#the path is called 'birth of a devil'

[blacknedsoul-blog]

Montresor is the Bad Ending of White Raven

So Montresor has a religious trauma. And from what little we know of the flashback to his death, the man was apparently a corrupt preacher.

What that tells me about his life made me crack my knuckles, because holy shit, this guy is an even better villain than I expected. And not for the reasons I thought at first.

Montresor's possible backstory

A fun fact: "unholy men" used to be called "sons of Belial". Same as Monty's Spectre type, so there's the initial connection, but with what we saw in chapter 87, this phrase from his mother resonates quite a bit:

Montresor was most likely a bastard (literally), and if he was raised in a religious community, that immediately made him and his mother outcasts. Possibly his mother hated him for "ruining her life". Whether this is true or not, the implication is that he grew up a victim of a system that decided he was sucked by the devil from birth.

In this light, Montresor's attitude towards the world is actually a logical consequence: he has decided that abuse is the only way to relate, and you can either be the victim or the victimizer. Of course, he is now the victimizer.

But he decided that because life taught him two lessons that were important enough to make him the person he is now.

"I know this game better than anybody"

We know from the clothes and hat in his flashback, and the cross around his neck, that Montresor was a preacher. And I would venture to say an excellent one: he has heard all his life that he is a demon, he knows better than anyone what terror hell produces in people, so he knows exactly what to say (or not say) to manipulate others through that fear.

Montresor, like Annabel, is someone who exploits his own traumas.

Annabel has been almost conditioned to behave like the perfect high-society lady, and that includes going to impressive extremes if it means getting something in return. She has engineered her way through life by identifying the currency of the people around her and knowing exactly what to give them so that they will, in her words "kissing her rings".

Loyalty gained through fear vs. loyalty gained through pretended sympathy.

Same goal.

If the world has made them that way, both Annabel and Montresor will use every last footnote of knowledge gained through trauma to get what they want.

But then there's something else they have in common: this deep knowledge of the rules of the game has also made them both know that the odds are too stacked against them to ever win. In the past, we've seen Annabel throw in the towel on her arranged marriage, but Montresor took a different path, much more along the lines of…

"So I'm not afraid to cheat."

Montresor decided that if people wanted a demon. He would give them one. The worst demon of all, because this one knows the rules: he knows how to play the game, he knows how to cheat and get away with it. We don't know the extent of his atrocities, but given what happened in the flashback and the fact that his idea of a sleepover is stuffing someone behind a wall to slowly suffocate, this guy must have a long rap sheet.

So long, in fact, that he was tied to the tracks of a train to be torn to shreds without even a trial.

Because if the rules are just there to screw you, then screw them: the only option left is to cheat.

Which is exactly what Lenore did when she burned down her house and pretended to be a man to go after Annabel. Lenore jeopardized everything Annabel said was important to her.

And she got away with it. At least until they were both killed (or, if those of us with our chips on Annabel's childhood friend, they may have both died without anyone knowing).

Now, in Nevermore, Lenore is still doing that, as we can see in her reluctance to kill or destroy Montresor: she refuses to play the game, refuses to follow the rules.

She will look for ways to cheat here, as she did before (something Annabel actually expects her to do). The woman is too stubborn to bend, and so far she seems to have the wind at her back (the question is, for how long?).

The bad ending

These elements make Montresor a complete exhibition of the ultimate consequences of taking Annabel and Lenore's attitudes to the extreme: a person who instrumentalizes her own traumas to unravel and try to inflict them on others, and who is not afraid to cheat for her own benefit if it means getting what she wants.

The only thing that separates Annabel and Lenore from Montresor is that they both still use these attitudes in the name of other people: Annabel for Lenore herself, and Lenore for the people she cares about. That both of them (still) seem to have their hearts in the right place.

But if Annabel continues to use her vast knowledge of this twisted game to work her way through people without caring, and Lenore still believes she's above all rules, here's Montresor to show them (and us) what's waiting for them at the end of the road.

[devildomwriter]

Our Greatest Hope | Obey Me Short Story

1.4K | GN! AFAB! Reader x Diavolo | CW: Mentions of parenting, labor, aging, faith, slight angst

There has never been a being like your son. Half human, half demon, with angel blood. What will he become? Can you lead a child with such power and influence down the right path, will he be like his father or will his human side make him vulnerable?

“I’ll never let harm come to you. The world will be yours my dearest son. You are our greatest hope. Surely a child born of three worlds will be the one to unite them.” The promise left Diavolo’s lips as he held your pregnant stomach, head resting against it.

True to his word, your son would have everything he could ever need.

At first, it was scary. Diavolo’s mother had died giving birth, even with all their magic and advanced technology, giving birth was still dangerous. The one who gave birth to the devil’s son would always come across some misfortune during pregnancy or labor, whether it be constant nausea or intense labor pain. You and Diavolo knew this and though he was more hesitant than you, you decided to bear his child.

Would his Human side hinder him or help him? Would he age just as quickly as a human, and die just as easily? Would his wings and horns be pronounced? Would the Devildom accept a Cambion with angel blood as their true leader?

So many worries plagued your mind but the instant you first saw your son, your worries melted and were replaced with love. Your son was different from the beginning. He did not cry or laugh when he was born, he was silent and his tiny squinting golden eyes were observant of everything.

Diavolo cradled both you and your son during your duration in the Demon Lord Castle’s medical wing. After a few weeks of observation you could return to your room with Diavolo and your child stayed in his crib near your side.

He was still quiet. He never cried in the middle of the night but sometimes when you went to check on him he’d be awake. Bright eyes looked around the room before locking onto you and reaching out his hands.

His silence worried you and Diavolo at first but after a while, he began trying to mimic your words and eventually, he learned to call for you through infantile shouts rather than crying.

After a few months, he cried for the first time. His horns were coming in. Unlike his father whose horns grew from the sides of his skull, his horns protruded from the top of his forehead and grew upwards, slightly arched back.

By a year his wings took form. He only had one pair, they were larger and black with a slight red coloring like his father’s. By a year and a half, he looked like a true demon. Appearing human and hiding his wings and horns was too much to ask of a small child so you hid them with magic whenever you visited the human world, friends, and family.

When he was two years old he became a big brother and his sister was nothing at all like him. She was loud, fussy, and demanded attention, and when she wanted something she cried, she could fake her tears after a few weeks.

Your son did not understand this behavior, he was confused and you often found him in his bed with a pillow over his head. He had the senses of a demon, so it was inevitable he’d hear his sister cry. You did not get much sleep during this time nor did your husband, Diavolo.

As soon as your son could crawl he was trying to follow his father to work. If Diavolo stopped walking, so did your son. He was his father’s shadow before he even knew this was his duty.

When he was old enough to understand Diavolo had a private talk with your son, explaining what was expected of him as the prince. Although he did not quite understand the gravity, your son knew he was important and that he needed to be like his dad. Thus, he became even more of Diavolo’s shadow.

His sister however did not follow in his footsteps, for this reason even though he was barely more than a toddler he became his sister’s keeper, and eventually his brothers’ too.

In a way, he saw his siblings as practice. He needed to be a good example and a good leader, but he was still a child. Even though he’d always been mature for his age, it was still easy to give into temptation and his sister was an excellent demon, convincing him to wait up for Santa, to sneak snacks from the kitchen, to stay up late, and more.

In some ways, it was a relief to see him act like a child but Barbatos became worried and attended to your son’s younger siblings more so that Diavolo could focus on bringing up his son.

Diavolo was an anxious mess during his son’s formative years. Was he doing this right? He didn’t have a father to turn to. He wasn’t sure if his father was so strict with him for his own sake or if he was resentful his wife had died to birth him. Was he supposed to be very strict with his son? He didn’t want to be neglectful but his son needed to grow on his own too. There were so many contradicting points when it came to being a good parent and a good king.

Your son was sometimes confused too. He knew his dad didn’t like to scold him but he knew his dad was worried he wasn’t doing things right.

Your son had been perceptive from the moment he was born. He knew more than you and Diavolo could have imagined and the older he became the more you understood this.

You never saw him study Latin but he knew the language fluently, you never told him about the brothers’ history but he knew it as well as you, there were so many things you discovered about him every day and as you did so he was learning something else.

You would never forget the horrified expression on your young son when his father showed him the most critical part of their job—to judge and punish souls. Why did a dog killer go to heaven and an orphanage director go to hell? Because of faith? Why was this fair? He was meant to be the opposing side to the person who created everything. He was at a disadvantage from the start. He was meant to be evil and govern all forms of it but your son was nothing like that.

He did not embody evil, he did not embrace evil, and he did love a prank or two but he never started them. He wasn’t chaotic like his father. Like his father he was considerate but like you, he was so very human.

Indeed the son of the demon king and the future ruler of hell had a human heart and a loving soul. A soul so pure he could ascend to the Celestial Realm. As happy as you were your son was a good person and yours and Diavolo’s parenting had shaped a humble prince and not an arrogant one, only time would tell if this human heart was fit to rule hell.

Thanks to your magic and your vows with Diavolo, you lived a very long time. Thousands upon thousands of years and Earth ended and began anew many times. Each time you, Diavolo, and your son worked hard to bring this new generation of humans to peace with your realm. It worked every time but as Revelations determined, evil rose and a faction of demon rebels would invade the earth. The angels and two humans would defeat them and the bridges would slowly be mended again and again.

Your son disliked this even more than Diavolo. He was done with human suffering, with demons being the blame, and with angels blaming all demons when only a few were responsible.

Thousands of years later when your son took the crown he would be the shining example of peace between the realms. A demon king with the blood of the three worlds, with him, his trusted siblings, leader of the Celestial Realm Seraphim Luke, and the many angels and sorcerers he’d befriended, one day the worlds would see eternal peace.

Those words his father spoke to him as he was still within your womb stayed with him long after you and Diavolo ascended to the Celestial Realm, “You are our greatest hope. Surely a child born of three worlds will be the one to unite them.”

Now nearly a million years old, your son looked at the portrait of you and Diavolo and smiled to himself as he held his own son in his arms. “You did well, you may rest now.” He said softly. His wife came up behind him, his young daughter squirming in her arms.

“Your sisters and brothers are here,” she let him know and he nodded. His daughter sprang free from her mother and clung to his leg. He smiled and held both her and his son as he descended the palace stairs to meet his family.

[starryknight-tarot]

𝓦𝓱𝓪𝓽'𝓼 𝔂𝓸𝓾𝓻 𝓭𝓮𝓼𝓽𝓲𝓷𝔂?

pile 1 -- > pile 2

pile 3 -- > pile 4

my masterlist<3 . paid readings

Hello beautiful souls✨ we are back in the building with another tarot reading. Today we will be looking into your destiny, a general idea of what your purpose is on this beautiful planet. Remember to meditate, take a deep breath and pick whatever pile calls to you the most. Since this is a general reading, make sure to take what resonates and leave what doesn't. Art by @pop_KOME on Twitter (or X lol).

Pile 1:

Cards: Knight of Swords rx, Queen of Wands, The Chariot, Six of Wands, King of Cups, Eight of Cups, Five of Wands, Justice

Back of the Deck: Nine of Swords

Pile 1, your destiny is to be a leader. I feel a strong spiritual presence for this pile, I feel like you are very strongly protected by your spirit team, you may even have some powerful archangels in your spirit team. Also hearing some of yall may be an Aquarius and have heavy water energy in your birth chart. You are someone who has watched the people in your life be mistreated and conditioned to just suffer through traumatic experiences. But instead of following in the same path of suffering, you take action. Your destiny is to help the people around cope with life and make life feel a little easier. Some of you can do this just by being your true authentic self which encouraging others to do the same. Some of you are destine to be therapists, judges, lawyers, maybe even politicians. If any of you play Honkai Star Rail, you are giving major Natasha vibes. You are destined to run organisations that could literally save lives or make life a lot easier for people. I am also hearing some of yall could create something that would become really popular and almost in a way save people. Like, have you ever had a show or song or form of art that has shaped your life, taught you a lesson, or helped you from a really hard experience. Your destiny is to be that for people or create something that has that effect on people. I am seeing specifically Studio Ghibli so that could have an impact on you, or inspired you to create something. For some of you, your destiny is to be parent, but more specifically to help raise someone the right way(?). Kinda going along with what I was saying before, you may have had a really unhealthy home environment growing up and when it's your turn to be a parent, you will make it your mission to make sure your child doesn't have to go through what you went through, in a healthy way, of course if you don't want to be a parent then this doesn't apply. I just heard, "It's your job to call out the bullcrap." It's your purpose to stand up and say no when others won't or are too scared. You have a lot of influence on people Pile 1, and your purpose is to use it to help the people around you.

Advice Cards:

Align body, mind and spirit. Know that you are whole

Control is an illusion. Surrender and allow the Universe to guide you

Hold a positive outlook. You will see it when you believe it

To effect a change, you must be willing

Get clear about what you want

It is time to unclutter your body, mind, and spirit

Channeled Songs:

Pile 2

Cards: The Emperor rx, Eight of Wands, The Hanged Man rx, King of Swords, Queen of Wands, Four of Wands rx, Page of Cups, The Sun

Back of the Deck: The Devil

Your destiny is to be a shining light in the darkness. The small ounce of hope when everything seems to be lost. Now that is a big role Pile 2. I heard just now, "Your duty is to spread warmth." and "All you gotta do is slay all day." LMAO. You may currently or in the past have felt like everything is hopeless and you may have repeated very negative affirmations. I feel like it's a part of your purpose to learn about how powerful words are and use it to your advantage. When you finally start to use your words in a way that shows hope and positivity, is when you will fully align with your higher self and see all the beautiful things that life truly has to offer. This pile reminds me of another reading I did, it was Pile 4 of my what makes you so attractive reading so if you picked that pile, this pile is definitely for you. If you are interested and haven't read that reading then I would highly recommend it. I feel like your destiny to spread kindness. I am seeing a scenario where you are working somewhere and someone was having a bad day, but after talking with you for a short while, they are in a really good mood and feel amazing. I feel like your use of words and how you express yourself freely is your purpose. I feel like this pile is the most likely to be famous, I am seeing specifically a streamer. I feel like you are just someone that people could listen to talk for hours and it just feels so calming and relaxing. I am kinda picking up on when Among Us was really popular and there was a handful of streamers that were just majorly comforting for people, especially since that was when COVID was really bad. If you did follow thoses streamers, you may know Sykkuno, and I am saying this because I feel like you have a very similar life purpose as Sykkuno or you are just very similar to him. I heard you are like a safe place for people. I feel like your purpose is to make a domino effect for love and kindness. Like when you smile at someone, they smile, and then they make someone else smile and it just spreads. Some of yall may be into yoga or maybe even wanna be yoga instructors. You could also be a masseuse. Your destiny is to be a comforting presence and to show people another way to look a life. (I feel like this pile is very different from Pile 1, however there are some messages from Pile 1 that I strongly feel that may apply to you so if you did feel called to Pile 1 as well, please do read it)

Advice Cards:

Remain faithful to your ideal and find trust within yourself

Control is an illusion. Surrender and allow the Universe to guide you

Remove all resistances and move into a state of flow

It is time to challenge old beliefs

You can manifest your heart's desire

To effect a change, you must be willing

Channeled Songs:

Pile 3

Cards: Two of Pentacles rx, Knight of Pentacles, Strength rx, The Lovers, Page of Swords, Nine of Cups, Temperance, Three of Cups

Back of the Deck: Nine of Wands

There is some crazy beautiful messages for this pile. Your destiny is to see your dreams become a reality. I am getting that you are someone who has worked very hard for everything you have, I am hearing started from the bottom now we're here lol. Pile 3, all the hard work and love you have put into you goals and dreams are destined to shine brightly. You will be able eat the fruits of your labor. Honestly Pile 3, I just see good things coming towards you and it is so wholesome. I feel like there has been a lot of times where you've just wanted to give up and take the easy route of life, giving into words that say you will never achieve anything you strive to. But it is literally your destiny to succeed. Spirit is saying that all the times that have been rough and cruel have been so that when you finally get to relax and see your hard work flourish, it will feel even more rewarding. I feel like things you never thought would be possible for you will come true. Finding true love, a soul family that you can always rely on. I heard multiple people will fall in love you. Pile 3, its your destiny to go on a journey of self love, this journey may be a spiritual awakening for you, by connecting with spiritual, it can help you realize your true potential. I feel like all this love and success will take a while for you though, especially if you tend to put yourself down and don't acknowledge the work you need to do. I feel like some of you are really passionate about your dreams but fail to really push yourself and challenge yourself because of your insecurities. Don't try to be humble Pile 3, you are amazing and the world wants to see you shine! If you are procrastinating about the things you want to bring into your life and putting yourself down when you make mistakes, these blessings will delay and if it gets really bad, may never come. Mistakes are extremely human and we are meant to make mistakes to learn from them and improve even more. Believe in the power of your mind and creativity and the universe, and that's when blessings will manifest. Spirit wants you to enjoy life to the fullest and enjoy the things life has to offer.

Advice Cards:

Remain faithful to your ideal and find trust within yourself

Your spirit wings are unfolding. It is time to take flight!

Practice the pause

Keep the faith. Stay intentioned. Your perseverance will pay off

You are moving beyond your old form. Congratulations!

Relax and feel good. You deserve more joy!

Control is an illusion. Surrender and allow the Universe to guide

Channeled Songs:

Pile 4

Cards: Seven of Pentacles, Queen of Swords, King of Swords, Four of Swords rx, Four of Wands, Seven of Cups, Six of Wands, Page of Cups

Back of the Deck: Ace of Swords

You have some fun energy Pile 4. It is your destiny to enjoy the ride of life. To let life take the wheel and chill in the fast lane. This pile got so much swords cards, so yall could be an air sign, Gemini, Libra, Aquarius, or have a very air heavy birth chart. With the swords cards I am getting that it's your destiny to be free. You may currently feel tied down by people and burdens that just feel so heavy and tiring. But it is your destiny to escape from the shackles of these things and have fun. You are supposed to enjoy the things you have missed out on for so long. I feel like you have felt held back by societies expectations of you and changed yourself to fit in. But the universe wants you to express yourself and show us who you really are. It will feel amazing when you do. People are always going to have problems with you being yourself because your confidence makes them feel intimidated in their own lack of self expression. They are all just jealous of you, so don't let them hold you back from enjoying the things you are passionate about and from feeling the wind on your skin. For some of you, it's your destiny to be a cool parent or like aunt or uncle. I feel like you will have a strong influence on the people close to you, you will be like a role model for the younger people around you. It's because you show them how beautiful freedom and just expressing yourself without worrying about what others think of can be. I also feel like you will meet someone that is your divine counterpart. Someone that understands you better than anyone else will. This could be romantic but it doesn't have to be. This connection will be something everyone will be envious of. This person is someone you know you will grow old with. Your destiny is to enjoy with a smile on your face.

Advice Cards:

Expect good things to come to you

It's time to try something new!

It is important to ask for help

To effect a change, you must be willing

It is time to challenge old beliefs

Act on what you know

You are divinely protected. Remind yourself how safe you are

Channeled Songs:

Thanks for tuning in₊‧.°.⋆🫧•˚₊‧⋆.

[diminuel]

At this point Dragodile have so many kids from various AUs, I love it! It’s funny to think about maybe the most canon version or a canon-adjacent version of Luffy who is still in denial that 1) his dad fucked croc and 2) croc gave birth to him meeting some Devil Fruit user who through crazy DF powers for Reasons I Can’t Explain (except my amusement) brings all of Luffy’s AU siblings into his universe and the Straw Hats are stuck with a bunch of various age kids to take care of until they can figure out how to get them home…. and Dragon gets a very confusing snail call (“Ew Dad, can you please stop making babies with Crocodile?!”)

*INTO THE DRAGODILE VERSE*

(Not asking you to draw or anything, but just thought it was a funny idea to imagine and chat about! lol)

Time to torment Luffy! We haven't done that in a while *lol*

Maybe this is an universe where Dragon and Crocodile have not had any other kids (yet), so Luffy is struggling to erase his memory about Crocodile's relationship with his dad (and generally his involvement in Luffy's birth) while also keeping a bunch of Monkey D. children from going overboard or eating all his food. And no, he will not answer any of his crew's questions about who these insane kids are - though of course the kids can answer these questions themselves because they most likely know Luffy and his crew in their own universe.

(And this is a bit random but I'm taking this chance to ramble:

I do still wonder in what kind of AU verse(s) the kids actually exist. I've drawn 4 OC babies (Merry, the twins, and Mini Dragon) that are biologically theirs who may or may not exist in the same universe. Baby 2 and another pregnancy do exist in the Divorced AU. I think Mini Dragon might exist in an universe where there are just him and Luffy, considering Iva's comments. (And of course I also have a whole armada of Crocodile DNA experiments that I don't have any plans for *lol*)

Then there's the Stinky Child AU where they probably "only" have their three stinky children. Even though they wanted more, it just didn't happen for various reasons.

In the Chaotic Family Time AU Vivi (who may or may not be Crocodile's child) and Robin are probably also somehow part of the family but I don't know if they have more kids or if they're just happy to just trust that the fates will put a child in their path that needs parents X3)

[multidimensionalguidance]

Anuradha - The Bridge To All Paths Pt.2

Services

As mentioned in the first part, the light aspects of Anuradha are almost always easy to identify through films or by paying attention to the major themes in their life. Now, with all Scorpios there is always a much darker side despite the already observable shadows.

Scorpio placements always carry an intense and intimidating aura, yet out of all the nakshatras the one that carries the most harsh attitude and presence is Vishakha ruled by a male tiger. Both Anuradha and Jyeshtha are ruled by the deer, which makes them more skittish, sensitive, and paranoid.

An observation was made by a fellow astrology account "v1rginldy" on Twitter, and I wanted to expand further on it because it speaks volumes of this nakshatra. They pointed out how there seems to be a connection between Anuradha and demonic possessions, specifically in a context with nuns or women getting pregnant by evil forces.

Anuradha is the only female yoni nakshatra among the others, so perhaps this is why there is such an association with gestation and birth. The corruption comes in from the shadow that speaks and lures in Scorpio placements.

All Scorpios seek power in some way, and in this nakshatra they attempt to obtain it by becoming devoted and subservient to a goal or individual that can give them the authority they seek. Their much softer, innocent, gentle, and servicing nature makes them an easy target.

There seems to be a pattern of young girls who wish to devote their love and energy to God, divinity, or a mystical force yet get deceived to unwillingly participate in dark rituals. They are used as a vessel who is willing to sacrifice anything in order to achieve what they consider to be their inner purpose.

Sydney Sweeney from "Immaculate" plays a young novice nun, who basically ends up getting possessed, lied to, and manipulated to carry the antichrist. She has her Ascendant in Anuradha.

Nell Tiger Free from "The First Omen" plays a young woman who is also a young nun that is selected to bring about the birth of evil incarnate. She has her Moon in Anuradha.

Juliet Mills from "Beyond the Door (1974 film)" has Sun in Anuradha and played the role of a young pregnant woman in San Francisco who is going to have the devil's baby during her strange possession.

Laurel Vail in Delivery: The Beast Within has Moon in Anuradha and plays as a young couple documenting their first pregnancy for a new TV show discover that a malevolent entity has taken control of their unborn child.

Laura Harris from The Calling (2000) has Sun-Mercury in Anuradha and also plays as a young woman who has her child under abnormal circumstances. She pieces together clues that lead to one conclusion, her son is the Antichrist.

It seems that the pure intention and services of these natives are often misused by those who have hidden agendas. They push the narrative to Anuradha natives that suffering for love is the ultimate expression of devotion.

This is why the long term alliances they choose to make are essential not just for their future, but safety. It is the guidance and protection of those who are their partner/s, friends, family, and even coworkers that keep ill willed individuals at bay.

The nun and religious associations are very interesting considering that their whole life journey is about devotion to a higher calling, and it is the corruption within these institutions that take advantage of their natural gifts.

Hope y'll enjoyed these observations, and if I encounter more patterns with this nakshatra, I'll be continuing further.

[destieltropecollection]

Destiel Trope Collection 2024 | Day 22: Omegaverse

No Knot November | @em-bitterred Rating: Teen & Up Word Count: 1,083 Main Tags/Warnings: Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Alpha Castiel/Omega Dean Winchester, Alpha Castiel, Omega Dean Winchester, Mating Cycles/In HeatPast, Rape/Non-con, Non-Con/Rape Outside of Castiel/Dean Winchester, Non-con elements with sabotaged birth control/condom usage, reddit advice, Getting Together Summary: I (25/m/o) made a big deal out of observing No Knot November and now I’m afraid of telling my friends I failed Or Dean Winchester turns to the /r/NoKnotNovember community for advice after failing his No Knot November pledge

Scenting Lesson | @Destielshipper4Cas Rating: Teen & Up Word Count: 2,417 Main Tags/Warnings: Omega Castiel, Alpha Dean, Falling In Love, Strangers to Lovers, Scenting, First Kiss, Fluff, Happy Ending Summary: Having grown up in a cult, Castiel has never learned how to scent properly. When a hot alpha moves in across the hall, he seems dead set on changing that.

Crossing Paths | @Destielshipper4Cas Rating: Teen & Up Word Count: 3,544 Main Tags/Warnings: Angel of Death Castiel, Hunter Dean, Human Dean, Falling In Love, Strangers to Lovers, Omega Castiel, Alpha Dean, Happy Ending, First Kiss, Scenting, Talk about death, talk about suicide Summary: Only Dean Winchester could fall in love with Death. - In which Castiel is an angel of death, and one particularly stubborn hunter keeps cheating him.

I'll Show You Heaven If You Let Me | @samanddean76 Rating: Mature Word Count: 11,325 Main Tags/Warnings: Alternate Universe, FBI Agent Castiel, Mob Grunt Dean Winchester, Alpha Castiel/Omega Dean Winchester, Top Castiel/Bottom Dean Winchester, Alpha Castiel, Omega Dean Winchester, Top Castiel, Bottom Dean Winchester, Canon-Typical Violence, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Knotting, Claiming Bites, Mpreg, Protective Castiel, Hurt Dean Winchester, Sam Is Kind Of A Dick, He Gets Better, Eventual Happy Ending, Revenge, Or Justice, BAMF Dean Winchester, FBI Agent Saw Wesson, Alpha Sam Wesson Summary: Omega Dean Winchester just wanted to take out his recycling in peace. But he finds a mystery Alpha unconscious on the ground, stashed behind the bins. Dean gets him inside, but then work calls. Once Dean returns home he finds that the mystery Alpha Castiel is recovered, and he's waiting to claim the Omega that saved him. The only problem? They're on opposite sides of the law. Now Dean has to risk all to earn back his freedom. But will he lose his true mate along the way?

Inevitably Yours | @envydean Rating: Explicit Word Count: 16,303 Main Tags/Warnings: Alpha!Dean, Alpha!John, Alpha!Sam, alpha!Castiel, forced mating, Arranged Marriage, nonconsensual drug use, Angst with a Happy Ending, Challenges, alpha/alpha is frowned upon, good dad john, Pining, Fluff, bottom!Dean/Top!Cas (but they do switch in general) Summary: Dean Winchester is set to challenge Castiel Novak for an omega’s hand. Being given additional (and illegal) alpha hormones before the fight has some unwanted side effects on Dean that he wishes to keep secret. Locked in a room for the night while the Pack Alphas decide what to do, Dean and Castiel disappear into the night as their only option. Dean needs to figure out his feelings for his companion, lust from the drugs or real…

Living in a Haze | @girlsvmonsters Rating: Explicit Word Count: 27,000 Main Tags/Warnings: Graphic depictions of violence, polyamory, non-traditional alpha/beta/omega dynamics, alpha/omega, top castiel/bottom dean winchester, omega dean winchester, alpha castiel, past sam/dean, mildly dubious consent, threats of rape/non-con, alternate universe, post-apocalypse Summary: The world has ended, literally. Zombies trample the place and devils devour souls for cheap thrills. But that doesn't bother Dean, who's gone a little crazy hanging out with the ghost of his dead brother. Dean isn't your typical omega. He's a hunter of pie who loves classic rock and decapitating the undead. Dean somehow attracts the unwanted attention of Lucifer Morningstar. Apparently he's got a thing for omegas with smart mouths. You could say he's especially smitten by Dean's ability to slip through his fingers. Devils do enjoy a good chase. As Dean thwarts the Prince of Utter Darkness he winds up falling into the arms of a horny alpha angel. Dean soon learns his guardian angel comes with a lot of ungodly baggage, one bag in the form of an incredibly annoying she devil who has a sinfully talented tongue. And then somehow Dean is part of a trio. A hunter, angel, and demon. It's an endless rollercoaster filled with horror, sex, and pie. So buckle up folks, cause there is never a dull day in hell.

The Ruse | @Destielshipper4Cas Rating: Explicit Word Count: 27,292 Main Tags/Warnings: Prince Dean, Commoner Cas, Strangers to Lovers, False Identity, Mistaken Identity, First Time, Omega Castiel, Alpha Dean, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Medieval, Bottom Castiel, Top Dean, Virgin Castiel, Happy Ending Summary: Castiel, a lowly commoner, is supposed to travel to the Winchester kingdom as a decoy, posing as Prince James who is to mate Prince Samuel of Winchester. On the way, he gets kidnapped by a group of bandits, led by a rugged alpha outlaw with an alluring scent. He has no idea that ‘Dean’ is actually the elder Winchester prince, heir to the throne, who has his own agenda.

The Stars Will Remember | @casblackfeathers Rating: Explicit Word Count: 60,997 Main Tags/Warnings: omega!castiel, alpha!dean, amnesia, established relationship, mutual pining, break up and make up, angst with a happy ending, hurt!castiel, hurt and comfort, sweet!dean, bottom!castiel Summary: Being a hunter was all Dean knew ever since his mother had been killed by a demon when he was four. Hunting, offing monsters, and then jumping to the next case was his life. Then he met the most alluring and breathtaking omega he had ever seen and spent the next five years loving the hell out of Cas, their life together filled with the domestic lovey-dovey stuff Dean had never thought he would dig so much. When a simple salt-and-burn goes sideways, it ends up with Cas’ memories stolen from him. Dean is left to pick up the pieces of the life they built together, his ‘make it up as he goes’ strategy to prove to his mate that Dean’s still worth a damn, his only chance at getting Cas back. He’s done a shitty-ass job at keeping Cas safe before, but he will pull out all the stops now to woo his mate again and stir the memories Dean knows are still there buried deep inside Cas’ mind.

Perdition | @Taymarpigeon Rating: Explicit Word Count: 233,955 Main Tags/Warnings: Dead Dove: Do Not Eat, Sickness & Injury, Canon-Typical Violence, Possessive Behavior, BDSM, Alternate Universe, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, Established Castiel/Dean Winchester, Alpha Castiel/Omega Dean Winchester, Alpha Castiel (Supernatural)Omega Dean Winchester, Top Castiel/Bottom Dean Winchester, Sadist Castiel/Masochist Dean Winchester, Heavy Angst, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Extremely Dubious Consent, Sexual Coercion, Abuse Outside of Castiel/Dean Winchester, Biological Dom/sub, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, BAMF Castiel (Supernatural), Psychologist Dean Winchester, Mentions of Rape and Non-Con outside of Castiel/Dean Winchester, Medicinal Drug Use, Suicidal Thoughts, BAMF Dean Winchester, A pregnant woman dies, Risk Aware Consensual Kink, Additional Warnings In Author's Note, Additional Warnings Apply Summary: It has been two years since Looking Glass. Two years since they met. Two years since they fell in love. Two years since Alastair came after him. Two years since Lucifer tried to kill them. Two years since Dean sat vigil by Castiel's bedside praying to a deity he doesn't believe in. Two years of healing, discovery and postcard-perfect moments. Two years... yet still the ghosts of their fathers haunt them.

[jaredpadonlyyyy]

𝙎𝙊𝙈𝙀𝙏𝙃𝙄𝙉𝙂 𝘼𝘽𝙊𝙐𝙏 𝙔𝙊𝙐

• 𝙎𝙈𝙐𝙏, 𝙋𝙐𝙍𝙀 𝙎𝙈𝙐𝙏, 𝙎𝙈𝙐𝙏𝙏𝙔, 𝙎𝙈𝙐𝙏

• 𝙏𝙀𝙀𝙉𝘼𝙂𝙀𝙍𝙎 𝙐𝙉𝘿𝙀𝙍 𝙏𝙃𝙀 𝘼𝙂𝙀 𝙊𝙁 𝟭𝟴 𝗗𝗢 𝗡𝗢𝗧 𝗥𝗘𝗔𝗗𝗬!

• 𝙈𝘼𝙇𝙀 𝙍𝙀𝘾𝙄𝙀𝙑𝙄𝙉𝙂, 𝙐𝙉𝙋𝙍𝙊𝙏𝙀𝘾𝙏𝙀𝘿 𝙎𝙀𝙓 (𝘞𝘳𝘢𝘱 𝘪𝘵 𝘶𝘱 𝘴𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘴) 𝘾𝙍𝙀𝘼𝙈𝙋𝙄𝙀, 𝙐𝙎𝙀 𝙊𝙁 𝙔/𝙉, 𝘾𝙐𝙍𝙎𝙄𝙉𝙂.

• 🤍 • • • • 🪽 • • • 😇 • • • 😇 • • • 🪽 • • • • 🤍 •

Y/N was done with a hunt when the Winchester brothers asked her to meet them at a local bar to discuss over looking for Lucifer who had escaped his cage. Had had worked with them before, she had met them one time on a case about how dicks had gotten sick from ghost sickness as Bobby and the boys had put it. And 8 years later she still helped the boys here and there. But they especially needed her when it came to demons. Especially since it was her kind of thing. Unlike them. She was born into the life.

Since she can remember, she had learned how to use a gun and what goes how when it came to a certain type of supernatural creature. Her father had trained her. Her mother had died giving birth to her the day she was born. She was happy that in her case. Her father didn’t treat her any differently. He was a cold man. He helped people but the only person he really did care about, was his daughter. She was his world.

But unfortunately a hunt gone wrong and her father was dead and she was left alone in the world at the age of 16 years old. She had been jumping from home to home, until she was tired of all of it and she ran away. Since she was a hunter. Her father had taught her how to scam for credit cards and get fake ID’s. So she got a new identity and had a new age so she won’t get put into a foster home ever again in her lifetime. At the age of 18 years old. She was known as to be the most amazing hunter of there sending demons to hell, and killing all supernatural creatures.

She was damn good at her job. She never had time to settle down with anyone. Not a girl, and certainly not a guy. She’s a hunter with a prize on her head for she killed at lot of demons once the angle blades came into play. Demons were scared of her when they crossed paths. They knew who she was and what she did. No demon ever escaped her. All always dean on site. Only once had that happened to her. When she was 17 years old. She had gotten distracted by her girlfriend at the time, she was in danger used as bait to lore her in. She was almost killed in the process.

Currently Y/N had agreed to meet with the brothers in LA. They met. And the devil jumped into another vessel. They didn’t know who. Lucifer was gone now. So currently Y/N was moaning as she rides a groaning angel. His mouth wide open as he breathed in heavily gripping the sheets under him. “Fuck, aah!” She moaned as she leans forward and started to bounce on Castiel hard and fast. “I’m gonna, cum!” She gasped throwing her head back as she digs her nails into his chest. Shaking in pure pleasure

Riding out her high. She got off him and she started to kiss down his body. Castiel honestly thought he was in heaven. He’s been with another woman before but the way Y/N rode him was making him see the heavens. She reached down to his thick 9 inch dick. Licking his dick from his balls to his head making him squirm as her tongue swirled around his head.

“Ugh!” Castiel gritted his teeth as he leaned forward his eyes screwed shut. He lets out a very loud moan as she puts all of him into her mouth. Relaxing her throat so she wouldn’t gag. She started to bob her head as he grunted bucking his hips as he fucked her mouth with his thick cock. Y/N hummed sending vibrations throughout his whole body making his cock twitch. “Y/N I’m gonna—.” He moaned. “I’m gonna, fuck!” She lifted up her head making her throw himself back breathing heavily as he looked at her through hooded eyes. She went on top of him and sank down on him again making them both gasp

Castiel grabbed her hips as she moaned calling his name over and over again as he slammed his hips into her in a fast pace. “Oh god, Castiel! Aaah!!” She shook as he felt his dick start to twitch. “I’m cumming, I’m cumming!” Castiel took her off of him as released. “Uuarghh!!!” He groaned so loudly as he cums in his hand his legs shaking in pure pleasure.

• 🤍 • • • • 🪽 • • • 😇 • • 😇 • • • 🪽 • • • • 🤍 •

This is really short because of the fact that I wanted to publish one. But I got to lazy at the end and didn’t really feel like going more into detail so enjoy!

If you have any requests lmk. I’ll see what I can do. Since I don’t really do stuff like this. I can try. The only things I don’t do. Are daddy kinks or wincest, or age gap or peeing kink. But other than that feel free. I☺️ ps. I’m a destiel shipper but I don’t write destiel smut sorry.

[ladylooch]

Best Thing I’ll Ever Do - Lio x Savannah (Part 2)

A/N: Since you all asked soooo nicely! Here is the next part of Lio and Sav. I hope you all are having wonderful Sundays. I love you... remember that when you read this next part.... 💀

Word Count: 4k

Part 1 | Part 3 | Part 4 |

January

Since that day in Southern California a year ago, a lot has happened for Savannah and Lio.

First and most exciting, a large 5 carat diamond weighs her left hand down. She still feels like she needs to pinch herself to make sure it isn’t a dream. Savannah Miller is going to marry Lio Meier next Summer. 

Second, she is no longer with the Devils. After the previous season ended, she evaluated her goals and felt like she wanted to do something different than what she had been doing. She wanted to be her own boss and see where her content career could take her rather than being constrained by a team and a league that wanted things done a certain way.

Third, and probably most important of all, she’s been to more doctors visits in the last year than she can count on any of her appendages.

Lio kept his vow to her to utilize the Devils resources to locate an endometriosis specialist who would give Savannah answers and a better direction for her wellbeing.

Dr. Barnes was the first one they met with and Savannah instantly knew things were going to be different this time around. Dr. Barnes had a kind, empathetic, and solutions driven focus that made Savannah feel at ease immediately. She listened to Savannah’s entire story, took down diligent notes, asked follow up questions.  Within the same appointment, Dr. Barnes created a multilayered, holistic care plan, taking into consideration that Savannah did not want to go right to surgery.

The first thing they decided on was to take out Savannah’s IUD and switch her to birth control pills. There was concern the IUD was rubbing against portions of endometriosis which was exacerbating her symptoms. Savannah did feel better for a few months, but by month three, she was back to clutching her abdomen in the fetal position for days. They pivoted the treatment plan to a different kind of pill that other patients had success with, but when Savannah ended up in the ER again early in the summer, throwing up and passing out from the pain, it became clear that surgery was going to be the only option Savannah had for long-term relief. 

The day of her surgery, Lio kissed her in reassurance, then waved goodbye to her as she was wheeled out of pre-op and down the hall.

“I’ll be right here with you when you’re done, baby.” He had called to her before the doors separated them. Savannah nodded, trying to be brave for herself and Lio. Last time, she had to do this virtually alone. Her boyfriend at the time had shown up after she went in for surgery and then dropped her off at home before heading out with his friends for another round of golf. Her recovery was completely isolating except for a neighbor who checked in on Savannah once a day at Savannah’s request.

Lio Meier would never. 

Instead, he had a recovery suite set up in their bedroom for her. A quiet oasis where Savannah could relax and heal in her time. He has been there every step of the way, even at the moments when Savannah has pushed him away. She may be used to dealing with this alone, but Lio won’t let her go through this that way anymore.

Two weeks after her surgery, her and Lio went back to Dr. Barnes to get the findings of the surgery and tissue analysis. The news were mixed results. The good news was the spots they removed were consistent with Savannah’s previous surgery, meaning there was no new or extended growth in her endometriosis. The bad news was this confirmed that surgery is only successful for a limited amount of time, meaning Savannah will likely need several more surgeries down the line if this path continues for her. Dr. Barnes has encouraged Savannah to sit with this news and consider further permanent solutions such as a hysterectomy.

“What are my other options? I’m not ready for that.” She had asked with Lio’s hand tucked tightly against hers. His thumb stroked over the tendons on the top of her hand with assurance. He was here; they would get through this together.

The other recommendation was to go back to birth control, but a Progesterone only option. Dr. Barnes was shocked when Savannah said this was never given to her, even as a first line of treatment. It’s been four months now and Savannah has been feeling better than she could have imagined with her endometriosis. However, a severe drawback is that her pain has moved from her uterus and formulated in her head as three day long migraines when she is at the end of her cycle.

Everything costs something. That’s been the biggest lesson Savannah has learned through this journey.

But this weekend, none of that matters. Because Lio has a whole trip planned to celebrate his beautiful, strong fiancé, finally having answers and support that she deserved all along. He has been wanting to do this for months, but Savannah didn’t want to leave home until she had a clear understanding of how managed her endo was after surgery. The last thing she wanted was him to put together a perfect trip that ended with her in the ER from debilitating pain again.

Savannah is confident that won’t be happening this trip. She grins, feeling grateful for the peace of mind she has going into this fun weekend.

Lio’s Porsche points towards the southern tip of New Jersey. They are 2 hours into their 2.5 hour trip down to Cape May. The vastness of the ocean hints to their left off the Garden State Parkway the closer they get to town. Lio drives, tapping his thumb on the steering wheel to the beat of the pop song coming through Savannah’s Spotify. His other hand is on her thigh where she traces his fingers and the veins of his forearm.

“I wonder how busy it will be.”

“Probably not bad. School is back in session after winter break.” Lio reminds her.

“I’ve never been here in the winter months.”

“My mom took us down here a few times. It was mostly before the twins though.”

“How do you even remember that?” Savannah asks, looking over at him. He shrugs.

“I remember a lot of what we did with my mom. She was great at making it feel like we could still have fun even with how often my dad was gone.” Lio starts to chuckle. “Also I definitely pushed Livy in the ocean and got yelled at by my dad on FaceTime, so it was memorable.”

“Lee!” She chuckles. “You were terrible to her.”

“I know.” Lio cringes. “I’m trying to make up for it, okay?” He says as he takes the exit to head more east into town. 

They pull up to their airbnb, which is modern, but still a cozy cottage right on the ocean. They unpack their things, then walk into town to grab lunch at an all day breakfast diner. Lio needs a heavy, protein packed lunch with how hard he has been grinding this season.

“Did you come here as a kid too?” Savannah asks Lio as he looks over the menu in the blue booth.

“Yeah, but usually when we were with the Hischier’s. Mama and auntie had a hard time getting us all to behave when we were together, so we didn’t go to many upscale places.” 

“So basically you and Lucie would act out.” Savannah fills in the gap.

“Mack would too. She was wild as a kid. It wasn’t just us.”

“But mostly.” Savannah gives him a look like ‘don’t even pretend’. 

“Yeah, it was mostly us.” Lio laughs, then thanks the waitress for both of their coffees.

Lio nudges the bowl of cold cream packets towards Savannah. He likes this shitty, slightly burnt diner coffee black. A smirk stays on his lips as he reminisces on his childhood. He knows he is lucky to have grown up the way he did with such a strong family influence surrounding him. He opens his fingers up towards Savannah, taking her left hand in his. He strokes along her massive engagement ring, satisfied with where their life is going. 

“I’m really happy, babe.” He murmurs to her, then drags his gaze up her body to her stunning blue eyes that still make his heart skip a beat when they’re looking at him. 

“Me too.”

“I can’t wait to marry you.” He smirks.

“Make an honest woman out of me?”

“I think by marrying you, I’m doing the opposite.”

“You’ve cleaned yourself up quite nice, Mr. Meier. I’m proud to be your wife.”

“Only cause I had a good girl on my side.” He strokes his fingers up her forearm, watching the goosebumps that form along her skin at his gentle touch.

“Maybe I’ll be your good girl tonight too.”

“Better be. Didn’t bring you all the way down here to not get lucky.” 

“You’ll be very lucky by the end of this weekend.” She assures him. She grabs his fingers, bringing his wrist up to her mouth. She kisses his pulse, then moves to the side so she can suck some of the meat on his arm into her mouth. 

“You don’t need to eat, right?” He asks her, eyes smoldering across the table like he wants to toss her over his shoulder and walk back. She chuckles.

“I assure you I am hungry.” Lio groans, but so does his stomach, reminding him of the fuel he needs to take care of her the way he wants.

With that in mind, they both order. Savannah gets a classic breakfast- eggs, bacon and a pancake- while Lio gets steak and eggs with a side of hash browns. As she eats her first few bites, Savannah’s mind wanders back to Lio as a child, running through this restaurant with his siblings and cousins, probably driving their mamas crazy. Savannah thinks about how wiggly and impatient Stella Wood has been since she met her. She laughs outwardly.

“What?” Lio asks around a bite.

“Just thinking about how crazy it would be if Stella and our kid was tearing up this place like y’all used to.” Lio pauses mid-chew, looking over his fiancé to check in on how he should react. “I’m okay that we aren’t going to have that.” She says to him truthfully. “I like quiet breakfast with you- here or in bed. And getting to take naps in the afternoons whenever we want to and changing plans last minute to fly somewhere for a two day getaway.” She takes another bite, then continues after she swallows. “This journey has been so hard, Lio. Really hard and a lot of it really is stemming from how bad the physical pain has been. It’s made the emotional pain that much worse.” He nods in understanding.

“It’s exhausting to be in that much pain, babe. Especially with how little the world understands about how debilitating internal conditions can be.” Lio certainly understands that after his past concussion issues.

“Yeah. I feel so at peace right now. I want to live in the joyful moments that we are having without the anger and frustration of the things we are never going to have. Living there means I won’t ever live comfortably in the present. I don’t want to miss a moment of our life because of things I can’t change.” Lio drops his fork, grabbing her hand again and giving it a squeeze.

“I love you, babe. I’m so inspired by you. The way you have been handling all this is admirable. I wanna be as resilient and reflective and accepting as you.” Lio murmurs, then kisses her hand. 

“I was none of these things before you.” Savannah tells him honestly. “You’ve changed me too, Lee.” He smiles, a slight tilt up to the right corner of his mouth. “I believed I was broken and weak. Through the last year, you’ve shown me how strong and whole I am by loving me in every moment, even when I didn’t want to love me. You didn’t advocate to those specialists because you wanted to fix me. All you wanted was to give me back the life Endo had been taking from me.” 

“You’re perfect, baby.” He reminds her as he always does. “All I care about is going through life with you by my side. Everything else is just noise.” 

Savannah grins, then releases his hand so they can both go back to eating.

“Good. Now hurry up and eat. I wanna be your dessert.” 

- - -

March 

“Brrr!” Savannah exclaims as her and Lio shimmy into the lobby of Lucie and Connor’s high-rise condo building in Greenwich Village. “It’s supposed to be spring.” She grumbles as Lio leads them to the bank of elevators. 

“Yeah, what the hell is that?” He mumbles, a shiver rolling his shoulders up tight towards his ears for a moment.

“We should go back to Florida. Sweating my ass off at Disney was better than this.” She mentions, referring to their Allstar vacation from last month with the Woods.

“Your hair was so cute down there. You should do it curly like that more.” He chuckles, throwing an arm around her waist to pull her in for a smooch. “Smelled like coconut every day too. Reminds me of the Bahamas.” Savannah moans in appreciation as Lio sucks a slice of her neck into his mouth.

“Now that was a good trip.”

“Kid free too.” He chuckles against her wet skin.

They love their niece, but having their vacation determined by her schedule is not Lio’s favorite way to unwind in the middle of the season. Savannah and Lio already decided they were going to do their own thing for next Allstar break, granted that Lio isn’t actually at the Allstar game next year. This year the festivities were in Florida, which allowed them for a few extra days in Orlando with the Wood’s. Next year is in Seattle. Not quite the same experience.

“The way Stella kept getting you to do the tea cups with her though. That was so cute, babe.”

“I still feel like I’m spinning from that. I don’t know how she was so normal about it.”

“Stella is always twirling around in her own little world. Of course she was fine!” 

The elevator opens on the floor of the Wood’s condo, so Lio and Savannah step out.

“Are Mack and David coming today?”

“No.”

“They hate us?”

“I don’t know. They’ve been shut-ins since Mack returned from Turcs.” Lio gives Savannah a look. 

“I want their life.”

“No you don’t.” Lio laughs. “They’re crazy.” 

They get to the familiar steel door. Lio knocks briefly before grabbing the handle, opening it and walking into the apartment.

“Uncle Lee Lee!” Stella screams as she launches herself head first into his legs. Lio braces himself, putting a hand where it is needed most to avoid the direct head butt to his jewels. 

“Stelly!” He shouts back, swooping her up once it is safe to do so. “How is my favorite Wood?”

“Annnnnnd no steak for Uncle Lee.” Connor jokingly notes at the door where he is wearing his heavy duty, canvas cooking apron. He adjusts the leather neck strap as the couple walks in.

“Steak, eh?”

“Big ol’ Porterhouses for us.” 

“Nice.” Lio grins, bumping knucks with him as he walks into the apartment with Stella. Savannah has already floated in, bringing the two bottles of wine in for her and Lucie to get started on. 

“Good! I brought red wine!” Savannah announces. 

“Can I have some?” Stella asks, never wanting to be excluded ever, even from adult things. Stella and Lio come to rest next to Savannah with Lio leaning a hip into the counter beside her.

“No, silly.” Savannah chuckles, swiping her index finger down the little girl’s nose. “But I did bring you a special drink too.” Savannah pulls out the pink lemonade from Trader Joe’s that Stella loves along with a glittery pink tumbler she had to grab for her from Target’s $5 section.

“Oh! Oh! Oh! Can I have some right now?! Mommy please!” Lucie looks over her shoulder from where she is putting together the salad. 

“Sure, baby.” She agrees. 

“Luc, you are working so hard. You absolutely need wine right now.” Savannah exclaims.

“I’m sticking with water tonight.” Lucie chuckles. “But feel free to have a little extra in commiseration with all this hard work I’m doing over here.”

“Yeah, working real hard over here now.” Connor teases as he struts into the kitchen. He pats Lucie’s butt, then kisses her cheek until she turns to kiss his lips. They linger there together, smiling into their kiss like they’re the only ones here. “She forgot to mention the nap she was taking before you two said you were on your way.”

“I am doing important work, Cap.” Lucie swats at his hip as he walks away.

“Yeah, you were the one keeping Stella in line earlier, with drool dripping off your face.”

“Look, she mostly takes after you, so you should have to deal with her.” Lucie grabs the bowl, walking it over to the table. 

“Yeah, sure that rebel phase you had doesn’t show up in our daughter at all. Speaking of taking after me, we better get you into something more comfortable to eat. Otherwise we’re gonna spill all over this pretty dress, huh?” Connor says to Stella, picking her up. 

“No, I’ll be good!”

“You know the rules, baby.” Connor nuzzles his face into the crook of her neck, making Stella squeal at the facial hair tickling her soft skin. They disappear down the hall, Stella’s giggles following the entire way.

“So how are you guys?” Lucie asks as she washes her hands in the island sink. 

“Good! We’ve been busy.”

“I know! I can’t believe we haven’t seen you since Florida.”

“It has been crazy. I have had so many brand meetings and content to film. Plus, Lio was on the road for almost two weeks.”

“Do you miss it?” Lucie asks, walking to where the wine glasses rest in the bar by the dining room table. She comes back with a glass for Savannah

“No way. I like sleeping in my own bed way too much.” Savannah says after pouring herself a bit of wine. “Do you want some?” She asks her husband already knowing his answer.

“No.”

“Lee, do you even drink anymore?” Lucie asks genuinely.

“Not really.” Lio shrugs.

“He will have whiskey when we are out to a fancy dinner, but otherwise, no. I don’t even see you drink beer with your dad anymore.” Savannah says, rubbing at Lio’s back as she talks. He puts a hand on the back of her chair, enclosing her into his body, right where he likes her.

Out of her room, Stella comes running down the hallway to the three adults. Her dad trails behind casually with his hands in his pockets. 

“Look at me! Look at me! I have something to tell you!” Stella yells at her aunt and uncle. 

“Oh, well okay then.” Savannah laughs, turning her legs towards Lio to see her. Lio turns towards the little girl too, taking in her new outfit. She has on jeans, bright purple socks and a pink t-shirt with glittery, bold letters that spell out her new title: Big Sister.

Savannah freezes. Lio fingers drift from the back of the chair to squeeze her left shoulder, even as he grins down at their niece. A silent announcement that he is here for her in this moment.

“What does your shirt say!?” He exclaims. Stella screeches excitedly, then bounces up and down.

“BIG!!!!! SISTER!!!!!!” 

“And that’s you!?” He pokes her belly, making her collapse forward, hands on her belly button as she laughs so hard she can barely breathe.

“YEAH! Mommy is having a baby!”

Unexpected buzzing rings through Savannah’s ears as she attempts to stay grounded in the moment. Her hand falls from around Lio’s waist as he swoops Stella up onto his hip again, giving her a big hug. Savannah’s eyes trail away from Stella to Connor who is sharing an adoring look with his wife. Savannah turns to look at Lucie, the mom to be again, who is holding out an ultrasound picture to place in Lio’s extended hand.

And it hits Savannah all over again, as overwhelming as the first time she felt this.

Her and Lio will never get to have this moment in the other direction.

They will never get to hold up an ultrasound picture with their baby growing in Savannah’s body. 

They will never get to cheer and hug and cry excitedly with them about their baby. It will always be someone else’s. 

Never. Hers. 

A tidal wave of grief Savannah hasn’t experienced in a long time rushes at her. A sob gets caught in her throat. Stella looks over Lio’s shoulder at her, confused.

“Auntie! Did you see!?” Instinctually, Savannah nods, licking her lips. Her eyes drift to Lio and there it is: the pity. And the worry. And the ‘are you okay?’ In his eyes that makes her want to throw up. She looks away quickly. 

“I’m…” Lucie starts then fades off, looking at Lio with concern. “I’m sorry, I know this is probably hard to hear for you. We wanted to tell you privately in consideration…”

“No! What? No, absolutely not! Please don’t apologize. I am so happy for you! We are so happy for you! That’s all I feel right now. So happy.” She finishes with a whisper, rounding the counter to give Lucie a hug. The two women collapse together. Lucie hugs Savannah hard, making it increasingly difficult for Savannah to keep all of her feelings locked away in her chest.

“You’re okay?” Lucie asks quieter, just between the two of them.

“Stop worrying about me. Congratulations! When are you due?” 

“September 3rd.”

“Long, hot summer mama.” Savannah smiles like she can relate somehow. But she can’t and won’t.

“Yeah. I didn’t learn from last time.” 

“How are you feeling?”

“I was so sick until about a week ago. Still tired though. And then as you saw, I have the best support system in my husband, so loving and wonderful, as he makes fun of me for it!” Connor laughs.

“You know I’m teasing you, baby.” 

“I grow his child; he gives me crap for sleeping…” Lucie smirks, watching as Connor narrows his eyes at her.

“You know I take care of you.” He says, pressing his palms flat on the stone of their kitchen island. He sets his gaze on her, challenging his wife to say otherwise in front of company. 

“Yes, you do. Couldn’t do this without you.” She murmurs truthfully. 

“I should have brought champagne.” Savannah says, then looks down at her glass of red wine to continue collecting herself. 

“How about when she is born you bring me some in the hospital? Sneak it in for me.” Lucie smiles assuringly at her. 

“Another girl?” Lio gapes at Connor. “You are so fuc- well you know what.” Lio corrects himself to avoid having to pay up to Stella’s Swear Jar. Connor widens his eyes and nods. He holds up two fingers then circles towards Lucie. Yeah two Lucie’s will be an exciting life for the Wood’s.

The group moves forward, discussing the various topics that come up when you find out a new baby is joining the pack. Mack, David, and Sophie don’t know yet, so Lio and Savannah agree to keep it quiet until told otherwise. Savannah tries to participate in the daydreaming about what is to come for their little family, but her heart isn’t in it.

It’s on the floor, shattered like glass, ready for another round of glue and duct tape whenever she can gather the courage to put herself back together again.

[tmnt-obsessed]

Amnesiac Patient: Chapter 1 | Bay!Donatello x Fem!Reader

Okie this is going to be my first series! Yay!! I hope everyone is just as excited for this journey as I am! This has not been proofread, don't come at me.

Warnings: Talk of marijuana, hinting of kidnapping and human trafficking, severe injuries

~

You glanced at the time on your cell phone, chewing at your lip as you looked back up at the very dark parking lot of your shit job. You suddenly wished you had a backbone to tell your coworker that no, you were not “cool with closing for him”. Especially since you knew he was just going to smoke some of the “devil’s lettuce” with his friends and not be there for his sister who was “giving birth like right now.” How? You may have overheard -eavesdropped- in on that call with said friends not even ten minutes prior. Thinking back, does he even have a sister?

No, that's hardly important. You’ve dug your grave already and now you must lay in it. Man, is it difficult though. The dark creeping at the edges of what light is illuminating from the old shitty LED light poles of the parking lot is already making you feel uneasy and a bit queasy if you’re being honest.  

How are you expected to walk home when you don’t even want to walk across the parking lot? You steal your nerves, carefully fitting what keys you do have on your keyring between your fingers and slipping the other hand in your bag to fiddle with the small, bedazzled can of pepper spray your mom gave you for Christmas “just in case”, and begin your trek home. 

You can feel your nerves fraying with each step, constantly on the lookout for anything odd or out of the ordinary. Being extra cautious around alley entrances, and crossing the street when anyone threatens your path. Other women be damned! You heard stories of some luring other women into traps. You aren’t taking any chances.

You’re rounding out around a particular alley entrance; ensuring there is space between you and a potential criminal if they were to be lurking within. Pausing when you see a figure laying on the ground, unmoving. It’s.. kind of human shaped? Honestly it’s hard to see anything from where you are standing in the warm glow of a street lamp. The dark of the alley way twisting your gut uncomfortably. 

You’ve heard of this too. People pretending to be hurt in order to lure kind, empathetic dumb girls into traps… 

Girls like you unfortunately. Your heart is far too big for your body, therefore making a home on your sleeve instead. You know better, in fact everything in you is screaming in you to just run, but that small voice in the back of your head whispers “But what if they die when you could have helped them? Can you live with yourself if they die when you could have done something?”

No, you could not live with yourself knowing you left someone to die. You would feel as if you killed them.

Gripping your pepper spray a bit tighter, you step closer to the alley and further from the false safety of the street light.

“Um.. are you alright?” You hesitantly call out. Chewing on your lip when there is no response. 

You really shouldn’t be doing this.. But you're stepping further into the alleyway, your gut really churring when you realize you’re completely surrounded by the dark. Gripping the pepper spray so tight you just know you’re going to have dozens of gem shaped indents in your hand for a few minutes once you actually let go. 

Creeping closer to the person, but.. the closer you get the less human they look. In fact if you didn’t know any better you’d say they aren’t human.

Once you’re practically on top of them you’re freezing up, your mouth is going dry, and your blood is running cold, and what the FUCK is that?!?! Is it a that?! Is it an IT?! Obviously you don’t know better because whatever they are it’s most certainly not human!

Are they an alien? What else could they be?? God is there like a secret species the government is withholding from us and this is it? What are you even supposed to do? Are they even alive? If they're seriously injured they should go to the hospital, but you doubt they could just waltz right in. Should you call the police? God but what if they are alive and have to spend the rest of it in a lab being poked and prodded? They may not be human, but that doesn’t mean they deserve something like that. Nothing alive does. 

You take a deep breath, hand leaving the pepper spray to drag down your face. Okay, deep breaths and one step at a time. You should make sure they’re alive before getting ahead of yourself. Couching down to try and find a pulse, or a breath, anything to signal life really.

Surprised to find a jugular artery, even more to see their chest rising and falling. They’re oddly.. human like. The more you scrutinize the more you realize they are an odd mix of turtle and human and… male looking. As your eyes further adjust you also realize they’re quite badly beaten up. Scraps, cuts, forming bruises, you name it he’s got it.

Chewing on your lip once more -honestly a bad habit that should be broken one day- you think what to do next. He obviously needs medical attention but he can’t just waltz into an ER like you could. It’d literally cause public wide panic. The police are out of the question as you can already envision in a cell in some fancy, unescapable government lab. But you can’t just leave him here. 

So.. what do you do with him?

You sigh and glance around. You see some old forgotten tarp, and glance back toward the unconscious man in need of serious medical attention. You may only be a medical student, but you seem to be this only man’s hope.

Thus you spend the next thirty minutes doing your best to get the man and all of his suspected personal items on the tarp -which is what leads you to believe he has some kind of higher intelligence considering the item. Then the next twenty finding random items to pile on and around him. Hoping to the high heavens if someone sees you trying, and likely failing, to pull this tarp of items they’ll believe you to be a hoarder taking your loot home and not someone hiding a very alienated and injured man beneath. 

You struggle pulling him along the sidewalk towards your apartment. Often slipping against the pavement which resulted in a scraped knee, or straight up tripping which you know is going to leave you bruised and sore. A couple times the thought of just leaving him crossed your mind, but it quickly made your heart squeeze uncomfortably with guilt and a twinge of sadness, and so you pressed on each time.

Once you finally dragged him into the small living room of your less than favorable apartment, your whole body was numb and you just knew you’d feel the consequences of pulling the very large man in the morning.. Well evening considering you still have work to do and it’s already.. 1:30am

Ugh you wanted nothing more than the comfort of the you shaped dent in your bed, but this man most certainly wouldn’t make it til morning without medical attention. All the work you’ve put in so far to protect and help this man would not be for not, so you’re getting to work.

Clearing the trash from his body and piling it up off to the side-you’d clean it later- before heading off to grab everything you’d need to patch him up good as new. Or what you think new would be for him. 

Setting the supplies besides him as you set up. Disinfecting items with alcohol and donning a pair of gloves onto your hands to avoid contact with his bodily fluids before being first aid.

“Sorry for dragging you here in garbage, I just couldn’t risk anyone seeing you..” 

Why you’re even talking to him is a mystery, he’s obviously out cold. Although if he’s just paralyzed in his own body, like sleep paralysis, he might be scared. You know you would be in his shoes.

“I’m just going to clean and cover these wounds, and then I’ll be out of your hair- a well.. I won't be bothering you further.” You find yourself feeling embarrassed for a mistake he might not even hear or remember.

As you're cleaning him up, you are covering his wounds with butterfly strips, bandades, or bandages depending on the severity, you find yourself frowning at the large bump on his head. You check to see if his eyes dilate and they do, but only slightly which is concerning, but it doesn’t seem as if he had a concussion, brain damage, or bleeding with that fact. Although it doesn’t necessarily mean entirely rule it out.

You really hope that’s just a bump and not something serious. You are not equipped for that educationally nor do you have to correct tools and resources. Honestly you’re hoping all these wounds are superficial and need stitches at the max. Stitches you are equipped to handle. 

As you work you can't see anything else too disheartening -that being broken bones or internal bleeding. Several cuts that needed stitches, but other than that he’s looking pretty good.

Once you have him all cleaned and patched up, you move on to make the floor as comfortable as possible for him. Adoring him with pillows, and since you notice he was a bit chiller to the touch like, plenty of blankets. Then you set out to clean up the many first aid supplies you dragged out -along with that garbage pile you really didn’t feel like cleaning up.

Sagging when the clock showed 5:57am. You’re so exhausted, you’d be surprised if you woke up before 2pm tomorrow. Heading for your room and just plopping on your bed. You don’t even care that you’re wearing your work clothes, you’ll just clean your sheets tomorrow.

You let out a small, relieved sigh but find yourself looking towards your living room even if you can't see it. Or rather towards him, since that’s the real reason for your wandering eyes but you shake your head. You’ve done what you could and will check on him in the morning..

But you find yourself continuing to think about him. It's plaguing your brain and causing you to toss and turn.

What if he's still dying even after everything you did? God what if he wakes up scared and confused and tries to run away? What if he's secretly like evil and steals everything in your apartment before running away? There isn't much worth stealing but...

After enough time with these thoughts you sigh, collect a pillow and blanket before walking back into the living room and setting up on the couch.

"Night big guy. Hopefully you'll be alive and awake in the morning.." You say even though he still likely can't hear you -or speak English now that you think about it. Shaking your head and laying down.

For your own personal comfort, your hand slips to the floor and your fingers natural find the pulse on his wrist. Relieved it feels a bit stronger than before. With that thought, and the reminder he is very much alive pulsing against your fingers, you drift off easily into sleep.

~

Soooo, who's excited for the part two? *Que horribly wiggled eyebrows*

[paintingpuff]

Ooh the backstory for the comic sounds so cool! Could you maybe post the short story?

Sure, I'll put it under the cut!

Keep in mind the comic is an adaptation so the story had to go through some changes.

File info says this was made during quarantine which definitely explains why I can't remember writing it

My sister--and most people in our village, in fact--think that my child is not my own. One would assume it was because of the incident a month after my daughter’s birth, where I walked into her room only to find a fairy flying out the window, a bundle in her arms. 

But that’s not why my sister thinks my daughter is fae, because I didn’t tell anyone about that incident. Instead, my sister says it’s because my child is acting odd. It’s a logic I can’t understand, since all children are strange to me. 

I love the way they approach the world with a mix of naivete and eagerness. I’ve even met children that don’t realize that a scrape or scratch is supposed to hurt until you look alarmed. They have no understanding of common sense, because everything they do is for the first time in their life. They’re honest, harsh, and innocent in a manner that is gradually clogged up with new responsibilities and knowledge as they grow older.

Their world is limited, and as such they completely permeate it. It’s fragile and destructive in a way I don’t think can be replicated, not after that window of early childhood has passed.

I see it in every child, and my daughter does not seem any more unusual. But my sister insists that there is a difference, and shakes her head whenever she thinks it’s relevant. 

 My child has broken the table. Not much, she just jumped on the top one too many times and its leg splintered. I’m not going to get it replaced, or get it fixed, or at least not immediately.

She got in a fight with some other children in town, they said something that she just couldn’t understand and she lashed out with a stick. The other kid only had a red mark on his skin from the impact, at least. 

My daughter hates being around others, and spends most of her time back home, where it’s quiet. I once tried taking her to the market and she broke down crying, sitting in the middle of the road. I consoled her there, crouching in the dirt path, and tried ignoring the judgemental stares from people passing by. She would rather spend hours on end at the edge of the forest. I don’t let her explore on her own, and when I’m gone the others say she always stands just before the trees become too dense and stares off, wistfully.

She’s a picky eater, but a very hungry one. I can’t find a consistent set of taste, and each new meal feels like a gamble of my time, but I have to take those chances because I can’t have her eating only eggs and milk for each meal of the day.

She doesn’t like being touched, reacts to my fingers as if they’ve given her rashes, and for the longest time I felt lost because I didn’t know how else to comfort her. 

(I found my ways eventually. When she gets upset, I take my grandmother’s woolen scarf from its rack and wrap her in it. She loves running her hands along the threads.)

After long days of gathering food and walking from errand to errand I’m woken up in the middle of the night by her, and we both struggle to go back to sleep from her nightmares. When she was a baby she wailed as loud as she could, because she knew doing that would bring me to her. Now I’m afraid that I won’t hear her and she’ll think I left her alone on purpose. My friends comment on the bags under my eyes always getting darker. I know they’re trying to remind me that it’s a bad thing.

They call her a changeling, something that has replaced my real baby. The child I gave birth to is out in those woods, the stories say, maybe dancing with fairies or being sacrificed to the devil. But in the meantime, they say I am left with a parasitical replica, a creature that saps me of my energy, food and time. 

I sometimes wonder if they’ve ever had a child before.

I do my best to brush off the people in town, but my sister is more insistent. I know she’s just being protective since my husband’s passing, but something snapped in me with the way she spoke. I yelled that the stories of the fae were all hogwash, and she asked me how I could be so sure. So I told her the truth:

I had already seen the fairy.

I had returned home early from the market, and had seen my daughter sitting at the edge of the forest, like always. Her hand was raised to the air, a single finger stretched parallel to the ground. This didn’t seem out of the ordinary to me, and I was about to head back inside and prepare dinner, when I saw a flicker of movement. 

A tiny sparrow emerged from behind a tree, and settled on my daughter’s finger.

It was difficult to see her face from my angle, but just from the outline of her cheeks I could tell she was grinning from ear to ear. The bird whistled to her, and the child gave a raspy, unpracticed melody in response. She moved her hand around carefully, not wanting to startle the bird, but a part of me knew that something as simple as a jolt wouldn’t make the bird go away. 

The bird was only there for a few minutes before it took off and vanished back into the forest. So my child sat up, stained in green but not caring, and ran back to the house. I entered shortly afterwards, acting casual. She didn’t know I saw her, and she didn’t tell me about the bird then, so I can only wonder how many times the bird had come before. 

Still, gradually the two of us came to a common understanding: she figured out I knew about the bird,  and I knew that she knew.

I hadn’t fully realized we’d had this agreement until my daughter stepped into my house, sharp distress twisting her face. She raised her tiny fingers to show blood spilled on them, but not from any wound of her own. She told me the bird had been missing feathers, had perched on her finger with only one leg, and its song was weaker than before. Her bird calls had already greatly improved, so she imitated the bird’s pained song for me, just to make sure I understood.

She wanted to follow the bird into the woods, see that it’s alright. I crouched down with the scarf, wrapped her in it, and told her that I would find the bird myself. 

So I wandered through the dark woods, the sun already starting to set, a torch in hand and a cloak on my shoulders. I heard a whistling in the woods, and the melody rangs familiar. The bird was still singing, and it didn't sound any weaker, but my daughter has always been more attentive to details; I trusted her. 

I kept walking, kept following the bird, and for brief flickers in the treetops I saw flaps of wings. It was flying slower than usual. It ducked behind a tree, and when I stepped around to keep my eye on the bird, I saw a child. 

It was not my child, but another little girl of a similar age, one with brown hair closer to my own than my daughter’s fiery red. Patterns were dotted across her arms like that of a sparrow’s wings, but her skin was also spotted with bruises and scratches, twigs and leaves and mud in her hair and stuck to her body. She didn't seem to be in pain, and I wondered if anyone had told her that those scratches are supposed to hurt. She hugged the tree, perhaps as a shield or perhaps as comfort. 

I crouched down, and kept my voice quiet. “Hello.”

She stepped back a little, keeping her eyes off of me. 

“Are you the one who plays with my daughter?”

More silence. I swallowed, my throat already dry. “She considers you a very good friend.”

“She’s my best friend.”

The girl’s voice was rough and unused, but that similar constriction in my chest came when I heard it, and I fully realized that this is just another kid I was talking to. I told her what people call me. The girl gave no response, but I could tell that she was relaxing. 

“Are you a fairy?”

The girl nodded. “I can turn into a bunch of different animals.”

“Oh? Like what?” 

“A cat, and....a dog, and, uh...I’m a sparrow a lot.”

“Do you like flying around?”

To my surprise, the girl shook her head. She told me she likes landing on my daughter’s finger. “I like singing with her,” she said. 

I asked her why she doesn’t transform into different animals to do so much more, and the girl looked at me with the most genuine and honest confusion I’ve seen. She didn’t understand the other options, because this was the only one that mattered to her. Her scope was so small, but she embraced it so wholly that I couldn’t be upset. “Are your injuries okay?” I asked instead. 

There was a slight bob of her head, one I almost didn’t see in the dark. “They’ll get healed up.” She pointed over her shoulder to a small ring of mushrooms behind her. I know a fairy circle when I see one, and I nodded in understanding. I left her to vanish in the fog of that forest. 

I returned home to my daughter and told her the bird is okay, and will come again tomorrow. She didn’t make a relieved expression or gesture, but gave a very quiet and polite “Thank you,” so I know that she was grateful. 

Some of the townsfolk think I’ve had my real child switched with an anomaly, a magic changeling. When I first met the bird, I thought that perhaps she was the changeling that was supposed to replace my child.

But whenever the bird appeared again, I made sure to leave some bread and milk for her, as well as leave our window open, in case she ever needed to rest at our home. My child came to me, wanting to sew a pillow for the bird to sleep on. The snacks I left out became more and more elaborate, from a small bit of porridge to pieces of a cake. Some days I would wake in the morning early enough to see that bird curled up in the roughly made pillow of my daughter’s.

I didn’t even think twice before I moved the pillow to my child’s room, setting it next to her head. I watched her and the bird snore peacefully, and I watched as the bird’s feathers slowly retracted and its silhouette expanded in the faint morning light. 

It wasn’t until I saw the two children, holding each other tightly under the warm blankets and roof of their shared house, did I realize that both I and the townsfolk were wrong. 

No child of mine had been replaced, nor were they meant to. I simply had two daughters.

[topguncortez]

Over the Rainbow | Rooster & Dragon

Opposites Attract Masterlist

synopsis: A monarch butterfly, and mourning. The Bradshaws begin the path of moving on and creating a family. The beginning of 'Over the Rainbow' series

word count: 900

warnings: pregnancy, still birth, grief, angst

The night was cool as you sat on the beach with your toes in the sand. The sun had just set, the earth still somewhat light with a faint purple in the sky. The ocean was hitting gently against the sand, a cool sea breeze rolling off and wrapping around you. You could hear the sounds of the patrons in the Hard Deck, one of them being your husband.

You had learned that his callsign was more than a nod to his father, but for the way he would preen around the Hard Deck like a bird with their feathers fluffed out. Usually, you’d be right by him, being the little devil on his shoulder and encouraging it, but tonight was just too much. 

Everything today reminded you of her. Everything. 

From the smell of the lavender tea Rooster made for breakfast. To the monarch butterfly that landed on your car door. Everywhere you looked there seemed to be something that made you think of her. Not that you didn’t think about her on a daily basis, some days were just worse than others.

You felt a body come sit down next to you, and didn’t even have to look to know who it was. The Hard Deck had gone a bit quieter since his presence was missing. Bradley put his arm around you and kissed your temple. The two of you sat in silence for a moment, just enjoying the warmth radiating off one another, until he spoke up, his eyes transfixed on the stars above him. 

“I saw a monarch today,” Bradley said, and you closed your eyes. “Landed right on the tip of my jet, and just sat there, opening its wings several times before flying away.” 

“I saw one today too,” You said and looked at your husband. He gave you a small smile, tears in his eyes as he leaned down to kiss you. He pulled away but kept his forehead resting against yours, “She would be six months old today.” 

“She would be,” He nodded. Your hand rested on his chest above his heart, where you knew that the thin cursive line tattoo resided. 

Ida May 

Ida May Bradshaw. 

The beautiful baby girl who was brought to this earth sleeping. 

After struggling and losing a baby with just trying to convenience naturally, you and Bradley decided to give IVF a go. You found a great doctor in the area that Val Machado had recommended. Doctor Josephine Miller, aka ‘Doctor Miracle’ had given you the greatest gift you had ever asked for. She said sometimes it was hard to get pregnant on the first round, but you and Bradley had gotten lucky. Everything had been fine, you were healthy, the baby was healthy. You and Bradley had just had your gender reveal party, when you collapsed at home that night. He called 9-1-1 immediately and never left your side, having to have hospital security physically remove him while the doctors aided you. 

Late term miscarriage. 

It had broken you and Bradley into pieces. You had never seen him so sad except for the night that you lost your first baby. He sat on your bed and held you in his arms as Doctor Miller told you the prognosis. She told you that there was nothing that you did that caused this, that sometimes it just happens. That the baby was somehow not compatible with life. Bradley had been your rock yet again, as you were induced that early morning, went through a fourteen hour labor, to give birth to your sleeping angel. He had come up with her name. 

“I saw it on a list that my mother had written when she was pregnant with me. She circled it a bunch of times.” 

Ida May 

On the day you found out you were pregnant with her, a monarch butterfly had landed right on your hand as you sat in the backyard. Rooster had cried, telling you that it was a sign from his mother, who had loved the butterfly. When you laid Ida to rest, the two of you released two monarchs into the world. And anytime you felt like you missed her, or needed a sign that she was alright, a monarch seemed to land right by you. 

“I think we should try again,” You whispered, “I. . . I have been thinking about it and then today. . . the monarch-” 

“Me too,” Bradley agreed, taking his hands in yours, “I would like to try again, too. Only if you-” 

“I want to,” You nodded your head, tears starting to roll down your cheeks, “I want to try again, but god, Bradley. . . What if I forget about her? What if I have a baby and forget all-” 

“You won’t, honey, you will never forget Ida. Moving on can be terrifying, I mean, I was terrified to sell my mom’s house, or to move out on my own. But starting over is apart of the grieving process,” You hated that Bradley knew so much about the grieving process, but there was no one better for you to have by your side than someone who was well versed in the art of grieving, “I think today, Ida was telling us that it’s alright. It felt like-” 

“Closure.” 

Bradley nodded. You looked back to the ocean and took a deep breath. Having a family with Bradley was all you had been dreaming about these past couple weeks. You wanted to make him happy. You wanted him to have a chance to be a dad. You wanted the chance to be a mom, yourself. You looked back at your husband, and grabbed his hand, bringing it up to your face and kissing the palm gently. 

“Let’s have another baby.”

sign up for "Over the Rainbow" Baby Series taglist :) posting every Sunday

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[cherryanony]

IN DEFENSE OF ELENA GILBERT: Why Do Yall Hate Emotional Women?

Vampire Diaries - Elena Gilbert pictured doing nothing wrong

HUMBLE BEGINNINGS

I started watching The Vampire Diaries back in 2016, right as it was coming to its long overdue close. To say I was obsessed was an understatement.

I would spend hours, days, WEEKS, consuming fan content, rewatching episodes and scenes over and over agin, discussing stupid plot points and writing descions that were made and throughout all of that one question has always dangled over my head...

Why does everybody hate Elena Gilbert?

Despite The Vampires Diaries being a dark supernatural teen drama filled to the brim with freaks & weirdos, murderers, psychopaths, evil forces and THE ACTUAL LITERAL DEVIL... Elena Gilbert reigns as the most hated character on the show by viewers.

But, why?

Elena Gilbert starts off the show as a 17 year old teenage girl who just experienced some of the craziest trauma any person, let alone TEENAGER, could ever go through. She was in the car with her parents when they died off Wickory Bridge and now suffers from a serious case of survivors guilt, a trait and mo motif she struggles with and must come to terms with throughout the show.

She falls for two vampire brothers who bring nothing but more hell into her life, she finds out she's adopted, her birth mother is a vampire and a piece of shit, her birth father is her insane negligent Uncle John, she's lost more loved ones than one can count over and over again, and she's constantly paranoid and never safe because she's a doppleganger with special blood that many dangerous supernatural creatures want.

"But she's whinyyy and a crybabyyy😩..."

As if one of her friends or family aren't on the brink of death every episode. Elena didn't do enough crying if we're being honest.

Elena is by no means a perfect, innocent character. A lot of people are right about her flaws; she can be very selfish with a what-about-me & and look-at-me-this-isn't-you complex and she's constantly getting away with a lot shit since she's the main character. And a lot people say she never faces any consequences but.... she does.... and it's called...

VAMPIRE!ELENA

THAT'S IT! That's where everyone says her character went completely wrong, her character completely falls apart. But I'd argue that Vampire!Elena is a culmination of all her descions coming back to bite her in the ass.

Throughout S1-3, Elena struggles with survivors guilt. She should've gone off the bridge with her parents. She's depressed, she's moody, she's "whiny" all while feeling like the supposed "love of her life" is trying to "fix her" when she's not ready.

In season 4 episode 10, Elena clearly states that Stefan looks at her like she's a broken toy that needs to be fixed. I could go on a whole rant on what I think Stefan's problems are but to sum it all up — Stefan turned into a vampire at 17 years old — a teenager — and spends his entire vampire life struggling with his heightened personality and his Ripper Gene which led him down a path to losing everyone he's ever loved.

(He killed his own abusive father, lost his best friend due to his own brother who he forced to turn with him and now wants him dead after a wedge is driven between them.)

I say all that to say I get Stefan's character. He's scared and insecure, similar to Elena, to be alone and lose everyone he cares about. However, all of his efforts to better himself and relationships only drives people away. People bring up Damon killing Elena's brother, Jeremy, all the time

(again.. HE WAS WEARING THE GILBERT RING! HE'S FINE! YOU DON'T ACTUALLY GIVE A FUCK ABOUT JEREMY, NOBODY DOES!)

But NOBODY talks about Stefan endangering Jeremy and almost getting him killed by forcing him to continue the Hunter's Mark because he thought Elena being human again would make her be in love with him again. (sorry but that's fucking insane😭😭😭!!)

Stefan wasn't only afraid of losing Elena, he was also afraid of losing her to his brother. All these efforts drove Elena away, right into the arms of the person he wanted to keep her away from.

I think Elena felt as if Stefan was just like everyone else who wanted "the old Elena" back. The person that Elena use to be before the accident that the show alludes to in the first season. But that Elena is dead and gone, she'll never be the same person she was before going off that bridge. Apart of her died that night and again when she went off the bridge for the second time and became a vampire.

Elena struggles with being a vampire and basically dying twice and instead of being supportive Stefan immediately wants to fix and change her. Damon is the only one she feels free and alive with. A statement Elena makes herself throughout the show. Despite the stupid discourse over the Sire Bond, Damon was the one she felt the safest with after that plotline was resolved.

But enough about comparing those brothers, this is about ELENA! You know who she gets compared to..?

KATHERINE

KATHERINE IS A LOSER!

Before you raise your pitchforks, I love Katherine. Great character, great villain, but she's a loser!

People LOVE to compare Katherine and Elena!

"Katherine's such a badass and Elena is a whiny crybaby." But I would argue the opposite.

See Katherine's backstory here, despite everything Katherine's been through, the show makes a point that while, yes, Katherine is a survivor, she's also an avoidant runner. She spends 500 years running from the big bad Klaus and once he fianlly lets her go she continues torture, manipulate, and harrass people.

She continues her streak of only whining and complaining about the life she never had because of the things that happened to her, which... fair!

However, despite being given several chances with a romance with Elijah, a life with her daughter as a mother, all the people she's ever wronged helping her and forgiving her on her death bed, taking over Elena's body and essentially starting over in a new life and even being THE QUEEN OF HELL... it was never enough. Nothing was ever enough for Katherine.

She was given many chances to change, to finally LIVE HER LIFE but she chose to continue down her path of destruction. Which, in my opinion, is fine for her character! LET KATHERINE BE THE SAD AND TRAGIC CHARACTER SHE IS! She doesn't have to be some anti-hero badass.

The contrast of Katherine and Elena, two girls who had their lives and innocence stolen from them at a young age thanks to tragic events out of their control and two vampire brothers, is great and executed as well as TVD writing could do (infamously known for shitty writing and plot holes but I digress).

The pieces to the K/E puzzle were so obviously placed, Katherine who was jealous of Elena living the life she never got, chose the path of selfishness and power, and Elena chose the path of love and regrowth and not letting her past define her.

But viewers missed the big picture. Katherine is a survivor but where did that get her? Dead and unloved. Besides freedom from Klaus, she didn't get a single thing she desired. Not a life with Stefan or Elijah or as a mother with her daughter or as Elena Gilbert or Queen of Hell! No! She lost everything and blamed Elena. SHE LOST! SHE'S A LOSER!

She survived, but she didn't live.

In my opinion, Elena is the real survivor. She didn't let her past consume and lead her to a similar fate as Katherine. She chose to be selfless and to love again after being hurt.

She chose to be alive.

SO BACK TO THE PROMPT....

Why do y'all hate emotional women?

"Elena has experienced more grief than anyone I've ever met." - Sherrif Liz Forbes

Every character has went through a lot and have done similar, if not worst, things as Elena as a result yet she's the most hated character?

There's a pattern of fans hating certain female characters who are more sensitive and cry instead of bury their feelings and just punch a man and suddenly get crowned "Most Badass Female Character". Characters, not just female, expressing their emotions is strong and badass and might inspire audiences to do the same and not keep grief in and become self destructive. It's healthy and natural and makes the character not so one note.

It's not fair to compare Elena's trauma and experiences to other characters (espically not Bonnie, that's topic for a whole other post). But why do other characters get a pass despite being ten times more flawed and problematic?

Why are certain characters able to cry, complain, self destruct, fuck someone over, etc but Elena can't?

Genunine question.. let's discuss...

-*- I wasn't able to fully delve into my thoughts on Elena and certain TVD characters, plot points, theme, etc because this post will be 50 pages long. This is the brief version.

***There will be a part 2 to this post where I delve deeper into the trend of hating characters like Elena.

[dailyunsolvedmysteries]

List of bad luck signs

Breaking a mirror is said to bring seven years of bad luck

Spilling salt

A bird or flock of birds going from left to right

Certain numbers:

The number 4. Fear of the number 4 is known as tetraphobia; in Chinese, Japanese, and Korean languages, the number sounds like the word for "death".

The number 9. Fear of the number 9 is known as enneaphobia, in Japanese culture; this is because it sounds like the Japanese word for "suffering".

The number 13.

The number 17, it is prominent in Italian culture.

The number 39. Fear of the number 39 is known as the curse of 39, especially in Afghan culture.

The number 43. In Japanese culture, maternity wards numbered 43 are considered taboo, as the word for the number means "still birth".

The number 666. Fear of the number 666. Per Biblical prophesy, the "Number of "The Beast", is an evil takeover of humanity worldwide. Also called the "Mark of the Beast", wherein all humans will have it on their forehead or hand.

Friday the 13th (in Spain, Greece, and Georgia: Tuesday the 13th)

Failing to respond to a chain letter

Giving a clock as a gift in Chinese culture, as in Chinese, to give a clock (Chinese: 送鐘/送钟; pinyin: sòng zhōng) has the same pronunciation as "sending off for one's end"

Hanging a horseshoe with the ends pointing down, as it is believed that the luck will 'fall out'

Opening an umbrella while indoors

On the Isle of Man, rats are referred to as "longtails" as saying "rat" is considered bad luck

Navajo culture:

pointing at a rainbow

throwing rocks into the wind

a coyote crossing one's path heading north

an owl flying over a house.

Placing chopsticks straight up in a bowl of rice in Chinese and Japanese culture is reminiscent of food offerings left for the dead.

Ravens, crows and magpies

Saying the word "Macbeth" or wishing someone "Good Luck" while inside a theatre. The substitutions "The Scottish Play" and "Break a leg" are used instead.

Shoes on a table

Placing a hat on a bed 

Three on a match

Viewing one's doppelgänger may be considered a harbinger of bad luck

Killing a ladybug

Walking under a ladder

Black cat crossing one's path

Picking up a penny with the tails side up 

Seeing a lone magpie (one for sorrow)

Having 13 people sit at a table (the first one to stand will be the first to die)

Crossing on the stairs

It is considered as ill-omen that a rabbit may pass in front of a car

Nails cannot be cut at night

Whistling at night, for the person who whistles is said that they are calling the Devil

A bird’s knocking on the window with its beak is the sign of news to be received.

A person who sees a girl child in his/her dream receives bad news.

[astrologicalwarrior]

The Wanderer Series

On the 12th hour of the first day of October 1989, 43 women around the world gave birth. This was unusual only in the fact that none of these women had been pregnant when the day first began. Sir Reginald Hargreeves, eccentric billionaire and adventurer,  resolved to locate and adopt as many of the children as possible.

He got seven of them.

On October 1st, 1989, Anabell Nicholson woke up feeling the same as she always did. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, the sun was shining as it always did. The leaves swayed in the wind as usual. It was a normal Sunday, so Anabell proceeded to her routine as usual. She stretched before swinging her legs over the edge of the bed. She stood and walked to the bathroom to get ready for her day.  Anabell took the same path she always did to church. She entered the same church she always did. She praised the Lord with the same devotion as usual. At 11:58 AM she stood as always to approach the front. At 11:59 she turned to face the priest as usual. At 12:00 PM she dropped to the floor clutching her now round belly in pain. Now that was unusual.

 On October 1st 1989, Tabitha took her first breath and screamed. 

Since then she never stopped.

Since the day she was born, Tabitha’s mother knew there was something different about her. For starters, the fact that Tabitha was even born was unbelievable and quite frankly, impossible. As a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Anabelle firmly believed in no sex before marriage, so imagine her surprise when in the middle of Sunday's sacrament she gave birth to a baby girl with bright blue eyes. 

It’s not that Anabell did not want to be a mother, she just did not plan to be a 21 year old unmarried virgin mother but she believed that this was God’s will. So when an older gentleman named Sir Reginald Hargreeves offered her thousands of dollars for her child, she declined. The thought of selling her miracle child that the Lord blessed her with seemed like an ultimate disrespect. Instead she decided to raise the young girl, with the help of her church, to be a good God fearing woman. 

She tried her best. Lord she really did but when Tabitha hit the age of 4 and her eyes started to glow she started to question if this child was really a gift from God or a curse from the Devil himself. She tried to ignore the gold glow of her eyes, she tried to rationalize when that same glow started to appear on the young girl's hand. She could not ignore when that same glow appeared in others eyes when Tabitha was around, how those that were affected by the same glow that Tabitha possessed would then seem to be under Tabitha’s command. She did the only thing she could think of to help her child. She called a priest.

Tabitha remembers the day she turned 9 like it happened yesterday. She remembers the feel of the rope around her wrist and ankles. The way her drenched hair was plastered to her forehead after the priest threw the holy water. The way she screamed for her mother while he yelled at her in a language she did not understand. She remembered how dry her mouth was, the way that her bones ached from being kept in the same position for days. She remembers the relife she felt once she was released. At 16 she finds herself in the same predicament except this time, she snaps.

coming soon...

Series

nothing yet...

Drabbles

nothing yet...

message me to be added to the tag list!

[froggybrainz]

Lore update

This one is gonna be a long one, but I really like world building, especially when I get to work from the ground up and come up with my own universe. So, after some intense thinking, I think I got it.... For the most part, it is the same. I just wanted to work on it a bit and do more storytelling.

So Terra (new earth) was made as an escape plan and last ditch effort for Entity (The Red Devil) in hopes of regaining power through becoming a god of the new world they created. Although this stunt had drained Entity significantly, they were able to finally able to leave their old form and take refugee on Terra in the form of an asteroid. Killing the dinos and starting new life blah blah blah, I'm going into detail about history....

(For more context, Entity is my version of Satan, and when they were casted into hell, they made an escape plan so as not to rott away in their eternity)

Millions of years go by as early humans enter the Stone Age. The meteorite starts to oze out a strange back substance that then contaminates a nearby lake, and the first known anomalies are birthed from the dark surface below. This area later on becomes known as the Garden, home of the Cult of the Chosen. Anomalies during this time are harmless but curious, oftentimes scaring early humans and creating uncanny valley as they try and mimic their hairy friends.

Around 900 AD, a giant red anomaly emerged from within the meteorite before disappearing. Artwork from this time shows the giant being surrounded by shadow like figures. Famished, Entity later went on a killing spre eating both human and leaser anomalies in their path.

The name Red Devil was given to Entity by the people of the Dark ages as they feared them for the destruction that was often left behind in their wake.

(For the most part, Entity doesn't hate humans. They are a agent of chaos and will do as they please. Humans and leaser anomalies just so happen to be fun to break)

In 1348, while admiring plague ridden Egypt, Entity came across a mother holding a baby. Despite both being long dead, her corpse still held and shaded the infant from the scorching sun. Could it have been that Entity felt an ounce of compassion for this mother and her infant? Taking the dead infant into their arms, Entity bit their thumb and dripped blood into the baby's mouth, and not long the baby began to cough and cry. The baby didn't have a name for a while until he grew a pair of wings that then Entity started calling him Icarus, their lil bird.

The Cult was later on made and grew as word got out about an infant given life again by the red demon. Most were hesitant about following this strange new religion while others sought refugee within the Garden walls in hopes of false promises of power and immortality. Often, some villages were left as a ghost town after the migration to the Garden, destroying families and trade amongst other villages.

In 1356, however, anomalies began having a taste for blood and started attacking many people who weren't submitting to the Cult. This caused war to break loose against humans and the Cult, leading to most of humanity almost being wiped out. Entity not wanting to put an end to humanity just yet. They command the monsters to hide underground, creating the Underworld.

( I like how the underworld in creepypasta was a city filled with monsters and humans alike just co-existing together, but I feel like they would be killing each other there, too. Plus, I feel like the anomalies would be discriminatory against humans as seeing that they're weak).

Centuries go by, and the past gets swept under the rug as the government attempts to control what the people believe, while the SCP Foundation wanted to study and help protect the people, gets portrayed as a whole bunch of loonies in costumes by the government.

Late at night in 1956, on radios across America, an eerie sound was broadcasted on the air of what sounded like whistling. Early that morning police were floading the streets, kids crying as horrified people ran into the streets screaming, saying that someone else was wearing their face. Reports of doppelgangers, boogie men, and murders were printed on both sides of the newspapers.

Due to events, gated communities became really popular, while the demand of public buildings requiring IDs to enter to help prevent more incidents. Rural areas are now considered dangerous at night, and all laws must be followed, including locking and closing the blinds on windows.

( imagine having D.D.D. from the game. That's not my neighbor coming to your block cause your friend forgot their hat at home. Well guess lil Timmy is just gonna have to burn -_-)

[idyllcy]

russian roulette is not the same without a gun

Word count: 12.5k

Warnings: Inspired by Kakegurui, fingering, mentions of giving birth, gambling, guns, collars, reader wears lipstick, Master/doll dynamic, relatively feminine reader

Summary: The path to hell is always tricky, so only the devil knows the right routes. It's not like a mere snake could overtake the devil anyways.

Gambling is an art.

The way the dice rolls, the way the cards fold; everything is a carefully crafted move. Each gifted gambler wears a graceful smile on their face. The next card and move are beyond the reader. That's what makes gambling addictive. The way the white orb spins down the center, sliding into a random slot. The simplest way to drive a man mad with greed. The additional zero after the number, the exhilaration of winning a game. It's a simple game when you master it. But then again, it's addicting.

You stare at the building in front of you.

The rest of the students rush in behind you, and you stare at them silently. You wonder who you'd prey on. Well, it didn't matter. You're not here to do anything. Your family was nothing more than a bankrupt one. You were sent here with no mission. The only mission was to mingle among high society and find a rich guy to get married to. You stare at everyone, wondering who to pick up over your shoulder and steal a fortune off of. A black cat sits on top of the gates, and you're shoved to the side by a white-haired male. You blink at him.

"Ah, L/n, was it?" He stares at you, eyes sneering at you. "I didn't know poor people could come to this school without a housepet tag on them already."

You blink at him. "I'm allowed to call a gamble when I want, right?"

"Yeah," He laughs. "Going to gamble with me?"

You hum lowly, eyes sharp with tantalization. "Maybe another time. I need some quick money to bet before I have you kneel before me, no?"

He tries to argue back, but you're already gone in the school.

That was the first time Komaeda met you.

The second time, your eyes were red with mirth, an amused smile on your face.

Komaeda watches you from the crowd of students, you having made an incredible amount of money from simple betting already. Your fingers are nimble while picking up cards, and you seem to have quite the impressive luck. No. That would be an understatement. You've pulled two straight flushes and three full houses out of the seven hands you've had. A couple of students have considered that you're cheating, but no one was able to prove anything.

You stare at your hand, lips parting in mild surprise. The rest of the students stare at your opponent, sweaty with anxiety, worried about loss. Your nails are a pretty shade of emerald, streaks of gold sliding through the gaps. You stare at them, a smile on your face. Your voice is sweet, but your eyes are looking down on them. Your lips are a dark red, curled into a mesmerizing smile. You haven't bat an eye the entire time you've been playing.

"So?"

"Call." They swallow. There's no way you can beat a straight flush. They place their cards onto the table slowly, your smile widening as they do.

"Oops," you smile menacingly, tossing your hand onto the table. "Royal flush."

"And we have a winner!!!" The girl cheers. "Five Hundred Million Yen!!!"

Your opponent slams their head onto the table in tears. Five hundred million yen. You laugh at their loss, watching your ranking in the school climb to the middle. That would pay off half of the debt your family raked up. You weren't here to marry rich unless you were the rich one. Who would ever settle for a poor person in a school all about connections? You hold your hand out to them, smiling. "It was a lovely game. I hope you recover, kitty."

The election committee member smiles, sliding the chips to you, punching in the new number of your donation. You went from practically nothing to one of the top donors. You feel the chips between your fingers, and you smile. "How lovely! So, how will it be? Cash or cheque?"

Your opponent bares their teeth, lunging at you. You take a step to the side, them falling onto their face. "So?"

"Give me three days," They glare at you.

Komaeda watches you toss the chip in your hand as the election committee throws a housepet chain to the loser. They glare at you, hating the way you won so easily. It wasn't even possible to cheat. They had all the cards marked. How the hell did you even win? Surely someone was telling you the answers. You stare at them, eyes glistening with innocence. "Hm?"

"You dirty cheater! How'd you win? Huh?!"

You place a hand on their shoulder and lower your lips to their ear. "By using an algorithm and taking out every possible outcome based on your expression. Obviously."

You stand back up, and you wave at them, a halo over your head. "Best of luck, kitty!"

Komaeda smiles. You hadn't cheated. You had relied purely on expressions and the cheats the others set out in advance. You're quite the player. He wonders how you'll tear him down from his wealth. You click on your phone, lips pouting at the sight of you only barely in the middle. That wasn't good. If you wanted to regain all of the money your family lost, you would have to work harder than that. But nonetheless, it was an excellent bound to your name. You would get more gambling chances now that you've established your position.

The next game comes in the form of an overconfident child of a rich family.

"I heard you made a mess of Angie-senpai," She smiles at you, holding her hands out. "Ah, you have such nice nails..."

You smile at her. "Really? Thank you! I do them myself."

"Shall we play a game? It's relatively simple." She clasps your hands in hers. "It's called double memory! It's just a memory game with two decks of cards."

"Ah?" You beam. "Of course! I love a good memory game."

"Shall we start with a simple bet? How about 20 million?"

You stare at the two decks of cards, and you lift your fingers to your cheek. You pout. "Ah, I don't know if I have 20 million carried around on me..."

"I can borrow it to you. How about that?"

"Ah? Yes, then," You beam at her. "Please take care of me... sorry, I don't know your name."

"Shirogane-san," She smiles.

"I'll be in your care then, Shirogane-san!" You beam.

The two of you stand at the table, 54 cards spread out. You blink at the cards, and smile at the girl in front of you. Everyone chatters about the new student in class. The student who had destroyed Angie on their first day at school. Everyone wants to watch them play. Something about their pretty golden nails and charming lipstick. The smile of an angel, the hands of a devil. Everyone wants to know when you'll mess up.

Komaeda stands next to you, observing the cards on the table. He wonders if you could win based on pure memory. You seem like you'd be able to. But then again, it wouldn't be something like that. Shirogane's family is well known for producing toys and cosplay outfits. It wouldn't be surprising if she had won by cheating you. That would teach you your place.

You flip a card over.

Ace of Diamond.

You flip the second one over.

Ace of Clubs.

"Ah! How lovely!" You beam. "My tarot readings for the day."

"Excuse me?"

"An ace of diamonds means a gift of jewelry, a letter or message, or improvement," You flip the cards back over. "An ace of clubs means financial fortune, wealth, or good news! That's lovely news for someone whose family is in debt."

The girl ignores you, and she flips her cards.

"King of diamonds," She mumbles and then sighs. "Three of spades. Huh? No luck for me either."

"Ace of spades..." You sigh. "Two of hearts."

"Four of clubs. King of clubs."

"Ace of hearts." Shirogane pouts. "Four of hearts."

The two of you continue flipping. Komaeda's eyes follow your fingers, making mental notes of where each card was. He'd be able to make five pairs by now. He wonders if you know that. Shirogane sure seems to know. The two of you pick and pluck at the cards, mapping everything out. The stems are snipped, the heat is cooled. You finally start creating pairs.

"Ah, an ace of diamond!" You beam. "Now... where was the other one?"

Komaeda watches you scan the table and reach for another card. Your nails are a different color today. The emerald green from yesterday has been replaced with the light green of the marble. Your nails look like the expensive marble found only in roman architecture. The color of your eyes are kind. You blink angelically at the girl. Komaeda watches you flip it over. Ace of diamond.

"That's a point, right?" You smile at the girl.

"Yes," She smiles back at you. "and since you found a match, you can pull again."

"Alright." You reach for another."Now..."

"Ace of clubs!" You beam. "That one is here."

Another pair.

"Ace of hearts," You pause to think where the other one is. No one catches the way you glance at the girl as you reach the cards on the board. She shows no signs of faltering, yet you glimpse at the panic that flashes across her face as you find the right card. "How lucky of me!"

The girl smiles at you.

You pause at the sight of Ace of hearts that you've just flipped over. Komaeda stares at Shirogane smile at you. She's looking down on you. Komaeda is to, to be fair. You had one yesterday's game purely with luck, without an ounce of skill. It would be surprising if you win today. Komaeda supposes that you might not be able to. Maybe then you'd have that pretty chain around your neck.

"Ace of hearts again!" You beam. "Oh, I think I only know the aces... two of clubs."

True to your word, you don't end up with a pair. Shirogane exhales, blue eyes digging into yours. She starts slow. Flipping over the two of clubs you flipped previously, and proceeds to fold over four cards. Your face shows no signs of worry. If anything, you stare at her in awe. The pairs just keep on stacking, and Shirogane smiles at you gracefully. "Ah, ten cards... lady luck herself must be smiling at me right now!"

Your eyes widen in surprise, but your lips make no change in expression. You look happy.

"Please know that if you don't get a pair in your next move, there will be no chance of you winning."

"Mhm!" You beam. "9 of hearts and..."

Your eyes scan the table, fingers tapping your chin. As you play, the green of your nails is starting to look more like yesterday's color. Komaeda thinks he's hallucinating when he catches a brief smirk flash on your face. As fast as the expression was on your face, it quickly disappears. Your lips part as you pick up a random card.

"Oops. It was a ten of diamonds..." You jut out your bottom lip, and Shirogane raises a brow at you.

"Well," She sighs. "It's a shame you lost to someone as plain as me..."

Her fingers work quickly as she creates pairs out of the rest of the cards. Your eyes follow her movements, your lips mumbling quiet whispers to yourself. Komaeda watches your lips move, the gloss on them reflecting the light of the cafeteria. You watch Shirogane finish the last pair, and then sigh in despair.

"Well, newbie? How will you pay?"

"Is one more game possible?" You plead her, eyes wide, begging silently. "I have no money to pay you 20 million yen..."

Komaeda scoffs from next to you.

Shirogane feels bad. "Well... you have no money, right?"

"Yeah," You mumble. "Sorry."

"Then..." She smiles, reaching into her bag. "It might be a little strange... but I have an infatuation with nails."

The girl pulls out a glass box of nails, and you blink at them.

"Since I'm a cosplayer... I've got a pretty big collection of them. This is just a portion of them. What do you think? Aren't they cute?"

"They are," You lean in to get a closer look.

"But the truth is..." She stares at you, eyes half-lidded. "They're all actual human fingernails."

You feel a shudder ripple through your skin.

"With the kind of money I have, it would be easy to buy them, but no one wants to sell actual human nails to me," She sighs. "So most of them are from people that lost to my gamble. I'll put another twenty million on the line, but L/n-senpai... I want your nails!"

The crowd behind you gasps, and you tilt your head in interest. That was new. You had heard rumors of insane rich kids, but this one made you interested. Not even you had such an insane thought in mind. You think this bet will be entertaining. "Nails? Oh, like, you want my fingernails?"

"Mhm!"

Komaeda thinks of stepping in. Even if you lose twenty million yen, you'd just have a housepet chain around your neck. You were willing to go that far to not rack up any more debt? You had just earned five hundred million yen less than a day ago. If you lose your fingernails, your value on the marriage market goes down. Isn't that why you joined the school to begin with?

"Well then," You shrug. "I have no choice anyways. Let's play one more game!"

Komaeda thinks you've gone insane. You lift your head to meet his eyes, and you grin. He scoffs, and he rolls his eyes at you. You were nothing more than a gambling addict like your family then. If you were just going to bet on your luck, why would you even attend here? You could've just found a random rich man and then clung onto them. Well, it's not his place to judge your decisions. He wonders if you're aware of how many rich kids have their eyes on you right now.

"Aha!" Shirogane laughs. "Now we're talking!"

You watch the girl pull out two new sets of cards from her bag. You don't show any sign of emotion, but there's a nearing euphoric spark in your eyes. You watch her spread the cards out one by one, the ocean blue nails glistening on her fingers. You'd try that out for your next nail art. She glances at all of the cards and then places her hands on the table, leaning toward you. Her eyes shun you, but you don't care. She had just sold you a complete win.

"Shall we begin?" She smirks. "If I lose, I give up 20 million yen, and if you lose, L/n-senpai, then you give up your fingernails and toenails."

"Oh, both?" You blink and then shrug.

"Mhm!" She smiles. "For pity points, you can start first."

The innocent gleam in your eyes is replaced with a new one. Komaeda remembers that look. It was the same look in your eyes when you won 500 million yen yesterday. Your lips are pulled into a smug smile, and your pointer finger rests on your lips. You hum a cheerful tune as you take a look at all the cards.

You start with the Queen of Hearts, flipping it right-side up; then, the King of Spades. The two of clubs fall next, followed by the ace of spades. Your fingers match the jack of hearts, and your nails scratch the surface of the two seven of cloves. The four of diamonds are carved out of their rest. The six of clubs break from the table. The ten of diamonds flip over. The five of diamonds emerge from their hiding. The eight of hearts greet the two of you. The nine of spades glow. The Queen of Clubs fall. The jack of diamonds grin. The ace of cloves shines. The three of hearts laugh at Shirogane. The nine of clubs are cool. King of Diamonds. Three of cloves. Four of spades. Six of hearts. Two of hearts. Five of spades. Eight cloves. Seven diamonds. One diamond. Two spades. Eleven spades.

Shirogane's heart rams against her chest. what the hell? How did you do that? 

"Shirogane-san," You hum, picking up another card. "I heard your family makes toys."

"Yes," She nods. "And cosplay material."

"With that much of a fortune," You make another pair. "Wouldn't you guys be worth at least 10 billion yen? Why are you betting so little?"

"huh?" She loses focus on the way you're turning the cards.

"Just a piece of advice," You hum, picking up another card. "Before betting something like a business, you better be prepared!"

Her eyes widen as she looks back at the table.

"That's..." You count. "That's 58 cards! Oops, I didn't mean to turn that many. But regardless, I win!"

The crowd gasps, and they mumble amongst themselves. Komaeda gives you credit. You're smart for memorizing all of the patterns from the previous deck. Or, perhaps you had relied on luck again. But the look that returns to your eyes is those of someone who read the cards properly. You giggle, and Shirogane slams her hands onto the table.

"HOW! HOW'D YOU KNOW WHERE THE CARDS WERE?!"

"Oh?" You smile at her. "If you were just a tad more careful, then I would have lost."

"H-huh?"

"Well, the marks are the same as last game, right?" You tilt your head, holding a card up to your lips. "If you prepared another pattern, then it would've been KO for me!"

Shirogane's eyes widen, and she feels a rush of disgust flood her soul. "YOU PLAYED ME?!"

"Played is a little rude," You sigh. "I'd say it was a fair game. After all, didn't you cheat the first round?"

Shirogane glares at you, and you grin.

"It's a shame, though. I didn't get to push you into housepet territory. Shall we play another game so we can? How about we bet both of our fingernails this time! Then, I can turn yours into a pretty little set that I get to experiment on! How about it? Does that sound more fun?"

The girl sweats, heart racing in fear.

"You know, it's quite cute. You cheated so confidently and somehow still lost! Don't you want your honor back? Come on. Don't you?" You taunt the girl, driving her to tears.

"No!" She cries. "I'm sorry! I can't! I'm sorry for taunting you!"

You sigh in disappointment. "A shame. Someone from the student council can't even bet their life on the line. You sure seem like someone who bought their way into the council."

The girl clenches her fists, tears falling onto the table.

"Well, if our business is over," You turn on your heel. "I'm off! Toodaloo!"

You make gambling look like a form of elegance. The way you fold and call cards. The way your fingers slide the tiles to the center. The way you reach for cards on the table and smile like a pretty doll. The way your nails changed depending on the day and game. You made gambling look like the imperial court instead of a war. The way everyone was slipped with poison or fell to their own schemes. You made the gambling look easy. It was like you were lady luck herself, winning the right hand and then smiling innocently at your opponent. You end up in the student council within a month.

"Ah," You blink, staring at the students in the room. "I think there's been a mistake?"

"Y/n L/n," A file is tossed onto the table. "You gambled and won over two billion yen in the span of a month."

"If this is a promotion, I don't want it." You blink at them. "With all due respect, of course. I have no interest in running the school."

"Even if it means we could pull your family out of debt?" The president smiles at you. Pretty red lips, pretty pink hair.

You bat your lashes at them, a smile on your face. "I'm sure you know the reason I joined the school was never to fix my family's debt. Besides, this meeting obviously isn't for me to join the student council."

"Yes," They hum. "Yet, you somehow escaped the life plan that your family planned to chain around your neck."

"Oh, you know what they say about the family's only child," You smile. "Ever the sly one. They sent me here to find a husband. It doesn't matter who it is. I don't want to get married. They tell you marry a rich man, but what if I am the rich man?"

"Regardless of what your motive is," The girl sighs. "You're messing up the school's ecosystem."

"Since when have you cared about balance?"

"No more preying on people with money whose parents would get us in trouble," She shrugs. "I admire your love for gambling. I hope you enjoy."

"Oh," You slide your fingers up your cheek. "Since when did this school care about the outside? If you're worried about me taking a student council student's position, then don't. I have no interest in running the school. I don't care about school affairs."

Your eyes land on the male with black hair. "Although... you most certainly have quite the eye candy here." Your eyes trail to the lolita.

"As long as none of us are pushed off." The president smiles.

"As long as you aren't pushed off." You shrug. "Anyone not engaged to another rich person?"

No one answers you.

"Figured," You bow quickly before excusing yourself.

To you, the school doesn't matter; neither does finding a husband, actually. It's amusing. You find joy in the simple pleasures of betting. Your parents failed to gamble back their fortune, so they decided to sell their only child to the school in hopes of marrying rich. Well, not like it mattered. If that was how rich people showed their love, then so be it. You don't really care how much you're worth to your parents. 

You stare at the new student.

"Hajime Hinata." he nods.

Class carries on as usual, and you rack your brain for which house Hinata yields from. There were plenty of Hinatas in the circle of wealth. You stare at the new student, and you catch the backpack he uses. Huh. You think you've seen that brand before. Nonetheless, it doesn't matter. You could worry about him if he decides to gamble with you.

Or... if he decides to follow you around?

"Alright, newbie," You stare at the male, lips pulled into a frown. "What do you want?"

"Teach me how to gamble."

"Excuse me?"

"You've never lost a single bet," He mumbles. "I want to learn."

You stare at him. He doesn't stand out in terms of appearance or anything else. You wonder why he's so desperate to gamble.

"Ah, it's a good thing," Komaeda passes the two of you. "Poor people like you should hang around each other."

"Does that mean you hang out with the orphans?"

Komaeda stops walking, and he turns to glare at you. "Excuse me?"

"You heard what I said," You stare at him, batting your lashes innocently, a shit-eating smile on your face. "You know. Since people tend to hang out with people similar to them."

"Is that so?" Komaeda steps closer, towering over you. "So you admit to being poor?"

"Komaeda-senpai," You tap his chest twice. "The whole world knows that my family is famous for their debts. However, that doesn't mean we're poor."

"Is that so?" He grabs your chin, tilting it to get a better look at you. You look pretty, actually. The way your lashes are nice and long. You take good care of yourself for someone whose family sold you off. Komaeda hates people like you. People who think they can marry rich and become set for life. You'd have to be damn talented at something for someone to love you like that. But he supposes you have a face pretty enough to be a mistress for someone. He wonders if your mouth is good for something other than talking.

You bat your lashes at him prettily, a smile on your lips. Maybe you'd settle for him. After all, he is one without troublesome parents. Or. He doesn't have parents. You wonder if any of his nannies were obsessed with money while he grew up. He probably lost a good chunk of his fortune. To him, a couple hundred million dollars is nothing. You wonder how much his net worth is. Even then, he wasn't part of the student council. Maybe you would go for the black-haired male from before. But, the male tilting your chin and sneering at you made you feel things. "It is." You wrap your fingers around his tie, adjusting it.

Komaeda is pretty. His lashes are a pale white, and his hair resembles that of a cloud. The tips of his hair are a dainty pink. His skin is pale, yet he doesn't look sickly. You heard something about how he had actually been sick, but you don't care. He's pretty. The way his fingers are nice and long compared to yours, and the way his grip on your chin is hard yet gentle. He's so tall... you can only wonder what else comes with that height. You shake thoughts like that off. You could worry about some messed-up fantasy with him when you flip a pretty chain necklace around his neck.

"How else would I be able to make two billion in a month? Did you think I only played small bets?" You tap his lip once, his grip on your chin loosening. "Real men are into the intelligent. Shall we go, Hinata-kun?"

Hinata follows after you, eyeing the male. There was a... tension... between the two of you. It was like cutting a fishing wire. Or, it resembled that of a siren's song more. Your tongue drips with the gods' nectar, your words sweet to taste. The melody of your voice snaked around him, plaguing his mind and thoughts. It was like he wanted you on a leash to pull. Yet, he was never able to, blind from the song from your lips, luring him into deeper waters. He wonders if Komaeda's aware of his situation.

"He's from the Komaedas? The one without parents?"

"Yeah," You hum, slowing down to match Hinata's pace. "He also has a bone to pick with me, apparently."

Hinata looks over his shoulder, and he spots Komaeda lifting his fingers to his lips, the tips of his ears red. Pink dusts over his cheeks, and Hinata pauses. Ah. Komaeda was aware of the effect you had on him. 

"I think it's more of a reaction formation."

"You think he's into me?"

"Yeah," Hinata pauses. "But that's only speculation."

You stop and stare at him, the red and green eyes reminding you of someone. "Ah, you're the illegitimate child of the Kamukuras. You're that Hinata-kun."

Hinata pauses to stare at you.

"Are you trying to get back at your younger brother?" You tilt your head. You know the answer. 

Hinata stares at you, eyes digging into your soul. The different color eyes burn into yours. Unlike his brother, his hair is a pretty brown. His lips are drawn into a thin line, determined to prove his worth in his house. Ah, so that was why he had his mom pay so much to end up in the school. You suppose his mom wasn't that different from yours. 

"I am."

"Then," You hum, smiling at him. "Shall we play Mahjong?"

"The tables are full."

"No," You shake your head, adjusting your hair. "Watch."

You open the door to the room, and you blink at everyone. Everyone's eyes turn to look at you, and you wave sheepishly. A handful of students move from their seats, and Hinata watches the people move according to how you want them to. He's surprised. 

"Oi! L/n-san! Come play Mahjong!" A boy waves in the back. "Our table needs one more person."

"How much are we betting?" You walk up to him, Hinata trailing after you.

"Starting is ten million," He smiles.

You gasp, hands flying over your mouth. "Oh, my! Of course! But..."

Your eyes meet Hinata's. 

"Can I have newbie play in my place?" You scratch your cheek. "I won't help him. He just wanted to try things out."

"Of course," The boy nods. "anything for you, L/n-san."

"See?" You seat Hinata down. "Simple!"

Your fingers tap on his shoulder as he flips his tiles to face him. Circles, Lines, characters, numbers. Mahjong relied on both luck and skill. Tiles are swapped for others. People want to win money. If the luck was to your advantage, then you'd earn more. The tiles shuffled across the board. Pon. Hinata replaces another tile in his deck. You wonder if he knew how to gamble. His mother was notorious for being the queen of a casino.

You're not surprised when the boy ends up winning fifty-fifty. He leaves with no debt on his name, and nine hundred thousand more on his name. You squeeze his shoulder affectionately, and the game comes to an end. Hinata doesn't come out victorious, but he makes a good number. You let him stand up, and you replace him at the table.

"You did well," You hum, watching the table reshuffle all of the game. "But sit back and watch what playing with luck is like."

Your luck is a demon. It looms over your shoulder, driving your opponents to insanity. Your smile is pretty, your nails shiny. The cards on your nails are daunting as you slide another tile to yourself. You rearrange your hand; a laugh rolls off your tongue. The creature flips and collects tiles like there's nothing stopping them. The laws of the universe bend according to its will. Hinata is terrified of the calm smile on your face as your opponents tremble in fear. You twist and carve out each tile until it's the perfect one for you. You run the game.

"I win," You flip the tiles over, and the students sigh. "How much did you win?"

"Uh," You count. The devil on your shoulder laughs. "All. Everything was drawn."

"Scary luck as usual, L/n-san," They sigh, handing you their chips. Ten million. Spare pocket change. "You could rival Komaeda-senpai."

"I'm looking forward to the day when I do," You laugh gently, cheeks flushed. "I can't wait until I get to play him."

"You look forward to it?"

"Yes!" You clasp your hands together. "A battle of luck! Both of us rely heavily on it, so it'd be nice to see whose luck runs out quicker!"

"But L/n-san, you play heavily with skill." The student hands you cash from his bag.

"Yes," You smile. "But so does he."

Komaeda looks at his cards, a smile on his face. His opponent's face turns red with anger as he slips another chip onto the table. 

"Hit." His opponent grumbles.

The dealer slips him another card.

Komaeda taps his finger on the table, one leg kicked over the other. He raises a brow in amusement, staring at his cards again. His opponent hits again. The light returns to their eyes, a greedy smile all over their face. Oh, that beautifully hopeful look on his face. Komaeda hides his lips behind the cards, licking his lips. He couldn't wait to wipe that gleeful look on his face off.

"Show."

The two set their cards down.

Komaeda's opponent's heart drops.

"Win," Komaeda smiles, teeth out. "Fifty million yen. How will you be paying that?"

The student stares blankly at the table, and Komaeda adjusts the rings on his fingers, waiting for an answer. His eyes are pale, yet something sinister hides behind them. It's like he knew this was going to happen. His luck snakes around him, looming over him like a predator waiting for prey. His luck devours everyone else in his way. He holds the majority of the school's fortune, yet he stays away from the council. He had more important things than to be entwined in some political battle for the position. He glances at your at the mahjong table across the room. You won. Again.

You stare at the cash in your hand, and you smile. "Lovely game."

"Oh?" Komaeda leans over your shoulder, staring at your deck. "Are you sure you didn't cheat?"

"I'm sure of it," Your fingers loop under the knot of his tie, tugging him closer to your ear. "Unless you're projecting again?"

"Keep your peasant hands off of me," He loosens your fingers from his tie. "What makes you say that?"

"Surely, you didn't your luck could win you that much money with just blackjack?" Your voice is laced with interest as you step out of your seat. Hinata replaces you in your seat, and he begins his game. You lean over his right shoulder; Komaeda leans over his left. The two of you stare at Hinata's deck, making up different possibilities on the spot. You squeeze his shoulder as Hinata picks up another tile from the table.

"Wow, did you pick him up from the streets? The other card would have been a smarter move." Komaeda scoffs when Hinata merges the tile.

"Slow and steady wins the race," You chuckle. "Komaeda-senpai."

Hinata's hand remains the same, only a few tiles being swapped out. You wonder if he'll have double the luck since Komaeda is here too. You watch over his shoulder like hawks. Hinata's shoulders are tense, yet he plays well. You nearly praise him when he's only one tile away from winning. Komaeda's fingers dig into Hinata's shoulder as he finally wins.

"All on luck?"

"No," He shakes his head. "You placed down two. I'd earn around only 2 million."

"Ah, still a good amount," The boy smiles. "Another round perhaps?"

"That's it," Hinata shakes his head.

"Someone with control," Your eyes grow wider, lips parted in surprise. "How rare! Oh, I'm so glad you're my pupil of all things!"

Komaeda sprays the part of his sleeve that came in contact with Hinata, and you pull him back by the collar.

"Hinata-kun, I'm going to talk to Komaeda-senpai real quick. Is that alright?"

"Mhm," Hinata nods. "I'll go play blackjack then."

"Let's go!" You sing, pulling Komaeda along. You can practically taste the disgust radiating off of him in waves. Your lips are pulled into a pleased smile, and a handful of the students pause to stare at the two of you. Though, it's not like it mattered. Komaeda didn't have much of a reputation to begin with. You, on the other hand, everyone knew dragged whoever you wanted to gamble. To them, it would have been just another day where you wanted some spare change. Komaeda cranes his neck to stare at you, and pauses at the sight of your lips in a pout. You look cute.

He wonders what you'd look like all breathless from him. 

His eyes glance to the side, and his fingers slip under the fabric of your collar, pulling you backward roughly. 

"!-" Komaeda shuts you up pretty quickly, forcing his lips onto yours. Behind you, you hear the sound of a door shutting. You wince at the feeling as his teeth gnash with yours. They're rough and anything but gentle. The better part of you argues that this is wrong, but you don't care. You drape your arms around his neck and press your lips harder to his. It might leave a bruise or two, and there's a chance that his lips are going to be stained red from your lipstick. Good. You plan to leave at least some evidence on the boy. 

Komaeda's barely there by the time you pull apart from him. You grin at his hazy eyes, and you press a gentle kiss to his jaw, the red of your lipstick staying there. Then, another to his cheek. And another to his neck. You pepper his face with the wine of your lips, and you lean back to admire his work. Smiling at him through your lashes, your hand meets the knob behind you. You smile at him innocently before leaving him there to sort out his own emotions. You stare into your mirror, fixing your lips and hair. You hum as you open the door to the classroom again. 

Komaeda chuckles at the sight of you leaving, wiping his lips. Oh, he was looking forward to playing you. He steps out the closet, adjusting his uniform and heading to the men's room. The students in the hall turn to look at the mess of red you left on him, and he only chuckles. He was going to get back at you for that.

Hinata laughs, a grin on his face. He's won over seven million dollars by now. He stares at his hand and hums in content. His eyes have a sinister glow; they almost glow red. He isn't smiling, his face remaining neutral in its resting state. While you laugh at your opponent, breaking them down mentally, Hinata puts his opponent on edge, driving them insane with nothing. The lack of expressions wears his opponent down unusually fast. His opponent takes a second card, and they slam their head onto their table.

A twenty-six.

"That's nice," Hinata places his cards down. A thirteen.

"HAH!?" His opponent slams his hands onto the table out of rage. "YOU HAD A THIRTEEN AND TRICKED ME INTO GOING OVER?!"

"Well," You smile at his opponent, stepping from the crowd of students. "Technically he didn't trick you. He just simply put you on edge, and you decided to draw out of fear."

"L/n-san." They grimace at you. "You have a scary pupil."

"How much have you made?"

"With this one," Hinata places a hand on yours on his shoulder. "Ten million."

"Not bad," You hum. "It's an excellent start."

"Another round?"

"No," Hinata shakes his head. "That's all I'll do for the day."

"With the skill of constraint," You hum, sliding your hand off his shoulder. "Let's go, Hinata-kun."

Gambling is a skill.

The resting face of a gambler. You never know what's in your opponent's hand. If you cheat, you manipulate the game to your will. If you play fairly, the laws of fate bow to you. Gambling is a skill that takes practice. Natural talent without skill is bound to fail one day. That's what made the student council so scary. The president played incredibly well, and the rest of the students were in no way lacking. Yet, the scary ones weren't those on the student council; they were students who gambled with their whole soul until there was nothing left in the opponent. The simple skill of wearing a player down until there were no rational decisions left to make. That's what made gamblers of skill so scary.

You stare at your bank account while on break. Hinata peers over your shoulder, and you hum at the number. To you, the option to bet your life on the line was now an option. You hum in satisfaction as you check your messages from family. You could worry about your family's debt later when you married. Your mother had kept in contact with you because she was the reason you got in. Rich people were strange. A simple mistress could get their child in. You don't care what your family does. 

"Say, Hinata-kun," You close your phone. 

Hinata hums.

"If you rack up enough money here, what do you think about marriage?" You hum. 

Hinata stares at you and physically pauses. "So I pay off your family's debt?"

"I don't see why not," You laugh. 

"Two brokes don't make a rich, you know." Komaeda sneers.

"Bored of the orphans already?" You lean your head back to stare at him.

"No." He hums. "Just listening to my favorite pet going on about marriage."

You sigh. "Such a shame. If I'm your favorite pet, how come you still can't wrap that pretty chain around my neck? It's such a nice silver color too."

Komaeda taps your cheek, smiling scornfully at you. "When are we going to play a game then?"

"I don't feel like doing that today," You sigh. "I have the sudden urge to play one of the student council members."

"You played Shirogane-chan already."

"I have the urge to gamble her entire fortune away," You sigh blissfully. "Or her nails."

"You're into the nail thing she does?"

"it's always good to have nails to practice art on," You clasp your hands together. Today, your nails are a strawberry pink. The color is milky, and they remind Komaeda of a certain student council member. You giggle childishly, cheeks flushed. "I'm kidding. Rather, I wanna meet the pretty lolita girl from last time. It seems like I'd have a fun time playing Russian roulette with her."

"Russian roulette?" Komaeda raises a brow in amusement. "Shall we play right now?"

He pulls out a gun from his back pocket, and your eyes glimmer with interest. "Hm? Doll?"

Your lips part at the name, eyes practically shining. "Oh! Of course!"

You smile as Komaeda hands you the gun. You check the model. It should be an airsoft revolver, but just to be safe... You pull the trigger at your desk. The bullet pierces through the wood. You blink. "Ah. AN ACTUAL GUN!! KOMAEDA-SENPAI, YOU'RE INCREDIBLE!!"

Komaeda smiles at your praise. "Shall we play?"

"What will we bet?" You bat your lashes prettily at him. 

"Loser grants the winner a single request."

"Won't we die?" You hum. "How will we grant a request? Unless you're into dead people?"

"I'll put in an empty bullet." He smiles, showing you the bullet. Sliding it in, he spins the cylinder, forcing it into place. He starts, pressing the barrel to his temple, a smile on his face. No bullet.

"Your turn, doll," His hand brushes yours as you take it from him.

"Ah," Your cheeks are flushed from arousal. "A bet with my life! How thrilling..."

You bite your pinky, eyes glazed over in lust. Your finger curls around the trigger, and you pull it. Nothing comes out. You sigh in discontent as you pass the gun back to him. The third pull doesn't release a bullet. Neither does the fourth. The two of you stare at each other, and Komaeda pulls the gun. Something swirls in his eyes when nothing comes out of the gun. You take it from his hand, and you sigh. Pink splatters over your hair, and you blink. Ah. It wasn't empty.

Komaeda smiles at you, eyes in slits, looking down at you. "Shall I take you to the nurse?"

"Oh, if you would," You smile at him, the pink tricking down the side of your cheek. He wipes it with his thumb and presses it into your cheek. 

"Let's go." His grip on your wrist is tight, and you smile drunkenly as he pulls you along. It's like the paint from the gun had gotten into your system. You smile, your cheeks flushed with drunkenness. Komaeda hums, opening the door to the nurse's office. 

The nurse is out.

Komaeda grins. "Shall I wash you up for you?"

"Wouldn't it be better if I go wash up in the locker room? Why'd you bring me here?" You seem to blink out of your stupidity, and you look for a towel to wipe your hair with. Komaeda stares at you with curiosity, and he hums. "What about your uniform?"

"You think a little uniform will get in my way?" You stare at him, a smile on your face. "The school doesn't care how we alternate our uniforms as long as they're somewhat recognizable."

"So?"

"So," You wipe your hands and reach for his jacket. "I'm going to borrow some clothes."

"Since you're all messy from the bullet..." Komaeda grabs your hand. "Shall you just fulfill my request here?"

"What do you want?" You peer at him. 

"What I want?" Komaeda loosens your wrist, a sly smile on his face. "Shall I show you?"

"Mm," You hum. 

"My request is that you don't say no during the time that we're here," Komaeda hums, wrapping his fingers around your throat gently.

"Not like I can say no," You mumble, waiting for him to move. He presses his thumb to your lips, smearing the red off your lips, onto your cheeks. Komaeda makes a lovely mess of you. His wrist is drenched by the time that you've lost your ability to think, his words getting to your mind. You're not allowed to tell him no, but it's not like you would've even if you could. He's way too good with his hands. You should've known there was a reason he shuffled cards so easily. But he was being such an ass. He's put you on the edge of an orgasm so many times, yet he's never let you cum.

"What's wrong? Braindead already?" Komaeda taunts edging another orgasm out of you. "You came here with the intention of being my doll alone, isn't that right? From the first day," He coos, mocking you. "You wanted to wrap your pretty little nails around someone like me's neck. To pull on a pretty black collar around my neck. Hm? Doll?"

"I," You pant. "I wanna c-c- ah."

"Oh? What was that, doll? You want to what? Come on. Speak up. I can't hear you from all the babbling." He taunts.

"Cum." You whine. "I wanna cum."

"Oh? After the mess you made of me yesterday?"

"No," You whine. "Y-you started it."

"Mm," His lips frown mockingly. "So I should take responsibility?"

You whine as he curls his fingers in you.

"I can't understand when you're whining so bad, doll." Komaeda blows on your ear, causing you to clench on his fingers.

"You're clenching around me" He chuckles scornfully. "It's almost like you like the idea, don't you? You like the idea of being used by me, and only me, isnt that right?"

Your back arches as he adjusts his fingers in you.

"Those other rich students," he spits. "They could never make you writhe and beg like this, could they? You're my toy to use; Isn't that right? You would never let Hinata finger you stupid like this, hm?"

Komaeda likes how you look. Your mascara is ruined from him and him alone, and your lips are a mess of red, a streak leading to your cheek. You look like a hot mess. Komaeda's hot mess. The pink on your nails are chipped from gripping the metal of the infirmary bed's railing. He coos at you as mindless agreement slips past your lips, begging him to let you cum. You can feel it. The wiser part of yourself knows he won't let you cum again, but god, do you hope he lets you. 

"Come on," He scoffs. "The nurse will be back any second now."

"Please," You whine, nails carving into the skin of his wrist. "Please let me cum, Nagito-senpai. Please. Please."

A waterfall of thank yous trickles past your lips as you finally, finally, get to cum. Komaeda fingers you through it, you gasping and clawing at his uniform. He curses quietly as you gush around his fingers. You're leaving a mess on the nurse's bed thanks to him. Well, at least he got to pay you back for those lipstick marks. Ah... he has a better idea. He moves his clean hand to your jaw, forcing it open, sneering at you.

"Open wide, doll." You stick your tongue out, and Komaeda spits into your mouth. His saliva slides down your tongue, and he loosens his hold to let you close your mouth. He watches you swallow, and he smiles. "See? Such a good toy."

You pant for air, grimacing at your reflection in the mirror. Your mind is still foggy from his fingers, but you manage to speak. "Is that it?"

"Mm," Komaeda hums, rummaging through the shelves. "Stay still for a moment. I'll grab you a towel."

Your eyes trail to the shower behind you. Ah. That's why he was so insistent on fingering you stupid before you washed up. Cunning bastard. The pink has dried into your hair, and you stare at the stains on your hand. "Spare me your jacket, will you?"

"When you finish washing up."

"Any chance you'll be able to find me a shirt?"

"No."

"Alright," You shrug, wiping off your makeup and turning on the shower. 

Komaeda rests on the bed, pulling off the covers to throw them into the laundry basket. He wasn't sure what possessed him to ask for that as his request, but he supposes he doesn't regret it. He takes off his jacket, unfolding his sleeve. His lips quirk into a smile at the sight of your stuff on the bed. It was a lie. The nurse was never in her office since she was always sticking around the student council president. It was a place where students went to hang out. He closes his eyes as he waits for you to finish cleaning up.

The paint was absolute hell to get out of your hair. The water kept bleeding pink until there was nothing left. You finally step out of the shower, a towel on you. You glance at what's left of your clothes that you can wear, and you start putting them on. Komaeda seems to be resting his eyes. He's not asleep, because if he was, he would've laid down. You grab his uniform coat, and you button halfway up to cover your chest. You hum, a smile on your lips. You reach for the lipstick in your jacket pocket, and you press the pigment onto your lips. "Wake up, Komaeda-senpai~!"

Komaeda opens his eyes, staring at you brush on your mascara in the mirror. You pucker your lips and fix your hair. You look pretty. Komaeda has no problem admitting that now. It's no secret how the boys and girls around school ogle at you. They want what you have. Even the student council called you for an offer. Something about you. Komaeda finds it amusing that other students would want you, but he wasn't backing down on this one. It was the few things he wasn't going to give up to the student council he adored so much.

"Ready?" He stares at you, a smile on his face. You might've held more money now, but you were still far from his standards.

"Mm," You smile, leaving the room first.

The two of you come back to a bustling class, and Hinata sits at the center of it. He stares at the chips on the roulette table, and he stares emotionless. You squeeze through the crowd of students to step behind him and watch. He's placed fifty million dollars on a single number. The rest of the students have spread their money out, and he stares at the dealer spin the wheel. He's surprisingly calm about the whole situation. You would've started laughing at your opponent by now. You stare at the number.

One.

You're much too amused to say anything, and Komaeda stands on the other side of Hinata. The snake and demon loom over his shoulders, picking up the ball and placing it back down. The snake rolls the wheel, and the devil plays with the ball. There's an incredibly heavy atmosphere as the two of you step next to Hinata. Komaeda's more than yours. Your atmosphere only darkens when your eyes change. Komaeda smiles to himself. "Oooh, only one number? I'd expect you to do better, illegitimate."

"Shut up," Hinata's voice stays level as the ball rolls into the number slot.

One.

He wins.

"A... A HUNDRED MILLION!!" The dealer yells in shock.

You double over in laughter. The devil and snake return to their masters, and Hinata hums. He finally smiles, the look on his face gone. Children who grew up with nothing claw their way up the mountain until there's nothing in their way. They fight the most while growing up. For Hinata, even if it meant being average, he would still overtake his brother. He had met you based on instinct, and somehow picked up another one. The two monsters of luck.

Hinata wonders how you even ended up with Komaeda. There was a certain animosity between the two of you. It was like mixing oil and water. The two of you could never combine no matter how hard one tried. But somehow, it worked. There was makeup remover that combined the two to get makeup off. Maybe that's what the two of you were. A pair that would never mix, but would destroy. 

You ruffle Hinata's hair, a grin on your face. "Good job, darling! Is that all?"

"One mo-"

"I want to gamble," Komaeda chuckles, cutting Hinata off. "Hm? Y/n-chan?"

You turn to look at him. His face is flushed pink, eyes going insane. You press your nails to your lips, and you smile. Your lipstick seems a shade darker than usual. Your nails are a little scratched, and your lashes are dolly. "Maybe another day. My nails got all chipped from an animal earlier."

"Why not now? When your luck is weakest?" Komaeda smiles at you. "It can be a life bet."

"A single game?"

"Choice poker," The vice president of the school steps into the room. The student council had been waiting for this moment. "It'll be live broadcasted. The two lucksters of the school playing it off."

"Instead of something like betting your life with money," You hum, eyes red with interest. "How about betting yourself as a person? Your entire status is wiped. You become not a dead one, but a person who belongs to the other."

"Then there's no loss on either of your sides." The vice president rolls her eyes. "The two of you are a beautiful mess when together. What loss is there to either side?"

"Oh?" You look at her, lips quirked up into a smirk. "Is that so? I lose all of my hard work here, and he loses his status of president of the world's biggest banking company. I think it sounds like a fair bet. If we get to that point, that is."

"Where's the downside?"

Komaeda speaks up. "We hate each other. Having our entire life on the line for someone we despise to control sounds pretty bad to me. Besides, Y/n-chan doesn't want to get married."

The girl taps her cheek, and she smirks. "Alright. Let's play."

You hum, following the girl to the school's stage. The two of you sit down, and you smile the smile of a sinner. You're horrendous. You look like you're about to go insane from a single match. The idea of being sold off was the lie your family painted for you. The empire was fine; the gambling with them just got boring, yet never was able to bring joy. You were looking for growth at the school, and Komaeda seemed to have provided it for you. The match was going to strip both of you down to whose luck was stronger. Just thinking about it made you excited.

What came first? The chicken? The egg?

The fall of angels came first.

Before the creation of man, there was the prideful angel. The prettiest, most loved of them all. But there was a greed. The greed to be the more. The lust to become the one in power. The envy for the creator. The insatiable gluttony to become more. They wanted to become the best of the best, overtaking their creator. The devil wanted to become the creator but failed. The wrath when he had failed. The blame on the slothful nature of the other fallen angels. Yet, no matter how hard you try, there was no denying that the devil was attractive. The prettiest of the angels, the most pampered. The devil is adored by everyone. The devil that people despised yet plagued all of them.

Then came the serpent. The form that the devil took to destroy mankind. The fruit was so pretty. Did the creator really say that? Did he really say that you couldn't take of the fruit of the tree? Oh, but it looks so good. I'm sure that it wouldn't be an issue if you ate it. Didn't he say you could partake of any fruit in the garden? Why would he stop you from having the fruit? Surely it's because it has something that he wants to hide from you, right? That singular bite of the fruit that destroyed mankind.

The serpent could never overtake the devil himself.

The students file into the room to watch the two of you play. They want to watch you play. The destruction of the best gamblers in the school. The only two students that could absolutely destroy the student council. People wanted to see this. The worst part of man wants to see the downfall of the other. Humans are evil creatures. That simple sin from a bite of a fruit. It burned into a human's nature.

Yet the snake could take a physical form while the devil couldn't

It was a gamble of fate.

It's simple, really. The two of you sit on opposite sides of each other. It would be a lie to say that you loved each other, yet it would be a lie to say that you hated each other. Ambivalence, perhaps. You hum, staring at your hand. The two of you had a simple goal in mind. To drag the game on as long as humanly possible before either of you fall. It's not the fall that the two of you care about; it's the gut-wrenching, euphoric feeling that you feel, winning a high-stakes bet. That rush of dopamine that drove a person mad. That, was what made the two of you play this gamble.

The vice president slides the two of you cards, and the game begins.

The snake moves first, a sly grin on his face. He discards an eight and a four. He raises you ten chips. The snake curls up your wrist, settling on your neck, a smile on your face. You chuckle, tapping the snake's pretty head twice. Komaeda's eyes are green with lust. It was like he was waiting for this moment. His luck was a viper, curling around his opponent's leg, biting into their ankle. The snake's poison is slow, wearing down his opponent over time. His smile was proof of it. After all, was it not the serpent who tempted the woman into biting the fruit?

You hum. "One card, please."

Your devil resembles less of a demon sometimes. Sometimes, it takes the form of seduction, a pretty smile on your face. It slides its fingers over the shoulders of your opponent, glancing at its cards, helping you deduce it. Its fingertips are cold against the skin, sliding it down Komaeda's jawline. Komaeda places a hand on it's, and he leans into its touch. You hum. The devil raises eleven chips back. Your eyes are still their normal color. Komaeda wants to see you be driven to the edge with a gamble. You want to see him go mad with desire.

"What a selfish bet," The vice-president chuckles. 

Komaeda smiles. "I raise you twenty more chips."

"Twenty-one more chips." You smile.

Komaeda stops, the snake on your shoulder sinking its fangs into your neck.

"Just a single more chip." Komaeda places it onto the table, fingers taking its time.

"I'm not putting anymore in." You hum.

The devil presses a kiss to his jaw.

"Strongest or Weakest?"

Komaeda slips a coin from his pocket and flips it. 

Heads.

"Stronger."

Komaeda drops his cards onto the table, a smile of victory on his lips.

Three tens.

You chuckle.

"My loss."

Three nines.

Komaeda takes the chips with grace. The snake releases your neck, and you can feel the sting from the poison. The devil steps back behind you, and Komaeda can taste the temptation it left on his jaw. He chuckles, doing a quick calculation on the number of chips in his hand. He's gained 31 more chips. Maybe that's what you were going to do. You were going to lose everything and then throw something unexpected into the table. Oh, the thought of that by itself was incredible enough to get him horny. Oh, you're such a spontaneous delight. He couldn't wait to have you in the palm of his hand.

You press your fingers to your lips. Oh, it was such a euphoric day. First, you play Russian roulette with the school's strongest luckster, then he fingers you stupid as punishment? Now you're playing choice poker with him? Oh, how heavenly! You can practically taste the drugs on your tongue. Your lips quirk into a smile, a lovesick look in your eyes. Komaeda's luck was so strong! You'd have the time of your life with this! You could bet with him until you were gone!

The devil on your shoulder steps onto the table as the vice-president reshuffles the cards. 

Five of hearts.

Six of clubs.

Two of diamonds.

Three cards fly out of the deck, both you and Komaeda reaching for one.

You pull the five of hearts.

"Oh, my," You smile. "It seems like someone's jealous of me."

Komaeda holds the two of diamonds.

"It seems that there's disapproval of a relationship." He chuckles.

The six of clubs falls to the ground, and Hinata picks it up.

"Success in prosperity," Both of your voices come out as you face Hinata. The look in your eyes is scary. "How lucky of you, Hinata."

The cards are returned to the deck, and the five cards are dealt. 

The cards are slid to the two of you precisely. It's elegant how it's dealt, and you slide the card to yourself slowly. Your fingers bend with the crease of the card, and your nails gleam under the stagelight. The shine is a reminder of everyone's eyes on you. The whole school is watching which one of you will take the other out. The drop of blood. Two sharks in the tank. The entertainment of one's downfall. 

The devil slides only one card out of your deck. A singular king of hearts. They raise Komaeda twelve chips. Their fingers work at his tie and loosens it. Komaeda's cheeks are flushed; he breathes heavily. His lips are parted so prettily. You want to pull on it. Yet, you restrain yourself as you hum at your deck. While you might not be able to win, Komaeda sure as hell won't either. You'll make sure of it.

You smile as Komaeda slips out three cards.

Three ones.

"Thirteen chips."

"Fourty chips." Your voice is even.

"Fifty."

"Fifty five."

Komaeda chuckles. 

"Seventy." 

"Seventy-five."

"A hundred."

"A-A BILLION YEN?!" The crowd of students gasp.

"A hundred and ten."

You dig your fingers into your cheek, and you shrug. "A hundred and twenty"

"A hundred and forty."

"A hundred and fifty," You hum, staring at your hand. "Please? Komaeda-senpai? Just this round."

He chuckles. "I'll crush you the next one."

"Thank you," You beam.

"No more?" The vice president stares at Komaeda. He nods.

"Strongest or Weakest?"

"Weakest," You nod, placing your cards down. 

High card.

Komaeda chuckles.

He places his down.

Two pair.

You grin at the chips that end up on your side.

The cards are filed again, and you hum. The devil on your shoulder reaches for the snake on Komaeda's and gets bitten. It hisses, yet it lunges at it again. You ignore the brawl between the two, and choose to sigh instead. The girl hands you both your cards, and the devil gawks at your cards. What the hell.

The snake on Komaeda's hisses at the devil's hand. It bites and fights all it wants. The devil grimaces, and it yanks the snake off of Komaeda's shoulder. The two fight on the floor of the stage. The air chills around the two of you, and Komaeda stares at his hand. The corner of his lips quirk up, a scathing smile on his face.

"I raise you fifty chips." Komaeda beams.

"Seventy."

"Ninety."

"A hundred and twenty."

"A hundred and fifty." Komaeda hums.

"A hundred and seventy."

"A hundred and eighty."

"Two hundred and sixty."

Komaeda pauses. "That much?"

"That's all I have," You shrug.

Komaeda chuckles.

"Two hundred and seventy."

You pause. 

No more. 

"Player two?"

"He can take it." 

"Strongest or Weakest?"

Komaeda hums, flipping the coin. His fingers are slim, and they move with ease. It's hard to believe those were the same fingers that had you whining earlier. You smile at his movement, and you mirror the expression on his face. He wouldn't fall off that easily, but you would create a ripple that eventually storms an entire sea.

"Reveal your cards."

Komaeda places his cards onto the table.

A full house.

Your lips pull into a frown.

Three of a kind.

Two hundred and seventy chips go to Komaeda. 

Your lips curl into a sick smile, drool slipping past your lips. Oh. Yes. This was the feeling you wanted to experience. That feeling of utter despair when you lose everything you worked for. Oh, the idea of being nothing more than a pet to the person you lose to. You can't wait to see what sick relationship you're going to have with him.

"Are you sure you want to keep going?" Komaeda stares at you, the snake on his shoulder.

You smile in affirmation.

The cards are reshuffled. The vice-president's fingers work gently with the cards, and she presses them down onto the table for the two of you. She's enjoying this just as much as the two of you are. The idea of the most unpredictable students in the school playing it out. It sent a rush of ecstasy right to her brain.

The devil discards one card again.

The snake discards one as well.

The two of you sit here, staring at the other.

Neither of you speak.

"So? What will you bet, Y/n-chan?"

You sit there, the same look of madness swirling in your eyes. You clench your thighs, and you giggle to yourself. Oh, this was so arousing! You have nothing left for you, yet you can still fall further. Shall you do that? Shall you have the time of your life and bet everything you're worth to him? Oh, yes. Of course you shall. You adore the wetness forming underneath you. The only time you could feel it was like this. You couldn't wait to live a life where your mind swirled with ecstasy whenever you wanted to. It would destroy the life that your parents wanted you to have. You could taste it on your lips. The gods' nectar, the fruit of knowledge. Oh, you would die for this one.

"Shall we bet our lives this round?" You lean forward, eyes glossy with desire. "Shall we? If I lose, then I'll be nothing more than someone who's stuck with a life plan the school has! I'll become the pretty little lover of yours, and I'll be told to give birth to children and do nothing else! I'll become a stupid slave to the school's system! Hm? Oh, and if you lose, I become your owner! You'll be my pretty little househusband who's good for nothing except maybe fucking me. Who knows. Maybe you'll enjoy that life."

Komaeda wipes the drool from your chin, and his face mirrors yours.

"To fall into utter despair only to have you as my source of hope? Oh, I thought you'd never ask!" Komaeda grabs your blazer, his blazer, and giggles. "I'd love to bet my life for someone like you. Someone who would lift me so high only to crash me back down immediately. I'd love the idea of doing nothing but raising a stupid little lover who peppers me in kisses and cooks and cleans. You'll be nothing more than a discardable accessory to me. Hm? Doesn't that sound incredible?"

You giggle, pressing a kiss to the other side of his jaw.

The red of your lips linger there.

"That sounds lovely."

"Betting your lives?"

"Yes!" You clasp your hands. "Oh, vice-president. You'll let the winner write the loser's life plan, won't you?"

"Of course I will," She smiles. "It'll be the entertainment of the crowd."

"I'm so excited," You gush, giggling childishly.

Of course you are.

"I'm worth less than him, though," You smile sadly. "So in the end, it's up to fate to decide."

Komaeda smiles, staring at his hand.

"Strongest."

Your bottom lip quivers, and Komaeda smiles. Tears roll down the apples of your cheek, and the mascara runs down with it. Komaeda nearly pities you. "Oh, doll. Don't worry, I won't hurt you. I'll treat you just like a pretty doll on display at the store."

Komaeda places his hand down slowly.

Four Kings.

You press a napkin from the vice-president to your tears, and your lip stops quivering. A wretched smile snakes onto your face. The smile of a snake. The smile of a devil. The snake wraps around your neck. The devil seats itself back onto your shoulder.

You slap the cards onto the table, an insane smile on your face. The world slows down as your cards hit the table. It's silent. No one talks. The students hold their breath. The screen flashes to your cards. The crowd screams.

Your chair falls behind you, and both the devil and the snake smile at Komaeda. Your eyes are green with delight, lips pulled into the prettiest of smiles. You seem to glow under the spotlight.

Komaeda's heart drops at the sight.

You laugh, throwing your arms up in ecstasy.

Five of a kind.

Five aces.

The joker.

Something in Komaeda shatters.

He isn't sure if it's self-worth or dignity, but something breaks. He stares at his loss, and he lets out a simple laugh. Then a second. A third. Then, it's a maniacal laughter that sends a chill through everyone's spines. He's gone insane. 

Komaeda stares at his loss with stars in his eyes. His smile is from ear to ear, and he cranes his neck to look up at you. "Oh, I'm so happy to be your housepet! I'll do anything for you! please! Oh, crush me with the bottom of your heel! I'll do anything for you! Shall I refer to you as mistress or master? Oh, maybe you can call me doll!"

"Oh," Komaeda clings onto your hand, insanity swirling across his face. "Oh, master. You're just so bright. Like the messiah being sent down to free me of my sins. Oh, bathe me in holy water, drown me under your perfection. Trash like me doesn't belong close to you." He throws his hand off of yours, the corners of his lips collecting drool.

You stare at his kneeling figure, and you place the palm of your hand on his cheek, and you coo at him. "Is that so?"

"I'm so glad you put me in my place. The chain around my neck is a testimony of my love for you. Please keep me around you until I am of no more worth to you. I'll give you all the money in the world for you to gamble. Oh, master, you're just so pretty..." He rambles. "I can't believe I get to be your doll of all things. I can't believe I get to experience the joy of being your pretty little househusband. Will you bring me to events? Or will you have me cling onto your arm as a symbol of your status? Would you like the company under your name? Or, maybe you'll-"

"That's enough," You press a finger to his lips, and the vice president smiles at you.

"Here's the blank life plan."

"My doll," Your fingers tilt his chin up to face you. "What age do you think you should be wed to me?"

"I don't care," He rests his cheek on your thigh, closing his eyes, lashes fluttering. "Whatever age you want."

"Hm," You hum. "How about this? Since you lost your ability to do anything, you'll be my pretty doll to play with. When you turn eighteen, we wed. Before that, your goal is to gamble back all of your net worth with only 100 thousand dollars I borrow you. You can do that for me, can't you, doll?"

The sinister red in Komaeda's eyes tell you yes.

"Of course, if you can't then I won't be able to take you as my husband until you do. You know? I can't possibly marry a man who can't even match to their lover in terms of gambling." You giggle, scribbling it down. "And then when we turn twenty four, we can have our first child. Your company will become one of the most expensive ones out there, and then I can officially declare that we're married that year. When we turn twenty seven, we can have our second child. After that, we'll both run our businesses. Of course, I hold all the stock to yours since you lost. Hm? How does that sound, doll?" 

Komaeda purrs happily. "Anything for you, master."

You smile mockingly. "Then get working."

Both the snake on your neck and the devil on your shoulder help Komaeda out. His luck manifests in a new form. The black cat. The cat that sits on the table, knocking cards and tiles out of the opponent's hands. The cat that sits on the wheel, pushing the ball into a specific slot. The cat that is a horror for people to see. The symbol of bad luck. Komaeda's luck manifests in the form it has been all along.

The cat on the first day of school.

"Master!" Komaeda's eyes brighten as you step into the room, Hinata behind you. 

"My doll," You smile at him affectionately, running your hand through his hair. "How is it?"

He shows you his hand, and you smile. You flick the bell on his collar. "I'll leave this to you, my pretty toy."

Komaeda stares at his opponent, lips curling into a smile.

"Let's play."

A black cat licks its fur outside the window.