#the gang goes to hell: part two

[chrliekclly]

shoulder grab

[riaki]

i literally cant stop thinkin’ about highschoolbully!gojo who used to be your ride or die ‘til he started getting attention from those popular jock type guys who are always assholes to everyone. and him being.. well, him means he preens under attention no matter who it’s from, so naturally he started to gravitate towards that group and their little troop of cheerleading fangirls. and then he started distancing from you and without either of you really realizing it, you’ve slipped between the other’s fingers. but the way he acts towards you makes you think he let you fall without moving a muscle to slow you down.

soon enough, a year swings by and by the end of it he’s gone from your life, save as just another face in the gaggle of boys who make crude jokes and laugh at smart kids and pop milk cartoons during lunch just for the hell of it. but you’re minding your own business, ‘cause you’re mature enough to realize that people come and go, no matter how close you might’ve been and you think it’s unfortunate that so many memories could be thrown aside in a blink of an eye, but it makes a lot of sense when you walk past satoru and his friends bullying some random kid. you don’t know him, but you’ve heard enough to realize it’s his girlfriend satoru’s flirting with while his ‘gang’ kick at the kid. and it’s sickening, but you don’t say anything when you walk by.

and when you don’t ever see the kid afterward and catch the dark eyebags under his girlfriend’s eyes, you come to the cruel realization that satoru isn’t the boy who’d bandage the scrape on your knee you got from tripping in the playground or buy you a soda because he’s noticed your sweat when you were walking home and you don’t have any money left on you.

it’s a glass half empty, half full type of situation. on the one hand, you don’t have him anymore. on the other hand, you don’t have him anymore. that is, you lost your best friend, but you’ve also lost someone who has the potential to absolutely ruin your life. and you don’t know whether to be glad or not, so you just mind your own business even if it hurts a little when he ignores you, stops tossing paper at your head in class (unless it’s to embarrass you) and stops walking you to and from school.

but the cherry on top of the shit cake is that he doesn't get it. so when he approaches you in the library one day after satiating the need to tear pages from books and make them into paper airplanes to throw at people, he doesn't seem to understand why you try to ignore him, or put off his attempts to hold a convo. but the worst part is that he's just sleazy and clueless about it. it's like he took an eraser and wiped every single year of your friendship off the chalkboard with one fell swipe, and you wish he'd done that too to the less-than-appropriate messages he and his friends had written towards one of your classmates.

he doesn't understand why you're hesitant to talk, and that's what makes it the worst. he always thinks he's in the right, and he keeps setting you off and it sucks that he knows exactly what sets you off. "i'm an asshole? what're you talking about? really, you're in over your head. you never change." he laughs, and you ignore him, and he gets bored, and he's about to leave when he spots your wallet open next to your book, on the table. there's a polaroid peeking out, and he recognizes the tufts of white hair to be him. but there's a weird feeling in his chest, and he thinks he gets it from you, so he leaves because he thinks you're weird.

and it goes on; you practically become a nobody in satoru's eyes, because of that weird, weird feeling you give him. it's unfamiliar and he's never gotten it before and he doesn't like it. but it's unavoidable when your professor pairs you two for the end-of-term project. and of course, you're ready to do all the work, because that's how it always was between you when you were kids. but sometimes he'd surprise you by helping, and he'd show you that he was actually intelligent just to earn your praise because he liked it. but he ignored you, and you did everything, and it would've been okay if not for his friends egging him on to present your entire project when the day came and leave you with no content for a grade.

that's the first time it hits him: does he really want to do that? but it's not like it'll be the first time; you've always taken the hits for him, because you're naturally smart and you'll pick yourself back up in no time, and you get why he does it, so it'll be okay. so he agrees, and he enjoys the time he gets to spend with you through it, but the nagging weird feeling that blooms in his chest like a pesky weed only grows stronger. that's all his feelings ever seem to do around you.

but before you know it, presentation day swings around. you had coffee this morning (on his card), and you're ready enough to shoot him a small smile that sends his heart a-flutter. so you go up, feeling up to the task and ready until— he starts talking, and talking, and talking, and people don't think that he's taking your words out of your mouth because he's intelligent when he wants to make you praise him and you don't get the chance to get a word in and you notice the guys are laughing and hitting each other's shoulders to themselves in the upper rows and before you know it it's over. people are clapping but moreso they're looking at you and they're whispering— but it's terribly loud and they don't bother to hide it. they call you things that shouldn't bother you but they do anyway, because it's satoru's fault, and you're such a fool for thinking you could have it your way again.

so you leave class early, excusing yourself and ignoring the way your professor gives you a distasteful look and scribbles something next to your name. you're out the door in a second, neglecting your bags and satoru's a little lost because— didn't he just do good? people were clapping, and laughing with him and not at him, but it's attention either way so he doesn't mind. so why do you? why did you look at him like he stabbed you in the back? and his friends are calling his name, and he wishes he could chase after you and do something but he doesn't.

and it's a little sickening what they do next; one of their girls grabbed your bags and tossed it to them, and they've started rifling through it as if they own it, tearing up your shit and dumping everything onto the ground and he's kind of just... glued to the chair by his feelings. his heart feels like it's been patched together and the weird fuzzy feeling he had in his chest that's been cultivating has extinguished to be replaced with something he realizes he's only ever felt when it comes to you— guilt.

he's so lost in his thoughts that he doesn't realize his friend is silently offering him something— nudging his side to get his attention. he takes it without really realizing he moved his hand, and his silent friend with the gauges in his ears and the dark hair gets up and leaves without another word. when satoru looks down, he realizes he's been given your wallet. "the reward for betraying your baby," they call it. like all you're worth is the money in your account.

he's a little curious. that's how he's always been; asking you questions, rummaging through your stuff, laughing sheepishly and shaking it off when you caught him red-handed. so he opens it up, ignoring your sad little cards and the funny look on your license. he's looking for something, subconsciously; but he doesn't find it. there's no white tuft of hair to suggest his presence in your life; just empty black leather. nothing else.

and he doesn't see you after. or the following day. or the following weeks; weeks that turn into months that turn into the end of school and he's graduating but you're not by his side. and neither are his so called 'friends'; the only thing he has to their name is your own ruined friendship. it's a shame; he feels alone. very alone. no fuzzy weird feeling, not even that thing people call guilt. no attention to chase, and connections are ever harder to make. it shouldn'tve mattered that much, right? it was just a presentation. why wouldn't you just come back to him like you always did? were you not still friends...?

but the blood is still on his hands, and he doesn't manage to ever wash it off. guilt has a way of festering; of weighing on the heart 'till there's nothing left to feel or think but unfortunate circumstance and what could've been done differently. it just sucks that he never tried hard enough to keep you from slipping between his grasp. and now, he doesn't even have a polaroid to your friendship's name.

pt.2

[jackhues]

it's not hate... | oscar piastri

note: okay so i was bored and i got a random inspiration i hope y'all like this <3 i think this will have 3/4 parts, but they might be split up if i reach the picture limit.

pairing: oscar piastri x fem!reader, logan x best friend!reader, one sided!enemies to lovers

next

faceclaim: various, from pinterest

youruser & logansargeant

liked by y/bffsuser, oscarpiastri, yourmomsig & others

youruser: gang's back together 🤘

pinned youruser: welcome back to america @/logansargeant glad you could join us! -> user: i love how she seems sarcastic but i know babes is so happy he's back

user: logan living out his frat dreams

user: this would be logan daily if he didn't go into racing

user: wait i'm confused... who's this? -> user: y/n y/ln! from what we know, her and logan are best friends since they were born or something. she finished her undergrad, but i think she's doing law school now (?)

user: i ship -> user: ew

y/bffsuser: not pictured is the entire drink falling out -> logansargeant: it wasn't my fault! she moved her head -> youruser: yeah okay, blame the woman -> logansargeant: i blame when she's wrong. and you are. -> user: stop they're so sibling

yourmomsig: aw no one posted the pic of y/n falling off the bed during the fight -> youruser: MOM! -> logansargeant: i tried but she stole my phone -> user: well we know who the favorite child is now

y/bffsuser: @/yourprivuser no photo creds -> user: IS THAT Y/N'S PRIVATE USER???!!! I NEED TO BE ACCEPTER NOWWW this comment thread has been deleted

oscarpiastri has requested yourprivuser!

--

--

--

y/bffspodcast

liked by user, user, oscarpiastri & others

y/bffspodcast: surprise episode out now! take a listen for exclusive deets on logan's love life, his best friends, and the time he almost became a dad to a baby crocodile

tagged: logansargeant

user: i'm sorry, logan did WHAT NOW?

user: A CROCODILE?? -> user: well he does live in florida

user: it's a crime that y/n and oscar haven't met before. i need the irl best and the f1 bestie to get together and spill tea on logan -> oscarpiastri: well we might have to change that this weekend -> user: OSCAR??!! PLEASE DO IT! I BEG!

--

Y/BFFS PODCAST - TRANSMISSION timestamp: 4:40-8:23

y/bff: i mean, you've known y/n your whole life, right?

logan: my whole life, yup. like, i was maybe only a few hours old when i saw her for the first time. you already know this, but like we have the same birthday, december 31st 2000. and we're also born at the same time, in the same hospital, literally right across the hall from each other.

YB: same time? like seriously? how did i not know that?

LS: *laughs* i mean, same time. down to the minute, at least. it's why we call each other 'twin', we're born at the same time. and like our parent knew each other and joked that we might be born on the same day... little did they know

YB: *laughing* that's insane. oh my gosh, and you guys have just been best friends since then. i love that. i assume you're the one who's got all the younger high school stories about her. i got some college ones, but you have the real gold mine, don't you?

LS: i've got my fair share of our insane stories, yeah

YB: mind sharing one?

LS: i'm trying to think of one that's not absolutely insane... oh okay! so one time, we were in the pool, it was summer, and then y/n just stops trying to murder me with the pool noodle and goes still. i'm confused as hell, so i'm trying to see what she's doing but she tells me to shut up. she's watching the bushes around the pool, so i swim to the edge of the pool next to her, and the two of us are just watching the bushes. i have no idea what's going on, but y/n's waiting for something. and then, a baby croc starts walking out of it, and it's so small, but like it's mom was nowhere. we didn't know what to do. and y/n *laughs* y/n goes, "oh we have to adopt it". i'm like what? but she just start spiraling "oh we're his parents now. he just saw us. what if the mom died? i don't know how to feed a baby croc? but i have to learn, it's my baby croc now." finally she calms down, and we get everything sorted out, but she cried when we had to leave the baby crocodile. adopted it and all within three seconds of seeing it

YB: *laughing* i'm dead, oh my god that sounds like her though. that's so fucking funny, she made you a crocodile dad!

--

--

--

--

--

Y/N ADJUSTED HER SUNGLASSES, the Miami sun nearly blinding her as she walked towards the paddock. Next to her, her racer best friend, Logan Sargeant, nearly skipped along next to her. She could feel his excitement at being able to race so close to home again, and it honestly helped lift her own spirits.

Logan smiled and waved at some cameras and fans nearby, grinning brightly and taking the time to stop and sign some stuff. Once the fans had trickled away, Logan made his way back to his best friend, throwing his arm over her shoulder.

"You okay?" he asked, turning his head away from the cameras so they couldn't read his lips.

"I'm great," she promised.

"It's not too late to change your mind," he reminded her. "We can say you were sick, or you weren't feeling well, or you just forgot, or-"

"-That I have diarrhea?" Y/N grinned a little. "You know, all of your solutions to this thing seem to involve me just running away or ignoring it."

"I mean, it's how you take on most of life," he shrugged.

"I've never felt more called out in life," she rolled her eyes. "Look, we've got a plan. I head over to the garage first, take a few pics, then say 'oh I have to go. I haven't even been to Williams' garage yet'. I've got this Logie, I promise. Besides, I don't even hate him. If I did, there would be a lot more violence threatened and swearing involved. I also would've blocked him."

Logan didn't look necessarily convinced, but he didn't argue either. He pressed a kiss to her forehead, "If you need anything, send me a 911 text. I'll be on standby the entire time, I swear."

Y/N smiled at the boy, waving goodbye as she dropped him off to the Williams garage.

"I know you'll be there," she smiled. "It's what we do. Be there for each other."

MEANWHILE, IN THE MCLAREN GARAGE, the Aussie driver was pacing back and forth, turning back to the entrance every few seconds.

"Yeah, great job at being subtle, Osc," Lando Norris, his teammate, commented sarcastically. "Who're you even waiting for?"

"Y/N," Oscar answered simply.

Normally, he'd engage in banter with his Brit teammate, but he was too nervous to give answers longer than a few words. He was finally going to see Y/N, in person. Not on the other side of a screen, not a flash of hair that ran away too quickly, not a caller ID he'd see on Logan's phone all too often. After all these years, he was finally going to be able to see her, face to face.

He had to admit, he did seem a little pathetic trying to contact her. But the DM he'd sent years ago on her public account had never gone through. And he'd left it, thinking maybe they weren't meant to know each other, simply to know of each other.

But then he'd seen her private instagram, with so few followers, he knew that she wouldn't be able to miss it. But maybe she didn't use it, or maybe it was an old account, but he had no luck on that account either.

He finally mustered the courage to ask Logan for her number and just reach out. He was surprised and a little shocked she said yeah, but he was in too deep now to change his mind.

"Oooh, who's Y/N?" Lando teased. "Is she a girlfriend?"

Oscar whipped his head towards his teammate, narrowing his eyes at him.

"Why are you a literal child?" he asked. "Y/N's a friend. Well, she's a friend of Logan's. His best friend. And everyone found out the two of us never met each other, and they went crazy saying we have to meet and whatnot. So I invited her here to take a few pictures."

Lando tilted his head, almost as if he was dissecting the truth behind Oscar's words.

"Logan? Logan Sargeant's best friend? Her name's Y/N?"

"Yes, Lando. And everyone says I'm his best friend in racing, so we have to meet or something."

"Alright, I believe you," Lando decided. "Call me when she gets here, I want to take pictures with her too."

"Sure," Oscar answered nonchalantly.

Turns out, there was no need to call him over, because a second after he'd said that, she walked in.

Oscar stared at her as she looked around the garage, her eyes drinking in just how different it was from the Williams' garage that she was used to.

Lando made a noise between a snort and a laugh, causing Oscar to glare at him.

"No, nothing," Lando nodded to himself, ignoring Oscar's silent question. He cupped his hands over his mouth, shouting across the garage, "Y/N!"

Her head whipped over to the sound of her name, her posture relaxing the slightest bit as she realized it was only Lando and Oscar and not some random person. She didn't exactly know them, never even met them, but she knew enough of them to be a little comfortable.

She smiled slightly as she reached them, "Hey. How are you guys?"

Lando looked to Oscar, who simply stared at Y/N, before decided to take the reigns. "We're good, thanks for asking. I'm Lando, my friend here is Oscar, and I assume you already know that."

"Yeah, I watch enough F1 to know that," she smiled, falling into easy conversation with the Brit.

"Well it's nice to know you didn't take an invitation from a man who's name you didn't know," Lando joked. "That's what I call important information."

"I went a step further and made sure he was known by a friend of mine," Y/N continued the banter. "My best friend." She turned to acknowledge Oscar, "Logan spoke highly of you for a long time now. It's nice to finally be able to meet you."

"Yeah, same," he nodded. "I mean, Logan's spoke a lot about you too. All the time. He still does. It's nice to meet you too."

Oscar resisted the urge to close his eyes and curse himself out.

Y/N didn't seem to mind his stuttering and stumbling. In fact, her posture seemed to straighten out a bit, and her smile turned a little bit more warm.

She was beginning to realize that no matter how bad Logan had gotten it, Oscar was human too. He was new to this, and he probably had someone defending him the way she defended Logan. Maybe she was a little harsh on him. She just didn't like how it wasn't fair.

It was why she wanted to be a lawyer. She wanted to try and make things fair for people.

But in defending Logan with her entire heart and soul... she was being unfair to Oscar. She could try and be nice. It's only for a few minutes. After that, she could go back to avoiding him.

"So, how do you wanna do the pictures?" Y/N asked. "We should get them done now, I might have to leave early if my laptop doesn't work. I have a few assignments due."

"Right, yeah," Oscar nodded. "We can- uh-"

"The lighting's nice over there," Lando pointed out. "I'll take the picture of you guys."

"You don't wanna be in it?" Y/N asked.

"No, I'm alright," Lando smiled. "Unfortunately, I'm not best friends with Logan, unlike you two. Besides, I'm pretty good with a camera."

Y/N frowned at the reminder that Lando was one of the drivers who wasn't friends with Logan. She quickly fixed her expression, but Oscar noticed (only because he'd has his eyes on her ever since she entered). He was tempted to ask her about it, but she smiled and his brain froze up.

"Alright then, let's take the picture."

--

youruser

liked by oscarpiastri, logansargeant, y/bffsuser & others

youruser: miami, you were fun 🤍

tagged: logansargeant, landonorris, oscarpiastri

pinned youruser: to my haters: fuck you, i'm always proud of logan. no matter what. i chose him as my best friend and i'll choose him again every time. i'm just sad y'all have never loved someone so much to understand what it means to always be proud of them, no matter any outcome. he's my best friend, my brother, and the outcome of race isn't going to change that

pinned youruser: i heard there was a logan's besties meet up @/oscarpiastri -> oscarpiastri: oh yeah, did you end up making it? -> youruser: swipe to find out!

landonorris: same time next race 👀👀 -> youruser: wanna do my class for me?? -> landonorris: i will understand nothing. -> oscarpiastri: as if you understand anything ever -> landonorris: all grown up now, are you? -> oscarpiastri: shut up

mclaren: it was a pleasure having you stop by! next time, you should stay for longer! -> williamsracing: stop stealing her from us

williamsracing: loved having you around for the weekend!

alex_albon: wowwww, i didn't even make the cut this weekend -> youruser: all the pics i took of you were 0.5s -> alex_albon: thanks for showing some mercy

user: stop she looks so pretty

user: logan bestie meet up... but where's logan? -> user: getting attacked by a haas in his home race -> user: oof

user: TELL EM GIRL!

user: i want what she and logan have. like they'd DIE for each other

oscarpiastri: it was great to finally meet you! hopefully it's not the last time either -> user: boy please TRY to be subtle

--

--

PART TWO

notes: i hope y'all liked this, don't forget to like + reblog! alsoo... comment on this part (not any others) if you want to be tagged, i might not respond but i'll add you to the taglist if you comment.

but my tags don't always work, so you might want to follow my writing tag 'naqia writes!' or the tag for this short series 'the bsf of my bsf! series' so they show up on your dash at some point :)

[artbyblastweave]

A few years ago, there was a thread on r/asksciencefiction where someone was fishing for a superhero story with an inverted Omni-Man dynamic, or a setting where Homelander's initial presentation is played straight- a setting where the Superman figure actually is the paragon of morality he's initially presented as, but no other superhero is- a situation where you've got one really competent true-blue hero standing head-and-shoulders in power above what's otherwise a complete nest of vipers.

Someone in the thread floated My Hero Academia; while I haven't read it, my understanding is that that's not really an accurate read of what's going on with Stain's neurosis about All-Might being the only "real hero," that the point of that arc is that Stain's got an insane and unreasonable standard and that taking an endorsement deal, while bad, isn't actually grounds for execution. My own contribution to the thread was Gail Simone's Welcome to Tranquility, where a major part of the backstory involved the faux Justice-League's Superman analogue having a little accident because he's the only one who thought they were morally obligated to go public with the secret life-extending macguffin that the rest of the team is using to enforce comic-book time on themselves and their loved ones; while only a couple members of the team are directly in on it, the rest are conveniently incurious. And Jupiter's Legacy gets tantalizingly close to this- The Utopian, a well-meaning stick-in-the-mud, ultimately gets blindsided and couped by his scheming brother who creates a superhero junta staffed by a Kingdom-Come-style glut of third-gen superheroes, who are framed as fundamentally self-interested because only came onto the scene after most of the situations you legitimately need a superhero to handle have been neutralized. (The rub, of course, is that the comic is also highly critical of the Utopian's intellectually incurious self-righteously 'apolitical' approach to superheroism- if for no other reason than that it left him in a position to get blindsided by a coup!) While Jupiter's Legacy gets the closest, all three of these are only loosely orbiting around the spirit of the original idea, and there's something really interesting there- particularly if the Superman figure isn't hopelessly naive in the same way as Utopian. Because first of all, if you're Metaman or Amazingman or whatever brand-name alias the writer goes with, and you really earnestly mean it, and you put together a team of all the other most powerful heroes on earth in order to pool your resources, and then with dawning horror you gradually begin to realize that everyone in the room besides yourself is a fascist or a con artist or abuser or any other variant of a kid with a magnifying glass eyeing that anthill called Earth- What the hell is your next move?

Do you just call the whole thing off? Can you trust that they'll actually go home if you call the whole thing off? I mean you've put the idea in their heads, are you sure that they aren't going to, like, start the Crime Syndicate in your absence? Do you stick around to try and enact containment, see if getting all of these people on a team makes them easier to keep on a leash? But that's functionally going to make you their enabler pretty quickly, right? Overlooking "should you kill them-" can you kill them? You're stronger than any individual one of them- are you stronger than all of them? The first time one of them really crosses a line in a way you can't ignore- will that be a one-on-one fight? Are they the kind of people capable of putting two-and-two together and pre-emptively ganging up on you if you push back too hard? Do you just start trying to get them killed, or keep them at each other's throats so they can't coordinate anything really nasty? Can you squeeze any positive moral utility out of them, or is that just a way to justify not doing the hard work of taking them down? There've been works where the conceit is to question the default assumption that Superman in specific would be a good person, and there've been works where the conceit is to question the default assumption that superheroes in general would be good people. Something to be done, I think, with questioning the default assumption that everyone Superman becomes professionally close to would be good, and to explore how he'd handle it if they weren't.

[amywritesthings]

in the wrong. / levi x f!reader

for @levievent #levimonth24. (day one: pre-canon, first time)

pairing: gang leader!levi ackerman x military police!reader word count: 2.4k summary: You're Military Police. He's public enemy number one. Getting involved with one another is wrong.

tags: 18+ MINORS DNI! pre-aot, in the canon of 'a choice with no regrets', smut, enemies to lovers, military brutality mention, first time, bottom!levi, virgin!levi credit: dividers by @saradika-graphics

And so it goes—

There’s no disputing if waiting here in the dead of night is right or wrong.

Leaving your post, forcing your colleagues to pick up the slack — it’ll catch up with you eventually.

Military Police stationed within the Underground City is about as much of an oxymoron as it comes. You see the irony of walking these streets as the symbols of order when it’s a place that thrives in disorder. 

Your superiors don’t wish to save these people.

You — your squadron — will do nothing here.

(But he could.)

Meeting with the leader of the most notorious gang in the city started out as an accident, really. 

You’d minded yourself down here, still trying to do your job when you could: helping elderly people walk their rotting groceries to their door; aiding a young child who found themselves lost, only to witness the dilapidated home they came from; smuggling your own rations down from the surface to feed the sick.

In their eyes — wrong.

In his — confusion.

If you ever came into contact with the perpetrator known as Levi, then you were meant to engage.

Albeit fast on his feet and even faster with a weapon, his ever-growing group of goons were the Military Police’s biggest enemy.

You’d just spotted a redhead doing her best to creep up one of the staircases towards the surface, assuming no one was watching.

There are people up there, you remember saying.

Her wide eyes stared back at you with uncertainty, like perhaps getting her attention was a trick to set her up, but you’d managed to grab her by the scruff of her dirtied vest.

The small girl made a noise of protest, but you did your best to press a finger to your lips:

Silent.

Pulling her back into the shadows with you had been the smart move — the unit at the top of the stairs trudged down the stairs and into the Underground pathway, presumably to cause trouble.

They always did.

You held onto the stranger until the unit disappears, letting go only once the place is clear. 

The girl turned around, seemingly breathless. “You… why?”

You didn't know.

“I don’t know,” you confessed, blinking between her face and the pathway. Paranoid. “Those two are pieces of work. Nasty. Would’ve had your damn head on a platter.”

“So you saved my life?” she asked, and the musical naivety of her voice squeezed your aching stomach.

“It wasn’t that noble,” you promised softly. “Just… be more careful.”

She realized as seconds pass: you’re letting her go.

There’s nothing to arrest her for.

The people down here suffer enough.

When she left, you thought it was the last time you’d ever see her.

.

.

— —

.

.

  It isn’t.

.

.

— —

.

.

  “The hell is an MP doing here, Isa?” 

You can’t say. You’re not sure.

The redhead, a common recurring figure in your time patrolling the Underground, seems to have taken a liking to you when she surely shouldn’t.

Isabel Magnolia, you learn, is her name.

Talking to you about her life, asking questions about the surface, wondering if there’s a better life up there—

She’s a part of a found family she definitely shouldn’t be telling you about.

You explain that, while the sun is beautiful, the surface isn’t much better sometimes.

If there’s a better life, then clearly you wouldn’t know it.

You’re stuck down here, too, whether you’d like to admit it or not.

Perhaps by choice — you enlisted for a reason — but nonetheless stuck.

She’s so cheerful. Trusting. 

You hate that for her.

(Someone could take advantage. Doesn’t she know that?)

Yet when Isabel grabs your hand one day and excitedly pulls you down an alleyway, telling you she has to show you something, you wonder if this is the moment where your stupidity catches up to you with a final blow to the head.

So it begs the question while you’re standing in an oddly pristine, clean-to-the-edges apartment in the middle of the city where two boys stare at you like you’re the devil incarnate:

What the hell is an MP doing here?

An ashy-haired boy yelps from his spot at a round dining table, catching a second dark-haired boy’s attention. He whips around, the whites of his eyes growing while he stares directly at you.

Immediately you recognize the cold stare, the raven-black fringe sweeping against them.

A smaller frame for a man but nevertheless daunting.

Billowing white sleeves are rolled up to his elbows. His hands are busy scrubbing dishes at the sink of their quaint kitchenette.

The one they call Levi.

“This is the girl who saved me a few months ago,” Isabel chirps like it’s nothing, happily tugging you further into the apartment.

Your uniform feels constricting, like it’s threatening to choke you out.

“You never said it was a goddamn MP, Isa,” the lankier boy whisper-shouts as he stands from the table, his head whipping between the other two. “Levi? The hell do we do?”

Levi’s silent, observing you.

“Isabel, I should go,” you murmur to your odd friend, looking over the ginger warily. “They’re right. I shouldn’t be here.”

“But why not?” Isabel asks with confusion. “You’re not like them. Furlan, she’s really not, she’s actually really—”

“You’re the one who saved her ass from MPs?”

Levi’s voice, smooth like honey and deep like a rumble, cuts through your panic.

You turn your chin to regard him, lips parted with an apology you shouldn’t owe.

“She was getting too close to the stairwell,” you confess softly to him, clenching your fists at your sides. “I know how the MPs treat people down here. I didn’t — I couldn’t let something happen to her.”

“Why?” he asks abruptly, eyes narrowing.

Isn’t that the question of the hour:

Why are you trying to get yourself fired and tossed down here with the rest of them?

“Because it… was the right thing to do.”

He makes a noise, something of a tch, before picking up a fourth tea cup.

.

.

— —

.

.

  If your colleagues knew you spent the better part of your shifts in the Underground talking to their number-one public enemy, with your backs against adjacent brick walls — you facing the street, him in the shadows of an alleyway — they wouldn’t hesitate.

Execution style, side by side.

You confess the routes of your brethren.

You warn them of the dangers of different colleagues that want nothing more than to hurt people, to use their position of power for worse.

It takes time — months upon months — but eventually his group grows stronger than your unit.

They could very well kill you themselves, if they wanted.

Maybe you’re like Isabel with the desperation to connect.

Maybe you find yourself hating the animals your colleagues become under the guise of an endless night.

Levi meets with you weekly, if not daily, by this point.

For the good of his friends, he claims. Nothing more.

You don’t blame him.

(Yet the more you talk to him, learn about what he’s built, what he’s about, the less you feel like returning to the sun.)

.

.

— —

.

.

  He likes tea.

That much you’ve gathered in your time sitting in the living kitchenette of their apartment.

You’ll never forget the change in his expression, usually so stoic and emotionless, when you produced a small bag from under your emerald cloak late one evening.

“The traders down here don’t carry these blends,” you tell him, pushing the bag towards him.

His eyes squint, observing the brown pouch with confusion, before reaching to delicately unravel the tie holding it together.

Levi lets out a gentle huff when the aroma hits him, face smoothing with recognition.

Fresh leaves. 

“Why?”

It’s a question you’ve even asked yourself.

You get things for Furlan and Isabel all the time, their requests for surface goods fairly frequent, but—

“Because you never ask for anything,” you confess. “And it’s the least I can do.”

“But why?” he questions again, softer this time.

His gaze flickers to yours.

Your throat clenches with the truth.

“I don’t know.”

A lie.

.

.

— —

.

.

  You’re meant to be patrolling the streets of the Underground City in the dead of night.

Another lie.

All you’ve learned to do is hide, steal, and lie.

Yet nothing feels closer to the truth than Levi letting you into the small, cramped apartment.

Opening his home to you.

The enemy.

“Furlan and Isabel are elsewhere tonight,” he confesses under his breath when he closes the door.

“Elsewhere?” you ask him quietly. “Are they safe?”

“You would know if they weren’t.”

You step forward, anticipating the same song and dance you’ve played for over a year now.

Instead of dancing with you, playing the game, Levi stays put. 

It forces you chest to chest, eye to eye, and suddenly you realize just how blue those gray eyes really are.

Stormy, like a sky he’ll never see.

Something shifts in his expression. Something lighter, tangible, as he takes a slow inhale through his nose.

You shift on impulse, angling closer, until you feel the heat of his face.

“Can’t,” he states, like you know what he’s saying.

By now, you do.

“I know,” you whisper, and those eyes dart lower.

Cheeks.

Nose.

Lips.

“Shouldn’t,” he argues to no one but himself when he leans closer. 

His breath tickles your face.

“Wrong,” you agree, accidentally brushing your lips to his.

A single act opens the floodgates.

Both pairs of hands jump as your lips smash into one another’s.

His palm cradles the back of your head while yours guides his cheek closer, directing the angle of the kiss.

With a purposeful push, he slams you into the front door, caging you in and causing stars to flash behind your eyelids.

You’re already undoing the straps of your uniform with haste — he may have stolen ODM gear in the time you’ve known him, but you’re not confident he knows how to disrobe a military uniform.

He seems grateful, because he grunts against your lips and flicks his tongue against your lower lip in thanks. You part your lips obediently.

Can’t, but you’re still hopping up into his arms the second you free your lower half of white uniform trousers.

Shouldn’t, but he catches you with ease, digging his free hand into the flesh of your ass while he pivots and walks with you in his arms.

Wrong, but he drops down to his couch anyway, letting you sit in his lap.

There’s no time for decorum.

His hand blindly dips down your lower belly and slips under the fabric of your panties, groaning when he realizes you’ve been wet since you saw him.

You make the tiniest noise, a strangled moan at best, and you feel it right against your lips:

A smirk. 

Brief and fleeting, but you felt it.

Lazily dragging his fingertips in a circle around your clit, your breath becomes stagnated. Shaky.

Your bare thighs clench around his, trying to keep your wits about you, but his hand only proceeds faster to ruin those efforts.

“Off,” you weakly state, reaching between you to pathetically tug at his own trousers.

Levi pulls away from your mouth, staring up at you in his lap. “That’s—”

“What I want,” you interrupt, and you see his throat bob with a swallow.

“I don’t know what I’m doing,” he confesses, and it feels like the closest you’ve ever gotten to knowing the essence of him.

“You don’t have to,” you promise. “I do.”

Once, fumbling at the cadet barracks.

It was awkward and quick and unremarkable.

Yet the way Levi’s eyes widen with recognition, you already know this is what you want — him, every fragment of him, hidden away from the world.

Pushing him to the couch cushions, you raise your hips to help him push down his trousers and underwear.

His cock springs free and his hisses at the contrast of the cool air and his hot skin.

You take advantage of the moment, wrapping your hand around him.

The way he whines when your hand leisurely pumps will be burned into the back of your skull.

“Are you sure?”

His question manages to weave itself through the hazy maze of your mind.

Glancing down at him, you note how flushed his cheeks have become; how his chest rises and falls under that flowing white shirt. He looks utterly wrecked without having to do much of anything.

“Are you sure?” you ask in return, giving your answer rhetorically.

Panting, the dark-haired boy nods.

Certain.

So are you.

“Just touch me,” you tell him, and Levi leaps at the damn opportunity to do so.

He raises up from the couch to loop his palm around your neck, dragging you down with him into a searing kiss. You moan into it, gently nudging the tip of him to your entrance.

When his hand returns to your clit, eager to draw those noises out of you, it only makes it that much easier to slowly push yourself down onto his length.

Both of your mouths drop open, wide with a soundless shout, as you ease him fully into you.

Wrong.

Over and over, the word plays in your mind.

Levi groans as you drag your body up, then down, beginning a tentative rhythm.

Wrong.

Nothing fills you like him.

Nothing fills you like this.

He lets you set the pace as you fuck him on his couch, the sounds of your pleasure mixing in the midnight air.

Faster.

Harder.

His hand grips your hip so hard it could leave a bruise.

You don’t care.

He groans a semblance of your name, something he rarely does, and squeezes harder.

Close.

If he’s never done this, then you know he won’t last long.

With your own climax coming at you with a vengeance, you can’t find a reason to care.

Suddenly you feel it — the wave rises so fast and falls that you don’t have time to warn him.

Within seconds you cum around him, violently shuddering around him as you cry against his mouth.

The sheer force of it causes Levi to gasp sharply, hips slamming abruptly into you so he’s buried deep—

He doesn’t have time to warn you, either.

He cums just as hard, sealing the loud moan with a kiss to your lips.

You still your hips, spent — his arms catch you when you crumble against his chest, desperately trying to catch your breath.

You’ve passed it: the point of no return, forced to confront a choice with no regrets.

The aftermath, euphoria clouding judgment, hasn’t quite hit yet.

Wrong.

(Neither of you care.)

.

author's note:

Thank you so much for reading! This one shot was unbeta'd and written in two hours so I hope this insane "I woke up with this idea and really wanted to participate" story made you as sweaty as it made me this morning.

[dragon-ascent]

It's been so long since Zhongli got to take you on a date, and like hell he'd let anything stop him today.

It's finally time for a date; you two have cleared schedules after so long! You're to meet Zhongli directly after work atop a nice scenic hill for an evening picnic. Your husband is to head up there first to set everything up and make sure the picnic spread is as perfect as can be. So there goes Zhongli, basket in hand filled with all sorts of treats, trudging up the hill with a smile on his face.

Zhongli's smile quickly fades as he looks up, brow furrowing at the darkening skies. Must it look like rain, today of all days?

Not to worry. He can will the clouds to part whenever he summons his meteor - so he does just that, his tianxing hurtling through the clouds that come apart like wads of cotton, creating a hole directly above the hill. The rest of the sky remains intact. Then, before his heavenly meteor can collide with the earth, he commands it to burst into a million specks of stardust. They stay suspended in the air, shimmering. Much better.

He continues his journey up the hill, when in his periphery he spots a gleaming knife whizzing through the air. He dodges it effortlessly, throwing up his shield - his lip curls in displeasure when a gang of Treasure Hoarders make themselves known, precious little in their eyes beyond greed.

"Forgive me, but I do not have the time to spare for your antics." Zhongli worries that the basket might be smooshed if he gets into a scuffle, so he continues on; the thieves don't care, they charge at him, possibly hoping to nab the basket or even something off his clothes - Zhongli is dressed nicely for this date, after all.

Sighing, the god gingerly cradles the basket and delivers a swift kick square in the first fellow's crotch, sending him flying. He strikes his shoe against the ground, sending a crackling wave of spiky cor lapis racing along the earth and knocking another three of the men back.

Zhongli is then locked in an eccentric dance as he uses his legs to deflect the others' weapons, willing his composition to become stone. A flurry of crescent kicks, jumping roundhouse kicks, tornado kicks, and Geo summons later, the god calmly makes his way to the top of the hill, the miscreants all groaning and stuffed away in the bushes so as not to ruin the scenery. Most importantly, the basket is unharmed!

There's tremors while Zhongli sets the picnic spread out. Zhongli recognises this as the lingering anger of a god he had sealed beneath the hill centuries ago; glowering, Zhongli commands, "Not now."

The tremors stop. He finishes setting the picnic up happily. When you arrive, you marvel at the glimmering cor lapis and stardust engulfing the area.

Smiling, Zhongli lets the date start in full swing, pouring you some lemonade and watching you fondly as you close your eyes in bliss at the taste of the fluffy strawberry pastries he'd packed. This is perfect.

"Wow, look at that my love! It's raining all around us, except for this hill! It's a miracle!"

"A miracle indeed, my darling."

[not-roboto]

Screencap painting from "The Gang Goes to Hell: Part Two" (oil on paper, 30 cm x 52 cm)

(prints here!)

[wonyourdreams]

The Manager

Genre: Smut

Pairing: Ateez!OT8 x male reader

Warnings: Gang Bang, Slutshaming, Degrading, Penetration, Polyamory relationship

It’s been eight months since you became Ateez’s newest manager after the two other previous ones ran away because of how they were chased by Jongho and Yeosang telling them they’ll end up like the apples Jongho broke with his two bear hands

Technically you became the group’s longest manager to stay since the last two didn’t even make it a month

Which is understandable since being with them is like hell, and by hell, IT’S LITERAL HELL trying to tame eight spans of Satan in one go

Let’s just say they didn’t know their limits and dragged you to every trouble they could put you in

But strangely enough they started to be a bit more quiet lately, it started past month when you accidentally walked in Wooyoung masturbating he started to be more quiet, when Yeosang accidentally walked on you taking a bath, though he didn’t clearly see you just your figure through the glass, when you cleaned the house everyone just kept quiet and looked at you which was wierd

Now your walking towards the laundry room holding Wooyoung’s basket taking it to the rest of the baskets that were piled up in the room

“What the-“ you exclaimed as you saw that the baskets were flipped over and most of the clothes are piled down on the floor

“Ok who did this?!” you shouted but nobody showed up or answered your question

You put down Wooyoung’s basket on the side and started to pick a random basket and putting all the rest of the dirty clothes, not caring anymore who owns which

You aren’t suppose to do their laundry but the boys begged you to do it despite having a bad relationship with them

“Be their manager they say” you mumbled out “its gonna be fun they say” you added

As you were picking up clothes you felt something hard wrapped in one of the underwears, you unwrapped it and it was a purple dildo

Your eyes widened as you stared at it it wasn’t big neither was it small

Looking at it turned you on to be honest living with eight good looking boys turned you on everytime they changed in front of you or jokingly flirt with you despite the bad relations

You liked it when they tried to sexually touch you in certain parts of your body

You took off your shorts and looked around before finally taking off your underwear with it

You sucked on the dildo making sure it was slippery and wet, gagging yourself in the process

As you were already certain it was ready to put inside you, you arch your back a little as you reach the dildo to your back and slightly push it in you

You whimper and moan out Yunho’s name as you try to push it in while your other hand grips tightly on the pile of clothes in front of you acting as a support to not lose your balance

As it goes deeper you moan out each of the members name randomly

You continued moaning, when you feel like you couldn’t take anymore you stopped and adjusted

You let go of the dildo for a while as you feel your hand was tired from holding it, you adjusted for a while

When you felt like you were ready you tried to reach for it but felt a slap in your hand and someone pushed the dildo in your eyes widened as you let out a moan pleasure and pain at the same time

You felt a hand holding your right arm to keep your balance and another hand in your left

It was Yeosang and Jongho as you felt a whisper from behind “You dirty little Slut” Wooyoung said as he continued to fuck you with the dildo

You moaned loudly and shamelessly as you were being fucked with the dildo washing out the thought that someone might hear you

As you were being fucked you see Seonghwa, San, Hongjoong, Yunho, and Mingi in front of you smiling and staring at you

“Who would’ve thought our manager turned out to be a cock hungry little bitch, that fantasizes about eight men banging him” Hongjoong says as he kneels in front of your fucked out state who was still a moaning mess

He grabs you by your chin and looks into your eyes admiring your pure innocent looking face that’s now crying and drooling over a dildo that was inside your ass

“Don’t worry we’ve also been thinking of doing very dirty things to you” he says as he leans in and kisses you whose mouth was agape and tongue out

You kissed back hungrily, and you whined as soon as he pulled away

“I-I w-want k-kiss” you try to let out but they just smiled at you as they were all taking off their pants

Wooyoung continuously murders your hole with the dildo as you tightened your grip on Yeosang and Jongho on either your side

Yunho kneels in front of you and kisses you and roams his hands all around your body until he stopped in your still soft sensitive buds he plays with it as you moan on the kiss

As soon as Yunho parted, Mingi kneels in front of you presenting his monstrous dick, "Suck" he said as he slapped his manliness in your face multiple times

You couldn't do anything but obey, you took him in your mouth, you were struggling, given how big he was, "Fuck hyung, I've always wondered how you felt around my cock, your mouth is tighter than all the girls we fucked on tour" He whines while his head hangs all the way back and eyes are closed

"I think he's ready" Wooyoung said, "Who wants to go first?" he added

"May I?" Jongho asked while looking at Hongjoong, Hongjoong just nodded and quickly Jongho went to your back

Wooyoung removed the dildo, you whined at the loss, Jongho proceeded to rub the tip of his cock in your slightly gaping hole

"Hyung, fuck, ngh, so tight" he bends his head back

"That's right you slut" Hongjoong said as he grabbed your hands and wrapped it around his dick, while Yunho on the other side

Jongho continuously ravaged your ass while Mingi mouthfucked you, while Yunho ang Hongjoong on both saides of your hands the rest of the group just watched and masturbated

"I'm gonna cum!" Jongho says, "Me too" Mingi exclaims and just like that they both came on your holes you two came untouched while Yunho and Hongjoong also came on your hands

They removed themselves from you, you were going dumb, dizzy and lids half closed

You were tired, you whined when they removed themselves and left you on the floor

"I want a turn" Yeosang said, "Me first!" San said while trying to push Yeosang

They both started bickering, wanting to go first but Hoongjoong thought of something and smiled

"Why not at the same time?" he said, Yeosang and San looked at each other

San manhandled you and placed you on his lap and started rubbing his tip

He slowly pushed his cock inside "Fuck" he leans his head back and closes his eyes "Still so fucking tight, fuck" he groans

You moaned at his sudden intrusion "Enough" you faintly said

Seonghwa laughed, "Enough? just a while ago you were whoring yourself out over a dildo, next time you should be mindful cause your not the only one who lives here" he mockingly said

San started moving upward, your back and head leaning on his shoulders and chest, you also started rubbing yourself on his cock trying to meet his thrusts

"He's so hot" Wooyoung said

"He's ready" San said looking at Yeosang

Yeosang moved in front of you and started making out with you, spitting in your mouth every once in a while and kiss you

"N-No! Don't" you tried to complain but Yeosang was determined, his and San's growls getting louder at Yeosang's intrusion, you screamed at their cocks

San alone was already hard to take in because of his size not as thick as Jongho but definitely longer, Yeosang was shorter than San but definitely girthier, which made it difficult to take them both in

"Fuck hyung!" Yeosang cried, "So tight"

Yeosang was fully in you, two cocks were in you, both men were moaning at how their dicks were against each other being hugged by your tight hole

"Fuck I can't take it anymore" Seonghwa said and held your chin and pulled to face the side

He presented his cock in front of you "Open your mouth" he commanded, you did as you were told and he spit on your mouth

Seonghwa stared at your face for a few seconds, red cheeks, dried tears and sweaty face, traces of cum still evident in the side of your lips

"Filthy, I like it" he said and shoved his dick in your mouth "Fuck so tight and warm" he leaned his head back and closed his eyes

Wooyoung on the other hand proceeded to take your other hand and wrapped it on has manhood

They all started pushing together, you felt euphoric, you felt a mixture of pain, pleasure, and you felt tired but still wanted to keep going

You came as Hongjoong played with your cock as they all were thrusting in you, the rest of the members were biting you and making out with each other and Jongho and Mingi played with your nipples while still masturbating

"Fuck, I'm gonna cum" Yeosang said between kisses with Hongjoong

"Me too" San said as Mingi fucked his ass

Yunho was also fucking Seonghwa who was busy with your mouth and same goes with Jongho to Yeosang while he was busy with fucking you and making out with Hongjoong

Your fuck session went on for another hour you cumming five times

All of them as they reach their high tried to cum inside and on your face

After fucking you they cleaned you up and rested you in your room

"So what's the plan?" San asked

"We keep him" Hongjoong said

"What if he hates us for doing all those?" Yeosang said worried

"Then let's be nicer, No more pranks, No more demands, let's have him as our boyfriend" Seonghwa said

"All eight of us?" Jongho said

"Why not right?" Woo said

"Ok then let's be nicer" Yunho said

Ever since that day the boys were well behaved, all of them listened to you, they bought you gifts and started being touchy

Casually they would gang bang you but sometimes on tour you get used like a clock sleeve by who ever needs to release

—

A/N: This was a draft from 3 years ago, I wrote this during the pandemic but I never actually continued it till now, but since I wanted to get this out there I finished it, also as a thank you for 200 followers!!! This is just a little gift for all of you readers! Hope you enjoy this

[brucewaynehater101]

I had an AU, that at this point is more of a headcanon for me, that I thought you might enjoy because it's a nice mix of angst, Tim not thinking things are as bad as they very clearly are, and some fluff.

So it's pretty widely accepted that the Bats don't really know anything about Tim's days with Young Justice right? Like they might know one or two small facts, but they don't know that the gang blew up Mount Rushmore, any of the times the DEO tried to arrest them and drag them into Government Labs for experimentation, or that time they went to a Disco Themed Hell with Supergirl. They sure as hell don't know about any of the things that happened with Secret and Harm. Even though Tim would canonically be gone for days at a time (some of his adventures, mainly the one when they were gone for THE ENTIRE WINTER OLYMPICS) with no one noticing. One time they were in space and had enough time to not only go to Darksied's planet but spent WEEKS there and when they got back still not even Batman knows that Tim was even gone.

Anyways, all this to say. If Tim vanished for a month or two and just said he was spending time with Young Justice again while sending in case files and stuff to keep Bruce busy, I don't think anyone would notice. Nor would they notice if he suddenly switched from being Right Handed to being Left Handed and then after months of practice he goes back to being right handed. It's such a small change after all.

So here's the headcanon. On a Young Justice mission, something goes horribly wrong and Tim full on looses his hand. It's simply gone. The reason no one knows or notices is that he got a robotic replacement, a very realistic looking one like Roy Harper has, that he spent a few months learning how to work with and then went to physical therapy for it for years. It's just part of his life now and he thinks everyone knows, after all. How could they miss it? Jason has seen his palm open with a screw driver deep in his wires. Jason thought he was still tripping from fighting Scarecrow a few hours before. Not a single person outside of Cassie, Tim, Kon, Bart, Greta, Anita, Slobo, and Cissie knows that Tim is missing his right arm just below his elbow for almost 5 years.

That is until Tim has been up for 4 days straight and Dick says something about needing a hand with something and in a moment of sleep deprived brilliance, Tim takes off his hand, and throws it at Dick.

Yes! I love this AU/hc. There is a fic that kind of has this situation: "I told you about that... Didn't I?" by weewoow_070603. Jason is the one to find out, though.

I like the details you added in this AU that the fic (as far as I remember) didn't add: Tim being gone is a regular thing, the fear toxin with Jason, the months of physical therapy, etc.

I do think something as vital as this would happen to Tim, and he'd just forget to tell his family. At first, he tries to hide it. He doesn't want to deal with their fretting, the lectures, the scolding, and them getting involved. He has it handled, after all. After a while, he forgets that he should hide it and why he did in the first place. Then someone finds out, and he's confused why they don't know such a common place thing.

I'm also super glad you tied in all those YJ examples that you did. People tend to focus on the space baseball or Santa Clause (which I love those events too), so it was refreshing to see other events as examples.

[motherofdogs1010]

Little Darling I (Thomas Shelby x Reader)

Summary: Birmingham has received a new club, one that is showcasing a exotic type of dance that is drawing in crowds, but it is one particular dancer that catches Thomas Shelby's eye... one that goes by the stage name: Little Darling

Warnings: 18+, eventual smut, stripper!reader, eventual smut, swearing, drinking, mentions of prostitution/ sex work, canon Peaky Blinders violence

😊 Dividers by @firefly-graphics 😊 Banner by @vase-of-lilies

Part II

A new club in Peaky Blinder territory was something that always raised Tommy's attention; usually, he would pay no mind when they first pop up, but it seemed like this club was different.

The Scarlet Letter was what it was called, Tommy had been sitting in his office at Shelby Company Ltd. when John and Arthur had come in to report about this club. Apparently, the club was showcasing a unique type of dance with its female employees, one that involved the use of a pole?

"A bloody pole?" Tommy had scoffed at the mention. "How the bloody hell are these women dancing with a pole?"

"Have to go check it out to see", Arthur had replied with a cheeky grin. "From what we've heard, this club had been making money. No ties to any gangs either."

It was a sight to see inside The Scarlet Letter, women adorned in expensive lingerie, their hair adorned in pinned curls and lips painted a deep red, but what was interesting was they work masks that concealed half their face. Literal poles were scattered throughout the place, a barmaid and bartender maned two bars on either side of the place, both busy; sofas and booth seats surrounded some of the poles, paritions in certain parts of the building.

He noticed a few heavy built men guarding certain areas, Tommy realizing they were hired help for the women.

"Mr. Thomas Shelby", a voice boomed. "What a surprise to be seeing the Peaky Blinders in my establishment!"

Y/N ran the red lipstick over her lips, smacking her lips together to get the the color saturated onto her lips. The eyelash extensions she had glued on for the evening tying the whole look together as she made sure to careful wipe away any excess around her mouth just as the boss came in.

"Ladies", she boomed, "We got some big customers outside. Make sure to put on your best performances!"

Cherry Johnson was their boss, she was a woman of a tall stature with a loud, booming voice that commanded respect. But she was a good boss, always fair to them and making sure they were safe, she only had them dance or perform lap dances, never forcing them to go any further.

Cherry came over to her as Y/N was about to fix the mask on, "Y/N, do you mind taking on a particular client here?"

"What client?" she asked as she adjusted the mask and tied the ribbon to secure it.

She saw Cherry grin in the mirror, "Thomas Shelby. Told him I'd send him only the best of my girls."

Everyone had heard of Thomas Shelby, of the Peaky Blinders so she looked at Cherry with a little frown, her lips curled a little.

"He's an obvious big tipper, darling", Cherry said, Y/N sighed.

"Fine", Y/N said as she adjusted her corset. "But he better know the rules."

Cherry grinned even bigger if that was even possible.

Y/N waited behind the curtain, pushing her hair behind her shoulders as she waited for her arrival to be announced. They switched dancers every hour or so, changing sets and outfits, working the floor and private dances. She noticed that her two other co-workers, Babydoll and Lovely, were up next with her on the big stage.

"Hey there, Little Darling", Lovely said with a grin. "Heard the boss gave you some big fish to entertain."

"I just hope he isn't stingy with the tips", Y/N said as she heard Cherry begin to announce them.

"Look alive, ladies", Babydoll teased, "it's showtime."

Tommy leaned back in the plush velvet chair that was in front of the large stage, Arthur and John on either side of him as he inspected the area. Cherry, the boss, had told him that she was sending one of her best girls to dance for them, the crowd favorite, but Cherry had told him the rules and the biggest one was 'no touching'.

"Next up we got Lovely, Babydoll and your favorite... Little Darling!" Cherry announced to the eager crowd.

Tommy put his cigarette between his lips as he noticed the anticipation in John and Arthur, the eagerness in their bodies; Tommy wondered where Esme thought John was as she came out, a intricate corset and stockings piece with a garter on one plush thigh adorned her body. Pinned curls framed her masked face with those blood red, plump lips and sultry, bedroom lidded eyes that were just calling to him.

He didn't even notice his brothers be captivated by her or the other two dancers as she approached the pole, a sensual dance performed in front of him as she moved in a way he had never witnessed before. He noticed other patrons throwing... pounds? at them, the women sensually grabbing the bills and stuffing them into the attire.

"C'mon Tommy", John said, grabbing his shoulders and shaking him a little. "Let loose a little already."

His brothers were throwing notes onto the stage, Little Darling making a show of grabbing them and stuffing them into the corset with a wink. She was like a seductress on the stage, moving with the music, performing acrobatic moves on the pole, it amazed him so as he light another cigarette and placed it in his mouth, he reached into his inner coat pocket, grabbing some bills into his hand.

Little Darling gave him a seductive smile, moving from the pole and getting to her knees, begin to crawl towards him till she reached the end of the stage where he was; she tilted her head a little before she leaned forward, making a show of grabbing his hand that held the bills and guiding it to stuffing the bills into the front of her corset where her tits were.

She winked at him before blowing him a kiss.

Y/N made a good amount of money from her dancing on the stage, counting the pounds that were thrown before passing it to Cherry to take her part.

"Good show out there, N/N", Cherry said, handing her back the money she earned. "You got a private dance with a Mr. Shelby."

Y/N nodded, rolling her shoulders back before making sure her makeup was still good before heading to one of the private rooms.

Walking into one of the private rooms, she saw him there; the dimly light room only seemed to work in the man's favor, adding to the feeling of danger that already existed in the room. He had his cap off, it resting on one of the side tables in the room as he blew out a smoke of nicotine from his lips.

"Cherry tells me you're called Little Darling", Tommy said as she closed the door behind her.

"I am", she answered as she slowly walked towards them.

"Quite the performance you put on."

She moved to straddle his lap, draping her arms his shoulders with a lazy grin on her face.

"I could see you enjoyed it, very much."

She stared into his piercing blue eyes, she could see the lust swirling in his eyes as she begun to move her hips.

[alittlebitofloveliness]

More Darry Curtis headcanons

-Goes to every single parent/teacher interview night or open house at Ponyboy’s school, even if he has to take off work. Part of it is because he’s determined to be a good guardian but part of it is because he just proud of Pony and likes hearing from teachers how great he is

-Speaking of how great Pony is, Darry brags about Pony SO much. Like his work crew and the gang never stop hearing about how great the kid is…except when the kid is present. Then you couldn’t get a compliment out of him if you pried his jaw open

-He and Sodapop both have a soft spot for soap operas and watch them together super late at night so no one else in the gang- Pony included- will find out. (Steve caught them once but he just sat down quietly, waving away their hasty attempts to explain themselves, muttering for them to shut up, and that he used to watch them with his mom when she was still around. The three of them finished the episode and went to bed without saying anything else.)

-Loves music of all kinds (I just know he’d be one of those guys that is SO into music history and makes it everyone else’s problem) “did you know this song was meant to be an apology to-“ “-to some random broad, we know Dar, now shut up would ya?”

-Is left handed

-He and Two-bit butt heads quite a bit but he’s also closer to Two than almost anyone else in the gang because they’re the closest in age. They have so many inside jokes that the rest of the gang gets confused because Two can sometimes get him to snicker from seemingly innocuous remarks that aren’t funny to anyone but Darry

-Has dragged Soda (and Steve by extension) away from Buck’s too many times to count and is pissed every time

-Worries the whole time when he goes on ski trips with his old buddies. He worries a lot anyway, but it’s always worse when he’s too far from home to get there immediately  if something happened. Both Soda and Pony know this so they’re actually better behaved when he’s gone than when he isn’t

-Speaking of the ski trips, he always comes back glowing, for once looking his age, so the gang encourages him to go as much as possible. They have to be subtle about it though, because he gets suspicious that they’re planning something if they make it too obvious they’re trying to get him to leave, and then there’s no way in hell he’ll go

-Loves rodeos but unlike Soda has never and never wanted to participate in one

-Mother's day and father's day are contentious days in the Curtis house ever since the accident, so Soda and Pony just designated a random day as 'Darry Day" and got him little gifts, and did all the housework because they really do appreciate everything he does for them. Darry was super touched and vehemently denies tearing up when he saw the card Pony made for him

-His bond with Tim Shepard is hard for the gang, Darry himself, and even Tim to figure out, but it’s very strong despite how little they actually interact

-Despite refusing to ever go to the hospital, he’s actually the absolute worst patient when he’s sick. It takes a lot for him to admit that he’s ill, but once he does he’s absolutely insufferable. Pony and Soda takes turns taking care of him because they’re both liable to lose their temper if they have to do it for too long without a break. (“Soda my head hurts” “I know Darry” “Soda I need a glass of water” “you have a glass of water” “but Soda it’s not cold” “I got you a new one five minutes ago” “but Soda it warmed up” “damnit! Pony tag in, you deal with him, I need a smoke” “Pony I’m dying” “you’re not dying Dar” “yes I am” "no you're not")

-He’s a super fast walker. Like, anyone shorter than him has to jog a lil to catch up

-He’s a cat person. Pony and Soda are both dog people, and it has caused more than one argument despite the fact they have no pets and couldn’t afford  one even if they could agree on what they wanted

-He and Soda definitely made a secret handshake when they were little, and he still remembers every single move of it even though they haven’t done it in years and he isn’t sure if Soda even remembers making it

[owlcomics101]

Task force 141 x Animatronic!Reader

Warnings: This is a task force fnaf AU, gore/blood, mentions of death and child murder (No children die in this, children’s death is only mentioned!), corpse, SFW (I am a minor), fluff, wholesome animatronic shenanigans, language (cussing), Reader is a withered bunny animatronic

GIF by: @thedgeofsleep

Context/Backstory: In this universe the task force was forced to be relived of duty due to ‘Mental issues’. Finding a job was hard for them but they were welcomed in with opened arms by Fazbear entertainment. You are a withered down bunny animatronic that watches the shows from a distance. Your ability to even function is a mystery to the team and it even intrigues them. They can’t help but be drawn to you. Your movements are so fluid, so human. Unlike the other Ghosts you are the only one that is more forgiving and gentle to the task force. And the task force will do anything to keep you from getting scraped and salvaged for parts. Reader’s spirit is an adult.

Price: Price is the security guard for this pizzeria location. He was the first to see the true nature of the animatronics. The true nature of you. He was afraid at first. Who wouldn’t be? But then he remembers of how more of a monster humanity is on the field than these worn down 80’s themed animatronics ever were or will be. He had already grown accustomed to the animatronics and their night mechanics and when he thought he had it all in the bag that’s when he met you. Price was off his game one night. He was tired, exhausted, heavy bags under his blood shot eyes. His job left him restless in the day time and constant nightmares and panic attacks. He was more afraid of what goes on in his head than the animatronics he keeps at bay. It was 5:50 am. His shift was almost over. Price was getting ready to leave but that’s when he saw you on the cameras. “The bloody hell?” He mumbled to himself. You were much older and withered than the others. You had a completely different theme. Your suit and character was cottage themed and aesthetic. You held a basket full of flower props with a small butterfly prop inside as well. You wore a worn sun hat that had holes for your floppy mechanical ears. Price was a bit panic. He wasn’t sure how to deal with you. Could he just simply close the door on you? Flash a light? It was already to late though, you were already at the door. Price pulled out his taser. He knows he shouldn’t destroy property but he will if he has to. Despite having a taser pointed at you, you held out one of the prop flowers from your basket. Price was…surprised to say the least but he cautiously took it anyways. “….Thanks love.” He mumbles as he looks down at the flower prop in his hands, but the time he looked back up. You were gone.

Gaz: Gaz was the day time security guard of this location. He ensured no one was stealing, breaking, or hurting anyone and/or the property. Despite this, he was still having a hard time adjusting back to a normal life like the others. Sometimes all the noise and ambiance of the pizzeria gets overwhelming. Especially if a balloon pops. Gaz one day was making his routes around the pizzaria when he saw a figure hiding behind some arcade machines. Gaz’s brows furrowed as he quickly went to investigate, his hand over his taser as he gets ready to peak around behind one of the arcade machines. Thats when he saw two rabbit ears poking up, but it wasn’t Bonnie’s it was yours. You were watching over everyone from a distance but also trying to hide from some of the children and adults. They sometimes tend to poke and prod at you and with your already fragile and withered body you were bound to break apart. Gaz was…puzzled at first. He’d never seen you around before. It made him question how he had never seen you around before. Nonetheless he tried getting you to stay in parts’n’service but you always escaped to go watch your friends Freddy and the gang preform. Gaz let out a sigh and he gave up trying to put you away. He’d made sure to keep you safe from the kids during his shift while you watch the show. During his break he’d play the arcade games and to his surprise he watches you play some of the games as well. He can never seem to beat you in Fruity Maze. You like to steal his hat and wear on top of your sun hat with a big smug look on your face. You were the perfect distraction from his worries and fears and he loved you for it.

Ghost: Ghost was the mechanic. He fixed up all the animatronics before and after shows. He never paid much attention to you at first. After all, you were just some broken down old animatronic still lingering around for some reason. Right? A kid one day accidentally pulled on Bonnie’s ears too hard and one of them snapped off. “Fuckin hell…” Ghost would mutter to himself. Cant these Damm kids keep their hands to themselves? The ear was completely broken and smashed. He couldn’t simply repair it and snap it back on. It was missing a joint. He looked around the pizzaria for that joint, digging through the spare parts bins and checking around stage and back stage, but to no avail. He then looked over to you. Sitting peacefully and all propped up in the corner. Holding your basket close to your furred chest. Ghost rolled his eyes with a huff. Now you were finally useful to him. He went over to you, studying your ears. All he had to do was take one of your ears and change the fabric color to match Bonnie’s. Simple enough right? That was until your head suddenly looked in his direction you purposely folded your ears flat against your head to keep out of his reach. This caught ghost by surprise. How were you even active??? Nonetheless you were active now and you weren’t gonna be used like some pile of scrap for everyone to take, take, and take! You slowly rose to your feet. Your hand tight around the flower basket prop you always held. As pissed as you were, unlike the others you had no intentions of harming anyone. You just wanted to haunt your suit in peace. Your feet shuffled beneath you as you slowly marched to the door. Ghost going wide eyed and immediately trying to stop you. You jumpscare him with a auditable screech to at least stun him enough that you could get out of the room. It worked but he recovered quickly then you expected. He grabbed your wrist as you tried to open the door with your free hand. He wasn’t going to let you get away. He couldn’t lose property it would’ve been bad on his part and plus he was…intrigued by you. You still didn’t want to hurt him. He was simply trying to do his job. But you didn’t wanna lose any more limbs. As a last resort your suit’s mouth slowly opened up. Ghost raised a brow, still tugging on you when his eyes widen in horror what was inside….a sickly pale hand reach out from your suit’s mouth. Your hand slowly prying Ghost’s hand off your suit’s wrist. Ghost was in too much shock. He’s seen plenty of horrifying and disturbing things in his line of work but…nothing like this. Once you got his hand off your suit’s wrist. Your sickly hand slowly returns back into your suit’s mouth as the suit mouth’s closes. You immediately pull away. Disappearing into the darkness of the building leaving Ghost on his knees hyperventilating with the hand you touch shaking. Nothing in this situation made sense but one thing was clear; you were alive and aware…..somewhat.

Soap: Soap was the slasher of this universe. The man behind the slaughter, but not what you think. He didn’t kill you, nor did he take the lives of the five children. He was a night guard like Price, but his methods were more….lethal than Price when it came to intruders. Whoever snuck in the pizzeria, never came back out. He used an old springlock animatronic suit he found in one of the safe rooms and used it to keep himself hidden because he knows Price is always watching on the cams. He never killed anyone innocent, only people who broke in at night with Ill intentions. He would hide the bodies in the spare suits in parts and service for Ghost to later find during his shift. Ghost does later catch on to what Soap is doing, he doesn’t pry into it. He just reminds Soap to loosen the spring locks when in use. The animatronics have tried attacking him plenty of times. Mistaking Soap for the man who took their lives when he uses the suit, but you never let them touch him. You are always watching from the shadows. Ensuring the animatronics didn’t even lay a paw on him. Because in your eyes, Soap was just defending the pizzeria, your forever home. Whenever Soap got dirty you would march over and pull out a old worn handkerchief from your flower basket and wipe the blood off as he would chuckle. There were times when he almost got fully springlocked and it always scared both you and Ghost. Ghost lets out a huff, deciding to make a suit for him that wouldn’t impale him at any given moment. While you finally got rid of the old suit. The suit’s head giving you the same cold and lifeless stare as the man looked when he took your life away.

[vintagerpg]

Stonehell is my pick for the best of the 21st century megadungeons (and is, I think, one of the first in the OSR mode). It’s in two parts, the initial Stonehell Dungeon: Down Night-Haunted Halls arriving as a self-published print on demand product in 2009, and the second part, Stonehell Dungeon: Into the Heart of Hell wrapping things up in 2015.

The dungeon began as a tyrant’s prison, where the prisoners were forced to excavate their own living space. The tyrant fell, but when the prison was liberated, not everyone left — lots of folks considered the horrible place their home. The top layers still retain their prison-like feel, and numerous former prison gangs have carved up the complex into small warring kingdoms. Deeper levels get stranger. At the very bottom is the lair of a creature of pure chaos that feeds on the negative emotional energy generated by the inhabitants. The more it eats, the more it destabilizes nearby reality. This goes a long way toward explaining why the place is so weird (there’s a casino down there somewhere, and at least one crashed space ship).

Dungeons are inherently irrational, and even though it is unlikely that a group will ever “solve” Stonehell, I feel that as a whole, it justifies its irrationality in a way few other dungeons of any size do, and this makes it feel unique and special. Its also extremely usable — despite being something like 1300 rooms, each level is made of quadrants that are detailed in a derivative of the One-Page Dungeon system, so everything is clear, brief and even modular — you can rearrange, drop or use any section on its own, should you wish. It’s really quite the accomplishment, especially considering it’s Michael Curtis’ first big outing into design. No wonder he became such a big wheel at Goodman Games!

[dee-morris]

Some Random Thoughts on the Nature of Free Will

Thinking about that conversation from the book that got put into The Resurrectionists. Aziraphale is explaining how he and Crowley are good and wicked, respectively, but they have no choice while Elspeth does. Bc humans can't be truly good unless they have the choice to be wicked.

(This is where I usually end up arguing with someone on Twitter lol bc they think Aziraphale is being Mean to Crowley by calling him wicked. It's just a brand name darling, not a judgment call. He literally said in the same breath that he's not TRULY wicked bc he wasn't given a choice.)

So I'm sitting here thinking about free will and the choices the celestials are given, which are not many. And I wonder if one of the reasons they were drawn to the Arrangement was to give them each the choices that humans were born with. One can't be truly good without the opportunity to do wrong, so perhaps being able to work both sides of the equation helped them develop into truly moral beings and not just extensions of their offices. We see in Uz how they're able to work together and bounce off each other to save Job's family, even though the Arrangement didn't properly exist yet.

I've also seen lots of takes and metas that indicate that people view Heaven and Hell as a class system: Heaven is the upper-class privileged majority, while Hell is oppressed, kicked out, downtrodden. I think people forget that the primary difference between the two is aesthetic. Hell has all the same powers as Heaven, and they both intend to burn humanity to the ground in order to prove their gang is best.

No, if we're going to talk about who's got privilege, it's definitely humanity over heaven or hell. We have free will and imagination, which are more miraculous than anything. Sure they've got all these powers and can work miracles and so on, but where's that gotten them? We can actually change things. All they can do is try and influence us to change things, and their success rate isn't high. Two of the most powerful beings in the universe couldn't convince an eleven year old boy to blow things up. That's. Pathetic, actually.

Which brings me back around to the ineffables. Because they actually DO have free will, but I don't think they're used to realizing that they do, which might be why they act a little bone headed sometimes. The show implies and the book comes right out and says that they picked it up from being around humans. And like I said earlier, I think the Arrangement played a big part. They were actually able to choose to do good or evil, a luxury that normally only humans can enjoy.

And the best part of this, for me anyway, is knowing that everything that they are to each other is a conscious choice. Aziraphale didn't want to be a fighter, so he gave his sword away and made the conscious choice to be soft and silly and get into scrapes. And Crowley chooses to come to his rescue because he likes it, not because he is obligated. It's a way for him to choose to do good without getting in trouble. They are each other's outlet to explore humanity in a way that would be impossible if they were on their own.

Aziraphale speaks French badly and flutters his eyelashes and plans elaborate Balls because he loves doing human things and he wants to do them with Crowley. Crowley drives a sleek classic sex machine with bullet hole stickers on the windows and goes on capers and performs daring moves because he loves doing things the human way and he wants to do them with Aziraphale. The way they interact and work together because they WANT to, and not because it's their Great Bloody Destiny or whatever, is so fucking beautiful to me.

[janeyseymour]

Once again, I just want to say I love your writing!! I was wondering if I could make a request? Reader goes out with the Abbott gang (maybe for a teacher mixer or something) and gets tipsy and Mel ends up taking care of her?

Details totally up to you; I just really like seeing what you create!

bestie, i got you.

Part 1. Part 2.

WC: ~2.3k

Enchanted- pt 3

Ava is currently trying to get you to convince Melissa, your girlfriend of two months now, to go out with you guys even though you know it’s almost a hopeless cause. Her and Barbara usually choose to stay in for the night and drink wine instead of going out and partying with you guys.

“Ava, I really don’t think she will… and I know Barb wouldn’t be caught dead in the clubs we like to go to,” you tell her.

“What if we just went out to a nice bar at first? I’ll let Jacob choose the place, so you know it’ll be boring as hell,” she counters.

You purse your lips at that. Those are usually the outings that the two older women are more willing to partake in. “I’ll talk to her, okay?”

“Let me know, girl. Because if she ain’t goin’, there ain’t no way in hell I’m letting the white boy pick.” Your best friend hangs up after that, and you sigh softly to yourself. This isn’t going to be an easy task.

As you pull into her driveway, you know you’re going to have to ask her. And normally, she’s willing to do virtually anything you want, but this is going to be tough- even for you.

“There you are, gorgeous,” Melissa smiles from the doorway. 

You give her a wave before reaching into your passenger seat to grab your bag and the wine you brought over. You can feel the way her eyes are trained on your ass in the tight jeans you’re wearing (you’ll steal a pair of her sweatpants once you’ve gotten what you want). You make your way up to the door and pull her in for a soft, warm kiss.

“Hey,” you say softly. She lets you in and leads you to the kitchen. It already smells amazing.

She stirs her sauce for a few seconds before spinning around and drinking in your look. Her eyes go up and down your body a few times as she licks her lips.

“Like what you see?” you chuckle as you reach up to grab two wine glasses.

“You know I do,” she says huskily, hands palming your ass before wrapping around your waist and pulling you flush against her.

You turn in her arms and give her a quick peck. “Not now,” you laugh. “I want wine and dinner.”

“Not a good day at the office?” she asks you, brows furrowed in concern.

“If you thought Ava could be bad, you would murder my boss some days,” you sigh. “How was your day, babe?”

“Actually pretty good,” Melissa tells you as she sets her chin on your shoulder. “Ava was willing to help me out, the kids were good, and Barb and I were talking about the different wines we’ll drink while you youngin’s are out partying it up tomorrow.”

You know the principal was just trying to butter up your girlfriend so she would be more open to the idea of going out with you all, but the redhead doesn’t necessarily need to know that.

“That’s nice,” you smile as you turn in her arms to look at her. “Speaking of… I really would love if you would come out with us.”

“Hun,” she sighs. “You know I’m too old to be out clubbing and drinking with youse.”

“Ava said Jacob is picking where we go to dinner, and then… you and Barb can come back here and have your wine night.” You kiss her gently. “I really would appreciate if you would come with us, at least to start the night.”

Your girlfriend says into your beck, nipping it gently. “I’ll call Barb.”

You grin. “You’re the best.”

She pulls her phone out of her back pocket as she goes to attend to the vegetables simmering in the pan and dials her work wife. You love watching how she can easily multi-task, holding the phone to her ear with her shoulder, keeping an arm looped around your waist, and still making dinner. You sip your wine with glee.

“Hey. We’re going out to dinner tomorrow night with the crew, and then when they inevitably want to go out to drink more, we can come back to my place and have our wine.”

“Melissa,” you can hear the kindergarten teacher sigh.

“I know, I know,” she says into the phone. “But Jacob is picking the place, so you know it’s going to be way more tame than if Ava picked… and Y/N would be delighted to see you again.”

“So it’s Y/N that’s convinced you to go out,” Barbara smirks into the phone.

“Shut it,” your girlfriend laughs. “But yes. She’ll be there, so it would be nice to go.”

“I suppose I can show up for you and your woman,” the kindergarten teacher chuckles.

“Thank you, Barb!” you call into the phone. “You’re the best!”

“She sure has you wrapped around her finger, huh,” Barbara teases the redhead.

“Goodbye,” your girlfriend rolls her eyes. She hangs up the phone.

You grin as you turn in Melissa’s arms and kiss her deeply. “You’re the absolute best.”

“Don’t I know it,” she retorts playfully.

So here you are, sitting in a restaurant with the Abbott crew, Melissa and Barbara also with you. Ava is complaining that this place is boring and that you should “blow this popsicle stand”. You roll your eyes at her antics, reminding her that you haven’t even ordered your first round and your meals yet.

Dinner is nice. This place, for as odd as the atmosphere is, has great food and even better drinks. You order yourself another one, not realizing just how strong they make the drinks here- you can’t even taste the alcohol. That should have been your first clue as to just how strong these drinks were.

You drink your second one happily, and your cheeks turn red once that one is finished. You look over to Melissa who is sipping her glass of wine and talking to Barb contently.

“You’re so pretty tonight,” you tell her so quietly that no one else can hear. 

The redhead smiles at you and lays a gentle hand over your knee. “Thank you.” She kisses your cheek. “You smell like booze.”

“Well, I had two already,” you chuckle. “They were good.”

“Your cheeks are already flushed,” she laughs softly as she cups your cheek with her hand.

“Oops,” you giggle.

“Try to pace yourself?”

You nod, but usually nights out with the Abbott crew mean that you’re getting hammered, and you’re going to feel like shit tomorrow. Tonight will be no exception, and you know this when Ava loudly announces that the bill has been paid, and you’re moving on to your next destination for the night.

Just tipsy enough to beg Melissa to come follow you to the next spot, you look to her with pleading eyes. “Please, baby?”

Your girlfriend glances over to Barbara who raises an eyebrow.

“Hun, you know Barb and I usually don’t stick around for your wild nights,” the redhead tries to let you down gently.

You frown, but it is quickly replaced with a smile. “That’s okay,” you say.

Barbara though, has glanced down at her phone, and a text form Gerald has come through. She taps both of you on the arm.

“Gerald just texted me to tell me that he has a special surprise for me at home, so I unfortunately cannot come over for wine night,” the kindergarten teacher states. “I have to head out, but I’ll see the two of you later.”

Melissa purses her lips and furrows her brow, but Barbara just waves her off. “Enjoy tonight.” She heads out, leaving Melissa to her own devices.

“Please?” you look to the redhead with puppy dog eyes, and she knows she can’t say no now- especially with Barb not here now to give her an excuse to not go.

That’s how you find yourself in a dimly lit bar, taking shot after shot with your best friend and the rest of the Abbott crew, sans Melissa. Your woman has taken it upon herself to be the least drunk of all of her coworkers, and she’s watching over you diligently from the bar as you dance your heart out on the floor.

You’re… enchanting. The way your hips sway and you sing along to the music without a care in the world… God. She loves the way you look tonight, the way you are so free, the way that you always show up for Ava- even with all of her shenanigans. She loves you- every single thing about you is a reason for her to fall even more madly in love with you. 

You catch her watching you, and you can’t help but grin and move your hips in a way that you know will have her drooling. She nearly does. You can’t help but throw your head back as you laugh at the way she’s entirely enchanted with the way that you look. Deciding to take a break from all of the dancing, you try to make your way over to the redhead sitting on one of the barstools. But because of your intoxicated state, you half stumble to her instead.

Once you’re close enough to her, you fall into her arms. She catches you, of course she does.

“You having fun?” you ask her as you press your lips to hers. You taste like all of the vodka cranberry drinks you’ve downed, and there’s a hint of cinnamon lingering in your breath from the fireball shots that you did with Ava.

She just laughs. “Are you?”

“Of course I am!” you slur out. “But I would be having more fun if you would come dance with me!”

Somehow, by some grace of God, you get Melissa on the floor with you. She grabs at your hips as you dance with her. The rest of the world melts away, and it’s just the two of you.

But then Ava is holding out a green tea shot for you take with her, and as soon as you swallow, you know you just went over your limit. You’re going to end tonight throwing up your guts, and you really don’t want to do that in the filthy bathroom at this skanky dive bar.

“Mel,” you whine out. “Wanna go home… Don’t feel good.”

Without thinking, she immediately turns into the overprotective woman that you know and love. She tells the crew that the two of you are heading out, and she half carries you out of the bar.

The cool air hits you as you step out onto the sidewalk, and you feel a bit better. It was getting pretty stuffy in there.

“You feelin’ any better now that we’re out of there?” she asks you softly, kissing your temple.

You hum and allow her to lead you to the car.

She drives as carefully as she can, but with the state you’re in… you don’t feel so well again. You close your eyes, but that only makes you feel worse, so you force yourself to open your eyes and watch whatever is straight in front of you.

“We’re almost home,” Melissa says softly, patting your leg soothingly. “You’ll be okay.”

You just make a face that tells her you’re doing everything you can right now to not get sick in her car.

Once she pulls into her driveway, you bolt for the bushes. After emptying out the contents in your stomach, you wipe your mouth hastily and apologize to her sheepishly.

“I guess it’s a good thing we didn’t take an Uber,” she mumbles as she pulls you in. “Let’s get you in and up to bed.”

You let her carry you into her house and up the steps, fully knowing that you’re physically incapable of using your legs right now. She undresses you before putting you into a pair of her sleep shorts and one of her old Abbott shirts. She guides you to the bathroom, forces you to brush your teeth and use mouthwash, and then the two of you are climbing into bed.

You bolt quickly before heaving. There’s nothing left in your system as of right now though. You feel gentle hands weaving their way through your hair, and then you hear a hair tie being put at the end of the braid your girlfriend had just done for you.

You give her a questioning look.

“So if anything happens in the middle of the night, your hair won’t be in the way,” she shrugs. “It’s happened too many times to me.”

You go to peck her cheek, but she pushes you away.

“No way, dog breath.” She reaches for the mouthwash again, and you swish it in your mouth before spitting it into the sink.

“Thank you,” you slur out.

“Of course, hun,” the redhead tells you. “Let’s get you back to bed.”

After getting some of the liquid poison out of your system, you’re feeling a bit more sober. 

“I’m sorry you have to deal with this,” you apologize sheepishly.

Your girlfriend just brushes a few of the untamable flyaways away from your face before gently pressing her lips to your temple. “Even like this, you’re still the most enchanting woman I’ve ever met.”

You swoon at her words and curl into her hold even further.

“Get some sleep, love. I’ll still be here in the morning.”

“Because we’re at your house,” you quip, eyelids fluttering shut.

“And? I’ll still be here. Always will be.”

And she is. When you wake up, head pounding and stomach still churning, she’s got a bottle of ibuprofen and a glass of water waiting for you. 

[tomboy014]

Dun Dun Dunnn!!! Arkham Security Guard Danny's Epic Backstory! with Dick Grayson

I fell in love with the Arkham Guard AU by @xy-is-i and like most projects I work on, rather than starting where the story starts, I end up going backwards and delve into the backstory.  And I mean waaay into the backstory.

Because while the stories might start when the Bats run into Danny and Jazz working at Arkham Asylum isn’t where they first met.

Long, long ago, through shenanigans unknown, Robin and Phantom became friends, and honestly, they both really needed it. 

Dick Grayson, age 16, has been Robin for a while, but this is so early in the day that there just aren’t many teen heroes or sidekicks yet.  He’s basically pioneering the field of child heroes.

For Danny, 14, Sam and Tucker are great, but there are just some parts of superhero-ing that they just don’t get when you don’t have to hide a secret identity. 

Batman, for his part, does not approve of the friendship.  He’s already not a fan of metas in his city, but when the two of them get together, the chaos twin energy between Dick and Danny multiplies.  Worse, it brings about the pun-pocalypse, and there are only so many puns Bruce can take.  And then there’s the sibling discourse…

After all the stories Danny has told about his family, Dick is desperate to have a little sibling of his own, and the two repeatedly gang up on Batman to adopt another kid.  Their acting may be stilted, but the efforts are constant.

It never works.  Bruce doesn’t have empty nest syndrome yet, and tiny, homicidal Dick was already more than he could handle while he was trying to figure out how to adult, but he also can’t stand that he’s disappointing Dick.  Alfred isn’t helping either; he wants more grandkids.

And there’s no way in HELL that he’s adopting Phantom.

But for Robin and Phantom, they finally have someone they can talk to who gets it.  They can vent about their rogues, get help with homework, bitch about balancing their vigilantism with going to school, talk about whatever TV they’ve been watching, anything and everything.  It’s not uncommon to see them hanging off the Gotham gargoyles or grabbing a bite on top of the Nasty Burger.

There’s an unspoken rule between them that neither pries into the other’s personal life or secret identity, but as they get more comfortable with each other, little things slip out.  Then more.  Numbers are swapped, bits and pieces about their families come out. 

Later on, homes and secret hideouts are visited and they know each other’s first names.  It’s not a problem for Dick to go to the Fenton’s, but technically, Danny isn’t allowed in the Bat Cave or the Manor.  Those visits happen behind Batman’s back, and they were almost caught when they hid in the chandelier before Danny remembered he could turn them invisible. (Alfred encourages the friendship and bakes extra cookies once when he finds out Danny is over.) 

And eventually the relationship grows until they’re comfortable enough to swap full names.  No more secrets.

Dick likes going over to Danny’s place since it’s a chance to feel a lot more normal, even if they have to be very careful and either stay in civilian clothes in the shared areas or stay locked in Danny’s room if they’re in uniform.  Danny also goes out of his way to keep Dick from ever meeting his sister, Jazz (Danny knows he has a type).  It doesn’t stop them from swapping their numbers under the door.  (Jazz will unofficially be Dick’s therapist for years after this)

But being this close, Dick can also see just how stressed Danny is trying to maintain this lifestyle.  Doesn’t help either he has to listen to Danny’s parents go on and on about wanting to rip their own son apart, molecule by molecule.  Sure, Danny has a couple friends to help him, but he doesn’t have the same mentor or support system Dick has.  For a kid his age to be anything other than a sidekick is practically unheard of in this day and age.  Superheroes are still fairly few and far between, but Batman helped start a group called the Justice League a couple years ago with the idea that heroes could help each other.  Maybe there’s something there…

So, Dick starts the Teen Titan.  He had originally intended for Danny to join him as one of the founding members, but are you kidding?  Jump City is on the opposite side of the country!  He has school! and parents! (That’s the point, Danny. We’re trying to get you away from the parents that want to dissect you) He can’t just up and leave home and run halfway across the country!

So, Dick found the other iconic members and still joined the Titans, but Danny will always have an open invitation to join them and a room at the Tower, something Danny does occasionally take advantage of.  Jump City doesn’t spawn as many natural portals as Gotham, but he visits whenever he can and basically haunts the tower the entire month of December to get away from his family.

Still, the distance and growing up are hard on Dick and Danny, and they grow more distant over the years, but they’ll always have each other’s backs in an emergency.  Dick was there when Danny thought he was turning into a monster (it was just ghost puberty).  Danny stole the Spectre Speeder so they could scour the Ghost Zone after Jason died.  And Danny would eventually become godfather to Dick’s daughter, Mar’i. 

But things cooled down between them… at least until a panicked Danny called because his sister just took a job at Arkham…

Next>>