#random thought obtained during showering

[soraka-in-warhammer40k]

I might be betraying my age a little with what I am about to reference, but by pure accident I might have found the perfect explanation for "Gork & Mork" to someone outside of 40k lore and without reducing it to the usual joke of "Orks being dumb".

Getting krumped by Gork is like getting hit by Bud Spencer's signature punch - meanwhile fighting Mork is more like being made a fool of by Terrence Hill. But no matter the difference, when you are in a silly movie with them, and you are an unnamed extra in the role of some goon, you will most likely get krumped one way or another.

Oh and they might not necessarily be on the same side initially, or even remotely get along when they are working together, but they will still beat your ass regardless.

[lostberet]

⋅˚₊‧ ଳ MOB DAYCARE CHAP. I | min yoongi (m)

𐙚 synopsis: After almost meeting Satan himself, Agust D is forced to take a hiatus from his underwork mob work. However, during his hiatus, he is stumbled upon a 4 year old. And so far, being a guardian is harder than being a mob leader.

༘⋆ genre: explicit (18+) ; angst , humor, romance , violence, suspense , smut ; haegeum au , gang au , parenthood au .

༘⋆ disclaimer: Obsessiveness, Possessiveness, Manipulative behavior, Violence, Mention of death, Child Abuse, eventual smut, Sexual themes, If you’re not 18+ please, PLEASE, do not interact. Be mindful of the warnings. Let me know if I miss anything.

༘⋆ a/note: omg.. I am back with this chapter, and I am so excited to write this series━ I'll go work on Heartburn now... :( likes and reposts are appreciated <3 also name ideas for the kid?

TEASER | NEXT

The rule of this world is━ “The strong is King.” Those who follow this rule, fight each other in order to obtain a title. 

A few years ago, a man single-handedly fought through the ice, breaking and reaching its highest point. Those who feared him gave him a title━ Agust D, the Panther King. 

Yoongi sighed, his eyes staring into the white void of his living-room ceiling. He was once who they called Agust D. He would have still been Agust D if it weren’t for that fateful night.

Agust gasped for air, his teeth sucking back his lower lip into a tight bite. His left eye clenched shut as blood dripped down his face. He was bloody, although he wished to say the blood wasn’t his, he would be lying. His dark hair fell to his shoulders, some of it sticking to his face by the sweat and blood. With a trembling form, he made his way into the apartment, dropping his weapon on the floor. Each step he took left a small trial of blood behind him. He was tired, so tired.

Yoongi blinked, erasing the memory from his vision as he clenched his jaw. Why the past..? He thought to himself before sitting on the couch and looking at the carpet where a 4-year-old boy lay. He remembered bringing the kid into his home, he weighed almost nothing.  

Frowning at the unusual behavior of the kid, Yoongi eyed him as it slept. “Something isn’t right..” he whispered, his tongue pressing gently on his bottom lip. He snapped his fingers, an idea coming to his brain. He grabbed the nearby blanket lying on the sofa, before clumsily laying it on the kid. “Perfect.” 

The bathroom mirror was foggy, and the humidity made Yoongi sweat slightly as he dried the kid's hair. The toddler had overgrown hair that almost made him look wild. Yoongi had taken mental notes on the kid's poor hygiene, adding to his theory of the child kidnapping. Not having any child-sized clothing, the gangster had given one of his own shirts for the toddler to wear. A black shirt with the words "MINE" graphed vertically. As the older man dried the head of the kid, the child would mutter out random vocals. Frowning at the confusion vocal, Yoongi removed the towel from the kid's head, causing the kid to loop at him with a bright smile.

“You.. brat━!” Yoongi flinched as he bit back a cuss, lifting his arm up, his eyes noticing the multiple bites on his arm, “was your birth year the year of the dog?!” Yoongi exclaimed, his body trembling in desperation. Another thing Yoongi had noticed was the kid's inability to show proper manners. No matter how hard Yoongi glared at the kid, the kid only looked up at him, giving him a grin and a giggle.

As they both sat in the living room, the child freshly showered and not smelling like trash, traced his fingers on the black leather of the couch, “Since you can’t speak for nish━” Yoongi grunted as he sat next to the kid, scooping some cereal into the spoon, “I bet you don’t know how to use utensils. Come here,” The toddler tilted his head as he opened his mouth, allowing Yoongi to feed him the cereal, “You don’t look like you were raised at all..” Yoongi voiced his thoughts, the child looking at the bowl as Yoongi continued feeding him.

If it was a kidnapping.. And I send this kid away.. What if he doesn’t have a family? Will he then be an orphan? Yoongi physically yelped at the thought, “Not my problem!” His voice came out louder than expected, causing the kid to look up at him. Agust D had no time for anyone, let alone a fucking child. Deep in his own thoughts, the kid wasted no time poorly grabbing the spoon, scooping cereal ( the scoop facing down and getting little to nothing), and bringing it to Yoongi’s mouth, “ah.. Ah?” 

Is this kid trying to feed me? Yoongi raised an eyebrow, damn kid doesn't even know how to hold a spoon.. let alone be able to survive on its own━ not like i care. The gangster scuffed, wiping some of the milk from the kid's chin, earning a bright smile that only caused Yoongi’s heart to clench, this child was stabbing his consciousness. 

Yoongi threw his head back against the headboard of the bed, his body tingling, "oh.. fuck.." He choked out, his hands caressing the back, hands gripping onto the waist. His hips automatically thrust upwards earning a moan, "sir.." the voice whimpered.

The gangster narrowed his eyes, frowning his brows at the nickname, "I told you not to call me that, especially when we're having sex." He warned, yet his hips didn't lose their pace. He held onto their jaw, making them lock eyes with him, "you know my name,.. say it.." a hint of desperation in his voice as the other only pushed their lips and let out another whimper.

Yoongi leaned in, tilting their head to the side by their jaw, kissing their collarbones, sending a shiver down the spine, "c'mon, baby.. you know my name..' his voice was sweet, but his thrusts were becoming much more rougher, causing the other to grunt out, "or do you want me to fuck you until you remember it?" Yoongi asked, brushing his lips against their neck.

"Fuck.. yoongi,.." they gasped out, their hips buckling causing Yoongi to chuckle, "There you go.. always so good for me.." The mafia leader only pulled their face towards him, slamming his lips onto the other as he roughly kissed them. The kiss muffled both their moans and pants, not wanting to stop the kiss. They sucked and bit each other's lips, addicted to each other's lips.

Yoongi pulled the body close to his chest, feeling the other snuggle onto their skin, warmth hugging his heart. "You cannot leave me, understand?" Yoongi warned, making the other chuckle, "you wund me, sir." Yoongi's eye twitched. Noticing this, the other's hands cupped his face, placing a kiss on his scared eye, "you know that won't ever happen."

Yoongi's eyes opened and with a gasp, he rose from the couch. The clock had struck 3 am, and from what Yoongi could gather, it didn’t take long for the kid to fall asleep. Just a nightmare.

The man groaned, rubbing his face with both hands as he licked his dry lips. His gaze landed on the kid sleeping at the other end of the couch.

That's when your phone rang. You looked away from the never-ending document on your laptop, frowning at the unknown number on the screen you bit the inside of your cheek. After a few rings, you picked your phone up, “Hello?” 

There was silence on the other line, before that raspy voice said your name, you felt your body freeze, your heart pumping faster, “I made it clear that I want nothing to do with you.” There was silence on the other line once more before you heard a faint 'clank', “It’s important, plus, I already made arrangements with Namjoon, you’re coming whether you like it or not.” 

You could have disobeyed, you could have not shown up in the morning, really, but you were in no mood to deal with Namjoon and his scolding. His never-ending rants of how, even as your boss, he also needs favors. Yoongi was like a brother to him, the one that was able to make everyone's dream a reality and in return, they did whatever they could for him. Bunch of ass kissers you would tell yourself. Yet you found yourself dropping the bags onto Yoongi’s wooden floor, all the color being drained from your face. 

You tried to speak, confused and flabbergasted by the sight upon you. But what can you say after meeting the man you had decided to leave 3 years ago? The one guy you verbally told was a quote-on-quote dickhead that only cared about himself and then you quit on the spot, only to work under Namjoon, the guy he was closest with? You only eyed his back, noticing the way he cut the kid’s hair. 

“Y━you have a kid?!” Your ears might have started to bleed, a ringing remaining as you angrily turned to look at the owner of the pain, “Taehyung━ you son of a━ My ear!” You hissed as you reached over to grab a chunk of his hair. 

Yoongi turned to look at the small group who had entered his home, ignoring the small hairpulling between you and Taehyung. Yoongi only shook his head as he explained the situation to the others. 

“So.. that’s not your kid?” Jimin asked, his hand lazily signaling the child, “nonsense,” Yoongi muttered, picking up his cup of coffee SeokJin had placed in front of him on the kitchen table, his eyes glancing over at you, rubbing your head while glaring at Taehyung, “Jungkook and Hoseok are looking into where he’s from.”

“Yeah, Agust wouldn’t have a child this fast.” You stated, Yoongi’s ears twitched, all your attention on the kid who has sleepily rubbed his eyes and walked over to Yoongi, “What will you do with him for the time being?” 

“Sexist..” you said under your breath, making SeokJin abandon his cooking and turn to you in a snap, “untrue, Yoongi just needs help for the time being━” Now it was you snapping towards SeokJin, “raising a damn child!” 

The older one pushed his lips together, “sexist.” Taehyung stated once more, a small smirk on his lips as he winked at you, causing you to flip him off as you carried the child, feeding him some overnight oats. 

As SeokJin, Taehyung, and you stayed in the kitchen, bickering at each other, Yoongi was outside on the balcony of his living room. Holding a pocket knife, his fingers tracing over his initials, NamJoon and Jimin behind him, “Hyung, about the kid..” Jimin started, nervously elbowing NamJoon, “It’s just.. If they have eyes on the kid like last time..”

Yoongi bit the inside of his cheek, stabbing the knife into the wooden balcony railing. Jimin flinched, NamJoon placed his hand on Jimin’s shoulder signaling to head back inside, “We’ll take care of everything, hyung.” 

Drops of blood stained the cement floor, there was tension in the air, and all Agust could do was kneel before his rival, “You finally show up,” The rival chuckled, one of his hands gripping the hair of a child, eyes blindfolded by a black fold. The kid looked beaten, scared, “If you want me to let him go.. Let’s make a deal.” 

The rival threw a blade towards Agust, causing the man’s brows to frown. He was desperate. Agust felt his body tremble, adrenaline pumping through his veins as he picked the blade up, raising it slowly towards his stomach area. Slowly, ever so slowly, pressing the blade into his skin. 

Yoongi’s body jerked, causing him to wake from his dream, “shit..” he whispered, his hand flying to his stomach, rubbing it as the dream reminded him of the incident. He licked his dry lips, before sitting up on the bed. 

He entered the kitchen, his eyes staring at the cup of water━ besides him, his phone with your contact ready━on the floor, the 4 year old bounced and played between his legs. Yoongi bit his lower lip before he grabbed the kid and sat him on the counter, grabbing his phone and calling you before shoving the electronic onto the kid’s hands.

The phone rang a few times before you picked up, your voice grumpy and sleepy, “yes?” Yoongi looked at the kid and pointed at the phone, suddenly forgetting the child’s inability to speak. Confused━ the kid tilted his head, “m. ah.. ma..ma?” mostly dedicated towards Yoongi, the child called out. It caused you to sit up from your bed and run to get your shoes, “kid?” 

You barged into the mountain mansion, not bothering to knock as you slammed the door shut and ran to the living room, “Kid?!” You scanned for the kid, not finding him anywhere before your legs automatically ran to the bedrooms. 

Upon opening door by door, having each bedroom memorized (not by your own good), you arrived at Yoongi’s. Your hand reached over to the doorknob, it wasn’t like it was your first time you’ve stepped inside.  

Upon entering, you notice Yoongi and the kid sleeping. The child lay on top of the gangster, as the gangster himself had his arms wrapped around the child, almost using him as a teddy bear. You gulped, stepping out the room and slowly closing the door, “Y/n?” 

You froze, “yes, sir?” a grunt, “don’t call me that.” You scuff, “..kid butt-dialed me.. I’ll head home now.” The bed creaked and footsteps soon followed, the bedroom door opening━ revealing Yoongi, a sleepy look on his face with the sleeping child in his arms, “Stay the night. It's late.” 

You only stared at him, unsure of what to do, so you frowned and shook your head, “No. I can’t do that anymore.” 

Yoongi only pressed his cheek on top of the kid's head, sleepy eyes staring down at you. if only he didn't look as innocent, “not for me━ for the kid.” 

It left a bitter taste in your mouth. The fact you laid next to Yoongi as he slept, the child curling up on him and Yoongi letting him. Or the fact that you once craved that feeling, one that you couldn’t have━ a feeling of warmth, he knew that.  And so, you swallowed back the bitterness and closed your eyes. Tomorrow is a new day.

Tag-list building..: @sol3chu

2024 © LOSTBERET, all rights reserved. please do not copy, plagiarize, translate, repost, or steal my work.

[honeysmokedham]

TIMING: May 4th, 2023 at Midnight LOCATION: At a random mansion PARTIES:  Ariadne @ariadnewhitlock & Nora @honeysmokedham  SUMMARY: Ariadne and Nora broke into the same house. they celebrate with that promised picnic. CONTENT WARNINGS: None

Nora wasn’t nervous. Anxieties and nervousness were just tiny little fears that crawled their way through people's skin, biting at their insides and sending shivers down their spine. Nora didn’t have fears. The only time fear entered her was during the consumption of others. And when she’d first realized she was a terrifying monster that had nothing in common with the humans around her. She didn’t think about the exception to the rule if she could help it. Today, Nora felt something akin to worry. Was worry a type of fear? Nora didn’t think so, but right now Nora was worried she didn’t have any of the things needed for an impressive picnic and to make a good impression. Why did she even care if she made a good impression? That emotion tickling the back of her mind bothered her. Not enough to sit with her emotions and understand them. Instead, she shoved it deep inside the box of things she refused to dwell on and moved on. 

Nora’s fathers had once given her a list of three hundred and sixty-eight rules for making the perfect first impression. Nora couldn’t remember most of them, but three did stick out to her. Clean clothes, expensive food, and perfect hygiene. Nora had… none of those. The last time Nora had access to a washing machine was months ago. She’d taken a shower at that stranger's house, but with the amount of time, she spent traversing around the forest… And lastly, she had no food. That was worrying because how was she going to throw a picnic without something to pic on? That wasn’t very nic of her. The solution was easy. Breaking and entering. 

Breaking and entering seemed to be Nora’s solution to everything these days. Today she was going back to a house she’d been to twice before. Their kitchen was the size of a single-bedroom apartment, and if they had ever noticed anything missing from their stores of food, they hadn’t lifted a finger to upgrade the security system. Nora had waited until she was sure the owners of the home were in bed, before making her way in through the doggy door. It took her fifteen minutes to find a picnic basket and fill it with anything she could find from the kitchen that she thought Ariadne might like, as well as ham and honey. 

Once everything was packed, Nora placed the basket out the door for a quick getaway. She couldn’t leave just yet, there was one more thing she needed to do. Obtain clean clothing. Nora slunk down the halls of the house and into the first bedroom, she could find. Despite the dark, the moon shining in through the windows allowed enough light to see through. Which is why she could easily see someone standing over the figures asleep in bed. Nora blinked. Once. Twice. She was trying to make sense of the sight she was seeing in front of her. “Bonita Femur?” Nora asked in a whisper, it had dawned on her she recognized the person standing there. “You live here?” 

Someone who she’d never actually met wanted to hang out with her. Wanted to have a picnic, no less. Ariadne wasn’t entirely sure what to make of that. She’d never been surrounded by dozens of friends, but in the past year she’d drawn herself away, more. Wasn’t sure if she deserved friends. Was too worried about doing something wrong or hurting one of them. So to have someone who she’d only talked to once actually want to get together made her feel incredibly light and full of joy. At least as much as she could be, right now.

Except that as nice as a picnic was going to be, the picnic wasn’t going to fully satisfy her hunger. No matter how many sweets she brought along. So she had to feed. The house she’d chosen was huge - not that Ariadne strictly believed in feeding on those who had everything, but she had to admit that it made her feel a little less horrible than when she had to sneak into dorms or other places with people who seemed like the giving sort, rather than the taking sort. These people seemed like the taking sort. They also had a dog, which she’d found out a bit too late but luckily it wasn’t a very loud one, and closing it into the bathroom with an ‘I’m so sorry’ had worked well enough. She’d given it a few treats, too, trying to let that at least somewhat assuage her guilt.

Then she’d gone into the main bedroom, where both people were sleeping, thankfully (she didn’t exactly want to deal with one of them walking in on her). At least the moon was beautiful tonight. Which it usually was, and as much as Ariadne loathed what it was that made her need to be awake at night, the moon and stars were still beautiful. 

What she hadn’t counted on, however, was someone else being awake in the house. Her eyes grew wide, “I - hello?” She scrunched up her nose, hand jerking back quickly from the man’s head. “I - no. I was,” she winced, “visiting. Well, no - I - wait, do you live here?” Ariadne pressed her hands against the sides of her thighs. “It - nice to meet you in person.” She bit her lip. “Though I kind of figured the picnic would be the first time, but…”

Nora wasn’t unused to people discovering her in places she shouldn’t be. It seemed like every day someone was shooing Nora off their property. Every now and then they would even yell about youths these days while raising their old people canes. It was very unoften that Nora broke into a house and found someone she knew, at least online by photos, and wasn’t screaming at her to get out. Visiting? With a wince? And if she was visiting wouldn’t she know who lived there? A smile tugged across Nora’s face. Never before had she broken into a house someone else was breaking into. “You’re breaking in.” If Nora was prone to laughter she might have burst out laughing. 

Was it weird that Ariadne was standing over two sleeping figures? A little, but Nora wasn’t going to judge. Nora’s eyes flickered between the two sleeping forms and Ariadne. She did a quick shoulder movement to suggest they should probably move their little conversation to a different location. Before leaving, Nora peaked into the closet. It was slim pickin’s but a black shirt and a pair of black jeans found their way out of their spot and into Nora’s arms. Once safely away from the sleeping homeowners, Nora lead them to the door which held their picnic basket. Knowing that Ariadne was also breaking and entering made admitting that she was gathering supplies for their picnic easy.

“How long have you been breaking into homes?” Nora asked, setting the clothes on top of the picnic basket. She turned to face Ariadne with questioning eyes. Nora had known that people break into homes. She did it, it was in the news. People had gone to jail for it. She’d just never met anyone else who was deep in the practice like her. “What were you after?” Nora noted she didn’t have anything on her. Maybe Ariadne went for the jewelry. Pawning it for money was supposed to be lucrative. For some reason, Nora had never gone that route. "They really don't notice anything if there have been two people taking from here." Nora wondered if anyone was stealing from her fathers' mansion in L.A. Perhaps it was a rich thing to be so comfortable in your large house to never notice people taking from it. 

“I -” her voice caught in her throat. “No. Well, maybe?” She was still taken aback by the whole running-into-someone thing. Ariadne was fairly positive that something like this had never happened to her before. The only other time someone had been in a house with her in the nighttime was shortly after she became a mare, because the one who’d turned her hadn’t wanted her to flail around, entirely uncertain of what to do.

She wasn’t supposed to run into issues like this. Though, granted, Ariadne was all too well-aware of the fact that she’d already done things that weren’t supposed to happen. However, she followed the other figure, somewhat too stunned to do anything else. 

Once they were away from the bedroom, she tried to make herself relax just slightly. She wasn’t sure how much it entirely worked, but there was something about her friend (they’d said that they were friends, after all) that made her feel at least somewhat more relaxed. “I - less than a year, I guess.” Ariadne bit her lip. “I - uh - it was just to visit.” She winced at the lie. “I mean, sometimes I drink some water but I -” she squeezed her eyes shut. “How about you? Also, I promise I won’t tell anybody. The police are pretty overrated anyhow, so…”

Ariadne seemed to stumble through her explanation. Perhaps it was her first time getting caught where she shouldn't be. Nora was often caught where she shouldn't be. In school, she made a point of going where no one wanted her. Her friend had the bright sunny look of the golden children from school. The ones who were always smiling, laughing and never getting in trouble. Nora had seen the sunshine children break the rules before. Punishment never followed their indiscretions. Teachers liked to believe their sunshine children were always good, and if they did slip up, they were still good kids. They had just been lost in the wiles of youth. But here was the sunshine, Bonita Femur, breaking and entering just like the demon child herself. 

Nora’s head tilted to the side as she parsed through the information being given to her. Just visiting? Nora had already figured that was fake when she’d asked if Nora lived there. So why repeat the line? Sometimes Bonita Femur takes water? Was that truly theft?  The conversation seemed to pain Ariadne as she squeezed her eyes shut. Nora slouched against the wall watching the moonlight drift in from the window. Freed from the cloud that had hid it, it became an invisible barrier between the two of them. “Visiting.” Nora repeated the word as if it was a weight on her tongue. “You come here to drink water?” A pause before continuing, her hands digging themselves into her pockets, tapping against her leg. “I was also visiting.” The word touched her tongue again, was that what they were calling breaking and entering in the night now? Maybe it was a code that Ariadne was more comfortable with? Nora knew conversationally she was a blunt edge compared to some of the sharp tongues in the world. Perhaps, she could attempt to fence instead of bludgeon. 

“What would the police do?” Nora asked, her monotone voice unable to fully express how unimpressed she was with the armed civil forces. “Arrest us?” Nora added the us because she wasn’t sure if Ariadne realized that telling people would also place her at the crime scene. An accomplice despite being the perpetrator of a different crime. In recent years, Nora had made a habit of taking selfies while running from the police. A folder on her phone was dedicated to the past time. The pursuing cops had never posed a serious threat, mostly because moments after the selfie something horribly horrifying would show up as a distraction. While they were busy screaming their little brains out, Nora would slip off unnoticed. It was having to answer why she was breaking in that tied Nora’s tongue. Could she admit why she was stealing food without admitting why?  Nora figured it was worth a try. Fencing instead of bludgeoning, she reminded herself. 

“I was picking up the expensive stuff. For our picnic.” Nora pushed herself off the wall and leaned forward, propping open the picnic basket. It was true that the items stolen from the household would cost more than an average college student could afford. Nora, who had made it through life without a single idea of how economics worked, did not know that. All she knew was this household was guaranteed to have the good fresh ham. “Do you want to go on our picnic now?” Nora faced the window. It was a beautiful night. It was the kind of night that could be confused for day with how brightly the moon danced with the stars. “They probably have sweets. We could find something you like.”

“Uh, yeah.” She didn’t like lying. Especially not to someone like the girl in front of her, who’d been nothing but kind, if a bit preferential towards flustering her, or catching her off guard. If she hadn’t been holding various foods and clothing items, Ariadne might have thought that the girl in front of her was a mare, too. Except of course she wasn’t. Even if she apparently had a penchant for thievery, she was clearly still a far better person than Ariadne was. 

Not that stealing was good, but rich people could easily recover from that. What Ariadne did, it didn’t matter who you were, there was always the chance of dying. At that thought, all she wanted was a giant sundae, covered with as many gummy candies and as much hot fudge as possible. “It’s nice to meet you.” Which it was, even if she couldn’t quite get over the feeling of guilt that rested in her. She liked the girl in front of her. She didn’t want to do something to upset her, to make her run off. She couldn’t think of the last time she’d been drawn into a friendship so quickly. Even with Wynne, though it had been fast, had still taken some time. This friendship had started just online and she’d been so excited to meet in person.

“I don’t know. They’d try to do something, maybe.” Ariadne made a face. Except that calling the police was a bad idea, considering she was a murderer, and she didn’t want her new friend to get in trouble, so she shook her head. “But probably nothing. I don’t think there’s really any point in it anyhow, right?” She attempted to shrug, half-heartedly, though she’d always been bad at faking nonchalance, and that clearly hadn’t changed with the newly undead-ness.

“You were?” She couldn’t help but smile. “That’s amazing - you - wow.” Ariadne nodded. “I’d like that - unless you wanted to wait? I was looking forward to the picnic, and I can be pretty patient, but if you’re offering time to hang out sooner instead of later, I’d really like that.” She offered the other girl a small smile. “Let’s go find some sweets.”

“Try to do something, and fail at everything.” It was the police way. Nora would never be afraid of them. Nora started to drift away from the back door, and back towards the kitchen. “I’m Nora. I don’t really like to give my name online. It’s…” What it was was complicated. Even giving away the name Nora seemed like a stretch, but here she was trying to make a friend. Honestly, being Friend was nice. Nora could live with just being Friend. “You can keep calling me Friend if you want,” Nora added. Nora had never been anyone’s friend before. 

The first stop Nora made upon entering the rich people’s kitchen was trying some of their breakings and entering worthy water. It tasted like water. Nora stood over the sink, her face blank as she took small sips of the water. “It tastes like water.” Nora finally stated. Nora started to wonder if Ariadne was homeless, just like herself, and breaking into places for their access to water was a survival tool and not a water test. Nora felt silly for trying the water then. She shouldn’t make a big deal about other people being homeless. If Ariadne wanted to talk about being homeless, she would. Nora wasn’t going to press. She hated when people pressed her. 

Nora started rummaging through the pantry. Anything that looked remotely sweet, she would pull out and place it on the counter. “It’s a beautiful night. It would be a waste to let this serendipitous moment pass us.” Nora hoped she was using the word right. She'd heard it once on TV and while she thought she grasped the meaning of the word, it just seemed like it would be an impressive thing to say at the moment. "Beautiful weather. Good company. Expensive food. Why not." Nora looked at the selection she'd pulled from the pantry. "Does anything look good? We could take it all if you want. They might notice though." 

“Yeah. That sounds about right.” After all, she had to be grateful for their failure on some level, because otherwise she would be in jail. Or something. Still, Ariadne chose to focus back on her friend. Her friend Nora. “What if I do both? I like calling you Friend, too, but I also feel pretty special that you felt like you could tell me your name.” The other girl was nice, even if their circumstances of meeting weren’t necessarily how she might have expected to meet a new friend, and Ariadne didn’t have much in the way of friends right now, so someone so nice and easy to talk to was more than welcome.

“It’s probably uh, like, more purified or something.” Ariadne scrunched up her nose. She wished that she could tell Nora the real reason why she was here, but that wasn’t a good idea, not unless she wanted Nora to hate her. Some day, she would. Probably. Maybe. If they were going to be friends, she’d have to be open, except that if she was open, she might lose her friend. So she tried to not focus on it too much right now.

“You know big words,” Ariadne grinned. “I mean that in a good way, I don’t know if I could use a word like that just out of the blue. You’re a pretty impressive friend, Nora.” She wasn’t trying to sound too overdone - her awe of her new friend was wholly genuine. “It’s a perfect night. There’s excellent company, and yes, good food too.” She looked at the treats that Nora had put out on the countertop. “They’ve got birthday cake oreos - I don’t think we can pass those up. Uh - we could also grab the chocolate-caramel squares, and maybe the gummy cherries? Does that work for you?”

Nora eyed her friend. Ariadne. She seemed to be wrapped in a cocoon of genuine emotion. Emotions shone on her face, making her features interesting and compelling. Nora couldn’t help but compare the genuine and sincere attitude of the woman to her own cold and off-putting demonor. And she wanted to be friends. The world was wild like that, wasn’t it? “Both.” Nora agreed. “Both are good.” How could she deny someone who seemed so pure in her intentions. Nora hoped with all her might this wouldn’t come back to bite her. All her years of secrecy, torn down by a pretty face and a nice attitude. Wouldn’t that be so fucking dumb of her. Nora let the extra filter lie fly right by her, unaware that it was a lie. Nora assumed her pallet was simply not refined enough to notice the difference. 

“You know big words,” 

The praise ran through Nora. Nora looked away, a hand raking its way through Nora’s hair. It got stuck on a knott. Fuck. That was embarrassing. “Yeah. Big words are my speciality.” Nora lied. It was impressive though, right? Nora listened to Ariadne’s list of choices, tossing them out and to the side. The rest of the good stuff went back into the pantry. “Dealer’s choice. I’m not picky.” Nora had never been a fan of sweets. Perhaps that was how she ended up with her sour disposition. Tonight she would eat the sweets dictated by Ariadne. Nora closed the pantry door, making sure it latched as silently as possible. “Anything else, while we’re grocery shopping?” Nora’s eyes swept across the kitchen. Nothing stood out to her.

Nora retrieved the picnic basket she’d filled with stolen goods already, moved her new shirt to the side and filled it up with Ariadne’s picks. “I know a perfect spot around here.” Nora shutthe basket. “Ready?” Nora, impatient as ever, didn’t wait for the answer. She exited through the back door. The hike to the perfect spot was short. A five minute walk up a hill. It led to a small flower garden wrapping around a perfect circle. Nora could only assume it was planted as a picnic spot. She entered the circle, pulling out a stolen blanket and spreading it out. “What do you think?”

“Both works for me, too.” Someone so kindly and so actively offering their friendship made her feel good, albeit entirely undeserving. But she’d mope about that later. Ariadne enjoyed living in the moment incredibly well right now. Too much, but that was okay. Which only meant that the lies, however benign, felt all the worse.

“That’s incredible.” Ariadne smiled, “though even if you only know some big words, I’d still be wildly impressed by you.” That wasn’t too much to say, was it? The least she could do for her new friend was to compliment her, and to show when she was impressed. That was the kind thing to do, and, furthermore, it was what she wanted to do. “Okay, just - wanted to make sure, you know?” She followed Nora’s gaze around the kitchen. “I think we’ve gotten all we’ll need.” She wasn’t especially keen on stealing anything else, and besides, the company was far more important to her than just about anything else right now.

Before she could nod (and nod with a big smile), Nora was on her way, and Ariadne quietly followed her out. “I’d love to see it.” She continued to follow Nora up the hill, breathing in the cool night air - there was something about the smell of the nighttime that she found herself in deep appreciation of. “This is perfect.” She grinned at Nora. “Ideal picnic location, I think. Though I mean, I’m sure whatever we’d have decided on would’ve been perfect, but yeah.” She sat down, cross-legged. “Should we start with the ham?”

"I wouldn't get too eager to hear big words." Nora's monotone made the joke fall short. In truth, she wasn't sure she would be able to pull out big words again. It worried her. Maybe Bonita Femur was only friends with her because she was good at speaking. Literally, no one had said that about Nora before. She would underdeliver. Another failure for her scrapbook of failures. Nora tried not to think about it. 

Nora spread herself out on the picnic blanket, legs tossed in front of her. Before the eating could commence, Nora had to pull out her pocket friends. Nora felt around inside her pockets and pulled out a collection of two snakes and one bat. Nora wasn't sure where this bat was coming from, she was definitely a new addition to the creatures that rode around in her pockets. Nora rehung the bat to the front of her jacket. "Gotta feed them too," Nora explained, waving a casual hand at her friends. The snakes wound themselves around Nora in various positions. Between the ghosts she'd seen her whole life and the critters that crawled around with her, Nora had never needed a human friend. But it was nice. It was nice to sit across from someone who could have a conversation and wanted to speak to her. 

Ariadne suggested the ham first. A true friend already. Knowing exactly what it was Nora wanted. "I can never say no to ham." Nora dug within the basket, pulling out four different types of ham. A hunk of fully cooked ham, honey smoked ham in deli slices, Jamon Iberico (that was a special type of ham made in Spain), and Prosciutto. Nora was generally fine with eating the cheap and generic honey-smoked ham, but she made sure to grab the more expensive types for Ariadne. Just in case she wanted variety. "We have it all here," Nora said with a nod of her. A pause before diving back into the picnic basket. "And honey." 

“Oh, don’t worry, you don’t have to use big words around me.” Ariadne made a small face. “I just thought it was cool, but you just wanting to hang out, even if we didn’t talk at all, would be equally great.” That much was entirely true - the idea of just having someone to hang out with made her feel unbelievably thrilled. “Big words can be like, way overrated, anyhow.” She certainly believed that. Almost as much as she believed that Nora - Friend - would probably want to stop hanging out once she found out about everything Ariadne had done.

A snake and two bats appeared, and Ariadne wasn’t sure entirely what had happened, and for a moment she hoped that maybe they wouldn’t freak out because of her, but she saw them twisting and hissing and she bit down on her tongue. “I’m sorry.” She felt shaky, though at least for the time being, Nora didn’t seem to mind. “Sorry, sometimes animals freak out around me - I love them, I am so sorry they do, but it’s - yeah.”

“Okay, good. Ham sounds good.” Right now, just about anything did. “The deli slices look really good, but I don’t think I’ve ever had jamón ibérico - and that looks fancy, so maybe we could try that? If you wanted. Honey sounds good too.” Ariadne offered a small smile to Nora. “Is it too weird if I wrap the ham around the honey?”

Ariadne seemed so genuine in the way she spoke. Gentle tones. Soft words. A light contrast compared to the pitch-black void Nora saw herself as. A contrast as stark as their hair colors.  There was a reassurance with every word Ariadne spoke. The underline of you are enough because you want to be here. Never demanding more, be someone tolerable, be someone personable, be better than you are. It was simply a thank you for being you, no strings attached, no questions asked. It was an odd undertone. It was something Nora was going to have to think about later. She let the conversation of big words fade away. In time, she would address this and other curiosities of people. Not now. Not under the beautiful moon lit sky enjoying a tasty meal.

It was odd that Nora’s friends didn’t like Ariadne. Nora moved them behind her, out of sight of Ariadne. “That’s weird.” Nora noted. “They don’t normally care about others.” Nora started handing them food, hoping that would appease them. “Well, they are free to go whenever they want if they don’t want to be here. They just show up in my pockets.” Nora explained. From a young age creepy crawlies have come to her. It’d always been funny when her dads would come into her bedroom at night and find snakes in her bed. The fear meals it would supply…superb. A bang of guilt and longing for home twinged her at the memory. She shoved it aside. “Why do they get freaked out by you? I bet my dog would like you… Maybe. Are you easy to scare?”

Ariadne had a question for everything. A question if it was okay to do this, to try that. Nora blinked at her. “You can try anything here you like. I stole it for us.” Nora explained, wanting to put her friend at ease. She pulled the jamón ibérico out of the basket, opening the packaging and holding it out towards Ariadne. “Oh I forgot the toasted bread.” Nora realized, as she rummaged around more. “When its good, its supposed to be eaten mostly plainly. Because the taste is so good. I’m sure we don’t need to pair it with anything.” Nora had never cared about pairing her expensive foods with other foods. If the taste was good, why not eat it and enjoy all the flavor as was? 

“I’m sorry.” She looked at Nora, sadness in her eyes for a moment, because even something as small as this just proved that she shouldn’t be around someone so good. “If you’re certain, I’m sorry. I love them, I promise. I think all creatures are worth lots of love.” She’d held the “creepier” animals in elementary school when nobody else would, because Ariadne felt bad that they weren’t being shown love. She’d had a collection of pet worms and beetles in her backyard growing up - always outside, because they were happier there, and she wanted them to be happy. “That’s pretty remarkable that they always show up in your pockets. They must really like you.” She offered Nora another smile.

“I - sometimes animals, uh, have a hard time around me.” She winced. “I love them though, I’d never ever ever dream of hurting one. I’m not so easy to scare, no.” Ariadne sighed, “I can be jumpy, but stuff doesn’t really scare me. How about you? Only if you want to tell me, though, I know you like your privacy, and I don’t want to invade that.”

She didn’t know if it was the intention, but Nora put her at ease. Made her feel calmer and more relaxed. Ariadne stretched out her legs, pointing her toes as she listened to her friend (her honest-to-gosh friend!) talk. “You’re just an expert, and I guess I didn’t want to do something wrong and make you think I was disrespecting your favorite food or anything. That’s all.” She took a piece of the ham and dropped a dollop of honey into it, before rolling it up and taking a bit. “Yum. This is real good. I’m good with not pairing. I don’t see the point of weirdly fancy food combos - like, I mean, sure, if someone wanted to pay for a lot of money for a fancy dish at that fish place in town - Codfather? I’d say yes, but I’m a believer in eating things the way that you enjoy. Though I did try the ice cream around fruit roll ups trend, and that was amazing.” 

“Don’t be sorry.” Nora tilted her head, looking at the blonde in front of her. “Why be sorry over something you can’t control?” Nora stretched out her legs, pointing her toes and relaxing in the nice night breeze, a mimic of Ariadne’s own actions but in the pleasant way of two people enjoying a moment together and not the mocking of trolls on the internet lining up to see Nora fail. It was a good night to be out with a friend, eating food and enjoying friendship. “He doesn’t like most people, and the people he does like aren’t –“ Nora was going to say aren’t likeable. Because Nora wasn’t likeable. But Ariadne was surely likeable. A ray of sunshine that swept into people’s house to drink their water at night. What was wrong with that? “Normal.” Nora finished, unsure if that was something mean to say.

“I’m not scared of anything.” Nora replied. Nora tilted her head as she examined Bonita Femur. Not an easy scare? Nora’s fingers twitched as if it was a challenge. All she had to do was reach for that power buried deep inside her and voila, there would be a fear to test Ariadne’s lack of it. Would it be true? Or would it be the over exaggeration of a person who didn’t know fear? Not the way Nora knew fear. Alas, Nora was learning how to be a good human. She was already a good bugbear. Friendships were supposed to be made by not scaring people. Something she still struggled with, but she thought she should try. Next time they met, Nora promised, she would scare the living daylights out of Ariadne.

“I think the respect is in the enjoyment.” Nora admitted. “As long as you’re appreciating the meal, what more could someone ask for? Who am I to dictate how people will enjoy it best?” Nora ate some more as she returned the listening favor. Enjoying the timbre of Ariadne’s voice as she went over her food thoughts. This was pleasant. This was light and fluffy. Was this how humans felt all the time? Nothing dark and scary sitting in the corner? Just light conversation about human food they could both enjoy. “Ice cream in fruit roll ups?” Nora wasn’t the sweetest of tooth person, not like she’d found Ariadne to be. “I’ll have to try it some time.” Probably in Axis’s freezer. Nora had tried the fancy food. That was the privilege of growing up rich. It was also how she knew she didn’t care about it. A good ham was a good ham and that’s all that mattered to her. Perhaps now, good company was also starting to matter. “For the next picnic then?” 

“I don’t know, it just seemed like something I should be sorry for.” Which was a weird sort of thing to admit, but it was true – though Ariadne figured that by this point, she was supposed to be sorry for even existing, really, so the fact that she caused the sweetest of animals pain, especially animals that her friend liked, certainly felt like something one could - and should - apologize for. She longed to be able to hold the snakes and the bat - or to at least be able to feed them without stressing them out, but the likelihood of that happening seemed slim to none. She wanted to say she wasn’t normal, but admitting that was not the best course of action, even though Nora seemed extremely accepting, outing herself as a monster might still not be the best course of action. “That’s okay, I’d still like to meet him, if that would be okay with you? I used to pick up spiders and worms when I was little - they - uh, they used to like me - uh, but yeah - I’d love to meet your dog.” She offered Nora another smile.

“That’s amazing.” She nodded, “I’m anxious but — I don’t know, not real easy to scare.” There was a small part of Ariadne that wondered, if only for a moment, if Nora was like her. If Nora was also a mare – but she was probably just cool and not easily freaked out. She hoped no mares ever tried to feed on her. Maybe, the next time they hung out, she’d try to get Nora to keep safe, even if it meant they could never hang out at Nora’s place.

“Okay, good. Well, I do enjoy this very much, so please know that there’s as much respect as possible.” She grinned. “I’m going to have to eat ham more often.” Because Ariadne could, even if it didn’t satiate her appetite, she knew that she’d feel good while she ate it because it was tied to someone she cared so much about. “Yeah, it like, freezes the fruit roll up? I’m not a scientist so I don’t know why, but it makes it crunchy and chewy, which is lots of fun. If you want, you could come to my place sometime and we could eat them together? If you wanted to.” Except that Nora was now suggesting another picnic – “oh yes, or next picnic! Whatever works for you.” What she liked most was the fact that Nora wanted to hang out again, and she would’ve done anything she wanted - anything to make her happy - because they were friends, and Nora had been willing to steal to let them have a picnic, and she’d never had a friend willing to steal for her before. “That sounds pretty perfect. I - do you want my number? So we can talk about when to hang out again?” 

“Not your fault they don’t like you.” Nora countered. “If you’re not doing anything to them and they just don’t care for you, what’s there to do.” Nora felt the snakes settling in her pockets, apparently out of sight out of mind was good enough for them. The bat, on the other hand, decided to use this opportunity to fly away. Nora watched the friend disappear into the night. Nora never felt sad when a friend chose to leave her. They weren’t her pets, and she wasn’t their keeper. They chose to spend their time with her, if they decided they wanted to spend their time elsewhere then she was just grateful for the time she had. The same could be said about Babadook. For as much as Nora called him her dog, Babadook was his own keeper. Nora pulled out a phone and handed over the picture of the yeth hound. “Isn’t he cute?”

“Anxious?” Nora asked, she knew the word. It connected to some of her problems she had with her past life. Something she connected to the idea that people would throw her away the moment they found a better replacement. It was a word that trailed after her youthful uncertainty that she refused to put a name to. It was something she didn’t like to think about anymore. Cool girls were not anxious. “What are you anxious about? The world is big and vast, and we’re…” Nora paused as if she was trying to remember the right phrase. “Young, wild, and free.”

“Good. Ham is good.” Nora agreed, using the opportunity to eat more ham. Nora listened as Ariadne told her about the roll ups and invited her over or offered another picnic. Nora gave a shrug. It wasn’t supposed to be a shrug of indifference, it was a shrug I’m down for whatever. That was because “I’m down for whatever or wherever.” Nora answered. “Picnic, your house. I don’t have a preference. I’m just here for the company. But yeah, put your number in my phone. We’ll keep in touch.”

“I’d never do anything to them.” She looked over to Nora, and hoped her earnest expression proved that she was being as honest as possible. Thankfully, as always, that Nora was as exceptionally understanding as she was. She took Nora’s phone and grinned. “He’s adorable!” Ariadne hoped that her expression conveyed how genuine she was - because certainly, the dog wasn’t like ones she’d really seen before, but he was cute – the only thing that made her stomach feel sour was the fact that even this animal, who she’d never seen before in her life, would probably still hate her. “You’ve got the literal coolest pets. I mean, guinea pigs, dogs, whatever are great, but yours are the most creative I’ve seen.”

Ariadne nodded in response to Nora’s question. “Yeah, I worry a lot, but it’s fine! I’m not worried right now - I’m having a really wonderful time.” Another smile. “Yeah - we are young, wild, and free – or at least I suppose we’re supposed to be.” She wished she wasn’t - she’d have thought that having the inability to feel fear would decrease her anxiety, but if anything, it had just made everything a whole lot worse.

“It is.” At Nora’s response, she grinned again. “Yeah? Same. Big same, that sounds good. We could do both, even.” She hoped that Nora would hang out with her more, because Ariadne felt like this was a nice start to a friendship, and she needed more friends - and if those friends could be like Nora, then she’d be all set. “Deal. We’ll talk soon.”

[diddle-riddle]

Dark Night

[Warning for potentially triggering themes: - implied / referenced rape / non con (NOT between Bruce and Ed) - teen pregnancy - Alpha / Beta / Omega dynamics - An overall very creepy atmosphere in that one. I know I tend to be more of a fluff writer (especially in my short fics), but I also try other tones / settings.]

.............. ..............

Alone a freezing night in a shady district of Gotham City, wrapped in a worn out trenchcoat that once belonged to a scarecrow, Eddie Nygma is crying.

Sobbing. Salty water runs down his cheeks, his mint green eyes cloud with tears, a sour taste clogs his mouth, his throat dries, his hiccups rock his frame as strongly as if someone gripped his shoulders and shook his frail body. He is damaged. Sad. Angry at the world for the way it treats him.

His Omega biology has always been a burden he hauls behind him. His whole life, it brought nothing but abuse. Fifteen years of constant pain and repeated humiliations. From his family, from classmates at school, from random citizens he encounters since he moved to Gotham, from people he thought he could trust. From the person he thought he could... love...

Thinking about Jonathan exacerbated his fury. Crane dumped him many months ago, he should be over it... Yet the recent mess with Arthur Brown awoke older insecurities. While nothing near an intelligent or sympathetic fellow, Arthur had been supportive enough to host him under his roof when he most needed it. That is, until the man took more from him than he should have and Eddie ran away... then realized he kept a 'souvenir'.

The waves of hormones triggered by his teen pregnancy don't help when he meets thirsty clients in seedy places. Even though Omegas don't go into heats over the nine months they carry a life, then a couple of weeks post-delivery while they breastfeed, their spiced, pronounced pregnant scent often suffices to arouse Alphas as efficaciously as mating cycles. It was not a client but a colleague from the smuggling ring that couldn't keep her hands to herself tonight. The female Alpha cornered the younger male Omega after he fulfilled his drug dealer activity in the sordid network he joined. This pays and it's an evolution compared to selling his body to greedy Alphas during heats like he did previously... until it reached its breakage point and another Alpha acted again like a monster.

Edward locked the door of his minuscule studio behind him. It's a miracle in itself he obtained this undeclared lease agreement. Comprehensive, the male Beta who owns this apartment complex isn't regarding of the age or social status of those who rent his dingy flats.

He went straight for a shower. Cold: he can't afford hot water all month, but it's better than nothing. He appears clean on the outside whereas he feels so dirty, soiled on the inside.

What happened?

Crying in a lane, he lost consciousness, likely passed out from the pain and exhaustion. Then... the sensation of something sliding inside him, punctuated by a white noise in his head...

He blames this on the pregnancy and how critically it disturbs his hormonal cycle.

Among others, it pushed in him the poisonous refrain of 'I must find an Alpha to assist me, to provide for me, to help me raise my baby, to be the father of my future litters...'

The ginger felt a sudden warmth on his four-month-old baby bump, as if a gentle hand applied against the slightly distended belly and stroked the soft skin.

"You don't need an Alpha. I will protect you," a low, rocky voice assured.

Edward startled, he frantically looked around in the cramped bathroom...

"Worry not, little one. I've been watching you. I know you. I can take care of you. Of both of you. And if you want, I'll help you take your revenge on those who hurt you or dared to raise a hand on you. After all... I always had a soft spot for lost children and broken things."

In the mirror, Ed finally saw the creature, half-way through a black bat and a giant snake, whose neck is... attached to his left shoulder.

Eddie fainted at the sight, under the Bat's skeptical glance. How rude of his new host, not to greet him properly.

.................

Read “Dark Night” on AO3 here Discover the rest of the DC Symbiotes Series on AO3 here

[os-hyoideum]

Fake - Hawks/Takami Keigo x fem!Reader

Summary: Keigo wants to be there for his struggling love.

Word count: 3232

Content/Warnings: Hurt/comfort, angst(ish), depressed feelings, mention of suicidal thoughts, self-indulgent, third-person perspective

a/n: I started writing it in March 🤡 but I felt like I couldn't abandon it, so here it is, finally! ngl kinda exposing myself here oop- idk if it's a comfort fic, but I hope you enjoy :)

During the late hours of the evening, the city below looked particularly beautiful. Colorful neon lights, emanating from dozens of advertisements and signs, illuminated the people who, without care, carried on with their evening tasks, be it a trip to a bar or the travel home from work.

Hawks stood on the roof of the building, looking down and just taking in the scenery. It was not a particularly special day, but the rain that poured earlier has left the ground wet and glistening. The lights, bouncing off the pavement and people, created a picture truly from under a hand of a masterful abstractionist. The pinks, the blues, the yellows, all the colors created the effect of a spilled paint from his point of view.

While admiring the city, Hawks’ phone vibrated in his pocket. Taking his eyes away, he took out the device and, when the screen lit up, was met with the face of his love.

It was his favorite picture in the whole world and he knew, deep down, that any professional photographer couldn’t capture anything better. Truthfully, it wasn’t really a masterpiece, just a simple selfie, but the memory connected to the photograph made it exceptional. He remembered the quiet moment (so little of them in his life) when he could take his partner away and just enjoy an ordinary day with her. A walk, a picnic, anything that made him forget about his everyday life. The smile he saw in the picture truly made him feel like the surroundings brightened a bit.

The message on his phone was simple, a request for him to come back to the office, probably to take care of the stack of papers that adorned his desk.

He put the device back into his pocket, took a last look at the city down below, and, after putting his goggles on, spread his scarlet wings to take off.

If he were being honest, he would say that, given the option, he would stay in the air, in the sky, far above the ground, forever. The wind, howling loudly in his ears, silenced the worries of his everyday life. The air flowing around his body, through every feather of his wings gave him a sense of freedom. In the sky, he was able to see the horizon and just let himself be carried.

There was just one thing missing among the clouds.

On his way back to real life, where he would need to take care of mundane work-related tasks, he took a little detour.

Maneuvering expertly over and around the buildings, he found himself in front of an ordinary apartment complex. The grey modern building had a few floors and, quickly locating the right window, Hawks flew over to where his partner’s apartment was. Some people looked at him, from the street or through their own windows, but they were used to his random visits and paid him no mind, for which he was grateful.

He stopped in place seeing the inside of his lover’s bedroom and peeked inside, as the blinds were open. Some crumpled clothes lying on the bed, along with a few books. Through the open door, he could see the light coming from the TV.

Normally, he would just knock on the glass for her to open the window, but suddenly he got a hunch that something was not right. Maybe it was the fact that her texts became drier as the day went by (just like the last few days) until they halted completely, or maybe the open blinds, usually closed soon after it got dark. Whatever the source of his uneasiness was, it made him fly down and go inside the building through the door. He climbed a few flights of stairs to get to the floor she lived on. The only sounds, keeping him company during his walk through the corridor, were faint voices from behind some of the doors and his own footsteps.

He reached his goal. The alertness in his mind only became stronger as he knocked and waited patiently for the door to open.

A few dreadful seconds later he heard the sound of the turning mechanism inside of the lock. Only for a split second was he able to see the cold numbness on the face of his love before she noticed who had visited her. Her expression changed immediately and she smiled, oh so brightly.

Moving and pulling the muscles in her face, she was always able to make Keigo’s days better. And she could do it in an instant too, and so well that others never noticed the difference between the fake and the real. But he had sharp eyes, trained from a young age to catch any irregularities around him. He noticed, every time, how she faked and he hated it, especially knowing that when he did the same, she always pushed just enough for him to give in and let her in, more and more every time. He would push a bit too, at least to let her know that, if she wanted to, she could tell him anything.

“Keigo!” she exclaimed, voice high in pitch to sound happier, “What are you doing here, baby?”

“I was on my way to the office and thought I could drop by for a moment… Can I get in?” He asked pointing to the inside of the apartment.

“Oh! Of course.” She opened the door wider. “I got back from work not long ago, so… I guess, it’s not that clean.” She added with a small laugh.

Keigo knew it was a lie. He knew when his partner worked; she finished three hours ago.

He entered her space and when he kneeled down to take off his boots, he caught the glimpse of her cheerful expression falling. Still in her work clothes, she looked like she would get crushed any second. He knew her mind could get heavy at times.

“Come here.” He outstretched his hand towards her and lightly pulled her into himself.

At first, she was slightly rigid in his arms, but relaxed a bit, feeling Keigo’s soft strokes along her back. She hid her face into the high collar of his jacket and he noticed how tightly she gripped the material with her fists.

“You should get changed… wear something comfortable.” He whispered to not disturb her too much.

“I’m so tired.” She mumbled, her face still hidden. He just held her for a little while longer, allowing her to let go of him first. When she finally straightened her back and looked at him, this time without a fake smile, he felt like his heart broke, for her. He lifted his hand and gently stroked her cheek.

Her face was virtually emotionless, but he noticed the tensed jaw. The eyes, that hypnotized him every time he gazed into them, were looking more into space than actually at him. Her spaced-out expression made it seem like she was sculpted in marble.

Keigo squeezed her arms lightly to ground her a bit into reality.

“Do you want me to help you?” He asked softly, giving her a way to back out, if she truly wanted to.

“I don’t need…” She looked down with hesitation. Being vulnerable was never easy, even with some of the closest people. Admitting the need or want for other’s presence was quite a feat. She sighed. “Yes.”

“Do you want to take a shower too? Or just change?” She saw not even a slight sliver of judgment in his eyes.

“I’ll take a shower.” She said quietly and took her arms away from Keigo’s. She turned around to go to the bathroom but stopped when he made a move behind her. “Alone, but… stay… please.”

He just nodded with understanding and watched her drag her feet to the other room. At first, nothing came out of there, but a few minutes later he could hear the water from the shower. Going into his partner’s bedroom, he looked briefly at the messy clothing laying on the bed, pushed them aside, and took the clothes he knew she used as pajamas and always put under the duvet.

After the water stopped running, he waited ten minutes before knocking on the door. After getting quiet permission to enter, he went in and saw her sitting on the toilet, wrapped in a towel, with her unseeing gaze focused on some point before her.

“Come on.” Keigo softly broke the silence in the bathroom and reached out to her with one, which she took. He pulled gently and, without saying anything more, gave her the clothes he was holding.

With no request for him to get out, he just stood in the doorway while she put on her sweatpants and T-shirt. It was strange for him to see her vulnerable because she always closed herself off in those moments. He knew it was important that she just let him be there.

“Do you feel… better?” He asked when she stood in front of the mirror slightly squinting at herself.

“Hmm…” she hummed, “Perhaps. Not any lighter, though.”

“Do you want to talk about it?” He felt like he was going through a field full of land mines. His training made him an expert at obtaining information, but he did not want to use his, masterfully crafted by the Commission, manipulation skills on her. He hoped that he was enough to bring her any semblance of comfort.

She shrugged and, after pushing him slightly out of the door, moved out of the bedroom and sat down on the couch, empty staring at the TV playing some meaningless show. Keigo took a place next to her, his wings hanging behind the backrest.

For a second, he cursed his lack of experience with human emotions. Of course, he was trained to observe and he knew when something was not right, but since he was never allowed to get close to anyone, his skills turned to nothing in the face of his love slowly getting pulled into the darkness of her own mind, all while maintaining the smile he adored so much.

After a minute of silence between them, the girl took a pilot and turned the TV off. She looked at him, the quietness becoming almost unbearable, but quickly, she broke it with a question:

“Do you really want me to… talk?”

And he just nodded.

Unable to look into his worried, gold eyes, she lowered her gaze. Leaning slightly on her elbows, she stared at her hands, fidgeting with her fingers.

“Well… I haven’t been feeling… um, really good, lately. Mentally, I mean.”

“Yeah… I’ve noticed. Should’ve said something sooner.”

She turned to him and put one hand on his knee, which he gently covered with his own and started to stroke with his thumb.

“No.” She opposed, “I’m actually grateful that you took more of a, hmm, silent-observer approach. I had space… but still knew you were there, somewhere, for me.”

“Good thing then that I’m not completely useless here.” He tried to joke with a small smile that fell quickly.

“No, but I am.” Before he could protest she took his hand, the one he’s been stroking her with, into both of hers. “Kei, Keigo… I can tell you what’s going on up here-” she pointed at her head “-but it’s just, so hard. And you have so much of your own shit going on… I don’t want to worry and burden you with my... stupid mind.”

He sighed, brought his free hand to the back of her head, and put his forehead against hers.

“You know I love you, right?”

“Yeah,” she said, “I think I do…”

She closed her eyes, letting her sense of touch be the center of her attention. She focused on the weight his head put against her own, the way his messy hair brushed her face and his slow warm breath felt against her lips. It grounded her mind, silencing (if even for just a moment) the annoying white noise constantly present in there.

“I don’t want to look at you,” she started, “when I’m talking. It’s just… I don’t want to be seen, only heard.”

Keigo shifted his head and gave her a soft kiss on the forehead.

“Whatever you’re comfortable with.”

She turned away from him, putting her legs on the couch to sit cross-legged. It took a few moments before she started talking. Organizing the thoughts and feelings plaguing her was not easy.

“I… I just feel so bad. And I don’t even have a good reason for these stupid feelings,” she said, sounding slightly annoyed, “Why the fuck do I feel like this? I have a home, I have friends, I have… you. I have everything I could hope for and yet… I feel so bad, so… so numb. What the fuck is wrong with me?”

Keigo looked at her hunched back and saw that she put her face into her hands. He wished he could just take all her troubles away, be the hero that he was supposed to be, but of course, he couldn’t, and that - he hated.

“I’m so fucking tired. I have no energy for almost anything. Yesterday, before bed, I sat in front of my computer for hours. Doing absolutely nothing… Why am I even telling you this? It’s so stupid. You do so much for everyone and I’m just dumping my shit on you… saying how tired I am, while you’re so much more tired than me.” She straightened her back with a dry chuckle.

He leaned slightly towards her and put his arm on her shoulder. She turned her head to the side and looked at him from the corner of the eye.

“Don’t invalidate yourself. I’m here and I’m not going anywhere. Call it my… bird senses-” he smiled a little “-but I felt like you might need someone. And nothing you do or say is stupid. Not to me. Not if it’s you.”

“You… remember?” She asked with raised eyebrows, after turning her body sideways to him.

“Of course. I remember a lot of things about you,” he said with such tenderness in his eyes that, while looking into them, she felt like she could suffocate. But it was good, it wasn’t nothing. “The quote you like, how you make your coffee, what is the song you listen to on repeat… everything I see and know about you, I remember.”

Pushing away the shame and the nagging voice, saying that Keigo didn’t really care, she faced him completely and moved close enough for her knees to touch his thighs. He could see now how shiny her eyes became.

“You can cry, if you want to.”

“I wish I could… no matter how teary my eyes get, it’s just… nothing comes out of them. But on the inside, on the inside, I’m weeping.”

She talked mostly with a flat voice, little change in her tone, but he sensed the grief deep inside her. Grief for herself, grief for her crumbling mind.

“That’s okay. It will come when the time is right.” He really hoped he was doing it right. That he was able to give any comfort.

With slight hesitation, she touched his leg with her fingertips before resting her palms to play with the fabric of his pants.

“I don’t get it. Why you are so… here. You could just leave and I would be okay… in time.”

“I told you that I love you, right?”

“You did, but still…” Her eyes became unseeing again. She looked through space with a spaced-out expression. “If I wasn’t here you wouldn’t have to bother, you wouldn’t have to worry.”

“Are you saying that you’ve thought about…” He did not want to end that sentence, too scared to actually hear it.

“Death?” So she ended it for him. “Yeah, I do… from time to time. But I don’t think I’d do it. Even if I think it would be better without me taking up space, I’m too selfish to just let go of everything…”

Keigo was a bit shocked with how calm she was. Death was something that he himself contemplated in the past, but hearing it said by someone he loved was on a whole another level. Fright and relief washed over him.

He took both of her hands into his and brought them to his mouth. He put his lips on her skin, not kissing, just feeling, making sure that she was indeed there with him.

“I… am so glad. So glad that you trust me enough to let me into your mind.” He made sure to look her straight in the eyes. His (just barely) trembling fingers squeezing hers. “You are my Sun. The most important star in my galaxy, in my whole universe, even. And I will do anything in my power to prevent you from burning out. I… I just need you like flowers need the Sun.”

She did not expect such a statement from him, it wasn’t really in his nature to make proclamations of that stature. But she knew it was on purpose, another thing he remembered: her love for the stars. If he loved her like she loved the unknown universe… It was almost overwhelming. She also understood the implication of his power - he would try to help her and if she needed more, he would get anyone more suited for this particular job.

He sighed and put their hands down (never letting go).

“It sounds selfish, doesn’t it? You need me and I say that I need you.”

She gently pulled her hands away from his and changed her position to sit on her feet. Leaning forward, she cupped his face softly, fingers getting tangled in his messy blond hair.

“Do you know what is it about us, Keigo? Why do we even work?” She asked quietly.

“Hmm?”

“We’re fake. Both of us.” He knew what she meant. “We’re fake to the world. But we know the truth and need each other to tell it.”

He said nothing, instead just embracing her, the words still echoing in his mind.

The position they were in was uncomfortable. His arms around her torso, hers around his neck with her head on his shoulder, both leaning into one another a bit awkwardly. Still, they both savored the warmth the other provided.

“I will stand by you all the way, as long as you want me,” he whispered right in her ear.

“You’re betting on a losing dog…”

“A losing dog...? Then I’m losing by your side.” He felt her slight smile on the crook of his neck. “I’ll wait for the day when you sing along to songs again…”

She lifted her head to look at him from the corner of her eye.

“You know, that’s a bit cheesy.”

“Maybe,” he said with a sigh, “but when you do it, you always seem happy or content. When you stop singing, the silence is almost deafening…”

She hummed in agreement, he was right, after all.

“Hide me away, Keigo,” she whispered gripping the fabric on his back, “Just for a moment, please.”

His wings spread to the sides before enveloping tightly the two of them.

They sat in their own crimson bubble, a safe haven, while his phone lit up in his pocket with a reminder of forgotten reality.

[pot8toqueen]

Just some dumb headcanons I thought of while showering! I'll go in order of the only three adults that play with the children to the children of 1a + Shinsou. This is about them all being in a Minecraft server all started thanks to Kaminari Denki!

Aziawa Shouta:

•His skin is just Steve, he won't change it even when asked. Kaminari made him a new skin a few times but he stays Steve just out of spite at this point. (He might change to a sleeping bag with legs one day, that was a cool skin design on Kaminari's part)

• He was the main reason the server started, Denki discovered he'd never really played video games growing up so he begged Aziawa to play with him on his server.

• Aziawa had no fucking idea how to play, and only wielded a wooden sword. He just attacked any mobs/animal that came close to Kaminari or him.

• Kaminari then took him to a village, and had to help as his teacher *decimated* the town.

• Shouta learned how to play by the third attempt, he still only wields swords and attacks mobs. He doesn't slaughter everything though, Kaminari taught him about pets and showed him how to tame each one. He keeps hoarding cats, has one white bird and a pink axolotl for Eri.

• He doesn't sleep in beds, took him a week before he actually went to bed in the game. He'd rather fight the night away and protect his students from the mobs.

• When he goes to find things in the game, he often comes back with pets on leads or in boats for his students. He only takes back the ones he knows his students want or like.

Present Mic:

• His skin is just straight up a bird, he loves it

• He joined because he saw Aziawa playing one weekend and asked about it.

• Kaminari thought it was a great idea and told his teacher about it, during English the next time. (Yes they're all in a discord call)

• Hizashi, doesn't hoard pets he prefers to build random structures. But Shouta will come up to him with birds and seeds and wait until Hizashi tames the pet then leave. So there are a bunch of tamed birds sitting throughout the sever.

• Hizashi hides indoors and freaks out because of the spiders. Until Kaminari got him a texture pack that made them not look like spiders. (They look like large crabs now)

• Hizashi built so many weird things on the sever, there is straight up a Wendy's and a Panda Express. He also built a strip club, it has a glitched out creeper as a stripper. (Shouta hates that it's built, especially because they're on a server with children) The Creeper was nicknamed by Bakugo as Princess Murder.

• Hizashi keeps finding temples and other things, so he has cool shit and all the nameplates. He trades them for building supplies. Or in Aziawa's case birdseed and free pets.

Hawks:

• He was Steve for like two days before Tokoyami took over and changed it to a Hawks skin. Hawks also is named Chickenlover because he really had been craving chicken that day and he's embarrassed about it.

• Only one who wasn't invited in by Kaminari! Tokoyami had brought the hero onto the group, when he had expressed needing a way to relax.

• Never playing video games growing up, Hawks had no fucking clue what he was doing and cried when a creeper exploded.

• He also fell into Katsuki's pet creeper pit (that was fenced off for this reason) and killed all the nicknamed creepers, also made the server lag from the multiple explosions going off.

• Hawks doesn't play with them often, only because when he joins Bakugo kills him like four times for revenge of his babies.

• Hawks is really bad at the game, but is great at finding diamonds. Though he dies like two seconds after obtaining the diamonds...

• He does enjoy playing with the class, but he has a sort of fan crush on Present Mic and doesn't function properly when in a call with the voice hero.

•The whole class, even Shouta tease him for it. Present Mic just thinks it's cute, because everyone has had a crush on this man at least once.

Aoyama Yuga:

• He likes flowers and other pretty things, his pets are all colour coronated.

• Aoyama does the baking, and has a pet cow in his room. He also a sheep of every colour in his own sheep pen. One is named Dinnerbone solely because he wanted an upside down sheep. He also has a jeb_ sheep.

• Yuga isn't as active in the server as others are, but he'll pop on once in awhile to give flowers randomly (Not even Bakugo throws away the gifted flowers)

• Yuga's skin is a sparkly pink knight, it was expected.

Ashido Mina:

• She likes collecting slimes, has a few baby slimes as pets as well as panda's.

• Her skin is literally Alien for AvP, but a pink version.

• She often attacks Bakugo and starts mini wars with him, that end in the two just throwing rotten flesh at the other.

• She gets attacked by Aziawa with his (Stupid Stick) the most, especially when he finds her throwing diamonds at Princess Murder in the strip club.

• Mina is one of the ones who builds Aziawa his gear so he can fight, she keeps extras so if one breaks she'll throw another at him.

Asui Tsuyu:

• She collects Axolotl and frogs. (I know there adding that soon I believe don't quote me)

• Tsyu is the least violent one on the server, she also tends to do her own thing. Though she also helps others if they're struggling.

• While most of the server lives in one big house that Iida and Present Mic built together. (Expanded on the small cobblestone house Denki built originally for everyone) Tsyu lives in a swamp biome a good ways away. Her house is a mushroom.

• Tsyu hates Midoriya's house because it's filled with all sorts of animals and she keeps getting headbutted by his goats he refuses to separate from the other animals. But she also finds it endearing how he is emotionally attached to all these animals.

Iida Tenya:

• Denki, Tenya, Present Mic, Aziawa, and Momo all have admin rights in both the discord server and Minecraft server.

• Iida bans the most people for short periods of time. He'd banned Present Mic and Mineta both. Mineta for all the inappropriate builds he's made, he'd also banned Mineta from the server for a few hours when he came across the strip club then let him back on when he found out who built it, then banned Present Mic for a day.

• Iida tends to do most of the building and enchanting, especially for Aziawa who still refuses to sleep at night, and cursed everyone to suffer Phantoms. But no one really minds.

• Tenya also collects flowers similar to Yuga, but he plants them around the main house (stops by Tsyu's place to give them to her) He only takes the ones he knows everyone likes because seeing and hearing them when they come to the house and see their favorite flower makes him secretly happy. No one knows he's the one leaving them, except Yuga.

• Tenya sometimes helps fight the mobs with Aziawa, especially when their teacher is trying to lure a creeper into Bakugou's new Creeper pit.

Uraraka Ochako:

• One of the few other miners, she often helps Bakugo with mining and is more trusted with not dying when down underground.

• She's also a good shot with the bow, preferring that to the sword.

• Uraraka is great at parkour and has killed Bakugo many times by him trying to follow her, but missing a jump and just falling to his death.

• She may prefer mining, but loves going on adventures with Midoriya and Tenya, only because the three of them get up to mischief and Aziawa has had to help them find their way home to many times as they never bring a map.

• She and Midoriya both agree ghast's shouldn't fucking exist but both for different reasons. She is scared of them, and Midoriya wants one as a pet.

[serpentinesarang]

falling for you

pairing: baekhyun (byun baekhyun) x fem reader | part 2

genre: non-idol!au, angel!baekhyun, fluff, slow burn, split-perspective, first- and second-person writing styles, LOTS of plot buildup and dialogue, mild smut mixed in, part of a series

word count: 3831

content warnings: alcohol, swearing, theme of angels, virgin reader, strong theme of voyeurism, reader has gender-neutral best friend, vibrator masturbation

summary: baekhyun, your guardian angel watching over since the day you were conceived, has fallen in love with you and can’t bear to just watch you anymore. he needs so much more.

a/n: partly inspired by the teen romance-fantasy series hush, hush by becca fitzpatrick. #17 on my prompt list ♡

korean key:

⦿ none this time

♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤♤

You

It’s your 21st birthday, and a beautiful, late-spring day awaits you. You turn off your alarm, roll out of bed, and drag yourself to the bathroom for a much-needed shower. 

Once you flick on the vanity lights above the sink, you stop in your tracks. You know what... today’s my big day. I’m gonna do shit MY way today, you think while eyeing yourself in the mirror.

You exit the bathroom for a moment and retrieve the unopened bottle of Fireball [American cinnamon whiskey] atop your dresser. Your dad had sent you the bottle along with your favorite brand of chocolate and a sweet card, and you’d accidentally received the package one day early (oh well!). Unscrewing the cap, you take a hearty gulp and wince at the delicious burning sensation in your chest.

“Fuck yeah,” you grumble aloud as you replace the bottle and amble back to the bathroom.

You turn the knobs of your glass-encased shower and strip off your pajamas while the water heats up.

Baekhyun

Good gracious. I will never tire of her waking up and taking morning showers. She looks the most ethereal after she sleeps and the most serene with water cascading down every bit of her curvaceous body. The way her nipples grow erect from the pressure of the water and the occasional chills when she reaches out to change the background music playing... her hair slicked back, drawing all my attention to her stunning face... 

My darling human has at last become what they call an adult. She is now able to legally enjoy spirits and be merry with friends. 

I remember the moment she was conceived and I was assigned as her guardian. I made sure her mother was never in harm’s way during her pregnancy with my darling, and ever since then, she has been my reason for existence. No other human soul before her had ever latched itself so deeply into my being, and I can’t stand the distance anymore.

I sit on her long bathroom counter with my wings comforting my back against the wall and my legs hitched upward, just watching her wake up to another day. The glass walls of the shower have fogged up, but I can easily discern her silhouette swaying side-to-side with the music. She seems to be in an unusually happy mood today, and I plan to make her even happier tonight.

You

You step out and dry yourself off, twisting your hair into a towel turban. You tiptoe in front of the mirror and wipe off the condensation with your forearm. Just then, your cell phone on the counter launches into a FaceTime call, the screen showing your best friend’s name.

Accepting the call audio-only, you greet them cheerily, “Good morning, sexy bitch!”

They chuckle. “Show me your face, coward! I wanna see what my 21-year-old best friend looks like on her birthday!”

You dramatically sigh and oblige your friend, keeping your phone facing the ceiling as you tap your camera on. You tower over the screen at a comical angle that only shows your towel-wrapped head and exposed neck. “Here she is!”

“A knockout as always. I hope you know that,” they reply.

Smiling, you ask, “What’s up?”

“We still good to go out to Fire & Ice tonight? I’m not gonna let you leave until you’re so sloshed that I have to carry you out!”

You laugh at your friend’s excitement. “Yes, I took the whole weekend off, so let the debauchery begin, my friend.”

You talk about your club plans a little more before your friend goes on a long diatribe about their evil stepmother—not really fresh territory at this point. So you carry your phone around while you dress in jeans and a college t-shirt, eventually returning to the bathroom for a quick round of makeup.

Your bestie is still regaling you with their convoluted family drama when you feel yourself zoning out into the mirror. It’s as if all other noises around you have slowly faded away, and the only thing you hear is a voice, seemingly right next to you, whispering with a velvety softness, “You’re beautiful as you are.”

Mesmerized by the voice, you unconsciously sigh out of deep contentedness, and your friend asks if you’re still keeping up. You assure them all is well, except for the fact that you’ve been hearing a comforting voice for the past three years now.

A voice you obey by only putting on mascara.

Baekhyun

I’ve been speaking to her since she turned 18. I always wanted her to know she’s never truly alone, but the problem with my method is that she never fully processes me. She’s always so captivated when I speak to her that it never occurs to her something extraordinary—someone extraordinary—is connecting with her, guiding her, encouraging her. And it doesn’t help that I can’t read her thoughts or impede her free will by planting thoughts. But I’d be lying if I said I didn’t enjoy the wide-looked look of bliss that overcomes her every time she hears me.

She goes about her morning as she usually does on the weekends: sitting on her balcony with a plate of toast, a cup of coffee, and whichever book she borrowed from the public library. This time, it’s Dante’s Divine Comedy. 

I love the irony.

You

Two hours of reading pass before you grow restless and retreat back to your room. Flopping in bed, you let your mind wander. You’ve been single for as long as you can remember, and you’ve taken a liking to the clearly male voice you hear every once in a while. If you’re honest with yourself, you’re scared deep down of the reality of such a circumstance, but because the voice has always cared about you, what’s the harm in believing in it?

Remember, you tell yourself, it’s all about you today.

Without any more hesitation, you yank open the drawer of your nightstand and pull out a black wand vibrator. You may be a virgin, but you’re not an idiot who doesn’t know what pleasure is.

Wiggling out of your panties and jeans, you throw them to the floor and spread your legs across the mattress as comfortably as possible.

“Come back to me,” you whisper almost inaudibly.

Baekhyun

Absolutely nothing else on this planet makes me happier than watching my darling pleasure herself. She obtained that vibrating device last year as a gift from her friend, and ever since she discovered this realm of physical pleasure, I’ve fallen harder and faster for her. The salacious things I’ve watched her do to herself, the phenomenal sounds she emits, the positions she lazes into, the glistening of that little slice of heaven on her body... It drives me mad that I have no senses of smell, taste, and touch because I want to experience what she does. And with her.

Today is different. She’s never spoken aloud like that, and the yearning in her voice makes me believe it’s for me.

I rest on my stomach with my chin atop my hands, peering at the slit between her supple legs and how it’s slowly begun to flood as she drags the device up and down, stopping to rub slow circles at the very top. I don’t hear the thing humming, so she must be preparing herself.

She has one arm bent behind her head, her neck angled to watch herself move the device. Her mouth is ajar, and the rising of her chest fascinates me because it falls in tune with the device.

Then she pushes a button, and I hear it buzzing lowly. Not a millisecond later does her breath catch as her hips dig downward, and she closes her eyes. She holds the black thing at the top, over the little mountain of bulbous, pink flesh.

You

Whoever he is, you wish he’d speak to you now as you press the wand against your hardened clit. It’s only set to level one, but you feel your orgasm beginning to build up.

So beautiful like this, you imagine him saying. Keep going. I’m right here, and you’re driving me crazy...

You let out a breathy moan as you activate the wand’s level two vibration intensity, and your thighs shake uncontrollably at the heightened pleasure.

Shake for me, beautiful. Take me to your heaven, your imagination continues. It’s right then, though, that his voice sounds beside your ear for real in a soft tone: Yes, darling, you did it.

After hearing this voice long enough to be able to conjure it in your mind with any array of sinful words, today is the first time it brings you to a time-stopping orgasm.

Baekhyun

Out of nowhere, her hips fly off the bed and surge in random, up and down motions, and I watch the small opening of her slit pulsate in time with her hips as it erupts with a lovely, transluscent essence. I wish I could feel her arousal on my fingertips instead of just watching.

Her voice comes out in broken utterances and ragged moans: “UH-uh-huhhh-ugghhhh... ffffff-UH-uh-uuuck.”

The vibration ceases, and she tosses the device beside her with a heavy exhale, evidently spent. Her legs are still spread, and I can’t help but inch myself closer to observe the way her soaked flesh speaks to me in its language of spontaneous throbbing.

You

The rest of the day passes you by. After you came, you made lunch, went to the gym for a workout, went to the DMV to change your driver’s license, came home and read some more, answered a few work emails, perused social media, ate dinner, and even watched a movie. A typical Saturday for you, nothing particularly special by any means. The real fun would be at 9 PM when your bestie promised to pick you up.

...

You glance at the time on your phone: 8:56 PM. Perfect, a few more minutes to double-check everything.

Phone case on a crossbody chain with your new license and credit card stored inside? Check. House key attached to the chain on a carabiner clip? Check. Hair flat-ironed with minimal frizz and ultimate shine? Check. Makeup? Eh, all you did was pat on some cheekbone highlighter. Check. Outfit? Sleeveless, burgundy top with an open, laced up backside, faux leather miniskirt, and basic black Converse for comfort. Check.

You smile at yourself in the full-body mirror in your apartment’s foyer. “Effortless.”

Yes, the voice agrees.

...

It’s just after 9:15 when you arrive at the Fire & Ice club downtown. The bouncers stamp both of your left hands with purple stars for the bartenders to serve you the goods before you’re pushed along with the crowd further into the expansive club. 

Lights of every color strobe all over with red-tinged string lights on the perimeter of the whole place, and a massive blue-tinged spotlight on the DJ and his setup. The dancefloor in the middle is decently crowded with people around your age, a few 40-something couples sticking out adorably. 

“No chasers for you, missy,” your friend reminds you with glittering eyes and a loving squeeze on your upper arm.

You nod, feeling thrilled to be out on the town for once. You raise your index finger to the ceiling with a victory screech: “To the bar!”

Over an hour later, the overhead lights go out, the DJ’s spotlight turns red, and the entire bar gets lit up from the see-through floor with bright, pale-blue lights. Even though you’re definitely tipsy now, you finally notice the mirrored wall panels surrounding the club, and all the spotlights bouncing off of them combined with the bar’s own futuristic lighting makes you realize how truly fire and ice this place is.

Not surprisingly, your friend had slid into their drunk phase a little faster than you, and they’d disappared somewhere with a girl they’d met at the bar. They’d sent you a text 20 minutes ago reading, “Met a spicy lil thang at the bar. I’ll find u later! Keep ordering!!!”

Were you bothered? Nah, you really weren’t. This has happened a few times before elsewhere, and you were still intent on enjoying this day your way, even if that meant dancing like an idiot by yourself.

Were you wondering where the voice was? Yes. He hadn’t spoken to you since you got picked up.

Gulping down the rest of your Captain and Coke, you return the glass to the bar and catch somebody to order a Vegas Bomb shot. Feeling yourself finally dipping into your drunk mode, you down the shot with ease, not so much as wincing at the burn of the alcohol before heading straight back to the center of the dancefloor where a group of girls had left a pocket for you to slip in.

The DJ blends the ending of the current song with the beginning of a new one, “All That” by Emotional Oranges, and the vibes you get from this one are sensual. You’re in your own world of alcoholic delight, and you’re erotically body-rolling with yourself before you feel a pair of hands gently grasp your waist.

You feel the person press their chest against your shoulders, their breath icy cold beside your ear. “Effortless, my darling.”

Every fiber of your being comes to a screetching halt when you hear it. 

It’s him.  

You spin around—a little too quickly considering your current state—and brace your hands against his chest. He responds by wrapping his arms around your back. 

Looking back at you with big, almost black-colored eyes is a man with platinum blonde hair and ridiculously full lips. He’s wearing a white button-up shirt tucked into black pants, a look more fitting for a business-casual luncheon or something.

But who cares about the clothes when he has a face like that? With the most flawlessly radiant, olive skin and hands so warm on your exposed back that he feels like a personal heater?

You could feel the surrounding people’s presence melting away the longer you gazed at him, the more it dawned on you with a certainty you didn’t dare doubt that this was truly the voice you’d been hearing.

You blurt the words without any more hesitation: “Say ‘beautiful.’”

Unphased, he fulfills your request with a melodic purposefulness in his voice, keeping his eyes trained on yours.

With relief washing over you, you drop your jaw in a loud exhale. “It’s you!” You bring your hands up to cup his cheeks, desperate to etch his breathtaking face onto your brain.

“It’s me,” he answers with a sheepish smile, hugging your body tighter against his. He feels as firm as Michelangelo’s David sculpture.

Then you faint in his arms.

Baekhyun

I can’t tell if she fainted from the shock of finally meeting me or from her obvious imbibement. I was actually able to smell it on her warm breath, and if I knew what literally anything on Earth smelled like, I’d be able to describe it. 

I was more beside myself being able to finally touch her, though, to finally exist with her in the same dimension of reality. Her skin felt supremely smooth, and I could practically feel the love beaming from her face.

She knew it was me because she asked me to say beautiful, something I’d spoken to her earlier in the morning. She didn’t want to test me, but she also didn’t want to test her sanity or sobriety. 

I carried her home, glancing down at her with a kind of all-encompassing happiness I’d never felt before as an angel.

You

At last, you rouse from your fainting spell, and the first thing you see is your apartment ceiling. A dull headache is knocking at the back of your head, and thankfully the only light source is the lamp on your nightstand.

You look to your side and are reminded of the night’s events.

“I’m sorryyy,” you murmur, frowning cutely at the platinum-haired man lying beside you with his head propped up in his hand. He moves his free hand from your hip to your jaw, tenderly grasping it and swiping his thumb side to side. 

“Please don’t be,” he replies softly. “I’d do anything for you.”

You look at him for a moment, examining his features. “Do you know my name?”

He grins ear to ear, as if enjoying a private joke. “I think you know I do.”

Although you’d slept off the alcohol, you’re still a little lost. How do you explain meeting the man whose voice you’d heard in your head for three years?

You turn to face him, entwining your lower legs with his under the sheets. He seems almost caught off guard by the touch, but he quickly calms himself.

“I don’t know yours, though. Please help me,” you plead, and he picks up on your subtle allusion to the bigger picture, not just his name.

He sighs quietly, ceasing his thumb strokes and taking your hand in his. “I am—was the angel Baekhyun.” He pauses, gently squeezing your hand as he brings it to his white shirt. “I’ve watched over you for the past 21 years and nine months.” 

He pauses again, letting this sit with you. You take a moment to process before speaking. “Why hadn’t I heard your voice earlier?”

He nods once, taking in a breath. “I didn’t want to scare you in your younger years, nor did I want others to think you’d developed an imaginary friend. And for obvious reasons, you couldn’t see me before I fell.”

Before I fell.

The words run you over like a semi-truck, and Baekhyun sees it on your face. “Yes, darling, I fell to Earth.”

You furrow your brow, caught between confusion and wanting to cry. “Why?” you whisper.

“I broke the law,” he says before kissing your knuckles. “I fell in love with a human.”

You can’t help but stare at him, speechless.

“And I want you to know that every time you ever heard my voice,” he continues, “I was speaking to you and only you when I felt you needed me. Most angels deliberately avoid speaking to their humans and instead conjure some sort of earthly sign for them to stumble across. But I couldn’t do that with you. I watched you become such an incredibly strong, self-sufficient woman that I worried you’d never get anything in return from anyone. I wanted you to know you have never been alone.” 

Tears well in your eyes at Baekhyun’s sincerity, and you struggle to find any words to string together.

He kisses your hand again. “Before this, my only senses were hearing and seeing. I don’t think I can take my hands off you now.”

You burst into a toothy smile. “So that means you’ve watched me do literally everything...”

Baekhyun notices the streak of seduction coloring your eyes. Glancing toward your nightstand quickly, he says under his breath, “That thing drives you wild.”

You smirk, pulling your intertwined hands forward so you can kiss his knuckles this time. “Do you know how wild your voice has driven me? Still?”

“I kind of always suspected it,” he admits with a smirk. “Nevertheless, we are together, and I don’t know how to adequately express how deeply happy I am, much less how happy I want to make you.”

Moving your legs from his, you kick back the sheets. He’d left you both fully clothed, that gentleman. 

“What time is it?” you say as you twist around to check your phone. Your home screen reads just past 3 AM, and there’s even a new text from your bestie: “Glad u found someone!! Text me tomorrow and happy bday again <3″

You turn back to Baekhyun, propping yourself up on your elbow like him. “You texted my friend?”

He nods earnestly. “I’ve seen you do that enough times to understand the courtesy of letting them know.”

You smile in response, deciding to push his shoulder until he’s lying on his back and you’re straddling him. He responds by placing his warm hands on your hips.

You throw your hair to one side before leaning over him with an outstretched arm. “Baekhyun,” you whisper.

“Yes, my darling?” he hums, his eyes eagerly drinking you in.

“I want you.”

His eyes widen enough for you to notice, and he unknowingly digs his fingers into your sides.

“I’ve wanted you for so long,” he says above a whisper.

You lean back and unzip your miniskirt, then you tug at your top’s ribboning to undo it enough for you to pull it off. You take in a deep breath as Baekhyun feverishly assesses you, and your nipples grow hard at his unfettered attention.

“Haven’t you seen this enough?” you ask him softly.

He shakes his head. “Never enough. And now I can feel you, smell you, and taste you.”

You carefully stand above him and brace a hand against the wall as you yank the skirt off, one of his hands tenderly holding your ankle. You straddle him again and sit a little bit lower so you can unbutton his shirt, open his pants and pull out the ends of his shirt.

Spreading the shirt fully open, his chiseled torso knocks the breath out of you. You bring your hands to his abs but hesitate for a second.

“Please keep going,” he begs quietly. 

With his approval, you bring your hands down and gingerly run them over the indentations of his abs and the plains of his defined pecs. You trace your index finger from his chin over his Adam’s apple all the way down to his navel.

“Darling?”

“Yes, Baekhyun?”

“What am I feeling in my pelvis? Is something wrong with me?”

You look down and find his very human, very pink, very swollen erection poking out of his underwear. Taking his questions seriously, you answer him: “You have an erection, a boner. That means you’re turned on.”

“’Turned on?’”

“Aroused, excited, in the mood. This is how human men show it,” you reply, keeping your voice sincere. He deserves the truth as it is, not through jokes and teasing. “You’ll have to learn how to control it in public.”

He quickly infers your hidden meaning, nodding. “I trust you.”

Chuckling at his random admission, you say, “I trust you too. I’d like to help you with being a human as you have helped me.”

He beams at you. “I welcome your guidance wholeheartedly.”

You smile and spend the next minute removing your panties and the rest of his clothing.

Baekhyun, in your eyes, is literally the definition of perfection. Covered in bulging muscles and gleaming skin with an unusual heat that almost radiates off his body, you fell speechless again. 

You’re on all fours above him now, hovering your face above his. “You make a fine human, Baekhyun.”

“Thank you,” he smiles, his hands back on your hips.

“Stop me whenever,” you say firmly. He nods softly, patiently waiting for your move.

[averyscarlet-blog]

Project Clypse

Hello there stranger! If you don’t know who I am, or you’re too lazy to read my name, I’m AveryScarlet! You can simply call me Avery or Av. And if you know me on fanfiction.net, mostly through my works Mercury Alchemist or Final Fantasy Versus XV, welcome! Now, for a while now, I’ve been wanting to write up my own original story. Issue with me, thanks to college in the past, I haven’t properly developed the mindset to write a full-blown novel. I’ve gotten so used to typing up a chapter or two in a month before publishing them that I can’t properly focus as an actual writer should.

As much as I want to focus on writing some of my fanfiction, I can’t because I’m focusing on studying for NCLEX. So if you’re waiting for the next chapter for FF Versus XV... It’s almost done! It’s just gonna take a while. But as you can see below, I’ve been working on something else. I’m sure you’re confused as to who these characters are in the chat and why I’m pushing so many out. Well. I’ll tell you. This is my way of practicing for a story I’ve been... REALLY wanting to write for a long time. It doesn’t have a definite name, so I’m calling it Project Clypse. Which partially comes from the group my main characters are in. 

Now, I thought of writing up their character bio’s but..... I’m not really that good at it as I used to be. I used to for when I was active in RP’s but I’m so rusty that I doubt I can keep up with whomever I’m chatting with. So, I’m just summarizing certain details you need to know about them! Not all of it because that'd be spoiling the story of every character. Now, with all that’s said and done, let me start explaining key points of Project Clypse.

Premise/Background

The story is centered on a world called Avarus, which you can say is sort of like Earth, except it was made with someone else's version of life. Or, it used to be. Avarus is one of the few remaining worlds that has an active patron God, who has chosen to go under the alias Belial. The world was originally created and governed by another, Belial’s younger sister, Soleil. After Avarus’ creation, and the birth of man, she was killed by an unknown assailant. But before she died, she was cursed to experience an endless cycle of death and rebirth into various random worlds. She will live a short mortal life, then die from either natural or unnatural causes.

According to Belial, this curse is bestowed only to Celetials who have performed a dire sin. While there is no definite way to lift the curse, Belial hopes that by locating and retrieving her while she's still alive, or at the very least obtain her soul, then he could find the proper means to spare his sister of her cursed fate and return Avarus's true patron Goddess. Because of her demise, life on the planet started to decay. To prevent its destruction, Belial forced the planet to stop rotating, hoping to delay it long enough for him to find Soleil.

However, there were dire consequences to this act. His actions indirectly causing the world to cease rotating; time became non-existent as a result. This, inevitably, killed off most of the remaining life in the world due to the imbalance of the ecosystem as one half of the planet became stuck in perpetual darkness, and the other being dried up caused prolonged exposure to the sun's light.

The only life that Belial was able to salvage was her sisters creation; humanity. Those that survived after the planet ceased its rotation found themselves unable to age. They can still die, but their bodies will no longer decay. During the first Century since Soleil’s death, the God went through various countermeasures to keep the world and the life still inhabits it safe until he can find his sister.

However, a strange plague began to manifest. Soon, it began to devour most of the remaining populace, creating a dark entity in the process; the Astrals (will explain in a different section). 

While Belial was successful in wiping out the infected, the God realized that he cannot keep the last remnants of humanity safe. Not while there are still Astrals lurking about. So he put them to sleep, sealed them in a place that only he knows. However, because of the sudden absence of time and life, the world began to deconstruct itself each time he departed in search for her in other worlds. Realizing he cannot manage Avarus and search for his sister at the same time, he found an alternative. Since his conception, he had noticed a peculiar type of living being popping up now and then in a variety of sentient species. So he sought them out. 

Eventually, gathered enough to temporarily replace humanity and trick the world itself into thinking life still exists. At first, he gathered adults since he knew nothing can grow in Avarus once they’ve lived in the world for a certain period of time, but because of their attachments to the worlds they originated from, it was difficult to convince them to remain. Then he thought up of another solution, one which he knew his sister would frown upon. Children. With their young minds, they’ll easily forget their place of origin and can be easily trained in the necessary skill in traversing through different worlds. And, after learning that the Astrals have branched out to those said worlds, learn how to handle their sudden enemy. 

Their goal is simple; to locate and, if possible, retrieve Soleil and eradicate the Astrals.

Main Characters

Note: Just in case you did not know... I. Cannot. Draw. As much as it pains me to do this, but I need you guys to have some sort of idea on how they look like. I cannot find the original artists of the artworks; mostly because google imaging is shit and Pinterest tends to... Send you elsewhere. So of you know the artist, please PM me so I can give them credit. If you know they don't want their works republished, I'll remove it and try to figure something out. I take no credit whatsoever on the art! I merely scoured the internet for any references I could use. If you're wondering why I'm not.using actual people... You know how awkward that is?

Anyway, much of these are concepts so expect changes in the future. I tried to discuss as little as possible about each character. And let me tell ya.... That was a lot I had to cut off, so if the explanation is a bit messy, that was from me trying to select what to remove to avoid revealing too much.

. . .

Sound

‘I have to be better. I have to be a better leader. I have to be a better lover. I have to be a better sibling. If I don’t... then I’ll lose everything again. If I must, I’ll sacrifice my identity for a third time if it means protecting them.’

Credits to: T0Q00(?) - Okay, on Pinterest it has the person’s name AND link to their twitter account. The thing is... it’s empty. Their entire page is empty. At least I found the artist’s name?

Also known as the Glutton King, Sound is one of the leaders of his faction, Tunera Clypse and a member of Mythral. He is a first generation Nors. While not as lazy as Noise, he’s not really a fan of getting involved in fights with people. When it comes to killing Astrals; that’s an entirely different story.  

Outwardly, he displays laid back, playful, and very concerning outlandish behavior. And by outlandish, I mean his... eating habits. Sound likes to experiment with his stomach. He’ll do absolutely ANYTHING to eat whatever he deems as edible. He also - absolutely - lacks any sense of shame (ex. walking out of the shower and to his room without a towel, slapping Noise’s butt). Although limited to communicate via writing, he makes sure that every single thing he writes is worth reading. Many are even surprised at just how fast he writes his messages. Then again, after years of practice, it’s expected he’d adapt.

Sound is self-aware of the fact that he’s a fictional character and will randomly break the fourth wall, causing much confusion to his friends several times. While not as dark as his previous self, Fell, he maintains some of his views towards life and tends to be as vocal - via writing - of his previous self's beliefs.

As a Cursed Blood, his curse forces him to conceal his face behind a customized Fox Mask. Depending on the amount of facial skin that was exposed, a person can live up to several minutes to several hours before inflicted with sudden death. If a person were to see the entirety of his face, they will die on the spot from unknown causes. He has a Physical Curse as well, which causes him to inflict a certain degree bad-luck to whoever hears his voice. While it’s rarely anything life-threatening, Sound is forced to become selectively mute. Although he tries his best to remain silent, he tends to accidentally let it a few words or sounds slip. Which usually occurs when he sneezes, and when he does, it is immediately advised by his friends to duck and cover.

After undergoing the Ascension Ceremony, he joined the faction Tunera Clypse and then gave up his original name, becoming the next Sound. Unbeknownst to him, his actions later in life has caused him to unknowingly become the Vessel of Gluttony. It is unknown if his eating habits is the reason he became the vessel or it’s the other way around. Either way, he has shown to be fully capable of controlling the abilities that comes with being a Vessel. Sound merely chooses not to use them.

. . .

Ayane Koronashi

“If my brother had left the orphanage that day without me, I would simply smile. If Ulric presented me his latest girlfriend, I’d smile. Smiling is all I can ever do without being a nuisance. I could never show them my pain. I want to cry but my curse renders me incapable of doing so. But now it’s better. I’m better.”

Also known as the Black Fox. Ayane is the younger twin sister of Sound. Like her twin, she is also a member of Tunera Clypse and Mythral; as well as a first generation Nors. Despite being an active member, unless accompanied by her brother, Ayane is rarely allowed to participate in any scouting or combat-related missions. The main reason for this is her curse. While also a Cursed Blood like her brother and some of their friends, the unnatural causes that led to sudden conversion to a cursed blood caused her condition to be unstable. At the beginning, she was unable to retain her original form and would take the shape of a fox.

After some time and practice, she has learned to maintain most of her former human appearance, leaving only a pair of fox ears to replace her human ears and a tail (not by choice) as an extra ligament. Not only that, some of her internal organs remain similar to that of a fox. Because of this, she is unable to eat certain foods that are potentially poisonous to her (or generally unhealthy). She was told that eventually, if nothing is done, she will permanently take the complete form of a fox. She cannot surgically remove the fox parts as they will simply grow back.

Side-note: No, they did not try or plan to remove her fox ears. The curse replaced her human ears so they cannot remove them without indirectly making her deaf.

Her personality is the somewhat similar to Sound’s, but is far more excitable and outgoing than her brother. Just like a fox, she is clever and witty, which she demonstrates many times during combat. She has a tendencyto steal things without her knowledge. While this isn’t necessarily kleptomania, as objects appear in her hands at random, she still tries get over her childhood habit. She does have a tendency to be reckless, though this is stems from her need to be useful as her curse leaves her unable to perform all of the necessary abilities that is required of a Nors.

Another thing to know is her intense hatred towards cats. Which will be explored at a later time.

As a Cursed Blood, she can take the form of a fox. While the size varies, depending on her emotional state, she is commonly seen to change into the size similar to an elephant. If she performs multiple transformations, she will regress to a regular sized fox and sleep for an extensive period of time. She has been recommended to avoid constantly rely on her full fox form as it will hasten the progression of her curse.

After undergoing the Ascension Ceremony, she followed her brother and joined the same faction as him, but unlike him, did not join as a core member so she did not have to give up her original name. Because of the current state of her body caused by her Cursed Blood, her emotions has unknowingly lead her to become thenext Vessel of Envy.

. . .

Reihana Toelle Ur Kamaria

“Why was I born like this... what did I deserve to be cursed like this!? All I want is to hold someone without fearing I’ll crush them. I can’t be the receiver forever!”

Or Rei for short. Is a member of Mythral and is a second generation Nors. As a floater, Rei rotates between the three factions, but she usually works with Tunera Clypse. Known for her terrifying brute strength, Rei is feared by many and is challenged on a near daily basis. Because of her strength and seemingly indestructible nature, she is (much to her annoyance) sometimes used as a human shield. While she is able to take on an army by herself, Rei tries not to go all out in fear of accidentally killing her allies in the crossfire. In terms of mental maturity, aside from Xavier, she is slightly more competent and is level-headed enough to not participate in childish activities. Most of the time.

Rei prefers to ‘punch first, talk later’ when confronted, though the talking never happens as her opponents is either obliterated or immediately knocked out after one hit. While she can be aggressive at times, she merely acts out on this person's due to the rumors that were spread when word of her curse began to circulate. Those closest to her have witnessed her carefree and adventurous nature. She is also cautious and careful of her surroundings, becoming more thoughtful in the usage of her strength as a result.

As much as she loves the thrill and adrenaline that comes from combat, she prefers not to fight too often. Mostly because it usually leads to unnecessary mass destruction. She craves for proper physical contact, but due to her curse, she forces herself to avoid it as much as possible.

Being the physically oldest, next to Percy, she tends to act like the big sister of the group, which Rei has admitted she finds embarrassing. Still, she works hard in trying to act as moral support for her friends. That doesn’t stop her from losing her temper when a certain line is crossed.

As a Cursed Blood, she is cursed with immeasurable strength. Her strength doubles based on who or whatever is the strongest in a world that she sets foot in. That, of course, excludes Celestial’s as the strength of the divinity is almost non-existent. By default, back in Avarus, her usual strength is enough to crumble an entire building. In other worlds, it depends. To help control and regulate her strength during combat, she uses a large amount of Astral Dust to create form-fitting gauntlets around her lower arm. She was meant to become the Vessel of Wrath but was instead changed to be the candidate for the Vessel of Pride.

. . .

Perseus Vlahos

"I used to believe that being a hero will allow you to cement your place in history. But over time, I learned that the farther in time your name is shared in time, you become nothing more than a mere legend. Or worse, a myth. Stories can be altered, changed. If that’s the case, I’d rather not be remembered at all. I didn’t work this hard just to be written off as a bedtime story.” 

Christened under the name ‘Percy the Naive’ by his best friend, later life-long rival, Wilhelm, he is the current wielder of the legendary sword; Excalibur, and member of Infernum Poncitator. Grandson of Rayner, Percy is one of the few third generation Nors in Avarus. He is a kind young man and is respected amongst his peers (well, most of them) and superiors, so much so that he has been offered the position of leader of the faction. Percy refuses as not only deems himself unworthy, but out of respect for those that have lived in Avarus longer.

He displays many the ideal traits of a knight, eventually becoming viewed as an ideal knight by others. However, deep down, Percy perceives himself as the opposite. He feels he is a dishonorable fraud and is not proud of his status as Excalibur's chosen wielder. If he was given a chance to do it over again, Percy would immediately abandon his decision never search and locate the sword.

After joining Avarus, in a short span of time, Percy was able to easily establish himself as a sort of leader figure within his faction. While serious most of the time, especially during missions, due to his time with other Nors, has displayed a degree of patience and tolerance towards whoever he is assigned. Still, he never forgets their main objective and takes charge if he deems the assigned leader incompetent. Which happens more times than he refuses to count. He tries to maintain a cool head, but will severely reprimand others if the situation calls for it.

Proficient in the ways of the sword, he garnered the attention of (the then Mongrel) Mitchell. He was very reluctant in taking in a squire. But eventually, Percy relented after the younger boy attempted to fight against an Astral and nearly lost his life. He plans to one day pass down Excalibur to Mitchell once he gains the strength to surpass Percy.

At the moment, Percy is the current Vessel of Wrath.

. . .

Noise (***** Rallus)

“I tried all of my life to give my dad a reason why he shouldn't be treating his body the way he did. I tried all of my life to keep my friend in line so I'd never have to be the one to discipline him. And yet... If only I didn't try so hard, they'd still be alive.”

Author’s Note: Yeah I... legit do not know who this belongs to. There’s the artist’s signature so that’s the good thing. Problem is....

After escaping from the confines of his original world, Eingesperrt City, and, with the help Sound, joined Avarus and assumed the title of Noise. Unlike others that were gathered in the past, Noise is a regular human being. Something only Sound knows. Regardless of the danger, he became one of the leaders for Tunera Clypse, later joining Mythral after adapting to his new lifestyle.

He wears one of the Artifacts in order to copy and use only one ability of his choosing. As long as a piece of original user is within the Artifact, Noise can use it for as long as he wants. However, if its been removed and replaced with something else, the previous copied ability cannot be used ever again.

Since his recruitment, Noise adopted an extremely lazy personality. He’s so lazy that somehow even snoring consumes too much energy. To make sure he’s awake most of the time, Sound forced Noise to set up a sleep schedule, so that when he’s ready, he has enough energy to do SOMETHING. However, no matter where he is, he’ll take every opportunity to take a nap. He doesn’t care. As long as he gets to close his eyes, Noise is fine to sleep wherever, even if it involves napping righ at the edge of a volcano.

He’ll get annoyed if anyone that dares try to wake him up and he’ll be in a fowl mood for the rest of the day. The only exception is the fox girl and his lover. Despite this, he displays a certain degree of kindness. It’s just really hard to tell if what he’s doing is truly an act of kindness or he’s just too lazy to do things such as delivering a ‘motivational speech’. He can be blunt when he has to be, and he tends to come off as a jackass rude because of his personality. However, this is his way of showing he cares. Noise will flat out tell you if he dislikes you.

Another thing to know about him is his crude sense of humor. Combined with his blunt and rude nature towards people, mostly acquaintances and strangers, it always leads to various... Misunderstandings. Worst case scenario? A fight. He'd improve if he could, but he won't.

Look, if you haven't figure out that he's lazy after reading all this, gooood luck.

For reasons unknown, despite becoming the next Vessel of Sloth, it remains dormant within him. They thought of extracting it to learn the causes that led up to its current dormant state, but Sound intervened in time as he knew that extracting it by force will kill the the vessel.

. . .

Michael/Raphael/Gabriel/Uriel/Saraqael/Raguel/Remiel/etc

‘Dragons are raised under the false pretense that they are the supreme species above all others. But that merely obscures the truth; the truth that we’re just as vulnerable as anyone else. There are various ways to kill aside from piercing our hearts with a spear.”

Author’s Note: Just so you know, HE’S BLONDE and has green eyes! This was the only option I have that closely resembles how I envisioned him! There was another because he gives off the same atmosphere when you look at him but... he’s from an otome game. And I only learned that recently so, if the same goes for this one? WELP. Oh and he has patches of dark brown scales on part of his skin.

Neither a Quietus Nors nor a resident of Avarus, Michael is a dragon. His version of his race if capable of transformation, but can only change into the form of the last creature they devoured. Whole. Rather than his true form, in order to remain working in Avarus, chose to work in the form of the former Prince of Edrakon, a world where dragons were enslaved and cruelly treated as mere objects. Despite his appearance not being his own, he maintains an intimidating and powerful aura, which is easily distinguishable even within a large crowd.

Due to the high esteem he holds towards his race and his pride as a Dragon, he can come off as domineering, even becoming critical towards other versions of his race if he finds something illogical or nonsensical in their appearance and their abilities. While he does act this way, he finds it absolutely disgusting to find dragons place themselves in a position of power and abuses their power in controlling another species. Another aspect of him is that he looks down on dragons with physical defects, which is mostly directly aimed as himself due to his extremely poor eyesight. Thus, forcing him to rely on his human form to watch glasses. He also has a very confusing naming system; where he changes his name based on the date, time and temperature.

Micheal held the potential required to become a Nors, but because of his age, he was unable to undergo the necessary steps to fully integrate into Avarus. While others are reluctant to have him join their ranks, several others, for different reasons, allowed him to remain. This eventually allowed others to accept his addition to the organization. 

As the one in charge of organizing and handling most of Avarus’ internal affairs, a job the Nors, even the Ex-Anima/Animus, are reluctant in taking up such an important position; he takes his job very seriously. Although he does express some contempt towards humans, this does not extend to the people he works with. He cares about them to a certain degree, which is shown by he constantly reprimands whoever acts risky during a mission.

He is the current Vessel of Pride, something he only learns of later on. Despite the fact Micheal is a vessel, Belial believes this is only temporary. He isn’t particularly close with Belial, but he respects the God enough to follow his orders.

. . .

Ulric Soknawo

'In my tribe, I was considered an outcast. You can thank the unnatural union that birthed me. Now? It hasn’t changed much, but at least I’m no longer considered the runt of the pack.’

Whose other name is Kuckunniwi, is a former member of the Aniwaya Tribe. In their world, his people are Natives who worshipped a guardian Wolf Spirit. According to them, in return for their unyielding loyalty and devoted nature, it granted the people with the power to take the form of the spirit they have worshipped for many generations. So long as they use that power to protect the forest, it shall provide them protection. Ulric is the third, second youngest, illegitamate son of the Tribal chief Tamaska and grandson of Wolfram.

As per tradition, all tribesmen are given two names, one for their human form while the other is for their inner wolf. Despite being allowed to use either name like others of his tribe, he refuses to be use his wolf name due to the meaning behind it. After being discovered by Ayane, she brought and recruited him to Avarus. Ulric is considered to be a Third Generation Nors due the fact his father was (oddly) not born a Nors, or had to potential to be converted into one.

Ulric tends to act like the stereotypical lone-wolf, choosing to remain in solitude and observe from a distance. He likes to spend his quiet time alone, though he does allow others to sit next to him when asked. Many have pointed out that he never smiles, but, as much as he hates to quote Noise, states that if there is no reason to smile, there is no reason to put so much effort in abusing his facial muscles.

As much as he loves being a wolf, he finds certain aspects of his second nature to be... aggravating. Depending on the season and the weather, it deals a the effects his wolf instincts on his human nature. Because of the two separate natures continually clashing, he tends to act irritable and his temper worsens, especially during the night. Ulric holds a strong belief that one’s nature, regardless of your race, should never control a one's personal feelings.

He holds an unyielding loyalty to his loved ones, almost to the point of willing to kill for them if the situation calls for it, but his actions are subtle and tends to be the exact opposite of how he truly feels. Only two people in his life have been able to decipher his behavior, and he cherishes them for it. Ulric has a bit of a temper as well but is able to keep it in check. His temper, however, is what led him to becoming a Cursed Blood. His curse forces him to foresee the deaths of whomever he romantically falls in love (or at least feel an interest) with.

Any attempts at interfering will only hasten their death.

. . .

Xavier Wozwald Hawthorne

'Murderers are dumbasses, always killing because of their unchecked emotions and pented up desires. Hence why most of them clumsily try to hide their crime. Serial killers are more... sofisticated with their craft, but their ego always gets in the way. If they weren’t complete dumbasses, they would have lived a long comfortable life. I should know.’

Note: Yes, this is obviously Vflower. Did I know that before? No. Do I plan to change the art reference? Yes, but only when I find one that’s not a god dang real-life person’s online avatar. XD Seriously, each time I thought I found one... it’s an utaite or vtuber.

Is a member of Mythral and a First Generation Nors. Like Rei, he is a Floater, which allows him to particiate in mission for all three factions. However, he prefers to work with those in Tunera Clypse as, since they mostly handle scouting and recruiting missions. As long as he doesn’t remain in Avarus for too long, he's fine with accepting any mission related to Tunera. Xavier will still accept missions from other factions, but that's merely to fill up his quota.

Despite appearing around the age 12-14; which was not by choice, Xavier is in fact mentally older than most of his fellow Nors. Known for his sharp tongue, Xavier is one of the few known Nors to have been granted permission to travel outworld immediately after undergoing the Ascenscion Ceremony.

Due to the experiences his past life went through, Xavier has a very grim outlook of the world and displays little to no respect towards authority figures. And that includes his current patron God; Belial, which only worsens after being told by the God that he is unable to help Xavier grow into the appropriate intended size. Unlike most Nors, he displays a high degree of critical thinking and intelligent. He is, if not more, level-headed than one of his friends; Percy. Though that doesn’t stop the teasing. While confident in his abilities in terms of combat, Xavier knows the limits of his current smaller body.

In order to compensate, he creates an excessively large scythe as compensation, but he's too proud to admit this.

Because of his level of maturity, he has been labeled as a 'Midget Grandpa'. Which he fails at trying to prove otherwise by collecting certain tthings that are considered out of date by their standards. Eventually, it became a soft of hobby for him to collect such things.

Xavier tends to display a sadistic nature while in combat, choosing to taunt his opponent by constantly pointing our their obvious flaws deficits and toy with them until the last minute. Most times, he will use his child-like appearance to his advantage to further torment his opponent/victim. Comically enough, if his opponent is a cold-blooded criminal, Xavier will compliment and , depending on their actions, congratulate them; much to the annoyance of those involved.

Like Sound, he has both a Physical and Blood-based Curse, but unlike  the latter, Xavier was born with both. His Physical Curse has caused severe permanent scarring on his right arm, making it appear similar to third degree burns. If freed from any type of coverage, such as bandages, his arm will painfully be set a blazed, forcing him to conceal his arm at all times. As a Cursed Blood, Xavier has a similar effect of a Siren, except his hypnotic singing forces someone to commit suicide. Every time he uses this curse, he temporarily falls into a coma.

. . .

Succu(bus) Kilmer

Like her name suggests, Succu is a succubus, but belongs to a different version of her species. Due to being a demon, she is forbidden to reveal her true name. Succu is neither a Nors nor a Cursed Blood. She’s more of an illegal immigrant after sneaking her way into a group of Nors when they were scouting for potential recruits. There have been many attempts in trying to relocate her back to her original world, but she is able to seduce her attackers and slip away. Eventually, Belial declared that she will be allowed to remain as a resident, so long as she contributes in their mission to locate Soleil.

While they do seduce those of the opposite sex, her source of food is not as grotesque as several others. She does seduce her victim, but moves her body in a way that her victims find alluring. Succu will then massage certain parts of their body as a means to relax them. To assure that they will not attempt to escape, she will release pheremones that nulls the victims senses. What she devours isn’t the flesh of her victim nor does she devour their soul, she merely devours the emotions she was able to invoke until her hunger is quenched.

Succu is flirtaceous and very... very.... VERY- Well, you get the point. While she doesn’t flaunt her beauty, she does know how to use it to her advantage. However, despite many approaching her, Succu has only eyes for one, and is willing to wait as long as possible for that person to reciprocate her feelings. Succu, although assertive and open with her feelings, is not the type to force them onto someone.

She does like to express herself by getting physical - very physical. Not the way that you’re thinking, you perverts. She finds it more convenient to allow her actions to talk rather than saying things verbally. Since she’s an outsider, she notices several things that not even Pery or Ulric have noticed, and both are outsiders as well considering the fact they grew up outworld before being recruited. Regardless, she remains silent for the sake of remaining by her beloved’s side.

Succu is often mistaken as the Vessel of Lust due to her nature, and, on her part, finds it’s tiresome to prove that she is not.

Side Characters

Tank Mortem

A former member of Tunera Clypse and Mythral, Tank has been assigned to act as one of the engineers in maintaining the Infernian Generator due to his body’s condition and the issues of his mental state. He seldom participates in missions but, despite being given strict orders not to, joins in anyway. Due to the limits of his mental capacity, Tank has difficulty interacting with others. Quite literally.

Beatrix Staccato

Is a researcher and inventor in charge of the tools and weaponry utilized by most Nors and Ex-Animus. Having taken over most of the unfinished projects since the passing of his master, Beatrix has dedicated all of his time in improving the welfare of the world and its inhabitants. However, most of his experiments tend to be a bit... over the top. If he’s not thinking of new potential products that may benefits the Nors, he’ll make whatever comes at the top of his head, and most of the time it’ll lead him to make the most outrageous and unnecessary items. Beatrix prefers to remain in his lab/home at all times, rendering his social interactions with the three factions to be limited via holographic meetings.

‘Nyx’ Pierrot

Leader of Vanidicus Persona, she is one of the oldest Nors - next to Constantine - making her the default leader of her faction. Much about her is a mystery. Even her behavior can be viewed as... questionable. Not outlandish, that’s Sound’s department. Her behavior is so odd that it’s enough to baffle even Belial. She takes her leadership over her faction very seriously, however, as part of her nature, the requirements in joining and maintaining your membership vastly deviates from the original. However, looks can be deceiving. Aside from her seniority, there is a reason why she was given the position of leader.

Mitchell Pierrot

He prefers to be called as ‘Mitch’ after being told, and proven, by his sister how much of a tongue twister his name is if repeated constantly in a single conversation. While he is the younger brother of Nyx, Mitch opted to become a submember of Tunera Clypse upon undergoing the Ascension Ceremony to be in the same faction as his mentor, Perseus Vlahos. Compared to the Nors in his batch, he is viewed as weak by many as he is unable to perform the abilities that is expected of him to develop after becoming a Nors.

Constantine L. Refrain

Nothing is truly known about him except that he’s a chronic smoker. Nobody truly knows who he is, no one even knows which faction he belongs to. It’s nearly impossible to question these things as he is constantly surrounded by a shroud of - barely tolerable - smoke. All that is known is that he’s been around longer than most of the Ex-Animus. Constantine usually frequints the Silent Siren Bar, staying there for hours until he’s either drunk or needs to receive another pack of cigarretes from Beatrix. He says they’re for medicinal purposes buuuuut...

I’m pretty sure black smoke isn’t normal.

Stefan Mal Sorcier

Is Percy’s second pupil. Although, it was more like Percy was forced into taking in another after his continual refusal to become leader of Infernum Poncitator. Outwardly, he is aloof and always appears smiling, which unsettles Mitchell even when they’re alone. His politeness is found unusual by many and causes others to feel wary around him. Even the dragon finds himself is unable to remain in the same vicinity as the young man. Despite being full of many secrets, Percy accepts him as is and tries his best to teach him all he can, which Stefan appreciates.

Kyline Necro

Considered as the mascot ambassador of Avarus, like the soul that was fused with her upon birth, she mostly lounges around and has little participation in any missions in and out of Avarus. This has caused her to be disliked by many, most especially Ayane. The only person Kyline has gotten close to is Noise; mostly because they share the same favored sleeping spot. On a side, she acts a physician, or surgeon if you like to get technical. She has a strange fondness of picking apart and replacing specific limbs with doll parts.

Yu-Yan Chi Ryou

Was once one of the strongest Nors from Xavier’s batch until he was inflicted by an unknown disease during one of his missions. While there is no name for the disease, it has caused much of his bones to undergo crystallization; rendering him immobile due to the pain that comes from even the smallest of movements. Since he is incapable in participating in any activities, Yu-Yan has since been forced to be confined to a wheel chair for the rest of his life.

Anita Eine Kleine

Is the fighting instructor of the Mongrels and a member of Infernum Poncitator. Anita is a highly-skilled caster, able to conjure and manipulate various elements. She absolutely hates the term ‘witch’, even going as far as to cast a minor curse in making a person temporarily mute if they refer to her as one. Which Sound found rather offensive when he found out about the curse, something she deeply apologized for. She participates in some Scouting Missions but only if personally requested by someone from Tunera Clypse.

Victor Stein

Is Beatrix’s (only living) research assistant. He is the sole survivor of the Night of the Black Moon. Although having physically recovered, the damage to his mental state has left a deep scar on his psyche. He fears yet obsesses over the sensation of pain. There is not one instance where he isn’t found sowing over his own intact skin. While Victor knows his addiction found uncomfortable by others, he finds it extremely difficult to control his urges.

Wolfram

Grandfather of Ulric and most of his siblings, he is an Ex-Anima (or retired Nors) and a former member of the original Mythral. As the more experienced and one of the longest surviving resident of Avarus, he acts as a mentor to those who seek his guidance. However, in terms of combat, his skills are very limited as he has become permanently stuck in his wolf form. The only grandchildren he's ever personally met are Ulric and Seeing, who have both ironically became his favorite. While acting as a mentor, he is rather strict, constantly parting lessons in order to make sure none make the same mistakes he committed when he was younger, many of which he refuses to share.

Diantha Anemone

Despite being still a Liberi, Dia still participates in many activities meant to be done only by Nors. She originally wanted to become a part of Tunera Clypse due to the many adventures imparted by Sound. But after having a first hand experience in one, it traumatized her to the point where she wants to merely work as a Librarian, a position many people avoid.

Echo & Yell

Fellow teammates of Sound and Noise. As part of the four heads leaders that overwatch many of Tunera Clypse's activities, both in and out of Avarus. They mostly take charge of delegating the members while the other two take an active role in leading many scouting missions off-world. Contradicting her name, like Sound and Noise, her personality is the completely opposite. Due to her sociophobia, she is extremely shy and is unable to speak when talked to, only whispering her sentences as she talks. Yell, however, is the only one whose personality fits the mantle she inherited. Due to her curse, she has to raise her voice after every two hours. If not, she will fall into a coma, and she can only be awaken by *************.

Important Figures

Belial

Credits to: @airtrees0507 (Again, another artist who... disappeared from the internet. How do I keep finding refrences where the artist is just gone?)

Is a Celestial and the younger brother of Soleil. However, despite his godly status, he does not have any of the expected gifts. Neither a god of creation, life, or death, he has been given the title God of Void by his peers. Because of this, he is incapable of maintaining Avarus by himself, forcing him to use alternative (and questionable) means in preserving the world his sister created. Like his title, Belial is unable to express emotions, giving blank demeanor. He does, however, hold some semblence of emotions within him. Yet despite this, he has little to no understanding of life, death and emotions. Even after centuries since he over his sister’s role as Patron God, he still has no understanding to all living things, almost to the point of coming off as insensitive and heartless.

Belial has a deep devotion to his sister, having gone through great lengths to make sure to maintain her world and willingly sacrifice the lives of many. Despite knowing her distaste towards such acts, he holds onto the hope of one day finding her.

Soleil

Credits: Um... Lucare Eu??? Sorry, I’m just basing it off the signature. Once again, can’t find the artist themself so...

The true patron goddess of Avarus and the older sister of Belial. Aside from her status as the original creator and caretaker of her world and the life that once flourished within it, not much is known about her. While her exact cause of death is unknown, she was cursed to live an endless cycle of death and rebirth in various worlds. In order to restore the world she created and loved dearly, Belial dedicated his life in searching for her soul and freeing her of her curse. As a Celestial, she was said to have chosen to take the form of her first ever creation and first mortal friend. 

It is said that, despite having blessed with the gift of creation, she was known to be a lonely goddess. Those that new her describe as someone that’s physically there but is spiritually detached.

The Oracle

Is a title given to those with the ability to commune and guide the spirits to the Empyrean Plain, more specifically Avarus’ residences due to the absence of Soleil. The Oracle acts as the divine anchor on the world to aid Belial in prolonging the world’s existence. They are also the main source of Belial’s divine power; both of which are maintained through her prayers. The gender and species of the Oracle is non-specific, but it if preferred by Belial if they are humanoid and have the ability of speech for the sake of communication.

The current Oracle is Aniela Fischl, who, unlike her predecessors, is able to foresee various futures. She does so by carefully peeking through the leylines and selects various possibilities that solely benefit Avarus. No one is allowed to meet her except Belial and her assigned Seekers.

The Seekers

The guardians, caretaker, and acting medians between the Oracle and the residents of Avarus. Their duty is to ensure that the chosen Oracle remains within the Spiral Tower and that he/she fulfills their duty, even going as far as to grant their wish regardless of the consequenses. Each Seeker has only one desire, and that’s to protect the Oracle at all times.

Races

Liberi

Age Range: Birth or 5 to 10 years

Although that is the official term, ‘Mongrel’ is what they are commonly referred as. It is the used for the for the children taken to or born in Avarus. Mongrels spend most of their young lives training within the safe walls of the Aldebaran Academy. They are forbidden from leaving as, according to Belial, they are the extremely fragile during this point of their lives. Regardless of their age, depending on how well they’ve performed in training, they will be given the right of undergoing the Ascension Ceremony. Those who fail are xxxxxxxx xx.

Due to their young age, their behavior is more sporadic than that of a normal child. Their reflexes are enhanced, almost to the point where it becomes difficult to contain them. Mongrels lack common sense so they tend to act out without fully understanding the impact their actions have. While childish and friendly by nature, Travellers are advised to approach with caution. Those who act beyond the expected norm are called Prodigies.

Quietus Nors

Age Range: (Physically) 14-19, (Mentally) 10 or above

Or simply called, Nors. After their graduation, every Nors is immediately sent to work. Depending on the final results of their training prior to undergoing the ceremony/procedure, each is individually assigned into one of the three factions ; Infernum Poncitator, Vanidicus Persona, and lastly, Tunera Clypse (formerly called Tunera). Those that are assigned to neither of the factions are assigned to more menial jobs alongside the Ex-Animus,

Despite their young minds, they have quickly adapted into their new forms. Due to time becoming almost non-existant in Avarus, Nors age at a rapidly slow rate. Though known to be childish by nature due to the gap of their young minds to their bodies, they dangerously lack empathy and display little to no compassion and remorse towards others. In worst cases, some act selfishly on their own accord. On a positive note, they lack any emotions that may hinder their mission in locating Soleil; such as fear.

Only two of the three current generations of Nors differ greatly from the first:

First Generation Nors - Are those converted or directly born within Avarus with the blood of two Nors. Those born in the first generation share two specific physical characteristics; raven black hair and golden eyes. They all share the same abilities upon conversion/birth, but it depends on the individual which ones they should master. Unless they happen to be a Cursed Blood, they are unable to obtain different abilities to call their own. They are required to undergo the Ascension Ceremony.

Second Generation Nors - In terms of personality, they are considered half as bad as those in the first gen. Unlike the previous, second generation Nors are considered slightly weaker, however, they have a better chance of obtaining other abilities outside of Avarus. Their hair is slightly lighter shade of black but their eyes remain the same. They too are required to undergo the Ascension Ceremony.

Third Generation Nors - While rare, they do tend to appear once in a while. It’s not exact how one falls into this category. The closest is being the grandchild or who has an anscestor that was a Nors. Because of their circumstances, these Nors are far weaker as they cannot use any of the standard abilities. Third Generation Nors are far difficult to locate as their potential doesn’t surface until they are of a much later age, rendering them incapable of taking necessary training to hone their abilities and undergoing the Ascension Ceremony. They do not share the common personality or physical traits of a Nors. One thing every Nors in this generation share are sky blue eyes, which emit a faint glow when in the dark.

Ex-Animus (or Anima for singular)

Age Range: (Physically) 30 to 40, rarely appears in their early 20′s

Are individuals who are retired from their duties as a Nors. Although Nors generally age at an excessively slow rate (due to the effects of Avarus), after a number of cycles (which refers to the number of batches that underwent the Ascension Ceremony), they will be given the order to retire. Regardless whether they are willing to or not, there is nothing they can do once the order has been issued. Once one becomes an Ex-Anima, they are completely cut off from their original faction and are unable to leave Avarus for the rest of their life.

Not only that, they are unable to defend themselves like they used to as they can no longer control Astral Dust and use the abilities from their time as a Nors,Basically.  Basically, Ex-Animus’ are left to fend for themselves.

Factions

Every Nors is allowed to join any of the three factions; Infernum Poncitator, Vanidicus Persona , and Tunera Clypse. There is an option to not join any of the factions; they are called ‘Floaters’.

[solari-writes-things]

ahh after binge watching the series if you don't mind at all for a soulmate “I feel like I’ve died now he’s/she’s/they’re gone.” for juice would absolutely BREAK me but the closure is needed 😔👊

Bruh this hurts me reading it and I am here to provide. It’s a little brief, but I hope this provides you with the emotional turmoil you seek lol

This is heavy so be warned.

Prompt - Soulmate #8:  “I feel like I’ve died now he’s/she’s/they’re gone.”

Reader Insert

Warnings: Depictions of death, language, talks of suicide

gif credit goes to @supervalcsi

tag list: @sazafraz @thebookishfeminist @crimsonheart01 @kind-wolf @chibsytelford @tsumethedrifter @supervalcsi (if you would like to be added to the tag list, please comment or message me!)

REQUESTS TEMPORARILY CLOSED

4:32am.

It was around the time were you had stirred yourself awake the most, it seemed. Maybe it was the fact that this room seemed so cold, so empty around this time of day. More so than it had been in the mornings. At least in the mornings, there were places you could run to. People that you could carefully choose to spend your time with. 

However, no matter how much you tried to nullify the growing emptiness in your chest, you somehow went full circle back to here. With no one around to comfort you, all you could feel was the energy that used to be in the empty space beside you.

You missed him.

Jesus fucking Christ, you missed him.

You had only wished you noticed the signs sooner. You knew that Juice had his own issues to deal with, and it was something that you believed you were helping him with for so long. Ever since he decided to attempt to hang himself from that tree, you had been there. Guiding him, talking to him about the demons that he faced so often.

For awhile, you thought that they were working. He seemed so much better, healed and flashing that million-watt smile at you whenever he had the chance. Showering you with the love and affection that he, himself, desired so much. You were there to provide, every step of the way.

The image of that smile that you had held so dear sent a pang through your chest and you could feel the pain well up in your lungs.

You didn’t know that Sheriff Roosevelt had been dragging him by the neck during his random piss tests. You didn’t know that Juice had to deal with the looming threat of being outed as something that seemed to trivial to everyone else--only for it to mean the world to him.

He would come home distanced, sometimes, ever since the club needed him around a lot more for something that was much bigger than yourself. You only figured it was due to those things, and eventually he would come around and become the person that you love so much.

Everything had seemed fine.

Up until he packed up and disappeared one night. You had gone to work, not knowing that it would be the last time that you would see the man you loved so much.

You were spun out, for quite some time, wondering where he had gone. Wondering what you had done to deserve him leaving so abruptly. Only to learn through Chibs that it wasn’t your fault at all. Juice had his hand stuck in many things that caused the club trouble. From a RICO case, to killing a man of the law.

Still, you wanted him to come home. However, you understood why he couldn’t. He was a dead man if he stepped back into the town limits. At least, you thought that was the case.

Only for him to surface again, calling Chibs to meet with him at a diner. No call, no text to you.

You could feel the hole in your chest only worsen the more you dabbled on the events. But they were all you could think about recently. You loved him so much. You had tried your hardest to give him the life you thought he deserved.

You felt like you’ve died, now that he’s gone.

Getting that call was the only thing that could replay in your head now. All you could hear was Jax’s voice, telling you that Juice had been stabbed in County. The only thing you could feel inside was the ever-growing distress of not being able to see him again.

Not being able to feel his warmth, hear his laugh, see his smile. All of those things felt so minor, but you loved witnessing them on a daily basis. Now, all you could pay attention to was the empty space.

Every memory in this home felt like a piece of your heart was being ripped out of your chest. Even through all of the things Juice had done to end up where he was, you still cared so heavily. You would have rather known that he was off somewhere, living his life in a way that he would have to figure out. Obtaining the knowledge of his gruesome end just made the inevitability of him not returning to you so much harder to bear.

The feeling in your chest was too much for you to swallow, feeling your heart sink into the pool of dread that had begun to form since you have awoken. 

Your vision blurred. You breathing began to hitch and shake.

Soon, you were sobbing.

[whatdoidowithmydegree]

What is the Creative process?

If you have chosen the path of creative arts and partaken in a degree, whether it be film, audio, design or any other artistic passion, you would have heard of this magical technique called the 'the creative process’. I use to legitimately shudder when I read these words in a course outline, because what even is a creative process? And why is it not good enough for me to just write down about last Tuesday when I sat at my desk for 2 hours fleshing out an idea I had in the shower?

Well, this is why. By definition process means to take a number of steps towards a goal. This is not merely one thought; it is an on-going development. Creativity on the other hand, is something I think cannot really be described because it is different for everyone. So, these words strung together can be a little bit confronting because how can we give structure to something that is not only not physical but also different for everyone?  

In high school, I had this friend who was wildly creative at the most random of times, and I thought “f**k you’re weird”. I wasn't much of an artist back then, more of an enthusiast in all things creative. Still, my friend is a perfect example of watching the creative process unfold and something that we can both now relate too. He would always have some sort of notebook and a variety of pens stuck in his back pocket or bag. We would be walking to the park, and he would just need a moment to stop in our tracks and write down something or draw a picture that he just wasn't allowed to forget. I never really understood this. This was my friend's creative process; he would get creative ideas bursts at the most random of times.

The creative process is not just an hours' worth of time back in 2016, leading to a multi-million-dollar idea. It's an ongoing process that doesn't cease until the post- start-up of a product or service. An example of my own creative process is my current project I am producing now. I remember working as a bartender; I was frosting milkshake glasses with nerds and vanilla. I thought to myself, "How cool would it be if I designed a game series that taught other creatives? how to implement creative techniques in their works.". I scrambled for my phone and started jotting down notes, but I didn't get very far that day. It was a few weeks later I adopted a narrative for a game shaking cocktails. Another few weeks later, I developed concepts while driving to my friend's house. Months past and I took a step back and went an entirely different direction just before starting my master's degree. The creative process goes in any order. Just because you're moving forward at a fast pace doesn't mean your close, and because you've gone so far back doesn't mean there isn’t value in the work that has been completed. Even now, as I am so close to debuting my company during my production phases, and I am still making changes, big and small.

For my logical creatives that love a good ol'structure, the creative process in an entrepreneurial mindset has four commonly known phases:

Knowledge Accumulation

Incubation

Idea experience

Evaluation and implementation

The knowledge accumulation phase is where you as an individual acquire knowledge in a variety of fields and expertise relating to the chosen topic of exploration. This leads to phase two, where the information will incubate and process; you may find a connection between idea and opportunity. The next phase can be hard to distinguish from the last. This is where you, as a user, have a more refined idea and structure. Both of these phases may occur while taking part in mundane activities like doing the dishes or driving. The last step is where you, as an entrepreneur obtain resources and the skills to bring the idea to life. 

It's important to note that these phases can occur in any order. My own process for my project started with phase 3, followed by 2, 1 and 4.

The creative process will be different for everyone, depending on their environments, personal characteristics, and ideas. In my experience, alongside peers, there's no right or wrong way to create anything when it comes to creativity. My one piece of advice for those who are attempting a major project for the first-time is don't be afraid if you think you do not have the skills or resources. I am a horrible programmer and a chaotic individual that cannot keep to a schedule to save a life. But this is where my team working skills come into play, it may take me longer than expected to get going, but nonetheless, it will get going!

[emma-nation]

Within You - Bloodbound AU - Chapter 4

Summary: One year after defeating Gaius, the gang has finally found peace… Until a tragic incident awakens the ultimate and most dangerous threat they ever faced.

Genre: Angst/Adventure/Romance

Rating: T - Warning for violence and language

Notes:

- Sequel to the fics For You, In The Daylight and Without You. You can read all of them here.

-FINALLY! 😂 My apologies for taking longer than expected to update. I blame my screwed up love life and all the people who contributed for this mess.

- NSFW alert!

Tag List: @supersphynxsworld​​​​, @lightning-fury​​​​, @spacecarrousel​​​​, @tigerbryn11, @gavryllo​​​​, @annabellewerecorgi​​​​, @whoinvitedalx​​​​, @sheyah​​​​, @imnotdonewiththeelementalists​​​​, @scaryqueenbee, @bigmemesplz, @la-guerra-69, @kamilahsayeed-owns-me​​​​, @morvengarde​​​​, @tephy24​​​​, @iam-the-fuckin-queen​​​​​​, @voltos9, @scorpistraub​​​​​​, @leavemeandmyshipsalone​​​​​​, @jen825​​​​​​, @andreear17​​​​​​, @justejuste727​​​​​​, @aureliaxj, @graceschoices​​​​​​, @sleeping-with-her06, @mrskamilxh​​​​​, @msuhailey, @zoe6111​​​​​, @noodledragon22​​​​​​, @tigerbryn11, @shanuuh​​​​​, @ilovetaylor13m​​​​​, @ilovekamilahsayeed​​​​​, @allaboutchoices​​​​​, @fal-carrington​​​​​, @scarlet-letter-a0114

Amy

Life as a vampire was even better than Amy expected. In only three days she was adjusting perfectly. She no longer had problems to feed from volunteers and she was getting really good at controlling her senses.

The best part was that she and Kamilah were closer than ever. Kamilah was planning to introduce her to the other members of Clan Sayeed during a party. She was also a rigid, but patient teacher, who loved to reward Amy greatly for her accomplishments.

The rewards. They made all the effort worthy. Like in that exact moment in the shower, where Amy was being rewarded for controlling her super strength so well.

Kamilah was on her knees, pleasing her with her mouth. Amy opened her eyes, appreciating the view for a moment, before reaching climax.

"Oh my god," she screamed, "Kamilah!"

"Shhhh," Kamilah silenced her with a kiss, her tongue gliding over hers, giving Amy a taste of her own pleasure. "The neighbors must be tired of hearing my name. It's all they have listened coming from this penthouse for the last three days."

Amy laughed, blushing a little bit in embarrassment. 

Kamilah turned around, letting water pour over her smooth brown hair and her perfect skin, which drove Amy wild. She embraced her from behind, letting her hands travel all over her wet body. 

"Amy..." Kamilah moaned.

As her hands reached her she wanted her the most, Amy used her psychic powers to connect her mind to Kamilah's. She absolutely enjoyed doing that trick. It felt like she and her wife were only one. She could feel everything she was feeling, sense all her bliss and hear part of her thoughts.

Right now she desired one particular thing. Amy let her fangs descend, biting Kamilah's neck in a sensual and soft manner. Thought she was the one touching Kamilah and tasting her blood, Amy also reached ecstasy when her wife did, due to the link between their minds.

"Okay," Kamilah placed one last kiss on her lips, "I'll get dressed now. Serafine will be here at any moment."

Amy huffed and rolled her eyes. Bringing that woman from France was completely unnecessary. If only Lysimachus agreed to debrief Katherine himself. Her presence would only ruin the moment they were living.

Deep down, she knew there were second intentions behind her visit. Her friends thought Serafine could assist her with her new powers, but she had everything under control. Sometimes she'd accidentally access random memories, but nothing she couldn't handle. And since her accident, she had never seen that mysterious vampire woman again.

Amy closed her eyes, letting the water fall on her shoulders. There was no reason to worry. She was Kamilah's wife. Serafine was only a past affair. She opened her eyes again, noticing blood was dripping from somewhere, getting mixed with the water pooled on the floor.

"What..."

She searched all over hear body, unable to find where she was bleeding from. Then she looked at her hands, they were completely covered in blood. She rubbed them harder and harder with a sponge, but they wouldn't get cleaned. The blood only intensified.

Amy turned off the shower and went to the sink, while she uselessly tried to wash her hands, the view on the mirror scared her more than anything...

Her eyes were red and her fangs exposed, even thought she couldn't feel them at the moment. Her body was completely covered in blood. And in her hands she had Kamilah's dagger. 

Although she couldn't see it, she knew. She knew she had just killed her. Her own wife.

"No!" She cried. "I didn't do it. I didn't..."

The sound of the bell ringing pulled her back to reality. There wasn't a single trait of blood on the floor or over her body.

"Amy," Kamilah shouted from the bedroom. "Serafine is here."

Amy took one relieved breath, knowing it was only another scary vision.

----------

Kamilah

Even after living for over two millennia, traveling to so many different places and knowing the most diverse cultures, Kamilah couldn't help feeling strange when Serafine greeted her with a kiss on each cheek. Maybe because she knew how Amy was jealous of her past lover, or because she had gotten too used with the American lifestyle.

"So ma chérie, where's Amy?" She asked, while Kamilah served her a glass of wine.

"She's getting dressed," Kamilah started wondering why was it taking so long though. "She will be joining us in a minute."

"What about her visions? Are they under control?"

"Apparently, yes. Now she's a vampire she has more abilities to explore and this is what I want you to help her with."

"It'll be a honor."

Amy arrived in the living room only a couple of minutes later. For some reason, Kamilah noticed a hint of distress in her behavior. 

"Serafine, hi," Amy kissed both of the French vampires cheeks back. "I'm sorry, I was taking a shower and kinda lost track of time."

"No worries, ma chérie," Serafine smiled. "Sit down here, Kamilah told me you're a vampire now. With psychic powers?"

They engaged in a conversation. Amy seemed to be more relaxed and comfortable in her presence. There was no jealousy in the tone of her voice. 

Suddenly, they stopped. Only exchanging looks and giggling. Kamilah furrowed her brows confused.

"What are you two doing?" She asked.

"Having a mind to mind conversation," Amy told, still laughing. "Serafine was telling some stories about your past."

"Great, I'm in trouble. Am I not?"

"Don't worry, Kamilah," Serafine assured. "I'm only telling her about your bravery acts. Like the night you helped a group of newly-Turned vampires to escape from the Order."

Kamilah gave her a small smile. For some particular reasons, she liked to avoid some memories from her past. Not even Amy knew much about her past. Kamilah feared it'd cause her fear or disgust. That was the main motive she brought Serafine from France, she didn't want her wife going in and out of her mind whenever they had an intimate moment.

"Let's see what you can do," Serafine grabbed Amy's hands. "Get in my mind, I'll get in yours."

"Okay."

For a second, Kamilah noticed as Amy's eyes went wide in fear and she showed signs of discomfort.

"I-I can't..." she released Serafine's hands. "I'm not being able to get in your mind right now, I'm sorry."

"Oh, ma chérie. Come here, let's try again. It takes some practice."

"Actually," Amy stood up from the couch, "my cell phone is ringing. It must be Lily, I'll answer in the bedroom."

"Weird," Kamilah thought. Until before Serafine's arrival, Amy was using her psychic powers to increase pleasure while they were having sex. What she had done multiple times since she discovered what she was capable of.

"Serafine, did you see anything inside Amy's mind? Like you did, the other time?"

"No, but know what is strange? It was all dark, as if she was protecting her thoughts."

She asked Serafine to speak to her brother. She had to check on Amy, they still had some time before the Council meeting Lysimachus requested started.

Amy was lying on their bed, with her phone in hands and an upset look on her face. 

"Hey," Kamilah sat right beside her. "Are you okay? Did you see anything bad in Serafine's mind?"

"No," Amy shook her head. "I... I only noticed how uncomfortable you were to know she was sharing stories about your past. You don't like talking about it."

The girl sat down and wrapped her arms tightly around Kamilah's neck. She could swear she was about to cry.

"I promise I'll never see any parts of your past without your permission. I love you, okay? I'd never do anything to hurt you."

"I know. I love you too."

There was something wrong about her wife again. And the same bad feeling Kamilah had before their accident started to bother her again.

----------

Lysimachus

In front of a mirror, Lysimachus touched the exact place where he had been injured in the previous night. He had never been so close to death before.

Erik Balthazar. Or Xenocrates. That man was not only the head of the Order Of Dawn, but the First Son. He lived with the First Vampire. He was close to her. He knew where her body could be and possibly a way to stop her.

Yet, he had no time to obtain those information. That man was completely blinded with hate. Hate for his own kind. The only moment where the hate disappeared from his eyes was when he was staring at his cell phone screen. In that moment he seemed to be consumed by fear.

"You've woken the beast. Now you'll deal with the consequences."

Those words, full of desperation, wouldn't stop echoing inside his mind. He needed to share it with someone or it'd drive him crazy. 

He was getting dressed for the Council meeting he requested when somebody rang the bell. Opening the door, he was face to face with Serafine Dupont. He told her to wait. Katherine was an issue for another day. She was no longer staying in his apartment. He could barely remember in which hotel she was staying.

At Raines Corporation, Kamilah was the first one to notice he was unwell. 

"What happened?" She asked, in the same motherly manner she always treated him. "You look pale, brother."

"I'll tell when everyone is here," he told.

And there was Amy, who seemed to have strong psychic abilities. Stronger than his, or Serafine's, or Jameson's. He greeted his sister-in-law with a nod. She was still new at this. She could easily end up in his thoughts by accident.

When the rest of the members arrived, Kamilah opened the meeting as usual and passed him the word.

"The reason why I requested this meeting is," he started. "I've discovered who was behind Katherine, interested in the results Adrian obtained about the Tree's blood."

He first told them about Erik Balthazar, the head of the Order Of Dawn.

"I should've imagined," Adrian said. "The Tree was inside one of their buildings."

"It's not only that," Lysimachus told. "We knew nothing about who he truly was. He was Xenocrates, the First Son."

Everybody stared at him in silence, stunned by the revelation.

"Well," Kamilah angered, "you said 'was', so I assume he won't be causing us any more trouble."

"Yes, he's gone."

"You've killed him?" Jax asked. "Was he so strong as Gaius?"

"Though he was weakened by the lack of blood he consumed, he was almost as strong as Gaius."

He looked at Priya, who was frowning at him, as if she expected recognition for what she did.

"As for killing him," Lysimachus continued. "You should thank Priya. She saved my life. Our lives."

A victorious grin appeared on the fashion designer's face. After the second most shocking revelation of the night, he proceeded:

"Before dying, Xenocrates started acting weirdly. He stared at his cell phone screen and screamed something about how we've woken a beast and the consequences it would bring us. He was very disturbed. In panic, I'd say."

Everyone was so confused as he was. They had no idea what the First Son could be talking about. Kamilah told them to stay alert. Adrian suspected he could have sent his troops to attack them. Amy was the only one who seemed to understand his feelings, for some reason.

"Hey, Amy," he spoke to her outside. "I saw your face inside the room. Kamilah told me about your intense psychic powers, have you had any visions or anything?'

"Uhhh no," she took some time to answer. "It was just the tension of the moment. No big deal."

Lysimachus could swear she was hiding something behind that forced smile. He was about to walk back home when a hand touched his shoulder.

"Not that I care," Priya shrugged, "but are you okay? I mean, you almost kissed the death's ass last night."

"I'll be," he answered.

She was following the opposite direction when a thought occurred him. How much of his conversation with Xenocrates she had listened? Could she have seen anything on the man's cell phone screen?

"Priya, wait. Are you up for a drink?"

----------

Amy

The day Amy had been waiting anxiously had finally arrived. Her first combat training session with Kamilah. She woke up very early in the morning, showered and picked a special gym outfit. Then she went to the kitchen to prepare a special breakfast for them.

All those fears and insecurities about her visions had disappeared. After she refrained herself from using her psychic powers for a few days, no more creepy visions happened. Maybe the overuse, especially for certain purposes, had caused that terrifying episode in the bathroom.

"What is that all about?" Kamilah asked when she appeared in the kitchen and kissed her forehead. "Any special occasion?"

"Come on," Amy smiled. She knew her wife was teasing her. "Don't say you've forgotten! It's my first combat training session with you."

"How could I? It's all you've been talking about since you woke up as a vampire."

"Of course, I can't wait to be so awesome and skilled as you."

"You'll have a long way there, my love."

When they arrived at Ahmanet Financial, Kamilah guided her to her personal elevator and then to the basement. Amy knew she had training gyms in all her offices around the world, but she was never allowed to visit them before. Kamilah always trained all by herself.

"Whoa," Amy observed her surroundings, "this is awesome."

Kamilah had many different weapons and objects used to exercising. 

"I know," a proud smirk appeared on her wife's face. "Before we start, I'd like to give you something."

She handed Amy a small box, containing a pair of daggers very similar to hers. The girl took them in her hands and examined, admired.

"I've been wanting to give you these for a long time, but I decided to wait until you were Turned."

"I loved it, Kamilah. Will we be training with them?"

"Not yet," Kamilah sighed and went back to her teacher attitude. "You've got a lot to learn before that. We'll start with the basics."

They started small, Kamilah corrected her posture and taught her the right manners of successfully landing punches and kicks to the opponent. She also taught her how to deflect blows, disarm the enemy and use her vampire speed in advantage.

"Very well, Amy," she told, noticing how exhausted Amy seemed. "I think we've had a good start."

"No," Amy insisted. "I'm ready for more."

"If you insist, why don't you try to hit me then? One blow and we're done for today."

One blow. Kamilah said that because it was an impossible task to achieve. She'd deflect each one of Amy's attempts, when she didn't disappear around the room, making it impossible to even spot her.

"I can't..." Amy complained between pants. "You're too skilled for me..."

"I can't take easy on you," Kamilah stopped in front of her. Amy was surprised how she didn't look any tired. "Your enemies won't make it easy."

"Maybe I should find someone of my level for a start. Lily or Jax maybe."

"If you want to, but you should look for someone who is committed to your training. Those two could easily turn this into a game or a joke."

Amy let out a laugh.

"What?" Kamilah asked.

"Nothing. It's just you look sexy when you act this serious."

Kamilah rolled her eyes. The moment was interrupted by the elevator doors opening and revealing an unexpected guest.

"What are you doing here?" Kamilah frowned.

"I had nothing to do at Raines' company," Katherine answered, "so I came here to check on baby vamp here."

She walked in Amy's direction, with that challenging look she always carried around. That gave Amy an idea.

"Hi Katherine," she said. "Baby vamp here is okay. I was just wondering, Lysimachus told me you have some mad fighting skills."

"Trust me, you don't wanna see what these sai can do."

"Trust me, I do. I'm looking for a training partner, someone of my level."

"Wait," Katherine broke into a laugh. "Do you think I'm your level?"

"Then," Amy's eyes went red and she placed herself in a fight position. "Why don't you show me?"

"Amy, no," Kamilah interrupted. "This is a stupid idea. I don't trust her at all."

Katherine sighed and handed her the pair of sai.

"No more weapons?"

"No, except for myself."

Katherine joined Amy in the fight position, but waited for her to attack first. Though she was a mortal, she was handling the combat very well. Amy was also able to deflect her blows and test her new abilities.

"I have an idea," she thought.

Using Kamilah's previous lessons, she was able to almost disappear in the room, becoming almost undetectable, especially for a human. Katherine looked around, confused, trying to spot her. Amy landed right on her chest, pinning her to the mat.

"Ha! Gotcha!" 

As the Nighthunter struggled to set herself free, Amy noticed the rune on her ring started to glow. Katherine gazed into her eyes for a moment, before letting a terrified scream.

"Get off me!" She yelled, repeatedly. "Get off me, demon!"

Using a hidden blade she carried on her sleeve, she stabbed Amy right in the stomach. She fell on the floor, squirming in pain.

"Hey!" Kamilah's eyes went red in anger. "What have you done?! I said no weapons!"

Katherine wouldn't listen. Disturbed as she was, she disappeared in the elevator.

The wound on Amy's stomach slowly stared to heal, but it hurt really badly. Now she was a vampire every pain was amplified.

"Amy, are you okay?" Kamilah approached to examine her.

"I'll be," the girl told. 

"What the hell was that?"

"I have no idea."

A strange feeling appeared on Amy's mind. A sensation that, somehow, Katherine was able to dive in her deepest secrets.

----------

Lysimachus

That was the first time they were alone together, since Kamilah's wedding. The first time they could be talking like two civilized people. Lysimachus took Priya to the same club they used to meet when he first arrived in New York, as a vampire hunter. One of her favorite clubs.

"This place is decadent," Priya complained. "Like you."

She grinned. Lysimachus sighed, ignoring the attempt of an insult. He was still disturbed by the latest events. He ordered drinks for them both. Some alcohol could help him to enlighten his thoughts.

"So, how have you been?" He politely asked.

"Drop dead gorgeous, my new lines are always trending and my face has been everywhere."

Same old Priya. He wondered what would be the best manner to bring up the subject.

"Priya, the other night at the restaurant. How much of my conversation with Balthazar did you listen?"

Priya was thoughtful for a moment, trying to remember.

"Like I said, I predicted you'd do something stupid. I followed you to the restaurant, paid for the VIP room next to yours... I saw as you kicked the guards asses and everything. So pretty much the whole thing."

Lysimachus swallowed his whole drink in one sip. It burned down his throat, but he needed that. He needed to be prepared to repeat those words.

"You've woken the beast. Now you'll deal with the consequences," he said. "What do you think he could be talking about?"

"Oh come on, Hunter," Priya whined. "The old rag was babbling a bunch of non-sense! Don't tell me you're scared?"

"Not scared, concerned about our future. Did you happen to see anything on his cell phone screen before he destroyed it?"

"Not much. I got a glimpse, it looked like... a tree?"

Lysimachus showed her a picture of the Tree Of Eternal Life. Priya confirmed, it was the same one from Balthazar's phone. Yet, it made no sense. He couldn't connect the dots to discover what could be a potential harm.

In the morning, he woke up sweaty and shaking. Nightmares about Gaius, Xenocrates, the Tree and... something else. Something that was foggy on his memories. He checked his phone and Katherine had texted.

"I need to talk to you urgently. It's about Amy."

"You're all in danger."

"What the..." 

Lysimachus quickly showered and left for the address she left written in a piece of paper. As he arrived at her hotel room, somebody else was there. Serafine Dupont.

"Serafine, where's Katherine?" He asked. "I need to speak to her."

"Unfortunately you're late, mon chérie," she told. "Kamilah asked me to follow her. She was too disturbed. I caught her by surprise and debriefed her. She's on her way back to New Orleans."

"Fuck!"

Now he'd no longer know what she had to tell him. He couldn't even say goodbye.

"What happened?"

"She had something important to tell me. About Amy."

"Well," Serafine took a deep breath, "I believe she has seen the same thing I did. The darkness."

Lysimachus looked at her in a mix of confusion and shock.

"What?!"

----------

Kamilah

Kamilah sighed deeply and glanced at her wife, who was now sharing the office with her. Amy was far from happy. Her expression suggested annoyance and boredom at the same time.

"It's so unfair!" She complained, playing with a pen in her hands. "I just want my position back."

"Patience," Kamilah told. "It's temporary."

The incident with Katherine, a few days earlier, let Amy's emotions out of control. Kamilah shouldn't have trusted her word when she guaranteed she was completely fine. It was almost at the end of the shift when Amy and another member of the marketing department were taken to her office.

"You did what?!" Kamilah asked, raising her voice.

"I punched him in the face," Amy told, as if her action was absolutely natural. "Come on, he suggested you only gave me my position because I'm your wife!"

"They said you also broke the conference table. And threw somebody's phone out of the window."

"I did, I'm sorry. Wait, you're not firing me, are you?"

Kamilah had no other choice but keeping her away from her job for a while. Until she was completely settled with her new life.

"It has been a week and I managed my anger very well," Amy attempted to convince her. As usual she was doing the puppy dog eyes. This time the trick wouldn't work though.

"You broke your video game controller," Kamilah remembered. "And expressed your wishes to stab Serafine."

"Kamilah, I lost that match in the very last second! And Serafine was obviously hitting on you when she sent that text with so many heart emojis. Can't you see that?"

"Honestly? No," Kamilah knew what she had to do. She approached Amy and massaged her shoulders. "In truth, I only have eyes for one woman."

"I know that," Amy relaxed and smiled. "I trust you. I don't trust her."

"Silly girl."

Her assistant interrupted their moment to tell the candidates for Amy's position were ready to be interviewed. One by one they entered the office answering questions and showing their resumes and skills. Nobody seemed to be qualified enough.

"It's a sign," Amy said. "You should just return it to me."

Kamilah was ready to throw the towel and admit she was right. The door opened again and her assistant returned.

"Mrs. Sayeed? There's one more candidate. She got a little bit late."

"Let her in. I've wasted a lot of time, a few more minutes won't make any difference."

Only a few seconds later, another woman entered the room. She had dark brown hair, brown eyes and a tanned skin. Looking at her, Kamilah feel a sensation she had never felt before. She was drawn to her. Completely.

She quickly stood up and smiled, offering her hand to be shaken.

"It's a pleasure to have you here, Ms..."

"Rheya," the woman shook her hand and smiled back. "Rheya Apostolous."

[phinnsyreads]

Item #: SCP-081

Object Class: Euclid

Special Containment Procedures: Only those with Level 4 clearance and written permission from ███████ may have access to SCP-081. Full hazard gear including suit, gloves, and an oxygen tank must be worn at all times when in the containment area. Suits must be sprayed with a disinfectant shower before leaving the containment area. If containment is breached, the entire area must be exposed to ultraviolet light and then bleached. Those who are suspected of being infected must be quarantined for at least ten (10) days. If no symptoms manifest after the tenth day, then quarantine can be lifted.

Description: SCP-081 is a contagious virus that appears to be a mutated version of the ███████ virus, but with █ segments in its RNA instead of █. The virus is human specific, but is spread by rats who act as passive carriers. SCP-081 can also be spread through sexual intercourse and exposure to infected blood.

SCP-081 infects adipocytes and leukocytes, inducing both to absorb nutrients at a vastly accelerated rate. As the nutrients are absorbed, infected B-Cells produce and secrete large quantities of a modified human antibody. Adipocytes expand and proliferate and the organism's caloric intake increases. When the concentration of adipose tissue reaches a critical point, the viral antibodies instigate systemic cell lysis, followed by an unknown process leading to the spontaneous combustion of the infected individual.

There is a one (1) week incubation period before initial symptoms begin to occur. The duration of the symptoms depends entirely on the body fat percentage of the infected. Infection proceeds through four (4) distinct stages.

Stage 1: During the first week there are no major symptoms, though subjects may report being slightly tired.

Stage 2: In the second week of infection, subjects will begin to experience “hot flashes” and an increased appetite.

Stage 3: Infected subjects demonstrate extreme polyphagia. They will do anything in their power to obtain food or anything edible. During this stage, metabolism slows down significantly and weight gain proceeds rapidly. There is no set time that will elapse before the fourth and final stage. In order for the virus to complete its life cycle, the victim must be composed of 55% body fat.

Stage 4: Once the subject reaches 55% body fat, the urge to eat will stop, though subjects report increased instances of "hot flashes." Soon afterward the body will go through an extremely violent version of widespread cell lysis. As cells burst, the modified antibodies catalyze the ignition of fatty compounds through unknown means. The body is incinerated from the inside out via the wick effect, with the additional fat serving as a fuel source. Because stage 4 is largely asymptomatic, subjects are never aware when combustion will occur and the exact timing is apparently random.

Addendum 081-1: The first recorded incident of SCP-081 was reported in 1763 by Frenchman Jonas Dupont. In his book De Incendiis Corporis Humani Spontaneis, he wrote about a case in Paris where a man was acquitted of killing his wife as the jury agreed that the wife died due to spontaneous human combustion. It should be noted that the woman was incredibly overweight at the time of her death. It was not until the death of Mary Reeser on July 2nd 1951 that SCP-081 was brought to the Foundation’s attention. Despite the Foundation’s best efforts, this information was leaked to the national media along with pictures of the incident. It is believed that most reported cases of spontaneous human combustion are caused by SCP-081.

Addendum 081-2: SCP-081 is estimated to have existed since the █th Century and thought to have originated in █████████████. Because of widespread poverty and malnutrition present in many European countries at the time, instances of third and fourth stage infections were rare. North America has experienced the most cases of SCP-081 in the last century, but because of cleaner conditions and active rat population control, SCP-081 cases have dropped significantly. Fewer than ███ people a year die from late-stage SCP-081.

Addendum 081-3: Due to the United States' current obesity epidemic, it is crucial that wild SCP-081 be eradicated. The exposure that would result from a wide scale epidemic would be disastrous to successful containment efforts. ---Dr. ██████████.

Addendum 081-4: During testing, it has been discovered that people who have diabetes have a natural immunity to SCP-081. This has not helped in the development of a treatment for the virus, and it remains incurable. Wild infections [DATA EXPUNGED] and an alternate cause of death provided.

Addendum 081-5: It was discovered by Agent █████ that SCP-081 can spread by exposure to the ashes of a deceased victim. Containment and epidemic contingency protocols are being amended, and emergency services personnel who responded to Ms. █████████'s call have been detained for evaluation. ---Dr. ██████████.

===

[The voice of Dr. ██████████ was provided by @navox-the-weary.]

===

[Enjoy the podcast? Consider supporting us on Patreon! Patrons get access to bonus Joke episodes, outtakes, and can even request episodes on specific SCP objects.]

[Questions or comments? Email us at SCPDataPodcast@gmail.com]

[that-was-anticlimactic]

Angst Week Day One: Terrified- Colder By the Minute (Zane)...

This is... very different for me? I don’t usually write like this? I don’t usually write things like this? I hope it’s alright? I couldn’t decide who to write for for Terrified so I used a randomizer and Zane came up three times in a row so it was destiny and I just... I couldn’t get this idea out of my head... I tried?? I hope it’s not terrible??

Takes place during the events of Season One, Episode Eight: Once Bitten, Twice Shy

Warnings: identity crisis, intentional and unintentional pronoun misuse (not necessarily misgendering, moreso Zane doesn’t understand what he is)... I think that’s all I should warn? This day isn’t gory or too intense, it’s moreso mentally intense?

~~~~

“And the storm raged on, and they were ravaged by the wrath of snow! And the wind blew fear, and the storm would grow...”

He was cold.

It was only for a moment.

One prolonged but singular moment.

Zane didn’t mean to freeze anyone- he didn’t- he didn’t mean to freeze himself either.

He never really felt cold before that day.

Cold was more of just something Cole and Jay complained about, but cold was just a word to him. Meaningless. Insignificant.

Pythor and the snakes slithered past, cackling at him and their unfortunate state and he couldn’t help but feel ridiculous.

Ridiculous because he’s been frozen before, when he and his brothers had procured his shurikens, but he didn’t feel the cold then.

No, perhaps he felt the cold because he did it.

He froze himself.

The longer he was trapped in his gelid prison, the colder it got. It was almost as if his gears and wires were beginning to frost over.

He knew they weren’t.

But it felt like it.

But robots— Nindroids— don’t feel. They aren’t supposed to.

It took an hour for Zane to realize he wasn’t cold because he was frozen, but rather he was cold because he was frozen with fear.

Fear of... himself.

God, of all the things he never knew he was capable of...

Should he fear himself?

He’s read stories, heard tales, of robots turning against humans.

Did he in turn turn against not only his friends but the human part of himself?

Did he have any human in him?

Was he merely using the last grip of humanity he could find as an excuse?

Did he freeze himself on purpose? Did he intentionally allow Pythor and others to obtain the fang blade because they weren’t human?

It just kept getting colder and colder.

He was trapped in his own mind. He couldn’t see Kai or Cole beside him, he couldn’t see the ride gradually passing them, he could see nothing but a black abyss.

All he could hear were his thoughts echoing in his head, the words banging and thrashing around, tearing the abyss apart, revealing an even more secluded place, if such a place existed.

The voices— no thoughts— were loud. Too loud. But he couldn’t move, he was stuck at the edge of the abyss.

It was getting colder by the minute.

Zane could see his breath... his breath? He didn’t have a breath. He wasn’t human. The last shred of humanity he clung to had vanished when he entered his mind.

He was alone.

Alone with the cold, animalistic, heartless, fleshless being he was.

The one who froze his friends on purpose.

“Come, on, Zane. You know you did,” he heard himself snarl.

Then, it was cold. Cold. Cold. Cold. COLD. COLD. COLD. COLDCOLDCOLDCOLDCOLDCOLDCOLDCOLDCO-

Then everything shattered.

Reality and abyss alike broke off into millions of mirco pieces.

And there were Jay and Nya, standing before him, Kai, and Cole, all three of them on their knees...

Knees... they weren’t really knees, were they? Humans have knees. Robots don’t... robots...

Why was he so cold?

Shards of ice were piled around the group, decorating the floor with an ice stain.

They were... they were on the ship. Yes. That is correct. The Bounty. They were resting on The Bounty.

The humans— Kai and Cole... Kai and Cole— were taking hot showers, recovering from the cold... he was still cold.

He? Was the pronoun ‘he’ correct? Shouldn’t Zane go by the pronoun ‘It’ as he— It wasn’t really human. Therefore, calling It a ‘he’ is not a correct statement.

It was on It’s bed. Sitting.

It was still cold. Hands (limb inhancers?) shaking. Shaking. Not steady. Can’t move.

It’s arm (arm... was it an arm? Do robot’s technically have arms or are they accessories?) shot outwards, desperately trying to acquire what It was looking— yearning— for.

Gloves.

Gloves. It needed the gloves.

Conceal. Don’t feel. Don’t feel cold.

If It wasn’t careful it would freeze again.

It would freeze It’s humans... no the humans... it would freeze... Itself?

New powers. New body (did it have a body? Or was it just a vessel?). Not new body. Same body. Old body. New knowledge.

Ice. Ice can destroy things. It will destroy things.

Will It freeze things again?

That would be bad. Bad bad bad.

... but the humans are weak. They are humans. It is a robot. More powerful and superior being.

Maybe they deserve to be frozen?

It wouldn’t mind.

Maybe It should...

An audible gasp protruded from it— HIS— mouth as HE was shoved back into reality.

Zane was suddenly overcome with the cold once more.

Where was he? What was happening? What did he do?

He was on his bed. He was wearing gloves. What—

Did he really want to freeze everything?

How can he freeze everything?

True potentials were supposed to be good... powerful but helpful... not terrifying.

Was it supposed to make him scared of himself?

Was Jay scared of himself?

Unlikely.

He still has some human in him. He’s not completely gone. Not too far.

He’s not a robot, he’s a Nindroid. There’s a difference... right?

Zane went to remove the gloves... but then he shivered. He dropped his hands.

No matter.

He didn’t mind wearing gloves.

They were soft... soft he could feel that they were soft...

They were concealing. They were protective. No true potential mishaps could occur while he wore gloves.

“And the storm raged on, and nature tore the world apart! And all was lost, to the frozen heart...”

[lovemesomesurveys]

Have you always known what you've wanted to do with your life, career-wise?  I thought I did. My freshman year in high school I learned what psychology was after having a health and psychology class and decided then it was something I wanted to pursue. Prior to that I knew I wanted to help people, but I was thinking like a counselor. I was always the friend people came to if they needed advice or just someone to talk to. In middle school I remember going on those AOL teen message boards and offering advice there. I loved trying to help people and being the one to lend an ear. In college I majored in psych and obtained my BA. And then that was it.  I have no plans or interest in pursuing anything further, so obviously a psychologist isn’t in the cards anymore.  I honestly have no idea what I want to do career wise. 

If you found out you couldn't bear children, would you be willing to adopt? I can’t have kids, but I also don’t want any.

Would you stay at a haunted hotel? Nope.

Could you live without the Internet? I mean yeah, the world would keep on spinning, but I quite enjoy my internet and would like to keep it.

Do you always remember to bring a towel? I always set out a towel before getting into the shower.

Spiders: Kill them or let 'em go? Well, I don’t do anything. Noooo way. I get someone else to get rid of them!

How do you feel about Paris Hilton? I don’t care. I very rarely hear about her anymore.

When drunk, are you: violent, crazy, clingy, talkative, or depressed? I got talkative and the word vomit liked to come out. I usually also ended up feeling depressed and lonely by the end of the night.

Do you know who is on the $5000 bill? (yes, it does exist!) James Madison. They don’t make ‘em anymore, though.

What is the best HAND-MADE present you've ever received? A quilt a friend of my grandma’s made for me when I was a kid during one of my hospital stays. 

Do you Yahoo? My email is Yahoo.

Have you ever gotten pizza delivered to your house that you didn't order? Nope.

What's the most disgusting thing you've ever encountered while at a hotel? I haven’t had a bad hotel experience, thankfully.

What would you do if Hugh Hefner hit on you? He died a few years ago, but anyway he wouldn’t have been interested in me. Which is perfectly fine haha I don’t want some pervy old man hitting on me.

Is the price always right? No.

Do you smell what the Rock is cookin'!?!? Nope. (And yes I know that was his wrestling tagline or whatever back in the day).

Are you gullible? I’m a pretty skeptical person. 

What's the craziest rumor you've heard about Marilyn Manson? That he was the kid from The Wonder Years lol. The friend to Fred Savage’s character. I have no idea how or why that rumor got started.

(Insert random song lyric of your choice here): “Cause I’m one step closer to the edge, and I’m about to break.”

Does unneccessary punctuation annoy you? It’s unnecessary. 

Do you know anyone who was born on leap year? Nope.

Do you follow a 5-second rule after dropping food on the floor? Ew, nooo. Once it hits the floor it’s trash.

Do you think that only unclean people get head lice? Nope, major misconception.

Are you skilled with balls? (like basketball or baseball, you perv!)  Nope.

Did you take Flintstone vitamins or any others as a child?  Blech, yes. Those were so gross.

What types of things do you think the government is hiding from us?  I know a lot of people think there’s something going on given current events. I’ve seen those comments.

What would you do if the Kool-Aid man busted through your wall? If something just randomly burst through my wall it would scare the shit out of me omg.

Have you ever been to an art museum? Yeah, a few.

How do you like your soda: Glass bottle is best, followed by fountain soda, but can and plastic bottle are fine, too. I used to love soda, but I don’t drink it anymore apart from when I take my medicine. 

Do you recycle? Yeah, we recycle cans and plastic bottles.

Can one person really make a difference? Yes.

Which is worse: elevators or escalators? Well, all I can take are elevators, so. The thought of being stuck in one scares me.

Are you gonna make your momma proud? I feel like such a huge disappointment. 

Ring the bell for service or wait patiently for a minute first? I’d wait a bit first.

Boomerang or Cartoon Network? Boomerang is cool cause it shows old stuff from my childhood. 

Have you learned anything valuable today? Not so far.

What's your favorite kind of Doritos?  Nacho Cheese and Cool Ranch. Back when I could eat spicy food; though, I would have picked the Spicy Nacho ones. They have Flamin’ Hot Doritos now, which I’m sad I never got to try.

Do your parents have MySpace pages? No. They weren’t into social media stuff back then. They have a Facebook, though. 

If you had a time machine, would you go to the past or to the future? I’ve always wanted to go back in the past, but now there’s a big part of me curious to see past this coronavirus stuff. Like when will it end? Will it? That could also be terrifying, though. The future could end up looking even worse...

What if Darth Vader was YOUR father? So I could be a jedi? Sweet.

Do you honestly know how to play Monopoly or just make up rules as you go? I think I’ve played it the right way. For the most part, anyway.

Be honest...ever peed in the pool?  Nooo.

Do you ever fathom the amount of words in the English language? It’s pretty wild.

Have you ever pulled a fire alarm? Nope.

Do brain teasers tickle, confuse, or fascinate your brain? They definitely are often confusing, but I like them. 

You're hungry. All there is to eat is stale chips. Eat 'em or not? Mehhh probably not. 

Have you had your tonsils removed?  No.

If Ashton Kutcher punk'd you, would you feel the need to punch him?  No, but depending on the prank I might be upset or pissed off. I loved watching that show back in the day, though. I also had a crush on Ashton Kutcher at the time, ha.

Have you ever fallen off of a treadmill while walking/running?  I’ve never been on a treadmill.

Do you drink milk right from the bottle/carton, or pour yourself a glass? I don’t drink milk at all.

Isn't Chef Boyardee awesome? I wouldn’t say it’s awesome, but I do like Spaghetti O’s. 

Do you like marshmellows in your hot cocoa? Marshmallows are a must.

What reality show has been taken WAY too far? I’m just wondering why The Bachelor is still on. That’s one I never got into.

If you were going on a trip, would you Mapquest the directions first? I used Mapquest back in the day, like when you still had to print out directions. Now I just use Google Maps on my phone. 

Do you hide when Jehovah's Witnesses knock on your door? We just don’t answer the door.

Did you ever think any of your teachers were HOT?  Nope.

If you farted in front of your significant other, would he/she care? I’m single.

White Castle: nasty or absolutely yummy?!  I’ve never a fresh White Castle from the actual place, just the kind you can get in the frozen food section at the store haha. Those are good, though.

Must you grab a souvenir from almost everywhere you go?  Haha I’m a keychain gal. I also like getting a shirt or hoodie.

Have you ever walked out on a movie at the theater? Which one?  I remember doing that once, but I don’t remember what the movie was.

Did you enjoy making things out of Play-Doh as a child? Yeah, I loved Play-Doh. If I ever happen to be around Play-Doh and get a whiff of it, it instantly takes me back to childhood. It’s such a nostalgic smell.

[canaryatlaw]

alright I really need to get to bed. I was set to write this like twenty minutes ago but then I realized I hadn’t taken my pills yet so I went to do that and then swallowed them all at once because I’m impatient when I usually due it in two batches and inevitably one got stuck in my throat because my esophagus occasionally tries to choke me to death randomly when I do things like swallow too many pills at much so then I felt like I was going to throw up and had to swallow like 4 spoonfuls of honey until it finally went away. and then I returned to my computer and then got distracted by the BTS performance video and watched half of that before returning to actually write this. so that was a playback of the last twenty minutes of my life, but we can get on to the rest of it now. I had set my alarm for 11 just so that I didn’t sleep in too much but when it went off I still wanted to sleep more so I slept for like another hour then got up and discovered bagels had already been obtained, which was helpful because I thought I was going to have to go obtain them myself, so that made my life easier. so I ate a bagel that was very good. We were gonna keep some for tomorrow morning but then I think it was decided that we’re gonna go out to breakfast so hopefully I can steal a few bagels and shove them into my bag before I leave, I had some space when I finished packing on the way here and I didn’t buy anything, so I should be able to fit a few. we kinda just chilled for a while after that until around 3 when we left to go to the movies since my mom wanted to see the mr rogers movie (”A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood”) so my parents, my brother, and I went to do that. It was a really good movie, Tom Hanks portrayal was phenomenal, he embodied him so well and the whole thing was just so well done it made me really happy to see. I also may have texted a bit during the movie (but with my phone brightness all the way down so nobody could actually see it, I’m not that much of an asshole) because the dude I went on a date with last week texted me back, and I asked if he wanted to go to the jingle bash concert next weekend because I had an extra ticket, but like he could definitely say no if it was too much, and he was basically like “so I really hate pop music” and I just laughed and was like that’s totally fine, I wouldn’t want to put you through a night of torture, especially since I hadn’t mentioned there was gonna be two kpop bands there that were the actual reasons I wanted to go, and I would probably inevitably thirst after them watching them perform and this probably was not a good dating activity lol. I’ll probably ask my roommate if she wants to go and if she can’t I may just sell the ticket on stubhub and be a loner for the night (which I don’t particularly want to do because I don’t like doing things by myself, but I might not really have a choice). but yeah, after the movie we dropped my brother off at home and then went to get italian food for dinner. I had previously googled fred rogers because I wanted to see when he had died (2003, in case you were wondering), and one of the articles that popped up first was a review of the movie that was like “Christian faith is the one thing that was missing from [movie]” and I was like huh that’s an interesting take (especially when there was definitely a scene where he was praying and it was mentioned that he was an ordained minister) and it was just like this review trashing the movie as being humanistic and secularist and how all of its hope and goodwill were empty and meaningless without an acknowledgement of his Christianity and I was just like.....what the fuck movie did you watch??? Both my parents had loved the movie and I told them about this and they were both like wtf too because that’s such a shallow and short sighted perspective to think that no good can come from a piece of media without an explicit gospel message coming through. and that was like, a huge part of my college Christian artist perspective with the idea being working on “redemptive” art that doesn’t necessarily have to focus on evangelizing (and tbh, the more explicitly gospel aimed productions were usually the weaker ones). and like, reading that just irritated me so much like...imagine thinking that any kindness you express is worthless unless you’re shoving Jesus down their throat at the same time and that’s just like....that makes no sense at all and is completely unrealistic. There’s a Christian song i’m partial to called Live Like That which contains the lyrics “people pass/and even if they don’t know my name/is there evidence that I’ve been changed/when they see me do they see You?” and that’s just always what I’m focusing on- spreading God’s love without the need for words even, just through action alone. I shouldn’t have to spout off the gospel to show love to someone, it doesn’t work like that. and I mean, I don’t automatically devalue any explicitly Christian productions as there have been a few that were actually very well done (though admittedly most of them are pretty crappy). there had been a trailer playing before the movie for the movie coming out about Jeremy Camp (who’s a fairly well known Christian singer) that has KJ Apa in the lead role and it actually looks like it could be really good, but the audience that’s actually going to see that movie is barely a fraction of the audience that would go to the mr rogers movie. This was such an awesome opportunity to share love and kindness and they did it so damn well, I just thought it was so callous and ignorant to totally dismiss the movie because it didn’t contain an explicit gospel message. I’m rambling now, I know, though before I totally get off the topic I did also want to mention we also saw a trailer for the movie adaptation of Just Mercy, which was a book written by Bryan Stevenson, the founder of Equal Justice Works, which is a huge public interest law group that provides a ton of fellowships funding new attorneys who want to work do public interest work, and I know several people who had such fellowships with them (I came very close to applying but I had gotten the info about it too close to the deadline to really come up with a good proposal so I decided against it). so I’m super pumped for that movie as well, I do have a copy of the book that I received from that pro bono training we did at the fancy law firm a few weeks ago, I might have to sit down and read through it (which isn’t something I’ve really done with physical books since law school, you just do so much reading for school it kinda kills reading for pleasure for you, though I do still read plenty of fanfiction, lol). but now, anyway. the italian food was good, though when we got home I had a got a pretty bad stomach ache, but I don’t really know if it was the food or some other random reason because my body is crappy like that. but yeah, for most of the rest of the night I just chilled on the couch with my parents and a heating pad which I still have on my stomach currently, though it’s mostly feeling better. and yeah, eventually people went to go to bed and I showered and then came back here to start writing and went through the sequence of events recounted at the beginning of this post, and now I’m here. It’s now 1:30 am and I do have to wake up at some point not too late in order to go to breakfast because the car is coming to take me to the airport at 2:30 (I know that sounds so pretentious and spoiled and every time I say something like that I feel the need to explain my dad is really good friends with the owner of a limo company and he gives us free airport rides whenever we want, which is very generous of him, and my parents hate laguardia airport more than anything so I tend to get driven by them fairly often) so we’d obviously have to go sometime before that, and henceforth, I should go to bed now, so that is what I’m going to do. Goodnight friends. Goodbye November, hello December. 

[tibbygetsrekt]

Random scenario fics are my jam, and I have a whole blog of to do prompts and this was on the list. I’m such a weak bitch for angst and domestic things alksdgjfa. 

Under a cut immediately because it just hits citrus at the gate then cools down

     They felt like they couldn’t breathe, fingers of one hand gripping the back of the couch, the other curled around the nape of his neck. He’d shown up, bloody, bruised, and had barely done more than growl a Hello before his hands had been on them. 

     Not that it was unusual, a low whine catching in their throat, calloused fingers wrapped around it as his lips pressed against their shoulder. He was close, and that thought pulled them closer to their own release, a particularly sharp thrust of his hips sending shockwaves of pleasure zapping through them. Distantly they could feel his hand on their throat tightening, his face pressed into the crook of their neck.

“You alright.’

     Were they? A breathless chuckle escaped them, fingers lifting to skim over their throat. There were going to be bruises, pivoting on one knee to sit on the couch. But they’d taken too long to answer, watching out of the corner of their eye as his hand lifted, moved towards their face before stopping. Went still before curling tightly into a fist that fell back to his hip. 

“It’s fine, Frank.’ They even tossed in a grin for free, clearing their throat before rolling off the couch to stand. “Be right back.’

     They would be, but that didn’t mean that he’d be there. It was kind of their thing. They lived their life in stops and starts. Everything was normal until it wasn’t, until Frank came knocking. Then everything stopped, trying to capture the moment in their memory without outside interference. They didn’t think about bills, or rent, or that their neighbor had been looking at them oddly. Or the fact that tomorrow they’d have bruises the whole world could see, that people would gawk at but not ask questions about. Strangers didn’t want to know, they wanted to assume.

     Clean up was quick, but they stayed in the shower, stood under the hot spray and took slow breaths. It was fine, really it was. They’d said no strings, and damned if they were going to be some sort of cliche in a romance novel falling head over tit for someone they were fucking. It was just good sex. And neither of them were any good for the white picket fence. 

     But… well, it’s not like they couldn’t read. They knew what he’d been up, the kill count that kept rising every week. And sometimes he didn’t leave immediately, and would smile… Chest tight, they tilted their head back to let the droplets hit them, all the while mentally cursing. 

     He wasn’t in for a long haul, he’d gotten that once and look what had happened. Hands scrubbing at their face, they let out a huff at the feelings they could feel threatening to rise and drown them. Nope, not gonna happen. They’d been hurt too, far too often. This was just about sex, well not even that, it was about intense orgasms. If they could figure out how to get those without sex they’d be living on cloud nine with nothing that could bring them down. 

     Leaning against the shower wall, they turned the water off, watching water drop off them to the bottom of the tub. Another minute or so, and they’d go find a bottle of water, grab their phone and go to bed. He’d be long gone, having done a quick wash up in the kitchen sink. And the gun he’d demanded they get would be on their pillow, a silent reprimand for not keeping it close. Even though they’d been fucking on the couch, and he was a walking arsenal. Hands smoothing along the curve of their skull to try and squeeze out as much water as they could, they stepped out of the shower and opened the bathroom door. 

     Lights were out, and they knew if they checked the door it would be locked, so they didn’t need to. But they did anyway, unlocking it and relocking it twice before moving on to the kitchen. Bottle of water obtained, they moved towards their bedroom cracking it open and drinking half it as they walked the path by memory. Finishing before they even reached their bed, they crushed it and twisted the cap tight and tossed it into the small waste bin. 

     Wife beater, pair of boxer briefs, they stretched feeling muscles pull taut, a few twinges, and finally crawled onto their bed. Hand froze, their hand resting on someone’s hip amongst the pillows and blankets they’d made a nest of. Lifting their hand slowly, they focused on the dark and could just make out a form on the bed that they hadn’t noticed because they hadn’t been expecting it and Gods knew they never turned the damned lights on. 

“Hey…’

“Sorry, didn’t know-’ they paused, flopping down on the other side of the bed. “Glad I didn’t just fall onto the bed like I usually do.’

     The attempt at humor was weak at best, but they could hear his chuckle. Unable to figure out was going on, they sprawled half on their side, half on their stomach. He didn’t stay, not even when he tore stitching. The mess would get cleaned up, the first aid kit would be pulled out, one they hadn’t even owned until he started coming around, and he’d do a quick patch job before leaving. So what the actual fuck was this?

“I shoulda said somethin’.’ They heard him moving, just barely able to make out his silhouette. “This okay?’

     No! They wanted to say, fingers gripping the pillow they’d bunched under their cheek. This was not their thing, he wasn’t supposed to be here, breath smelling like stale coffee and something minty. Instead, they shrugged and mumbled something about sleep and morning coming early. Complete bullshit, they lived on three hours a night and drank enough coffee to start a knife fight with the gods during the day. 

     Trying to get comfortable, they grabbed their phone and tapped open the music app, turning the volume low before hitting shuffle. They weren’t going to change how they slept just because he was there, and they weren’t going to feel bad if he didn’t get any sleep. …… but they turned the volume down a bit more because it was a bit loud. Closing their eyes, they curled up against the wall, making space, and slowly fell asleep. 

     When they woke up, it was sudden, panic rushing through their veins before settling again with a sigh. They were hot, that’s what had to have woken them, letting out a frustrated little noise. And then froze feeling a hand rub along their hip, brow furrowing as they stared into the dark. Now that they were paying attention they could feel the weight was heavier than it should be, and it moved. Breath shortening, their fingers moved under their pillow where they kept a knife. 

“Hey, you okay?’

“Oh.’ They felt foolish, of course it was Frank. He’d stayed the night. “Yeah, I just… I forgot you were here.’

“Okay…’

“Hey Frank?’

“Yeah?’

     But what they wanted to ask is why he’d stayed, and if they did that it would make this whole thing awkward. Obviously, he was just tired, needed a place to crash. It was fine. No big deal, not like this was some sort of step in any direction. 

“.... You gonna need coffee in the morning?’

“If you got it.’ His voice was rougher than normal, low in their ear his cheek on their shoulder blade. “Just black though, nothin’ fancy.’

“Yeah, no. Totes.’

     This was way too intimate for them, they didn’t like being touched, not unless they initiated it. But had they in their sleep? Had they unconsciously reached out to the warm body in their bed? And if they did why did he- Swallowing back the scream they could feel in their throat, they forced their mind to just… shut up. Shut down. A quick glance at their phone showed that it had only been an hour or so, their eyes closing. 

     When they opened their eyes again, they were surprised to see that it was late. For them at least, that had to be… six hours straight? Straight through, they didn’t remember waking up again, moving to carefully slide off the bed. When they were standing next to it, they could see he wasn’t in it, a mixture of emotions roiling in their chest before they squashed it all down. It was fine. 

     Nail gently scratching the sleep from their eyes, they unlocked their phone and scrolled through their notifications. A couple of their friends were asking questions, concerned because they hadn’t been heard from in a few days. Oops. They hadn’t realized it’d been that long, squinting down at the phone trying to figure out who they should answer first. Maybe a quick bullshit update about what they were gonna do in the group chat?

     A cupboard door shutting made them freeze, heart-stopping before racing as wide eyes lifted to stare into the kitchen. Frank was opening another cupboard, and they couldn’t quite credit what they were seeing. 

“Did I wake you?’ He tossed over his shoulder. 

“No?’

“Thought I might’ve, I just got up myself, and now here you are.’ Grabbing the Folgers, he peeled open the lid and set it on the counter.

“Yeah, it’s my apartment.’

     He paused in the middle of rifling through drawers, to look at them. “Yeah…’

     Forcing themselves to move, they moved towards him and grabbed a spoon from by the sink. Without speaking, he stepped back and watched them prep the coffee maker. They didn’t know what to do with this, it was… weird. Pushing the brew button, they turned to face him, their hands resting on the edge of the counter. 

“..... So, sleep well?’

“I did.’ Frank was watching them, and they were offering a small smile in return. 

     It was their polite smile, the one they used when people talked to them and all they wanted to do was get out. He’d changed the status quo, and they weren’t sure how to handle that. Frank didn’t sleep over, actually if someone had asked they’d have said he didn’t sleep at all. 

“I can go, if-’

“Nah! No, it’s fine. We’ll have coffee, and just… chat.’

     He was beginning to look skeptical, and they wanted to laugh. Pulling down two mugs, they filled his first and handed it to him, before pulling out French vanilla creamer and putting a splash into the bottom of their mug. Filling it to the brim, they lifted it to their mouth and sipped despite the fact that it was scalding. Silence filled the apartment until the air kicked on and offered a bit of white noise. 

“Where’s your shield?’

“By the couch, since that’s where I usually am.’

“Cleaned it recently?’ 

     They couldn’t help it, they laughed. Of course, this was his version of small talk. A smile pulled at his lips, they could see it and it made them feel a little better. So what did this make them now? They’d been fuck buddies, close enough to know those erogenous zones that got the job done quickly. The rare and few conversations when they’d helped restitch wounds he’d opened. But this staying over thing, knowing how he took his coffee. It was making their chest warm in a way they couldn’t blame on the coffee even as they tried to push it away. 

“Yeah, Frank. I cleaned the gun you made me buy, spent too long teaching me to take apart and clean.’ Another sip of coffee, pleased by the frown on his face. 

“It’s important you keep it in top condition.’

“As you said.’

“I come over, a lot. And if anyone decides to try to hurt you to get to me-’ he started, and they could see his knuckles whitening.

“Now I can shoot them.’ They interrupted taking another sip of coffee, then added as his mouth opened. “While calling you, so you can come in guns blazing and ruin my apartment.’

“I wouldn’t ruin the whole thing, and a bit of putty should be alright.’

     They honestly couldn’t tell if he was joking, not at first, but his eyes crinkled at the edges and their heart did a funny little thing in their chest which they also ignored. They were just going to have to ignore a lot of things. For example, he’d opened one of the curtains, and there was daylight spilling in. Their phone screen lit up, another notification, Frank’s gaze flicking towards it. 

“I didn’t know you had a boyfriend.’ His tone was borderline accusatory. 

“I don’t?’

“Then who’s Big Poppa?’

     Mouth opening, and then closing, they let their eyes fall shut and for the millionth time told themself that they were going to change Jeremy’s contact name to his actual number. 

“A co-worker. I… kind of wanted to fuck him at one point, so I just-’ a hand waving in the direction of the phone, they stopped talking. 

“Why not just his name?’

“Because I don’t do names.’ 

“You call me by my name.’ He pointed out, taking a drink of his coffee, moving towards the pot to refill his cup.

“Yeah, you were just an orgasm.’

     Coffee splashed onto the counter, which they refused to look at, or him. Instead, they picked up their phone and sighed. 

“I don’t think anyone has ever said that to anyone else.’ When they didn’t reply, he swiped at the spilled coffee and wiped his wet hand on his pants leg. “Not out loud, to their face.’

“That’s… probably true.’ They conceded, turning as they shrugged their shoulders. “But I did.’

“Yeah, yeah you did. Jesus…’

“Offended?’

“Nah! I mean, I felt the same way, so I can’t really whine about it. But I don’t think I’d’ve ever said it out loud like that.’

     Felt? Oh shit, and they’d said were. Feeling like a deer caught in headlights, they stared at him for a long moment before slowly lifting their cup to take another drink. Frank was still staring at them, and they moved around him to grab some paper towels to clean up the spill. Shrugging off his mumbled apologies, they tossed the paper towels into the trash and hopped up onto a counter across from him. Well wasn’t this getting downright domesticated...