquiorra technically saved her, if it was their intention or not. But she decided to leave out the part Ulquiorra IS the kidnapper. And the little details that they used powers… portals… and they weren’t even of this world. You know, the little details.

“Oh Jesus Christ. Are you sure you're ok?! Who the fuck are these guys?! Cause holy shit I need to meet them!” She yelled excitedly. 

“U- Uh yea, yea. You will eventually, but for now it’s best to not. Andrew tried to throw a punch at one of them, but got his hand broken in response. He might call you to warn you soon, so if he does, try to ignore him. And if you don’t, at LEAST tell me what he says and how the conversation went!” Liz said, trying to vision how that conversation would go.

“Got it, well you're probably exhausted, you can go ahead and hit the hay. I’m going to continue watching my video, sorry that this happened to you,” but before she could finish, the door opened as Grimmjow walked in. He put down some chicken tenders on the nightstand. “Who ya talking to this time? It better not be that jerkwad Andrew,” Grimmjow said, sitting down next to her on the bed. Maya’s mouth gaped. Then she got a message over discord that popped up. -YOU DIDN’T FUCKING TELL ME HE WAS HOT! HE COSPLAYS?! DAMN GIRL YOU HIT THE JACKPOT WTF- It read, Liz let out a laugh as Grimmjow just took a bite out of the chicken tender.

“You make killer tenders jeez, all the ones we had back in Hueco Mundo were plain as fuck” he said, licking his fingers. Liz shoved him off the bed with a laugh. “I’m in the middle of a video call ya dingus, give me a second to wrap this up,” Liz said, as Grimmjow let out a scoff, before standing up off the ground. “Anyways, I gotta head out now, cya Maya” She said, before hanging up. Grimmjow dusted off his jeans then grabbed her plate of chicken tenders. “I’m taking yours, screw you!” He yelled, before eating them in one bite. “Ay!” She yelled as she sprung up and tried to grab the plate, but Grimmjow just held it up higher. “Shorty” he said, before eating the last one. She just shook her head in disbelief before laying back down.

Grimmjow put the plate down, before sitting back down on the bed. “Who was that though? Do I gotta threaten another person?” He asked, letting a smile slide across his face at the thought. Liz just rolled her eyes, then smiled. “No, No you don’t have to punch or threaten this one. She’s my best friend, and she doesn’t believe shit Andrew says. Either because she trusts me, or she just wants a shot at a hot guy” she said, letting out a laugh. Grimmjow raised his eyebrow at her before rolling his eyes. “Whatever, I’m exhausted, is there a guest room or some shit” he asked, standing up. “Two doors down. It’s a one bed guest room so Ulquiorra will have to sleep on the couch” She said. Grimmjow just shrugged. “That fuck would be comfortable on the floor. He never slept in Hueco Mundo because he didn’t need it, how many bets are you gonna make that he fell asleep on the couch?” He asked, stretching.

“Hundred dollars.” She said, putting her earbuds in. Grimmjow let out a small laugh “Goodnight, Liz” He said, before leaving the room. He walked two doors down before opening up a door to a small room. It wasn’t too bad, just a little bit dusty from no usage. He set his kimono in the drawer and layed down on the bed, before dozing off.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As the sun creeped through the window, causing Ulquiorra to snap awake. He was laying down on the couch, but wasn’t sure what happened. It was like time had skipped forward to the morning, but he felt this weird feeling, like he didn’t want to get up. Ulquiorra was mid trying to find out what the fuck happened before Kurai started licking his face, which caused Ulquiorra to sit up, making the little cat tumble off of the couch. He looked around, realizing the place was now beautifully lit up by the sun rays coming through the windows, but just because they were beautiful doesn’t mean he liked them. He squinted his eyes as he stood up, but then wobbled a bit before straightening up, what was happening to him? Was this what the humans described as tiredness and sleep? Well he didn’t like it, he felt vulnerable in this condition.

His thoughts were interrupted by Liz walking downstairs, just finishing pulling a shirt over her. “Mornin’ Ulquiorra.” She said lazily, as she stumbled into the kitchen. “What happened?” he asked her, causing her to peek around the corner, with a confused look. It clicked when she saw his hair all scuffed up, and his kimono sloppy. “You fell asleep, Grimmjow told me you had never slept before, nice ain’t it?” Liz said, putting her head back into the kitchen. Ulquiorra fixed up the collar of his Kimono, and readjusted his hair. “I don’t agree, I was vulnerable and felt as if I lost all of my energy.” he stated, fixing the tails of his kimono. Liz let out a laugh and peeked her head back into the living room. “You worry too much, nobody's  going to attack us don’t worry. You’re safe in the house” she reassured him, as he walked into the kitchen as well. “What are you doing?” he asked, as she had just finished grinding some coffee beans. “Making some coffee, want some?” she asked, looking at him. He just stared blankly as if she had never said anything. “Oh, right, you’ve never had coffee before. I’ll just make you some caramel coffee with whipped cream, I know you don’t care for taste but it should help you wake up more,” she said, pouring water into the coffee machine.

“I am currently awake, Liz.” He said emotionlessly. She just looked at him puzzled then it clicked. “Oh, I meant it makes you less tired, and I guess in your case, less vulnerable as you like to call it.” she said, that caught Ulquiorra’s attention. “So it’s like an energy mixture?” He asked, turning his head slightly. “I…. Guess you could say that… It's good to enjoy it, and it takes a bit to kick in. It’s hot, don’t burn yourself” she said, putting the cup down. Ulquiorra sat down on the table in the kitchen at  this point. He stared at it for a second before taking a sip. “How is it?” she asked, looking at him. Ulquiorra said nothing except for taking another sip of the coffee, causing Liz to smile. “Glad you like it” she said, turning and grabbing her own cup of coffee. 

She sat down across from him, pulling out her phone. “What is that?” he asked, raising his eyebrow. Liz let out a long sigh and stood up and walked over to him, before showing him the phone. “It’s sort of like your eye crushing ability,-” she started, but Ulquiorra cut her off. “Solita Vista.” He corrected, she just rolled her eyes. “Yea, that. But it televises images, or information that you want to know through a browser, it also has interactive games, and ways to contact others through it.” she explained, showing him a cat video on YouTube. He just raised his eyebrow. “Interesting.” He said, before taking another sip out of his coffee. Liz smiled then walked back over and sat down.

“Fucker doesn’t know shit about this world, cut him some slack. I’m impressed he even understood any of that shit. At least I’ve got some experience with this crap.” Grimmjow said walking into the kitchen while sliding the dark blue jacket on. Ulquiorra raised his eyebrow at the sight. “What are you wearing?” he asked emotionlessly, taking a sip of his coffee. Grimmjow sat down, and then looked over at Ulquiorra. “Oh this? Liz let me borrow a jacket and some clothes. If we’re going to be here it’s best to at least somewhat blend in. Plus this is comfy.” He said, patting the jacket. Ulquiorra said nothing in response, just continued to drink his coffee.

“Good job Liz, now you're going to make him a coffee addict. I can’t say I’m surprised though.” He said, pinching the bridge of his nose. He let out a sigh before standing back up and pulling out a coke can from the fridge. Ulquiorra stood up as he finished his coffee, putting it in the sink, then walking into the living room once again.

 Liz followed along a few minutes later, walking into the living room and sitting next to Ulquiorra. “Is this going to be my life now?” Ulquiorra asked, looking at Liz. Liz just shrugged and sighed. “It might as well be. Even if we do regain our powers, what’s the point? We’re bound to this world, and it’s not like anything interesting is really going to happen here.” she said, but before Ulquiorra could respond, her phone started to ring. “Hold that thought Ulqui” she said, standing up and walking upstairs. “Ulqui?” he asked himself.

“Hello? Who is this?” she asked, shutting the door to her room.

“Hey Liz! I’ve decided I’mma drop by today in about thirty minutes, I’ve been dying to meet these guys. Hope they haven’t left or something is happening” Maya explained, causing Liz to flinch. ‘Shit.’ she thought

“O- Oh uh no nothings happening, thanks for the heads up though. I’ll tell Ulquiorra and Grimmjow to get ready.” Liz explained.

“Grimmjow? Ulquiorra? Where the fuck are these guys from? A movie?” she asked teasingly, causing Liz to let out a groan.

“Alright I’ll see you in a bit, buh bai!” Maya said, before hanging up.

“Well fuck. Now what.” She said to herself, before turning around and walking back downstairs.

As Liz came back downstairs, she came down to the lovely sight of Grimmjow wrestling Kurai to get off of him, and Ulquiorra reading a book on astronomy. “Hey, guys. So my friend, yes the one from last night Grimmjow. Is coming over in about thirty minutes, so we gotta figure out how in the HELL we’re going to explain to her about Ulquiorra. Grimmjow you just look like a crazy cosplayer, but Ulquiorra, that kimono is going to come loose at one point and reveal your hollow hole, so we’re going to need you to change.” She explained, causing Ulquiorra to raise his eyebrow. He was about to object, but decided against it. “I’ll get you an outfit, you’re about my size so some of my stuff will be fine for now until we can get you proper clothes” she said, grabbing him and dragging him upstairs. Grimmjow and Kurai watched the two disappear upstairs, before turning attention back to each other, and continuing to wrestle.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ulquiorra watched as Liz rustled around in her closets, grabbing certain clothes out and putting them on the bed. It contained sweaters, t-shirts, long sleeve shirts, turtle necks, etc. She eventually pulled out a black small jacket, a gray t-shirt, and a pair of black jeans. “I’m not going to try to force you into anything other than gray, white, black or green.” she explained, before tossing them over to Ulquiorra. “Go get changed.” she said, before continuing to rustle around. Ulquiorra turned around and walked into the bathroom, as Liz continued to look around in the closet.

A Few minutes later, Ulquiorra came out while adjusting the black jacket. “Will this do?” he asked plainly. Liz smiled and turned towards him “Yea, but one more thing.” She said, before grabbing a dark teal scarf and wrapping it around his neck lightly. “Just in case your hollow hole somehow becomes slightly visible through the shirt,” she explained, as she struggled to get the scarf uncaught from his mask, before finally finishing adjusting it. She grabbed his kimono and put it on the bed. “Don’t worry, I’ll wash it and keep it safe. This is temporary, sorry bout’ that” she explained, before both of them left the room. 

Once they got back down, Grimmjow put Kurai down and stared at Ulquiorra. “I’ve never seen you out of that damn kimono, weird sight.” he said, squinting. Ulquiorra just closed his eyes, sliding his hands into his pockets. “Ok so, Maya thinks you two saved me from being kidnapped, I left out the part that Ulquiorra was the one who kidnapped me,” she said, shooting a death glare at him. “So you guys just gotta play along, for the hollow masks I’m going to say it’s a native thing to your guy’s area. Just play along.” Liz explained, sliding a dark blue crop-top jacket on. Ulquiorra said nothing, and Grimmjow just nodded. Liz bent down and put down a small bowl for Kurai, and filled it with some cat food. “Luckily I had some of this leftover.” she said, letting Kurai eat.

Liz turned around, and began turning off all the lights. As she walked back over, she picked up Kurai as he finished eating the food, then slid on a little sweater that looked hand knitted. “I used to have a cat, so I still have some of the stuff from it.” she said, putting Kurai back down, and instantly Kurai flopped over, causing Grimmjow to gasp. “What the fuck did you do to the cat?!” he said, trying to set him back up. Kurai just flopped over again. “Give it a second, they always do that…” she explained, as he kept flopping over. “They’re over dramatic like that…” she said, picking Kurai back up, then handing it to Grimmjow. “Just carry him until he can walk.” she said, and Grimmjow stared at Kurai, displeased. “Can’t we just leave him here?” Ulquiorra asked. Liz shook her head. “He’ll probably tear this place up, or shit all over the place. Rather not leave him alone here.” She explained, opening the door. “And it’s better if we’re outside talking to Maya.” she said, opening the door.

As they walked out, they were hit with the soft cool Fall breeze, as the leaves continued to fall down. Liz let a long inhale take place, before turning around and closing the door, and locking it. “I texted Maya to meet us in front of the house, so she should be here soon.” Liz explained, as Grimmjow crossed his arms and shivered. “Goddamnit, why couldn’t you have gotten a scarf for me as well.” he complained, Liz just rolled her eyes. 

A few moments later, a black car pulled into the driveway. Maya, another girl and a guy stepped out, then a gasp from Maya ripped through the air. “Oh my god! Hii Liz!!” She yelled, yanking her into a hug, causing her to cough. “Heyy Maya-” was all she managed to get out, then pulled away and patted her shoulders. “Hey Kate, Hey Yuku.” she said, waving at them. They both waved back, until all three of the attentions turned straight to Ulquiorra. “Woah. Didn’t know he was a makeup artist.” Yuku said, walking over and looking at him. Grimmjow just scoffed, causing Maya’s eyes to widen at Grimmjow, then she leaned in and whispered to Liz. “He’s even hotter in person,” she said, causing Liz to roll her eyes. “Don’t be like that, you don’t even know the guy. You promised to get to know guys before you tried to flirt with them, remember?” Liz whispered back, causing Maya to groan.

Ulquiorra said nothing as Yuku just stared at him. “I didn’t think Liz would be into shorter guys, but hey, sick makeup.” he said. Ulquiorra just stared at him, then spoke up. “It is not makeup.” he stated blandly, Yuku opened his mouth to object, but Liz intervened. “Uh… Yuku, it's not makeup, uh… Ulquiorra’s just like that,” she explained, causing Yuku to shake his head in disbelief. “Sick mask” he said, turning his attention to the mask. Liz scoffed and pushed Yuku away, and then turned her attention to Ulquiorra. “Ignore him.” she said, before realizing Kate was gesturing for her to come over. She glanced back at Grimmjow and Maya, and Ulquiorra and Yuku, before walking over.

“What is it?” Liz asked, as Kate brushed her hair out of her face. “Are you sure we can trust these guys? They almost look like they’re not from this world.” she said quietly, causing Liz’s eyes to narrow. That caught Kate’s attention. “Uh.. is there something you’re not telling us here Liz?” she asked quietly, but as Liz opened her mouth to speak, Grimmjow called out. “Liz, PLEASE get your fucking ass OVER HERE!” He yelled at her, causing both Kate and Liz to look at him, who Maya was uncomfortably close to. “Ay, Maya, quit it.” Liz said, walking over separating the two. Grimmjow let out a sigh of relief, and Maya stuck her tongue out at Liz. “Quit acting like a fifth grader and get your shit together Maya” Liz said, shaking her head. 

Maya rolled her eyes, then turned her attention back to Grimmjow. “So whaddaya say, Grimmy?” she asked, fluttering her eyes, causing Liz to send a sucker punch to her in the stomach. “I SAID QUIT IT” she barked at Maya, “Ok, ok jesus woman” she said, coughing. Grimmjow just stood there shaken up, until Yuku walked over.

“Yo that guy’s a total emo, why the hell are you making friends with all the weirdos? He doesn’t show shit for emotion and doesn’t understand what jokes are.” Yuku said, gesturing at Ulquiorra. Grimmjow growled a bit, and Liz just grabbed Yuku’s, Kate’s and Maya’s arms and dragged them to the other side of the driveway. “Listen guys, these two are native to this area, and their well… culture and shit is completely different. You gotta chill out from picking shit apart and flirting with them. I want them to get comfortable here, since they’re staying with me now.” Liz explained, but before she could continue, Maya cut her off.

“THEY’RE STAYING WITH YOU?!” She shrieked, causing Ulquiorra and Grimmjow to turn their attention over to them. “Yes, yes they are. I know I said I would arrange having me move in with you guys but things have changed. I want them to feel comfortable here, and you guys aren’t really helping them feel accepted here.” she explained, as all three of them nodded. “And Kate, you are right, I didn’t tell you guys most of these details. I’m barely becoming friends with these two, well. At least Grimmjow, Ulquiorra is… well… I’ll put it short, he doesn’t know how to show much emotion at all, so don’t hold it against him.” Liz explained, shooting a glare at Yuku, he just shrugged and mouthed “ok”. Liz turned her attention to Maya. “Listen I know these are single guys but jesus christ TAKE IT SLOW! Neither of them are interested in dating or anything at all, so chill, and get to know them.” Liz continued, before turning back around. “Everything understood?” she asked, and all three of them nodded. 

As they walked back over, Ulquiorra was holding Kurai, slowly petting him. Grimmjow was dusting off his jacket from being touched by Maya. “Hey, ok guys so change of plans, these three are going to head back to their place, while we get you guys set up for living at my place, alright?” Liz explained, causing Ulquiorra to raise an eyebrow and Grimmjow to let out a sigh of relief.

As Maya, Yuku and Kate loaded into the car, and drove away, Grimmjow grabbed Liz’s arm and pulled her close to his face. “Don’t EVER make me have to go through that again, Liz! That was torture!” he yelled, shivering. Ulquiorra glanced at the two and closed his eyes, sliding his hands into his pockets. “I’m inclined to agree, not being able to tell them the truth was not a pleasant experience.” he explained, slowly walking over to them. Liz sighed, “Sorry about that, I was hoping they wouldn’t be so.. Picky… and flirty… But alas, it is what it is” she said, putting on a British accent, causing Grimmjow to snort, trying to hold back his laughter.

“What did you mean by setting us up for living at your place? Is that necessary?” Ulquiorra asked, opening his eyes again. “I bet you're fun at parties” Grimmjow said, scoffing. “Well, you can’t sleep on the couch forever, and I have two other guest rooms in the basement, but they aren’t furnished. Luckily I come from a decently wealthy family, so we don’t need to worry. That guest room you slept in Grimmjow will be your room from now on, we’ll fix up the other guest room and call it yours, Ulquiorra, and the third will remain for guests.” She explained. Grimmjow nodded, and Ulquiorra closed his eyes, then eventually nodded. “Well, get in the car, we’ll head to the mall for the smaller things, I’ll order the furniture.” she said, walking over and pulling out keys from her purse, unlocking the car. 

Grimmjow sat in the front seat, as Liz started the car. Ulquiorra didn’t sit in at first, just stared. “Get in, you fuckface” Grimmjow demanded, causing Ulquiorra to hesitantly step in. “What is this thing?” He asked, looking around inside of it. Grimmjow let out an annoyed groan, and Liz spoke up. “It’s a transportation vehicle, since you guys can’t use your gargantas, we’re going to need to stick to this for now. Plus even if you could, ripping a portal open in the middle of a mall would probably cause a ton of panic.” she said, looking back at Ulquiorra in the back seat. Ulquiorra just sat there, staying still. Liz scoffed then stepped out, and leaned in and snapped him in, causing Ulquiorra to stare at it for a second before speaking up. “What is this? A restraint?” he asked, pulling at it. Grimmjow couldn’t help but burst into laughter, as Liz just facepalmed as she shut the door, and got back into the driver’s seat. “It’s a seatbelt, it’ll help you out in the case that we got into a car crash. I’m not willing to explain this all right now, but no, it’s not a restraint.” she explained.

She grabbed Kurai, and set him back with Ulquiorra, and put a leash on him. Ulquiorra watched as they pulled out of the driveway through the window, and drove down the road. The neighborhood seemed so… peaceful. Everyone was just doing their own thing, not a single fight, a single explosion, or even yelling. He’d never seen this at Las Noches. Eventually they hit the highway, as Liz turned on the radio. 

– Music; Enjoy by C4C –

It was an upbeat, peaceful, happy beat. Ulquiorra didn’t know how to feel about it. He liked the peaceful aspect, but at the same time he wasn’t sure. As they turned from the highway onto a smaller road, Liz pulled out her phone and gave it to Grimmjow, and it was playing what seemed like a bunch of cat videos. “There you go, it’ll be a bit of a longer drive and I know you aren’t as patient as Ulquiorra, if it gets low on battery just let me know and I’ll plug it in.” she explained, as she handed Grimmjow the phone. Grimmjow looked at her confused as hell, until he began watching the video. Ulquiorra said nothing as he slowly stroked Kurai, as he watched the trees go by.

Eventually, they began passing more buildings. It wasn’t like the neighborhood though. They were bigger buildings, and there were huge parking lots with tons of cars in them. The trees became less apparent as they drove more into the town. Eventually, they slowed down at the turn for a really large building that read “Opal” on the front, and below the large words were “Mall”. Ulquiorra could only assume that was the Mall they were heading to.

𝙸 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎 𝚠𝚛𝚒𝚝𝚒𝚗𝚐 𝚕𝚒𝚝𝚝𝚕𝚎 𝚙𝚕𝚎𝚊𝚜𝚊𝚗𝚝 𝚜𝚝𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚎𝚜 𝚕𝚒𝚔𝚎 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜, 𝚊 𝚕𝚘𝚟𝚎𝚕𝚢 𝚋𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚔 𝚏𝚛𝚘𝚖 𝚖𝚢 𝚞𝚜𝚞𝚊𝚕 𝚜𝚊𝚍 𝚍𝚊𝚛𝚔 𝚎𝚗𝚍𝚒𝚗𝚐.

[sukirichi]

dutifully yours. [01]

Attached to the could’ve been’s of a promised happily ever after with the Crown Prince disguised under a scheme for power and greed, you are torn between choosing your happiness — or abandoning it to fulfill your duty as the future Queen.

→ unedited bcos i’m brave lazy. implied patriarchy. angst in future chapters. pure romance and fluff for now. royalty au. eventual smut. prince naoya !! i love him sm i could cry. this fic will break me, okay. naoya is close to canon but with my twist if that makes sense. drama in future chapters. oh and listen to this while reading <3

→ massive shoutout to my besties for always hyping me and helping me uwu, i present this token of prince naoya being an ideal husband okay cry cry i love him sm im crying. anyways pls enjoy bcos i poured my heart out to this and bcos i want more people in the naoya fucker club :>

one | next (to be posted)

Ever since the day your mother taught you how to read, you’ve had your nose buried in a book. Losing yourself in different worlds, swooning over fictional princes, and fantasizing for a love story ripped out of fairytale itself with such burning, passionate romance – you’d been through it all, dreamt of it all. And yet, you struggled to stop yourself from tugging at your dress.

The tight corset hadn’t even been the main focus of your worries, and neither was the heavy rivière resting on your collarbones.

“Would you stop fidgeting?” Beside you, your mother pursed her lips, fingers decorated with jewels stopping in their movements of fanning herself. The temperature hadn’t been particularly high inside the limousine that evening. You supposed it was the mere sight of you tugging and gulping audibly every now and then, gloved hands running over the hems of your collar.

You ducked your head down. “Sorry, Mother. I can’t help it.”

“Dear, your anxiety is written all over your face,” she sighed, turning your face to her as she cupped your cheeks. Smiling tenderly like a mother always did, your heart felt soothed even by the slightest bit. You wished she could keep holding you like this – like you were a fragile flower she was afraid of breaking; a fragile flower that needed more care handled than most. Tonight, however, you felt a hundred years older. Like you’d accidentally clicked on fast forward and got launched to the future. A future that seemed so unclear yet so...perfect. So right.

“How would the Prince fancy you if you’re sweating bullets like that? It’s not a good look for a marquess’ daughter.”

At the mention of the Crown Prince, your heart sank again. “My apologies, Mother. I’m just rather nervous. It’s the Crown Prince we’re talking about here.”

“He is quite the looker, isn’t he?” she giggled behind her fan, “Strong and handsome, as well.”

“My ladies. You are not fantasizing over the Crown Prince in my presence, are you?”

Crossing her leg over the other, your mother leaned forwards, elbows on her knees as she winked at your father. The marquess had his torso half twisted from the passenger seat, glaring playfully at your mother’s unabashed features. “It is of no seriousness, My Lord. I’m simply easing your daughter’s nerves.”

Your father sighed in worry. “What’s got you so worked up, child? You are beautiful. The Prince would be blind to not notice you.”

Each fibre in your body screamed in desperation for your father to be right. Tonight was not just any other night – the entire Kingdom, including noblewomen, foreign royals, and unwed daughters from honourable families had been invited to the Zen’in Castle for one purpose only: to find his Crown Prince a suitable wife, one that would be fit to be the next Queen as well. As the daughter of the marquess, you’d naturally received the invitation. It felt just like yesterday when the mail arrived and you’d cheered so much in joy the chickens went flying out of their coops, your horses galloping and whinnying at surprise, and now you here – minutes away from the palace where you were soon to be deemed worthy or unworthy to be beside His Highness.

With a shaky smile, you dug your nails into your thighs. “Well, we’ve only met once, Father. I doubt the Prince would remember me.”

“Just smile, darling. You will do great.”

To no one’s surprise, the Zen’in Castle brimmed with people and esteemed guests. Men and women danced with one another as muted chatters and chuckles blended in with the grand royal orchestra, everyone dressed to the nines and making you feel completely out of place.

The moment you’d been welcomed by the knights and led to the palace doors, your dress began to feel tighter than usual, your ribs clenching uncomfortably from the pressure. Your hands had not stopped trembling either, not even when you hid it behind your back and nodded at the people passing by. There were governor-generals, dukes, earls, professors and royal advisors and even families of the royal family’s inner circle of knights. Everyone looked like they belonged here. Chatting amongst one another over the finest of wines or discussing conspiracies on where the Kingdom of Zen’in would be in the next sixty years of the future King’s reign, no one here seemed to be out of place.

Everyone except you.

A warm hand was suddenly placed on the small of your back, making you gasp. Your mother’s smile was nothing short of warm as she held you close to her one last time, leaving a kiss on your forehead. You didn’t even realize how much you shook until she clasped her hands with yours. “Calm down, dear,” she reminded, “You’ll be on your own now. This is where we leave you since we’re not supposed to mingle with potential princesses.”

“Mother!” Your eyes widened in embarrassment. Looking around frantically, you bit your lip in fear someone must’ve heard.

Of course, while it would be no surprise most guests – if not all – hoped that their daughter would be the Crown Prince’s chosen fiancée, it still felt wrong to boldly assume such when you could barely keep up with the events of tonight.

However, your mother merely laughed. “I am proud of you, dear. Never forget that. It doesn’t matter whether you are chosen or not. We’re only here for formality and respect to the King and Queen’s demands.”

“You say that as if the Crown Prince really would not bother with me.”

“We didn’t mean that,” your father cut in, a flute of champagne already nested between his calloused fingers. Ever since you arrived, he’d been snatched away by fellow earls and barons, disappearing into the crowd for a ‘hearty conversation over one’s lands.’ You knew better than that, though. That statement always translated to which leader got to have more chances to wine and dine with the King, to which your family was ridiculously reminded of that you’d been stationed to the most faraway land where even hearing news from the royal papers was but a privilege.

“Just be yourself, alright? And enjoy the party. It’s about time you met with girls your own age and made some friends.”

“I – Father, wait!”

A slender young woman slithered to your side out of nowhere, her golden brown eyes following the silhouettes of your parents. It wasn’t long before they completely disappeared. Left alone with the stunning woman that was – for some reason – dressed in a plain black curve hugging dress too modest for tonight’s appropriateness, you took three steps away in caution. “You must be from way up North,” she noted, her head to the tipped to the side. “I don’t think I’ve seen you here before.”

God, was she beautiful. Long, thick eyelashes and short hair chopped in messy yet elegant curves, you struggled to hold her gaze. “Oh, yes, I come from the Terratian Borders. My family is stationed there under His Majesty’s orders.”

She hummed to herself. “The Terratian Borders are mostly forests and fields, no? The last time my family and I visited there, I came across the loveliest dandelions I’ve ever laid eyes on. Shame they died on the way back,” offering her hand – again, bare and empty with decorations yet still littered with faint scars and cuts – she beamed at you. “I’m Mai, by the way. Mai Zen’in.”

Zen’in?

Hands cupping your mouth, you bowed deep until your back ached. “Lady Mai!” you shut your eyes closed, unable to live with the shame. Mai Zen’in; one of the iconic twin pair from the extended Zen’in royal family, both a fashion icon and a legend for being a rumoured female knight. To have her in your presence was an honour. “My apologies for not recognizing you any sooner, Lady Mai!”

“Stand up, I’m not a royal,” she sniggered, “We’re just relatives of the actual monarch, but don’t let the family name fool you. The Crown Prince barely even acknowledges us being of the same blood.”

Albeit hesitant, you followed her gestures of making you stand up. You straightened your back and cleared your throat, fighting the urge to go haywire the moment his name was brought into the conversation. Not only would you be seeing Prince Naoya again in real life for the first time in years, but you’d also made acquaintances with his distant niece. However, his name was spoken with malice.

Frowning, you faced Lady Mai in all seriousness. “Prince Naoya? Why so?” Lady Mai looked at you like you’d grown two heads.

“He’s an ass, that’s why.”

“I-I don’t think he is,” you defended, “The Prince has been nothing but kind to me.”

“I didn’t know he was capable of kindness,” she muttered more so under her breath, low enough you were unsure whether you were supposed to hear it in the first place. Lady Mai then shook her head to herself before stealing a flute from a waiter passing by. Chucking it your way, her face turned dark and grim. “Take it as free advice: stay as far away from his as possible. The Crown Prince is nothing but good news.”

“Is it because he has lots of lovers?” you inquired with a small voice, “Uhm – well – It was an assumption. With a title and handsomeness like that, it would make sense everyone would want to be the Crown Prince’s lover.”

Lady Mai’s lip curled upwards. “Prince Naoya won’t bother with lovers. He is too occupied for that.”

“So I’ve heard.”

“Heard from whom?”

“The Royal Declaration from His Majesty himself,” you said, “Was it not the purpose of this ball? To find worthy candidates to be the Crown Prince’s betrothed? His coronation is coming soon.”

“Right. I forgot today was technically a bridal market,” she scratched the edge of her brow, falling silent for a moment. Her eyes scanned the lively crowd for a brief moment – watching with you as everyone laughed and danced to their heart’s content – the grand final event of the routine personal dance with the Crown Prince himself slowly approaching to reality. “You are joining in the festivities, are you not? Later, when he arrives, he shall meet you.”

“I am obligated to as a noble bachelorette, though I doubt His Highness would even look my way. There are far richer noblewomen here and even daughters of duke that would be perfect as his wife. ”

“You may have a point for that,” she hummed to herself, unaware that her agreement to the Crown Prince not paying attention to you left a sting both in your ego and heart. Not that it lasted long, for Lady Mai was already tugged on the arm by another equally fiercely beautiful woman – her older twin, Maki Zen’in. Soon to be governon-general of the Kingdom.

Lady Mai smiled in apology. “I need to go now since I’m not a part of this event. But hey, if ever I come around to visit the Borders again, perhaps you could entertain me?”

“I would be honoured to, Lady Mai.”

“You are sweet and innocent,” it was her sister who spoke this time, glasses perched high on her nose that concealed the wariness of her gaze. “I hope the Crown Prince never gets to your routine.”

“I’m sorry?”

“It’s nothing; she was talking to herself. Maki does that a lot,” Lady Mai’s forced chuckles were barely heard from the music. “You enjoy the party now. Don’t drink too much lest you want to embarrass yourself in everyone’s eyes and be talk of the Kingdom. Prince Naoya would hate it if you took the attention away from him.”

“Oh, uhm...”

“It’s a joke, Lady Y/N. Relax.”

You bowed once more. “My apologies.”

“The dance is about to begin,” Maki tapped on your shoulder, making you look up right where her eyes zeroed in. And exactly in the middle of the grandiose hall, under the sparkling golden chandeliers where he made all the gold in the world look incomparable next to him, the Crown Prince stood in his fully glory. Blond hair with the ends stained of midnight gelled back to reveal his forehead, the Crown Prince’s beauty never failed to shine. Whether it be in the papers, in the tabloids, in the billboards that you passed on the way to the city, or from way back when you met him for the first time as a naive, innocent teen – Crown Prince Naoya came straight out of a magazine cover.

In the back of your head, you could hear either of the twins murmuring good luck. Maybe both of them had said it – you had no idea. All of your attention, all the sensibility and coherence of your state had been switched the next instant, as if your heart and soul was born for the sole purpose of being bewitched by your Crown Prince.

And as if feeling someone’s gaze on him, the Crown Prince’s eyes trailed over the crowd. Almost boredly, his sharp eyes bounced from one giggling woman to another, the ends of his lips smirking upwards for just the tiniest bit. It must’ve stroked his ego. Until his eyes connected with yours. The Crown Prince’s eyebrows knitted together. You had no idea how you looked in that moment, and quite frankly, you didn’t care. Because the Crown Prince was looking at you, and you were looking at him with hearts in your eyes along with your heart pulsing at the tip of your tongue.

“Let us begin,” his lips moved from the distance, “Play the music. I shall dance with my bride.”

The air shifted in a split second. Murmurs were thrown over the room, women and men alike turning pale. Even the orchestra was stunned from the Crown Prince’s entrance – and it hadn’t even been dramatic to his standards – yet the whole castle fell mum from just a few of his words. A few seconds later, the crowd recomposed itself, and the strings began to dance along with its bows.

You are pushed into the crowd. Nearly colliding into the arms of another, you quietly thank the masked man who was to be your first partner of the night.

All the men joining the dance floor dressed with the intention of making the Crown Prince shine. Prince Naoya stood out from the throng of white as per the colour code, his blood red uniform as both Prince with the  golden crest of the military leader pinned to his right breast. The other men meant to be filler partners until all the potential brides got to their designated three minutes with the Prince were all dressed in black, faces covered behind a plain black mask. None were allowed to talk. None were allowed to utter even a word, and so your partner pursed his lips in displeasure at your apology.

Whatever. You just had to wait a few more rounds before the song finished and transitioned into a new one; the song where you’d been informed would be your time alone with the Prince.

You’d been so lost in your head you barely breathed the entire dance. From partner to partner, you blanked. Your heart drummed so wildly in its cage it begged to come out, and strings of apologies were let out each time your masked partners grimaced for a brief second when their hands came in contact with your sweaty ones. Around you, all the lovely women smiled and danced graciously, mouths moving in unreadable conversations shared with the Crown Prince. Not once did you look at the six partners you’ve danced with. Not once did you worry about tripping on your own feet. Not once did you care that some of the masked men held you a little too roughly for your comfort. Your entire reason for existing in that moment was to witness the Crown Prince himself, mirroring his frown that got deeper and deeper with each woman retreating to the sea of people he’d rejected.

Not once did you even think about being one of them – the girls who’ve ducked their heads down as their parents comforted them over not being the chosen one, of bringing ‘dishonour’ to their families that the mighty Crown Prince had deemed them unworthy. Tears streamed down their faces until black ink followed afterwards, lips trembling from silent sobs.

Despite their broken prides – although there was that minority who simply sighed in relief after returning to their own families – no one would dare interrupt the Crown Prince’s dances.

All of these thoughts crossed your mind too late and at the exact time your masked partner pulled away from you, body half bent in a bow with his arm outstretched to the side. Following where he was gesturing at, your eyes met the Crown Prince’s tall and lean stature, a few blond fringes now fallen from his movements.

Even though a thin layer of sweat shone from his face, Prince Naoya remained ethereal.

And like a snake charmed by the musician’s seductive tone, your feet moved on its own. Fingers stretching until it met with the Crown Prince’s large and warm ones, you were now in front of him. With him. Holding him, touching him, meeting him eye for eye and realizing – gold. His eyes burned a deep shade of gold, elegantly rich and heartbreakingly stunning your heart ached.

Before you knew it, your hands began to tremble, feeling as if your body had been corded into a corset three sizes smaller. You could not breathe, and the Crown Prince took notice.

“You are stiff. Do I make you uncomfortable?” Good Saint. If only possible, you would’ve closed your eyes and basked in the deep warmth of his voice. It reverberated from deep within, breathed out with an air of natural authority and profound confidence it made your knees weak. As if sensing his effect on you (though for the wrong reasons, it seemed), Prince Naoya hummed to himself. “This routine shall last for a few minutes before I can let you go, I’m afraid.”

You instantly realized the implications of your silence. “N-not at all, Your Highness! I am honoured to be dancing with you.”

“There is no honour in a choreographed dance. Everyone will dance with me. It’s nothing special.”

Your heart fell. Prince Naoya not only sounded dejected, but detached as well. As if he found no pleasure or specialty in this event, at a time where he had every opportunity to meet his lover, and that this ball was merely a task to be checked off in his already long list of responsibilities. It wasn’t disappointment, per se, but rather melancholy that left a bitter taste in your mouth. Not because Prince Naoya held little to no regards for something you treasured, but because he sounded terribly alone. Like he was simply waiting for it to end out of discomfort.

“It’s special to me, Your Highness,” you blurted out faster than you could stop yourself. For a moment, you feared you may have offended him, but the Crown Prince only laughs.

And when he did – saint, when he laughed – his eyes crinkled into half moons, pearly whites flashing against the bright lights and his whole chest shook with amusement.

You’d never seen him smile this way before.

Prince Naoya’s laughter didn’t cease. Around you, your gut instincts told that people were now beginning to look; the Crown Prince’s deep rumbles of laughter sounded exquisitely like music as well, after all. “ Is it special to you because you are now dancing and within the Crown Prince’s proximity? As much as I presume how exhilarating it might be for those who mostly see me in the papers and in the tabloids, I assure you, dancing with your Prince is not an honour. Especially when you are all sent the invitations based on your status and not your worthy traits.”

“It’s special to me,” you mumbled, growing shy all of a sudden when the Crown Prince nodded at you to continue. “Because...because it reminds me of the first time we met.”

The Crown Prince hummed in amusement.

“We have met before?”

“Yes, Your Highness. I’m from the Terratian Borders – my father is a loyal servant of His Majesty. You visited the borders when you were eighteen and I was sixteen. Do you remember it, Your Highness? You stormed in my private library.”

Indeed, the young barely-out-of-his-teens Crown Prince barged into your home’s library years ago. You were not previously informed he and his parents would be visiting since they arrived wordlessly, so you were stuck in your chambers as usual, killing time if not for sleeping and tending to the animals. Perched on a ladder, you attempted to reach for a book on the upper shelf when your foot slipped beneath you. At the age of sixteen, you were dramatic enough to say your life flashed before your eyes. You would’ve screamed then had strong arms not appeared out of nowhere, the Crown Prince staring at you with wide, golden eyes as they were now, his breathy rasped as he asked, are you okay, my lady?

The mere recollection of that fateful memory had your cheeks warming in delight. “You were so charming and heroic back then. Even when I had no idea you were a royal, I would have still believed you to be princely,” you said rather absentmindedly, blinking once then twice at your words. “Of course, it’s understandable if you do not remember, Your Highness!”

“My apologies. I do not remember, though Terratia is a wonderful place. Such a shame I was not informed beforehand they had a lovely daughter.”

“Thank you, Your Highness,” you cheered back, cheeks and jaw beginning to ache from how wide you were smiling. But could anyone blame you? You felt absolutely silly that you were a breath away from passing out minutes ago, and now here you were, dancing with the Crown Prince and sharing memories with him like it was a daily occurrence. The words it’s true love when you feel at peace with them suddenly rang back at your head from that latest romance novel you read, and you turned away, hoping the Crown Prince would not read your thoughts to your face. However, Prince Naoya’s lips pursed into a thin line, all traces of humour now disappeared. “I’m sorry – should I not have laughed?”

“No, I don’t mind,” he mused with his jaw locked tight, “I just haven’t seen anyone react that way before.”

“Like what?”

“Like my words meant the entire universe to them. I may dare even say you look terribly in love, though I cannot blame you on that one, can I?”

Prince Naoya shook his head the minute the words left his mouth. Forcing himself to believe it couldn’t be real, perhaps, you truly did not know anymore. Your only plan for tonight was to see the Crown Prince and get to live out your dream of seeing him once more even for just a brief moment before you travelled back home while he married another, and yet – “Your Highness, I’m in love with you. I have always been since the day we met.”

You could no longer stop the words. The voice at the back of your head begged you to shut up and not cause a scene, that your time had passed up and people were staring, yet you remained in his arms no matter how much you wanted nothing more than for the ground to swallow you whole.

“Please do not misunderstand me, Your Highness. I did not come here to attempt to steal your heart and be your wife, though I will admit I have dreamt of meeting you again for so many moons. I...I only want to tell you this. That I love you and even though it was a brief moment, I think the love I’ve always read about felt real and possible for the first time in my life,” chuckling nervously, you gather to courage to face him, adoration shining for the Crown Prince stood shock still before you, however stunned he may be. “I love you, Your Highness. I love you. And to whoever lucky woman you choose to be your betrothed, I hope she takes care of you and showers you with all the affection you are deserving of. You would make a great King. So God help his Crown Prince, and may you lead us all into a better world.”

Prince Naoya did not budge a muscle. His eyes remained hard on yours, breath warm as his nostrils fumed. With each passing second that he did not speak, you grew restless and tugged your arm away from his hold with a disgraceful smile.

You’d truly crossed your line. The repercussions to be faced for this impoliteness would destroy your family’s honour. You had to leave. “Your Highness? The song has changed. It’s time to let go—”

The Crown Prince inched close enough until his hair tickled your cheeks, his deep voice sending shivers down your spine as he pulled you close, close enough that your lower bodies touched. Skin ablaze with heat, you dared not move an inch. “Do you mean it?” he demanded lowly, his fingers ghosting over your wrist to hold you in place. “Do you truly love me? Not for what I have, not for who I was born to be, but me as a person itself?”

Closing your eyes to shudder in a deep breath, you exhaled. “Of course, Your Highness. Even if you were not born as a Prince, I’m sure I would’ve still loved you in a different universe.”

“But I do not know you.”

“We don’t have to know each other, Your Highness, and we never will. Once you let me go, I’ll return to the shadows where I belong, and I will continue supporting you until the day of your coronation.”

“And if I refuse to let you go?” he clicked his tongue, “What will you do then?”

The Crown Prince’s spicy perfume must be an aphrodisiac or hypnotizer of sorts. Everything he did messed with your mind that it was too late – the music had stopped and people were no longer drinking or chatting. Everyone’s eyes were on you and the Crown Prince. You could only imagine how controversial this position must be; with his lips trailing dangerously close to that sensitive spot in your neck where you nearly moaned. You really needed to leave.

“P-people are looking, Your Highness. You do not want this affair with someone you won’t choose—”

“Who said I won’t choose you?” Finally, he pulled away. But Prince Naoya never once tore his gaze away from yours, nor did he allow you to look at anyone but him as he caresses your jaw so light and feathery you wondered if he was truly there.“Who said I haven’t laid my eyes on you the moment you walked in here? This ball is for naught because of you, Lady Y/N. I’ve already made my choice, and you helped me confirm it as soon as you danced with me.”

“Your Highness...”

“Look at me,” he ordered, your eyes flitting from his pinkish lips to his sharp nose and then to his fox-like gaze. Only this time, Prince Naoya was no longer harsh. “Don’t be scared.”

“But they’re looking.”

“You are with me, of course they’ll look,” he teased, “They wish to be you right now. But ignore them and dance one more time with me.”

It wasn’t like you had a choice, but did it matter? One nod from him was all it took before the orchestra fumbled back to their spots and a new song played, Ode of Moonlight Lovers, and the Crown Prince was guiding you back to where he had originally danced with you.

From the corners of your eyes, you caught a glimpse of your parents with their mouths gaped open; your father looking like he was on the verge of passing out. However, you felt nothing but joy, nothing but the adrenaline pumping through your veins as he danced and twirled you in his arms. When the music stopped and you were both panting for air with silly smiles on your face, it dawned on you that you were with the Prince. No, rather, it was only you and the Prince alone. Even in the sea of people whose faces began to blur, he prevailed crystal clear.

You could recognize him anywhere, find him everywhere.

Prince Naoya stepped impossibly closer until your chests touched, hearts beating as one. Cupping your jaw, he was near enough that he swallowed all your shaky breaths with a small, teasing smile like you both shared a secret the entire world could not know.

“Do I still make you nervous?”

Laughing, you nodded. “Yes, Your Highness. I feel like I’m going to explode.”

“It’s beloved now,” he corrected, face inching closer and closer to a point you could count the number of his lower lashes. “And what do lovers do to seal their union?”

“M-Marriage?”

“Close, but this is much better.”

If anyone were to tell you that you would have a love story ripped out straight from a fairytale, you would’ve laughed at their faces. You were no Cinderella, nor were you a goddess of beauty that could’ve possibly caught the Crown Prince’s eye. Yet, his soft lips were on yours, kissing you with as much passion you could only dream of that you cried.

Strong hands guiding the back of your waist, Prince Naoya dipped you lower to the ground – the grand of finish of his dance. He had chosen his bride.

The crowd cheered and rejoiced all around you, making you smile into the kiss. Fisting his collar to bring him closer to yours, your mouth burst into metaphorical fireworks as soon as his tongue mingled with yours for an experimental taste. He was bitter yet sweet; expensive wine resting on his tongue, yet a delicate vanilla sat heavily on his soft lips that molded with yours. It was a taste you could spend forever being addicted on. And you were crying, crying so much your chest ached and the Prince’s cheeks grew damp from yours. You’d dreamt of this for so long, too long now.

Prince Naoya slowly pulled you away, his thumb wiping the tears away from the pads of your cheeks with tenderness in his touch. However, the Prince was not satisfied. The crowd whooped as he leant down to kiss your forehead. “You are mine now, my princess.”

Looping his hands with yours, the Crown Prince led you out of the castle. The crowd parted naturally to make way for the new couple, and you were left staring at his broad back and the tuft of blond hair where you’d soon find out how soft it would be. Sending one last glance to your crying parents, you waved goodbye. You had no idea where the Crown Prince would take you but you were already bunching your dress up, heart completely filled with trust you did not question it. What mattered tonight and for the rest of your life was that it felt right. That it was him – your beloved Prince Naoya Zen’in and soon to be husband – that you’d follow through the moon and back.

[struggling-with-time]

Why did it have to be Him? [George x reader]

Paring: cc!Georgenotfound x Fem!reader (platonic) (cc!Wilbur Soot x Fem!reader)

Summary: You're George's friend, who he is very much in love with, but you are dating Wilbur.

Warnings: Angst, sour!George

Words: 1.7K

Masterlist: George's Masterlist - Wilbur's Masterlist - Full Masterlist

A/N: Heavily inspired by Him by James Marriott. Please request if you have any ideas. REQUESTS ARE OPEN. Request here.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

George opens the door and greets her with a hug. “It’s good to see you again.” She returns his wide smile, god she looks happy. It makes him want to frown, but he doesn’t at least not as long as she’s looking.

“Thank you for inviting us!” She tells him as she hands George a bottle of wine. It’s the cheap brand they used to share when they were both younger. He laughs slightly when he notices.

“Of course, you’re always welcome.” He tells her as she passes him by. He watches as she hangs her coat. He follows her with his eyes as she moves along the hallway.

“Eh-hem.” A cough brings George back to the person she brought with her.

Wilbur.

“Oh.” George tries not to let his face fall. But a change is more than noticeable to the man in front of him. “She brought you. Well, come in.”

And like that his host face is back on, ever the charmer with the famous pretty privilege. George turns away from Wilbur heading back up the stairs.

“You coming, Wilbur?” He calls after the taller lad.

George waves a quick hand to his guest, before heading to the kitchen. Knowing he’ll find her there, and he can put the wine away.

He sees her immediately, her head looking into his fridge searching for a drink. George walks over and puts a hand on the fridge door. Making her look up at him.

God, why does she have to look so innocent?

“Soo…” He trails off.

“Soo…” She replies.

“Wilbur huh?”

She slams the fridge door, making George pull his hands up in a defensive position.

“We are not having this conversation again George.” She rolls her eyes. She lets out a sigh. Then she takes the bottle of cheap wine from his hand and reopens the fridge to put it away.

“I was just going to ask if you have been any places lately?”

She huffs at his question, an eyeroll just in sight, but not present.

“We have. Thank you for asking.”

George smiles at her response. He reaches over the counter to take a bag of crisp.

“And that didn’t happen to be the arcade, did it now?” He opens the bag, ignoring the eyeroll that she is finally giving into.

“And what if it did?”

George offers her the bag, and she takes a handful.

“I’m just saying, we both know what happens after the arcade. Then it’s the beach trip.” He watches her carefully. “Then a fancy dinner.” She eats a chip. “Then the short camping trip.” She winces. Got her. “Then the promise to meet his parents.” She tugs her arms closer to herself. “And then the inevitable excuse about him either not having time, being in the right mental state or…” George trails off.

“George c’mon he’s your friend. Don’t talk about him like that.” She dusts her hands off from the crisp dust and picks up the drink she settled on.

“So, there is no reason you have been looking for camping gear I take it.”

She brushes past him on the way out of the kitchen.

“You disappoint me!” George calls after her, as they join the others in the living room.

She sits down beside Wilbur, and George nearly scoffs at the way Wilbur is sitting. He’s the tallest in the room, and he sure knows it.

Pretentious fucker.

Why did he have to introduce the two of them? Why did George have to be the one to lead his friend down that path? Why did he have to absolute watch the girl he’s head over heels with fall for another guy? And why did it have to be him? Why of all people did it have to be fucking Wilbur?

Wilbur throws an arm over her, but he doesn’t even look at her. George is. George is the one looking at her. Not him.

It takes George under one drink to want to rip Wilbur’s arm off. But it takes the rest of it to calm him down. This is why it isn’t you. George reminds himself.

Wilbur starts talking about his future and his plans for said future. His plans. And how she fits into them. George seethes at the thought. She only fits into his grand scheme of things as an afterthought, an add on. An accessory. The guy is a prick. But an ambitious and successful one at that too.

George excuses himself. A lie about needing more to drink, despite everyone clearly watching him descend the hallway and stairs to the outside. Not the kitchen.

He grabs his jacket, throws it on and opens the front door, letting the heat seep out and into the cold February night.

Against his better judgement, George takes a seat on the steps leading to his door. He pats his sides down, feeling the box against his hand. He fishes it out.

It’s a box of cigarettes, he knows he shouldn’t. But honestly, there is a lot of things he shouldn’t do in the world, yet he still does them. And thus, the logic applies to this situation too.

“You need a lighter for that?”

George snaps back around to look at the doorway. There she stands in all her glory. Illuminated by the soft light of the indoors. George blinks, savouring the moment, remembering it for the days she isn’t around.

She turns around for a moment, throwing her own jacket over herself, and fishes a lighter out. She hands it to George.

He lights his cigarette.

She hovers her hand over his package.

He nods.

She takes one.

George hands the lighter back to her, and there they sit. Two friends. One so in love with the other it’s laughable. The other so alienated by that thought alone. Two strangers.

The chill air hugging them close, letting them huddle into themselves in hopes of fighting against the cold. A losing battle.

But neither moves.

However, she talks.

“I didn’t know you smoked.”

George looks at her, she’s already looking at him.

“I can only say the same to you.”

“Touché.”

And like that the subject is left hanging. Last year they would have confronted each other about the bad habit. But that is last year, and so many things have changed.

“I didn’t think I would come down here again you know.” She tells him. “Not after the new year’s party.”

Ah, the new year’s party. The one George hosted. The one where he got into a shouting match with Wilbur. The one that ended with him losing a long-time friend, and a sort of co-worker turned friend.

“Not your finest moment.” She smiles at the absurdity of the memory. George hates it. Because for him it was the moment, he realised she would never see him the way she sees Wilbur. Or any other guy for that matter.

But what irks him the most, is that Wilbur was the one who made him reach the conclusion. That Wilbur, of all people, made him come to terms with his feelings.

“Not my finest moment.” George agrees. Or admits? He isn’t completely sure which it is, but it’s there for the night to welcome, and the night does.

“I wasn’t joking when I said I was disappointed in you.” He looks at her, she turns her head away.

“I know George.”

“I didn’t take you for being someone who falls for the bullshit he spews.”

She doesn’t say anything, he knows she should. So does she.

“And where are you gonna end up when you break up? The muse for his next song.” George snorts. It’s harsh, but he’s right.

“You don’t have to be a dick about it.” She snaps at him.

“I don’t.”

The night falls silent once again. The only sound coming from their staggered breaths.

George trashes the last of his cigarette bud against the front steps. She looks at his hand, then at him.

“Why did it have to be him?”

She doesn’t say anything.

“Why did it have to be Wilbur of all people?”

“… I don’t know.”

“Please, anything. Just any reason. I get it’ll never be me. But why did it have to be him?”

She flickers her own cigarette away, following that with her eyes now instead of George.

“Out of everyone you could have had, why did it have to be him?”

Her eyes are back on George, he can see the way she’s clearly trying to muster up a response that will satisfy him. Yet he can’t help to keep pressing on.

“Was it because when you looked at him, he thought he could be so much more than me?”

It was no secret, ever since she had started seeing Wilbur. After George himself had introduced the two, George and Wilbur had sized each other up, at every single chance they got. From view counts on twitch, to subs on YouTube, to financial gains, to arcade games. Anything they could compete in, the two had had a sudden interest in beating each other.

“Was it because he wasn’t me?”

Her breath hitches.

George Freezes.

She scrambles.

George watches.

She’s standing.

George sitting.

They wait.

“I think it’s time I leave.”

George swallows.

She nods to herself. Before repeating. “It’s time we leave.”

Before George knows, her phone is out of her pocket. A number dialled, and steps are coming down the stairs.

Wilbur has arrived. He looks down at the single cigarette bud beside George. Then he looks at George.

“You know those kill right? It’s a bad habit.”

But George doesn’t listen, he barely ever does anymore when the guy opens his mouth. Instead, he does what he does best. He watches. He watches her. He watches her as she grabs Wilbur’s hand. He watches her, as they become them. And he watches them, as they disappear down the street.

While George says he’s disappointed in her.

George is only disappointed in himself.

-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-

[seijohsbabe]

i need more of akaashi nii

Tw: minors dni, stepcest, names as Princess

Wordcount: 2,0k

A/n: Hello there, hope it’s Good ^^ it didn´t got a second read, so sorry for mistakes!! Oh and Im close the 300 followers :) Thank you c: Any wishes for a special?

Akaashi nii was always a observend person. He saw and heard everything. Especially with you, he was very careful and caring. Every night he brings you tea and talks with you until you fall asleep.

 So when you came up with your new boyfriend one night, he already knew, so he wasn´t that surprised, still, it nagged on his nerves when you talked about him, how lovely and caring he is. Of course, he´s happy that you're happy, but he already knows that he´s just another fucker who tries to get you n his bed. He should tell you, but you have to learn it the hard way, it´s your first boyfriend and he doesn´t want to be the bad one at the end. Akaashi knows how beautiful you are, he isn´t blind, but he is still the reasonable big brother. One or two times (or more) he couldn´t hold himself back and grabbed some underwear from you (of course only fresh ones) And not to forget the feeling of your tits firmly pressing against his chest after a long day of school. You seem not to care or not to think that much about it, oh you're just so naive. And like he predicted, on a Saturday night you came back home, face stained in tears, hair in a mess. Like an automatic reaction, he opened his arms as you stepped in. Your sobs muffled by his t-shirt because your head buried deep in his chest was too comforting to leave. So he just had one arm around your waist and the other over your head, rubbing comforting circles on it. "Akaashi-nii, he´s an asshole. I hate him, I hate him so much," you mumbled in his chest while his chin rested on your head. Slowly he led you into your bedroom to let you softly onto your bed. He wanted to get up to make you tea, but your hand clamped on his t-shirt while you looked him in the eyes with your wet ones. "Please, don´t go," you whispered so quietly, he almost didn´t understand you. But he heard you and laid beside you while he took you in his arms again, his hand on your back, rubbing it. "It´s okay Princess, I would never leave you," Akaashi said while smiling down on you. You can hear his heartbeat, and with that, you came down from your anger, and just listened to his heartbeat with a little smile plastered on your face. How could you be so lucky? You had the best stepbrother in the world. "So, do you wanna drink some tea hm?"  his hand patted on your back to let you know that he´s speaking to you. "No, just cuddle please Akaashi-nii." Your face buried in his stomach. How could he say no? And maybe just maybe...? "You know, I could make you a little bit happier, how does that sound?" he smiled while he got up a little bit, to get a better view of you. He risked something here, but now your emotional unstable it was the perfect opportunity. "But I am! Because of you Onichan." Now you got up too, to smile up to his face. Should he risk it? Should he, should he, should he? His hand came up to cup your cheek in his warm hand, you even leaned in. "Oh, but I think you will like it," he mumbled, still in his thoughts. "Hmmm, all right I trust you akaashi-nii."   But what if you will never trust him again after this? Too many thoughts and no action. Whatever, now or never. He grabbed both of your arms to pull you under him on your bed in just a second you couldn´t even realize. With doe eyes you starred at him, his arms directly beside your head, to hold himself up above you. His hand landed on your chin, to hold your head up. One thumb rolled over your plump lips. Oh, these lips. With a little hesitate e bend down to land his lips on yours. your eyes widned in shock but closed directly because it felt so...good. His lips were warm, soft, and let your hair on your neck stand up. He was careful, he doesn´t want to scare you, so after some seconds he pulled away and looked at you with concerned eyes. It wasn´t your first kiss, but your best one for sure. When neither of you said something, he slowly got a little distance to your face, but you just grabbed his neck and pulled him down again to let his lips meet yours again. And with that, Akaashi´s little voice in his head finally shut up. Now he was braver and more demanding. His tongue slipped through your mouth and took your breath away. Your eyes closed again while your hands, still behind his neck, fondled his hair. After some time he trailed with his mouth a wet trace down your throat until it met your blouse, there he stopped and looked at you again, searching for any regrets or disgust, but they only starred at him back with pure lust. He knows it is wrong, it´s so wrong, but he can´t resist. And with that, he nudged at your blouse to show you to take it off. Your hands trailed down to the hem of the blouse to tug it up to pull it over your head. You had to blush, his stare at your bare chest was so intense you got a little shy now and put your hands up to cover yourself. But Akaashi directly pulled your hands away. "Don´t be shy Princess, you're beautiful, come on," he muttered to you. His hands wandered over your stomach up to your chest to fumble with one of your nipples. You bit your bottom lip between your teeth, to suppress your whimpers, Akaashi narrowed his eyes. He has to hear you, so he let his mouth glid over your sensitive nipples while his other hand slowly wandered down to your core. His hand was skillfully playing with your core through your panties under your skirt, and he had to smile. "Already so wet for me hmm?" he hummed into your ear, his hot breath fanned against your skin and let you tremble. Your hands went up to tug on his t-shirt now. Shily to looked at him up, "Please Onii-chan, take- take it off." "Anything for you, little one." He got up on his knees and kept eye contact, while he grabbed at his collar to threw the piece of clothing over his head down beside your bed. "I think this piece is not really necessary isn´t it?" He pulled your skirt down in one go. He admired you for a little while until he got over you again to kiss one of your boobs. His mouth went further down until he stopped right before your panties. "can I?" he asked politely. You just nodded and let your hands down on the bedsheets. His eyes literally glued on your glistening cunt, this is real perfection he thought. "Don´t stare," you mumbled with a little shame in your voice. This was all a little new to you, except one kiss from a boy, you never experienced something in that way. but he just chuckled and got in his stomach to be right in front of your cunt with his face. He started with a little kitten lick to look how you react. So when you let a little whine out he started with more licks. His hands were around your thighs to keep your hips in place. The pace with his tongue went faster and faster and explored every inch of your cunt. Now you couldn´t hide your whimpers and moans anymore, your hips went up every time he licked over your clit. You thought it couldn´t get any better until he inserted two of his long, trained fingers. He started right away with a fast pace. He reached so deep with his fingers, it was an amazing feeling. Your eyes almost rolled out of your head, and you couldn´t hold the knot in you anymore. Your hands clamped on his black hair. "Nii-san, It´s too much-" a long moan escaped your mouth, and with it, you came right on his face and fingers. The feeling was overwhelming, your limps kept shaking, your hands fall beside you as Akaashi let go of your thighs and got up to you, to hold your face in his hand while his thumb caressed your warm cheek. Slowly you recovered from the high, your hand went up to his hand on your cheek, to smile at him. "Thank you Akashi-Nii, this was beautiful," you breath out exhausted. "Oh, we're not done yet, little sister." His grin widned while your eyes widned. His hand was gone in seconds as he stood up to let his joggers and boxers down in one go, to expose his hard member. It was big, well you don't have a real comparison but how should this thing fit in you? His little laugh let you come out of your thoughts. Completely naked now he came on your bed again. His hands went between your legs to pull them apart, to make himself comfortable between your legs. He stroked himself a few times until he looked at you one more time. "Now take deep breaths for me princess." His voice was calming while he leads his cock to your breath-taking cunt. His head finally went in, and the feeling was way different. When the first centimeters went in you thought he will tear you apart. "Nii-san, ´s too big," you whined, but he just shushed you, and went further in. He was slow while getting in, always waited a few seconds after a few centimeters, but now, when he's fully sheeted inside you, almost kissing your cervix he was almost losing his self-control. But he remembered that this is probably his first time and It should be nice, so he bites his lower lip while his hips went back just to go forward again. You whined, you could feel every inch of his cock, how it dragged against your gummy walls. While he started to create a pace he grabbed your hips, to gain a little more strength behind his thrusts. Surprisingly, you quickly got used to his cock, so he got a little bit bolder and snapped his hips more. The hardness of his thrusts made you scream. Luckily your parents aren´t home. "N-n-nii-chaaan" you moaned, it was embarrassing, but you couldn´t care less, he´s fucking your brain out right now. His pace went up, his arms planted right next to your face, and you could feel his chest on yours. He smiled at you, but his hips snapped so fast, with such a force that you only could roll your eyes back in your head. The second knot was forming inside you, and it went even tighter when his mouth got attached to your throat and sucked as his life depends on it. "Aka-ha-Akaashi-nii, stop, people will a-ask." Surely your throat will be full with red-blue spots. "I don´t care"  he just mumbled. You didn´t care either now, the knot in you was about to explode. Your hands searched for anything to hold on to and found his big shoulders. Your nails dug in his skin, which spurted him on even more. "Fuck-I´m cumming y/n" he went up again head in his neck, your hands fell on the bed which you grabbed on now. His thumb rubbed big circles on your little nub, his pace got sloppier. "Cum for me Princess." And so you did. You just saw stars while your eyes closed and your legs trembled. Shortly after he followed and shot his semen inside you, deep down. A loud groan echoed through the room until it went all silent. He crumbled down right beside you, only your loud breath filled the room. You could feel the white substance dripping out of you. "I love you Akaashi-nii," you mumbled only to fall into a deep slumber. But one thought swirled through your thoughts, didn´t you learn in school that sex could make women pregnant?