#the rock candy incident au

[parad0xm0th]

Unrelated but I keep thinking of a scene where Danny sneaks into some ‘secure’ location to steal some kryptonite (the rock candy of ectoplasm aus my beloved) and when Superman or some shit pull up it’s goes something like

Unfortunate nearby hero: ok kid I need you to put that down it’s incredibly dangerous-

Danny (panicked) (only has so many brain cells): *shoves it in his mouth* twhe whabt

[blujayonthewing]

alternate timeline melliwyk quits artificing after her lab explosion and gets really silly with food science instead

[snowe-zolynn-rogers]

Also, for the actor au.

Lunar gets arrested one time because he was a 35yo (animatronic) man walking 15yo Solar back home, ironically talking about candy, because Solar wanted more rock candy because Moon had brought some to set earlier that day.

Some Karen saw a grown man talking about candy with a teenager and called the cops without letting either of them explain anything.

Lunar got arrested, KC got called to pick up Solar, and Solar both showed proof that Lunar was just walking Solar home after filming and the candy in question had been on set and it was Solar talking about it.

Solar clung to Lunar a lot more after that incident because the cop had told him he would never see Lunar again and he was scared he'd lose someone he sees as his uncle.

[swampstew]

Eustass Kid, G-51 ~ Cock Cage

Summary: Modern monster AU; Kid as a Barghest - a mythical, monstrous black dog with large teeth and claws in Scottish lore. Your bratty boyfriend lost a bet and is dragging his feet to deliver. You make him choose. Kid never responded to authority well.

Warnings: I'm not even sorry for how long this took me, I don't think I'll ever write anything that can top this. WHEW. SPICY AF. Eustass Kid as a Barghest and female reader, long term established relationship. Domming Kid. and it kinda works, cock cage, degradation/humiliation, bdsm dynamics, orgasm denial, oral (Eustass receiving), masturbation (Reader on self), edging, vaginal penetration, and creampie. Word Count: 2.7K

Rolling out from under the covers with an annoyed grunt at having breached his warm cocoon with cool air, Kid shook his ruffled bed head and stumbled out of bed with a curse. On his way out of the bathroom he stubbed his toe, barely biting back a howl.He rapped his knuckles against the doorframe and stomped to the kitchen where Killer handed him a cup of coffee. Exchanging the mug, Killer’s calloused fingers grazed Kid’s palm and let out a static shock.

“FUUUUCCCKKK!” Kid couldn’t help the instinctive spasm of his hand when it happened, sloshing the steaming black liquid over the lip edge, and spilled on his hand and the light colored carpet.

“I FUCKING HATE LIVING IN THIS APARTMENT!” he bellowed.

“Someone woke up on the wrong side of the bed,” Killer didn’t look phased. “Don’t blame the apartment, it’s Friday the 13th.”

“HAAH?” Kid looked at the blonde incredulously. “Don’t tell me you believe in that shit?”

Killer pulled back his hair to reveal he was wearing a weathered, denim vest that had Kid’s pack symbol on the back. Pinned on the collar was a small sprig of white heather.

“For good luck. Want my extras? Giving them out to the rest of the crew.”

“No.”

Thunder boomed outside and they could hear the wind blowing so forcefully that the tree next to their second story apartment was getting accosted by branches. With a roll of his eyes, Kid got ready to meet his girlfriend as it stormed. When it lightened up enough, he prepared to leave, opening his umbrella before he walked out the door.

“KID DON’T—” Killer screeched.

Too late. A sharp gust of wind and rain blew through the open hallway-like corridor that led to the stair case, knocking the umbrella clean out of Kid’s hand, tumbling quickly away.

“FUCKS SAKE!”

His day only got worse. No street parking near his girlfriend’s rental forced him to walk two blocks from the parking garage. The sidewalk was full of cracks he tripped over, he walked under a tall ladder with no regard and knocked over painting materials – which he did not stop for – and he kicked a rock that broke someone’s mirror, that he was hounded into paying for repairs.

While the rain had stopped on the drive over, the day still looked dreary. He powered through the walk, trying to reignite his excitement for the alleged surprise that was waiting for him. Reaching her doorway, he took out his copy of the house key and let himself in. Before he could step through the threshold, he was nearly thrown off balance by a startled black cat that dashed from underfoot.

He pinched the bridge of his nose to maintain his composure, not wanting his girlfriend to see him in a shitty mood as soon as he walked in.

“Be right down, stud muffin!” he heard her melodic voice call down from the second story of her cozy place.

“Take your time babe,” he responded. “When did you get a cat?”

“I don’t have a cat!”

“Huh…”

Dismissing the incident, Kid pulled out the candy dish from the fire mantel place and pulled out a joint, waiting for Y/N. He nearly coughed out an inhale when she came down, looking gorgeous in a pair of olive-colored ripped skinny jeans with a casual, pastel purple off-the-shoulder corset top; fishnet stockings were not-so-subtly hidden from the ripped sections. A pair of comfortable kitten heels he had bought her in the past hung off her fingers, a wrapped box sitting in her free hand.

“That fer’me sweetheart?” he stubbed out the joint and tucked it behind his ear. The herbs were mixed with freshly rolled lavender, leaving a pleasant smell in the air.

“Mhm. Since I won the last bet, I get to pick the kink this time,” she gave him a mischievous wink.

“Hope it’s somethin’ good.”

“It’s…something. Probably bittersweet.”

Kid unwrapped the present with an eager smile that fell flat when he opened the lid. Lifting the object out, he inspected the steel cage with trepidation.

“Is this what you asked me to measure my dick for?!”

“Yep!”

“Noooooooooooo please tell me its April fools.”

“It’s Friday the 13th, in October. I won the bet in July. We’ve got a big afternoon ahead of us, go slip it on.”

“UGH why!?”

“It’s part of my fantasy. I don’t bitch when we do what you want to do.”

“I’m having a really bad day already,” he whined.

“You can put it on now in your human form. Or if you keep pouting, I’ll have you wear it in your other form.”

Kid froze. He officially pushed her buttons. Granted, she always allowed him a shit-ton of leeway when he acted out, trying to change her mind to something he wanted to do, but after two and a half years of dating and finally sharing his true heritage with her, she started using his secret as a means to reign him in after too much taking and not enough giving in their relationship.

She called it, play bitch games – win bitch prizes. Making him do whatever it is she wanted to do, but instead of bringing her boyfriend along, she brought her best doggo. Him. She swore that she came up with the idea herself but Kid still believed that Killer, Heat, and/or Wire planted the seed to fuck with him.

Well, his middle name is Petulant.

“Bad boy,” her tone low and stern at his bitchy responses.

He shifted into his true form, a Barghest, with the body of a giant, menacing canine with deadly claws and sharp teeth. A true guard dog. With his ears laid back, Kid let out a huff through his jowls. His coat a gorgeous brindle pattern of black, gold, and red, with a thick mohawk like strip of deep red fur running from between his ears down his spine. His tail fluffy and coarse, hurt like a motherfucker if he whipped you with it. Kid’s eyes maintained their natural amber glow with flecks of orange in the irises.

“How do you plan on explaining a chastity cage on your dog?” Kid growled.

“Who’s gonna notice?” she pulled out a pirate costume from the closet.

His hackles rose, “You planned this didn’t you?” a pissed off bark escaped his jaws.

“Nope. I just know you very well. I kept the receipt to return it if you had shown a crumb of compromise. I picked this horror maze bar crawl because I thought you would think it was cool and have fun. Why do you make this harder than it needs to be?”

Kid hung his head, letting out a short whine that was so high pitched Y/N almost didn’t register it. “I’m sorry. I don’t want to feel the cold metal on my dick.”

“Sorry Tulip, this was custom ordered cause I didn’t think you’d like the other styles.”

“If I wear the cage in my human form do I still need to wear a costume?”

“Ahh yeah, people who dress up can get a round of free shots.”

“Just one round?” he complained. “Ugh what’s my fuckin costume? Wait, what’s your costume?”

“One round per establishment. Limit is 6 though and you get stamped for counting purposes – ANYWAYS – with you as a dog pirate, I’m going as millennial mermaid Princess Ariel,” she twirled on her feet, sparkly purple nail polish on her toes and fingernails. “If you’re in human form, we’ll go as millennial Hercules and Megara!”

“…I’d rather be a monster than a fucking hero.”

Y/N blushed, “That shouldn’t sound as hot as it does when you look like this. Let’s put this on and head to the place.”

As they toured the drink stands and food booths, Kid’s tail twitched every time he felt the lock on his cage swing and glide against the metal. He wasn’t pleased with how sensitive his body already felt with the stupid thing on. It felt snug, especially with the black and yellow patterned shorts Y/N had buttoned him in. Feeling annoyed as hell at the Velcro strapped, fluffy maroon pirate coat that was draped over his back, but short enough to not drag on the ground behind him and didn’t cover all of his mohawk mane. There was an additional Velcro strap that hung off to the side of his flank, two lightweight plushies mimicking a gun and sword to his pirate costume.

A thick, black leather collar with spiky studs was belted around his neck. Two light blue steel tags with yellow rubber trims hung from the collar: his rabies vaccination and his girlfriend’s number to call if he was ever lost; Killer’s number was on the opposite side. A gift from her on their two year anniversary. He swore up and down he hated it, but more often than not, he enjoyed wearing it during sex. Or strapping it over Y/N’s neck.

The memories made him tingle, letting out a low grumble as he felt the first of many waves of arousal as the night wore on. He understood why Y/N chose the outfit she did – casual enough to get away without looking overzealous of the festive month, and flirty enough to do the things she was intentionally doing to fluster him during the date.

It was when Y/N said, “If only you were in your human form, you could be groping me under the table or in between the alleyways and dead end zones,” that Kid’s patience broke and he pulled on his leash.

“Time to go,” he snapped, grabbing the chain leash with his jaw and yanked Y/N behind him. She stumbled in her step as she threw her change in the tip jar, downed her final shot, and grabbed her remaining cup.

“NO PULLING TULIP!”

Kid’s rabid barking could be heard throughout the maze arena.

Y/N’s shoulder was sore by the time they made it back to her home. Unlocking her door, Kid towered over her standing on his hind legs, pushing her through the door. He pinned her to the ground as he kicked the door close, drool falling from his jowl as his eyes looked red and incensed.

“TAKE. IT. OFF.”

With trembling fingers, Y/N unbuttoned the shorts. As they fell away, her eyes zeroed in on the strain behind the cage. Even in dog form, he was intimidating to look at – everywhere. The cage was doing its job perfectly, an angry looking member restrained in its confines.

“No. You didn’t have to drag me home. My shoulder hurts.”

“Y/N,” he warned.

“You’re not in charge tonight Kid. I am. That was the bet. What happened to Eustass Kid keeps his word?”

His body still pinned her down, but he leaned back a little bit to give him space to transform. As his body changed, his costume ripped apart at the seams, falling to either side of him. His bulging muscles were littered with scraps of thread and strips of fabric as his body heaved from how angry he was. Completely naked over her, his hands roughly palmed her body before settling over her shoulder.

Then, with a delicate touch, he began kneading the muscle around the sore area. Using his fingers to help reduce stiffness, gently moving her arm in stretching motions to loosen her muscles up from all the restraining she had attempted to enforce on him. It had been kinda cute, in the moment, only he couldn’t see it through the red he saw. Didn’t really comprehend the pain he was inflicting in his hurry to drag her home.

Her home: where he kept a bag of toiletries, books, an extra tool set, and had recently purchased a small dresser to hold more of his clothes in her room for his extended sleepovers. The latest record being 15 consecutive days. Her home plus him. Maybe their home…one day…

Nah.

He’d build them a palace from the ground up before he’d let them settle in this tiny shed.

Finishing the impromptu massage, Kid pressed his matte painted lips against her neck, slowly kissing up and down her flesh. Lingering every time goosebumps broke out on her skin. Her hands clutched his face and brought him down to her face, kissing him with fiery passion. They made out until they were panting, lipstick smeared across faces, Y/N’s neck littered with small, shallow hickies.

“I’m ready to play a game,” Y/N gasped.

“Which one, doll?”

“The coin toss.”

He grinned, “Sounds fair to me.”

The rules were simple: the reward for calling heads was 5 minutes of head, if tails came up the punishment was the belt had to stay on as Y/N masturbated and he could only watch; the reward for calling tails was one orgasm, and if heads came up, the punishment was edging for 15 minutes, with the cage on.

He won head twice in a row before his time was called, shutting down his ejaculation that was 2 seconds shy of shooting down her throat. The torture of watching Y/N swirl her clit with a vibrator her made her had his balls aching dully.

Then the edging came. Kid laid on his back with a pinched face as he tried with all his might to will his orgasm to come out even with the restraint. Y/N’s slick pussy drooled over the cage, soaking his sensitive skin, making him throb painfully. She slid back and forth on the cage as the edge of the lock pressed against her clit making her cry out as she came again. Kid could feel the pulsing of her core even through the barrier of the steel and he almost wept.

He had the strength to rip it off if he really wanted to. But he was weak for his sweetheart and caved in to her desires. Would do so more often to avoid the calculated torture she was putting him through. Next time just go to the stupid event, he berated himself mentally. The phone timer went off and Kid let out a shaky sigh of relief, tears rolling from the outer edge of his eyes, his eyeliner smudged and leaking with the tears.

“You’re turn to flip, big guy.”

Kid flipped the coin and Y/N caught it.

“I’ll get the key,” she smirked and got up, but not before sliding her pussy over Kid’s face leaving a mess of slick around his mouth and nose, which he eagerly lapped up.

He laid in his position until she came back, gently unlocking the cage. As soon as the two sides left his heated skin and his cock was free to fully swell until it was as hard as the steel that confined him, he flipped Y/N to be under him.

“Let me in,” he husked, prodding his tip between her folds. Bottoming out in one thrust the second she gasped approval.

He jackhammered inside her, eager and feral to release deep inside. She let out incoherent yelps as his hips smacked against the back of her thighs as he hoisted her up by her ass. Curling over her, pushing her legs back into a mating press, balls heavily slapping her ass as they tightened.

Y/N wailed as the position stoked her final orgasm. Clamping down on his cock, Kid’s thrusts became sloppy as he panted and moaned, fucking her through hers before he allowed himself to cum. The final tremors and twitches subsided and he let out a snarl, digging his nails into her arms as he stroked himself with her gummy walls, cumming deep and hard. A creamy ring formed on his cock as he slowed his pumping, finally spent. Instead of pulling out, he clutched his girlfriend to his chest and rolled them over, keeping his cock warm as he rubbed her arms to soothe the crescent shaped dents he made in her skin.

“Hmmm…” he grumbled tiredly as he tucked Y/N over his chest, kissing the top of her head. “Y’know…oddly enough, my bad luck suddenly went away today.”

“Oh yeah? When?”

His painted nails stroked her hair as he thought about how much fun she had, even with him in his monstrous form. “When I was hanging out with you. I love you, Y/N.”

“Awww,” she cooed, shifting to move up his torso, giving his shoulder a light bite, “I love you too Kid.”

14 tiles to go, 35 calls made so far.

[reddreaction]

so...what no new Fionna and cake universe aus?

So like… they gave us a whole premise of how Fionna and cake could have infinite universe ideas based on a wish or a simple question and no one was like "yeah, i want one?" after seeing the ones we got? lame. So I'll start one.

What if princess bubblegum and neddy had switched places when they were born?

Because I had decided that was going to be my universe. the one where the dragon landed in the water and the princess landed on a rock and learned that life was hard right then.

So hear me out.

Neddy lands in the water but is still a scaredy cat meaning that he gets scared from some of the mutant thingies that he sees nearby, prompting the mother gum to drop princess bubblegum-which i will be calling boni- to aid him. However, she lands on a rock, which OW but she pushes that aside to aid her scared brother.

From then forward they go about wandering the city that they eventually take over and make the candy kingdom for several years- causing both of them to want to make their new home safer.

I made Neddy the protective dragon trope, not because of bravery or honor, but because he is a scaredy cat. -i think fionna and cake didn't include him in any of these timelines which is a shame because even though they didn’t treat him like it, he’s one of those essentials to princess bubblegum's character- in which, i replace all the banana guards with gingerbread cookies, with their leader being Prince Bisket or General Hardtack with the magical healer, Joy Cookie.

Mostly because.

I forgo the whole gumbald incident, waiting to give it to someone else in this au.

While Netty becomes close with General Hardtack, Boni is establishing herself as a princess, making candy people and creating bonds with them, allowing them to trust in her and her intentions. In this universe, she is more concerned about the safety of her people and the dangers lurking in the wasteland, probably searching for cures for the oozing mutants and studying arcane magics to better understand the world around her.

This allows an au in which the two create a powerful and influential kingdom early on in the lore of Ooo.

[chibi-sunrise]

Everything I could find on Laplace

The Red Wolf, one of the Alphas who support the empire alongside August. Ever manipulating, tempting, and deceiving, she is truly a demon in her own right. Although she is nonetheless favored by the emperor, there are many within the empire who distrust her. Even so, her charm and beauty have placed untold numbers of imperial soldiers under her spell, as if drawn to her unique dangerous aroma. She and Alexandra are polar opposites, incessantly bickering and fighting like cats and dogs.

Profile

Birthday -  September 25

No birth year or age revealed

Bow wielder

Height - 158cm

Left-handed

Theme Color - #d337e5

Here’s the post on where you can watch the story.

Episodes she appears in

August ep. 1 Checkmate

August ep. 2 Seeds of Despair

Alexandra ep. 1 The Sun

Laplace ep. 1 The Witch’s Whim

Leo ep. 2 The Noble One

Lisette ep. 2 Entangled Pasts

Ana-Maria ep. 1 Leaving the Birdcage

Crossroads ep. 1 The Habakiri Incident

ep. final Blossoming Heroes

Event stories she appears in

Valentines Day

Easter

Anime episodes she cameos in

Tales of Luminaria the Fateful Crossroad ep. 2*

Episodes she’s mentioned in

Leo ep. 1 Budding Heroes

Alexandra ep. 2 Pardon for Justice (highly implied)

Hugo ep. 2 Battlefield of Farewells

Event stories she’s mentioned in

April Fools Day

References and Miscellany

Video of her outfits/Mystic Artes (EN audio and text)

Some references for Laplace’s outfits

Video of Laplace’s Mystic Artes (JP audio and text) Scroll down for some screenshots of descriptions of her Mystic Artes

A video showing how Laplace can use NPC Bastien as a shield when bruteforcing your way through the security system

JP Voice Collection

Her archive section

Favorite Dishes (excluding Noble dishes and Elixir)

Cream Anmitsu

Creamy Yogurt Drink

Desert Mint Tea

Glamorous Cordial

Izamille Stroopwafels

Jantbelle’s Silky Smooth Tofu

Lightning Apple Yokan

Milk Ice Cream Bar

Rainbow Rock Candy Rose Chai

Thick Strawberry Milk *secret recipe

Hated Dishes (excluding expired event dishes and Ana-Maria's cooking)

Amelie’s Stamina Bowl

Beginner’s Pot-Au-Feu

Bitter Ratatouille

Canned Meat & Potato Gallete

Chargrilled Meat Fest

Chicken Wing Skewers

Colten Fresh Salad

Colten’s Stuffed Cabbage Roll

Creamy Egg & Vegetable Galette

Crispy Crust Sauté

Egg Cutlet Sandwich

Fermented Bean Spread

Front-Line Camp Knödel

Golden Roast Beast Nest Bowl

Green Veggie Drink

Healthy Archonis Quinoa Cake

Healthy Glass Noodle Salad

High Protein Fried Bugs

Level-10 Spicy Mabo Curry

Lunch Lady’s Rice Ball

Macho-Piled Stew

Meaty Pan-Fried Dumplings

Nutritional Non-Perishable

Nutritional Non-Perishable B

Odrgard-Style Keema Curry

Pickled Mushrooms

Schnitzel & Tartar Sauce

Sea Cucumber Marinade

Silvayer Vegetable Terrine

Special Nutritional Drink

Spicy Seafood Curry

Spicy Yogurt Rice

Tender Braised Mijeero

Ultra Smoothie

Veggie Bagna Càuda

*You can find Laplace sitting next to Emperor Sigismund Marschner in the throne room at the end of episode 2

This means that all the Alpha generals (both current and future) made an appearance in the anime!

[agirlwithmagicpals]

Dante mc skunker

Dante is the future boyfriend of razz who is an Irish yet somewhat Italian(but only by 21% in his dna) ☘️ rock music artist as well as traveling around from town to town to play for more people.

Nicknames:Don,tay,duffy,trory, Sean age:24 DOB:January 19th 2005(razz was born in December 17 2003) star sign:Capricorn

Sexuality:pansexual(has had plenty of girlfriends but leans towards men more) Gender/pronouns:male,he/him species:striped skunk

Relationship status:bouncing back and forth but will be taken by razz by pure accident home:nowhere specifically(a traveler 🧳)but was originally from Ireland 🇮🇪 only to be moved at an early age by both his parents

Likes:singing,dancing,making music, traveling, meeting new people, getting new girlfriends, lots of lovemaking😉😉😉, and razz plus his homosexual behavior dislikes: disrespecting aroace people, lgbtqiaphobes, sour tasting foods,having more than the 12 children that he already has, feeling stuck in a relationship, music rivalry

Habits: actively avoids sour candy 🍭, visits Ireland once a year, stays out of aroace safe spaces as aroace people tend to associate him with sexual themes and having sexual affairs

Abilities: nothing too weird but was trained by both his father and his rather large gang to fight in close range combat when it comes to underground fights as a teenager on the side

Weakness: he sometimes struggles with his ocd as it is high functioning although he does now use medication 💊 more often as a result and he has also been disowned by his family for personal reasons

Relations: razz the skunk(boyfriend), his band mates Molly, frank, and doomsday, his family especially his mom(no longer in contact), big bad music(his rival) people who want to help sonic and his family,

and half the time clutch whom of which he only meets after crash’s existence was compromised after a certain incident happened involving the skunk brothers rumored about by many as well as clutch not being a huge fan of hybrids or even hybrid Mobians for that matter (anthro humanoid hybrids exist in this universe and the majority of my au’s)in fact he absolutely hates them just for not having pure blood running through they’re veins as he can be rather judgmental and cold while also being old fashioned.

Dan was even informed by razzy that crash is indeed his child and only left him behind not because of hate or just outright being unwanted but cause he didn’t want to get in trouble although he still has no choice but to make up for it with the assistance of his boyfriend.

[petri808]

Nalu Yakuza Au *cover art by @jmoart214 💜

1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |

The tit for tat game was well known to both of their top confidants and lieutenants because it had been going on ever since Natsu and Lucy broke up. Plus, it was hard to get around such knowledge considering most of them came from the same neighborhoods. These intrigues ebbed and flowed like waves. Months could pass by without any interactions between the two, at other times they’d go back and forth continuously until one of them finally gave up, and on the odd occasion ended in a huge fight that led to another round of ignoring each other. Up until now, it had been kind of amusing to watch them torture each other because it was better than a drama shows on television. But that didn’t mean Natsu, and Lucy’s friends didn’t worry about one or both being truly hurt one day because of it.

“It’s fine,” Natsu rolled his eyes as Gray chastised him after the soapland incident. The two men were at Natsu’s home after work hours and supposed to be relaxing. But clearly his friend didn’t want to drop the subject. “What’s the big deal?”

“Dude, you let yourself be blindfolded in a public space! Have you forgotten what kind of business we’re in? What if it had been an assassin instead?”

“Oh, that’s just ridiculous. We’re talking about Lucy’s company, and I trust their security measures because she has just as much to lose if a hit took place there.”

“Still, you should be more careful, at least take a bodyguard with you…”

Natsu’s eyebrow twitched in irritation. “And what, so they can watch the show? We got any voyeurs on the payroll? Cause I can’t think of anyone here who’d wanna see another guy getting his balls fondled!”

Gray ran a hand down his face. “So not the mental image I wanted. You’re missing the point.” He sighed. “Natsu you are the head of this clan, and your safety is my top priority.”

“I get it, I get it,” Natsu drawled.

“And frankly,” Gray continued, “you’ve become distracted by her lately.”

“Tch! No, I haven’t!”

“Yeah, you are. You think I haven’t noticed? I know you drive by her place sometimes. I know you’ve followed her to that coffee shop she likes to frequent. But ever since her employee was robbed, things have escalated again.”

“You’re imagining things and apparently spying on me. I’m just keeping an eye on the competition.”

“Watching over you is my job! That’s not spying.” Gray crossed his arms. “And oh, it’s no doubt that you’re keeping an eye on her. That’s why you went to Katsunuma’s party and to soapland too. The problem is you’re getting sloppy and sloppy gets people killed.”

Natsu groaned. “Are you done yet? We’re supposed to be enjoying the baseball game, not psychoanalyzing my life.”

“Almost.” Gray placed a hand on his friends’ knee and leaned in. “Natsu, you’ve been chasing that tail since high school, just lock her down and convince her to work together already.”

Natsu snorted a laugh. “Gray we all grew up together, so what in all these years makes you think that’s a possibility? You know damn well Lucy’s not a woman you can control without her consent.” Natsu knew that, and frankly he loved that part of her. In fact, it made him even more fired up whenever he thought about it, just like a treasure you don’t just find but must win at the end of a game. “I’ll find a way, some day.”

“Well until that day arrives, could you promise me you’ll be more cautious?”

“Fine, fine,” Natsu waved his hand. “I’ll back off of Lucy for now.”

“Good.” Gray relaxed back onto his recliner thinking the drama was over.

“However, there is a new guy I want surveillance placed on.”

“Who?”

“The bartender from the party.”

Gray groaned. “Seriously? Why? He’s just a bartender!”

“I don’t trust him.”

“Was he spiking the drinks or something? Dealing drugs at the party?”

“Maybe.”

Gray huffed. “You really gonna try that? Do I look like an idiot? This is just straight jealousy talking.”

“I don’t care! I want someone to dig up what they can on the guy!”

“No, what you wanna know is if he fucked Lucy that night!”

Natsu jumped up with his fists clenched. “Fuck you!”

“Fuck you too!” Gray stood up and matched his boss’s energy. “Unless you give me a damn good reason to check into him, I’m not wasting my guy’s time! You might be the boss, but don’t you fucking forget who you’re talking to! I’m not some punk off the streets!”

Realizing he was taking things too far, Natsu sat back down. “Sorry.”

Gray sighed and plopped back down too. “I only joined because you asked me to and you’re my best friend, then I helped you build this new empire, so I’m just as invested in protecting it as you are. But Natsu, personal emotions have led to the downfall of many in this business, and as a friend, I’ll check you any time I think you’re going to far.”

“You’re right…” Natsu sighed too. “She just gets me so worked up.”

“Don’t I know it,” Gray laughed, but stopped when Natsu glared at him. “Sorry, it slipped out.”

“But I swear, there’s something suspicious about him. When he saw me, I thought he just reacted because he thought I was Lucy’s boyfriend or something, but the more I think about it, he might have recognized me.”

“Well, that wouldn’t necessarily be suspicious either.”

“True. But the look in his eyes just made me wonder.”

“Alright…” Gray groaned, “if it’ll make you feel better, I’ll have someone do some digging. So, you said he has orange hair and glasses, and the name on his tag was Loke?”

“Yeah.”

“That’s an unusual name, shouldn’t be too hard to check on.”

Over the course of a couple of weeks, Gray sent out feelers for any information on this Loke guy. Katsunuma junior gave them their first small lead that the bartender had worked the party through a local food catering company. That catering company was a legitimate business who had both full-time staff as well as independent contractors brought in per event as needed. Loke had been one of the latter. From there Gray obtained a last name, de Lioncourt.

According to his sources at the local precinct, Loke de Lioncourt had no rap sheet, no prior dealings with police, and for all they knew was an average citizen. The man’s Line blog profile listed him as a 28-year-old, Japanese/French American, model and bartender, and it was filled with pictures from events, parties, as well as many gorgeous women— none of which contained Lucy. But as Gray trolled through the man’s feed, he did come across one person he recognized and passed the information along to Natsu.

“Wow, she’s in a bunch of photos,” Natsu mumbled as he scrolled through the blog.

“Well, considering Cana’s reputation are you surprised. Parties and alcohol are the two things that woman lives for.” Gray laughed. “Now see, this makes sense to me. Lucy and him, not so much.”

“Tch… still pisses me off he even tried.”

“Lucy’s a free woman, she can go out with whoever she wants to.”

“We’ll see about that,” Natsu mumbled low.

“What was that?” Gray asked with a raised brow.

“Nothing.”

“Better be nothing, cause this is a dead end. He’s just a flirty bartender. It’s how they make tips.”

“Yeah, yeah, fine.” Natsu sat back in his chair. “So, back to business. What this I heard about some missing stock?”

“Oh, right. One of the warehouse clerks noticed a shortage, but when I checked with Yura, he said the books were fine. I had him show it to me, and it appears the numbers were just inverted by accident. So, instead of 185 kilos, it’s supposed to be 158 kilos.”

“Did you talk to the clerk again? Does he have any history of messing up like this?”

“Nah, he’s one of our better clerks.”

“Just keep an eye on it.”

“Sure thing, boss. By the way, have you seen Gajeel today?” Gray questioned. “I haven’t seen him.”

“He called me this morning said he wasn’t feeling well, thinks he ate something bad for dinner last night.”

“Tch, seriously? Thought he had an iron stomach?”

Natsu shrugged. “Must’a been some bad sushi or something. We ain’t got much happening today, so it’s fine. Anything else? I got some stuff I need to finish.”

Gray tapped his chin. “Just a reminder you have an appointment with our tech guy dropping by later this week to go over some upgrades on the system.”

“Like I’m supposed to know anything about that stuff, it’s what I pay him for.”

“You still gotta approve it,” Gray shrugged and took his leave.

Once the man was completely out of the office, Natsu opened a drawer in his desk and pulled out a nondescript box he’d hidden inside. He grinned to himself. It was time to make another special delivery. Even though he’d told Gray he was backing off the whole Lucy and Loke subject, there was no way he was gonna let it slide. Natsu didn’t care if the man seemed legit, and he wasn’t the first nor would probably be the last that he’d eventually scared away. And besides, being a Yakuza boss had a lot of down times too, easily filled with having a little fun.

Today’s little care package was being sent to Lucy by a courier service and Natsu just had to drop it off to the delivery company. Just a normal company like Kuroneko Yamato so it wouldn’t rouse too many suspicions. It was turning into a fun game for him just coming up with ideas of what he could do to rile Lucy up or irritate this Loke guy. Natsu chuckled to himself. So far, his favorite prank was a box of small sized condoms and a bottle of enhancement pills that he’d had delivered to Loke while on the job at another party. He’d even snuck in to watch it delivered, gaining a good laugh when the man took a peek in the box and frowned at its contents.

It was childish, but Natsu didn’t care. Every day for two weeks now, something new was sent to Loke. Random gifts like children’s candy to a toy gun, a big bottle of lubricant wrapped in a bow, a week’s worth of meals sent for lunch one day, even an empty box with rocks inside it just to drive the man crazy wondering who in the world was sending them. Lucy too wasn’t immune to his pranks, though hers had a different feel to them. Flowers with no note attached. Tickets to a canceled show he made up. A supposed dinner invite from Loke that wasn’t real— okay that was to test her, but she didn’t fall for it. And today’s little care package fit right into his prank scheme.

Natsu dropped off the package at a Kuroneko Yamato office with the address instructions already filled out and paid the company’s employee extra to keep their mouths shut. ‘She’s gonna kill me one day,’ he laughed to himself as he rode back to his office. ‘If it’s suffocation by her boobs it wouldn’t be a bad way to go!’

“Anymore stops sir?” The driver asked Natsu.

“Nope. Back to the office.”

He looked at his watch. The package should be arriving at Lucy’s office within the hour. Give or take another to open it, and by 4pm he would be receiving another phone call. Maybe he won’t answer it. Oh, that would piss her off even more! ‘Well, if she’d just take the hint...’

The afternoon was supposed to be mellow at headquarters that day. No shipments, and no appointments. But when Natsu got back, another general in the organization named Jellal Fernandez came to his office to inform him of a problem. One of the new local restaurants in their territory was refusing to cooperate and he wanted to know how Natsu wanted it handled. They were right in the middle of discussing it, when Natsu’s office door flew open with a loud bang!

In stomped Lucy who immediately threw a box at his head, causing Natsu to duck and Jellal to pull his gun.

“Don’t!” Natsu screamed at his general and motioned for him to stand down, to which the man complied. “Do you have a death wish Lucy!”

“Get. Out.” She snapped at the general. “Get out! This is between me and your boss!”

Jellal looked to Natsu, who nodded his head to scram. “I got this, don’t worry.” The man holstered his gun and left, but Natsu could see he’d stayed right outside of the now closed door.

“I take it you didn’t like the gift,” Natsu pretended to stay calm.

“Gee, me throwing it at you give you that impression? I know it’s you sending all these damn deliveries to me and Loke. That needs to stop now!”

He crossed his arms and scoffed. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Play dumb all you want. Just stop! Why are you even doing this?!”

“Take a guess,” he sneered back.

“I could’ve sworn we were adults now, but apparently I’m the only one who grew up. Stay out of my love life Natsu!”

“So, you admit you’re sleeping with the guy!”

“That’s none of your damn business! I can fuck whoever I want!”

“Not as long as I’m alive,” Natsu growled back.

Lucy crossed her arms. “That could be arranged.”

“Is that a threat?!”

“Yes! If you don’t stay out of my love life!”

“A woman shouldn’t be sleepi—”

“Don’t you finish that sentence!” Lucy grabbed a stapler that was within reach and chucked it at Natsu’s head. “Stop trying to control me!”

“Are you crazy?!”

At that moment, Gray barged into the room. He’d heard the screaming from the other side of the office, and when he got close enough to see Jellal standing outside the door, he became alarmed. Why would a general leave Natsu vulnerable! The man told him their boss told him to leave, but as the sounds inside escalated, Gray couldn’t wait anymore.

“Stop it!!” Gray got between them. “What are you two doing! Lucy you shouldn’t be here!”

“Then tell your damn boss to leave me the fuck alone!” Lucy spat back. “Ask him how he’s been harassing Loke and me!”

Gray turned to his boss with a groan. “Natsu, we talked about this!”

“Tell Gray what you been doing!” Lucy pressed. “Show him the stupid packages you send!”

“What packages?” Gray looked to Lucy, then repeated the question as he stared at his boss. “What packages?”

“Tch,” Natsu crossed his arms, “it’s not even that bad.”

Lucy stomped over to where the box fell and picked it up, pulling the contents out. “Bullshit!” She snapped as she held up a very racy, red nightie with flame prints, a pair of fluffy handcuffs, and a large dildo. “See this shit?!” Lucy shook the floppy latex toy at Gray before chucking it to the ground again. “He includes messages too,” then handed the man a folded piece of paper.

Gray read it aloud, “to make up for what playboy lacks. Had it custom made to my size wink wink. Ugh, seriously man,” he tossed the letter.

Natsu shrugged. “I was just having fun.”

“This is the yakuza, not a daycare!” Gray snaps. “I’m not here to babysit the boss so he stops harassing the competition! There’s more important business to worry about!”

“That’s right listen to Gray,” Lucy sneered.

Gray turned to her. “Oh, you ain’t innocent either, so don’t even try it. You both do things to purposely rile the other up and get mad when there’s consequences. Stop it!” He looked back and forth between the two. “Just stop it already!”

Natsu and Lucy looked away from the man with scowls on their faces. Neither wanted to admit he was right.

“Jellal,” Gray called out. When the man entered, he instructed him to escort Lucy out of there. “Next time, just call me instead. It’s best you two just stay away from each other. Got it?!”

“Yeah,” Lucy grumped.

“Got it?!” Gray questioned his boss.

“Yeah,” Natsu mumbled.

“Fucking like high school,” Gray ran a hand down his face in irritation. “You two need therapy.”

[lia-losing-it]

hehehehe

AU IDEAAA!!

SWITCHED AU: PT.1

WARNING: SPOILERS (anywhere from the first episode all the way to where the manga is right now. read at your own risk.

INTRO:

The mafia members run the agency.

The agency members run the mafia.

FUKUZAWA YUKICHI

Fukuzawa left the government but realized his bloodlust would never fade away

It was about a year after he left the government when he joined the mafia

He slowly made his way to executive and killed the boss :DD

His excuse was someone broke through the window and shot him with a gun in the head. Fukuzawa also got shot before he could take the intruder out.

He quite literally took a gun, shot his boss and himself, then threw the gun out the window. (i mean get it ig🤷‍♀️)

Even though all the members are rats, they’re his rats

Very overprotective over his rats

Pls don’t try threatening him with them. it’s a death wish

Don’t take his sword away from him either

Dazai once hid his sword and Fukuzawa literally flipped the place inside out to find it

Acts so different to people in the mafia compared to anyone else

still a sucker for cats

Mafia boss

KUNIKIDA DOPPO

After the Azure King incident, Kunikida vowed to never become him..

However, anger bubbled and grew stronger at the city that couldn’t save him

Thus, he joined the Mafia

His short temper is one feared among everyone below him

He’s especially harsh to those who “aren’t ideal” -(basically anyone whos rude, bossy, cocky, and defensive)

Hand grenades, guns, and pocket knives are probably his most used items

He’s almost never sent on subtle or stealth missions — he’s gonna end up blowing up all buildings surrounding him

He treats his subordinates different based on how “ideal” they are.

The difference in attitude is very obvious.

For someone who’s not ideal, he’d basically murder them 5 time in his head, gun and mission report on the table.

For someone nice, he’d just say, “oh yeah, we all make mistakes, its ok,”

He has at least three notebooks on him, and, again, at least 10 papers with weapons and stun grenades all over him

Mafia Executive

DAZAI OSAMU

He was originally part of the agency

When Odasaku’s death came around, he was accused of murdering him.

Seeking vengeance and truth, he ran away to the mafia

His will to live is wayyy more nonexistent than in the canon timeline because Oda told him to live

This timeline.. Odasaku didn’t tell him anything.

He makes it his mission to have Kunikida shoot him. He’s gotten so close once too🤚

The only time Kunikida and Dazai pair up, it’s to kill everyone in sight. Blood baths. Expect no survivor except them.

This man basically never sleeps

Anytime anyone asks him why they get the same answer: “I can hear Odasaku”

Not that they know who Odasaku is

Secondary Mafia Executive

EDOGAWA RANPO

Clever, cunning Ranpo

Is always beside someone because assassins are always after him.

He literally predicts when an assassin will come in and with what weapon.

“Breaking through the window with a gun in... 3..2..1”

He always finds the enemies hideout and weak spots within seconds

Wouldn’t hesitate shoot anyone that annoys him or wastes his time

Probably uses “just like stealing candy from a baby” a lot. like i mean a lot.

His first response to anyone under his rank making a mistake is “Can I kill them?”

basically won’t answer to anyone unless they bring him something

he has a set of things he’ll accept from people

Second Mafia Executive

YOSANO AKIKO

After returning from the traumatizing war, Yosano was..much more vicious and sadistic

She doesn’t heal fatal wounds that are ranks under her or unimportant to her more than 3 times

Broken bones are more acceptable

Suicide is also something she won’t bring people back from

However, if it were someone she loved, she’d throw down her ability as many times as she needs to

..She really said “seperation anxiety✌️”

She has a lot of other terms that she heals people by

Yeah, she’s really attached to people she considers her family

Yosano is obviously the medic and a secondary executive

TAYAMA KATAI

ex-hacker of the mafia

Kunikida’s bestfriend and the only one that’s safe from Kunikida’s wrath

Almost never goes on missions

When he does, he goes with Kunikida, who’ll stop at nothing to get Katai to the place he needs to be

Nowadays all he does for the mafia is help whatever they come to him for

His morals are basically nonexistent

If he can help, hey why the fuck not?

TANIZAKI JUNICHIRO

The Tanizaki siblings backstory isn’t known yet, so we’re gonna go off a hc that they aren’t related. They just stick to each other because they have no one else

A random thug made the mistake of trying to kidnap Naomi

Junichiro killed the thug using light snow and a sharp rock he found

Junichiro is very very overprotective over Naomi and his friends.

He literally will kill anyone he can unless told not to

He sneaks around the mafia with light snow to check if there are any rats

with that said, he knows all the rumors and gossips.

he generally holds onto gossip to entertain naomi

Secondary Mafia Executive

MIYAZAWA KENJI

He was sent away by his village because of his ability.

Having Superhuman strength probably does more negative impact to his farm and village than benefits

Kenji does everything with a smile which makes him scarier

Whenever he really gets pissed off, he frowns. let’s say the sight left them shaking. (timbers? shivered)

Probably one of the nicest among them

NAKAJIMA ATSUSHI

Dazai and Kunikida were looking for the tiger for the bounty

They bought him dinner to make sure it was him

When the confirmed it, they realized how strong he was and how valuable he would be to the mafia

works under dazai

probably one of the nicest among them

Fukuzawa and other mafia members try to tell Atsushi he’s valuable.

He doesn’t really believe it

Another one whos overly protective over people he deems to be family

IZUMI KYOUKA

Kyouka was picked up by the agency originally.

Mafia heard about kyouka and decided to kidnap her

Over her time in the mafia, she realized that she was better off an assassin. Demon Snow wasn’t an ability that could help others

Atsushi was the one who put up with her so Kyouka works under Atsushi and Dazai

Feel free to ask questions!! :D

@its-a-journal-of-ideals helped with like half of these

[beebrainedstudios]

My Modern ADSOM AU  Overview

AKA stuff for my lightly-thought-out AU that is basically just a throwaway for funny/lighthearted stuff. It’s also the foundation for the Studs and Spikes + Theater AUs; both of them are basically just Modern AU spinoffs with a few tweaks.

- The uber-rich Maresh family includes Maxim, Emira, Rhy, and Kell. Their wealth was inherited from both parents’ families; most of Emira’s family is centered in acting and the Maresh have a history in architecture and large construction projects like ships and stuff. Kell and Rhy each have their own places; Kell in a studio loft, Rhy in a mini-mansion of his own. They all are much less directly dysfunctional than in the books but still have their issues, most of which are centered around their inability to discuss their problems with each other.

- The also uber-rich Vortalis-Dane-Vosijk family (no central last name) is made up of Vortalis, Astrid, Athos, and Holland. Vortalis is the adoptive father of the other three; he adopted Holland first, then the Danes, and they all lived in the mountains for a while before he ended up inheriting an estate and fortune from his cousin, Gorst, of whom he was the sole surviving relative. The kids took well to their new lifestyle; Vortalis didn’t. He stuck around long enough to make sure all of his kids had grown up and were established in their careers before he went to go live in the mountains again. The Danes + Holland still visit him frequently, as they are all extremely close to one another.

- Kell works in multiple jobs, but typically does modelling (especially for coats) and occasionally acting. Rhy has yet to find a specific job, but he keeps himself busy helping Maxim run the family businesses and philanthropizing. 

- Athos is both a painter and a composer- he’s famous both for his work and his punk style, which doesn’t always match the fine arts events he participates in. Astrid is an author (historical nonfiction or thrillers), a jewelry artist, and a part-time metalsmith that specializes in historical weaponry. Holland is an actor who is most well-known for his historical, literary, and drama works, including a particularly stunning Pride and Prejudice film (this is where he met Talya- who played Elizabeth- and things didn’t go well).

 - Alucard is an estranged member of the Emery family (they work in shipping) who spent a little time dealing with the law before he settled down and became a pop star. Lila’s a rock star who’s currently collaborating on an album with Alucard.

- Alucard is openly dating Rhy and is happily accepted by Maxim and Emira; the incident that left him estranged from his own family is the reason the Maresh company no longer works with the Emerys. Kell is still iffy about Alucard, but that’s mostly due to their personalities clashing and both of their (somewhat minor) criminal records. 

Now that the set-up’s out of the way, random fun stuff:

- The younger characters (the main 5 +the Danes) all hang out a lot; they all run in the same circles and generally get along well. It’s not exactly easy for most of the group to make close friends anyway, so they’ll take what they can get. 

- Maxim is a huge history and metal nerd himself; he has his own forge and likes to make fantasy armor and swords. Both he and Astrid competed on Forged and Fire against each other once, and it was a really close fight (Astrid won, but only due to her slightly-superior history knowledge).

- The Essen Tasch is just the Masked Singer; Rhy was invited to judge and several characters competed; Kell because he was angry at Maxim and Emira and wanted an outlet, the Danes because they were invited to as a set, and Holland because he wanted to keep the Danes from winning. There were more involved too (I may have written all of this out- don’t judge me, it’s a fun show).

- The group’s favorite thing to do together is play Just Dance, and they all have songs they specialize in. Rhy and Kell are good at Crucified, Athos loves the extreme version of Circus, Astrid and Holland both excel at Hey Mama, Alucard can do the Rasputin dance, and Lila can do Moves Like Jagger. 

- Kell still has a coat obsession, but nobody can figure out which of his coats is actually his favorite. There’s like forty of them and he wears a different one every day.

- Maxim’s retirement plan is to open a history museum.

- Kell met both of his bio parents and immediately regretted it.

- Osaron is a legit cryptid that Athos swears he once lured into his garage with candy, but everyone’s pretty sure it was just a weird dream he had after watching ET. They’re wrong though.

That’s most of what I’ve got for now! Anybody have any questions about the AU?

[parad0xm0th]

Shout out to the Danny Phantom x DC enjoyers out there giving my dumb little fic a read and comments yall are literally the best to me you don’t even know

[writemekpop]

Pop Rocks, Strawberry, Bubblegum (Part 3) | Byun Baekhyun

Pairing: Byun Baekhyun x Reader

Summary: Your boyfriend Baekhyun has secret plans to propose to you - but he's way too nervous to make a move. So, he recruits the help of his little son Joowon.

Genre: Single Dad AU 

Word Count: 1.1k

Gif: @sefuns​

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 ❤️

On that fateful day at the hospital, Baekhyun decided that he was going to propose as soon as humanly possible.

But that was a month ago.

A month he’s spent being too scared to pop the question. Baekhyun knows you love him, but you’re only twenty-two and he’s twenty-eight, with a kid. Would you even want to marry him?

Awash with nerves, Baekhyun decides to enlist the help of his most trusted confidante. Aka, Joowon, his four-year-old son.

“Joowon-ah, what do you think of Y/n?” Baekhyun asks his son as he feeds him breakfast.

“She’s great!” Joowon says, mouth still full of porridge.

Baekhyun smiles and wipes some porridge from his chubby cheek. “What would you think… if Y/n… moved in with us?”

“You mean like, get married?”

“Yes, exactly! Clever boy,” Baekhyun coos. “Do you know what you have to do to get married?”

“You have to…. umm…. Give her a ring?”

“That’s right!” This is the first time Baekhyun’s talked about proposing out loud, and his heart is racing.

“Joowon, daddy needs your help with something.” Baekhyun whispers his plans to the little boy, whose angelic eyes light up to a million volts, just like his father’s.

---

It’s a Friday night, and you’re on your way to Baekhyun’s house for dinner. He sounded quite serious on the phone, and you can’t help but be nervous. Ever since that incident at the hospital, you’ve been feeling insecure in your relationship.

As you knock on the door, your stomach fills with butterflies.  

Before you can react, Baekhyun’s gorgeous face is peeking out at you from the door. His mahogany hair is tousled to perfection, and his pink lips are curled into a gorgeous smile. You don’t know how you got so lucky to meet a man like Baekhyun.

“Hey darling,” Baekhyun chimes, pulling you in for a hug. You wrap your hands around his broad shoulders and bury your face onto his soft checked sweatshirt. You stand like that for a moment, just taking each other in.

“Baekhyun, are you alright? I can feel your heart racing through your shirt.”

Baekhyun gives a strained chuckle, running his fingers through his hair. “Umm… I…j-just come in, Y/n.”

You raise an eyebrow, but decide to drop it. As you step inside, you’re immediately distracted by Joowon, who tumbles across the hallway and jumps into your arms.

“Hey buddy, isn’t it past your bedtime?” you ask, squishing his cheek.

“Daddy said I could stay up late today!” Hmm. What does Baekhyun have planned tonight?

All through dinner, Baekhyun is a bundle of nerves - he barely looks at you for longer than five seconds, and even spills his carefully created sauce all over the table.

After the meal, Baekhyun disappears into the kitchen, leaving you and Joowon alone.

“Joo… do you know what is up with your daddy tonight? Has something happened?”  

Joowon closes an invisible zipper on his lips. “Daddy made me promise I wouldn’t say.”

“Joowon!” Baekhyun calls from the kitchen, and his son goes running.

Left alone, your anxiety swells uncontrolled. You sit down on the couch and squeeze your eyes shut, praying that your heart will stop racing.

“Hey darling.” Baekhyun’s long fingers caress your shoulder, sending warmth rippling through you. Baekhyun leans down and brushes his lips across your neck. “Joowon has something for you.”

The next thing you know, Joowon is jumping onto your lap, one hand hid behind his back. Overcome with excitement, the little boy lets out an ear-splitting squeal.

“Close your eyes!” Joowon cries.

“O-okay.” You look over at Baekhyun. He’s furiously gnawing at a fingernail, not meeting your gaze.

As you close your eyes, your heart races a million miles a minute.

“Now… open them!”

Your open your eyes and see Joowon holding out a comically large candy ring.

“Daddy wants to know if you’ll marry him. Sorry but I licked the ring a bit, it just looked so yummy!”

You laugh as Joowon slips the slightly sticky ring onto your finger, the bright red candy jewel complementing your lilac satin dress perfectly. Your ice-cream heart melts into a sticky-sweet puddle.

Just then, Baekhyun leaps out of his seat. “Okay Joo, it’s time for bed.” Before you can say a word, Baekhyun scoops his son into his arms and strides towards the bedroom.

You’re left sitting there, dumbfounded. Did that just happen? Did Baekhyun just propose?

As the minutes tick past, the craziness of the day starts to get the best of you. Maybe you could squeeze in a short nap before Baekhyun gets back…

“Darling, wake up.” You open your eyes to see Baekhyun’s face inches from your own. His pink lips are curved in a smile.

“You look so cute when you’re asleep.” Baekhyun says, brushing a thumb across your cheek.

You notice that the brilliant candy ring is still nestled on your finger.

“So it wasn’t a dream then.”

Baekhyun’s midnight eyes bore into yours. For the first time ever, he is totally sincere.

“Y/n, I really love you. I didn’t think I’d ever find a love like this. I want us to be a family. You, me and Joowon.” He entwines his fingers with yours.

“I know it was a silly way to ask you,” Baekhyun continues, “but I wanted Joowon to be a part of it. We’ve not been together that long, but… I love you too much to wait any longer.”

Sunshine trickles into your veins, warming you from the inside out. Your cheeks ache from all the smiling you’ve been doing.

“What do you say? Will you marry me, Y/n?”

Baekhyun pulls out a velvet ring box, and his signature cheeky grin reappears. “And would you like a real ring?”

Baekhyun opens the box to reveal a delicate diamond ring. The little jewels twinkle just like the galaxies in his eyes.

The rush of emotions that flood through you are so overwhelming that you can’t speak. All you can do is grasp Baekhyun and kiss him.

This kiss is feverishly warm, soft and first, then gradually more intense until it’s dizzying. Baekhyun’s hands grasp your waist, pulling you impossibly closer.

Baekhyun’s velvety lips and strawberry scent are so intensely addictive, nothing could break you apart right now.

The kiss gets harder, deeper, and you cling to Baekhyun like he’s the only thing in the universe. When you finally break apart, you’re both gasping for breath.

“Of course, I will marry you.”

Baekhyun brings your hand to his lips and gives it a kiss. He takes the toy ring off and replaces it with the diamond one.

You can’t wait to start your new life, and with a man like Baekhyun by your side, it’s going to be as sweet as candy.  

[out-of-jams]

Yield To Pedestrians || teaser || pjm

↠ Yield To Pedestrians ↞ when you’d said that you wanted to be taken out, you’d meant on a date. not by santa’s sleigh. on christmas eve. it was a dream. it all had to be a dream, right? waking up in the north pole to a pointy-eared weirdo performing kumbaya christmas elf-on-the-shelf magic could only be construed as a nightmare. and wasn’t santa clause supposed to be old and jolly? not young and hotty? you had to find a ticket off the crazy train ASAP!

Word Count: TBD. estimated 10-15k.

Warnings/Genre: santa!jimin. fluff. comedy. christmas au. does it count as kidnapping if it’s to save a life? keebler elf magic. brief mentions of blood. y/n gets ran over (lol). elf!jin. cliche character-doesn’t-believe-in-christmas-magic-plot-point.

Release Date: TBD. sometime before/after Christmas. idk don’t pressure me.

Pain. So much pain.

You weren’t sure what part of you hurt the most. From the way your head pounded, to the stabbing ache emanating from where your ribs would’ve been if you hadn’t felt like you were being sawed in half by an amateur stage magician. Dim light bled through your closed eyelids and as the ringing in your ears slowly started to clear, a low-pitched voice sluggishly coaxed you out of your coma-like state.

“…just a few more drops of candy cane extract in conjunction with…”

Whatever you were lying down on was so soft that it almost lured you back to blissful unconsciousness. And it would have too, if it weren’t for the memories starting to trickle down from behind your pulsating eyes, to your woozy, fogged up brain.

Taking a break from writing your impossible-to-finish manuscript. Going outside in the very late hours of Christmas Eve to take out the trash. The feeling of cold winter air biting your exposed cheeks as the blizzard raged on; the sound of bells jangling. A panicked shout. The disgusting, pungent scent of wet animal. Blinding pain. And then nothing.

“…this should do. Yes, this should do just fine!” A nervous chuckle reverberated through the confuddling mist caging your mind and you begrudgingly – oh, so begrudgingly – peeled your crusted eyelashes apart and immediately hissed in pain when the light in the room caused your pupils to contract. “Oh, you’re awake! Excellent, just in time!”

Brown, red, and green colored the room in a single blur. You couldn’t make out anything else beyond the worried, inquisitive brown irises staring down at you. His face shifted in and out of focus; plush, full lips parted slightly, symmetrical features, light honey hued skin, and straight brunette hair flopping across his forehead.

Apparently, you’d been hit by a car and dropped straight into an episode of Grey’s Anatomy with your very own Dr. McDreamy. “Wha..,” your voice came out groggy, rough like you’d gone and swallowed a handful of rocks from your driveway for fun.

“Shh, don’t try and speak. Here.” Dr. McDreamy popped out of your field of vision to dig around somewhere off to the side, the noise of clinking glass bottles filling the room. You tried to turn your head to follow, but the movement had nausea bubbling up the back of your throat. Oh, god, you really hoped you weren’t going to vomit.

The mystery man returned holding a small glass vial filled with a bright orange colored liquid. “Drink this.”

He tried to push the opening against your lips, but you leaned back as far as the pillows behind your head allowed. “Who are you? Where am I?”

A sigh left his nose, plush lips pressed into a thin line at your refusal. “I am Seokjin, Head Elf here at the North Pole. Which is where you are. Well, technically,” his head tilted a little to the side, “You’re in one of our healing rooms. Drink this.”

Seokjin raised the glass vial once again, and you attempted to back away once again. “I’m sorry, you’re what? What kind of a prank is this? What kind of a doctor tells this shit to his patients when they first wake up?” Your voice started to raise in pitch at each question that left your mouth.

A flicker of amusement danced through his eyes, along with the raising of a brow behind the curtain of his hair. “As much as we elves love our harmless pranks, this isn’t one of them, I’m afraid. You’ve been in an unfortunate incident involving Santa and his sleigh. He seems to have, well, to put it frankly, accidentally run you over.”

You were gaping in disbelief despite the fact that any movement whatsoever caused a ripple of agony to spread through your body like a stone dropping into a lake. Either you’d been hit a little too hard by the car that ran you down, or you were still unconscious, locked into the weirdest dream you’d ever had. Santa? As inSanta Clause? North Pole?

“You’re insane. You’re insane,” you breathed. “I demand to know what’s going on here. Let me speak to someone else!”

“You can talk to Santa when he returns then,” Seokjin murmured before letting a reassuring smile touch his lips. It lit up his whole face, but the concerned knot between his brows still remained. “Just drink this first so you’ll heal. You have a pretty nasty concussion along with a few broken ribs.”

He extended the vial to hover beneath your nose and the scent of peppermint and some kind of herb filled your nostrils. “What the – what the hell even is that? I’m not drinking that!”

“It’s a pretty common healing agency here in the North Pole; it’ll get rid of your injuries like that.” He snapped his fingers.

“The injuries,” you stated slowly, doubt coloring your tone. “That I got from Santa Clause, right?”

“Those very ones,” Seokjin ran his fingers through his hair to brush it out of his eyes and your heart nearly stopped. “So, please drink it.”

You didn’t respond. Not because you didn’t want to, but because you were a little preoccupied staring openmouthed at what poked out behind his hair. Pointed. Pointed. “Pointed.”

“Hm?” He followed your stare and touched the tip of his pointed ears as if he’d forgotten that he had them. “Oh, yeah. All of us elves have them.”

“What in the Star Trek convention..,” the words left you in a hurried mumble. If you weren’t sure that you were dreaming before, you definitely knew it now. Because Seokjin’s ears looked a little too real to be fake.

“Medicine,” he began once more, more insistent. “Drink.”

You scrambled back from him so quickly that the room tilted on its axis, and the nausea that touched the back of your throat found a home in your mouth as you proceeded to vomit all over the floor.

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[talkfastromance4]

Running Back to You-- Luke Hemmings (wwii au)

Not quite sure what this is, but I felt it within me and I had to write it out. After watching 1917 and Dunkirk, plus Memorial Day and listening to “I am a Poor Wayfaring Stranger” this sprung to life. I’ve been in a writing funk and this helped me out of it, I guess so yeah, might not be good. 

Word Count: 2.3k

Warnings: graphic violence, mentions of blood and injury, indicated smut(very slight), bombings, gunshots, war mentions, WWII references

Masterlist

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. *copyright is listed below*

• • • •

He awakes with a jolt. In a manner of seconds his mind plays back a reel of his dream that he’s desperate to cling onto. It’s of you. 

In this dream you’re walking along the boardwalk, a pretty pink dress with a pretty pink cloud of candy floss between your fingers. The sky is a clear robin’s egg blue, no cloud in sight. Shrieks of laughter from children still echoes in his ears but he’s chasing after you. He was about to spin you around so you’d smack into his chest, your eyes alight with giddiness as he would lower his lips to yours, tasting the sweetness of the candy floss. 

The bomb that went off from the German aircraft disrupted his dream and his space of peace. Peace is hard to come by in this war, any moment of solace is treasured. Luke has been robbed of his.

The aftereffects of the bombs are always the same; frightened shouts from other men, rapid gunfire blasting into the night sky as if they created the holes for the stars and yells of agony from the wounded. Wrong place at the right time.

They’re all in the wrong place right now. Luke hugs his rifle closer to his chest, it knocks his dog tags together. He clutches them with his other hand desperately, he can feel the flying rate of his heart beneath his dirt covered fingers. Sweat tickles his upper lip, his nose is running and the safety of his dream--and his girl--are well gone now. 

He looks to his left, Michael, a friend he’s made in the last seven months reflects the same face of terror and alertness back at him. His helmet is askew and there’s dirt on his face mixed with his sweat. Their eyes ask a silent question, how long will this last?

“How long was I out?” Luke croaks. His throat is dry as sand, voice cracking from lack of water.  Clearing it won’t help, will only burn more.

“Two hours, maybe,” Michael rasps back. He licks his lips then winces, the salt from his sweat and copper taste from his blood taints his tongue. “You seemed out. What were you seeing?”

“My girl from back home,” Luke’s response is quick. He could talk about you all day; he thinks of you every minute. You’re the only thing keeping him sane during this horrific war. 

“She a pretty bird?”

“The prettiest,” Luke smiles then shifts his gun against a large rock. He digs into his many pockets, but the photo of you is always over his heart. He holds it up for Michael to inspect, the edges are a little worn, but your smile is radiant. 

“She is a looker,” Michael nods then flips it over to read your little note. “‘Come back to me my love.’ She sure loves ya, huh?”

“Yeah, I got lucky,” Luke grins taking the photo back. “Fancied her all through school and I finally plucked up the courage to ask her to the dance. Been together ever since.”

“I didn’t see a rock on those pretty fingers of hers.”

“I’m going to give her one when I go back home,” Luke nods affirmatively. “And we’ll live on the seaside by the boardwalk.”

“My girl’s—”

“GET DOWN!”

Michael and Luke scramble into position, fetal position with hands locked behind their heads just as another bomb fell. This one was closer, dirt, rocks and other debris scattered over their backs. Luke is aware of all the yelling, wails of pain and orders shouted in roll call of their troops, but he’s also fixated on you.

**

Luke’s boots squelch through the mud as he and Michael near the small town they’re set to liberate, to search for survivors and to take down any enemy. A nice family on the outskirts of town on a farm were very hospitable to them as soon as they saw the patches on their shoulders.

They aren’t the enemy.

Luke sang with them, the first time he’s had a guitar in his hands since he was with you on the eve of his departure. It was a bittersweet moment, enjoying the young children dancing and frolicking on the wooden floor while images of you and him dancing that night flashed across his mind.

With it being his last night, the sense of urgency was heightened and soon Luke was undoing the white buttons of your dress while your nimble fingers worked on his belt. It was the first time the two of you did anything like that, bodies trembling, breathing ragged. Your love was sealed with heated kisses.

“You never finished telling me about your girl,” Luke says, averting his eyes from the broken windows of shops. Blackened paint from the swastika’s drip down on the red bricks, papers scatter along the cobblestone road.

“Not to offend but my girl is a bombshell,” Michael grins, and Luke smiles back. Their friendship continues to grow the more they go through, Michael is always cracking jokes even in this dark time.

“What’s she like?”

Luke listens to Michael rattle off everything about his girl. How her hair is the softest thing he’s ever felt, her cheeks are always pink, and she smells of lilac all the time. They always share a milkshake at their favorite diner that has the best burger and fries.

“You and your girl should come with us when we’re back,” Michael adds nudging Luke in the shoulder.

“She’d like that,” Luke nods. “In her last letter, she told me she’s been wanting nothing to eat but fries and a strawberry shake.”

“What do you—”

Luke and Michael are blasted apart. Luke goes flying backwards, his back hitting the rough brick of a building, some of it tumbles onto his chest and knocks his helmet. Shouts from his other men are faint, the sound of the blast must have damaged his hearing slightly.

Through the smoke and floating papers, he searches for Michael who is flat on the ground. A small pool of blood forming by his head that is now bare of his helmet, his arms splayed on either side of him.

“Michael!” Luke screams and crawls his way off the sidewalk to his injured friend. Shots are going on all around him, the attacker has been taken down.

Luke is coughing through the smoke, his eyes watering and as he looks down at his friend, he sees the source of the blood. Michael’s left eye was hit with shrapnel or part of the grenade, rendering him unconscious as the wound bled.

Luke’s own hands are bloody and dirty as he searches for a pulse and finds a faint one, then he tries to find something to wrap his head in. The small knapsack the farm family filled with bread and cheese was made from a large handkerchief.

The bread and cheese tumbles to the soot covered ground as Luke rips the fabric into longer pieces. Michael groans when Luke dresses his head with the fabric, the blood blooms on the white cloth instantly, as if a poppy bursting free.

“Mike! Can you hear me? Talk to me,” Luke spits urgently and tightens the makeshift bandage over his friend’s eye. “Come on, tell me about your girl and the milkshakes. What’s her favorite?”

“V-vanilla,” Michael chokes out, he tries to open his other eye.

“Vanilla? Can’t believe your bird likes plain flavors,” Luke tries to joke with his friend, and it works. Michael’s lips curve slightly.

“Says it . . . reminds . . . of me.”

“Because of your hair? She’s funny, I can’t wait to meet her. Can you sit and stand?” Luke helps lift Michael up just as another soldier comes to their aid. He helps hobble Michael to shelter where the other troops have assembled.

“I’ll get the medic over, he can clean the wound,” the young man who helped with Michael says.

Luke holds Michael’s hand as his face continues to redden from the blast and his own blood. The medic, Calum Hood, gets to work immediately when he comes by.

“Keep him talking, he may go into shock, but he seems strong,” Hood instructs popping open his first aid kit.

“What else can you tell me about her?” Luke asks hastily. Michael’s bright green eye zeroes in on Luke, which makes Luke suck in a breath. Such a bright color while his face is dirty and bloody.

“I can smell her lilacs, Luke,” Michael sighs. “So pretty.”

“I bet they are,” Luke nods.

Calum hood glances at Luke when he removes the handkerchief. There’s a big gouge where Michael’s left eye should be. Michael squeezes Luke’s hand.

“It’s gone, isn’t it?” Michael licks his chapped lips.

“Mich—”

“It’s fine. Rather my eye than my life, eh? Reckon I’m still better lookin’ than you,” he jokes then flinches when Hood pours alcohol on the wound.

“You’re right about that,” Luke smiles. “I better watch out, you might steal my girl from me.”

“That’s just the beast in me.”

**

Luke and Michael are silent on their trip back home.

The medical officer Hood recommended that Michael stay behind while the rest of the troop liberated a small encampment of a Gestapo Officer that was in high ranks. Michael refused and persisted that he won’t stay behind. He signed on to help and defend and he will do it with one eye.

As soon as their troop marched onto the land of the officer, they heard a series of gunshots. Luke and Michael reached the house first, so they witnessed the horror first. In the study, the Officer and his family lay sprawled on their now stained wooden floor; the gun in the Officer’s hand as he drowned in a river of his family’s blood.

There were about fifty prisoners kept in the basement and in makeshift barracks in the backyard. All of them were ghosts, malnourished, dirty and filled with terror. One of them cried into Luke’s chest while the other soldiers coaxed the others out of hiding. One of their men spoke fluent German, his name is Ashton Irwin and he assured the prisoners that they will be safe now. They won’t be hurt.

The horrific sights hang dauntingly between Luke and Michael as they rode back to the Army hospital in France. The pair were never apart except when Michael was in surgery to repair the damage around his eye. Michael was asked if he’d like a glass eye, but the thought was mortifying so he opted for an eye patch.

Both clung to each other on the boat ride home and woke each other up on the train as they had the same nightmares. Nightmares of what they went through, of what they saw. Luke clutched your picture tightly against his chest, he stared at your face in the moonlight as the train rattled on.

Luke is tired. His feet are tired yet he’s aching to be near you again. He pulls his dog tags from his pocket that now has a diamond ring looped on the chain. Michael helped him pick it out while they were in France. He can’t wait to come home to you.

“She’s going to say yes, stop over thinking,” Michael tells him while the train pulls into the station. They both jump when a man bangs on the window, a gleeful smile on his face as he congratulated them for being home. “I wish it was just us on the platform.”

“Me too,” Luke replies grimly.

While they were at the hospital in France, one of your letters was forwarded to him. You wrote of your fear and worry for him, that you haven’t heard from him in weeks. You confessed your love every other line and Luke wished he could hold you, assure you that he’s almost home.

It’s been almost a year that he’s been gone. Each step of his boots was away from you, but they were also running back to you. Luke notices the tremble in Michael’s hands, an after effect from his accident but it’s been heightened from nerves.

“She’ll be happy you’re alive,” Luke assures him. Michael nods robotically. He’s nervous what his girl will say about his eye.

The two get off the train together, both searching for their loves. Being taller than nearly everyone helps, and Luke finally spots you near a pillar next to a bench. Without a second thought, he abandons Michael (for now) and pushes through the crowd of families being reunited, forcing his feet to move faster to you.

You’re already crying by the time he reaches you, his arms encasing you tightly as he breathes you in. You’re both grasping each other securely, whispering ‘I love you’ in each other’s ears. All his woes seem to disappear the longer he’s in your arms and he pulls away to plant a kiss on your lips.

“I have something for you,” he rushes out and reaches for his dog tags.

“I have something for you, too. I—Luke!” you gasp when he dangles the ring in front of you. You kiss him quickly in response, hoping he’ll understand that you mean yes. He slips it on your finger while it’s still looped on his necklace.

“What’s your—”

A small baby’s cry makes him freeze, then he finally takes in your surroundings. There’s a black baby carriage to the left of you, a pink blanket peeking out. Luke’s eyes widen as he looks between you and the carriage.

“There’s someone who’s been waiting to meet you,” you tell him. You slip your hand in his leading him to the carriage.

Luke collapses onto the bench, staring at the most beautiful baby he’s ever seen in his life. He grasps the edge of the carriage as the baby girl stares up at him, she has your eyes. You lift her from the carriage, carefully placing her in Luke’s awaiting arms. Tears fill his eyes as he kisses his daughter’s head, then you sit next to him and he holds his whole world in his arms.

“I’ve been running back to you,” he whispers to his girls.

• • • •

Copyright talkfastromance4 © All works is intellectual property of the author. All rights reserved. Any redistribution or reproduction or any part or all contents in any form is prohibited. You may not, without written expression and consent from the author, distribute works amongst other social media platforms

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[vannahfanfics]

I’ve Got These Scars, But I Think They’re Pretty

Category: Angst, General Fluff

Fandom: My Hero Academia

Characters: Dabi

Additional Tags: Role Swap AU

The bright white waiting room hummed with hushed conversations of waiting patients, worried family, and chatting nurses. Dabi sat hunched in a chair, leg bouncing and hands clasped tight, but not because he was awaiting treatment. His aquamarine eyes scanned the room to observe the comings and goings, the brightly-colored spandex suits and the fluttering capes as the local heroes made their rounds visiting the various tenants of the pediatric intensive care ward. 

By all rights, Dabi should be among them— but he didn’t exactly fit the mold of hero , even if he was a member of a bonafide agency. With a quiet sigh, he sat up to observe the dark purple scars and silver staples adorning his marred skin. No, children shrieked and cried at the sight of him and his scarred body. He’d only undo the optimism the other heroes were instilling in the ailing children if he strutted around pretending like he wasn’t some kind of patchwork monster. 

Sighing heavily, Dabi leaned forward to cradle his head in his hands. 

It was times like this that he loathed his father the most. So easily, Dabi could have turned to the path of vengeance and brought retribution in the form of a fiery inferno, but he hadn’t. He’d persevered; he’d endured the trauma and abuse and his own goddamn skin melting off his bones as he lived in his own circle of Hell until Shoto came around. He’d overcome all the urges and temptations to become a hero— but he still couldn’t be normal . They always wondered in the back of their minds if he was unhinged or a villain spy because of these scars he was forced to bear. 

Dabi clenched his teeth and curled his fingers into his hair, fingernails scoring into his scalp as he struggled to reign his volatile emotions back in. Oh, how he hated Endeavor, but he hated himself more for slipping back into these spirals of thought time and time again. Frustrated tears pricked at the corners of his eyes as he seethed in self-loathing and resentment and struggled not to let the negative feelings swallow him whole. 

I shouldn’t be here. 

“Hey, mister, are you here to get treatment?” 

Dabi jerked up with a small gasp as a sweet little voice yanked him out of his depressive spiral. He blinked rapidly, his teary eyes blurring his vision into hazy watercolors for a few seconds, until the form of a small child materialized into view. Her eyes were bright and wide as she regarded him curiously, a half-eaten chocolate bar in one hand and the other bundled to her chest in a thick cast. Gauze covered two-thirds of her body, making her seem like a little baby mummy standing before him. 

He straightened up in the chair and rubbed his sweaty palms across the fabric of his ripped jeans. 

“Oh, um… No.” 

“Are you visiting someone?” she asked, chomping down on the chocolate bar. Dabi grimaced slightly as she kept her stare fixed upon him while chewing open-mouthed on the sweet confection. It was a little unsettling, as he was so used to the wrong kind of stares; the little girl didn’t seem to register his scars at all, just gazing unblinkingly at him out of nothing but pure curiosity. 

“Um… Sort of. I’m with the hero agency visiting today,” he explained. The girl cocked her head to the side with a slow blink. 

“Then what’re you doin’ sittin’ out here? Are you tired?” 

Somebody come get this kid! Dabi thought as he shifted uncomfortably. Though he’d deeply desired for a kid to be able to converse openly with him like this, now that it was happening, it was such a foreign sensation that it was deeply unnerving. He cleared his throat awkwardly and glanced around to find someone who could serve as a decent excuse. Unfortunately, all the heroes were busy in patient rooms— leaving Dabi to fend for himself. 

“Look, kid, aren’t you supposed to be in a room somewhere?” he evaded. The little girl shrugged and took another bite of the chocolate. The piece broke off with a loud snap before she chewed avidly on it.

“Yeah, but I wanted some candy, so I took some of my allowance and went to one of the vending machines. I don’t remember what room I’m s’posed to be in, though, so now I’m lost.” 

Dabi had to snicker at her completely emotionless analysis of the situation. The tyke reminded him of Shoto, almost, with that dispassionate disposition and monotone voice. Dabi’s head lolled on his neck as he took another look around. The nurses and doctors were nowhere to be found now, either. Well, he thought as he pushed himself out of the chair, I guess I should do the “heroic” thing and escort her back to her room. 

“What’s your name, squirt?” 

“Katsumi.” 

“All right, Katsumi. Let’s go find your room, huh?” he said as he strode off. The girl obediently trotted to keep up, continuing to munch on her chocolate bar and smearing it a little across her lips. The ICU of the children’s hospital was the largest of the facility, so realistically, it could take a considerable amount of time for Dabi to find Katsumi’s room in the sea of beds. He slipped his hands in his pockets as he strolled along, icy blue eyes flicking between the name placards adorning the closed doors. Dabi was more than content to tread along in total silence, but the little girl— not so much. 

“Hey, mister, where’d you get those scars?” 

Dabi glanced down to see her gaping at the purple patchwork decorating the visible parts of his body. However, what startled him and stuttered his steps was the look on Katsumi’s face; rather than disgust, fascination adorned her features, and there was a strange sparkle in her eyes. He stood frozen as she tucked the chocolate bar under her armpit so she could run her fingers over the wrinkled, stitched skin of his forearm. 

“They’re burn scars, aren’t they?” 

Dabi’s expression softened as Katsumi’s eyes grew lidded. She ran her fingers over the marred areas a few more times, then reached back to claw at the bandages swathing half her body. “So when I’m all better, will I look like this?” 

Dabi’s throat closed up as he felt the oddest sense of shame washing over him. I shouldn’t be here, he thought again. What was he supposed to say? What was he supposed to do as Katsumi studied his injuries and envisioned herself like him— barely held together by staples and prayers? He bit down on his lip as it grew hard to breathe, and once again, the hate began to well up inside of him, a geyser threatening to explode and arch into the sky in frightening brilliance. 

“Your scars are so pretty.” 

Dabi almost fell over. 

“Do— do what ?” he cried as he looked down at her in shock. Katsumi gave him a sweet, innocent smile as if what she’d just uttered wasn’t insanely weird. She shyly rocked her hips back and forth as she placed her hand on his arm again. 

“Purple is my favorite color!” she explained with a giddy laugh. Dabi’s face wasn’t sure what kind of expression to make, but it made something. He sagged in disbelief— and a whole lot of relief — as Katsumi continued to admire the disfigured skin painting his forearm. Her eyes were lidded again, but this time in a childlike hopefulness. 

“That’s what happened to me, y’know. A house fire,” she said and raised her arm as much as she could in the cast. Dabi refrained from contradicting her; it was easier for her to believe something simple like a house fire and not years on years of pushing his Quirk beyond his body’s physical limits. “The nurses and doctors are all super nice, but… I hear them talking about how it’s such a shame that I’ll be scarred for life, a pretty girl like me.” When she looked back up at him, tears bubbled in her eyes before rolling down her plump cheeks, rosy with life and pain. “I’ll still be pretty even with these scars, right? Right ? Just because I have them, people can still love me, can’t they ?” 

Dabi breathed sharply through his nose as he ran a hand through his dyed hair. Of all the things he’d thought would come of today, comforting a crying child in the middle of a hallway wasn’t one of them. Yet he couldn’t help but feel glad for it. This little girl echoed the same things he’d felt after his incident. 

At least, unlike Dabi, Katsumi had someone to put her fears to rest. 

“Of course they can,” he said as he crouched down. His coat brushed against the white tiled floor as he kneeled beside Katsumi and rested a hand atop her head to ruffle her hair. “If anything, the scars’ll make you even prettier. They’re a sign that you overcame everything and came out still standing, yeah?” Dabi was never the best with words, so he hoped that Katsumi understood. 

She stared at him for a moment, still sniffling petulantly. However, little by little, a smile wormed its way onto her face. 

“Really?” 

Dabi’s smile broadened and gave her hair another ruffle, making her giggle. 

“Really. Don’t listen to what those nurses say. Anybody who has any sense’ll know that those scars don’t make you anything less.” 

“Thanks, mister,” she preened, and Dabi swore the smile she gave him was brighter than the sun itself. As he stood, she lunged forward to take his hand and lace their fingers, still probably feeling a little emotionally vulnerable. Dabi didn’t make any move to rebuke her, only tugged on her slim arm so they could resume walking down the hall. Soon she was swinging his arm back and forth as she pranced along, much more animated and happy that she had been previously. 

Dabi felt a sense of pride welling up inside him, knowing that just a few words of encouragement had illuminated Katsumi so brightly. 

Suddenly, he was very glad he came. 

Eventually, they located Katsumi’s room. The nurse nearly bowled Dabi over when they meandered up, screeching at him about kidnapping and not listening to a damn word he had to say. Though Katsumi brightly attempted to explain that Dabi was a kind hero who had led her back, the nurse was about to call the authorities on him until Hawks sauntered up and slapped his gloved hands on Dabi’s shoulders to give her a brilliant grin. 

“It seems there’s been a big understanding. Ma’am, this is one of the heroes working at my agency, so I would appreciate it if you didn’t call the authorities on him.” 

The nurse dropped the phone with a series of confused sputters, pointing at Dabi as if that was all the evidence she needed. Dabi sagged into the bird-man’s grip, irritation bubbling up inside him. For a moment, he had forgotten how much of a ruffian he looked to the general populace. Hawks continued to diffuse the situation with practiced grace. 

“I know he looks like a thug, but I promise, Dabi here is a bonafide hero! He even brought your little lost dove back, yeah~?” 

“Yep! We had a great talk,” Katsumi chirped as she clambered back into her hospital bed. She finally remembered her chocolate bar and removed it from her armpit, frowning when she discovered that it was half-melted and squished. After scrutinizing it for a moment, she shrugged and chomped down on it. Dabi smirked as he watched her, very entertained. 

Hawks’ honeyed words had placated the nurse, who begrudgingly offered Dabi a half-hearted and wary apology. He shrugged her off and walked over to Katsumi, who was enjoying the remains of her chocolate bar. 

“All right, squirt. I’m off. Got lots of important hero business to attend to and all.” 

“Will you come back and see me?” she asked, looking up at him with a chocolate-smeared pout. Dabi snorted and pushed her head a little, making her laugh giddily. 

“Of course. I’ll see ya next week.” 

“Okay! Bring some chocolate bars!” 

“You got it,” he waved as he strolled out of the hospital room. Hawks followed suit after cheerfully bidding farewell to the nurse. They both sighed deeply as he closed the door behind him. 

“Well,” Hawks smiled as he strode up beside Dabi and nudged him with an elbow. “Lookit you, gettin’ friendly with the kiddos. I didn’t know you had it in ya, Dabs.” 

“Shut up, you great big chicken wing,” Dabi growled and flashed him a scowl. Hawks laughed good-naturedly, feathers ruffling in mirth. 

“Oh, come on now! It’s progress!” Hawks insisted. Dabi left him standing there with his arms held up like the great big winged moron he was. Hawks pouted and whined after him, but he continued off to the vending machines, suddenly craving chocolate. As the wrapped candy bar thunked down into the receptacle and he leaned down to retrieve it, a serene smile decorated his face as he caught the reflection of his scars in the glass. 

“Yeah, I’ve got scars, but I think they’re pretty!” He could just hear Katsumi bleating to the ignorant nurses. As he straightened back up with the chocolate bar in hand, he rolled up the long sleeves of his coat, exposing more of the purple patchwork skin to the cold air of the hospital. 

“Yeah. Me too, kid.” 

As he walked out of the hospital into the sunshine, he glanced up at the sky and smiled. 

I’m glad I came. 

Enjoy this oneshot? Feel free to peruse my Table of Contents!

[snailfloss]

"Lup, that was—" Kravitz spluttered. "Five seconds ago, that was drywall. What are you doing? Is this a normal thing now, eating the WALL?"

Taako choked on a laugh, fighting a swell of anxious nausea. Sometimes you’re horsing around with friends and you get a little too comfortable and you forget, for one second, a boundary you set for yourself. He hadn’t transmuted food since the Sazed incident. If he’d stopped and thought, this moment wouldn’t have been the one he’d pick for breaking out of that box. Not this food, not with these people, because he could never forgive himself if he hurt them.

They trusted him. He loved them.

Lup eats some excellent candy that was formerly sheet rock. Barry gives an extravagant gift. Kravitz begins formulating a plan to tell Taako that he loves him.

A modern-with-magic AU about Taakitz and Blupjeans, by me and @stealthtable