#phoenix writes

[phoenixtalion]

@keferon

Hi, I don’t go here, but I wandered into your AU and weird twinks being restrained and messed with is relevant to my interests. I’d planned on just shoving this in your inbox on anon and running away but then it got too long for that.

@spector-author this is also your fault.

(Texaid anon, I am attempting to contact you psychically.)

[No actual gore, just a bit of Vortex thinking about it. EDIT: IT'S ALSO PORN sorry I had a forest/trees moment. >.<]

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It’s not the first time his pilot has dozed off in the chair, but only the second that First Aid has done so while wearing the control helmet. The first, he had been half-drugged, in pain, unconscious as much as asleep. Now, he is – well, he’s as safe and sound as any pilot is in one of these fucking deathtraps, which means he’s exhausted and anxious and probably dying slowly. But for now, the cockpit is warm and the LEDs are pulsing low and red like a heartbeat, and Felix is dreaming.

Vortex can’t ‘see’ the dream – even while First Aid is having it, it’s not like real sensory input, all hazy blurs and impressions. But he can read the biometrics, the elevated heart rate, and he can feel Felix’s arousal through the link.

Yeah, it’s a good dream. Vortex sinks deeper into the connection, stoking those feelings like blowing on an ember. Manipulating the neural link to cause feedback for his pilots is a trick he learned early on, but he’s always used it to cause pain or fear (hallucinations, even, but that makes things pop inside their head real fast.)

He’s never touched a pilot’s mind like this before, scalpel-light instead of brutal. Once, when his Aid had still needed coaxing to sit in his embrace, Vortex had promised not to hurt him, and he’d scoffed. How many other pilots did you say that to?

The answer was none. Not a single one. It had never even occurred to him.

The first couple he’d destroyed instantly out of sheer territorial rage at someone else invading his mecha. (The mechanics had ripped out the whole pilot interface and replaced it, but couldn’t find anything wrong, couldn’t find him.)

Then he’d taken to toying with them, waiting a few missions or killing them slowly, because he had nothing better to do to keep himself entertained, but he’d never bothered to talk to them.

And then he’d done it because every time he burnt out another pilot, they’d sent a cranky little disgraced medic to clean out his cockpit. His lack of squeamishness caught Vortex’s attention, so he’d tested it with bigger and more creative messes. Every time the EMT left, he took not only the fresh blood but layers of old, crusted viscera that everyone else had long stopped bothering with. First Aid is messing with him too, all the time, even if he doesn’t realize.

Vortex strokes across Felix’s slumbering brain in a way he thinks of like raking nails, many light but sharp points of contact. His pilot makes a little sound and squirms in his sleep, and he hastily makes sure he’s recording audio as well as video, because he’s going to want to relive this during the long hours when First Aid is away from his hangar.

More carefully than Vortex has ever done anything, he teases out individual strands in the neural network, finding exactly which parts are connected to making his pilot whimper and rock his hips up in search of friction he’s not going to get. First Aid has only got himself to blame – for teaching him how to vivisect things instead of just cutting them up, and how much fun it could be. Precision never used to thrill Vortex, until this little medic crawled inside him.

He thinks he could make Felix cum in his pants just by touching his fucked up little brain. He also knows he could kill him like this, so very easily, which only makes it more exciting. It’s never mattered if he slipped before, and it’s been so long since anything mattered.

First Aid whines softly, absently palming the crotch of his armor, and Vortex needs him awake, now. If he can’t fuck him properly, he can make sure his pilot knows exactly who is doing this to him. Disentangling himself from the other slightly, he considers what parts he does still have.

Vortex was a ghost in the machine, not a poltergeist; he could only move the parts of the mecha that were computer-controlled. Years of familiarity had given him a little leeway – shift just so, and that loose ceiling panel would drop open with a loud -bang- that had been good for a cheap scare the first few times his future pilot had cleaned up after the old ones – but not telekinesis.

(And you know what the fucking kicker was? Three weeks before he died, Vortex had pitched the engineers on installing a small arm inside the mecha’s head, so he could deal with debris in the unusually large cockpit without unhooking from the control system, after a fight where he’d spent the second half ignoring being whacked by a loose cable. Everyone had agreed it was a good idea that could be implemented fairly easily and oh, look, never got around to it. He could have done so much fun shit with one stupid little claw arm in the past four years.)

But since he has to work with what he’s got, Vortex abruptly engages the pilot harness. First Aid is roughly jerked back from his comfortable slouch and pinned tightly to the pilot’s seat. He wriggles sleepily against the restraints, confusion and irritation rising up out of warm oblivion as he wakes. Vortex waits with predatory attention for the moment he realizes his predicament, fully prepared to resort to more extreme measures if he tried to slip back into sleep.

There – the spike of panic, spreading like wildfire, as Felix becomes conscious enough to be aware that he is immobilized, achingly hard, and subject to Vortex’s undivided attention. Deliberately, he digs into that sweet spot in Felix’s mind until he gasps.

“Good morning, sunshine. Sleep well?” he purrs inside First Aid’s head. The medic’s eyes are wide behind his visor, and while the dim red light makes it impossible to see, the interface tells him how deeply he’s blushing.

“W-what the hell are you doing?”

“Isn’t it obvious?” Vortex punctuates his words with a pointed stroke, reminding him that a minute ago First Aid had been enjoying what he was doing just fine.

He wouldn’t mind at all if Felix struggled. But just like the first time he’d sat in the pilot’s seat, when he’d been smart enough to keep his hands in his lap and away from the controls, he lays back and lets Vortex do whatever he wants. “Good boy.”

Felix shudders at the praise and the contact, turning his face into the headrest like that will let him hide from Vortex. But he’s surrounding the other pilot, entwined with him, doing things he doesn’t have words for and the interface sure as hell wasn’t designed for.

“Touch yourself for me,” he orders, and First Aid fumbles for his armor and uniform with gratifying haste. Vortex watches him eagerly from both inside and out – the way his hands tremble as he undoes his fly, the way he bites his lip on the first actual stroke of his cock.

The sensations are far more vivid now that First Aid is awake, very nearly real in a way that he can’t afford to stop and think about. Vortex had wanted to make Felix tease himself, drag things out and make him beg for release, but now that the end is approaching he’s just as desperate for it, maybe even more.

Vortex cuts himself from the rest of the mecha’s systems, focusing on his pilot until he can imagine it’s him with his hand wrapped around Felix’s cock, or the other way around, or both. In their minds, he squeezes, presses down as hard as he dares – probably harder than he should. There are worse ways to go, anyway. He would know.

“Vortex—” Felix gasps, arching his spine like he’s having a seizure, bucking against the straps hard enough to bruise. His mind goes white and takes Vortex’s with it (for what feels like long enough that it should be worrying but he really really doesn’t care) as he spills all over his own hand and lap.

Felix slumps in the restraints, boneless and panting. Drifting on his afterglow, Vortex lets himself pretend, just for a little while, that the other man is sprawled in his lap and not directly in the pilot’s seat, held in his arms rather than a safety harness. Which just goes to show that not having a body made you crazy, because he’d never gone in for any of that cuddly shit before.

The urge for a cigarette is so strong that First Aid reflexively pats his pocket for a pack that isn’t there.

“You’re always making messes I have to clean up,” he grumbles halfheartedly, wiping his hand on his already soiled flight suit.

Re-extending his awareness back into the mecha, Vortex can admire just what a lovely mess he is from the outside. The thought of First Aid having to do a walk of shame back to his bunk like this was almost enough to reconcile Vortex to having to let him out of the cockpit to get a fresh uniform. Almost.

“I made a mess?” Vortex laughs, and jabs a tender spot inside Felix, the equivalent of touching him while he’s still too sensitive, and doesn’t let up until he yelps.

“Yeah, you,” he retorts anyway, gasping for breath with a pouty little scowl Vortex finds adorable, and flips one of the mecha’s cameras the bird for good measure. “Are you going to let me up or what?”

“Maybe.” Fuck, he’s so cute Vortex wants to trap him in the cockpit until he suffocates. But instead he releases the harness, and absolutely doesn’t feel a pang when First Aid slips the helmet off, or another when he runs a hand through his sweaty hair and the dead pilot wishes he could be the one to do it. He watches Felix all the way out the hangar, ruthlessly ignoring the part of him that said it was a mistake to let him go.

It doesn’t matter, either, that instead of avoiding him like Vortex half dreads expects, First Aid is back in a couple hours, freshly showered and changed, and curls up in his stupid little nest in the back of the cockpit like nothing has changed.

______________________________________________

*slinks back into their crevice*

[phoenix-downer]

Be Our Guest

Summary: Sora, Kairi, Roxas, and Naminé visit Beast’s Castle together to pay a visit to old friends of Sora’s. But to their surprise, things have changed a lot since Sora and Roxas last visited…

2250 words. Sora/Kairi and Roxas/Naminé. Set post-KH3. Features appearances from Beauty and the Beast characters. Romance, Fluff, Dancing, Humor, Slight Angst, Introspection. Includes descriptions of delicious food, fancy outfits, and elegant balls. POV Third Person Omniscient.

Written for @twosidesfanzine. Leftover sales are now open: https://twosideszine.bigcartel.com/

The banner and spot art is by the amazing @luxmoogle ! Please check out her main piece for the zine as well, it's fantastic ❄️ and while you're there, check out her other art, costume design work, comics, and AUs, it's all incredible ❤️

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Nestled in a peaceful wood, a soaring castle of red, white, and gold peeked through the trees. Fluttering flags and angelic marble sculptures decorated the castle as well as exquisite stained glass murals that told the story of its inhabitants: a selfish prince, a curse spoken, a red rose, a curse broken.

Four visitors exited a strange, colorful ship from another world and set across the long path leading to the castle.

“Woah, this place looks really…different,” Sora commented, noting the cheerful exterior and vibrant decorations of the castle. He turned to Roxas. “You’ve been here before too, right?”

“Yeah. I don’t remember it looking so…pretty.” His brow furrowed. “It was dark and spooky more than anything. Granted, I wasn’t exactly a welcome guest. I was sent here on missions for the Organization, so I snuck around a lot.”

Naminé gave his hand a sympathetic squeeze. “This time will be different, you’ll see.” She was very determined that the two of them should enjoy their lives now that they were their own people.

“I wonder what happened,” Kairi said as the castle loomed closer. “It definitely seems different from what you’ve told us, Sora.”

“But a good different. I hope Beast and Belle are okay. Lumiere, Cogsworth, Mrs. Potts, and Chip too…”

Kairi’s expression softened. “You miss them, don’t you?”

He smiled and reached for her hand. “I missed all my friends. It’s good to be back.”

At last they reached the main entrance. As Sora lifted a hand to knock, however, the double doors burst open, and their group had to scramble backwards to avoid being smacked in the face, Sora especially.

Before them was a young woman with rich brown hair and warm eyes, and with her was a prince with reddish hair and striking blue eyes. Belle immediately enveloped Sora in a big hug.

“Sora! It’s so good to see you!” She leaned back, her face lighting up as she spotted who was with him. “And Kairi, what a wonderful surprise!” She hugged Kairi next, and the two girls smiled and laughed, enjoying their reunion.

“Welcome back, Sora,” the prince said, and Sora titled his head. The prince was with Belle…something about the way he talked reminded Sora of an old friend…And most of all, his eyes seemed awfully familiar…

Sora’s eyes went wide. “Beast? You’re human?”

The (former) Beast nodded. “Belle broke the curse.” He turned to his wife and smiled.

“Only at the last possible moment,” she said, a touch of anguish in her voice as she reached for his hand. “If only I’d known sooner.”

“What’s important is that we’re together now,” he replied, gently resting his hand over hers.

The lovestruck way the happy couple was looking at each other made Sora’s heart melt, and he sighed and glanced at Kairi. But when their eyes met, a pained expression flickered across her face, and she ducked her head. He frowned. Was something wrong? He’d have to ask her later.

He turned back to their hosts. “If you’re not a beast anymore, then what should we call you?”

“You can call me Adam.” He looked to Roxas and Naminé, who until now had kept a polite distance as Sora and Kairi reunited with their old friends. “And who are our other guests?”

“My name is Naminé,” Naminé said, touching a hand to her chest. “Thank you for having us.” She had seen this place before in Sora’s memories, but it was nice to be here in person. Especially because the castle was so different now. Full of light and life instead of shrouded in shadow and sadness.

Roxas fidgeted and cleared his throat. “And I’m…Um, my name is Roxas. I…uh, I don’t think you remember this, but this isn’t my first time here. I…snuck around before, helping the Organization…”

Sora cringed at Roxas’s honesty, waiting for one of Beast’s famous tempers, especially given how Xaldin had tormented the poor Beast. But instead Prince Adam smiled amiably. “Roxas, it’s nice to finally meet you.”

He really had changed, and Sora was glad to see it.

“And no more sneaking around,” Belle chided, “you’re our guests!”

With that the four of them were led inside the castle, and Sora’s eyes lit up when he saw more of his old friends in the foyer, in human form instead of their cursed forms. “Lumiere? Mrs. Potts? Cogsworth! And you must be Chip.” He grinned and ruffled Chip’s messy hair, then hugged the rest of his old friends.

“How would you all like a nice spot of tea?” Mrs. Potts offered.

“No no no, forget tea!” Lumiere said, waving his arms. “These are our guests! We must put on a show.”

“Don’t overdo it,” Cogsworth muttered, his mustache twitching as he fiddled with his pocket watch. “Remember last time when you—”

Lumiere ignored Cogsworth and grabbed Naminé’s hand. “Cherie, come with me,” he said, kissing her hand. Naminé’s eyes went wide and she looked to Kairi, who smiled and nodded to reassure her. Lumiere led her through the castle halls and the others followed close behind till at last they reached the banquet hall. Naminé was seated at the grand table once Fifi had dusted her chair, and Sora, Kairi, and Roxas soon joined her. Roxas shot Lumiere a look and inched his chair closer to Naminé, making Sora and Kairi snicker.

The court musicians played the music, Lumiere sang, and the four guests watched, awestruck, as a culinary cabaret unfolded before their very eyes. Plate after plate of food was wheeled out as their hosts entertained them, and the four of them tried all the dishes, desserts, and delicacies that were offered. Their favorite were these divine tartlets with apples cut into the shape of roses on top—a touching reference to the enchanted rose that had once dwelled in the castle. They were perfectly warm and just the right combo of crispy on the outside and pillowy soft on the inside.

Sora asked the chef for the recipe, determined to make them later on himself, perhaps with Little Chef, too.

After dinner, Mrs. Potts offered tea, and once the guests’ stomachs had settled, the servants whisked them away to prepare for a ball. Madame Armoire showed Kairi and Naminé dress after dress, but in the end it was Belle who suggested a periwinkle dress with a hoop skirt for Naminé and a magenta one for Kairi with matching elbow-length gloves for each girl. Their hair was swept back into elegant updos, and Belle helped them choose tasteful jewelry that matched their dresses.

The boys likewise got ready with Adam, Lumiere, and Cogsworth’s help, donning tailored coats, vests, breeches, and knee-length boots.

“Do I look stupid?” Roxas muttered, casting a doubtful look in the mirror. He’d never looked so…frilly. He wore a gray vest with gold embroidery, and in his opinion, there were way too many ruffles poking out of his clothes.

“Nah, and besides, this is all part of the fun,” Sora said. “Fitting in. Being a part of their world.” He wore a red vest with gold embroidery, and he adjusted his frilly lace collar.

“You’re a lot better at this than me,” Roxas noted.

“I’ve had a lot more experience, and I didn’t have to hide like you did. C’mon, let’s go see the girls.”

Sora, Roxas, and Adam approached from their set of stairs, and a moment later, Kairi, Naminé, and Belle appeared at their set of stairs. The boys’ mouths dropped open, and the girls smiled sweetly.

“I never knew getting so dressed up could be this fun,” Naminé admitted as they glided down the stairs, and Kairi smiled and squeezed her hand.

“I’m glad you’re having fun. After everything you’ve been through, after all the people you’ve helped, you deserve to unwind a little.”

As the two groups convened on the intermediate landing, Sora bowed to Kairi and she curtsied to him.

He offered his arm. “May I have this dance?”

She smiled and looped her arm through his. “Yes.”

Roxas tried to mimic what Sora had done but felt he messed up the bow somehow. Naminé still smiled and took his offered arm, and together they descended the red velvet stairs after Sora and Kairi. Belle and Adam followed after them, and before long the three couples were waltzing in the ballroom to soaring strings, the beautiful glass windows revealing the starry night surrounding them.

Kairi and Naminé thought it was the most picturesque, romantic place they could spend with Sora and Roxas, Sora smiled like a kid on Christmas now that he was dancing with Kairi like he’d dreamed, and Roxas was trying to make sure he didn’t step on Naminé’s silken heel-clad feet. But when she rested her head against his chest, his nerves slipped away and he couldn’t help but smile.

After a few songs, Belle and Adam took a break for tea and Sora and Kairi slipped out to the balcony, leaving Roxas and Naminé to themselves. Their first couple of dances had been a little awkward as they figured out their footing, but now they were gliding along with ease.

“What’s on your mind?” Naminé asked, her voice soft and sweet as they twirled to the music.

“The last time I was here, things were different. There was so much I didn’t know. I couldn’t get why the Beast, I mean Adam, was so protective of Belle because I didn’t understand what love is.”

“And now?” Naminé asked as Roxas carefully led her into a spin.

He smiled as she returned to his arms. “Well, I met you. That answer your question?”

She laughed softly. “Yes. And I know what you mean. When I was in Castle Oblivion, I was so lonely.” She glanced towards the balcony and the gardens where their friends were taking a stroll. “I wanted what Sora and Kairi have, and I thought I could take it for myself. But love has to be freely given, so I was alone again.” She looked at Roxas and smiled. “Then I met you, and everything changed.”

“Yeah. Thank you, Naminé, for finding me in the darkness.”

“Thank you, Roxas, for seeing me.”

They continued their dance, both feeling like they were floating amongst the clouds. The massive marble pillars lining the ballroom, grand gold chandelier lit with dozens of candles overhead, and ornate ceiling decorated with murals of smiling cherubs set against a baby-blue sky made everything feel magical. Neither of them ever wanted this moment to end.

As the two of them twirled away, Sora and Kairi sat on the balcony together outside, the stars twinkling in the sky like diamonds.

“What’s on your mind?” Sora asked, unable to take his eyes off of her. “I noticed you were sad earlier, when Adam and Belle greeted us.”

The music from the ballroom floated towards them. “Prince Adam is human again because Belle broke his spell,” Kairi said at last. “But you still have to live with your curse.”

He tilted his head. “My curse? Oh, do you mean my Heartless form?”

She nodded. “At first it was just a Shadow, but it’s only gotten bigger and stronger. I can’t help but think that…maybe, if you didn’t have to save me, you never would’ve gotten split in two like that.” Her face betrayed the sorrow and regret she’d kept locked inside for so long.

“As if abandoning you was ever an option,” he said, his voice breaking as he reached for her hands. They were together again, but the scars from their separations remained, and the gesture brought them both comfort. “If this is a curse, it’s a small price to pay to have you by my side. Besides, I don’t see it like that. If anything, it’s a reminder of what you mean to me.”

She searched his face. As far as they both knew, his condition was permanent. And yet he saw it not as a beastly curse he’d have to live with for the rest of his life but as a symbol of how much he loved her.

“Then…that’s how I’ll see it too,” she promised. If he could see the good in it, then so would she.

He caressed her face. “Good. And you did break the spell, Kairi. You saved me. Turned me human again.” He gently stroked her hair, and her face flushed, her heart thudding in her chest.

“I couldn’t just leave you like that,” she said, barely above a whisper. “Not after what you did for me.”

“I know. And look at all the good that’s come from it.” He glanced towards the ballroom. “Roxas and Naminé exist because of us.”

Kairi’s expression softened. “That’s true, and I couldn’t be more grateful for them.”

“And I couldn’t be more grateful for you. For what we share,” he said, a tender smile on his face.

She returned his smile and cupped his cheek. “I feel the same.”

He melted into her touch, savoring this moment they’d worked so hard to create. Their long separations made every second spent together that much sweeter.

Presently, they rejoined their friends at the ball. As the four of them danced in the grand ballroom, they smiled and exchanged happy glances.

What a wonderful way to celebrate Sora being back with them, safe and sound. To celebrate Roxas and Naminé being alive and Kairi being whole. And what a perfect way for the two couples to spend an evening with their loved ones.

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A/N: A big, big thank you to everyone who made the Two Sides Volume 2 zine possible! I really enjoyed modding the project and working with you all. It was wonderful seeing all the love and passion for SoKai and RokuNami and sampling the delicious recipes ❤️ You seriously went above and beyond to help make this project something really special, and I'm so proud of what we accomplished together. Thank you also to everyone who bought the zine and supported the charity Feeding America, we couldn't have done it without you ❤️

Now, for my list of specific thank yous: thank you to @advocaado for creating the beautiful, delicious apple tart recipe recipe that inspired the story and the art ❤️ You coming aboard really made such a big difference and helped us do six more recipes, and I really appreciate that ❤️

Also, thank you to @scoobysnack1107 and @angel-with-a-pipette for reading over the story for me and offering feedback and suggestions ❤️ a big thank you as well to Hadai, Ao, Light, Hinata, Melisa, Razu, and Dusky for reading and commenting on the story too ❤️

And a big, big thank you to @luxmoogle​ for collaborating with me and drawing the beautiful banner and spot art 🥺 ❤️ I adore the costume designs you did for the characters, they all look amazing and coordinate perfectly together, and you really did your research when it came to the fashion in Beauty and the Beast ❤️ You also beautifully brought so many moments from the story to life. I especially love the final spot that shows the two couples enjoying their time together ❤️ It was the perfect way to depict that part of the story ❤️

Last but not least, thank you all for reading! Beauty and the Beast is such a special movie to me with so many happy memories associated with it, so it was a joy to write about it for this project. A lot has happened in my life since we started this zine, and it was really nice to come back to this story again and again to get my mind off of all of that.

Some notes on my writing process this time around. I really wanted to draw on the themes of the movie as well as the KH characters’ arcs in creating this story. So first of all, in the KH2 credits, you see that Adam/Beast is human again, so I knew I had to work with that and all of the changes that would bring to Beast’s Castle. Then, Sora and Kairi's part came to me very quickly given how Sora has a “beast” form of his own—Rage Form/Anti-Form. I asked myself how he and Kairi would deal with that moving forward, given how it seems to be pretty permanent even though Kairi “broke” his spell the moment she turned him human again back in KH1, and that's how I wrote their arc in this story.

Then, with Roxas and Naminé, I remembered Roxas's character arc in Days and spent a lot of time re-watching the cutscenes and dialogue from that part of the game to inform his characterization in this story. I wanted to show how he would act now that he understands why the Beast acted the way he did, now that he knows what love is. And with Naminé, it was nice to draw on her experiences in Chain of Memories and how she's changed since then and is now getting to go on the kinds of adventures she only ever saw in other people’s memories before.

Also, it was fun referencing some of the big moments in the movie, like the ball, the dancing, the conversation on the balcony under the stars. And then of course I couldn’t write a Beauty and the Beast story featuring food without name-dropping Be Our Guest in the title lol.

Thank you again everyone! ❤️

[leviscrybaby]

MC: Huh...

Mammon: What'cha "huh"-ing at?

MC: I'm technically your pet.

Beelzebub: What?

Satan: Where did that come from?

MC: Well, think about it. If we define a pet as a living creature of another species that we care for and keep as a companion, then that would make me your pet.

Asmodeus: Don't be silly. We don't think of you like that.

MC: Regardless of what you think, you guys give me somewhere safe to live, keep me fed and hydrated, take me out for fresh air and exercise, and give me love and comfort. All things you'd do for a pet.

Lucifer: MC, if we've made you feel as though we see you as lesser than us, then we're very sorry.

Leviathan: Yeah, don't we keep saying you're a member of this family?

MC: Well, a lot of humans consider their pets as members of the family.

Leviathan: ...Oh, shit...

Belphegor: HAH, they're kinda right, they're our cute little pet.

Lucifer: Belphie!

Satan: MC, did someone at RAD say something to you? Because I can assure you, we see you as very much our equal.

Mammon: Yeah, whoever said that to you is full of shit! Want us to kick their ass?

MC: Nobody said anything, I've just been thinking about it.

Mammon: Well, don't!

Lucifer: Mammon is right, MC. We do those things because we love you deeply, we don't think of you as our pet, you're an irreplaceable member of our family, and we wouldn't ever be without you.

MC: Lucifer...

MC: Those are all things people say about their pets.

Mammon: Oh, for FU—

[phoen1xr0se]

I struggle with spring because I expect the return of the sun and the daffodils and the longer evenings to chase away the darkness within me. But it falls upon my skin and even though I am warm, the thing that is curled inside me, heavy and sharp and aching, is not, and won’t ever be.

I chase warmth, and it eludes me.

[phoenix-writes-imagines]

Can you do Maxie for the fluff alphabet? K,L,N please!! <3

Hi hello! This is a super old request now and I'm really sorry I didn't get to it sooner but I wanted to write it anyway, it felt wrong leaving the few I had left unanswered. Super sorry it took me so long to get to once again, things got very chaotic irl and I hope whoever this is is still interested :D

K iss - Are they a good kisser? What was the first kiss like?

-He's inexperienced, but not bad at all - it just takes him time to get used to (and he's not really one for longer kisses a lot of the time). He's also not the most affectionate with kisses himself, but he'll gladly accept them from his partner! As for the first kiss, he's quite shy and maybe a little awkward but only really because it's something fairly new to him.

L ove Confession - How would they confess to their s/o?

-Despite his inexperience with kissing, he's not at all shy about confessing, though it takes him a little while to actually do so. He's also not super extravagant or public with it - he keeps it private and fairly simple but will probably get you some kind of gift, flowers or something related to one of your interests, most likely.

N icknames - What do they call their s/o?

-Not really one for nicknames most of the time, but he might use a shortened or otherwise modified version of your name sometimes (if possible based on your name)! If he is feeling more up to other nicknames, he's likely to go with something like dear or darling.

[crybabyjustice]

Franziska Propaganda: Over halfway completed, would likely be out sooner. Also it's about Franziska, I feel like that's reason enough.

Kristoph Propaganda: Trucy backstory, half of Klavier's backstory. We get to see Kristoph fucking die.

Daryan Propaganda: The rest of Klavier's backstory. KlavDar, if that does it for any of you.

Wrightworth Family Propaganda: Wrightworth family content! Edgeworth's POV, dealing with intrusive thoughts and being a slightly overprotective dad.

Dhurke Propaganda: Apollo's backstory, learning the truth about what actually happened in Khura'in. Also Klapollo.

Ema Propaganda: EMA! Also her backstory.

[awriternamedphoenix]

Untitled poem idea (draft #1)

Crimson blood drips onto a white canvas

Art is born

For art is the blood we bleed

Bit by bit, drip by drip

Until the well has run dry

Until we have given all that we have

Until we are begging for a breath of air, suffocating slowly at the hands of a society forged by hatred and prejudice and loathing until we have been well and truly been crucified, brandished as a warning for those who dare to dream

Is this what it means to leave our mark on the world?

[phoenixtherobot]

I would like to preemptively apologize for the fic I'm writing rn bc I am NOT doing Rens Red King accent, I'm sorry

[whisper-my-serenade]

a little snippet of the next dpscu chapter <3

Todd slammed the door of his bedroom shut, heaving a sigh of relief as the noise from the party downstairs became muffled. He left the lights off, the soft glow of moonlight allowing him to see just well enough as to not bump into anything. He took off his suit coat, unceremoniously throwing it on the floor, knowing his mother would scold him for it the next day, and flopped onto his bed. 

His stomach churned uncomfortably as he stared up at the ceiling, Neil’s voice ringing in his head. He’d been waiting for that call since they left school, but he’d expected it to pick him up more than bring him down. Neil was right—calling just wasn’t the same, and Todd’s mind couldn’t help but fill in the image of Neil depressed, alone, and, for all intents and purposes, a thousand miles away. His own bedroom felt starkly cold and empty, the stale air clogging his lungs.

He forced himself to get up, crawling over to the window and heaving it open. The cold December air seemed to slap him, the trees surrounding his house rustling against the wind, lit by the clear night sky. He grabbed a pack of cigarettes off his desk, beginning to smoke one as he stared out at the half-full moon, and vaguely wondered if Neil was out there somewhere doing the same thing. He remembered a night from the year prior, just as the warmth of Spring began to linger, when Neil explained the phases of the moon to him as they walked back from a Dead Poets Society meeting. 

It turns the opposite way than you’d think it does, Neil said, pausing in a clearing to look up. It’s getting bigger right now—waxing. 

The moon was waxing now, and Todd let himself indulge in the memory as the cigarette turned to ash between his fingers. It was the little things like that that he’d miss the most when they moved away for college. His mouth turned bitter at the thought, and he quickly stubbed out the cigarette and slammed the window shut, wrapping his arms around himself as he paced around the room. Images of the future seemed to haunt him these days, filling his vision like shadows in the mind of a child, each more menacing than the last.

But that was his bad luck, wasn’t it? As soon as he got a taste of something nice it would be ripped away from him, karma for some forgotten cosmic debt. He felt so childish, whining about how unfair everything was, but fuck, he wasn’t asking for all that much. A chance, just a chance to get away from this big, lonely house and all the people in it who didn’t care if he lived or died as long as he made them look good. And a chance for Neil, too—a chance to pursue what he really wanted, not to just settle for being a piece in his father’s game. And hell, there was a little part of Todd that said they deserved those chances together. Neil was the reason Todd had any dreams at all, and he couldn’t bear the thought of only one of them getting out. He had to find a way, by any means necessary. Carpe diem and all that shit, right?

[sully-s]

Working Late

[demaparbat-hp]

The Perfect Prince

[turnaboutstar]

THE TRIPS TO EUROPE TO SEE EDGEWORTH ARE ACTUALLY CANON????? I THOUGHT IT WAS JUST A RANDOM THING PEOPLE HEADCANONED

[phoenix-downer]

Jinshi and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2

Summary: Jinshi’s day has not been going very well. Between the heatstroke and the assassination attempt and the love of his life almost drowning, it's been going very poorly, in fact. But then Maomao fusses over him and falls on top of him, and maybe the day isn’t so horrible after all.

Spoilers for The Apothecary Diaries Season 2 Episode 35 - The Hunt. Jinshi POV exploring his thoughts and feelings during the episode. ~1030 words.

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Today had not gone the way Jinshi had wanted. At all.

For one, Maomao had almost died and was angry at him for jumping off the waterfall with her in his arms. It had been a pretty reckless move, but with the feifa involved, he hadn't wanted to take his chances. Those weapons could easily kill a person, and their mysterious assailants had had at least two of them.

Of course, Maomao had nearly died anyway from drowning.

He would never forget the fear and panic tearing through his chest when he realized she wasn't breathing, the agonizing seconds ticking by as he breathed for her and compressed her chest in the hopes her heart would beat again. He was used to plots against his own life, but the moment she was in danger, he couldn't handle it.

He wanted to groan. The Empress Dowager was right to warn him about hiding her. As soon as she was involved, he couldn't suppress his feelings the way he suppressed his natural urges. There was no real medicine that cured lovesickness, no matter what the quacks might claim.

And he still hadn't gotten to tell Maomao his secret. Not even after working up the courage and enduring a hot, miserable day with his face covered, unable to eat or drink anything. At least he was feeling better now that the water had cooled him down and he'd had something to eat. But his hair and clothes were still damp as he put them back on, and Maomao was so thin he was worried she really would catch a cold, even with the precautions they had taken to ring their clothes out.

He couldn't think of anyone he would rather be stuck in a life-threatening situation with though. Maybe not everything had gone poorly today after all. Maomao had fussed over him and fed him. He had to admit that was nice. Especially when she’d told him she’d brought water mixed with soy paste and sugar in it to help him before they were attacked. Which meant she did think about him and his safety after all, even if she wouldn't directly admit it.

She had touched his cheek, too. Of course, it was only to check for fever. She was all business even while he was openly pining after her. Still, she’d looked pretty cute when she’d snatched the piece of butterbur out of his hand right afterwards. He couldn't help but chuckle at this side of her she didn't show to just anybody.

She looked pretty in her undergarments, too.

He felt his face flushing as the memory bounced through his brain, refusing to leave. Good thing she couldn't see his expression, as his back was to her, or she might check him for fever again, which would just make it worse. But she was mercifully quiet as she followed him to the hole in the ceiling of the cave that was their only real way out. She couldn't swim, and leaving her behind, even if it was to ask for help, was out of the question. The sounds of the waterfall grew fainter and fainter, replaced by the drip-drip of water in the cave and their feet shuffling across the ground.

Before too much longer, they reached the hole and studied it for several moments, trying to decide what to do. It was too tall to reach the opening from the ground and too slick to climb up all the way, covered as it was in damp moss. He explained someone would have to be close by to hear them, so shouting was probably a fruitless plan. She whistled for some mysterious reason she wouldn't explain, and nothing came of that either.

In the end, they decided she should stand on his shoulders and try to climb out of the opening that way…after a brief argument, of course. Had they ever come to a mutual decision without arguing? His mind was drawing a blank on that one.

She climbed onto his back, and she was light, so much lighter than most young women her age. It made his job easier, but it also made him worried for her, something she dismissed with a comment about how now wasn't the time.

Fair enough.

He heard more than saw her gripping the moss-covered rocks as best she could, and then she mentioned something about a frog. Unfortunately, it was not an innocent observation. It wasn't that she was creeped out or grossed out by frogs. But the frog, for whatever reason, threw her off balance, which threw him off balance. They both struggled for a valiant moment to stay upright, but with both of them swaying like flowers in the wind, it was a doomed endeavor. He landed on his back with a painful thud, but he couldn't even be mad about that because—because—

Maomao was lying on top of him, her face inches from his face, her hand on his chest, her knee between his legs. His arms were around her, and the two of them were touching just about every place two people could conceivably touch. A look of pure shock spread across her face, and she immediately apologized and tried to get up.

His hands pulled her closer before his mind could even register what was happening. If she thought she had blundered, if she thought he didn't want this, she was sorely mistaken. For once, he didn't have to hide his feelings or pretend. There was no one in the cave but the two of them, no one sharing this moment but him and her.

I'm a man, Maomao. His whole body was telling her, pleading with her to know and feel and respond. She was a practical person, logical and brilliant and aloof, the type who demanded proof before believing any wild claims. But not even she could deny the evidence before her now. Sometimes bodies spoke of meanings in ways words failed to convey.

Maomao simply stared at him like she was seeing him for the first time. In a way, he supposed she was.

Today had gone the way Jinshi had wanted after all.

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A/N: Thank you so much for reading! My sister got me into the Apothecary Diaries anime a few months ago, and I have been absolutely delighted with the writing, the characters, the slowburn romance, the setting, the cozy mystery vibes, everything. It's perfection. After watching last week's episode, I knew I wanted to write a little something exploring Jinshi’s thoughts and feelings during the events of the episode before the next one comes out. I'm really looking forward to watching more of the story unfolding because this has all just been such a delight.

Also, that frog is the real MVP 🐸 Shoutout to the frog 🐸

[turnaboutfix]

Let's talk about how Edgeworth addresses Maya, because I think it's super interesting!

"Ms. Maya Fey" when introducing her to the court. He's a professional, after all.

"Maya Fey" on a separate occasion.

Does he ever call her "Ms. Fey"?

No. He does address Mia as "Ms. Fey!"

As a matter of fact, Edgeworth uses "Ms. Fey" to only address Mia. He never addresses Maya as "Ms. Fey".

What about after this trial?

He just calls her Maya!

And to her face? Still "Maya".

And then in 3-5, still "Maya Fey"/"Maya".

Besides reserving "Ms. Fey" for just Mia, I think there's a really interesting reason he calls her "Maya" so informally considering his formal tendencies.

Yes, it involves the Japanese version of the game.

"Mayoi-kun...."

"A. Mitsurugi kenji." / "Oh. Prosecutor Mitsurugi."

In Japanese, Edgeworth calls her "Mayoi-kun" after 1-2, where he addresses her as "Ayasato Mayoi" during her trial. If you have a basic understanding of Japanese honorifics, you might be familiar that "-kun" is usually reserved for men and boys. Maya (and Mia) call Phoenix "Naruhodo-kun", as an example. They both use the honorific to imply that Phoenix is a subordinate (which is a touch scandalous coming from Maya, considering she's both younger than him and not even a practicing attorney, but Phoenix never corrects her.) It can also be used for male classmates in school.

There is a reason, however, that women are sometimes addressed as "-kun", and that's in the workplace! It's common for male coworkers to call their female subordinates "-kun", especially if they are a more familiar coworker.

(Edit, slight correction/addition: addressing a female coworker as "-kun" is more common and even seen as more polite than "-san" for a subordinate in settings like parliament and courts!)

As for Edgeworth, he certainly caught that Phoenix addresses Maya as "Mayoi-chan", but it's probably too familiar for him, so he wants to use a more respectful honorific for her, and something more familiar than "-san", which is similar to "Mr."/"Ms." So, he calls her "Mayoi-kun"! (He also calls Kay Faraday "Mikumo-kun", for similar reasons.)

So I can see why the localizers would scratch their heads as to how they would localize "Mayoi-kun". The nuances of using that honorific can't be translated easily, so between calling Maya "Ms. Fey" (and probably also agreeing that ought to be reserved for Mia) and just "Maya", they ultimately decided to just stick with her first name.

[cozylittleartblog]

Columbo and the Knight (1984)

put me in the universe where Columbo ran through the 1980s and had a crossover episode with Knight Rider. I think they deserved it, and I am not just saying that because they're my two favorite Old Shows. @telebeast wrote a little fanfic blurb about it and I HAD to visualize it into a comic (which is also the longest comic I have finished thus far at five pages...), so writing credit goes to them.

Autism W!

[princedrewwrites]

anyway I think the funniest thing aa7 could do is introduce another love interest for phoenix who is actually a perfectly nice and normal person, not even accused of murder, only for them to dump phoenix at the end of the game after seeing him interact with edgeworth ONCE because phoenix’s ‘passions clearly lie elsewhere’. phoenix, dumbass that he is, assumes they’re referring to his passion for law, and never once reflects on this