#no I don't know how to draw a giant axe and you will not look at it for longer than a second

[mewnia]

my sister said to do Karol today, but I wanted to go a step further and do something a liiiiil different, so... ADULT Karol let's GOOO

[voidandabyssal]

Okay, hoping this is allowed. In regards to Below the Ice, how do you think some of the other Sans' would react to Reader in the same situation? Say Red, Blue, Axe, or Dior? You don't have to answer for all of these if you don't feel like it!

Of course this is allowed! Such a good idea. Hopefully I read this right lol

Red:

Reds more aggressive than Sans. He's not an Orca Siren but a Bull shark Siren. Not exactly known for being cold and calculating. There's definitely more murder attempts, Red is also far more successful at killing off Readers co-workers. This is probably set off the coast of coast of mexico, lots of bull sharks and bull shark sirens congregate there.

He's also more openly flirty though, he's more aware of his feelings to reader than Sans is and he's not shy about checking you out ;)))

Initially, he thinks your just like the other scientists. Dumb, easily manipulatable and an easy meal. You quickly prove him wrong when you successfully manage to trap him under some falling rocks.

Boy does Red love a strong and smart partner. Something about being capable enough to take down an apex predator like him just does it for him.

The two of you get closer once he's under captivity, which is in this au, not for evil science purposes but more so for everyone's (including reds, safety). Once you're on more equal power dynamics you find him to be quite funny and charming when he needs to be.

He's pretty touchy as well, not to the point of it being uncomfortable. He just likes play fighting with you, or just holding onto you.

Blue:

He's a Dolphin Siren! you initially meet him when your scuba diving taking coral samples. He's friendly and inquisitive and all too helpful. Your other colleagues are jealous he approached you this time. Similar to Red, this doesn't take place in the arctic but instead somewhere off the coast of Australia, maybe the Great Barrier Reef.

Yeah, he's definitely known around the area for how kind he is. Tons of youtube videos have gone viral featuring him helping fishermen, scuba divers and even lost swimmers.

ngl, this is probably the best start to your relationship compared to any of the other boys

He often swims circles around you, trying to draw you from your work to play with him, solve puzzles and even tries to get you to meet his brother. Sometimes you relent, sometimes you don't, though you do build a strong friendship.

You fall first but he falls harder.

It just hits him one day. You and him are out swimming, you collecting important marine data and him following you around with a strange stirring in his soul that he can't quite place.

When he sees you helping a small fish out of a plastic bottle. That's when it hits him. He loves you. You're perfect

Axe:

hhrrrrrrgggg pretty human,,,,,,

eyes wide, jaw dropped, STARING,,,,

you first meet when you're out late night fishing. You had been warned of a Giant Pacific Octopus Siren that had recently started inhabiting the area but what did they know??? Certainly not more than you! You'd been fishing round these parts since you were a baby!

"....HOLY SHIT!" is what you screech out, dropping your fishing rod when you see Axe's bright red eye-light looking up from the murky deep.

Yeah you turn right back around and don't come back. Much to Axe's disappointment. Luckily for him, and unluckily for you, he has very long, very powerful tentacles that he uses to pull you into the water with him.

He doesn't drag you under of course, he's smart enough to figure out that you really don't like that.

He's already designated you his mate. Sorry, pal, you're just going to have to make do with the giant octopus Siren cuddling up to you now.

He does let you go eventually, though you do have to repeatedly promise him that you'll come back.

And you do, afraid that he'll come chase you down. Eventually it does come to be a mutually loving relationship, it just takes a little time.

Dior (lusttale Sans):

This time you're the one approaching him. You're a famous wildlife photographer and you have been craving that perfect, career making picture; and you know who you have to photograph.

Dior, a famous lionfish Siren, known for his striking beauty and his charming friendliness to everyone. He proves to be rather elusive. Hard to find, rarely ever in one spot as he's surrounded by many Siren admirers. But you're determined!

finally, after days of bashing up against sharp corals in your search, you find him! Dozing off on a large rock formation. You're steadying yourself for the perfect picture when you notice a much larger Siren sneaking up on Dior, teeth bared and claws sharpened.

"Look out!" You say, or at least try to say through all the bubbles. Dior does manage to wake up though, and quickly pokes the attacker with one of his many poisonous spines.

He thanks you, deciding to pose for you in thanks for you saving him.

When you leave, he assumes you'll never come back. He's too used to people leaving once they've gotten what they want out of him.

He's pleasantly surprised when you come back, without the camera, just wanting to know more about the beautiful but distant Siren.

He doesn't mean to fall as fast and as hard as he does, but being around someone so genuine is such a nice shock to his system he just can't help but fall for your smile.

[danwhobrowses]

One Piece Chapter 1101 - Initial Thoughts

So we're back again for more Kuma backstory

Was starting to think we had gone on an impromptu break but alas TCB was just a little late. We've passed the 1100 mark but there's still more story to tell, so let's see how it goes.

Spoilers for the Chapter, Support the Official Release

Colorspread is for the Vegapunks, plus Vega Force 01, Oda again with his surprise colours didn't expect the mecha to be so blue

Oh also the SJ cover page was Luffy snowboarding which is cool looking

And Luffy is where we kick back off with, but still past time Luffy

Kuma observes from afar Luffy training his Gomu Gomu no Axe

But he's not the only one, Dragon is also nearby, which is probably why Kuma was there

Sir just go interact with your child dammit!

Kuma does note Dragon's familiarity with the island, as well as noting his observation of Luffy nearby living outside the Goa Kingdom

Dragon however seems to take this as a threat, noting Kuma'll have to kill him to keep discussing it, a child is a parent's weak point

Kuma immediately drops the subject because he's not that kinda guy

Buuuuuuut he does go and have a closer look at Monkey D. Luffy

A 16 year old Luffy has been saving the Gomu Gomu no Axe for a particular moment where he'd need to protect a crewmate from an enemy, fitting since it was used against Arlong

The Den Den Mushi causes Kuma to quickly paw out of sight, but Luffy's intuition did in fact sense someone nearby

Kuma's orders from the government involve taking out a raider ship that stole from merchants

But Kuma doesn't kill them, instead taking their wounded and having them return what they stole

True to his word he still writes to Bonney, and Bonney continues to wait by the mailbox for them

Oh you bitch, I know exactly what you're doing with those letters...

Alpha gets the letter and a news coo, but only slots the newspaper

10 letters a month and they're all shredded and discarded

Bonney has been training up her DF though, able to use the Distorted Future powers to make herself stronger

But Conney has been wise to have her hide her powers from Alpha

Also I did not have Jenga confirmed canon on my One Piece bingo card

To maintain the charade too, Alpha gives Bonney a placebo, but even then gotta make it as bitter as possible

Back at Lab 08 much of Egghead is starting to take shape, Punk Records has been made and just needs to be sent to the sky

Punk Hazard was supposed to be like Egghead, y'know before Caesar nuked it and then Aokiji and Akainu decided to duke it out there

Vegapunk's brain slicing is done too, probably easier for Oda to draw, but Kuma is in for the final stages of his operation, and Stussy is also there to attend

Stussy seems to feel that as a clone she doesn't have free will, which Vegapunk refutes, though tbf CP0 don't tend to have free will either Guernica had a whole lament about it when stabbed by Drake

It seems that while the final process is permanent, it's not instant, and Kuma will have about a year of remnant free will

So Kuma decides to write more to Bonney

Didn't even post the letter he sent for her birthday like do you have a heart?

Bonney's 9th birthday involves an extra giant pizza, but when the party winds down a child still misses her father

Kuma has also been quietly aiding the Revolutionaries, despite his bargain

Dragon is forced to respect his silence in this matter, since he's unaware that Kuma is literally risking the deal he made with Saturn by assisting the army

And Bonney does indeed get healed, the scales disappear from her face and she's free to go outside

Except, Alpha is not letting it happen

She claims that Bonney needs to be under supervision until she's 10, but Bonney remember Vegapunk saying she'd be fine after a year

A plan is to be put in motion; Conney knows they're government, having heard them let it slip, but they are missing a lot of information, and they feel like this is why Bonney received no letters

An escort is prepared for Bonney to take the fishermen friends and sail the seas, seek out her father in spite of the government

And the wiliness of Conney pays off, since when 'Conney' is allowed to leave the church, Alpha is none the wiser

There's a bittersweet energy to the fact that the first time Bonney gets to feel the warmth of the sun is when she has to escape being a hostage and a bargaining chip to search for her father

Alpha of course catches on eventually, since Conney can't transform like Bonney can

Their ship is like a pizza too XD

God woman just let it go!

Alpha's literally Geppo-ing to try and catch Bonney, threatening to beat up a child

Bonney thinks back to a memory of her father explaining what Nika looked like, the only information was that his body was rubbery and limitless in a fight

and with Distorted Future, Bonney unleashes her own kind of Nika punch to slap that bitch in the water

News of Bonney's escape will make her a pirate, and in turn, Kuma's origin becomes Bonney's

Annnnnd a break next week, he's earned it this time

It was a nice chapter again, there was a lot of bittersweet elements given that we have the hindsight to know this doesn't go as happily as made out. But the story helps elevate Bonney's character as much as it does Kuma, she's literally just trying to find her father.

It makes me wonder about previous events too, Akainu seemed very concerned about Bonney's escape but that's kinda unlike him for Absolute Justice, plus does that mean we're going to cover how she escaped that? I could see the flashback continuing a single chapter more but I can also see it stopping there, maybe Oda wants to end the year on something big instead?

Still the government had to be additional additional assholes about everything, it's always more than just the pound of flesh they ask for. I mean you could easily just have let her have the letters! I wonder if the memory paw will have had all of Kuma's memories writing them? Maybe Bonney saw them through that?

There's of course intrigue in knowing that Kuma knew about Luffy before Thriller Bark, he sensed something about him it seems, wonder if there's anything to elaborate on that. Because despite being two great characters the only time they ever really interacted was perhaps the worst few weeks of Luffy's life from Sabaody to Marineford. It's also still miffing how Dragon seems to be present but not present y'know? Like I'd say pick a lane but maybe this is just apples and trees (since we know Garp's parenting wasn't much about presence).

But yeah Conney MVP of this chapter with the clever trick, also fuck that bitch Alpha hope she drowned.

[thewebcomicsreview]

See, this is a good submission, because the comic's only five pages and I can read and review it quickly.

So, two things immediately jump out at me

I'm not at all a fan of a giant "The Rusty Owl" logo in the middle of a tense execution scene. Not only is it distracting, it's not even useful as a watermark. Just put the URL at the bottom of the page, or even the gutter between panels. Or, if it's meant to be a title drop, have the dad's blood spell it out or something.

I'm also not a big fan of these Ninja Info Cards on every page. This stuff should be on the cast page (also, you should have a cast page). These profile panels seem to be a bit of a trend now in some comics, but they're just an extremely weak way of doing exposition. "Show, don't tell", as they say. This is especially true of your first few pages, which are so critical for hooking the reader. It's like I'm reading about your comic instead of reading your comic.

Compare and contrast the first page of Saffron and Sage. We know Saffron's the one with the axe, and Sage is the Fox. We know what Saffron' is trying to do, we know how she plans to achieve that goal, we know her personality, we know this other girl's personality and role, and we have a joke. Bing-bang-boom, no need for a card explaining anything. This is an in media res opening, but there are other ways of showing personality even in quieter waking up scenes.

Also, hiatus announcements should be under the comic, not in it. You can add a second image if you have to (I think? I don't know ComicFury), and then remove it later so archive readers don't see the 4th-wall breaking hiatus announcement months or years after it's needed. It just makes the comic look unprofessional. I guess in this case the "Crash" panel is just a sound effect on a black border so you just edit the page to extend black border, but...bluh.

Anyway, let's look at the comic proper, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to stop nitpicking!

First off, "Neb Honey" should probably be "Neb, honey?", and "Well, I mean, my plan was to find the bad guy, and shoot" doesn't need that comma after "bad guy". Secondly, the serif font looks kind of MS Word-y, which is even more notable because the text is left-justified instead of centered. Thirdly, you've shaded the tail of the word balloon in the first panel, as if it's a physical object. Fourthly, the tail is separated from the balloon itself by a line. Fifthly, the tail is ginormous wide compared to the balloon itself.

It's a little hard to explain what I mean by that in text, but google "Shouting word balloon" and look at the tails and you'll see what I'm trying to say.

Finally, the actual words are generic enough that it requires a another panel on the next page to explain it.

Like, this lettering is still not great, I did it in literally three minutes on MS paint using the free Anime Ace font, but the slight dialogue change goes a long way here at increasing the information density of the page. You don't need that extra panel in the next page, and can find a better use for that precious space. Also, this page is now more specific and thus more likely to grab the audience's attention. It's not "an excursion" with no plan, they're trying to stop a Portian who can teleport and they intend to shoot him. That's more exciting! Lead with that!

The good news here is that most of these things I'm picking on are relatively easy to fix (which is why I'm picking on them!). My recommendations are

Find a nicer font. I linked Anime Ace above, which is the font Saffron and Sage uses, but there's a ton out there better suited for comics.

Center your text when adding it to the comic

Add the text, then draw the balloon around it

Try and get a bit more information into those text boxes (while still keeping it natural). Getting a personality off and then expositing is fine and good, but can you do both in one panel? In one line? Could Neb have gone "Hey, Doc" in panel 1 there, greeting Stella while letting us know she was the Doctor? Or, could she have gone "Hello, Doctor Luna" while rolling her eyes, which would establish a relationship between them (probably not the one they're meant to have, but as as example). Asking yourself "Can I do more with this line" a lot will make you a better writer, and also save you a lot of unnecessary drawing.

[pain-suffering-even]

types of weapons the hunters would use pt. 2

this time, the draw sword guild, definitely not my favorites :)

goto ryuji:

his sword is really cool, actually. a very nice ruby red. i think he would have a long sword and short sword (kind of like the daisho, a matched pair of japanese swords). otherwise, he would just use his hands. or his teeth. i think he just doesn't really care too much about how it's done, as long as it gets done

sugimoto reiji:

it's not stated in the manhwa what class he is, so i head canon him as an assassin because i think there's only one or two that are canon. so, i think he would have a dagger for short-range kills, and kunai and shuriken for long-range kills (slightly inspired by genji from overwatch's kunai and shuriken setup - the green even matches his usual suit...)

tanaka kenzo:

his fists suit him as a tank-esque fighter. if not that, then brass knuckles (slightly inspired by seo seongun from lookism... beloved...) also i just think he likes to get hands on with things, if him during the jeju arc gives us any clue what his fighting style is like

tawata kanae:

i think a two-sided spear or scimitar would be cool. she also has double blades as it is, so i think she just likes working with two instead of one. higher level of efficiency and all

as i was adding photos... i realized... what this was inspired by... lmao

yeah. that fits her for sure

fujishima tatsumi:

i think he would use things more for looks rather than efficiency, so anything cool or unique... a scythe seems up his alley. something like ruby's scythe (especially because it also works as a gun - and i think the engineering mind i've head canoned for him would love to fiddle with that and make it abysmally powerful)

ishida mari:

i headcanon him as a ranger because i think there's literally only taegyu otherwise. so he would use a compact bow as his main weapon (inspired by the chiron form of the coronacht bow), but he also uses a rapier. he strikes me as a rich kid that studied abroad in london and learned fencing (i know it's really specific but those are just the vibes i get)

shimizu akari:

she has her giant golden battle axe. i also think she would know boxing, so she has short-ranged hand-to-hand combat down

kumamoto atsushi:

he doesn't really need a weapon, since he has a strange fighting style, and i headcanon he transforms like yoonho. but... something blunt, like a mace or a club. maybe nunchucks? or something similar to the playful cloud weapon from jujutsu kaizen?

hamada kei:

they're an ice type mage, so they have a varied attack pattern, but i think they would like a bowstaff or a baton (inspired by nami's clima tact from one piece. it even has the bonus of controlling the weather through temperature - which kei can... sorta do, lmao). something to easily knock-out any monsters that get near them so they can run before they throw up. really, it's more of a back up weapon, since they would take anything out before it got too close to them (inspired by this video!)

izawa ippei:

the actual canon assassin. well, i headcanon he likes collecting all sorts of weapons and learning how to use them, but his go-to would be something slightly ranged, like a spear (inspired by maki's from jujutsu kaizen) or a scythe (i think something simple like the one from soul eater would suit him best)

hoshino minoru:

i also headcanon him as an assassin (i mean, look at that raid outfit - you can't tell me that's not built perfectly for stealth and a better range of motion!), but more short-ranged and borderline fighter style. i think he has a sickle for quick chain kills, and an old dagger for sneak kills. (sickle is directly inspired by percy jackson and chronos' sickle, but i don't think we ever got to see it in a movie, but something along these lines would fit well. dagger is more of the hunting/gutting knife from the hannibal nbc series)

well... that about wraps it up! i tried to get more visuals from media this time instead of just googling the weapon type from the internet. there are some pretty cool weapon designs already out there, unique ones that always catch my eye. i just like weapons a lot lmao

[elmaxlys]

@once-upon-a-reblog replied to your post “”:

Ooh! First OC!

1- Who was your first ever OC? Do you still “use” them? How have they evolved over time?

​My very first first was created in preschool to play with at recess (yeah). He was a giant bipedal tiger warrior that fought with a double headed axe and decapitated his opponents (yeah idk why other kids were kinda scared to play with me either. a mystery.). His name was Tigraud and I wanted to be him. I'm no longer into anthros and I don't consider myself a furry but I still remember Tigraud fondly, despite him collecting dust in a corner of my brain :'3

My actual first OC, though, would be Kal. I created her when I was, like, 11? She's still in my story and still approximately as edgy as she was when initially created. She just got a tag more unhinged.

Here's the first drawing I made of her, so when I was around 11 :')

(this got. way longer than initially planned so dvp under the cut)

Funnily enough, she's a secondary character. I created her and immediately went alright so now who's the actual sane main character? That was Rina, that I consider to be my 2nd actual OC. I had an entire group of them but only Kal, Rina and their respective brothers still exist.

Kal's basic looks still are the same. She's now got shorter, messier hair and she's less heavy on the weapons (she now fights exclusively with knives and wooden stakes (she's a vampire hunter)) but overall she's recognizable.

Here's my latest drawing of her, from 2021

As for her story, it was initially a revenge one, hunting her vampire father to get revenge on her mother and brother who were killed by the vampires her father was leading, basically (and because it was written by an 11yo, she was raised by wolves 👍). Because she's a half elf/half vampire living on Earth, and there weren't supposed to be any elves left on Earth (they're on another planet, the one my main OCs live on), her backstory more than the story itself didn't make any sense. However, thanks to 13-14yo me who wrote the main storyline, it now could make sense for her to be half elf/half vamp! I still changed her story and there were now no wolves involved.

She got somehow more unhinged yet less feral. Rina (2nd actual OC) was still the only person who could handle her but they were also friends on top of being "coworkers", and Kal's nemesis no longer was her father but rather the leader of a local homeless vampires group, Georges (who's one of my most recent OCs, from when I was 17). Kal wanted to kill him, Georges wanted to kill Kal and Rina was in the middle like ":) no." like pictured below (pic from 2018)

(that one was from a "ask the OCs" session on ig back in the days)

In the recent restructuration effort, their dynamics will probably stay pretty similar to that but the Hunting Big Bad Dad plot might make a comeback (bc i miss it tbh) and that'd be why Kal wants to get Georges so bad, beyond the fact he's a vamp and she hates them: because Georges knows about everything going on and thus where Big Bad Dad is. Idk, idk.. it's all still floating around atm >////<

On the left, first picture ever drawn of Rina, on the right the latest one, from 2021. Below, latest Georges, also from 2021.

[batwritings]

Can I please get a imagine or headcanon about Dream cuddling a plus size female reader? My love language is touch but I also don't really like being touched because of my size, but since Dream is a giant I think I might be alright with him.

-🦇

Definitely friendo! I know how this one goes being a plus sized guy myself and being unsure of touch some days. ^^; Enjoy~!

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Why do you look like a guilty dog?" Dream laughs, looking at you out of the corner of his eye. It's only when your blush deepens across your cheeks that he knows you're serious. "One sec guys." Your blonde lover steps you around the corner of the community house so the two of you are free of prying eyes. He lifts his mask to reveal concerned green eyes. "What's wrong baby?"

"I just..." you stumble with your words, suddenly feeling incredibly silly in your request. Dream waits patiently for you though, not pressuring you to continue before you're ready. He takes soft hand in his calloused one as if to reassure you. "I've just missed you, and...wondered if we could go home? And cuddle?"

Dream snorts softly but smiles. "Is that all?" He kisses the top of your head knowingly before tightening his grip on your hand. "Of course we can beautiful." You watch him shoot off a message and lower his mask again. "C'mon, I know a shortcut."

So, the window wasn't exactly what you had in mind when Dream said a "shortcut", but it certainly explained how he managed to sneak in late at night these days.

His destressing process was soft and methodical, practiced almost. First the mask, putting it somewhere he could easily reach it and slap it back on in a hurry. Then his cloak, hung along one of the bedposts with his axe resting just beneath it, also within reach. Finally came his boots, before he collapsed into bed, patting the spot beside him.

You gingerly laid down, squeaking a little when Dream pulled you nearly on top of him. "D-Dream I--" you stuttered before the blonde hushed you slightly.

"I can already tell what this is about," he hums, thumb drawing circles on your soft hip where it lay. "I've told you before, and I'll tell you again; you'll always be the beautiful girl I fell in love with Y/N. No matter your size. No matter the day. No matter the place."

His words resound in your head as you finally relax into his hold. You hide your face in his chest without another word, letting yourself find comfort in his hold on your plush self. Dream would always find a way to make sure you knew you were valid in his eyes.

Even if it took sending a messenger your way to tell you. XD

[probablyevilrpgideas]

Random setting idea: Dragon-Urth

In quite a few real world mythologies, the world is created or comes forth from the body of some immense cosmic being.

In Norse mythology, Odin, Villi and Ve create the world from the body of the primordial giant Ymir. His blood becomes the oceans, his bones the mountains, his hair the forests, and so on.

In Chinese mythology, the primordial giant Pangu emerges from a cosmic egg, and created the world by separating yin (Earth) and yang (sky) with his axe, and then stands between them to hold them apart. For 18,000 years, each day the earth grew ten feet thicker and Pangu grew ten feet taller, and at the end, he died. His breath became winds, mist and clouds, his voice thunder, his eyes the sun and moon, and so on.

In the Enuma Elish, the good Marduk slays the primordial dragon Tiamat, and from her ribs he creates the vault of earth and sky, her eyes become the sources of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, her tail became the milky way.

And I'm reasonably certain there are more examples, but these are the ones I knew off of the top of my head, except Pingu, who was provided in the see also for Ymir (I couldn't remember Ymir's name and had to look it up as well as the details).

So.. D&D creation myths vary, but, so far as I'm aware, tend to not get too into the nitty gritty of how the world is created. I frequently rip directly from Pokemon and say that it was physically made by elemental beings, a la the Regis, but this is just sort drawing on the general "the gods created the world (directly or indirectly)" idea. Greyhawk says that dragons existed in the point of space where the gods decided to create the world (afair).

But this primordial being trope could be really fascinating for a setting, and, since the game is called Dungeons and Dragons, a primordial dragon akin to real mythological Tiamat seems a natural choice.

So, the physical world of the setting was created from the body of some immense primordial dragon. It's bones flesh becomes the earth, it's blood lava, it's thoughts lightning. The seas are it's aqueous fluids. Then there's the question of the races that inhabit it. Perhaps the dragons that exist in the current setting hatched from it's eggs, or were made from it's scales. Alternatively, maybe the mortal races arose from it's scales. Maybe kobolds come from, comparatively, microscopic parasites that lived in the primordial dragon.

I don't know, I'd have to flesh the idea out, and side from some basic constants, such as bones becoming mountains, there are a lot of directions you could go with exactly how the primordial beast was divided. One particular idea I like, though, does something else with the bones- in the slapdash setting I used for a "the setting doesn't matter, this is literally pure dungeoncrawl," I decided that dungeons actually spontaneously generated. In that setting they were something like Discworld Narrativia/empathic environment that grew around important treasures and graves. So pulling that idea to Dragon Urth, the bones of the primordial dragon became the dungeons.

[shadow--writer]

Please Don't go Walking Out That Door

(title) After a heavy depressive episode with writing I have returned! \o/ (fuck u helen). Are we gonna mention my word count? Absolutely not. 

Maeve x Lucas. Late nights, bloody days. 4.1k (don’t fuckin look at me)

TW (most of these are squicks): injuries, blood, scars, non sexual upper body nudity (briefly) 

@dela-png

The night stretched on and she felt woozy. 

Sometimes she wondered why she didn’t get help and why she was running this shitshow by herself. At least with extra hands she wouldn’t have to deal with her regulars alone.

The bell rang into the silence, she pressed a hand to her forehead. 

Oh great.

“T-Thumbelina?”

Her head snapped up at the voice.

It was Lucas. 

And he was carrying an injured woman. 

Maeve could just barely see the knife sticking out of her back, and the blood leaking down. The woman was slurring her words, squeezing her eyes shut. 

Maeve rubbed her temples, walking over to the two of them. Her heels clicked on the worn hardwood with her steps. She shut the clinic’s door behind them, closing the blinds around the windows. 

“Good Goddess above, do you get everyone into trouble?” she muttered, taking the injured side arm of the woman. They shifted her to one of the nearest tables. She was complaining the entire time, shaking her arm to get it out of Maeve’s grip.

“Well...no. This one was all her fault.”

“And I can fucking take care of it myself,” she said as Maeve and Lucas shifted her up onto the table. Well those words sounded vaguely familiar. 

“Her fault hm? Let me guess, picked a fight and didn’t realize they were sleazy?”

“...you got it.”

She chuckled, pulling her hair up. “Oh I’ve been there.” She yanked the ribbon closed around her hair, looking at the woman on her clinic table. 

“I need to take your shirt off so I can get a good look at your wounds,” she said, shifting over to look for her pain medicines and needles. A knife in the back could hit a multitude of organs. Stomach, kidney, pancreas, an intestine. 

Sometimes you learn things from experience as well as being taught. 

Lucas looked at the woman as Maeve sterilized her scalpel. “Hey Amani, she’s gonna help you.”

Amani bit at his hand. He shifted away from her, muttering something in a bitter tone. 

“I’m fine! I can fix myself up!” Her voice was a snarl.

Something about the notion of taking her shirt off was bothering her.

Maeve guessed it had to do with something on her back. 

Like a scar.

She set her tools down on the table with a light thump. She was tired and could feel a headache coming on. 

“If I show you the scars on my back, will you let me help you before you bleed out?” She rubbed her temples. 

“I can fix myself.” There was an edge and some very creative swears following it as Maeve tapped the knife. 

“A healing spell isn’t going to do much unless you have very flexible bones and can reach around your back to give yourself stitches. It’ll work wonders for some damage, but can you fix internal? What about stop the bleeding?”

The woman turned away. 

“Amani please. I can’t help you,” Lucas whispered. “I’m useless.”

“You’re aren’t useless,” Amani muttered. “A fucking dumbass for bringing me here instead of helping me home, but not useless.”

“Sorry to say most of my medicine and herbs are locked up as well,” Maeve said, looking at the knife. She would need to get the woman’s shirt off her back to see the wound. 

But maybe not take it of all the way...it was already torn up...and if she didn’t mind the loss Maeve would only need to tear it further instead of taking it off entirely. “You won’t be getting anything.”

She bent over to be eye to eye with Amani. “So you’re stuck with me helping you.”

“Sorry short stack, but the shirt stays on.”

“I will only need to tear it to see the wound.”

“On.”

Maeve huffed. “I will show you my back if you let me tear your shirt. But this is a timed offer as I do not want you to bleed out on me. Do you know how messy that would be? A pain to clean!”

Amani turned to look over at Lucas. He slapped a hand to his forehead. “So this is the Thumbelina you’ve been raving about? She’s a total bitch!”

She flicked her scalpel. “A bitch with a sharp object. Pick your battles wisely.” Her eyes darted down to the knife in Amani’s back. “If you can be wise at all.”

“Maeve!” Lucas wheezed. 

Amani snorted. “Fiery.”

Maeve stood upright, resting a hand on her hip as she sighed. “I’m used to dealing with people like you. Now, the shirt is going to come off one way or another. Question is; do you want me to knock you out or are you going to comply?”

Amani mouthed the word ‘bitch’ at Lucas. He shot her a glare. “Amani, I love you, but please.”

“Yeah yeah. And you still brought me to the bitchy mean doctor.”

“For a knife lodged in your back!”

“That I can take care of!”

“It’s in your back!”

Amani huffed, turning back to Maeve. “So, if you help me, you’ll leave me alone? The both of you?”

“If you don’t decide to bite me first, yes. You’ll have to stay a little bit when the pain meds kick in since depending on the wound, they can be pretty powerful.”

Amani sighed. “Ugh.”

“This is no fun for me either.”

“So...you’ll show me your scars first, right?”

“We are on a time limit.”

“Your back first.”

She threw her hands in the air, Lucas backing away from the hand holding the scalpel. “Fine! Fine!” She set the scalpel down. “We are on a tight schedule but fine!”

She turned to Lucas, the heels of her shoes the only sound for a moment. “Help me with my dress please,” she said, moving her hair off one shoulder to reveal the laces down her back. 

“You want me to what?”

She huffed, frustrated with the two of them. Her headache throbbed between her eyes. She wanted to rub her temples again. “Just...unlace me.”

“But-”

“Do you want her to bleed out?”

He shook his head, hands trembling a little as he untied the bow just under the collar of her dress. His touch was soft against her skin, moving quickly with the time crunch. 

Even so, she couldn’t deny the hitch in her breath as he brushed her skin. 

He grazed a jagged scar between her shoulder blades as he finished unlacing her. 

“So what are you…”

“Showing her my scars as I’ve promised. Then I’ll pull that knife out and hopefully she’ll still be alive in time for me to give her stitches. But of course, she insists on this.”

Maeve rubbed her eyes, walking back to the woman on the table. She watched Lucas with an almost...amused glint in her eye. 

Maeve shrugged the dress off her shoulders. 

“Whoa hold on-”

She shot a glare at Lucas. Apparently even he caught on to the scene before him. “Oh relax, it’ll be quick. And I’m wearing something under this.”

“But…”

“Lucas, we don’t have time to ‘preserve my modesty.’ You may look away if you wish, but this sort of thing is nothing new to me. If she wants to see my scars to be more comfortable with me seeing hers, fine.”

“But you’re-”

“You are abnormally stubborn for someone in your position. It isn’t hard to catch on. If you do not wish to see me undress ever so slightly, then you may look away. But please remember she is bleeding out on my clinic table with a knife in her back. I do not believe we have the kind of time to discuss this.”

“Lucas just admit you like what you see and move on!” Amani called. 

Maeve shot her a withering glare. “And you, you have no place to talk! Making me jump through hoops to take a knife out of your back.”

She held the bodice of her dress to her chest as she looked at Amani. “And here are my scars, are you happy?”

Amani stared at the mess of flesh on Maeve’s back. She knew it was a mess of old wounds. From axes. Arrows. Some burn scars. Bite marks. Knife and sword wounds. She was glad she was related to one of the best healers on her island. 

“Damn.”

“Are we good now? Can I just tear your shirt a little to get the knife out?” Maeve huffed, pushing her dress back over her shoulders. She didn’t have time to lace it so she’d have to make due with showing a little bit of skin. 

All she needed to do was just...heal, stitches, medicine, rest. Then she could get them out of her hair and pass out for a million moon cycles. 

“You can tear it a little…” Amani muttered. 

Maeve let out a tired sigh, picking up her scalpel and needles (with sutures already tied neatly, she anticipated someone coming in. But not this).

She tore Amani’s shirt, revealing a bit of marred skin. Gold paint was flaking off and onto the table. Amani twitched under her as she looked at the skin puckering around the knife. 

“Fucking hell doc, your hands are so cold.”

“Oh yeah I know. Would you rather Giant manhandle you?”

“Gods he’d crush me!” “Hey!”

Maeve chuckled, giving the knife a good tug. Amani spewed curses as Maeve muttered something to herself. It was lodged in there pretty good. She suspected it hit an organ as well. She’d have to be quick with healing and stopping the blood. 

“Well Miss. Amani, you might have another scar to add to your collection,” Maeve said, cleaning her hands on her apron. “And I do warn you, this might hurt a little.”

“Do your worst.”

“Oh I will.”

“Wait-”

She pulled on the knife. It came out with a spurt of blood. She was right about the organ thing, but thankfully it was only the small intestine. Any higher might’ve been stomach or even a lung. 

Healing spells didn’t work with organs surrounded by bone. 

Amani screamed, swearing in another language. 

Maeve tossed the knife to the side, pressing her apron (her poor apron) to the wound. “Calma síos, ba é sin an chuid éasca,” she muttered, her native language a comfort to her. She breathed through her nose, gearing up for the healing spell. 

There was a spark in her palms

And it faded. 

Cursing, she fought for it back, but each attempt fell flat. 

“Thumbelina?” Lucas asked. 

“I don’t have enough fucking energy for this fucking goddamn spell. Shit.”

“Hey! Watch your fucking language in front of a patient!” Amani said.

“I shall do no such thing you fucking nitwit!” Maeve huffed, sweat dripping from her brow. Her hands were stained red. 

“Can you...draw on energy from someone else?” Lucas asked. 

“I could in theory, but I don’t know what it would do to the other person.”

“Could you use me?”

She turned to look at him, her dress fell off of one shoulder. “Could I what?”

“Use me. My energy.”

“He does have a lot of that- OW!” Maeve pressed the wound a little roughly to shut Amani up.

“I don’t know what it would do.”

“I know you can help.”

“Ugh,” Amani moaned. “Stop flirting and help me.”

“We aren’t flirting,” Maeve said firmly. “Lucas come here.”

He shuffled forward. 

“Touch me.”

“Huh?”

“God- just...touch my back.”

He jolted, placing a hand on her bare skin. She sucked in a breath, his hand splayed along her scars. His hand was almost as big as her back was. 

“N-Now,” she breathed. “Visualize.”

“Like what I do to channel my magic?”

He had magic? She wasn’t surprised he had it but surprised he’d use it. 

Nonetheless it lent well. 

“Yes. But channel it into me.”

“Are you sure...it gets kind of...powerful.”

“Just...do it. Giant, she is bleeding out as we speak.”

“Yeah! Help me, then flirt- HEY! Stop that!” 

She pressed the wound again. “Save your breath, you will need it.”

Amani muttered something under said breath as Maeve counted down. 

She was hit with a surge. She gritted her teeth, her hands going numb with the amount of energy. 

Holy fuck. 

“I cannot believe this is just...your magic,” she muttered as Amani writhed under her. Lucas was jumpy, flinching every time Amani slurred out a curse. 

“I’m knitting the wound back together. It hurts like a son of a bitch, but I always stop before they black out. Not healthy to keep going otherwise.”

“Why does it hurt so much?” he asked, his breaths coming out in slight heaves. 

“All magic has its price and drawbacks.” 

She pulled back with a gasp. Lucas leaned against her. Amani stopped squirming. 

“That fucking hurt,” she gasped. 

“Well yeah. You got stabbed in the small intestine. And we still have stitches!” She massaged her temples. She smeared blood along her skin. Mm she’d have to bathe as well. Great.

“You okay there Thumbelina?”

“Mm fine. Just tired. Like you. I’ll be okay. Just gotta fix her up and get you guys some water.” Ugh she was woozy again. Her dress kept slipping down. She kept pushing it up. He watched her.

“You have tattoos on your back.”

“...I do indeed.”

“They’re lovely.”

She stiffened. “T-Thank you.” Amani rolled her eyes. His hand brushed one of her scars, making  her let out a tiny squeak.

“What’s this from?”

“A...brawl with my family.”

“A brawl?” 

“Mmhmm. Hate to brag, but I won. I’m a bit of a feral fighter. I’m sure I can beat you.”

She started Amani’s stitches. Her bodice slipped down her arms. She cursed, pushing it back up. 

“I’d like to see you try and beat me,” he said with a chuckle, holding her dress up and slowly lacing up the back. She went rigid at his touch. His hands were so much warmer than she expected. 

She calmed her erratic breathing, focusing on her needlework. Amani was blessedly silent. 

“I could and I would,” she said, tugging the wound closed.

“I’m like four times your size.”

“Yes but I’m fast. And I have military training. I don’t think you’ve ever seen me in action before.”

“Well no...but neither have you.”

“Ugh can you stop flirting!”

And then the silence was ended. 

“It isn’t flirting, only a conversation while I help stitch you up.”

“Yeah but his hands are all over you.” His hands froze. 

“He’s pulling up my dress.” She knotted the thread, snipping it with scissors she kept nearby. “A mer conversation about me whooping his ass is not flirting.”

“You whooping my ass?” he asked. 

“Now this is flirting.” She turned to look at him. “I would, but I must say, it is a nice ass.”

He opened his mouth, closed it, opened it again, and then closed it.

He looked like a fish. 

She giggled, turning back to Amani. She changed the conversation to ignore the heat in the tips of her ears. Even brazen flirting didn’t save her from the effects of the new found feelings she had for him. 

“So I have some pain meds, but they’ll knock you out pretty good if you aren’t careful. I can also fetch you a new shirt if you’d like. This one is kind of a mess.”

She helped Amani to sit up. She ran her hands down the front of her shirt. “No thanks. Rather attached to this one.”

“Of course.”

“Damn, what’s with the way she speaks?” Amani looked at Lucas. 

Like Maeve wasn’t right there.

This headache might turn into a migraine. 

“It’s so proper!”

“Well she normally speaks...differently I suppose.”

“I only get very proper when I have a headache, and the two of you are the root issue,” Maeve groused, rubbing the bridge of her nose. “It was already a long day and now an even longer night.” She always fell back into her aunt's lessons when she was sick.

That or she lost her filter.

She preferred to sound like a lady. She hurt feelings when she didn’t have what little filter on. 

“Ah so this is Maeve? She’s a treasure,” Amani snorted.

Maeve cracked an eye open. “Well a warning about you would’ve been nice as well.”

“He never mentioned me?” She looked at Lucas, jutting a finger at him. “You whore!” 

“Amani!”

Maeve threw her hands into the air. “I’m going to get water both for myself and the two of you knuckleheads.”

“Hey!” they yelled at the same time as she walked away. 

“What and you want to spend the night too?” she snapped, grabbing a few glasses and filling them with water from her bucket. She left bloody handprints but she couldn’t find it in her to care. “You need the water for the medicine anyways. I need it for my headache. And Lucas…”

“...we’ll just go with I’m thirsty.”

“Oh yeah you’re thirsty alright,” Amani huffed. “But not for the water.”

Lucas’ face flushed pink. “Amani!”

“Mmm I’m sure,” Maeve hummed, placing a glass in each of their hands. “And tell me, what on Earth would he be thirsty for?”

“...you know, sometimes I wonder if I can find someone as dense as Lucas and it appears that I have.”

Maeve chuckled. “Oh I’m fully aware of what your comment implies. I get enough of it from my little sister.”

...ah so that’s who Amani reminded her of. 

No wonder she wanted to strangle her. 

She just felt like her younger sister. Had the air of her. 

Gods help her if they ever meet. 

“But it’s more fun to watch him squirm.”

Amani’s eyes lit up. “Oh you. I’m starting to like you.”

“Mmm oh...wonderful,” she replied, moving over to look for the pain meds. “More people to bother me.”

“I thought you liked me!” Lucas protested, making her crack a smile. Her headache was slightly dulled by the water, but judging by how much her head throbbed not even sleep would help. 

“On occasion,” she hummed, standing on her tiptoes to try and reach her lactucarium bottle. This tasted vile, but it was effective. 

She swayed a little, being hit with a wave of dizziness. She stumbled backwards, hand coming down to rest on her forehead as she spat out curses. She most likely hadn’t been drinking water. 

...now that she thought about it she didn’t even eat either. The meal Lucas brought sat untouched in her backroom. 

He would kill her if he found that one out. 

Speaking of…

She looked up at Lucas, who had caught her. She stumbled a little, trying to worm her way out of his arms. Amani was chuckling (and then yelping at the pull on her stitches). 

“You okay there, Thumbelina?” The testing offense gone from his voice. 

“Just a dizzy spell.”

“You’ve had a lot of those.”

“This time it’s from a headache. I’ll be okay once you two go home and I can sleep.”

He didn’t crack a smile like she hoped he would. Hers fell. 

“Did you eat today?”

“Did you?” Amani called. 

“Amani this isn’t about me-”

“Don’t make me come over there.”

“...fine. I didn’t eat. Maeve?”

She chewed her lower lip as he helped her upright. He reached over her to grab the lactucarium bottle. He handed it to her as she let go of her lip. “Well, no. I haven’t had the time and it...slipped my mind.”

“...like I said, you’re tiny enough as it is.”

“Like you can talk.”

“Tell him!”

“Shut up!” they both yelled. 

All three of them stared at one another before laughing. The topic of eating all but forgotten. 

“Okay Amani, this stuff is fucking nasty as hell, but it helps. I don’t have it in pill form so we’ll make due.” She poured a little of the lactucarium onto a spoon, and held it up to Amani. 

“What you’re gonna feed it to- ACK!” She shoved the spoon in Amani’s mouth, watching her grumble and swallow the medicine. 

Amani gagged. “Oh fucking shit yuck.”

“Oh yes. And the aftertaste is worse.” She set the spoon down, untying her bloodied apron and using it to pick up her bloody tools and the knife. She watched the woman guzzle down the water she brought with a chuckle. “See?”

“Lucas you chose to be friends with a sadist,” Amani moaned, pretending to swoon. “She’s gonna kill me!”

“Keep up the dramatics and I just might.”

“I really hope this means you two are getting along.”

“Hmm I dunno. Check in tomorrow.”

Amani snorted. “So maybe she isn’t as big of a bitch as I thought.”

“That’s sweet of you.” She dumped the bloodied tools onto a tray to be cleaned later. She folded the stick apron over one arm. She had blood on her cheek. Wonderful. “But I wouldn’t say that assessment was wrong.”

“You two are the worst,” Lucas groaned. 

“Says the person who didn’t eat,” Amani replied. 

“Neither did Maeve!”

“Well I’m not close enough to her to lecture her!”

He glared at Maeve who was looking very smug. “She’s not wrong Lucas dear. You also have a harder job than I do in terms of physical labor.”

“...you had to hold down Amani.”

“Who was being a pain.”

“Hey! I am right here!”

He snorted. “Okay that is fair. Is there anything I need to do with her stitches?”

“I’d give you aloe to put over it but a certain someone.” A man named Sam. One of her...infamous regulars. “Used up the rest of my fucking aloe.”

He shifted at her tone. “...and you...?”

“Well other than chasing him out of my clinic with a bone saw due to being a pain in my ass, using up the rest of the aloe plant I had. Which was a lot. And then taking candy I save for kids? Nothing.”

“...you chased him out with a bone saw?”

“Why yes I did.” She fluffed her ponytail. “So with Amani, you should keep her in bed for a little bit while she heals. Thanks to the healing spell it shouldn’t be too long. Reopening the stitches means coming back to me though and we certainly don’t want that.”

“Uh Doc.”

“...yes?”

“I think Lucas is still hung up on the fact you chased someone out with a saw.”

“Well he’d better bring his head back down to Earth or you two will be next. Do you have aloe, or can you get any?”

“Oh yeah! I grow it.”

“Oh wonderful! Just put that on your stitches to help with your skin. Honey is a wonderful antibiotic, to keep your wound from being infected. I’d say no heavy drinking or going out for at least a few days. Four at most.”

“Four days?”

“I’m sure you’ll survive.”

“...barely.”

“Come back here in a few days and if I give you the okay, go wild.”

“No more nasty pain medicine?”

“Unless the pain gets bad, no.” She looked at Lucas, who looked like he was trying to do a difficult math problem. It made her laugh. “You should take her home to get some sleep.”

He snapped out of his stupor. “And what about you?”

“Well currently, closed.”

“You should eat something.”

“I will.”

“Good.”

“...god that was so fucking awkward. Can I go home to die in peace?”

“You aren’t dying.”

“I dunno that stuff your little fairy, as you’ve called her, might just do me in.”

She felt her cheeks warm. He talked about her? She knew Amani mentioned it before but not it was really sinking in. “Oh don’t be dramatic. It was only pain medicine.”

She helped him get Amani up off the table, the woman muttering about how she was fine and that she could walk fine. 

“Thank you, Maeve,” he whispered when they got to the door. 

“It was no trouble.”

“Sorry we came so late.”

“I’m used to it.”

“You should get some sleep for that headache.”

“I think I can handle it,” she said with a smile. “You take care of Amani now. Oh and Lucas!” He turned around. “Eat something. Please. It’s not healthy to do the amount of labor you do on an empty stomach.”

“I...okay.”

“...bootlicker,” Amani muttered. He shoved her. “Hey! I’m injured!”

“When you’re better you can’t use that and then you’ll get it,” he muttered, making Maeve smile. 

She waved them off, leaning against the clinic doorframe. 

Lucas turned around to look at her, shooting her a small and a two fingered salute. 

‘See you later, Thumbelina.’ he mouthed, making something...spark at her skin as she blushed. 

Oh no. 

[gideongrace]

You might not be surprised about me asking for the 13. "bruises and bitemarks - good with grenades" for Harringrove! (But that's just a feeling XD) I would love to read something a bit wilder with these two. Because I love them all soft, but well. I don't mean painplay or dom-sub stuff. They are still idiots in love. But with more edges... you know what I mean? Would be soooo happy! Love your writings! xx

//  Thank youuu! I hope you like this! //

“You fucking idiot,” Steve howls harshly. He pushes Billy onto the bed and climbs on top of him, bracketing him with his body. Billy lets him. Steve doesn’t get like this often, demanding and desperate and just a little mean, but when he does, Billy lets him. Lets him be rough and coarse and sharp and Billy doesn’t fight back. He knows Steve needs this and so he lets him have it - he’d let Steve have anything he wanted, anything he needed, whether he’s asking for it directly or not. 

///

Billy claps his hands together and snarls at the monster before them.

They’re out in some small town in Maine, because they’ve started doing this in other places now, because it turns out the Upside Down is connected to towns other than just their own and do what you’re good at, right? And Billy is good at two things: fighting monsters and protecting Steve.

Well, one thing, really, because if he were actually any good at protecting Steve then Steve wouldn’t be here standing next to him right now, if he were actually any good at protecting Steve then Steve wouldn’t have gotten that concussion a few months back.

But.

He can protect Steve from this giant, walking sewer plant with feet and clawed hands and big, spiky teeth that smells like a dumpster full of rotten takeout and year old dirty diapers that’s looming in front of them right now. That much he can do. 

“Steve! Duck!” he shouts as he finds the perfect target right above the monster’s slavering, slobbering mouth. There’s a weird sort of opening where its nose should be and Billy knows that if he hits it there it should…

“Steve!” he shouts again as Steve whacks uselessly at the thing’s chest with his bat. “Move!“ 

Steve spins to look at him just as the monster howls, the noise a weird combination between the sound metal makes when crushed and a cat screeching. It dives for Steve with its’ long, long arms and Billy pushes him out of the way, only just barely avoiding his hand sinking into the deep, wet, oozing hole above the monster’s mouth as he does so. He’s lost his shot, the angle’s all wrong, but he hacks away at the monster’s neck as it drags him to the ground anyway.

///

Billy winces as Steve runs a hand up and down his arm, just over the fat, beige bandage covering the swollen, barely scabbed over bite marks there. There’s too much pressure, too much tension and Billy grinds his teeth as Steve keeps rubbing, almost re-opening the wounds.

“That was so fucking dumb,” Steve grits out as his fingers dig into Billy’s shoulder and the bruises there. He leans in and less kisses and more flat out bites Billy’s bottom lip almost hard enough to draw blood. Billy sucks in a breath and says nothing but reaches out to wrap a hand around the back of Steve’s neck, to draw him closer, but Steve stops him, grabs his hand and drags it above their heads, holds it there. He leans back just far enough so Billy can see his eyes, see the darkness clouded there. 

Steve growls like a monster, fierce and needy. 

///

The monster’s face twitches just as it twists its’ long, slimy body just a little bit lower and with something almost like a smile, sinks its teeth into Billy’s arm. Billy screams, his axe dropping on reflex with the pain of it. The monster’s mouth makes this weird, wet sort of sucking noise as its mouth wraps around his arm and Billy screams again, his free hand going for one of the thing’s black, beady eyes. He digs his fingers in as far as they can go, trying not to recoil at the squish the eye makes when it pops like a mouldy grape but the monster doesn’t seem to notice, doesn’t seem to care, just sinks its teeth in further and drools something thick and viscous all over his arm.

He screams again, louder this time and this time so does Steve and Steve - Steve’s got this murderous look in his eye and he comes at the monster full force, swinging at every inch of thick, scaly flesh he can manage. The monster makes a muffled, wet, strangled sorta sound that becomes another metal-crunching-cat-screeching kinda noise as it pulls its mouth free from Billy’s arm, allowing him to roll out of the way and for Steve to smash its’ head into a bloody pulp until the beast finally, finally stops moving.

///

Steve leans over him, eyes dark, mouth twisted into something nasty, hair falling over his face and casting small shadows over the both of them. He’s still got Billy’s hands held over his head and they’re brushing up against the cheap, plywood-pretending-to-be-real-wood headboard of the cheap, old bed in the cheap, old motel they’ve chosen for the night and Billy tries not to think about the possible thousands of other people who have done exactly this, in exactly this bed and exactly in these sheets. 

Well, not exactly this. There’s no one else exactly like his Steve, no one else with eyes capable of alternately outshining the sun and boring so deep into a person’s soul with such passion and rage that if such a look could be weaponized, it’d be lethal. 

The moment they’re caught in stretches out indefinitely with Steve not doing anything other than just hovering over him, watching him with those eyes full of rage and passion and love, so much love Billy thinks he could drown in it, like actually drown and die in it and the only thought he’d have about that would be - “God, what a way to go.“ 

///

Steve drops his bat and holds out a hand to help Billy up; there’s dark green blood splattered all over his face and his bat and his jacket’s got a huge tear in his sleeve.

"Thanks,” Billy says as Steve pulls him to his feet with his good arm. Steve grunts as a form of response and they walk hand-in-hand to pick up Billy’s axe, both kicking the monster to make sure it’s dead as they pass by its corpse. Billy’s pretty sure he can see the things’ brains if that bumpy purple muck is anything to go by, but hey, you never know. 

The monster, fortunately, stays still and stays silent. Steve, however, does not.

“That,” he says, pointing across his own chest at Billy’s sluggishly bleeding arm, the arm that’s starting to hurt like a bitch now that the adrenaline is starting to wear off. “That is gonna need to be cleaned up." 

With a grunt exhaled on a sigh Steve drops Billy’s hand and slowly peels off his jacket, then his shirt, throwing the shirt at Billy before putting his jacket back on and turning to grab his bat. "Hold that against the wound,” he says gruffly, and it’s just that, just those words and nothing else, no sharp look, no tension in his shoulders, nothing obvious, but Billy can still tell how pissed off Steve is. He can always tell when Steve’s pissed off, whether he says it or shows it directly or not.

“And give me your keys,” Steve says as he bends to get his bat, “you’re not driving with your arm like that.”

“Put this shirt against your wound, give me your keys,” Billy says in what is a pointedly terrible imitation of Steve as he presses Steve’s shirt to the bites in his arm. “Is there anything else I can do for you?" 

Steve rounds on him, bat slung over his shoulder. "Give me your keys, jackass.”

Billy grunts but gives in and throws Steve his keys.

///

Steve leans in, pressing his whole body up against Billy’s in a way that should be choking but isn’t, kisses in a way that should be crushing, but isn’t. “I had it,” he says sharply, articulating each word with a biting kiss. “I had it,” he says again. 

Billy doesn’t say anything, they’ve been together long enough by now for him to know that he’s not supposed to say anything here, he’s not supposed to do anything here, either. No, right now his job is to let Steve do what he needs to do, his job is to let Steve deal how he needs to deal. 

So he lets Steve kiss him until his lips are raw, he lets Steve bite at his neck until breathing is painful, he lets Steve grip his bandaged arm and hold his hands above his head and crush him with the weight of his body. 

It lets Steve know he’s still alive and still here, that they’re both still alive, that they’re both still here and it doesn’t feel like very much but Billy knows that for right now, it’s enough. 

// canon but gayer verse - part one - part two - part three - part four +part five+ //

[lukasmcsbr]

MCSM Season 3 Chapter 10:Standoff

Please share,@mulberrycheeseburger ,@haysnazzi and @silversilence14

Aiden:AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!

Total lenghtness,a climatic scene where Jesse is shocked upon seeing Aiden jumping from the plataform only because of an weird purple glowing pearl,at those seconds,he realized how insane Aiden was,willing to risk his own life at any cost to ressurect the Admin,Jesse just watched Aiden falling to a supposed cliff,however,he hears an clingy noise coming from the hole,before spoting Aiden,who managed to grab the pearl in time and hanging onto the cliffside with his sword,Jesse extends his arm to help Aiden,but the latter maliciously laughs,and procceds to place the pearl in his shoulder,Aiden's eyes begin to glow purple,and a purple smoke coming out of the pearl covers him entirely,blinding Jesse for a split second,enough time for Aiden to jump back to the plataform,yelling with a demonic(or heavy)voice,and still holding his sword

Jesse:[sees Aiden putting on the pearl]Okay,so that didn't go as planned...

Aiden:[jumps back to the plataform,with a demonic voice]RAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHGG!!![lands in the plataform,holding his sword]This ins't going to be a fair fight![he tosses his sword to Jesse]

Jesse was frightened,seeing Aiden covered in an apparently invulnerable magma stone armor,his clothes and skin were all made out of stone,with purple cracks in a few places and a scar in the right side of his forehead,and his eyes were glowing purple,the only normal thing on him now was his hair,which was at it's normal color and state

Aiden:[in a loud voice]The Pearl of Hatred,a taste of invincibility.Too bad for YOU!!![he runs at Jesse,who rolls to take the sword and strike it on Aiden,but the blade simply brokes]Aaaahhhh!!!!

Scene changes to the Ender Temple's entrance,where Gill and a few Blaze Rods members are waiting for Aiden,all of sudden,the stone wall begins to crack and crumbles,revealing to be Aiden,who used his invincibility to easily break trought the wall,as he leaves,he takes the pearl off his shoulder

Jesse:[frightened]What did the pearl do to you...?

Scene changes to the New Order of The Stone,which were still chained in their ship by the Blaze Rods

(My art,i've drawed a long time ago,please do not use it without my permission)

Radar:[whispers to Olivia]So,what do we do know?

Olivia:[Whispers back to Radar]I don't know,they took our weapons,and guarded them in the cabin

Petra:[whispers]Well,were still chained so having weapons wouldn't be useful right now...

Maya:What are guys doing?

Radar:Umm,no--nothing,were just...doing nothing...

Maya:Hum...

Gill:MAYA,GET DOWN HERE!

Maya:[gives sword to an biker]Watch them for me,will ya?

Maya leaves the ship,meanwhile,Gill and a few BL bikers are trying to get into the Ender Temple,but the stone wall won't fall even with Gill's strong punches

Gill:I can't break trought,it looks like we wait!

BL Biker:Uh,what if the Wither's slayer gets the pearl first?

Gill:[stares and aproaches the biker]The Quiet One will not fail!

Scene changes to Aiden throwing Jesse to the Pearl's pedestal,while evily laughing

Aiden:[demonic voice]hehehe

Jesse:You can hurt me all you want,but i'm never gonna let you get away with this!

Aiden:[demonic voice]Physical pain can only hurt so much,i intend far worse[he walks around Jesse]

Jesse:[picks up the rest of Aiden's broken sword,while frightened]Then what do you want??

Aiden:[screams in demonic voice]I WANT YOU TO FEEL THE EMPTYNESS THAT I FEEL!WHEN ROMEO IS REBORN,HE WON'T BE THE MAN YOU'D RECOGNIZE![looks at his own hands]HIS SOUL WILL BE GONE,[looks and shouts at Jesse]AND I WANT HIS COLD HANDS TO DESTROY YOU!!!!!

Jesse:[shouts]You're a monster!!!I'll never feel what you feel!

Aiden:[Walks away,while turning his head a little]We will see!

Jesse:Fight me!Let's end it here!

Aiden:[Turns back at Jesse]I'm already two steps ahead![he turns and runs away]

Jesse:[realizes what Aiden is about to do]No...[drops his broken sword]DON'T!!!

Aiden leaves the chamber,but before he leaves the temple,he uses his invincibility to crack a wall near a waterfall inside the temple,knowing that it woud flud all the temple and drown Jesse

Aiden:[running,before spoting the wall]Huh?Yaaaaaaaaaa!!![hits the wall with his stone body,causing it to crack]

Jesse:[notices chamber is getting fulled with water]Where's a boat when i need one???!!!

Scene changes to the ship,were the New Order of The Stone is still chained under vigilance of a random biker

Olivia:[Blinks at Axel]

Axel:[Starts singing]🎵charm little glow worm,glamour,glamour🎵

Biker:Ugh,i hate this song,stop it!

Axel:Well,maybe i just want to sing it![keeps singing]

BL Biker:Ugh![blocks his ears]

Olivia:[whispers to Ivor]Now Ivor!

Ivor:[Reveals an metal rusting potion]Boya!

He uses the potion at the chains,which gets rusted and crumbles,before the biker could notice,Petra jumps at him and knocks him councious

Petra:[jumps at BL member]HAYA!

Lukas:Let's get our weapons at the cabin and go after Jesse...before it's too late!

Gill:The Quiet One has the pearl!We have all three!!!

They all shout of joy

Aiden:Now i believe we have a ceremony to attend to!

Aiden:[walks by them]Take the ship!

Scene changes briefly to Jesse swiming through the temple,before being dragged by an up current,meanwhile,the Blaze Rods and Aiden are all leaving the Temple's entrance,but they stop when Radar appears out of nowhere and points his swords at Aiden

Radar:[points his swords to Aiden,while talking on a loud voice]Not so fast!

A female Blaze Rods biker takes off a knife and points it at Radar,while Gill takes off the Ender Pearl of Deception,intending to use it,but he is stopped by Axel,while the rest of New Order of The Stone arrives with their respective weapons

Axel:Careful!I wouldn't want you to upset your friends!

The Blaze Rods are out numbered,as they had split up early in small groups to patrol the island

Ivor:Hah!Looks like WE have the upper han-

He stops talking when he notices that more members were behind him and his friends,pointing swords and knifes to them,while Maya appears out of nowhere holding two sais and pointing them to Lukas,the White Pumpkin appears from up,and points his diamond axes at Ivor

Ivor:Ugh!Olivia,you said we had them out-numbered!

Olivia:Um,that was before i knew how many of them they were![points her bow and arrow to Aiden]

White Pumpkin:[tries to put on the Ender Pearl of Vengeance,but is stopped by Olivia]

Olivia:[staring at WP]Don't.even.think about it!

Radar:This can end in one of two ways[points one of his swords to and upcoming female biker with a knife,stopping her]either you hand over the pearls peacefully...

Ivor:[Sees biker aproaching him]Hehe,i don't even have to know the rest of the choices,i like that one...

Aiden:[shouts]Or what?

Radar:Or we're gonna have to get on heroes on y'a

Aiden:What does that even mean?[he annoingly asks]

Radar:Uh...[shouts]I don't know.Usually Jesse does the talking but he ins't here so...WHERE IS JESSE????!!!!

They all hear someone screaming, revealing to be Jesse,who was launched out of the temple to the air by a blast of water,before landing in the middle of everyone

Axel:[Sees Jesse in the skyes]Oh there he is!Oh...

Jesse:[falling]AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!![Lands hardly in the middle of the New Order]Ugh...

Lukas:Jesse!!You're okay?

Jesse:Ugh,guys,Aiden is the Quiet One!

Radar:Yeah,we kinda got that much...

The Blaze Rods laughs and aproaches them to attack,but they stop when they hear an groan that appears to be familiar to Jesse and Aiden

Aiden:[spots sea creature,revealing it to be a crab-like monster] Aaaahhhh!!!

They all run away,the monster follows them and attack,forcing the New Order of The Stone and the Blaze Rods to work together in order to defeat it,while Gill and WP used the Ender Pearls,the New Order of the Stone used their weapons to fend off the beast,Jesse even had to use his powers,revealing them to his friends and the rest of the Blaze Rods

Petra:[while attacking the beast]Jesse!!You have powers?

Jesse:[summoning his energy to attack the giant crab]Long story,short time,can we focus on that now??!

While they were distracting the monster,Lukas climbed in a few rocks and jumped at the beast,using his spear to encrave it in the beast's head,killing it instantly,and the creature explodes in a puff of smoke

Maya:We have to get you out of here,Quiet One!

Aiden:[shouts]Not without the pearls!

He whistles to Gill and WP,who were using the Ender Pearls to hold off against the now-deceased beast.The Blaze Rods group up and steal the New Order of the Stone's ship

Ivor:Hey,they're getting away!

Jesse:I got this!

Jesse leaps through the Temple's roof,climbing in the ancient stone constructions to jump at the ship,however,once he lands in the ship,Gill appears out of nowhere and grabs him,holding him to the air,while the New Order of the Stone were left behind

Radar:They have Jesse!

Axel:They have the pearls!

Olivia:[spots a lizard like creature aproaching them]And we have trouble...

The creature roars

~~~~~~~~~~End of Chapter~~~~~~~~~~

HEY,GUYS,WRITER SPEAKING HERE,JUST TO REMIND YOU GUYS GO PLEASE SHARE THIS STORY,I'M NOT HAVING THE PROPER MOTIVATION TO KEEP WRITING...SO PLEASE,HELP ME,THE DESIGN OF THE FANART OF AIDEN USING THE ENDER PEARL OF HATRED WAS ORIGINATED BY @grayscaleocelot,i'm sorry i didn't post this chapter early,i was felling a little desmotivated,that's all...c'ya✌