#once they've had six showers each

[seliasvault]

The Supermarket

supermarket!simon x reader cw: stalking, dark simon riley

Part two

1 │2 │3

Simon Riley hasn't experienced kindness, so when you show him some, he goes a little crazy.

Simon Riley's had an unarguably difficult life, from his childhood to his current occupation, he hasn't experienced much kindness.

He's been in his line of work for a vast amount of time, been through countless missions, seen all kinds of things, and his views of the world have consequentially been tainted.

But it isn't just the missions that severed his perception of the world, he's been let down time and time again by several individuals, relatives, teammates, strangers. He doesn't believe anyone could truly be good.

With his life experiences, he'd be a fool to believe any act of kindness or show of good would not be followed by an ulterior motive.

Which is why when he encounters you, he's perplexed.

- He's on leave, once again, returning to a so-called "home", barely furnished, with equally less in the fridge.

The smell of smoke and debris following him, he decidedly heads straight for a shower. Rinsing his body of any reminders of his most recent assignment, he gets out clean, in a literal sense. He doesn't think could ever be clean.

He makes his way out, deciding to head to the local supermarket down the street from his flat. Not being in the mood to drive, he thinks the walk might help him unwind. It doesn't.

The fluorescent lights illuminate the space, uncomfortably bright, he goes around with a shopping basket, filling it up with the essentials, some organic shit that Johnny recommended to him, and a six-pack.

He heads toward the lines, numbers of people at each register, some even lined up inside the aisles themselves. He chooses the cashier that looks the fastest, based on the speed of her scanning and bagging.

The line continues to slowly progress and he's lightly tapped by the cart behind him. Turning around to look, he sees the person behind him's been shoved into by the cart behind her. And from the look on her face, it wasn't as light as the slight tap he got.

He's almost sure she's getting ready to blow up at him, the little fuckers got the most shit-eating grin, with no ounce of a sorry, done almost deliberately.

He awaits the forms of screaming, lecturing, anger, but she simply turns around with a hand soothing her back. Almost unphased. Being somewhat surprised he turns back.

But he can't mind his business for too long as an older man approaches you, probably his dickhead father. He once again expects you to tell him off, to control his son. You however are courteous, kind? Offering an understanding look and turning back.

Again unusual, statistically people tend to create a scene, especially when they've been hurt, it's human nature to get angry, and so once again he wonders why you would just take it?

Turning back around he sets that aside, not wanting to read into it, he continues waiting.

-

By the time his turn comes, he's over the noise and the fucking lights. Everything's been bagged and the last step to freedom is to pay the overpriced store. He reaches a hand into his pocket, searching for his wallet, empty. He shoves his hand into the other one, again empty. He searches his sweatshirt pocket to be met with the same fate.

Empty.

Just as he's deciding to forget the entire thing and leave, he's interrupted by a soft voice.

"Hey, y'know what it's okay I got it." a smile followed, one that twists something in his heart. He looks at you, the same unusually calm stranger behind him. He searches your face, eyes for an explanation, did you want something from him?

After a beat he replies, he doesn't need your help, isn't some man to feel bad for. And so he turns going to leave, to escape you. Before he can get anywhere at all you quip back a reply and pay. Claiming it was "No problem.", so fast he hasn't had time to process what the hell this all means.

He's confused, conflicted, turning around to face you, studying you once again.

Searches for something, a hint of an ulterior motive, of frustration at his lack of words, a sign that you'll do something, anything to finally prove him right.

All he sees are innocent eyes, not even a twitch of a brow as you look at him and avert your eyes back to your cart. Acting as if you hadn't just paid a hefty sum for a stranger you've only met. He tries to figure you out, the tired slump of your shoulder, the honey-like voice you use to talk to others, the way you stand with a certain uncertainty.

He doesn't come to any conclusions, snapping back to realize he's been staring too long. He gives you a grumbled thank you, grabs his bags, and leaves.

Walking out the door for the trek back to his flat, he can't stop thinking about you, you've confused him, ensnared him, people like you don't exist. Haven't existed in a while, at least not in his life.

Kind, gentle words, with a hint of something else.

Something inside hims snapped, and he'd be damned if he gave up trying to figure you out. Because you've already embedded yourself into his brain.

-

Simon Riley's never claimed to have a strong sense of morality, never claimed to have any at all.

The lines to cross are practically invisible, especially when it comes to you.

And so what he does next, is nothing short of justifiable for him. Because it’s for you.

had to write a dual pov just to show how different him and reader are, her reactions and behaviour aren’t a big deal to her but to simon, he’s just 🤯

this was a short chapter, but part three is coming! working on the mapping/where to go, if you have any suggestions, things you’d like to see, or anything to say, my asks are open

[stalkedbytrains]

We call with the seven for the magic circle to...

The autumn night was very cold and very blustery. It was a perfect autumn day if it wasn't so damn frigid.

June had been dreading the text that was coming all day. She knew it was. She knew what day it was. It seemed like everything in the world had gone out of it's way to remind her that today was October 6th.

Finally the dreaded text came.

"Olivia finally found a sitter. We're meeting at 8pm tonight."

The last text from Lauren was from exactly one year ago, it was almost the same thing. And again from the year before and the year before that.

June never replied.

Now well into her 30's June friends often sent texts that were less demanding or certain. More along the lines of 'hey we're thinking of maybe hitting up a happy hour sometime next week? when can you make it?!"

But this meeting. Tonight was mandatory. It was as required as any ritual.

Everyone must attend.

She wished they could let the dead ghosts rest and banish them to leave her in peace.

But she'd felt the creeping cold, the claws at her back all day. She knew what day it was before she even woke up in the morning after fitful sleep and terrible nightmares.

No matter how scalding the shower was, how busy and demanding the job was, she would not be warm until the 7th.

June couldn't forget.

It was October 6th.

That night, after the sun had set, June set out to meet with her five other friends.

Well, to be perfectly frank, to call them friends now was nothing short of a misnomer. They were acquaintances at best. They had been friends, once. But no longer.

Not for years.

But they still had to meet every year on the same day. Every year for the last seventeen years.

June walked into the darkness of the forest preserve.

The girls all used to wander deep into the woods, as far as they dared away from the civilization and the safety of the parking lot.

Not anymore.

They were all older and more careful and lazier.

It was barely thirty feet into the woods, the lights of the parking lot could still be easily seen.

Hell, this year they had it set up on a picnic bench.

June was thankful, she didn't want to sit on the ground, her knees were already sore from this long, cold day.

This year was colder than all the others. It seemed that every year for the last seventeen years October 6th was setting records for the coldest day on record.

June, as always, was the last of the girls to arrive.

She took the open seat.

There were a smatterings of quiet greetings.

No one wanted to be here. They wanted this over and done with so they could leave and be on their way to somewhere else, back to their lives.

Lauren pulled out the chalk from her large purse.

"Everyone ready?" she asked as a courtesy. She didn't wait for a response and was already drawing the magic circle.

No one answered. It was the sixteenth time they've gathered to do this, they knew the ritual very well.

As Lauren sketched the circle and the patterns and the runes, each woman took out their candles. Each had prepared their candles according to the old rules and placed them at the indicated portion of the circle, with one space absent at the head of the table.

Three women on each side of the table. Six candles.

One empty space.

"Alright, done," Lauren said without need.

There was a collective intake of breath as the women prepared themselves.

Lauren as always started the ritual. She let her candle with the tiny extension of what small reservoir of magic she had left.

"With this magic and this meeting there is one for the light."

June instantly felt the temperature drop. She felt the shadows grow.

Olivia went next and let her candle with a snap of magic, causing the light to flare and burn brilliant for just a split moment before settling into a soft, cold, light. "With this candle and these gathered there are two for the sight."

The darkness grew by another large measure. Another snap of cold and wind rustled the dying leaves on the trees.

June's heart was in her throat. Something felt different this time.

But she couldn't stop the ritual. Better to get it over and done with as fast as possible.

She snapped her finger and lit her candle. Her candle didn't burn nearly as bright, nor flare as big.

"With this circle and this pattern there are three for the Night."

She had to choke out the last word. It felt like she was trying to push out a word as a physical object from where it lodged inside her throat. It hurt to physically say.

Sweat beaded her forehead as the ritual continued despite the fact that she could no longer see the lights from the parking lot. They should have been so close, but they were miles away now, distant pinpricks in the dark forest.

Her breath misted in front of her as the temperature dropped again.

She was shaking, both from the cold and because of the other thing.

Jessica was next. She lit her candle, but she grimaced as she did so, almost like the act physically hurt her.

"We call with four for the silver," she said as she dropped a small silver coin into the middle of the magic pattern Lauren had drawn.

The coin smashed into the table with a loud thud. It didn't bounce or move. It was like it was magnetically pulled right to the center.

The area was totally dark now. The only light came from the four lit candles. June could see the breath of the other women. All coming out in shallow clouds, all at the same time.

She swore she saw something moving in the pitch black forest behind the girls on the other side of the table.

She couldn't move. She couldn't say anything.

Too quickly, without stopping or realizing what was happening, Fiona went next. She lit her candle and it barely burned.

Her hands were shaking with the cold.

She dropped a gold coin that slammed into the table, denting it as she said, "And five for the gold."

June swore she heard another voice speaking in tandem with Fiona. Somewhere at the head of the table where... no...

She tried to move, to do something, to call out, to stop Rachel from saying the next part.

But the candle was already lit. This time blazing high and bright like a railroad flare.

June swore she saw a dark figure standing behind Rachel.

Her mouth was frozen shut, from fear, from the cold, from the other thing in the back staring at her over Rachel's shoulder.

Two voices this time. "We call with the six for the secrets, never to be told."

For the last sixteen rituals, this is where it would have ended. This is where it should have ended. But this wasn't like the last sixteen. This was like the first one.

This one was the real magic. The Deep Magic. The Old things that they never should have meddled with.

The darkness should have snapped away. The candles should have gone out. The parking lot should have beckoned sweetly. Home and safety.

When the ritual was not completed because their seventh had been missing these last seventeen years, it should have ended.

Then the voice spoke from the entity that was hiding in the shadows.

"We call with the seven for this magic circle to," it said with a slow, deliberate tone. There was a harshness there, a rawness, like a voice after a concert of delightful yelling, but worse. "Hold," the voice finally finished.

The ritual was close to being completed. For the first time in years.

"NO!" June yelled, but she was too late. She couldn't move fast enough. She couldn't stop the last candle from being lit.

What looked like the edge of a knife reflected the soft candle light as the seventh candle materialized and was lit with a cold blue flame.

The paralysis that took over all six women finally broke as the darkness retreated slightly.

Standing at the head of the table, dressed in something that June could only think of as a battle nun outfit (some kind of form fitting black habit, pieces of steel or iron armor clinging to arms and chest and head) was a worn, scarred, and tired looking, much older Natalie.

"Sisters," she said in her worn voice, with a smile that had no warmth, "so good to see you again. Thank you for joining me."

Olivia was the first to recover. "Natalie! You're alive!"

She moved to get up and presumably hug their long lost friend, but Natalie moved a single finger and Olivia was slammed back into her seat with an overwhelming force of Natalie's magic.

"This is not a happy reunion for you," Natalie said as she reached behind her to produce some object from the darkness.

She dropped a black mass of something on the table in the middle of the circle, on top of the silver and gold.

After a moment, the candle light illuminated a grotesque form, the severed head of some kind of horrible amalgamation of goat, man, lizard, and bird.

"One of you sold me to this demon, the Lord of the Frozen Wastes, Farimelligion. Unfortunately for you, I did not die. I fought off my captors for these long years. My powers grew and grew until I was able to slay him and free myself from your spell. I intend to find out, exactly, betrayed me. And I will collect my pound of flesh."

To illustrate her point, she dropped the sword she was carrying, a cracked and bitter looking silver blade covered in frost and radiating cold.

"I regret to tell you that forgiveness was something that was taken from me out there. There is no repenting. But I will spare anyone who turns on their sister like they turned on me."

i have a kofi

[jaminjims]

「TO MAKE YOU PROUD」

anon request: Hi can you do one but it's not in any of your prompts, but its an eight female member ot7 of course it better if its an ot7 , so can you do where the female reader decided to take online classes but the guys dont know and when its time for her to graduate she tells the boys that theyre going somewhere but doesn't tell them where but when they get there it turns out its her graduation day. Thank you, i just found your account and i love the way you write 💜💜💜💜💜💜💜

pairing: bts x f!reader (platonic)

genre: crack!!!, fluff, a tiny bit of angst

warnings: university LOL

words: 2.8k

never let it be said that you didn't like being an idol.

you love how you bring smiles to fans and how your parents talk about you with pride, you especially love the second family you found within your members

you love bts, perhaps more than anything else

although you receive a great amount of love from those around you, the anxiety to live up to those standards accompanies you like a shadow

that brings you to here: your computer light illuminating your face and graham cracker crust on your lips at an hour you should definitely not be up at, staring at one tiny little button that could change your life (you like being dramatic)

now, you have performed on more stages than you can count; given plenty of interviews and have embarrassed yourself a multitude of times in front of millions of people

nothing compares to the nerves you feel as your cursor hovers over the tiny blue button that glares back at you mockingly

'ENROLL'

who knew that one word could be so scary?

never let it be said that you didn't like making people proud, either.

you hit the button and slam your laptop closed, trying not to wake up your groupmates as you muffle a scream into your pillow

you really should've slept like namjoon told you to hours ago

~*~

you were being weird, and the maknaes could practically smell it

on one occasion they actually did. you smelled like you hadn't taken a shower in four days and you definitely looked like it too. was the extended break the company had given bts getting to you?

on your side, you were determined to keep the college classes you signed up for in the degen hours a secret, but damn. your professors made it really hard when they all decided to collectively assign three papers and a test at once

it had been roughly a month since they've started, and you wanted to die

idol training? a piece of cake compared to whatever fresh hell your professors conjured up. did they like torturing you?

what they said in their comments on your past assignments pointed to a boldly printed, neon colored: 'YES'

as you started to drink your fourth coffee of the day, trying to stay coherent enough even though it was only one pm in the afternoon, the maknaes decided to confront you about... whatever has happening to you

jungkook slid inconspicuously into the seat next to you at the dining table and blinked at you with those damn doe eyes

"so... whatcha up too?"

you almost snort your coffee in his face.

jimin, taehyung, and jungkook all look at each other worriedly

"do you need to see a therapist y/n? we know being on break for the first time in a while can be hard, but you really don't look too good." jimin says like the sweetheart he is

before you can reply, a ding from your phone grabs your attention and you look at it only to see the new gut-wrenching comment your writing teacher made on your 'side-effects of the fame of idol life' paper

'i like the enthusiasm, but you almost seem to be invested to the point of being pushy. stop that.'

you whine and slowly lower your head to the table in a dull 'thump'

teahyung sends a text to the group therapist

~*~

it has been about six months since you have started to take online classes, and you like to think that you have gotten marginally better at covering up the lack of sleep and the effect the comments your professors (which honestly, they must be out to get you personally) have on you

your schedule had been resuming as normal starting a few weeks ago and you already missed the blessed days of nothing to worry about except the brutality of college

as you go to put on concealer, you find the bottle suspiciously empty. have the maknaes used your makeup again? (you refuse to believe that you had used the whole bottle that you had only bought two weeks ago)

as you slink into yoongi's room, looking just as tired as you feel, to steal some of his makeup (which will eventually send him into stealing jin's and then from jin to jimin and so on until namjoon has enough and forces you all to get your shit together), he is typing something on his phone with his back to you

"yoongi-ah, i need to makeup"

then he turns around and startles because why do you look like that

yes, why indeed

"you look terrible"

you stare blankly at him and then turn on your heels, "ok, thank you. bye."

he sighs at the ever-persistent pain-in-his-ass that is you and turns you around, genuine worry in his eyes; asking silent questions and giving soft reassurances in case there was anything you needed to get off your chest

you almost tear up because how did you become so lucky

you haven't had your first coffee yet and you get sensitive and squishy when you're tired

once again, you question why you decided to put yourself through this

why do people pay to go through a personalized hell of their own making?

anyways

apparently, you get all broody without sleep as well

you realize you have been staring at yoongi for a few minutes without saying anything, looking like you have no thoughts, head empty

hoseok bursts into the room with all the decorum of a cracked-up butterfly and announces that breakfast is ready

he looks at you and does a double take

"woah."

your forehead meets your palm

yoongi sighs and drags hobi out of the room, "two shots of expresso?"

"add three" you say miserably

another therapist visit you have earned, you realize, as you get the notification that yoongi added it to your calendar

~*~

you skip into dance practice with a beaming smile on your face and practically throw yourself onto hoseok, and because he's hoseok he catches you and twirls you around

for the first time since starting your courses, your excited demeanor isn't caused by enough expresso to kill a small hippo

it's your one-year anniversary! you are halfway there to your degree!

you thank the god that is your mother for forcing you to take all those fancy advanced classes when you were in high school

the urge to actually scream "yippee!" like a cartoon character is surprisingly overwhelming and who are you to deny yourself?

"yippee!"

and because the guys are endlessly supportive, they chime into whatever you're celebrating without even knowing what the hell they are congratulating you for

they have long since gotten used to your strange habits and have learned to play along

i mean, what the hell, right? supporting you in whatever crazed manic episode that has been ongoing for the past 12 months is the least they can do for you

(your therapist said to be supportive)

god decided to give you a call and you answer it without hesitation while still being awkwardly held up by hobi. "hi, mom"

you pat his back to let you down, give him a fist bump, and then leave the room exactly like you came in it

"did she have her mom's contact as god?"

~*~

you, like the past year and half, feel like crying.

it's about that time when you have to start your senior project as an 'accelerated student'

whatever that means

you basically have to come up with a thesis and write a paper on it pertaining to your major, in which usually you would get two years to do

like an idiot, you have six months because you didn't start it when you first started classes

(you would like to see someone else try to balance college and being a world-wide famous idol, okay?)

so, here you are at one am, holding a bottle of apple juice to sooth your inner child, and some flavor blasted goldfish, trying not to cry your eyes out over the blank document that you have been staring at for over ten minutes

you take a deep breath, put your apple juice down, rub you hands together, smack your face, and then force yourself to write down something, anything

'music'

that's how far you get before your phone rings, and because luck is never on your side, you see namjoon's contact who is probably going to tell you to go to bed for the third time

you answer and before he even says anything, your eye's tear up

"joonie..." you whisper, sounding all too much like the sleep deprived child you are

because he is essentially your father, he picks up on it immediately

"y/n-ah," he sighs, because this has become a common occurrence, "what do you need help with?"

"everything," you blubber miserably

so, namjoon stays on the phone with you until four am (even though he is literally down the hall, but he is 'too cozy to move'), helping you come up with a draft thesis statement and introduction you were supposed to turn into your teacher a year ago, and because he is the best person ever! (you change that to his contact) he doesn't ask why you need help writing a thesis, as they know you won't tell them what you've been doing

you both walk into the kitchen the next morning looking, and feeling, like sacks of shit

"uhm." is the eloquent response jimin gives to the look the both of you have on your faces

jin wordlessly hands you both coffee with too much expresso and kisses your foreheads because he is amazing and he hopes it will hold you two together until at least the meeting with the staff is over

you and namjoon's phones go off with a ding! at the same time, and you both have matching therapy appointments

yay! the lunacy is spreading!

~*~

you are in the home stretch

you can smell it, feel it, even fucking taste it

and as you hover over the finally for-the-love-of-god-get-this-paper-out-of-my-fucking-face-thesis submit button, you countdown to yourself like an astronaut about to take off

"three, two, one..." you take a deep breathe, "lift off!" you hit the button

as soon as it says upload complete, you cry tears of joy

victory has never tasted so fucking sweet in your life (although maybe that was the cosmic brownie you had a few minutes ago)

~*~

within the next week, you talk to management about letting the boys attend your graduation ceremony and of course management says yes (they knew you were taking classes, even though you didn't tell them. talk about scary corporate companies knowing your every move)

and when the day arrives when you finally get your diploma, you are more nervous than you've been since your debut

the boys are a big reason why you've decided to pursue your education, and even if they didn't know it, you wouldn't have been able to make it without them

you aren't one to be sentimental, but you kinda want to cry at just how much you feel

you made it. achieved one of your dreams, not only for you, but for them.

you take a deep breath and you let the sense of fulfillment take over your heart and you let it sit there

your phone goes off, and it's the management telling you that the graduation event is ready, and that in kahoots with the online school you attended, they are ready to have the ceremony

"ok boys! time to roll out!" you scream, even though they have all sitting in the living room ready for thirty minutes because you made sure they would be ready by the time you had to go

"y/n, can you please tell us where we are going?" teahyung asks as he links arms with you

"nope!" you chirp, and because you are mean you add, "it's a surprise!"

jungkook comes up to link his other arm in yours, "does this have anything to with how you've been acting for a while?"

damn, he really is the golden maknae

you are suspiciously silent and everyone is suddenly weary of where you are taking them

you weren't going to murder them in a fit of hysteria, right?

but looking at your smiling and blushing face, they all can't help but smile with you and trust

the ride to the venue is only about fifteen minutes and you can't help but be excited and talk animatedly with your members

you almost spill the beans about where you're going but manage to not give too much away (barely, you kind of think the franticness is due to caffeine withdrawal)

before you know it, the eight of you are pulling up into the parking lot and the others look out with perplexed frowns on their faces

you look at them with a smile, "you trust me, yeah?"

they look to you and grin, "always."

you all walk in and when you get inside the venue hallways, you split from the group and manager sejin (just barely) corrals the boys forward without you

you run to get ready and put on your cap and gown, and you have to take another deep breath when you look at yourself in the mirror, because wow. if you knew a graduation gown would look this good you would have graduated college a long time ago

(you only just manage to keep the tears from ruining your makeup)

when the boys enter into a private room and see all of the other people sitting down in the stadium seats, their first thought is that you are holding some sort of surprise concert or something. they honestly don't have any idea what you are going to do, and they joke about how you are going to perform a magic show or some other equally ludicrous event

the lights dim and all of their attention is on the empty chairs sitting in the middle of the auditorium, and then all of a sudden a spotlight shines onto the graduates who walk in from the side entrance

speakers start to blast the school anthem (not that they know that) as the graduates make their way to their seats and boys gasp when they see you on the big screen

"is that-?"

"no fucking way."

"what is she doing?"

because there you are, flashing a peace sign and sticking your tongue out to the camera man who's broadcasting it to the big screen, walking to your designated chair

you will always and forever be a dork

they all laugh incredulously and can't help but have to sit down in shock

none of them can speak as the principal of the school introduces the class of 2023 graduates. he goes through what the school stands for and blah blah blah

when the time finally comes where you have to line up and get your diploma's, namjoon, hoseok, seokjin, and jungkook are crying, yoongi hides his smile behind his hands, and teahyung and jimin has ceased to function as they watch on, barely able to breathe

they all hold their breath as you finally walk up on to the stage and shake the principals hand

"y/n l/n, 2023 graduate with a degree in the arts of music writing and production"

the boys have never cheered so loudly in their life, and you swore you could hear them from your spot up on stage

you smile so big and wide and take a second to stand on the stage and bow, and the boys who weren't crying before definitely are now

its all a blur as you make it off of the stage and ushered into the private room the boys are in. you don't even make it three steps in before you are surrounded on all sides

"i can't believe you did this."

"y/n, you're amazing."

"i knew you weren't just going crazy."

there are voices all around you. some are laughing, some are praising you, all are crying

jin pulls you from the group in a hug that lifts your feet off the floor, "is this why you manhandled me into making you so much food the last few days?"

you laugh and whip at your eyes, "yeah, i wanted to have a good dinner when we got home" he sets you down and pulls you into his side with an arm around your shoulder

"i am so, so proud of you." he whispers into your hair

taehyung comes up on your other side and hugs you around the waist, "we all are"

your eyes tear up and before you know it you are wailing like a baby again

"i love you guys more than anything in the world," you whine out, a blubbering mess

they all smile and make fun of you, and there is nothing that can beat the feeling that wells up in your chest

never let it be said you don't like making people proud

later, a horrendously ugly photo of you crying with the guys all around you is uploaded to all of your social medias and your face is made into a meme, but, hey, you made it out alive, and that's all that mattered

(even if you did have to see a therapist)

[end]

a/n: what better way to jumpscare ya'll with an update other than with crack? but in all seriousness, i am so so so sorry this was so late anon! you've waited literal years, and i would write an ao3-usque excuse but i don't even deserve it ;( as always, i hope you guys have an amazing week, and i love you bunches (please imagine that in a skrunkly old grandma voice) ♡♡♡

masterlist!

request something! (pls, for the love of everything holy, check the request status first!)

[cursedonyx]

Spicy Prewsley Headcanons 💕

Warnings – NSFW, 🔞MDNI🔞, mentions of sex and stuff like that. Fuck off children.

While Garreth is quite versatile, Leander is a bottom through and through. Whether this is down to his natural shyness and insecurities, he’s happiest when he’s taken, as opposed to doing the taking himself.

I HC Garreth as being happily bi and very comfortable with his sexuality, but Leander is 100% into men, and still very conflicted about it due to the 1800’s stance on homosexuality, despite the wizarding world being much more accepting. It took a long time for him to come to terms with his feelings for Garreth, and even longer to be comfortable doing anything other than sharing a kiss, even when they were as secretive as possible.

Despite (or perhaps due to) Leander’s repression when it comes to sex, when he finally gets comfortable with the idea and confident that he’s not going to be found out, he becomes a bit of a sex-crazed maniac. He wants it all the time, and Garreth, despite his stamina and willingness to indulge his slutty bf, can’t always keep up.

Both of them love to kiss the other constantly during the act, meaning that they've both got bruised and sore lips for a little while afterwards, but both consider it a small price to pay for the enjoyment they get from each other.

Leander is wildly insecure about the way he looks, believing himself to be too lanky and pale. Garreth goes above and beyond to try and reassure him, praising him near constantly when they’re intimate, leading to Leander developing a bit of a praise kink.

Garreth is very much open to anything in the bedroom – he’ll try anything once and with a lot of enthusiasm. If he wants to try something that’s beyond vanilla, he’ll do his best to learn about it beforehand so he knows what he’s doing. He does have a habit of losing himself in the moment, though.

When the pair become a bit more comfortable with their relationship, Garreth takes to brewing experimental potions to enhance his performance. This led to a rather amusing escapade in which he overbrewed his own version of ‘the little blue potion’ leading to a six-hour long session that left Leander walking with a limp for a couple of days. He didn’t mind.

Leander has a rare condition known as ‘hyperspermia’ which basically means he produces a LOT more cum than the average guy. Bit of a shock for Garreth the first time they were intimate, and he was strutting around like a peacock for days afterwards because he was so proud of himself. When he realised it was going to be buckets every time, he got even more invested.

(Also side note I HC our darling Omi has the same condition but that’s just bc I think it’s sexy as fuck)

By the time our favourite HL MLM couple reached their seventh year, Leander had come out of his shell enough to become more adventurous with their intimacy. This led to an incident in the showers after a Gryffindor victory on the quidditch pitch, when a couple of team members came back unexpectedly to pick up their brooms, and the pair were forced to disillusion themselves in the hope that Garreth wouldn’t be found balls deep in Leander. No one mentioned anything about it, but to this day, students still whisper that the Gryffindor quidditch team’s showers are haunted.

[twoidiotwriters1]

The Curse of Oenone (Leo Valdez xFem!Oc)

A/N: Love is real I invented it -Danny Words: 2,241 Series' Masterlist Previous Chapter // Next Chapter Listen to: 'Crumbs' -by Belaganas

VIII: Somebody Sedate Me!

Ara is looking at her reflection in the mirror with tension. What was that outburst she had with Percy? It's like he and Lily pull a trigger in her that she's yet to find.

She wants them to be proud of what she's accomplished, so why can't they be glad for once? Having a child of Olympus on their side during the war with Kronos would've made all the difference, why are they so pressed about it now?

Learn the difference between concern and distrust, says Lily's voice in her head. 

Though they're not that different from each other. Both come from the same thought: This prophecy is beyond Ara's skills.

She brushes her damp hair (she took a shower to cool off), and puts on a camp half-blood shirt, then she grabs her cosmetic set and stares at it, she wears makeup when she needs to feel better. Now is one of those days.

When she arrives at the meeting, she's the only one who made an effort to look more than just well-rested and that cheers her up, Generals should look neater than their army.

It's the first time the seven gather with no one else around, except Ara and Coach Hedge. She makes her way to the head of the table and pulls back a chair at the same time Percy reaches for it. She looks at him thinking Are you kidding me?, but a second later her brother mumbles an apology and sits next to Annabeth.

Ara looks at the group trying to gather her thoughts. They do seem intimidating, but Ara's interacted with them in such domestic settings that to her they just look like kids. "Anything we should know about the expeditions?"

"Well, maybe the part where we ran into Nemesis," Hazel suggests.

Ara's got so many things in her mind she'd forgotten about Nemesis, but now that Hazel brought it up, she can feel the piece of paper the goddess handed to her burning through her pocket.

Leo and Hazel share their adventure, and Ara uttered no word. What she got out of that encounter is of no use to the others—and then Annabeth, Frank, and Percy talk about their quest, but nothing worth remembering comes out of it.

"So where to now?" Leo takes a bite of his pizza. "Ara and I did a quick repair job to get us out of the lake, but there's still a lot of damage. We should really put down again and fix things right before we head across the Atlantic."

"We need to put some distance between us and Camp Jupiter," Percy replies. "Frank spotted some eagles over Salt Lake City. We figure the Romans aren't far behind us."

"I don't suppose we should go back and try to reason with the Romans?" Piper offers. "Maybe—maybe I didn't try hard enough with the charmspeak."

"That won't cut it," Ara replies, perhaps too harshly. "For charmspeak to work, they have to find you appealing. I don't think they feel like cuddling us at the moment."

Jason tries to lift his girlfriend's spirits. "It wasn't your fault, Pipes. Or Leo's. Whatever happened, it was Gaea's doing, to drive the two camps apart."

"Maybe if we could explain that, though—"

"With no proof?" Annabeth raises a brow. "And no idea what really happened? I appreciate what you're saying, Piper. I don't want the Romans on our bad side, but until we understand what Gaea's up to, going back is suicide."

"She's right," Hazel speaks hoarsely. She's having the worst seasick case ever but tries hard to keep it together. "Reyna might listen, but Octavian won't. The Romans have honor to think about. They've been attacked. They'll shoot first and ask questions post-hac."

Ara plays with the last pieces of veggies on her plate. "Then we stick to our original plan, and we look for Nico."

Hazel's anxiety causes precious stones to gather around her plate. "Nemesis said we have only six days until Nico dies and Rome is destroyed."

"You mean Rome Rome, not New Rome?" Jason asks.

"I think, but if so, that's not much time."

"Why six days?" Percy questions. "And how are they going to destroy Rome?"

"July first," Ara comments like it's obvious.

"What?" Her brother stares at her blankly.

Ara rolls her eyes. "All the stuff that's happened, Gaea's done them on important dates of our calendars. The winter solstice, the feast of fortune... the Kalends of July is a special occasion because," she pushes a piece of broccoli forward. "In Rome, that day's dedicated to Juno. Which is weird, 'cause I feel like that should be during the Kalends of June, but whatever—"

"How do you know all this?" Percy frowns.

Ara eats the piece of broccoli and points at Jason with her fork. "He's been teaching me Roman history for the past six months."

"Okay... so that connects to Nico... in what way?" 

"We are six days away from July first," she frowns. "Nico's literal deadline lands on a big day for annoying people—the Romans—and Gaea likes to taint our big celebrations, so maybe she's using him as bait."

"I've been seeing some things in my knife," Piper blurts out of nowhere.

Frank gulps down his food with difficulty. "Things such as..?"

"They don't really make sense, just garbled images, but I saw two giants, dressed alike. Maybe twins."

"Twins, like in Ella's prophecy," Annabeth points out. "If we could figure out those lines, it might help."

"Wisdom's daughter walks alone," Percy recites. "The Mark of Athena burns through Rome. Annabeth, that's got to mean you. Juno told me... well, she said you had a hard task ahead of you in Rome. She said she doubted you could do it. But I know she's wrong."

"Reyna was about to tell me something right before the ship fired on us. She said there was an old legend among the Roman praetors—something that had to do with Athena. She said it might be the reason Greeks and Romans could never get along."

"Nemesis mentioned something similar," Leo says. "She talked about an old score that had to be settled—"

"The one thing that might bring the gods' two natures into harmony," Hazel quotes. "'An old wrong finally avenged.'"

"I was only a praetor for about two hours," Percy sighs, playing with his food like Ara does. "Jason, you ever heard a legend like that?"

"I... uh, I'm not sure," he says. "I'll give it some thought."

Percy and Ara both look at him with the same scowl. "You're not sure?" Percy repeats.

Ara could've pressured Jason into talking, but before she can, Hazel intervenes. "What about the other lines? Twins snuff out the angel's breath, Who holds the key to endless death."

"Giants' bane stands gold and pale," Frank continues, "Won through pain from a woven jail."

"Giants' bane," Leo hums. "Anything that's a giants' bane is good for us, right? That's probably what we need to find. If it can help the gods get their schizophrenic act together, that's good."

"We can't kill the giants without the help of the gods," Percy muses.

"I thought you guys killed that one giant in Alaska without a god's help, just the two of you," Jason points to Frank and Hazel.

"Alcyoneus was a special case. He was only immortal in the territory where he was reborn—Alaska. But not in Canada. I wish I could kill all the giants by dragging them across the border from Alaska into Canada, but..." Frank sighs. "Percy's right, we'll need the gods."

"Oh!" Ara snaps her fingers, putting two and two together. "They took him!"

Frank frowns. "Come again?"

"Twins snuff out the angel's breath, Who holds the key to endless death," Ara recites again, looking at her sister. "In your vision, were the twins guarding something?"

Piper tries to remember. "I think they were... pulling up a large vase from a pit?"

"Was it large enough to fit a thin person in it?"

"You're not saying..." Hazel starts fearfully.

Ara's gaze darkens. "Your brother was looking for the doors of death, maybe he found them and knows how to close them, but they caught him before he could tell us."

"Di Angelo," Percy groans in realization, running a hand over his face. "Twins snuff out the angel's breath..."

Ara nods. "If Nico's been captured because he found the doors, rescuing him has to be our priority."

"Which is going to take us straight to those twins," Annabeth points out.

"Whom we can't defeat unless we get the giant's bane beforehand," Percy adds. "Whatever that is."

"And we must get all that before the Kalends of July, or everything will go wrong," Ara concludes with a sigh. "I'm not loving the tight scheduling..."

They stay quiet for a moment, trying to think of a different meaning to those lines, but nothing comes to them. In any case, going to Rome is what they were supposed to do since the start.

"So..." Leo drags his chair back once he finishes his food. "First things first, I guess. We'll have to put down in the morning to finish repairs."

"Someplace close to a city," Annabeth says, "in case we need supplies. But somewhere out of the way, so the Romans will have trouble finding us. Any ideas?"

"Well," Piper leans on the table. "How do you guys feel about Kansas?" 

"Lights out! Settle down! Try to sneak out, and I'll smack you back to Long Island!" 

Ara opens her cabin door angrily. "Coach! If you don't stop yelling you'll finish the quest as a potted plant!"

"Who're you calling a potted plant, Jackson? I'm a carnivorous one!"

"Those can be potted too, you jacka—"

"Someone needs a nap!" Leo comes out of his room, which is right in front of Ara's—definitely on purpose—and stops her before she kills the satyr. "It's alright, Coach, we're all tucked in, stop yelling."

"I don't see you tucked in, Valdez."

"Hedge, I swear," Ara says through gritted teeth, but Leo stands between them.

"I'm wearing my finest PJs, man, c'mon, knock it out," he guides the satyr towards his cabin.

Hedge gives in, though he gives out warnings as he goes. He stops before entering his room and points at them squinting. "You two—straight to bed."

"Unbelievable," Ara mutters, re-entering her room and leaving her door open.

As expected, when Coach Hedge leaves, Leo goes to his door and closes it loudly from the outside, then slips into Ara's room as quietly as possible. Ara crawls under the covers of her bed and Leo sits at the foot of it, his right leg hanging from the side.

He's got his crooked smirk that unsettles adults on his face, but he won't do anything unless Ara lets him, and right now all she wants is sleep. She curls up and buries one hand under her pillow.

"Not bad for our first day, huh?" He says.

Ara chuckles. "Not what I had in mind, to be honest."

Leo squeezes her calf over the covers. "You handled it well. I'm proud of you."

"Thank you," she yawns. "You were great too."

"If those lines in Annabeth's prophecy are about Di Angelo..." he starts carefully. "Isn't it a bad idea to play along?"

Ara frowns. "You think we shouldn't save Nico?"

"We don't know for sure he's been taken—"

"Exactly," she interrupts him. "We're going to Kansas first, we could find something there that proves my theory wrong."

Leo nods, he doesn't want to upset her, so he changes the subject. "Well... I don't know about you, but I'm not sleepy yet."

Ara laughs and quickly tries to cover the noise even though it isn't loud. She sits up to face him properly. "Just ask, Leo."

"Can I stay?" He scoots closer. "I'll behave, obviously, I don't want your brother to gut me..."

Ara presses a palm against his chest, and his heart races at her touch. She should tell him about the curse since it concerns him too, but his heartbeat is so fast and he glows golden so brightly... she doesn't want to ruin his happiness, at least not tonight.

"You know, I think I understand Echo," she whispers.

"Hm?" Leo struggles to focus on her words, even though his eyes are on her lips.

"You can love yourself a lot," Ara explains, "but if you're genuinely in love with someone, you'll stay beside them, even if they give you sorrows. Echo sees something worth saving in Narcissus because she loves him, and you can't listen to reason when that happens."

Leo leans his forehead on hers. "But he already died once and it did nothing to make him reconsider."

"He's been cursed," Ara's voice quivers. "He can't change his fate alone. You're right, Echo's very strong and brave for staying by his side, considering she has no powers, no..." she chokes a little. "No answers."

Leo moves to look at her. "You okay?"

Ara wraps her arms around Leo and buries her face on his neck. "I lied. I got scared when you attacked me—and my ribs still hurt, and I don't like Hazel, and Percy's mad at me..."

Leo's guts twist with guilt, and Ara feels it right away. "Crap, I'm so sorry—I should've—"

She pulls the emotion out of him with her empath touch. "I was scared for you, Leo, not me," the girl assures him. "I'm telling you this... because you said we could lean on each other. Please, don't forget it."

"I won't," Leo tilts his head, staring at her with soft, loving eyes. "Wanna lean on me first?"

Her soul-light brightens and she buries her face in his neck again. "Yes."

"Alright," Leo grins and kisses the top of her head. "You know... I wouldn't mind living through a thousand shitty days like this one if it meant I'd hold you like this every night."

Her heart squeezes with unease. "I know."

Next Chapter –>

Taglist.

@siriuslysirius1107 @ask-giggles1303 @asnyox-the-hoarder @im-planning-something-look @bandshirts-andbooks @coolninjapaper @thewaterlily @whenisthefall @1randomcomic @you-bloody-shank @sunflowergraves @owlalex44 @taylordaughter @typicalsolangelolover @writingmia @espressopatronum454 @slytherinnqueen @orbitingpolaris @obxstiles @ellipsisspelled

[ryanthedemiboy]

PSA for heatwaves

Your cold water may no longer be cold. If you want a cool shower, you may have to get up early to do that (the pipes may remain warm for longer than you think)If you want or need cool water, you'll need to think ahead and either put water in the fridge or make ice.

If you put water in the freezer, leave the container open or else it will burst the container (this includes bottles!)

Spherical ice lasts longest, by the way. (I have Tovolo sphere ice molds and they're fabulous -- I've had the moulds for six years and they've been used once a week, each, for five of those six years)

If you do have cold water and want to take a cold shower, turn the water hot for the last few minutes, or else you'll start overheating and sweating as soon as you step out.

If you're overheated from the hot water, and step out of the bathroom, the air will feel cooler.

If it's humid, things like cooling towels will not work because it relies on evaporative cooling, which does not exist in high humidity (which is the same reason going into the shade doesn't help)

Source: I live in a hot desert

[badacts]

waterlogged

There’s nothing more unpleasant than patrol in the rain. 

It’s dangerous - everything is slippery, from their gloves to the concrete and tile rooflines that serve as their highway. Visibility is terrible. No matter how waterproof their costumes are, everything leaks at least a little bit with enough rain. And cold bodies and cold brains are twice as likely to make a mistake in a fight.

Tim, perched in the lee of probably the ugliest concrete window surround in Gotham, curls his cape around him and sniffs sullenly. He’s overlooking the pitch-dark waters of Gotham harbour and the docks, and he’s miserable about it.

There’s nothing happening down on ground level. Even the people being paid to work are shuffling back and forth in wet-weather gear, hunched and well inside the spotlit areas. However, there were reports of a smuggling handover taking place here tonight, so here he is.

He’s not sure what. Best case scenario is drugs or stolen goods. Weapons aren’t too bad, except the people guarding them tend to be better armed than your average thug. The worst is always human trafficking: Tim has cracked open enough shipping containers full of dehydrated, hungry, frightened people without adding another tonight.

Of course, just as he’s debating that, there’s a small commotion in the shadows near one of the dark warehouses. Tim turns his attention to it, flicking over the array in his lenses to thermals as he does. It shows him three figures, the middle-most of which seems to be being frogmarched towards the water. They look unconscious, or at least restrained.

He’s already moving when light catches off the smooth dome of a familiar helmet.

Chances that the smuggling tonight involved human trafficking have gone up, if Red Hood is involved.

Tim swings across to the next roof, bolts over it, and then hurls himself down towards the water to land on one of the wharves. The two men have hauled their burden halfway along, and are debating in muttered voices with no idea that he’s coming up fast behind them.

“Here’s fine,” one of them hisses.

“’S not deep enough,” the other replies. “This is Red Hood. You wanna half-ass it?”

“Stop,” Tim says in his Red Robin voice, and they freeze. “Let him go.”

Unfortunately, at least one of them isn’t as stupid as they look, trying to get rid of a Gotham vigilante by tossing him in what can’t be more than twenty feet of water. He takes one look at Tim, and then, in one mighty heave, shoves Jason away from himself and into the water.

Then both of them turn on him, draw guns, and start firing.

Tim would like to hurl the both of them into the harbour after Jason, weapons and all. However, he has priorities, and the top of that list is not dealing with Bruce if he lets Jason drown. He leaps off of the wharf, puncturing the water in a smooth dive amidst a veritable hail of bullets.

Underneath, everything is muffled, even the gunshots. It’s dark and he’s loathe to give away his position by turning a light on, so he relies on feel rather than sight as he swims forwards. Jason is mostly muscle, so it’s not surprising Tim’s fingers hit leather closer to the harbour floor than to the surface.

Winding an arm around Jason’s chest, Tim pushes for the surface with his legs and remaining arm. For a moment, underwater, it feels easy - it’s only when he breaks the surface underneath the wharf that he realises that he’s possibly in trouble.

He’s a strong swimmer, of course. However, the water is choppy with the wind, and it’s hard to keep Jason’s head above the surface as well as his own. He curses until he realises it’s letting too much dank water into his mouth - oh god, he’s going to mutate into Killer Croc’s skinnier brother.

He has a rebreather in his belt, but if he grabs for it the choice is to let go of Jason or stop swimming, and neither of those is great options. Also, there’s still the odd bullet hitting the water, because apparently these idiots being terrible shots isn’t a good reason for their boss to not give them plenty of ammunition to not hit things with.

Just as Tim’s contemplating his poor life choices, Jason jerks in his very professional life-saving hold and regains consciousness fighting.

They both go under immediately. Tim pushes Jason away from him in the black murk, and barely catches sight of the silvery flash of a knife before it hits him. 

He surfaces, Jason doing the same just outside of arm’s reach. Tim sputters, “Fuck! It’s me!”

“Red?” Jason asks, shaking his still-masked head. The thing has got to be at least a quarter full of water, but he doesn’t seem bothered by it.

“Yeah. You know, your brother?” Tim says. Jason is swimming pretty well for someone who is either drugged or concussed, but Tim is keeping a close eye on him even so. If he has to go under for a third time tonight, he’s staying down there. By choice.

“I know who you are,” Jason mutters.

“Jason,” Tim says, “You stabbed me.”

“Fuck. Did I?” 

“You didn’t get through my armour,” Tim admits, “But still.”

“Thank god,” Jason says, with a degree of relief that doesn’t make sense until he continues, “Imagine what you’d turn into if you got this water in your bloodstream.”

“I hate you,” Tim mumbles. There’s yet another gunshot above them, this one fired through the wharf and into the water less than six feet from Tim. “Shit!”

“Fecking hell,” Jason says. “C’mon, baby bird. Start swimming. We’ve got a creepy human auction to stop.”

[dontlookatmytmntcollection]

Spring Fever

Raphael x Fem!Reader

I really REALLY don't like my writing but thanks to @turtleweens I have like six new 'Spring Fever' wips. So here is a gift! Go check out their blog 😭 it's one of my favorites

Warnings: 18+, angst and fluff

-----------

"I need to go-"

"No."

"And you need to go, too."

"No."

Her sigh was hardly heard over the rain against her windows. Struggling against the large turtle's grip to get out of the numerous pillows and blankets, it was to no avail.

"At least let me get ready, Raph."

"No." he buried his nose in her collar bone, pinning her to the sheets.

"Okay, this stopped being cute, like...five minutes ago."

His embrace loosened just enough to free her and she kicked away the covers, ignoring his hand slipping from her arm and stumbled to the bathroom. He didn't follow, his quiet growl swallowed up in a pillow, his giant frame hidden away in the box of shadow provided by the windows on either side of her bed.

As the minutes ticked away silently, she glanced more and more at his quiet figure as she pulled herself through morning routine.

He'd usually be on his feet, poking her side as she brushed her teeth, attempting to keep her cloths out of reach or kissing her neck, begging to join her in the shower.

Guilt pulled at her. But she heard Leo's voice clear as day. Lecturing them both for leaving the apartment too close to sunrise. For being reckless- for endangering each other for no reason- he'd ask for a stupid explanation they'd never give him. 

Raph needed to go home now if he was going to leave at all. She tried to relax, quenching the urge to snap at him.

Especially now. Because it was not the time to be short with him.

He was a big boy. It was an overcast day, and he wasn't exactly a stranger to daylight travel. So he wasn't incapable. But..."Be home by sunrise." They all said it. All the time. For good reasons. Fear for her boyfriend's safety was the only thing keeping her from marrying the doofus in Time Square, somedays. 

Raph wasn't moving. If she didn't know better she would think he'd fallen back asleep. 

This temptation to join him was...overwhelming. 

She felt nobody in her shoes would blame her. Sure, this dating a giant turtle thing wasn't new, anymore, but it was young. Their one year anniversary was coming up. It hasn't always been easy, like- sure, no duh. 

But it's been one hell of a ride this past week.

The term spring fever had been something tossed at her once. She had dismissed it; innocently imagining it was something to look forward to. A week of her boyfriends undivided, perhaps obsessively possessive attention. She cringed now.

She always knew Raphael had a heart bigger than his skin. Felt it about him immediately. But this week...man, this week was- crazy.

Sometimes it was like she held everything he was, is and ever will be like it was something she could break in half at any moment.

She first noticed how affectionate he's suddenly gotten. Well- openly affectionate. Thumbing her ear and kissing her cheek infront of his brothers, going up to hug her from behind in the kitchen as if he suddenly no longer cared who saw.

She's gotten him to smile the biggest she's ever seen. Got him to laugh hard enough that it got her laughing too.

Then their argument twenty four hours later was the worst they'd ever had. And it was over...her forgetting to check in? They had both been tired. Him especially. He'd been worried and scared and an absolute jerk to her.

His apology the next day was the very first time she had ever seen him cry- watching him struggle to communicate around his immense embarrassment and guilt and frustration that he just couldn't say any of this right- God, she'd never seen it like this and her heart broke.

Then she had laid awake in shock after the best night of sex they've had yet. Her boyfriend holding her tight amidst the pillows and blankets; breathing her in slow and quiet like she was life itself. 

Rollercoaster much?

She didn't want to leave his side today. At all.

The very thought she was about to walk out of this door to sit at a desk for hours without him... This rain storm and miles of distance between them- the loneliness stung even now.

She knew he'd probably rather die than admit it. And that it was completely untrue-

But she felt he needed her; and that she needed him.

She blinked, realizing she had stopped moving to stare. At the blue and grey shadows dancing on his battered shell, at the red mask in the far corner, at the mismatched, dirty armor all around the room, the stuff he would usually be scrambling to pick up right now.

This silence, man. It grew to be too much. 

"Hey," she whispered, resting a hand on his arm and sitting at his side. "We have to go."

"...yeah."

It was whispered back. Defeated. Sad but sad like he was hiding it. Voice low and gravelly. His hazels slowly blinked open, those third eyelids making a brief and rare appearance. His breathing was forcibly even, big arms wrapped around the pillow under his head. 

The memory of how he had looked at her with shame and distress as he got out that, "I'm sorry." as if she was gonna kill him for it- it burned.

She had rushed to his rescue at the first hint of glossy eyes- pulling off his stupid mask and holding his face as she gently forgave him for snapping at her, those tears only falling. Sure he had been an asshole. But with how he kept telling her she didn't deserve any of it...it as if he was now apologizing for so much more than a stupid petty argument- the build up of fear and hope he held for this relationship was hitting him so hard it hit them both.

It had hurt like a bitch.

Her fingers now brushed the old brand on his shoulder, the old scales catching her skin as she glanced outside, biting her lip. Debating.

"Sorry, babe." he reached up to rub his eyes.  "I'll get goin'-"

"No." She decided. "No. Wait here."

He watched her leave the room, his glowing eyes twinkling in the shadows of the headboard.

It was several minutes before she was back in the room, Raph's expression puzzled.

Afraid to break the rainy silence, she slowly took out her earings instead. 

His silver eyes narrowed, their connected gaze never wavering. But when she hunched to pull off her socks- man, watching his expression drop like, "No way, is she really-?" It was like watching sunlight break through clouds. 

She smiled, walking to his side of the bed as she began to unbutton her shirt. 

The bed creaked horribly under his weight as Raph pulled his legs under himself, reaching to help her. "Are you serious?"

Those eyes, like, c'mon- "Don't look at me like that," she whispered, his sweet smile too contagious. 

"Are ya gonna get in trouble cuz' of this?" 

"A little," she sighed. "Don't expect it every year, okay?"

"Okay."

"What are you going to tell your brothers?"

"To go fuck themsel-"

"Raph." She snapped. 

"I'll text them in a second." Raph tossed aside the bra, pulling her in bed to help with her dress pants. "I'm kinda busy."

"It needs to be soon," she glanced outside, struggling to help him. "They'll be worried-"

The kiss was as humble and thankful as much as it was insistent and hungry- but it isn't often she felt him smile into a kiss.

[writteninkat]

Greed | Ushijima x reader

summary: "I didn't like how my teammates watched you a while ago." He admits, his hands clenching on the counter.

"I don't think they understand how you're mine and only mine." He whispers against the shell of your ear, his hot breath tickling shivers down your spine.

f!reader

word count: 3.5k

warning: 18+, name calling if u squint (???)

a/n: this is a reminder that you are amazing, you are loved and you matter. | masterlist for 100 followers event

The boy's volleyball team never paid any attention to the girls as they were always busy with their own training and the two teams played and trained in their own separate indoor volleyball courts. But today is a little different. The floor of your team's court needs changing so the girls and boys have to train under the same roof for a week, and it'll be the first time seeing each other play.

Toshi knew you play volleyball, he knows you were the ace, as a matter of fact, his whole team knows as well. But they didn't know you were this good.

You throw the ball up high in the air, jumping as high as you can and throwing your hand forward, slamming it at the ball. The impact of your hand at the ball always felt so good, the heat and sting of it always gave you some kind of adrenaline and you loved the feeling.

The ball is hit so hard your teammates at the other side of the net barely had any time to react before it hit the wooden floors, giving your side a point.

You smile widely, catching the ball the coach throws at you for a second chance at serving. "Y/n calm the fuck down!" Your teammate yells, "We're not playing for real right now have some mercy!"

"If you can't receive my serves, how are you going to receive the serves from other school who'll surely be better than me?" You yell back, doing another jump float, your form tricking the other team as if you're doing another hard serve, causing them to step away from the net. Your palm then simply pushes on the ball, resulting it to barely go over the net. The players at the other side dives in to try and save the ball, but it hits the ground a second before they do.

The whistle is blown and your side of the court wins. "Y/n! You're a menace to society!" Your teammate jokingly yells, fake-crying on the floor making you giggle. You walk over to your duffel bag on the bleachers and take out your towel, oblivious to the many pairs of eyes on you.

Your short shorts always rode up your thighs and sometimes even ass whenever you played, so you hated wearing the uniform but your long shorts were jn the washer right now, you didn't really have much of a choice. Your uniform hugged your body perfectly, every curve and every hill accentuated by the two pieces of cloth around you.

Your boyfriend's team are bewildered by your skills. They never expected you, so sweet, so gentle and so kind towards them being able to produce such monstrous serves and spikes.

"Y/n!" You hear Tendou call, creating an immediate smile across your face. You loved Tendou, after dating his best friend, the two of you became so close and it's as if you two are best friends too. You watch him run towards you, volleyball in hand. "I never knew you played so good."

"You guys are too busy to watch me play. Why? Wanna join me sometime?" Tendou smiles at your offer, immediately nodding his head. "Yes! Please! Let's olay at my hou-"

"There's no way Y/n's playing with you." Wakatoshi says involuntarily, his eyes widening at his words as his teammates give him questioning stares. He never raised his voice before, nor has he spoken without being spoken to. "Unless! Unless I play with her first." He covers it up, looking away with the faintest blush across his face.

You tilt your head to the side, putting two on two together before smirking. Ah, my adorable, jealous boyfriend. Whatever am I supposed to do with you?

When practice finishes, you go your separate ways from the team. Unlike them who had homes to return to, your home is three hours away from the school and no way in hell were you traveling a total of six hours a day just to get feom and to your house. Getting a dorm in the campus seemed a much better idea, plus, it helped you spend more time with your boyfriend.

A hand snakes its way around your waist and despite sweating for three hours tonight, you can still smell a combination of the scent of your boyfriend's perfume and his shampoo. He smells minty and fresh from his shampoo and at the same time he also smells of lavender and sandalwood.

He continues to wrap both his arms around you as he stands from behind you, his forehead on your shoulder. "Want me to give you a massage once we get back?" You ask, placing a hand on his forearm.

Wakatoshi doesn't speak for a moment and you were beginning to think he fell asleep, but moments later he lifts his head up and takes another step forward, your eyes widening as you feel him poke at your ass.

"I just realised I've never seen you in your uniform before," He breathes out, "You look so sexy baby."

Heat rises up your face, your boyfriend's never said anything like that before. Sure, he once complimented how good yer legs look in shorts or how he likes seeing you so 'comfortable' without a bra on, butbhe's never been straightforward like this.

You can feel yourself creating a pool of slick in your underwear. God, this can not be fucking happening...

"Let's go to my dorm." His voice is an octave lower and he sounds out of breath. "Girls aren't allowed in your dorm building."

"I know most of the people in that building and they know me, they won't tell. So come on," he pulls at you, leading you to his building. He looks back at you, neediness and lust filling his eyes. "I need you right now."

Toshi didn't need to sound like he was begging, you were still going to follow him, but now that he sounds like he wants you so bad he can't control himself anymore, it's making you wanna run to his dorm and rip his clothes off.

You bite on your lower lip, letting him lead you to where his room is.

As you pass through a hall, you smile and wave shyly at some of the familiar faces you see, they look as if they've just seen a ghost. But can you blame them? Ushijima Wakatoshi is currently leading a girl to his room. This is the first time, it should be recorded in the hall of fame or something.

Once the both of you reach his door, which is at the bery end of the hall, Toshi takes his ID card, about to swipe it to unlock the door until he stops midway. He turns around and looks at you straight in the eye, "You don't have to do this if you don't want to. I don't want to be force you."

You blink at him once, twice, thrice- you take the card from his fingers, quickly swiping it on the lock. You push your boyfriend inside the dorm before looking to your right where the boys in the hall still have their undivided attention at you. "It'll probably get loud, you guys play some music or something." You yell before entering the room and slamming the door behind you.

Immediately, you push your boyfriend onto the wall, leaning in to press your lips on his. Finally, being able to touch your boyfriend after a long day of tiring practice feels to freeing and good. A shiver runs up your spine when he licks your bottom lip, asking for entrance. When you grant it to him, he pushes his tongue inside your wet cavern, immediately exploring it like he's a curious speleologist.

His one hand grabs your waist, immediately being able to grab almost half of it given your size differences and his other hand cups your jaw, tilting your head to the side to gain better access.

Your hand travels down to the waistline of his sweatpants, pushing your hand inside, feeling strained cock from inside his underwear as your fingers skillfully stroke it.

"Mmmm-" You hum, pushing Toshi off lightly. "We need to take a shower first, we've been sweaty for hours." You tell him, your hand still going up and down his shaft.

He sighs, pulling your hand out of his pants before pulling you inside his bathroom. Inside, he pins you against the wall, his lips on yours as he begins to lift your shirt, only breaking the kiss when a piece of clothing has to come off from around your heads. He pushes your shorts down along with your underwear, letting them pool around your ankles. He pulls your body closer to him, the tip of his clothed cock pressing against your wet folds making you moan into his mouth.

With one hand, he clasps the lock of your bra behind you, letting it fall on the floor along with your other clothes as his other hand begins toying with your pussy.

"You feel so wet down there. Was it when my teammates were staring at you?" He growls, making you lift a questioning brow. "What... What are you talking about?" You breathe out, sucking in your bottom lip in between your teeth as you grind your hips against his hand, greedy for more friction.

"You like it when my teammates are watching you? Watching as those small fuckin shorts get caught in between your ass? Hmm?" Toshi pushes a fingers inside making you mewl, your walls clenching around it, wanting more. "You like it when people watch you?"

You shake your head, moaning out profanities as you dig your nails on the skin of his shoulders, still rolling your hips and still wanting more of him.

"N-no, no! I only want you to watch me, Toshi!" You whine, moaning loudly once again when he pushes yet again another finger. He scissors his fingers inside you as your walls clench around them hungrily, greedy for more. "You're fucking mine, you got that?" He grits, thrusting his fingers inside you, hitting the particular bundle of nerves again and again leaving you screaming in pleasure with just two of his fingers.

"Yes! Yes, oh yes! I'm yours, Toshi! Fuck!" Your eyes roll to the back of your head, feeling yourself shake as you cum around his fingers, your cunt squelching around them. You breathe heavily, rolling your hips as you ride out your orgasm.

Toshi takes his fingers out, causing you to whine unconsciously when your hole begins tightening around nothing. He places his hands on either of your lower thighs, pulling you up and hugging your legs around his waist as he leads you to his shower.

He puts you down, making sure you can stand by yourself before hooking his thumbs on either side of his sweats, pulling them down, letting them pool around his ankles. Your gaze is immediately on his member, it's looks so hard and red, the size much bigger than usual and precum is currently seeping out of it.

"Like what you see?" Toshi smirks, this whole side of him completely taking you off guard. You love it. You twist the shower knob on before getting on your knees before him. He steps forward towards you, watching you as you take his dick into your small hands.

You look up at him from below, opening your mouth as widely as you can, rolling your tongue out. You begin by giving his precum-covered head some kitten licks, cleaning it up beforetaking half of his length in your mouth. You hollow your mouth, pushing your head lower as you feel his tip already hit the back of your throat.

"Yeah, take that dick like you want it for dinner. My cockslut..." He hisses, taking you by the hair. He tugs on a fistful of your hair, causing you to roll your eyes back in pleasure and moan loudly, the vibration stirring your boyfriend up even more. He begins thrusting his hips slowly, throwing his head back as you play with his balls and the rest of him that you couldn't take in your mouth.

"That's right, lap up my cock so fucking good, angel. That's right- ah! oh god..." His breathing becomes irregular and his thrusts slowly become more frantic. The tip of his dick continues abusing the back of your throat and tears begin to pool on the corners of your eyes, your cunt dripping wet at the thought of your boyfriend face fucking you at this moment.

Your hand plays with your pussy, drawing circles around and on the clit, chasing after Toshi so the two of you can cum together. "That's right, you're mine. This mouth is mine, and I'm not fucking sharing you with anyone." He seethes, his thrusts getting sloppier and sloppier by the second until he thrusts particularly deep inside your mouth, the tip of his dick going down your throat as he cums inside you, hot liquid going down your throat has your pussy clenching around your own fingers.

He pulls out, watching as you swallow his load until your mouth is empty of his white seed. The corner of Toshi's hand twitches into a smirk as he wipes a thumb over your bottom lip, immediately you suck on it as you look up at him teasingly.

"Let's wash up, darling." He pulls you up, taking his shampoo bottle and squirting a small amount on his palm, wiping it on your hair continuously until it begins to bubble up. He then proceeds to pour his body wash all over your body, hands roaming around you.

He presses kisses on the shell of your ear as he massages and squeezes your breasts, pinching and pulling at your nipples before going down and washing your slippiery folds. He copies what he did to your breast down to your ass, kneading them like fine bread before guiding you when the water is hitting. As you wash off the soap suds, he pours the same kind of shampoo on his head, combing his fingers through his soap-sud covered hair before following it by lathering his soap all over his body. His hands go up and down his well defined abs and pecks, teasing you as he slowly trails it down to his shaft.

He watches you watch him clean himself, letting you pull him closer to you, letting himself be hit by the running water. Once all the soap is rinsed off, you step away from him and take a towel, drying off your hair infront of the mirror.

You watch in the reflection as Toshi walks out of the shower and towards you, his usual indifferent expression across his face. He runs his haze down your figure before pulling on your towel, setting it down on the counter.

He leans forward, trapping you between him and the counter as he places both of his hands on either sides of your body. "I didn't like how my teammates watched you a while ago." He admits, his hands clenching on the counter. "I don't think they understand how you're mine and only mine." He whispers against the shell of your ear, his hot breath tickling shivers down your spine.

"Why won't you make me yours?" You challenge him, looking at him dead in the eye. He looks at you for a second, two seconds, three- he spins you around, pressing his lips against yours.

"You're playing a really dangerous game, darling, and I'm not in the best mood tonight." He growls through the kiss, his tongue more aggressive and lips harsher than usual. "Show me how to play it, maybe I'll get to know the rules and it won't be as dangerous as you say it is." You shoot back, running your hands all over his naked torso, feeling ever elevation and dip of his sculpted chest and abs underneath the pads of your fingertips.

Toshi growls into the kiss, turning you around once again and pushing you down on the counter. He presses his tip against your dripping folds, slowly entering you as to not hurt you in any way. He lets you adjust to his size for a few moments and the moment you begin rolling your hips, he combs his fingers through your damp hair, pulling on it and forcing you to see yourself being fucked in front of the mirror.

He thrusts relentlessly into you, the tip of his cock hitting places your fingers never hit before. Your jaw hangs open as you moan loudly, taken in a trance at the feeling of your boyfriend abusing the certain bundle of nerves inside you.

Toshi lifts a leg up on your side, the feeling becoming more and more overwhelming as his thrusts become deeper, much faster and harder. Your walls clamp around him tightly, making him click his tongue. "Yeah that's it, this pussy is all fucking mine, isn't it."

He pulls at your hair, letting go of it before cupping your face, forcing you to look at yourself in the mirror. "Look at you. Look at how lewd you are right now. You feeling good clamping down on my cock like that?" He asks, his thrusts never once slowing down. The feeling becomes overwhelming to the point where you couldn't form words, and instead you nod your head as to not make a fool out of yourself.

Your eyes roll to the back of your head as you feel the knot tighten in your belly, your jaw hangs open as drool begins to drip out the corner of your mouth. Your boyfriend breathes heavily into your ear, "Wanna cum? You wanna cum right now?"

"Ye-yeah... yeah fuck...wanna...wanna cum... let... let me...cum...." You lose your capability to form coherent sentences and capability to talk. "I'm fucking you so dumb right now, aren't I?" Toshi smirks, shoving two of his fingers inside your mouth, pressing them on your tongue as he watches you make a mess out of yourself.

Your moans fill the bathroom completely and you feel yourself hanging by a thread, simoly waiting for a word, that one ward that'll have you releasing so hard your legs are for sure going to give out. Just one word-

"Alright my darling, you deserve this." Toshi growls into your ear, letting go of your face in the process. "Cum."

You cum all over his cock, your clenching walls trying to milk him of his own release. Your back arches and toes curl as your boyfriend continues thrusting inside you, thrusts becoming sloppy and uneven as well as his breath.

Once you finish, he pulls out, cumming all over your ass, hot white ropes of his release reaching all over your ass, back and some even on your hair. He moans loudly, throwing his head back as he presses his length on your ass. The two of you stay there panting for a good minute, soaking in what you just did before Toshi begins pulling away. He looks at his artwork on you, mentally patting himself and telling himself 'good job' before he snakes an arm around your limp body.

"Come on, I'll wash you up." He carries you back to the shower, once again going through the process of soaping your body to make sure you're clean before setting you down on his counter. You flinch and hiss at the contact of your pussy on his counter, it hurt.

Toshi kisses you all over you face, muttering apologies about being too harsh in return you tell him it wasn't his fault at all. He dries up your body and hair, letting you brush your teeth before carrying you to his bed. He dresses you up in his clothes and takes out your special kit- basically a box full of skin care products in case you slept over.

"I'll do your skin care for you, just lay down and relax yourself. He says, sitting cross legged on the floor as he rummages through the products inside the box. You look at him, smiling to yourself and asking yourself how the hell you got so lucky to score someone like him. "Do you want charcoal or a strawberry mask tonight?" He asks, holding up two of your favorite mask packs.

You place your hand on his cheek, caressing it softly. "I love you." You whisper out, his eyes widening as it catches him off guard. Toshi feels his heart sink to his tummy as butterflies flutter and dance all over it. He smiles, a faint blush across his cheek. "I love you more." He kisses the tip of your nose.

Toshi then proceeds to just stare at you for a few moments before looking like he snaps out of his trance. A deep blush takes over his face as he buries his face on your chest in embarrassment. You laugh loudly, asking him what was going on.

"You're too cute, I'm never sharing you or this side of you to anyone." He mumbles against your chest, making you smile widely. He turns his head to the side, eyelids halfway down, "I'm greedy for you and only you. Never sharing you with anyone, ever."

[funkymbtifiction]

Why is it that ETP men love bomb and mislead women into thinking they love them or making them feel special to get what they want. I find it super insensitive for them to have a lady thinking that their only talking to them and showering them with compliments and pretending like their in love to have sex with them. I don’t get why they also like to talk about the future and promising girls that they will be their future wife and the mother to their kids when they don’t even care at all about that or them. once they get accused of cheating or lying they like to justify their behavior and make it seem like you’re delusional or that they been loyal this whole time. A friend of mine just found out her ex was cheating on her and it seems to me he’s an estp. Always lying and making things sound sweet and talking about he feels which could also be a lie but she really felt like she was on top of the world and that he was actually being loyal to her. It’s so hard to date now because it seems like it’s just a game and you have to play to win. It’s like once you start liking them and telling them how you feel you’re no longer interesting to them. It’s like you have to play them how they play you and that can get boring like why can’t we just have mutual feelings towards each other? And everyone seems to be ghosting each other whenever the other person gets boring and there’s never any communication. It just seems like relationships are too complicated to understand since majority of the people cheat and you can’t trust anybody.

That is not true and is a generalization. SOME people cheat, many others do not and would never cheat on someone they love. But toxic people always have red flags -- having cheated on other people, or cheating on their taxes, or never admitting they are wrong or being incapable of apologizing for hurt feelings.

The problem is not ETPs (there are plenty of nice ones), but where you are searching for relationships; if you want something lasting and meaningful, a marriage or a long-term partnership, you don't look in places where one night stands are prolific, you don't look at "players" who seem really, really good at charming you (it means they've done it to other people many times), you don't pick them up in bars, and you don't do hook-ups hoping it will deepen into something more meaningful. My grandma used to say, "If you want the milk, buy the cow." Don't give your heart or your body away to just anyone; they need to earn it by being there for you when it counts and proving themselves worthy of your trust. Being unwilling to “wait” for intimacy any period of time indicates their intentions are not good, because they’re thinking of themselves and not you. (This person needs to be comfortable with me... I can wait and prove myself.)

Decide what you want in a partner -- the exact attributes that you want / need -- and eliminate anyone as a possibility who doesn't have them. One of my friends decided up front she wanted a guy who was tender to children and animals, because that told her all she needed to know about his character (compassionate) -- a week later, she found him rocking crying babies in the nursery at her work. They got married two weeks later (engaged after one date; they had worked together six months), and have been together 40 years... including having a special needs child -- this man, whose attribute she picked ahead of time -- went ballistic when he found out a lot of dads just leave their wife when a child isn't born "perfect" -- he said that's a bullshit way to be; a real man stays home and raises his children, even if one of them can never leave home, because that's his job. If you are a woman who wants commitment and security, find a man who believes it's his job to provide for and protect his wife and kids, and look for attributes that indicate that as part of his central character. (Is this person reliable? trustworthy? do others speak well of them? secure? and above all, are they HONEST with you? If all you hear is nice things from someone, they're not being "real." Real deep relationships come with honesty and encourage you to grow. EG, they aren't afraid to call you out on something crucial.)

Dating is like going fishing by throwing yourself into the ocean. Unless you know exactly what you want, and are willing to settle for nothing less, you will get bit by a lot of sharks. So establish what matters most to you, what qualities you want to see in your partner, and anyone who doesn't measure up gets no second chance. Don't pick superficial ones, either. Look for things that imply this person has MORAL CHARACTER. And watch how they treat people who aren't you, and talk about other people, because you'll get special treatment -- but how he/she talks to the waiter or others in "service" is going to tell you who they are.

If you want a certain kind of person, go where you are likely to find them, and avoid places where you are likely to find "the other kind." If you don't want casual hookup partners, don't use Tinder. If online dating is your only option, pay good money for an online filtering service who has a long list of criteria / preferences for you to fill out, and if marriage is what you want, pick one where THAT is the focus -- not hooking up. Marriage. Dating to get married. If you want a godly spouse, look for them in singles groups in your church/temple/etc.

Lastly, make sure you are the kind of person who would attract "the nice guy/girl," by being a person of integrity.

[starter-library]

ORVILLE PECK'S PONY LYRIC STARTERS

FEEL FREE TO CHANGE PRONOUNS/NAMES/PHRASING AS YOU SEE FIT

Dead of Night

“The sun goes down, another dreamless night”

“Baby, let's get high”

“You say, "Go fast," I say, "Hold on tight””

“See the boys as they walk on by”

“Six summers down, another dreamless night, you're not by my side”

Winds Change

“Had a lover but I lost my patience”

“Got a fire but you just can't use it”

“Lost my way on the other side I know why, I don't know when”

“From the way that we said goodbye I knew I'd never see you again”

“Met a lot of men who would call me pretty”

“Don't it make you cry, how we're getting older?”

Turn to hate

“Tell me you can’t stay”

“Don't leave, don't cry”

“You're just another boy caught in the rye”

“Head full of nothing and I'm wondering why”

“Yeah, I'm something of a liar now ‘cause I've seen it all before”

“Tell me you can't wait”

“You'll all be stars, now just you wait”

“Don't let my sorrow turn to hate”

Buffalo Run

“I consider it another man's problem”

“Hitch a ride on my violence live in fear”

“I caught you staring at the sun”

“Looking out for number one”

“Strike a match, leave a lick and a promise”

Queen of the Rodeo

“Don’t be down, girl, this world is a bummer”

“You know the tune so the words don't matter”

“Beyond this town lies a life much sadder, babe”

“The night is long, your days are numbered”

“You're ridden out with nowhere else to go”

“See you 'round”

Kansas (Remembers Me Now)

“Come and lay down your shoulders”

“Tomorrow isn't that far and if we don't get older just know you were always my star”

“But if I die, don't you cry”

“Clutter's gone, do I regret it? Not a thing”

Old River

“Still, there's snow left on the ground”

“Each small bullet makes a sound”

Big Sky

“Fell in love with a rider”

“I like him best when he's not around”

“Heartbreak is a warm sensation when the only feeling that you know is fear”

“Visit once in a while when I'm not at sea”

Roses are Falling

“Back on the run, back to the blue”

“Winning is fun, losing is, too”

“Without a trace, l'lI wait for you”

“Don't let me in, I don't know what I'd do”

“You know, darling, you bring out the worst in me”

“Sometimes when I'm around you, I feel like pure evil”

“I guess they say nobody's perfect but they've never met a devil like you”

Take you back (the Iron Hoof Cattle Call)

“Hear you've been coming 'round my door”

“I'm keen to play with fire, but now I'm not so sure”

“I've been around this world and now everything's a bore”

“I don't know that much, but I know about keeping score”

“And if there's one thing I know for sure it'll be a long, cold day in Hell when I take you back”

“This town has always bored me and baby, that's including you”

“I've been around this world and it's rotten to the core”

“I got a face of gold, I got a heart of coal but baby, that's my cross to bear”

“I won't take you back”

Hope to Die

“Gone was the way we were, Just like the days we'd burn”

“Take me back to the time I was yours, and you were mine”

“Take me back to the words I'd say”

“I'm still undone, not quite young But I, I still try”

“Take me back to the world I know”

“They don't cry where we go”

Nothing Fades Like the Light

“Some men only ride alone, I only ride in the night”

“Some drown in the warmth of home but nothing fades like the light”

“April showers, June is the same in your eyes”

“Something tells me you know why I lie”

“Time goes by, I wanna rise up”

“I know why things change and I know why I stay the same”

“Some say I should learn to cry but I only learned how to fight”

[you-are-so-much-better-than-that]

Gonna be a brat and ask you about your wedding “opiniona”s. 😂

LOL! This ask still makes me laugh! Ok, listen. I have never been married. I have never had a wedding. But I have been to what feels like seven thousand weddings (I have six weddings this year), have been a bridesmaid seven times, a maid of honour twice, hosted numerous showers, and have helped friends plan their weddings, diy decorations for their weddings, meet wedding vendors, etc etc. I really do love weddings, but I have a lot of opinions about them. The most controversial of which is the following:

Wedding cakes and physical invitations are a waste of fucking money!! More under the cut because I assume no one else wants to hear me ramble about weddings.

The whole wedding industry is wild, but you wanna know what I'm going to do with your wedding invitation? Put the date in my calendar, snap a picture so I know where to go that day, and throw it away because what am I gonna do with fancy card stock? Or velum paper? Or, my least favourite, invitations that come laser printed on a slab of acrylic?? That's like $10 an invite!! Insanity! Just send me a fucking evite! Or text! I'm happy to be invited by text.

As for cake! Listen. I love a cake cutting moment. Sugar Sugar or How Sweet It Is or Cake By the Ocean if you wanna get spicy playing in the background as you cut into an insane piece of art work that you and your partner feed each other? Love it! Yes! Please gimmie that! BUT the PROBLEM my dear friend, is NO ONE EATS THE FUCKING CAKE!!

When my sister got married, she had a 250ish person wedding, just under even, which by Egyptian standards is a small wedding. She got a three tier cake, which is not an outrageous cake. She told her cake vendor to make one for 125 people because you don't expect your guests to actually eat much cake. It cost $550. The first tier they took home to sit in their freezer for a year to later be thrown out after they each took one bite of their nasty ass one year old frozen then defrosted cake because tradition. The second tier is the one they cut into for the cute cake cutting moment. It was adorable. They have a picture of it on their wall. I don't remember the song I was probably crying. Anyway. The hall cut up the rest of that second tier for guests They said they'll cut up the final tier if necessary. It was NOT necessary. In fact, I witnessed them throw away at least half of the second tier slices they had cut up. And they gave me the final tier to take home. I would cut out large slices and give them to friends. I took a piece to work with me. I tried so hard. And yet, I threw away about half of that last tier. So let's review: top tier--thrown away after two bites, middle tier--50% thrown away, final tier 50% thrown away, possibly more as I am not responsible for what I gave away. I basically threw away at least $400.

No one eats cake when they've just had dessert and theirs a waffle/crepe and ice cream bar at the end of the night! If you must, get a tiny two tier cake, cut into the one, keep the top for tradition. Save your money. Like three of your guests will miss the cake.

Other opinions I have: don't cheap out on a photographer, don't give a favour with your name/wedding date (in fact, the best wedding favour is one I can eat later like jam or honey or tea, extra points if local, double extra points if it also supports a cause--I once got jam from a local farm that gave half their proceeds to a women's shelter and it was the best!), and, if you're asked to give a speech, don't roast the bride(s)/groom(s) /newly married couple. It's their day. You can be super hilarious in the group chat, not in front of their grandmother.

[wildflower-daydreamer]

You and I Collide - Chapter 2

I started this story for the Jonsa Spring Blossoms and Autumn Leaves event, but chapter 2 took me a bit longer to write than I had hoped. And the chapter got a little ahead of me by ending up with over 12,000 words. Oops. But here it is!

You and I Collide

Summary: Sansa and Jon keep colliding in multiple lives. First, in the land of Westeros, they're Alayne and Aegon. Then, in the celebrity lives of Sansa and Jon, playing the roles of Alayne and Aegon in the popular tv show based on the books. Lastly, in normal every-day life, they find each other as huge fans of the books. Inspired by the song Collide by Howie Day.

Chapter 2 - Celebrity Life

Sansa checked the time on her phone. She had woken up five minutes before her alarm was set to go off and allowed herself those extra minutes to ruminate on the dream that was already seeping from her memory. She was Alayne. He was Aegon. Sansa had been reading the script for today's shoot before falling asleep. The specific scene she was studying was for Alayne and King Aegon's first meeting. Makes sense, she thought. But it just felt so damn real.

Once her five minutes were up, she jumped out of bed and quickly showered. It was so early that the sun only had just started making an appearance on the horizon as Sansa left the hotel and got into the awaiting car, the driver taking her to the set. As she sat in the chair for hair and makeup, she had to stifle quite a few yawns, regretting her decision to stay up so late. But she had wanted to be sure she had her lines down perfectly, she wanted to make sure there was less of a chance of flubbing it all in front of him.

Jon Snow. That beautiful man. They had never spent much time together considering they've often been shooting in totally different countries with their storylines never converging. Until now. They'd be filming quite a bit together for this upcoming sixth season of the hugely popular show Game of Thrones. Before, they had really only seen each other at comic cons, award shows, press junkets, and table reads. They were usually fleeting interactions, quick hello's and how are you's, side hugs that were the specialty of people who don't know much about one other. But, secretly, Sansa pined for Jon for six years. School girl crush, really. Their first meeting was when she was still a teenager and he was the cute older boy. That cute older boy turned into a man rather quickly though. And that school girl crush continued to evolve. Sansa read the books that the show was based on, all of them that were available at least. She knew the time would come for her character and his to meet. To kiss. To fall in love. Unfortunately, the last book of the series hadn't been written yet, so she didn't know where Alayne and Aegon's relationship went after that. There was a lot of death in the story so the odds of any particular character surviving weren't great. But for the past few years, Sansa has been waiting for this. The chance to spend a little more time with Jon, to get to really know him and him know her, was here.

There was a problem though. He now had a girlfriend.

(Continue reading on AO3...)

[eryiss]

Summary: Freed and Gajeel were total opposites in every way, only connected by the guild. When they were forced to train together under Makarov's orders, they expected antagonism and mistrust. Instead, they were given a lesson in how quickly opposition can turn to attraction. The issue: let the budding relationship simmer away, or let it explode. [Freed x Gajeel Multi-chapter]

Notes: Hi all. Thanks for your continued support. This time, now they've decided to give each other a chance, we can see them seeing the benefits of each other's company.

Links: FFN, Ao3, Chapter List

Chapter Five - Cracking The Code

Day Four: Thursday

"Damn," Gajeel murmured. "Maybe I wasn't as harsh on you as I thought."

He didn't know exactly what time it was, nor did he know exactly where he was, but he didn't care. The train journey had been long and, despite Freed's runes taking a lot of the strain off him, Gajeel's stomach had started to squirm and bite against him. The growing nausea mixed with the sparsely healed injuries from the day before and the overall exercion of the past three days had caught up with him, and all he could think of was the bed that Freed had promised him.

By the looks of the building - a large ranch, large enough for Freed's entire team despite the fact he lived alone - the bed would be luxurious. Gajeel had been presumptuous about Freed's wealth in the last few days, and was starting to feel guilty about it, but maybe he hadn't missed the mark.

Sure as hell made his one room apartment look like crap.

"If it makes you feel more comfortable, I have a barn at the edge of my property that has some hay you could sleep in," Freed mumbled under his breath, but Gajeel heard. "I wouldn't want to force you to live outside of your elements, would I?"

"Nah," Gajeel grinned, because he felt guilty about the last three days and didn't wish to get into another argument. "I can try a bed out if I have t'."

Freed explained what was happening during the train ride home, that his demon was influencing their moods and making them more antagonistic. The conversation came from out of nowhere; Freed had a habit of scuffing his feet, Gajeel had gotten annoyed, snapped, and an argument had begun. After some insults, Freed clenched his right fist, rubbed his suddenly glowing eye, and explained the effect that his demon was having on them. After that, they made a decision to think about the reason behind their anger before they spoke, to understand if it was truly what they thought.

It was a tense and fragile truce, and they were acting at being friends. It was a difficult situation to understand; Gajeel didn't really know what he thought of Freed. He knew he was impressed by his resilience, and at some point the slight resentment at the previous day's attack would make way for intrigue and him feeling reluctantly impressed.

Was he really holding back a demon at all times?

"I'll call for Wendy to come here for when you wake up," Freed kept speaking, walking up the staircase with the expectation that Gajeel would follow him. Gajeel did. "She'll be able to be sure I didn't hurt you too badly."

"Sure," Gajeel said, a yawn sneaking out. He didn't miss the small grin on Freed's face when he heard. Dammit, he had been told his yawns were somewhat… feline like. To distract the man, he kept talking. "We doin' any training today? Or just a rest day?"

"I intend to train with you, if you've not got an injury we don't know about," Freed said. "But we should focus on resting first. It's not overly time dependent."

Two days ago, Gajeel might have made a comment about Freed's training regime being too cushy and pampered, but now the words would have come out as bitter and kind of pathetic. Also, his aching body and swirling stomach wanted nothing more than to collapse into a bed and sleep for an age. Damn the tournament and damn the weird forfeit that Makarov had planned.

He followed Freed through the small landing of the upper floor until they stopped by a door, which Freed opened. It was clearly a guest bedroom, nice enough and stocked with more comforts than Gajeel would have been able to fit in his apartment, but definitely not lived in.

"You got a lot of rooms going spare?" Gajeel asked, planting a bag of clothes he'd picked up on the floor.

"Six," Freed said, allowing Gajeel to wander around the room that would be his home for the next three days. "Originally it was intended for the Raijinshuu to all live here, but they need their space, which is understandable. And they stay here from time to time, so normally it doesn't feel so… unoccupied."

Gajeel might have said lonely rather than unoccupied, but it wasn't his place to say.

"You've a bathroom attached to your room and it's stocked with everything you need," Freed explained, then frowned a little. "Well, maybe the two-in-one shampoo and conditioner might not do for you like it does for Laxus, so perhaps you could borrow mine," Freed reached up and curled a lock of Gajeel's hair. "Yes, you keep your hair well. You'll need my products."

"Right," Gajeel said a little curtly, looking at Freed's hand that held his hair with slightly dilated pupils.

"Sorry," Freed said, removing his hand and taking a step back. "I'll be having a shower before sleeping, so if you want me you may need to raise your voice. I'll leave you some time to get used to the room."

"Thanks," Gajeel huffed slightly, not sure what to say.

They looked at each other for a moment, giving each other a nod in goodbye. Freed turned and walked to what was clearly his bedroom, and Gajeel closed the door behind him. He glanced at where Freed might be, absently wondering if this false politeness between them would make way for something more passionate. It felt like he was missing something now he and Freed weren't arguing; maybe Freed was one of the people Gajeel was meant to feel passionately about.

Nah, it was the demon's influence. Must have been. And there was no point in focusing on how they were acting around each other, it wasn't like it would change anything.

He shucked off his jacket, then his shirt and pants. His skin was hardly the cleanest and the blood from his earlier injury wasn't exactly clean, but Freed probably had a change of sheets for him. He climbed into the bed, the mattress a hell of a lot softer than the stained, spring filled piece of crap that made up his own bed. He groaned a little at the soft, cool covers as he wrapped them around his body, burying his face into them. God, whatever they were made of, Gajeel was becoming addicted to instantly.

Maybe he could guilt Freed into giving him these sheets once they were done.

Tiredness overtook him, and he was nearly asleep within a moment. The only thing stopping him from dropping off immediately was the sound of movement in the building. One of few perks of Gajeel's apartment was that the walls were soundproof - he didn't dwell on why that needed to happen - so other people making noise when he was trying to sleep was abnormal.

Not entirely unpleasant. The shifting of fabric followed by water hitting tile was soft, and slightly muffled by the walls between them. But it was comforting, and the sound rhythmic humming that Freed indulged in as he stepped under the water sent a slight shiver down his spine. It had been a while since he'd worked with other people, and the eclectic mess of sounds that accompanied their movements had been missing in Gajeel's life for a while.

He didn't think too much about it, and instead buried his face in the pillow further, a little smile on his face.

——

Gajeel had known Freed was a powerful mage.

The first time they had met one another, if you wanted to call what happened at the festival a meeting, Freed had filled Magnolia with unbreakable rune traps. Though he had been kept in the Cathedral, Gajeel had both seen and heard stories about how many runes had been placed and how complex the traps had been. So clearly he was a powerful man with a lot of magical potential, but he was apparently a genius with his power as well.

For his half of the training, Freed was going to use a 'Simulation Program'. He had explained he had created a selection of runes that would create a training environment made for their specific needs. Apparently it was a complex system that Freed had used many times to push himself.

"So, when we both place our hands on the column, my runes will create a simulation designed to improve our teamwork," Freed explained, motioning to a shaft of runes in the middle of his basement.

"And you ain't gonna be controlling it?" Gajeel asked, looking at the runes with a slight tilt in the head.

"No, the program essentially has a mind of its own," Freed explained, placing his hand on the column without hesitation. The runes seemed to glow under his touch. "I can cancel it, of course, should it get too intense or if the simulation just isn't working out. But so far it's always been an achievable task and always helped me with training."

"You got any idea what it'll be like?" Gajeel asked, stepping towards the runes.

"Not at all," Freed had a near giddy look on his face; like Natsu before a fight. Maybe he was more Fairy Tail like than Gajeel thought. "When you're ready."

Gajeel shrugged, placed his hand on the column, and allowed it to take some of his magic.

Eight walls of runes suddenly lurched upwards, glowing and dripping with magic. The basement seemed to fall away, replaced by pristine whiteness that seemed to be like a void. Gajeel knew he hadn't been teleported - the teleportation had felt different - so clearly they were still in the basement, but the reality of the room had changed. Gajeel looked to the side; Freed could literally create runes that could change the world around him. All whiteout breaking a sweat.

What would he be able to do without the runes keeping his demon contained?

The thought was gone as quickly as it came. On one of the eight walls, letters began to form as if written from fire. They weren't runes - Freed's runes were square and angular, these letters were more flowing and rounded - and Gajeel didn't have a damn clue what it said. He glanced towards Freed again, to see an expression of open confusion.

He scrunched up his nose when he was confused. Hah.

Before either man could say anything, a wall of magic appeared before them in a language that both Gajeel and Freed could read.

'To finish the simulation, you must complete two tasks. One mental, one physical. These tasks will bring you closer together and highlight your potential as a team.

Task One: Translate the Words and Speak Them Aloud.'

"Yer good with languages right?" Gajeel murmured. "Should be easy."

"This language is incredibly old," Freed frowned, walking to the wall where the statement was written. "Frankly, I've never seen it before. I wouldn't know where to start."

"Yer magic knows things you don't?" Gajeel frowned.

"Apparently."

This wasn't the type of thing that Gajeel could help with, so he leant on one of the walls and decided to watch as Freed worked. The other man was scribbling things down on a wall of runes that he's created which seemed to only allow for writing. He still had his nose all scrunched up while he was thinking, and he kept tucking his hair behind his ear when it fell. It was funny to think this was the same man who had gone primal and all jungle-man the day before.

He really had misjudged Freed, hadn't he? Now he knew the demon had been affecting his mood - and knew how to ignore that influence - it was easy to agree that Freed was powerful. Hell, maybe if they hadn't gotten off to such a bad start, they would have been good teammates.

They could still, that's what the point of the simulation was, right? To bring them together.

Gajeel didn't know how giving Freed a task that Gajeel would be no help with might bring them together, but the simulation seemed pretty impressive so far. He let his gaze fall on the untranslated words again, and actually looked at them this time. It still looked like a selection of random lines, and Gajeel nearly gave up and went back to watching Freed again. It was only when he saw a familiar spiral looking shape in with the rest of the lines that he realised how this was meant to bring them closer.

"Fuck," Gajeel cussed, and Freed immediately looked towards him. "It's Draconic."

"Draconic?" Frred said incredulously. "That language has been dead for millennia. You know it."

"No," Gajeel shook his head. "Well, not really. Even when I was a kid there was no point in learning it since it was forgotten by everyone but the dragons. Metalicana, he was basically my father, insisted that I be able to write my own name in my language," He walked to the writing and pointed at the single spiral. "That's an 'A', I could never get that right. Pa used to yell at me, so I remember it."

"You don't happen to remember the rest, do you?"

"Not of the top of my head," Gajeel spoke under his breath. "Can I use that writing rune thing?"

"Of course," Freed said, making a motion. The small slab of runes that Freed had been scribbling on flew towards him, and Gajeel sat cross-legged on the floor like he had when he was a kid. Suddenly, he felt like he was back in the fields where he had grown up, writing with chalk on stone under his Pa's instructions. He didn't often think about his youth; it was nice.

His arm moved without him thinking. Writing his name was muscle memory, and the familiar pattern of lines that was his name in Draconic quickly was printed on the runes. It had been years since he had seen it. It was nice.

He couldn't dwell on it. He certainly couldn't get emotional about it.

"I'm pretty sure it's similar to how we write. There's a letter for A, a letter for B and so on," Gajeel murmured a little. "Give me a second."

He wrote his name normally under the Draconic counterpart, showing what each letter's counterpart was. Freed made quick work of finding all the letters of Gajeel's name in the statement written on the wall. On the wall there was one G, one A, three E's, one L, four R's, one D, two F's and three O's. Not enough to find out what the statement was, but it was a starting point. Freed had immediately began trying to look for patterns in the letters they already knew, hoping to reverse engineer the alphabet. By the look of frustration on his face, it didn't seem to be working.

"You need help?" Gajeel asked, taking a step towards Freed. "Anything I can do?"

"Did your father only teach you how to write your name?" Freed asked, and Gajeel found it oddly comforting that Freed didn't seem off put by the fact Gajeel called a literal dragon his father. "Is that the only link to your Draconic ancestry you have? Do you know any history? It might help."

Well Gajeel could do that.

Years worth of history lessons seemed to spew out without Gajeel thinking. Everything from how dragons used to live, to the nesting patterns of hatchlings, to everything else that Gajeel had thought had left his head years ago. Once he started talking it felt like he couldn't stop, and Freed didn't seem to want him to. It was kinda nice to be able to talk about his past openly; the only other people who might have understood were Natsu and Wendy. They already knew everything, Freed didn't.

Once Gajeel had run out of things to say, Freed asked him more about the nesting patterns. Gajeel went through it all again, and inadvertently explained the types of mountains Dragons used to nest in. From this, Freed figured out which continent the Dragons lived on, and what cultures developed from Draconic influence. Somehow, he managed to reverse engineer the Draconic alphabet from that of a language currently in use.

Gods, how did the man's mind work?

"There's good news and bad news," Fred eventually said, looking back at Gajeel. "We've translated it, but it seems my magic has an agenda of sorts."

Before Gajeel could ask what that meant, Freed motioned for his writing runes to fly towards him. It was incredibly weird, and funny, seeing just how bad Freed's handwriting was, but he quickly ignored that. As much as he wanted to make fun of the man for his near incomprehensible writing, they weren't close enough to say things like that to one another.

Hm. Gajeel had kind of forgotten he was nervous about his relationship with Freed for a moment.

Rather than fixating, he looked down to the runes again and saw what Freed had translated. He grinned a little when he saw what they had to say to progress; Freed's magic did have an agenda, and didn't seem to be very subtle.

"We gotta say it at the same time?" Gajeel asked.

"I expect so," Freed agreed. A moment later, they both spoke.

"Our similarities outweigh our differences."

With a flurry of movements, the runes glowed and the room shifted around them. The words on the walls disappeared, and a small metal rod rose up from the ground. A metre away from the metal rod, a spark of lighting appeared in the air, flicking with powerful magic. A moment later, the instruction appeared in front of them both.

'Task Two. Conduct the electricity from the lighting into the metal rod. Touching the lighting will fill you with enough pain to render you unconscious, meaning you have failed the simulation.'

"Shit," Gajeel whispered. "Yer runes can be brutal."

"They're usually not quite so bad," Freed mused, walking towards the lightning and inspecting it, though not closely enough to touch it. "I intended the simulation to make us work well as a team. I suppose after the way we have been treating one another for the past few days, my magic believed we need something intense to bring us tougher."

"Guess so," Gajeel mumbled, a little guiltily. He was responsible for that. "Sorry."

"Don't be," Freed dismissed, seemingly fascinated by the challenge. "Honestly, I think the challenges are aimed at challenging my preconceived ideas about you. I had written you off as an idiot who could only utilize your fists, so my magic put us in a situation where you would talk about something you're well versed in and passionate about," Freed was still looking at the spark, a little wistful in his expression. "Frankly, the way you described your culture was beautiful. It certainly destroyed any ideas I had about your mind being anything but… well, wonderful."

Gajeel flushed a little at the compliment, looking away. He wasn't great when people said good things about him, and he tended to deflect when it happened.

"So, yer magic worked. We respect each other at least now, right?" Gajeel said gruffly, Freed nodded. "Other than respect, the only thing I need to work well with another guy is trust. So, guess this is made to make us trust each other."

Freed hummed a little, and his nose scrunched up again.

Fuck, it was kinda cute.

"Say, hypothetically, that this lightning didn't cause you any pain," Freed mused aloud, glancing between the spark of lighting and the metal rod. "Would you be able to use your magic to transform your body into a conductive metal. So you could stretch your fingers from the spark to the rod and have the current pass through you?"

"Yeah, I think so," Gajeel shrugged a little. "Don't exactly wanna touch it if it'll knock me out. Had enough of that this week," He had spoken before thinking, and Freed averted his gaze. "Shit I didn't mean to say that."

"No, no. It's fair," Freed said passively, but didn't seem to believe his words.

"Why'd you ask anyway?" Gajeel asked, trying to avert the topic.

"I've crafted runes that will lessen the effect of lighting magic, a necessity of working with Laxus," Freed explained, looking at the spark again. "If you're correct and this is to make us trust one another, then perhaps it's as simple as you using your magic to make a metal bridge between source and the rod, and you have to trust that my runes will stop you from hurting."

"Guess it makes sense," Gajeel agreed, frowning. "You sure it works?"

"It has worked against every type of lightning I've used it to deflect from before," Freed said, looking to Gajeel. "I can't promise that it will work, though. This is made of my magic, not natural lightning, so there's no way of knowing for sure yet."

Gajeel thought for a moment, before stealing himself and shrugging. "Fuck it, we ain't got any other ideas. Lay it on me."

Freed moved to stand behind Gajeel, and a moment later a cold hand was pressed against the back of his neck. He heard muttering in a language he didn't know, then the familiar feeling of magic rolling down his skin. The sensation of a rune on his skin was unknown to him - a rune not meant to hurt him anyway - and it sent a slight shiver down his spine. Maybe that was just because Freed was cupping his neck; it was a part of his body that people didn't often touch, after all.

A sheen of magic flowed over his skin, and Gajeel watched as his body flowed purple for a second. The spell was obviously completed, as the magic seemed to seep into his skin, but Freed still kept his hand on Gajeel's neck.

"You gonna let go?" He asked with a frown.

"No. If my rune fails, we should share the pain," Freed's tone left no room for argument.

"It's yer funeral," Gajeel mumbled.

He placed his hand on the iron rod, covering his skin with his iron. Slowly, he extended one of his hands towards the flickering sparks of lighting, wincing a little as it got closer. He really fucking hoped Freed's runes worked, because even after Wendy had come by to heal him, Gajeel wasn't fully recovered. Another bout of unconsciousness would only make things worse.

With a flinch, he forced his metallic digit into the lightning. It didn't hurt as such, more like a tingle that spread through him and perhaps Freed. The lightning passed across him, into his hand, and lit the metal rod up. The room turned green.

"Guess it worked," Gajeel grinned a little, turning to Freed.

When he turned, he was taken aback by the sight of the other man. Freed was hot, Gajeel hadn't bothered to hide that even when they were arguing, and he was handsome too. But when he was smiling a victorious smile, a slight magical haze in his eyes, expression equal parts cocky and satisfied, he looked fucking beautiful. The glow of the purple runes illuminated his pale skin, made his eyes shine, and made Gajeel damn near breathless.

He was staring at him, and suddenly something fell into place. He had wondered what would take the place of the antagonism between them, and suddenly an option was shown to him. Freed was now sexy, handsome and beautiful. He had a scrunchy nose, hummed in the shower, and had a wild side.

"It did," Freed's voice, which sounded like honey now Gajeel paid attention, cut through his thoughts. "Thank you for trusting me, Gajeel."

"Ain't a problem, Pretty-Boy."

The slip of the tongue made Gajeel freeze. Freed didn't comment on it, but Gajeel didn't miss the slight upturn of his lips. Fuck he had a pretty smile, didn't he?

Gods dammit.

[n7inky-fanfics]

One Day at a Time

The destruction of the Reapers did not mean galactic peace. While the treaties Shepard had brokered during the war remain mostly intact, there is no shortage of pirates, criminals, gangs, and terroristic organizations bent on creating chaos and destruction. The Council began directing their Spectres towards overseeing and protecting reconstruction efforts and maintaining peace. Now that scientists are close to unlocking the key to repairing the mass relays, the galaxy has settled into unease. No one knows if crime will get better or worse with the relays back online. All factions are getting agitated, and more fighting is breaking out.

Sometimes, Kaidan pities the poor soul on the wrong end of Shepard's gun. More than once, he has heard all sorts of people shout something along the lines of "Oh shit, it's Shepard!" as they realized they were about to die. Shepard is a skilled soldier who dominates the battlefield with equal parts strength and grace. Fighting alongside her can be almost beautiful in an odd and violent sort of way, especially when she used her biotics. It took her almost a year of practice fighting on her military grade prosthetic leg, but she has now found that grace on the battlefield again. In the end, her skills and her career could not be taken by the Reaper War. The galaxy kept its greatest protector.

Today, they are both back on Mars, of all places, fighting a remnant of Cerberus that is attempting to steal more data from the archives. If intel is correct, their goal is to find weapons they can use "for the betterment of humanity", which is their way of saying anti-alien terrorism. Kaidan does have to admit that some part of him enjoys taking down pieces of Cerberus. After all the horrible things he's seen them do, including all that they have put Shepard through, he's glad to eliminate every last cell in the galaxy. It's a worthy career goal.

As the smoke clears, Shepard begins checking the bodies for data pads, hoping to find anything to indicate how many of them are at the archives and what their exact plans are. After all, if this was just an outdoor lookout team, there's bound to be more already inside. She freezes as she reads one of the data pads. Kaidan can barely see her face through her helmet, but her reaction to the data pad can't be good. "Shepard, what is it?"

She clears her throat and says calmly "It's not pertinent to the mission. Let's move on." She drops the data pad and continues towards the entrance. Kaidan trusts Shepard, but curiosity gets the better of him and he glances down at the data pad as he passes by. It currently displays the owner's profile. He can see an image that he guesses matches the body they found it on and a name. "Andrew Mason".

As they enter the archive, they happily find a distinct lack of civilian and scientist casualties. This time, intel learned of the plan early and decided to evacuate the scientists and ship in more soldiers. Unfortunately, Cerberus still puts up a good fight and many of the Alliance soldiers were injured or killed before the Spectres arrived (travel between systems takes more time now that the relays are gone). Shepard hops on to the nearest terminal and accesses the system logs. "Ah, here it is. Someone opened an archive five minutes ago. We can take the tram there."

"Perfect. Maybe this time we'll make it through without getting shot at." Immediately after making the joke, Kaidan winces at the realization that bringing up their last mission on Mars might not be a good idea. Sure, they've worked everything out, but it still could be a touchy subject. He was pretty cruel to her last time, before he almost died in front of her.

"Doubtful." Shepard laughs lightly as they board the tram.

They ride quietly for a moment before Kaidan asks "So, will I get to know who Andrew Mason is?"

"Maybe later. Now's not the time."

"Fair." Kaidan says. He smiles at her, hoping she can see it through the helmet. His is much more open and visually blocks less of the face. Shepard's preferred gear usually allows less visibility, but it also has fewer structural weak points. He noticed a change in her treatment of her armor not too long after he got back on the Normandy, but he's never said anything. Without asking, he already knows why Shepard chooses armor with the most reinforced environment system, and why she carefully and almost obsessively maintains it. He would, too, in her shoes.

He refocuses himself on the task at hand as they begin approaching their destination. They've almost made it when a Cerberus soldier begins firing at the car. They both take cover behind the wall and the dance begins yet again. As the car docks, Shepard throws up a barrier and runs out, shooting at several men in a row as she charges to cover. Kaidan focuses on the heavy trooper slowly approaching from a distance and Reaves. Together, they feed off each other's energy. The can move in sync, watching each other's sixes and supporting each other throughout the entire battle. Before long, the docking zone falls silent as the battle ends.

They take turns clearing doors until they finally get to the archive. They take cover on either side of the door. He opens it carefully, and Shepard immediately swings around to cover him with her pistol. The immediate entryway is surprisingly empty. Shepard gestures for him to follow, then slowly and quietly moves inside the room until they reach a sharp turn. She takes cover against the wall and peers around the corner, gun at the ready. As soon as she does, she is thrown backwards by a large biotic force. Her gun fires before she even hits the wall. Kaidan swings around and unleashes a singularity that pulls the target into the air. Shepard fires again, making several headshots that eventually pierce the armor and hit their mark.

"Thanks for the cover, Alenko." She says, her smile coming through in the sound of her voice. She pats him on the back and pushes further into the room, where the target had been collecting data onto a drive. She plugs the data into her omnitool and runs it through analysis softwares. Liara would be able to tell them more, but it appears that intel was correct. They had been here for advanced weapons blueprints. Shepard begins forwarding the information back to the Normandy, then turns to head back to the LZ. Kaidan follows her.

Getting back to the Normandy and conferencing with Admiral Hackett is no big deal. After the verbal debriefing, they retire to her cabin to write their mission reports. Kaidan's ship, the SSV London (named for the Battle of London that ended the Reaper War), is still getting it's final touches before he'll be able to take it out on a shakedown run, so he rode along with Shepard for this mission and their last several. As they settle into the couch with their tea and data pads, he can't help but smile. This is a good life, one he hadn't expected to attain. Every day, sometimes several times a day, he still finds himself thankful that they had found Shepard after the Crucible. When the Alliance had formally declared her missing in action, with the caveat that she was most likely dead, Kaidan refused to lay down and wait for them to declare her death. He contacted Hackett with an emergency QEC on the Normandy and told him that until they found a body, Shepard was to be considered alive and in need of assistance. They all owed that to her. Seeing her here and now, living her life with him, is something he is grateful for every day.

As Kaidan is putting the final touches on his report, Shepard sets her data pad on the table and walks to her shower, stripping off articles of clothing as she goes. He fumbles over the keyboard, leaving a line of text that reads "ghdhshgdg" as he watches her go. Knowing that he's watching, she calls "finish your report first, and then you can join me." He deletes the line of typos, hurriedly wraps up the report, and follows her for an enjoyable interlude.

Their activities eventually end with them cuddling in her bed. She lay with her head resting gently on his chest, her hand absentmindedly rubbing circles on through his chest hair. He has one arm around her back and gently brushing strokes down her upper arm. He can feel her back subtly rise and fall with her breath. They lay this way for a while before he feels a slight dampness on his chest, where her head is. "Hazel, are you okay?" he asks, looking down at her. Her face is buried in him. She stifles a sob, and he feels the shift in her breathing as she forces herself to cry silently. He wraps his arms around her tighter. "Sweetheart, whatever it is, I've got you." Slowly, she pulls herself back and looks at him. He reaches up to her and gently wipes the tears from her cheeks. She pulls herself into a sitting position against the headboard, and he follows so that they are sitting side by side.

She leans her head on his shoulder and quietly says "You asked about Andrew Mason?"

"Yeah. Do you want to talk about it?"

"I knew him... from before the Alliance." she ends the sentence at barely a whisper. Her shoulders tense and she looks down at the floor. "He was one of the younger kids in the Reds before I left." He gently reaches for her hand and takes it in his as she continues. "I heard he'd gotten out, that he'd joined the Alliance some time after my death. I had hoped he'd do well and go far, but it didn't work that way. I checked his records when we got back to the ship. His team got ambushed by some pirates about seven months before the Reapers invaded. He was discharged honorably for medical reasons, for PTSD. I guess that's when Cerberus got to him."

"Hazel, I'm so sorry." he says.

"The hell of it is that I can see myself in that kid. In what he came from, in his escape. What if I somehow influenced his decision to leave like that? How many kids joined after hearing fantastical stories about my life, only to be swooped up by Cerberus when the Alliance didn't live up to their expectations or to die in battle before they got the chance to reconsider?"

"Hey, stop that. It's not your fault, Hazel."

"How many people died because of me? Will continue to die because of me? Because I failed?" Her voice cracks and she lets out a shuddering breath.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa. Backup. Failed at what?"

"I couldn't save them all. I can never save them all."

"Hazel, stop. Look at me." He gently places his hand under her chin and guides her to look at him. "You are not responsible for every person in the galaxy. You've spent far too much of your life fighting galactic wars practically on your own. Enough is enough. We stopped the Reapers. Now, we just do what we can to make things a little better. One day at a time, okay?"

She nods and he pulls her into a tight embrace. "One day at a time." She sniffles.

[girlwithshipsshitshow]

Part 12

(Around Three am the lab came in to check take Usagi's blood and nurse Rose came in to switch out his fluid and give him more antibiotics, surprisingly Usagi stayed asleep the whole time, but Misaki woke up).

Misaki: (Groggily) Rose, I can't believe they have you working all these hours.

Rose: Yeah (She stood against the wall near the doorway). Well the other Nurse was supposed to be working but she's been fired, a new nurse will be taking over later today and then I have my date with Eri. (She smiled, even in the dark Misaki could tell she was blushing). Do you have any recommendations?

Misaki: Usagi and I always go to IMI.

Rose: Isn't that expensive?

Misaki: It is when Usagi rents out the entire balcony. (Chuckles).

Rose: Well Thanks, I'll look into it.

Misaki: Yeah, good luck.

Rose: (Exits)

Misaki: (Closes eyes and tries to go back to sleep).

Aikawa: Don't just burst in there they might still be asleep.

Takahiro: No, They said we could come back at six am and it's six am, I'm going in (Slams door open)

Misaki: (Shoots up) Takahiro, What the fuck are you doing?

Takahiro: They said we could be back at six am.

Misaki: Do you have to be so loud? (Glaces at Usagi who is still fast asleep). I need to take a shower. (gets up, Grabs kaki shorts, a black hoodie, and boxers out of his backpack and walks into the bathroom).

Takahiro: God, what's his problem? (Walks over to be and starts fixing it back into a sofa.)

Aikawa: (Leans against wall, crossing arms) You burst in here at six am, they were sound asleep, Miskai has a test today, and who knows how late they were up).

Takahiro: Ew, why were they up late? They can't have sex.

Aikawa: (Angry face) Takahiro, they can't have sex, and they were up late because Misaki was probably studying and doctors and nurses were in and out all night. You have to get on board with their relships at some point or else you're going to lose them both.

Takahiro: It's just (Sigha and sits on sofa) He's my baby brother, my little baby brother, I never thought of him dating, especially dating my best friend. It's just-

Aikawa: (Sits beside Takahiro) I know it's strange, but have you seen how they look at each other? (Smiles) They're in love, and incredibly happy.

Takahiro: I know, I've never seen either one of them so happy, ever. (Smiles) I need to be okay with this.

Aikawa: Yeah, you do, they aren't going to break up ever, and they've been through a lot, it's been hard for them.

Takahiro: I didn't know that.

Aikawa: Yeah, we'll they were always scared to tell you.

Takahiro: How long have you known?

Aikawa: Eh, I kinda just figured it out. They aren't that good at hiding it.

Misaki: (Walking out of the bathroom rubbing a towel on his head). Maybe if you didn't have a key.

Aikawa: There are locks on other doors for a reason, and i'm not only talking about at your house.

Misaki: Whatever. (Walks over to chair beside Usagi, who's starting to stir).

Usagi: (Eyes slowly open, he smiles at Misaki and reaches out for him). Good Morning Misaki.

Misaki:(Grabs hand) Hey Baby.

Usagi: Did you sleep well?

Misaki: (Shrugs) I slept okay, you were out all night, they came in here around three am to do labs and stuff.

Usagi: (Chuckles) I was tired

Misaki: Good, you need your rest.

Usagi: What time is your test?

Misaki: It's at ten, but the doctor is going to come in here around eight to talk to you, and I'll leave after that.

Usagi: (Nods) Okay. (Looks over at sofa). Hey guys

Takahiro, Aikawa: Hello.

Usagi: When did they get here?

Misaki: Right at six.

Usagi: Did they wake you?

Miskai: (Sheepish look)

Usagi: (Runs thumb over back of hand) I'm sorry.

Misaki: (Shrugs) It's okay, I didn't sleep well anyway. (Sighs and rolls shoulders back)

Usagi: Hey, what's wrong

Misaki: Just the timing of all this sucks.

Usagi: I know.

Misaki: And I'm kinda pissed at you, you could've died, you're lucky you're appendix didn't actually burst.

Usagi: I know.

(There's a knock at the door and Dr. Takahashi walks in)

Dr. Takahashi: Good Morning everyone. (He walks over to the sink, washes his hands and puts on a pair of gloves). Akihiko, I'm going to look at your incision. (He walks over to Usagi and gently checks his incision). Okay, looks to be healing up nicely, your vitals look good and we can take you off the antibiotics, and have you had any pain?

Usagi: Um, no not at all.

Dr. Takahashi: Okay, perfect. I think we can get you out of here today, but it might be later this evening, I assume your fiance will be able to take care of you?

Misaki: Uh, yeah of course. I mean I have a test today at ten, I'm off tomorrow, I have another test Thursday, and next week I don't have any classes, and next saturday I graduate.

Usagi: Oh, speaking of, I'm supposed to speak at his graduation next saturday, is that okay?

Dr. Takahashi: Yes, that should be fine, No sexual activities for two weeks, stick to your regular diet, if you don't have anymore questions we can work on getting you out of here.

Usagi: Uh, wait, no sexual activities for two weeks?

Misaki: (Scoffs) Usagi, It'll be okay.

Usagi: Yeah but-

Misaki: Babe, I don't want you to die, so you can wait two weeks.

Usagi: (Sighs) Yeah, Fine. Oh what about bathing?

Dr. Takahashi: You can do all that normally, Oh and no heavy lifting.

Usagi: So what am I supposed to do?

Aikawa: You can do your work.

Usagi: Please, I'm at least four months ahead.

Aikawa: Damn I forgot about that.

Dr. Takahashi: You can drive tomorrow and walk some.

Usagi: Fine.

Misaki: (Glaces At Phone) Shit, it's Nine-Fifteen, i'm going to be late. Usagi, I'm taking your car.

Usagi: That's fine, my keys-

Misaki: Are in the table, I know I saw them yesterday. (Stands up, still holding on to Usagi's hand).

Usagi: Good luck on your Test. (Grins, swings his and Misaki's arm).

Misaki: Thank you. (Tries to let go of Usagi's hand) Usagiii, I have to go, I can't be late.

Usagi: (Releases Misaki's hand), Okay go.

Misaki: (Walks over to the table, grabs Usagi's keys, leans down to kiss Usagi). I love you, I'll see you later.

Usagi: I love you too. (Walks out of Usagi's room).

Dr. Takahashi: Okay, I'm going to start working on your discharge papers, anything else you need to ask?

Usagi: I think I'm okay.

Dr. Takahashi: Alright. (Exits).

Rose: (Walks in grinning at Aikawa). Eri, good morning.

Aikawa: Oh, Rose hey. (Blushes)

Rose: How are you?

Aikawa: I'm good, Akihiko gets to go home today.

Rose: I heard, Congrats.

Usagi: Thank you.

Rose: Where's Misaki?

Usagi: School, he had a test.

Rose: And Isaka?

Aikawa: He had to take care of some stuff at work.

Rose: Okay, well I was Just checking in. Um Eri, I have a short break, want to go get a snack?

Aikawa: (Blushes) Uh, sure. (Stands up grinning at Rose, following her out of the room).

Takahiro:(Clears throat). Usagi-San, I think I need to apologize.

Usagi: For what?

Takahiro: How I've been acting, not supporting your relationship with Misaki.

Usagi: We'll Thanks, but I'm not the one you need to apologize to.

Takahiro: What do you mean, aren't you upset. (Stands up, walks over by Usagi's bed lingering around him).

Usagi: No, not really, Misaki has been hiding this from you for almost five years, and he's been really scared to tell you.

Takahiro: Aikawa said it's been hard for you guys. Or maybe Misaki? I know how hard it can be for him to express his feelings and open up, di- did his fear of telling me and losing you maybe have something to do with it?

Usagi: Look, I've never ever doubted Misaki's feelings for me, not once. Sometimes I felt insecure and maybe wished he would've told me he loved me more, but I always knew he did. We've told you, and now He's extremely open and more affectionate, it maybe started before we told you, but-

Takahiro: So, it's kinda my fault he wasn't always affectionate?

Usagi: Look, he was terrified of having to give up what we had, and so was I, sometimes I still am, we still have to come out to the world, I want to do that soon, and that scares me, I haven't told him that. But we were both scared of ruining the relationship with you.

Takahiro: You were?

Usagi: Yes, Of course.

Takahiro: (Sits down) Did you think I would make you break up?

Usagi: We didn't know what was going to happen, We just know, we never want to let each other go, I really Really love Misaki, He's the love the of my life, my soulmate, my best friend, He's my person Takahiro.

Takahiro: (Grins) I guess I didn't completely understand how you guys felt about each other.

Usagi: Well, now you do.

Takahiro: He's just my baby brother, I want to protect him, I guess he doesn't need me anymore.

Usagi: Come on he'll always need you.

Takahiro: Yeah, but now he has you, you've been protecting him for the past four years.

Usagi: Almost five, not that it matters but after he next saturday is our anniversary.

Takahiro: Wait, his graduation day?

Usagi: Yeah.

Takahiro: (Smiles) That's really sweet.

Usagi: (Smirks) I, can't believe we've been together five years, and the two of us are getting married, I'm so happy.

Takahiro: I've known you a long time and I don't think i've ever seen you this generally happy... Wait (scoffs, Shocked look) i'm and idot. This, aurora of happiness started when you met Misaki. How didn't I figure it out?

Usagi: (Shrugs) I have no idea.

Takahiro: And Misaki changed a lot when he met you.

Usagi: (Nods)

Takahiro: Look, just keep him happy.

Usagi: I will, I'm not going to hurt him, I love him so much.

Takahiro: Good. Now let's talk kids.

Usagi: ugh

(Rose and Aikawa are sitting in the vending room finishing up their snack).

Rose: I think they should be done now

Aikawa: Eh, what are you talking about?

Rose: (Takes last sip of her soda, tossing the can in the trash behind her). Takahiro and Akihiko.

Aikawa: We came up here so they could talk?

Rose: We'll mostly so I could hang out with you, But I figured they should talk.

Aikawa: I'm sure they did talk. And I'm happy to be up here with you.

Rose: (Smiles, reaches out for Aikawa's hand)

Aikawa: (Bluses) This is nice, um can we still go on a date tonight?

Rose: Yeah, of course and it actually looks like I might get off early.

Aikawa: Oh, awesome!

Rose: (laughs) I- I'll let you know, but we should head back down. (Stands)

Aikawa: Yeah. (Stands up)

Rose: (Takes Aikawa's hand and they head back down to Usagi's room).

Misaki: (Drums fingers on the steering wheel of Usagi's car, while wating for him to pick up, he just got his grade back for his German exam and he passed with flying colors, he felt really good about his German exam and the last test he had was psychology).

Usagi: Misaki? Are you okay?

Misaki: Great acctally. I got a 95 on my German exam, I feel extremely confident about my Psychology exam on Thursday!

Usagi: Wow Misaki! I'm so proud of you!

Misaki: (Chuckles) Thanks Usagi, I'm on my way back now do you need anything?

Usagi: Just you.

Misaki: (Blushes) Shut up!

Usagi: I can tell you're blushing.

Misaki: (Laughs) You know me so well Usagi.

Usagi: Yes I do, and I love you.

Misaki: I love you too, I'll see you soon.

Usagi: Can't wait.