#the three of them are incredibly turned on by this knowledge though

[twotales]

I like to imagine that after “The Game” Evan, John, Radek, and Rodney started playing table top games together.

[golden-cherry]

deal - cl16 (34/?)

Pairing: Charles Leclerc x Reader

Series Summary: Your whole life has gone to shit. Your boyfriend broke up with you, you just lost your job and the Monegasque, who suddenly stands in your doorway, claims that it’s his apartment.

Chapter Summary: The boat that's actually a yacht - and it's just the two of you.

Warnings: fluff, minimal angst, Google translated French, no knowledge of boats

Word Count: 3.9k

series masterlist

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A/N: we're back bitches!!! love you. feedback is appreciated!

"What do we need?" you ask, taking a sip of your coffee. "Apart from Kika's spontaneous photos, I've only taken pictures of inanimate objects so far. And the one of you."

Charles shrugs his shoulders. "When Joris and I take photos together, we'll pack a bag of different clothes." When you raise an eyebrow in confusion, Charles purses his lips. "We always take several photos, for several posts. If we don't have time to take new pictures, we always have some in stock that we can use without them looking like old pictures."

"Okay." You put your mug down on the work surface in front of you. "Anything else?"

Your roommate grins. "Your camera."

"Haha." You toss it off with a kitchen towel. "I mean, do you need anything else in the way of props or anything?"

He shakes his head. "Actually, no. Everything you could possibly need for a photo shoot is already on the boat." He nods towards the hallway. "You just need long clothes in case it gets colder later."

You nod. "All right. Then you pack a bag with the things you need and I'll pack one with clothes I can wear if it gets cold later." You walk around the kitchen island towards the hallway. 

"And don't forget your camera." You can even hear the smirk, which is why you give him the middle finger without turning around. 

As you stand in your room, you don't really know what to pack. 

Although it's supposed to be twenty degrees outside - which sounds totally surreal for a day before Christmas - your weather app tells you that it's going to be almost three degrees at night. 

"How long are we staying on the boat?" you shout loudly so that Charles can hear you. You throw a large bag on the bed. 

"No idea," says Charles calmly. When you turn around, he's standing in the doorway. "You and I can leave after the pictures. Or stay there all day. Or the night." He shrugs his shoulders. "There's no time when the boat has to be back in port."

You sigh. "I'm afraid that doesn't help me much." You point to the bag on the bed. "I can't pack my entire closet, Charles. Tell me what to pack." You look at him pleadingly. 

"All right." He enters your bedroom and looks around before reaching for some clothes lying on the floor. "Here, the sweatpants are good. If you want to lie out on the sun bed in the evening, you'll need these." He tosses them to you. You catch them and fold them up to stow them neatly in your bag. "Do you have comfy socks or something?" 

"Ehm, yeah," you say, pulling some out of the pile of clothes Kika left there and tucking them into the side pocket of the bag.

Charles kneels down on the floor and sifts through the pile at your feet. "You'll definitely need a thick sweater. It's going to be pretty windy when we're out at sea." He rummages around in your clothes until he fishes out a black sweater and holds it out to you. "Tada."

The first thing you notice about the sweater is that it's not yours. The black hoodie is too big to be yours. The second thing you notice about it is that it's the sweater Charles gave you the night you went to your favorite place. 

The night Charles showed you his talent on the piano. The night you almost kissed. It feels like it was a lifetime ago. 

You can't tell Charles that you don't want to wear the sweater, even though it's incredibly comfortable. It certainly still smells like Charles, although perhaps not as strongly - after all, he hasn't worn it for days. You don't want to be wrapped up in his scent and be at risk of getting weak. The distance that needs to exist between you is the right thing to do. 

Charles looks at you questioningly from the floor and you realize you've already hesitated too long.

"That - that's not my sweater," you simply say. 

Your friend examines the sweater in his hand. "Really?" he asks, confused, smelling the collar. "But it smells like you."

You shake your head. "That's yours. You - uh - you lent it to me when we went to petits mondes," you explain as he folds the fabric and puts it to one side. 

"Oh. Right." He looks at the sweater before his gaze lands on you again. "You can keep it if you want."

You wave it off. "It's all right. Thanks for letting me borrow it. But it's yours after all, so..." You step nervously from one foot to the other. 

Charles watches you for a moment and then turns away. "All right, then. How about this one then?" He pulls another sweater out of the pile of laundry. This time it's actually yours. It's white, with red stripes on it and the collar reaches up to your chin. You definitely won't catch a cold in this. 

"It's good," you reply with a smile and catch it as he throws it to you. You fold it before putting it in your pocket as well. "What about your clothes? Do you want them in the bag too?" you ask him, hoping that he will take his clothes separately and not infect your clothes with his smell. 

Charles gets up from the floor. "I'll pack my own bag. You still have to pack your camera," he smiles, patting non-existent dust off his pants. "About the trip to the port..." he begins, rubbing the back of his neck. 

You grab your camera bag and stow it next to your clothes in your bag. Hopefully the spare battery is charged. "Hmm?"

"I suggest we take your car and I'll drop you off. Then you won't have to walk far to get to the boat," he explains. "I'll park your car in a side street and then join you. Then we won't be seen together."

You look at him, confused. "Can people just get on your boat like that? Aren't you afraid that some crazy fans will suddenly come out of - I don't know - your cabin?"

Charles has to smile. "Someone will be waiting for you there. They'll let you on the boat."

Embarrassed, you curl your lips into a thin line. Of course there's someone at the docks to make sure no one sneaks onto strangers' boats. "Okay."

You stand opposite each other, undecided, until Charles takes the first step. "I'll just pack my bag and then we can go." Smiling, he disappears from your bedroom. 

While Charles stuffs everything he can find into a bag, you gather some snacks in the kitchen to take with you on the boat. Charles has hinted that there would be a cook on site, but you might not be there for too long, so a proper meal wouldn't be worth it. 

As you prepare some sandwiches and put them in a bag, Charles appears behind you. "Are you ready?" he asks, leaning on the kitchen island. 

"Yep," you reply and place a few small bottles of water next to the sandwiches. When you look at Charles, he grins. "What is it?"

"Nothing." His grin almost reaches his ears. "There's water on the boat too, you know."

You roll your eyes. "I've never been on a boat before." 

Charles raises his eyebrows briefly before shrugging his shoulders. "It's not as special as you make it out to be."

You squint your eyes a little. "Only rich people say that."

He tilts his head. "Do you want to go on the boat or not?"

"Like I said," you start the sentence and grab the snacks, "only if I can steer it once."

Charles reaches for the keys to your Renault. "Don't you dare crash it," he warns you as you walk towards the elevator. He presses the button and a short time later the doors open. "That boat was expensive."

"Don't worry," you try to reassure him. "I'll just hold the wheel firmly and steer straight ahead." You wink at him and step into the elevator. 

Charles has to smile and follows you. "I think I'll only let you take the wheel on the open sea. There's much less risk of you ramming other boats."

"You have a lot of faith in me," you say with mock hurt and put your hand on your chest. 

"I do," he says seriously. "I'd trust you with my life."

-

You walk uncertainly around the various walkways. 

Before you got out of the car, Charles said there would be a man standing in front of his boat to help you find it. You would also have to say a password so that you would be granted access to Charles' boat. 

"For security," he explained. "We don't want everyone to get on the boat."

With your two bags on your shoulders, you walk past a few boats that certainly cost more than you'll ever earn. But nowhere is there a man to signal that you are in the right place. 

There are a few people at the harbor, but no one pays you any attention. They are chatting with friends, frolicking on boats and enjoying the warmth of the sun one last time before the year is over and winter finally sets in. You walk past them with your head down. 

Cautiously and indecisively, you walk on and the boats become yachts on which great parties are sure to take place in summer. They are big and nice and you wonder whether you should google one of the types to find out what price range the yachts of the rich and famous are in. 

You are torn from your thoughts by a man. "Madame? Vous cherchez quelque chose?" are you looking for something? 

Somewhat taken by surprise, you stop. You are standing in front of a large, white yacht. With its two floors, it towers above its neighbors by quite a bit. 

"Uhm," you look at the man uncertainly. "Je cherche le bateau d'un ami," you explain. I'm looking for my friends boat. 

The man raises an eyebrow as if he's wondering what you're doing here. Your uncertainty and searching eyes probably made you stand out immediately. You don't fit in here, that's for sure. 

When the man doesn't answer, you try the password Charles told you. "Chicken?" you ask uncertainly, but when the man smiles at you and reaches for your pockets, you exhale with relief. 

You've found the boat. Thank goodness. 

The man helps you onto the yacht and leads you past the sun bed into the interior, which is much bigger than you imagined, and places your bags on a couch. A couch. On a boat. How crazy. 

"Voulez-vous boire quelque chose?" would you like something to drink? He smiles kindly at you. 

"Non, merci," you thank him and look around. On the floor, next to a couch and a small bar, is the steering wheel, which you hope you'll be able to take the plunge on later. To the right, a staircase leads down to the lower floor, where there are not just one, but three bedrooms, a bathroom and a kitchen. 

Astonished, you run your fingers over one of the large beds. The fabric is soft and pleasant against your skin and you can almost imagine how comfortable the bed would be if you snuggled up there after a day in the sun. 

"I was worried for a moment that you wouldn't find my boat." 

As you turn around, Charles is standing at the foot of the stairs, watching you. Without further ado, you sit down on the bed behind you. "I was looking for a boat too. Not a castle on the water."

He has to grin. "The boat is still relatively small compared to the ones that dock here in the harbor in summer."

You raise an eyebrow. "Really?"

He takes a step towards you. "Really. I'm the outsider with my little boat. There's nothing under five stories." He bites the inside of his cheek. "How do you like my boat?"

You nod. "Your yacht is really nice." You grin at him and take a look at the bed you're on. "But why do you need so much space at sea?"

He shrugs his shoulders. "I usually spend the summer break here with my family. Not all of the time, of course, but when we go out on it, it's quite a few days. And I'll be damned if I'm going to share a bed with Arthur."

You try to suppress your grin, but unfortunately you don't succeed. "Why? Does he kick while he sleeps?"

"No," says Charles, leaning against the bed at a little distance from you. "But he used to steal the blanket in the past and then I had to freeze all night."

You raise an eyebrow. "Couldn't you have just fought for it?"

"Believe me when I tell you I tried several times," he rubs the back of his neck with his hand. "He practically wraps himself up like a burrito and when that happens, you've lost."

"Then I know who I'd never share a bed with," you joke, but Charles looks a little more serious.

"I hope so." Before the mood can turn negative, he smiles at you. "Are you ready? Shall we go out?"

You look at him excitedly. "Oh yes." You jump off the bed and smooth out the creases you've left in the comforter. "How long will it take us to get outside?"

"Not long at all. I think twenty minutes and that's it," he explains, turning to head up the stairs.

When you reach the top, Charles gets behind the wheel. You look at him, confused. "Are you driving the yacht?"

"Yep."

"All the time?"

"Yep." He grins at you. "Except for the time you're at the wheel, of course."

You want to jump up and down with excitement. "And where's the man who let me on the boat?"

Charles presses a few buttons and the display in front of him comes to life. "Thomas? He's left the boat."

"Are we all alone?" you ask uncertainly and sit down on the couch. "I thought you still had a chef on board?"

He shrugs his shoulders. "You brought some snacks with you. Thomas also packed some food in the fridge in case you and I want to cook something later."

You purse your lips. You would spend the whole day on the water with Charles. Alone. And you would take pictures of him, which he would post on his official Instagram profile. And you would cook in the small kitchen in the basement. The distance you want to maintain between you seems to be shrinking somehow. 

"You're not going out on the boat with me to kill me and get rid of me discreetly, are you?" you ask him jokingly. 

"Believe me. If I wanted to kill you, I could have done it on our first day," he grins and puts his hands on the steering wheel. "Are you ready?" Charles asks, glancing over his shoulder at you. His green eyes sparkle in the sunlight and small dimples form in his cheeks as he looks at you. 

Gorgeous. 

You smile back. "I'm ready, captain."

He winks at you. "Let's go then."

Concentrating, Charles steers his yacht out of the harbor between the other boats. The rocking is surprisingly pleasant and not as bad as you expected, so you lie down on the couch and wait until you arrive at your destination. Charles remains silent for a while, so you don't say anything either, worried about disturbing his concentration, but while he steers the boat, you start working on your camera settings and think about which one would be best for your shoot. 

After twenty minutes, the yacht comes to a halt and Charles turns to you. "Alright."

Excitedly, you get up from the couch and follow him outside to the sun bed you had your eye on when you boarded. As you look around, you are amazed. You can still see the land in the distance, but you are so far out that it almost merges with the horizon. Although there is a sea breeze blowing around you, the sun is so bright that you don't freeze. It's reflected on the clear water and you want to put on a bikini and jump in. 

Charles seems to notice your gaze. "Next summer, I'll take you with me and then you can swim and sunbathe here until you get sunburnt."

You smile at him. "I'll gladly take you up on that offer." You glance back inside. "Do you need to get changed or are we going to start straight away?"

Charles snaps his fingers once before pulling his shirt over his head and disappearing towards the interior. You try not to stare after him and you ignore how wide his back is and how his muscles move under his skin as he puts his shirt down on the couch. He opens his bag and pulls out a white shirt. When he turns back to you, you turn away quickly, hoping he hasn't noticed you watching him. 

"Ready when you are."

Charles changes clothes more often than you can imagine. He has different outfits ready for every pose and every location on his yacht, which he slips into in order to take the best possible picture. In between, you take a sandwich break on the sun bed and enjoy the warm sun on your skin before getting back to work. 

It doesnt take long for you to figure that Charles is the perfect man for the job. He's so easy to work with, even though he jokes most of the time and you surely have more photos of him looking funny than serious. But you enjoy it the way it is. Happy, free, without a care in the world.

When you have finished and Charles is happy with the photos you took, he suggests going home in the evening. You nod and sit down on the couch. 

When he looks at you expectantly, you raise an eyebrow in confusion. "What is it?"

"I thought you wanted to steer the boat." In his hand, he holds a bandana that he ties around his head to control his hair, which is messy from the constant changing of clothes.

You widen your eyes. "I thought you were messing with me."

He furrows his eyebrows. "Why would I do that? There's nothing and no one here that you can put at risk. And you won't be steering for long." He leans against the seat in front of the wheel. "If you want, the seat is yours."

Excited, you get up from the couch and get behind the wheel. Charles explains everything to you and you try to concentrate on his words as best you can, but he is so close to you that his scent of perfume, a little sweat and him envelops you. 

With his help, the boat sets off and you jump up and down on the seat with joy. Your hair is blowing around your head and it's so loud that you almost scream. "Oh my God! How fucking awesome is that?" You don't even notice that you've let go of the steering wheel.

"Hands on the wheel, you crazy woman!" laughs Charles, holding the wheel tightly. As you look at him, you see a spark of the Charles you know. The Charles that existed before yesterday. 

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry!" you apologize and put your hands back on the wheel. "Oh my God! Can you take a picture of me?" 

Charles takes two steps back and pulls his cell phone out of his pocket. "Smile, please."

You grin so wide it almost hurts, but you can't stop. It seems so unbelievable that you are on a yacht and even get to steer it. 

You smile at Charles, tears stinging your eyes. A few days ago, you were almost homeless, all alone and on your own. There aren't enough words in the world to describe how grateful you are for the Monegasque who took you in. Who took you into his heart without hesitation. Who was there for you without batting an eyelid.

Fuck, you love him. And nothing in the world will ever change that.

"Thank you."

He lowers his cell phone. "For what?"

A tear escapes your eye and rolls down your cheek. "For everything." 

Charles takes a step towards you and you would love to take him in your arms and never let him go again. But he stops an arm's length away from you and smiles at you. "I would do anything for you."

You feel the blood rush to your cheeks, so you avert your gaze and look ahead again. Monaco is getting closer, but you would prefer to stay here. On the yacht and on the sea. You don't want to go back to reality yet - not if you can be here with Charles. The way it was before.

"I don't want to go back yet," he voices your thoughts and puts a hand on the wheel. When you look at him, he smiles a little brokenly. "I don't want to go back yet because I'm afraid that things won't be the same between you and me. That I'll lose you. And I don't want that." 

His words hit you so hard that you can't breathe. You would love to take him in your arms and kiss him and reassure him that you belong to him like the sand belongs to the sea, but that's not the way Charles means it. 

But you don't care how Charles means it. You belong to him - no matter which way.

"Then let's not go back," you suggest. "We - we can stay here and we won't go back until tomorrow."

Charles' smile looks forced. "And then?"

"Then we'll go home." You bite the inside of your cheek and purse your lips. "To our home."

Charles exhales in relief, as if the elephant that had been standing on his chest had finally gotten off of him. As if he had been underwater for too long and could now take his first breath. He would love to stay here forever, with you, far away from the reality of all the pressure he is under. 

As you smile at him, the pressure seems to fall off him. As if he has finally reached his destination, wherever that may be. Like he's home. 

Fuck, he'd do anything for you if you just asked him to.

He motions for you to let him into the seat, and as you swap places, he brings the yacht to a halt. As the engine shuts down, he slides off the seat and turns to face you. 

"Have you ever gotten drunk on a boat before?"

[hqbaby]

three — have to be

mess it up — gojo x reader & sukuna x reader

⁀➴ when i told you i’m fine, you were lied to. when the love of your life falls for someone else, you decide to move on—by pretending to date your best friend, the campus fuckboy.

previous — masterlist — next

word count. 2.5k content. profanity, college kids being stupid, some angsty feels

Contrary to popular belief, college isn’t that different from high school. No one magically matures overnight and goes from being a snot-nosed brat to a sophisticated adult. Try as you might, it just isn’t the way things go.

College is essentially just high school on steroids. The cliques are more exclusive, padded with unwritten rules and covert acts of initiation. Bullies are more subtle, if not more vicious. And the gossip? Well, the gossip is just as venomous, and news spreads just as fast.

Today’s item of interest is one for the books: The big breakup between the campus crush and the golden boy who bagged her. How they ended things rather abruptly. And how they’re both already dating different people only three weeks later.

“Apparently, you cheated on him,” Nobara tells you, pulling out the lollipop she has in her mouth. “Or you cheated on him. It depends on who you ask.”

“I heard that you were sleeping with a professor,” Maki says.

You frown at her, adjusting your bag on your shoulders. “Yaga?”

“No.” She grins. “Gakuganji.”

You gag at the thought. Which sicko came up with that? Probably Kento, you think. The prick.

The three of you are on your way to a meeting for a pre-law society you joined back in your first year. You’re not quite sure you want to be a lawyer and Maki’s made it clear that she’s just in it for the parties, but as Nobara says, it’s for the connections.

A lot of college has felt like a complete scam to you, if you’re being honest. The classes are fine enough and you occasionally meet interesting people, but for the most part, you’re well-aware that everyone here’s either just coasting or trying to one-up one another. You can’t complain though. In the end, you’re a part of it all.

“I heard something interesting though,” Nobara says, and there’s a dangerous tone in her voice that has you crawling out of your skin. “More than a few people are saying that you’re dating someone new.”

Maki nods, looking at you with a raised brow. “I heard that too.”

“Someone from the business department apparently,” Nobara adds. “Someone you’re incredibly close with.”

You swallow as your two friends turn to you for an answer to their accusations. You and Sukuna made your sham relationship “official” just a few days ago and you haven’t had the time to tell either of them about it. If you’re being honest, you’ve been avoiding the topic for as long as humanly possible because you already know what they’re going to say about the whole thing.

It’s one thing for you to be friends with him despite their clear dislike of him, it’s an entirely different thing to be dating him. To the public’s knowledge at least.

“I was going to tell you guys about that,” you say quietly.

Nobara gapes, dropping her lollipop on the ground. “You’re fucking with us.”

“Before you say anything—”

“Holy shit!” Maki exclaims. She stops in her tracks and grabs your shoulders, shaking you as if to shock some sense into your system. “No. You’re not doing this.”

“I know Satoru fucked you up, but this is not the way to deal,” Nobara tells you. Her arms are flailing around as she tries to get her point across. She probably thinks you’re in too deep, madly in love with the asshole she’s done nothing but warn you about. “Where’s your phone? You’re breaking up with him right now.”

You can’t help but laugh at your friends’ hysterics. Much to their horror.

Maki’s grip on your tightens. “This is serious, babe. It’s not happening.”

“Will you just let me speak?” you say, the laughter shaking your voice. “I’m not dating Sukuna.”

They both let out a sigh of relief.

“But I am pretending to.”

“What kind of fucked up game are you playing?” Maki demands. She’s let go of you now at least. That’s something. “Explain, bitch.”

You roll your eyes and continue walking straight ahead, forcing the two of them to hurry along after you. “It’s just a thing we’re doing,” you say. “It’s basically a joke.”

Nobara groans. “Well, it’s not funny,” she says. “Why are you doing this?”

“I dunno,” you tell her. “I’m petty, I guess.”

They’re clearly displeased with your non-answer. You realize that it was more than ridiculous trying to hide it from them in the first place. There’s really nothing to hide.

“We went to a party over the weekend,” you say. “And Satoru was there… with Kimi.”

Maki purses her lips, but you can tell that she understands. She understands you more than she wants to. She was there with you before the breakup, she saw how much the whole thing had been weighing on you, and she was there immediately after it happened. She saw just how badly the whole thing wrecked you. She knows that you’re being stupid, but she also knows you.

It’s Nobara who scowls and shakes her head. It’ll take more than that to convince her.

“So?” she says. “Then date one of the many guys who throw themselves at your feet. Or get a girl! You’re due for a girl. Pick literally anyone else but him.”

You chuckle at her insistence, draping your arm over her shoulder and squeezing her against you. “I don’t want anything real right now,” you tell her. “All those people want a real relationship that I’m just not ready for, and they don’t deserve to be led on. Besides, Sukuna’s the only one I trust to do something this stupid with.”

“See, that’s how I know you’re fucked in the head,” she says. “You cannot trust a guy like Sukuna. He’s an ass.”

“He’s also my best friend.”

Nobara hangs her head at that. “You know, I wish I’d met you sooner,” she tells you. “Then, I would’ve gotten you away from that asshole before he got his fangs in.”

“I know him,” you say, leaning your head against her. “You gotta trust me on this.”

She wraps her arm around your waist and holds you tight for a moment, then sighs. “If he tries anything stupid though, I will kill him.”

“I’ll help,” Maki says. She goes in front of you, walking backwards so she can keep her eyes on yours. “You’re sure about this?”

You nod, reaching your hand out to grab hers. “I’m sure,” you say. “And it’s only for a month. I’ll probably be ready to move onto something real by then.”

The meeting has been going on for hours. They’re not usually this bad when all you have to talk about is a fundraiser or a seminar or a statement against the school administration or something menial like that. But the agenda today is loaded.

The trip.

The big trip that everyone in the society always gets worked up over. It’s the big event of the year, a weekend where the whole group goes somewhere new and gets completely wasted. 

It isn’t enough that you do charity work or contribute to the campus life like any other club would. It isn’t enough that you all see each other on a weekly basis to party at someone’s house or head to a bar together. To truly make the “connections” that Nobara speaks of, you have to relocate everyone to a beach or camp in the mountains or get locked together in a cabin in the woods.

It’s for bonding, they say. But with how everyone’s arguing right now, you’re almost worried that the whole group is just going to end up hating each other. Just another part of the college experience as they say.

“We are not going to an active volcano for our trip,” Utahime says. “It’s stupid and, honestly, not fun at all.”

Mahito huffs at that. “What’s more fun than knowing that we could die at any moment?” he asks like it’s a completely normal thing to say. “You guys just want to go to the beach again and that’s boring.”

“Where would we even sleep?” Aoi points out.

Utahime nods and looks at Mahito with venom in her eyes. “Exactly.”

“As if anyone sleeps on these trips anyway.”

You raise your hand. “I vote against the volcano.”

“So where would you have us go?” Mahito asks. “Kento’s house?”

The man in question scoffs. “As if I would ever let you in my house.”

“I think the beach is fine,” Nobara says. “We always have fun there anyway.”

“We went there last year though,” you say against your better judgment. When Nobara looks at you like, How are you not siding with me on this? You mouth a quick “sorry.” Then, “Camping’s fun.”

“Bugs,” Mahito.

“Oh, and you think there isn’t anything gross on a volcano?” Utahime.

“What about Aoi’s cabin?” Kento.

“My dad just sold it.” Aoi.

“I vote beach.” Maki.

“Thank you!” Nobara.

The conversation goes round and round. Everyone has an opinion, everyone has something to say, everyone has something they don’t like or don’t want to do. It seems like the whole thing will never end.

“Ski trip,” you say suddenly. The room goes silent. “We’ve never been before, and it’s doable. The budget’s pretty good this year. I think we could swing it.”

Everyone looks at Kento, the keeper of the books, as he turns to his laptop to crunch the numbers. After a moment of typing, he looks up and nods.

“It’ll have to be after the children’s rights fundraiser though,” he says. “We have to make sure we can make the downpayment on the hall for the kids, but after that…”

Everyone looks at Utahime now, the club president who has the final word on everything. “Fine,” she says eventually. “Ski trip it is.”

There’s a round of “finally”s and “fuck yeah”s and patting each other on the back for a job well-done.

“Now, about the children’s rights fundraiser,” Utahime says. “We should really start planning that.”

Everyone groans and there’s eventually a call for a five-minute break.

“We should really kick Mahito out at this point,” Nobara whispers to you as she rests her head on the table. “He doesn’t even do his job half of the time.”

You pat her head and laugh. “He’s harmless,” you tell her, getting up from your seat. “I’m gonna go pee.”

“I’ll come,” Maki says, following you out the door.

The two of you link your hands together and swing them wildly as you make your way to the restroom, a habit you two formed in freshman year when you refused to be suffocated by the crowds of people going from classroom to classroom. Despite seeming like two completely different kinds of people on the surface, the two of you are just menaces at heart. It’s why you’re such good friends.

As you approach the restroom, you can hear a group of girls talking loudly inside.

“Locker room talk,” Maki says, wiggling her eyebrows at you with a smirk on her lips.

You snort, the voices becoming clearer now.

“You’re so lucky.”

“Is he good in bed?”

“He’s lucky to have you.”

“You guys are so embarrassing.”

You stop in your tracks. The last voice is so familiar, terrifyingly so. It’s a voice you’ve heard from a few feet away. In front of you in a line. In the back of a classroom. On the court, counting out the timing for the next steps of the cheerdance.

“He’s really sweet though,” the voice says. “Just this morning, he showed up at my dorm with a bunch of flowers. He said he got them ‘just because.’”

Maki is watching you with concern, confused by why you’ve suddenly stopped moving, why your breath has seemed to hitch in your throat.

Just because.

A bouquet of now-wilted flowers on your kitchen counter. A teddy bear from a carnival tucked beneath your bed. A tennis racket you made him swear not to buy that showed up in your locker one morning before practice. Just because.

The restroom door swings open and four girls walk out. One of them—

“Kimi.”

The name slips from your mouth before you even realize it. You want the earth to swallow you whole at this moment. For the current to drag you under. For the heavens to crack open.

The girl looks at you with wide eyes. Guilt, you can tell. Pity.

She says your name this time. “Hi,” she says a little nervously. “How are you?”

Just like Maki, her friends watch the situation unfold from a careful distance. Will one of you lunge at the other? Will you pretend to be the best of friends? Should they come closer? Should they stay back?

“I’m doing well,” you tell her. The voice that comes out of you doesn’t feel like your own. You only realize now that you’re smiling. There’s a hint of smugness to it, a hint of callousness, cruelty. “I take it you and Satoru are going strong.”

She seems to catch your tone. Unintentional of course, but she doesn’t know that. All trepidation seems to leave her body, replaced by a similar coldness. “Yeah, we are,” she says. “I hear you and Sukuna are an item now.”

You try not to cringe at the implication. You’ve traded Satoru, the golden boy, for Sukuna, the bad idea. No point regretting it now.

“Yeah,” you say. End this now, you think. “Well, Maki and I have a meeting to get back to.”

“Oh, sure,” she says sweetly, stepping out of your way. Her friends follow suit. “See you around.”

You take Maki’s hand and wave at the girl as she passes by. “See you.”

The two of you walk into the restroom and let the door close behind you. You’re looking at each other now, breathing deeply as you hear the girls outside walk away.

“That was fucking insane,” Maki finally says.

“Tell me about it.”

You both burst out laughing at the absurdity of the whole situation. It’s not a big deal, if you’re thinking logically, seeing your ex’s new girlfriend in a restroom. You all go to the same school, it’s not like you can avoid each other. Still, the whole thing brings out a viciousness in you that you can’t quite control, one that’s always ridiculous in hindsight.

You go into the bathroom stalls, still laughing.

“You were so cold,” Maki tells you from the stall beside you. “I was so proud, you wouldn’t believe it.”

“I was mean!” you exclaim. You groan as you reach for the toilet paper. “She’s so telling him about that.”

“No way. It’d be embarrassing.”

You pull your pants up and head out to wash your hands in the sink, waiting for Maki to finish. “She knows about Sukuna.”

“Yeah,” she says. “How do you feel about that?”

“Humiliated.”

She steps out of the stall and washes her hands in the sink beside yours. “You still think the whole pretend-dating thing is worth it?”

You shrug, crossing your arms over your chest. “What’s done is done,” you tell her. “Sunk cost, baby.”

Maki dries her hand and looks at you seriously now. “Are you okay?”

Just because.

The words echo in your head. Words that have only ever been spoken to you now tainted by her voice.

“No,” you tell her. When she looks at you with furrowed brows, all you can do is shrug. “But I’ll have to be.”

notes. a little insight into reader's student life and bit of her bitchy side 👀 these chapters are getting longer than i'm used to lmao i fear the plot is getting away from me and just dragging me along for the ride at this point

[twilightt-fantasy]

stress relief [v.kings]

description: the kings worry that their mate is pushing herself too hard.

requested by: n/a

warnings: uhhh none? maybe suggestive content??

this is totally self indulgent bc i just took my state boards for nursing and let me tell you all, i was stressed and definitely could have used these 3 in my life haha. enjoy!! :))

her head was pounding, eyes straining from re-reading the same question that laid in front of her over and over again. the computer screen seemed to get brighter with every passing second, the words jumbling together as she scrambled through her thoughts to find the correct answer.

she had been at this for hours - the never ending cycle of studying and reviewing that she had been stuck in for weeks now. she couldn’t help it though - every moment that passed where she wasn’t studying felt like a waste of time and, with the help of her overthinking, she was convinced that taking a break would mean not passing.

and she refused to accept anything less than a passing result on her test.

this was the biggest test of her life, after all. she had spent years in college preparing for this moment and was terrified now that it was here. this was the moment that defined if she was capable of putting all of her earned knowledge to the test and being competent in her field.

in her eyes anyway.

her kings disagreed with her.

caius, marcus, and aro all agreed that she had this test in the bag. how couldn’t she? she was incredibly smart and driven and had worked her ass off for years to be the best that she could be. there was no doubt in any of their minds that she’d pass and they had each tried to convince her of that multiple times.

but of course, their mate was nothing if not stubborn, and had a hard time seeing reason when she was under this much stress.

the test was in three days, which meant even more time studying and preparing and more migraines, irritability, stress and anxiety.

she reread the question again and then the answer choices, racking her brain for the answer before finally deciding on her best guess and sighing. the girl reached up to rub her temples with one hand, her other reaching for the glass of water to drink in an attempt to settle the pounding behind her eyes.

behind her, aro watched his mate with narrowed eyes. as one of her mates, he easily picked up on her emotions and was not very pleased with the amount of stress she had placed on herself as of late. she had always been an overachiever in school, always had bad test anxiety and held herself to high standards in relation to grades. but to him, this was excessive.

“how many more questions do you have until that test is over?” aro asked, catching the full attention of both caius and marcus, who were only half paying attention before.

“i don’t know.” she mumbled, answering the next question easily before moving on.

caius rolled his eyes from his spot on the bed before he flashed over behind his mate, the girl not even flinching at his sudden appearance. he peered over her shoulder at the screen before turning back to marcus and aro and holding up five fingers.

caius sat back then, the three of them waiting patiently as she finished the practice exam and viewed her passing result before he sat back up and turned off the monitor.

“hey!” she spun around, her red-rimmed eyes glaring hard at caius. “what are you doing?”

“you’re done.” he said, sternly. “you’ve been at this for hours and it’s nearly midnight. you’re done.”

“no.” she spoke back, her voice raising as she pointed a finger back at the screen. “my test is in three days and i’m not ready.”

“yes you are.” marcus argued before caius could answer with something that wouldn’t help the situation. “and taking a break to sleep is not going to affect anything anyway, especially when you can hardly focus on the questions.”

a lump grew in the back of her throat but she fought past it, ready to argue some more. aro raised his hand, before standing himself and moving beside caius. he gripped her hand is his, his other moving up to rest on her forehead. she sighed, the coldness of aro’s skin relieving the headache she hadn’t fully realized she had.

“cara mia, please take a break. eat a snack, take a nap. and the next two days you can study for a few hours at a time.”

“aro…” her eyes were pleading as she looked up at him but he wouldn’t give in. marcus had appeared to grab her other hand and aro moved back as marcus pulled her out of the chair.

“no arguing, dearest.” marcus pushed her towards the bathroom in their shared rooms, dropping her hand in order to turn on the shower. “take a shower and relax. when you get out, we can do whatever you want for the rest of the night.”

she seemed to debate it, her heavy eyes darting from between her kings to the shower, her lip disappearing between her teeth. “you three are free tonight?”

“for as long as you need us to be, tesoro.” caius answered and the girl sighed again, rolling her shoulders and neck as she did. she stood silent for a few more moments, before the weight of her exhaustion finally hit her and she stepped closer to her kings.

her head fell onto marcus’ chest and his hand reached up to her hair, fingers curling through her strands as she stood there. caius and aro joined them a moment later, aro’s fingers gently massaging the back of her neck while caius kissed her shoulder.

“get in the shower, love.” caius spoke again as steam began to fill the bathroom. “afterwards, no more thinking about that test until tomorrow.”

“okay.” she murmured, pressing a kiss to each of their lips before finally moving towards the shower.

the three left her to relax, barely making it back towards the main living quarters before they heard her call out. “if you’re so worried about how stressed i am, you three could help me find a little relief!”

they were back in the bathroom in the blink of an eye.

* a few days later*

“i passed! i passed! i passed!” an excited voice echoed down the corridors, growing closer and louder with every word. fast footsteps pounded down the hallway towards the throne room, where the three kings sat conversing before the next trial.

the three kings shared smiles as their human mate continued to approach the throne room and they stood to greet her, each of them wearing a proud smile and assuring her that they never doubted her for a second.

[evans23]

The first and last one

Pairing : Lionel Shabandar x Reader OC

Summary : For the first time, Lionel wants to really settle in with a woman. Yet, you always shy away when he wants to make love with you. You eventually find the courage to admit to him you're a virgin and Lionel is quite aroused with the information.

Tag(s)/Warning(s) : Smut, loss of virginity, blood.

A/N : Hello dear 😁 I imagined this fic after having watched a show in which the main female character was a thirty years old virgin ashamed to admit it to her partner. I had three characters in mind for this story : Sinclair, David and Lionel. I wrote for the three of them but Lionel won my preference at the end. Hope you will enjoy it.

*** Thank you to @muiitoloko who has inspired I these lines.

Sinclair's version is here - David's version is here - Also read on AO3

Your meeting with Lionel has been fortunate but totally hazardous.

Indeed, six months ago, a colleague of yours had invited you to an exhibition. The crowd was overwhelming, and you had to find a secluded place to give your mind some respite. You were sitting down in front of a painting from an Italian painter, Titian, when you heard someone walking behind you.

You pretended to not have heard the intruder who came to perturb your need of privacy but the newcomer sat down next to you oblivious of your need to be alone.

“I’m glad you like this painting. It is my favorite,” he said with a baritone voice which had send shivers through your whole body.

You had turned to meet the most beautiful hazel eyes you had ever seen. Speechless in front of the alluring man, albeit older than you were, you just nodded coyly. Yet, the true was that little did you know you were talking to Lionel Shabandar. Of course you know the man by name, but you weren’t interested at all about his business. You didn’t even know he was the lender of most of the painting displayed at the exhibition. Lionel didn’t realise how oblivious you were of who he was, thinking that everybody present at the party knew it was organised, patronised and hosted by no one else than the incredibly generous Lionel Shabandar who will serve up in preview the new ideas to extend a little bit more his company and in the same way his power overall the Brits’ media.

“Of course, nothing is better to the eyes than the real beauty of a real woman.”

You had blushed hearing his compliment but not totally gullible about his motive, you kept some distance from the man. He transpired sex and he definitely wanted to shag you. However, you had to recognise he had for him some subtlety.

He talked a bit about arts with you and, even though you weren’t really knowledgeable in that field, your mind was sharp and bright enough to give a perceptive, interesting and lightening opinion about what you were looking at. Never ever would you admit to Lionel that at the time you weren’t interested at all about his arts. You fueled the conversation because his company was quite enjoyable even if he wanted something you wouldn’t let him get so easily, even less to an unknown man, but arts wasn’t your cup of tea. You grew to appreciate it thanks to Lionel's company and your desire to take an interest in his passion when you became more than acquaintances.

Little were you conscious that Lionel knew. You couldn’t fool a real passionate and your answers to his questions were sometimes to hesitant if not off the bean, but he never mocked you or did any mean remarks because he really appreciated the fact that he meant so much to you that you took up an interest into his. Besides, you were such a smart person to talk with that it didn’t matter if you were from a less background than his.

Indeed, you were just a mere saleswoman in a well-known bakery, even though since you were official, Lionel was insisting for you letting down your job. He was even ready to hire you in his company if the idea of just being his girlfriend was so infuriating for you.

What had captured the interest of Lionel was the fact that you had resisted him. That night, at the exhibition, not only were you utterly unaware of who he was but you refused his advances, two things which had aroused him more than anything else in his life.

He was definitely engrossed with you and he thought it would only be a matter of time before putting you in his bed, but he was so wrong. You revealed yourself as a stubborn, independent and thoughtful woman who wasn’t one to open her legs for everybody.

Therefore, he tries the good old method, which means he courted you and eventually fell into his own trap by falling truly, madly, deeply in love with you. In the beginning, he was awfully terrified of these new feelings.

Of course, he had already been in love, but he was so much younger. Another problem which wasn’t a problem at all as it didn’t bother any of you was the age gap. He was from 20 years your oldest but it made no difference for you as his mind and his body were much younger than some of your acquaintances. No, the worst part was to have fallen in love so easily, yet again you were such a clever and pretty girl and his relentless pursuits couldn’t have ended up in any other ways.

After one month being undettered by the desire to conquer you, he became your friend, your confident and after another month, your companion. The fifth months he asked, almost ordered, you to move in with him in his awfully huge mansion and you had accepted. Anyway, Lionel wouldn’t have it in any other way, he wanted you by his side.

He thought he would be the beginning of something else. Something more serious. To put in a nutshell, he thought you will let you make love to you as he had dreamed to since your first meeting. He had thought that your shyness from being more intimate came from the fact that your relationship wasn’t official enough. After all, he was quite aware of his reputation, but now, you were living under the same roof, sharing the same bed and he was in the desperate need of touching you. No, he could touch you actually, but past the forlorn, you inevitably back down, shutting yourself off.

The first week of your common life, you came with the excuse you had your period. He told you it didn’t bother him at all, but the disgusted look on your face had spoken louder than yourself about your stance on it. The second weeks you had a cold, which was true, and therefore you were too tired. Then, the two others weeks, you find any possible excuse to escape what should be a sheer pleasure between two lovers.

Lionel was seriously annoyed with your avoidance and his mind had him think you were maybe with him only for his money before shaking his head from left to right, not convince at all by this assertion. After all, you didn’t know who it was during your first meeting and even during the second. Indeed, during the exhibition, when he had understood you didn’t know who he was, he had introduced himself with his second name, William, and when, between the second course and the desert of your second meeting, he was sure you were utterly oblivious of his identity, he had revealed to you the true. A smile grew on his face at the memory of your shocked look. He would never forget how you had grabbed your phone to check on the internet if he was saying the truth and how much he had laughed when you had gawked at him, totally speechless.

If you asked him, he would tell you this moment was the moment he had understood you were different and that maybe you could be just something else than another woman in his bed. You were smart, shy but with a sharp mind and more than agreeable for the eyes, even though your appearance was more normal than some of the bimbos he had hung out with in the past. But more than anything else, you never talked about his money or even his company except if he was the one starting the conversation towards those topics. No, you were genuinely interested by the man. The real man. By him, Lionel. Yet again, he thought with a frown, why after so much time to spend together were you so distant at the idea to make love with him ?!

You were sleeping together every night since you had move in, he had already seen you naked in the shower and multiple times in your underwear as you weren’t the kind modest around him, you were really touchy, always brushing your fingers through his hair, landing your hand on his back or hugging him now and then, so why when you were obviously arouse with his attention in bed did you perpetually refuse him the pleasure to make you his ?

Tonight, he thought firmly, tonight you will have to explain yourself or it will put an end to your relationship. If the idea to receiving his cock was so repulsive for you, then your motives to be his girlfriend were standing somewhere else and he didn’t like that at all.

When he arrived home this night, a severe expression on his features, well decided to go through your shenanigans to the bottom of it and discover what you were up to.

Bracing himself to be subtle and not distressing you by calling you out for maybe no reason, he entered the living room where, as usual, you were waiting to have dinner with him. His expression soften immediately at the sight of your sleepy form and his heart swelled with affection. No ! He scolded himself, you have to stay firm, don’t less this pretty face of her prevent you from digging out the true.

He brushed the tips of his fingers along your cheek and smiled when you stirred without waking up. How a man like him could have fallen so hard for a woman when he had sworn to himself after his costly divorce that never would he be trapped in a serious relationship. And here he was, with you in his mansion, head over heels for you, but also frustrated as he had never been before with a woman. Why, when he thought to have finding the real happiness again, should it be so convoluted ?!

He was definitely infuriated, frustrated and in an immense need. He wanted to ruin you in all the way possible into his bed, in his office in the Shabandar Tower, on the counter in the kitchen and on his personal gallery floor. All of it the same day. If possible right know !

But sometimes you were like a little bird, shy and ready to fly away, so his cunning man had a plan to make you admit if you were really into him or if you had wronged him and you were just one of these insipid girl who only see the £ symbol in replacement of his pupils. If it was the case, and he hoped it was not, he would be far more than disappointed. He would be devastated. And even his first wife didn’t have the honour to say she had destroy the most powerful of the UK, so it will truly be a prowess you could gloat about with your relatives.

The mere idea you could not be the one he thought you were terrified him more than anything, because Lionel wasn’t easy to mislead. He was a thoughtful, educated, intuitive and clever businessman. No one, even his worst enemy in the cruel game of the stock exchange and the media business had ever succeeded in deceiving him.

He tried chasing away those thought. If tonight was your last night together, he wanted it to start in the less painful way possible. Therefore, he leant down to plant a kiss on your temple. You opened your eyes in a light startle, but when you recognised Lionel, your heart began to beat faster and your eyes became brighter.

“Oh, I felt asleep,” you said, rubbing slightly your eyes to eliminate the remains of weariness.

“Indeed,” answered Lionel with this voice of his which was like the roar of his beloved lion and never missed sending shiver all along your spinal column.

You got up, giving him a welcome kiss before asking him about his day.

“Too much meetings, follow-up meetings, then in the afternoon more meetings. Did I talk to you about my meetings ?” He said jokingly.

“I think so,” you said with a smile.

“And you bunny ? How was your day at the bakery ?”, he asked with a frown.

He couldn’t fathom why a woman as intelligent as you was losing her time selling cupcakes in a cliché little store, all in pink and unicorn. You had told him once that not everybody could pay the fees of an expensive university and because you were from a really modest class, you had no other choice than to forget your university dreams and find a job. But you were at peace with that now and you were rather happy with your job. People were regular customers, all pleasant and smiling and your boss wasn’t really demanding as long as you did correctly your job.

“Tiring,” you answered, kissing the top of his hooked nose.

He smiles at you and you immediately recognised the predatory look on his face. You swallowed down your saliva, inwardly conscious you must tell him the true. You have been refusing him for too long and you were now afraid he could think you weren’t really interested in him which was far from the truth. In fact, you weren’t interested in Lionel. No, you were in love and yet again it was a litote. You couldn’t quantify your love because it was so humongous that sometimes it was overwhelming.

Neither your parents nor your friends approved of your relationship with Lionel. Your parents thought he was too old for you and your friends, your so-called friend, were saying behind your back you were with him for his money. Therefore, you didn’t have any friends anymore and your parents being your parents loved you anyway… but not Lionel, who they thought was taking advantage of your gullibility for his own pleasure. Nothing could have been less true but you knew the worth of your love for him.

The problem was that you were afraid to take the plunge and losing your virginity. Actually, you weren’t afraid about the action itself, but about admitting to Lionel that you were still a virgin. An almost 35 years old virgin. How the hell could you still be cursed with it, seriously.

“Bunny, are you listening to me ?” asked Lionel with a grin.

You came back to your sense, forgetting your little problem, at least for the moment.

“I was asking you if you wanted to eat pasta tonight ?” he asked again, squeezing your ass.

“Yours ?”

“Of course dear. No one can match up my Carbonara Pasta.”

You nodded happily and Lionel leaded the both of you towards the kitchen, a pride look on his face. Any other day, you would have joked, telling him it was quite a stance for a man who could only cook pasta, but not tonight. Lionel could see you had something on your mind, but he didn’t say anything. He was imagining everything, the most likely being a breakup. He was so far from the reality. You were thinking about your damn virginity and how to explain that to him. Tonight, you thought. Tonight I tell him everything. Yes, you had made up your mind.

You helped him to cook the diner, the both of you chatting happily. You listened to him talking earnestly about his company and you couldn’t prevent yourself from feeling an urge of proudness at such a hard-worker and accomplished man.

While he was having a shower, you were pacing back and forth in your sharing room, trying to figure out how to tell him your little secret. You were afraid of his reaction. Would he laugh at you ? Would he be angry ? Would he have the desire to be your first one ? After all, Lionel was such an experienced man. What would he do with such a useless girl ?

No university degrees, no money and not even a man to fuck her. You felt the tears filling your tears. You tried to conceal them when Lionel came back in the room, but it was too late.

“Bunny, what’s the matter ?”’ he asked, genuinely concerned.

“No… nothing,” you stuttered, not missing the fact he was only wearing a towel around his hips, his skins still glowing with a rest of dampness from his shower.

“Then your’re crying for nothing ? And I am the king of England,” he said sarcastically.

Your soft laugh died in your throat while he cradled your face with his large hand.

“It’s just… my insecurities… you know…”

Lionel sighed heavily, a bit tired to have to constantly reassure you. Yet, if he needed to do so every day, he would.

“Bunny, no matter what is in this pretty head of yours, nothing is true. I am happy with you and I don’t care about anything else.”

So, right now, it wasn't totally true. He desperately wanted to fuck her, make her his by ruining her. And this little demoness has too many times refused him that pleasure which she would have been obsessed with as much as he was. Tonight, he thought again. If tonight she refused again to succumb to the pleasure of the flesh, it would be the end.

Unknowingly of Lionel thought, you too were deep into the recesses of your mind, thinking tonight.

"Let me show you," growled Lionel, caressing your arms with his hands.

He leaned on to kiss you, one of his hand finding its way to your ass, squeezing it while kissing your neck with hunger. He made you back into the bed, where he pushed you softly. You felt flat on your back, your heart bumping quicker and quicker. You knew what was coming. And this time you couldn't be a coward. Either you told him, either you remained silent and did the whole thing while keeping him in the dark. After all, how could he know ?

Lionel's hand yanked down your pyjama pants, kissing your legs in the process while you shivered under his attention. He was on his way to taking off your underwear when you stopped him in spite of yourself.

Lionel sighed heavily. It was enough.

"Bunny, I need to know," he began, pulling away from you to sit in the chair in front of the bed. "Are you with me for my money ?"

"What ? No ! Lionel ! No," you panicked.

"Then why are you refusing me the pleasure of having you in my arms ? And what I really mean is why can't I fuck my girl as it please me ?" he asked bluntly.

You blushed, looking down. It was the moment you were fearing. You understood immediately by the way his eyes looked at you that you had to tell him the true.

"I thought you were in love with me. But I'm not that sure anymore and it terrifies me," admitted Lionel.

You looked up at him, surprised to hear such a confession from the so confident Lionel Shabandar. For the first time, you sax a mixture of vulnerability, sadness and anger on his beautiful face.

"I love you," you whispered, crossing your arms in front of you in a vain attempt to protect yourself from all the strong feelings which were radiating off Lionel.

"Then what is your dirty little secret ? Was it a wager ? Luring an affluent man to prove to someone you could do it with your sinful charms ? Or are you such a good actress that you had always known who I am and all you wanted was deceiving me to get my money ?"

“No, Lionel !” you said with a sob.

“Then what are your motives, woman ?” he almost shouted.

You were now crying, your heart pounding heavily. You scolded yourself, telling you it was the decisive moment, either you told him the true or you will lost him and it would break your heart, losing the only man you had ever loved just because you were ashamed of your condition as a virgin.

You muttered the truth indistinctly, yet the redness on your cheeks was a good indicator for Lionel that you were trying to confess to him your little secret.

“Bunny, I need the truth. You know you can trust me,” he said in a softer tone.

He sat down next to you on the bed, taking both of your hands in his large one. You leaned up your head and your eyes dived into his hazel one. You could read his sincere devotion towards you, a far cry from his womanizer reputation.

“Bunny, you can’t let me imagine things about you,” he insisted, letting his vulnerability showing on the surface, “I can’t stand it anymore but I don’t want our relationship to bog down.”

It was the straw that breaks the camel's back as you started to cry harder.

“I’m a virgin,” you said, hiding your face with your hands.

The silence following your revelation was deafening. You finally found the courage to look at him and saw Lionel looking at you with a mix of curiosity, softness and hunger.

“Are you angry ?” you asked coyly.

“Angry ?” repeated Lionel, shaking his head, his fingers lingering on the top of your left tigh, “angry because you are such a pure marvel ? It’s that so ? You were afraid not to tell me the true and suffering for your first time or you were afraid of me discovering it while taking you with sheer passion ?”

“Both,” you admitted, blushing even more.

“Don’t be ashamed, bunny ! Do you… do you want me to be your first ?” he asked, gulping his saliva, his other hand grazing your arm.

“I want you to be my first and last one,” you whispered, rubbing your eyes reddened by your tears.

“Bunny, what a treasure you are offering me.”***

You surveyed his face, looking for mockeries, but all you could see was his sincerity and maybe more love than before. Also, a predatory glint that promised you a night nothing short of unforgettable.

“You’re not disgusted ?”

“Disgusted about what ? Tell me ? I just don’t understand how such a beauty like you is still a virgin. Don’t tell me never a man had tried anything. I wouldn’t believe you.”

You admitted having had some flirt but nothing serious enough to raise your sexual appetite while you could satisfy yourself with your own fingers. You explained to him it was nothing to do with religion or anything of that kind. You just wanted to do it for the right reason and not because someone, one day, had declared you should get rid of it before a certain age. You had seen your friends losing their virginity with random guys, sometimes at a very young age, just to feel more “woman” and you didn’t want your first time to be a better memory just to join the club of ���now I’m an experienced girl”.

“Well, [Y/N], I’m honoured. I couldn’t fathom why you were always shying away from me when I wanted to lavish you with my skills, but now that I know… Don’t worry darling,” he said with a cheeky smile, “I’ve always enjoyed a challenge and tonight you will be my more beautiful masterpiece.”***

His hungry look send shivers down your spine while his hands ran around your thigh, pulling you towards him.

“You want it ?” he asked, genuinely concern at not forcing you to do something if you weren’t ready for it.

You nodded once, catching his lips with yours. You moshed when he pulled back, looking at him with uncertainty.

“I want to hear you say the word. I won’t do anything if I don’t have your full consent.

“Yes Lionel, I want to do it with you. I told you I want to be the first and last one and I want I know.”

His features soften, hearing how much you wanted him to be the only one to treasure you as you deserved.

“Oh believe me, after that night, you will wish to have known me sooner,” he said with a smug before adding, “and I will never let you go. From today on your'e mine and only mine to love and cherish.”

With those words said, he fell on you, kissing savagely your neck where he will definitely let his marks in the form of small bruises, but you didn’t care. You wanted to wear his love marks all over you.

“Be gentle,” you bashfully asked, “I’m a bit afraid.”

Lionel promised you he will be tender. He will definitely make this night memorable for both of you. Yet, he had to be careful. It’s been a long time since he had a virgin in his bed and you weren’t just any virgin, you were you and he was decided to keep you by his side for the long run.

He trailed kisses along both of your legs until he arrived at your entrance. Slipping his fingers inside your panties, he pulled it down in a deliberate slowness, not missing one inch of your reaction, looking for any sign of discomfort. Once he discarded your underwear, he grabbed the hem of your shirt and tucked it off too, throwing it down with the rest of your clothes. To your surprise, he got up, looking at you with a mixture of desire and joy.

“You’re so beautiful,” he said, more for himself.

Feeling too exposed, you tried to cover your breasts, but he stopped you with a growl, eyebrows frowned.

“Don’t hide from me ever. Enough of that now. You're mine and I want to admire what’s mine whenever I want.”

If your cheeks reddened more, you will soon look like a tomato, but it only makes Lionel chuckle with affection.

”Do you want to touch me ?” he asked, for the first time unsure of what he was doing.

Of course, you had already touched him. His torso, his legs… everything except the beast under his towel. Your hands wander from his cheek to the grey hair on his torso. You descended a bit more until your hand reached the towel around his hips. You looked at him uncertainly but he nodded to encourage you to tear it off and that’s what you did.

It wasn’t the first time you saw a penis, after all you had read really peculiar books through your life and you had traveled far enough to not be that innocent, yet you couldn’t prevent yourself to gasp when you saw the said beast.

Lionel was big. Not that you have a lot to compare with, but his member, already ready for you, was clearly above the average. Lionel observed you, attentive to your reaction, repressing a laugh when he saw you gawking at his cock.

“Don’t worry, bunny, I will take it easy on you. First, we need to prepare you, I want you to enjoy it as much as possible, but I can’t promise it won’t hurt because it will certainly.”

You nodded, shyer than before and also with a feeling of stupidity to have had so much apprehension about the reason for your distance when it came to sex. Indeed, Lionel’s reaction was far above your expectations and you felt guilty about having thought he could reject you for such a thing. A completely trivial thing as it appeared Lionel was everything, but disgusted by the revelation. Actually, he felt more aroused than ever knowing he would be your first and you could believe him, he won’t let you slip through his fingers after that.

“Did you ever touch yourself ?” he asked while caressing one of your breast, his other fingers playing with the earlobe.

“Obviously,” you answered before adding you were a virgin, not a nun, which makes him laugh genuinely.

“Oh, after this night you would not be either a virgin or a prude.” he gloated.

He began to bit your nipple, making you moaned softly.

“Don’t keep these pretty sounds, bunny. They are the proof of my talent,” he said, licking your breasts down to your navel.

“Lionel,” you moaned, eager for more.

“Patience my love, it’s your first time, I can fuck you without any foreplay. You can trust me, you’re going to have more than one orgasm tonight.”

You closed your eyes, feeling his hands moved down to your entrance. He grazed softly across the hairy area, his lips kissing your thigh. Then you felt his thumb rubbing your wet slit with a grin.

“You’re already so wet, bunny,” he said, more for himself.

You couldn’t say anything, your focus on his finger playing with your clit. Your hands reached out to grab his shoulders when he touched your sensitive clit with two others deftly fingers hidden beneath your folds.

“It’s here, isn’t it ?” he asked, continuing his slow rubbing against your flesh. Lionel continued until he felt her muscles contractions against his hand. He insisted a bit more until she moaned loudly.

“And here it’s the first,” he said proudly. “And I didn’t even put my finger inside you,” he added, intrigued to know how much pleasure he could give you just with his fingers before taking your purity forever with his cock.

He finally inserted one finger inside her, making her legs tensed to the feeling of his finger inside her fold.

"Lionel," you said with a moan.

"How does it feel ?" he asked, even though he could see just by looking at your expression how good it felt.

You were so overwhelmed by him, his love, his touch, everything that you couldn't find your words.

When Lionel put another finger, scissoring you slightly, you felt your legs tremble as well as your back while he continued his slow dance with his fingers within you while his tongue was playing wis your nipples, increasing your pleasure.

"You're so beautiful," said Lionel with his baritone voice that makes your body bristling.

"And you so handsome," you managed to say between two moans.

"Of course I am," he answered with a smirk.

He continued to pleasure you with his fingers stretching you, bringing you to the edge of your second orgasm. You eventually came when he pressed another finger against your clit, circling it at a slow pace. You threw a glance at his hard cock, not sure if you would be able to fit around it but you didn't have the time to think about it for too long as he made you come when he found your sensitive spot, making you squirmed under him while a scream of pleasure died in your throat.

You were still a bit hazy, in the midst of all the lavish pleasure Lionel was giving to you, when you felt his nose between your legs, then his tongue licking your wetness and playing with your clit. You weren't sure if you could bear another orgasm so close to the two others, but Lionel was sure you could and he certainly had his way with women. You were so wet and aroused, you couldn't prevent your hand from gently scratching the roots of Lionel's hair, who worked harder with his nose around your clit.

The sounds you were making were like a song to his ears, he knew he was pleasuring you and he took great pride in it. He knew he had a flair for make a woman cum but the feeling to make you his, make you wet and cum for him was almost overwhelming as his heart was swollen with love and joy to have find such a treasure like you.

Flicking your nipple with his callous hands, you involuntarily thrust your hips against his.

"Careful here, we don't want to rush anything, do we ?"

You let out a frustrating sound, which made Lionel laugh.

"You have been waiting until now," he said, looking up at you, "you can wait a bit longer before having me inside you no ?" he teased, pleased with himself.

He didn't wait for your answer, diving down his head between your legs, his tongue working around your entrance, kissing you there while his hooked nose was stroking your bundle of nerves aptly.

"Lionel," you said in one breath.

He smiled, licking your sex again and again, his own arousal becoming unbearable. He felt the need to be in you as his member became harder and harder. But not yet. Before, he wanted you to have another orgasm, to be as wet as possible to make you suffer the least possible.

You didn't last very long and Lionel stood up to cover you entirely with his body.

"You taste so good, bunny," he said with a smirk.

You blushed under his piercing eyes, yet he told you not to be embarrassed.

"Bunny, you're beautiful and there is no shame in doing what we are doing. You honored me by offering me your virginity and I want to lavish you as you deserve for trusting me in such a way that you abandon yourself in my favor."

You grabbed his shoulders to bring him closer. Understanding your intention, Lionel leaned towards you so that you could touch his back and his chest more easily while your lips captured his in a tender kiss.

"I love you," you said coyly.

It was not the first time you told him that, but it was the first time you said it orally. Ordinarily, you wrote it on a sheet of paper that you strewed on the kitchen counter or inside his briefcase to give him something to think of during his work.

"And I love you," answered back Lionel with a genuine expression.

He didn't say the word before and you were taken aback. You didn't think he will say it back, but you were more than happy to hear him confess his feelings for you, though you never doubt it.

"You still want to do it ?" he asked sincerely.

You nodded vigorously.

"I want to hear you say it, [Y/N]," he said firmly.

"Yes Lionel, I want you. I want you to make love with me, please," you almost begged.

With a satisfied smile, he placed his hard member in front of your entrance. You push a little bit your nails into the skin of his back, your eyes full of apprehension but also desire.

He pushed himself as slowly as he could, careful to be gentle, assessing the slightest sign of discomfort. He kissed your neck, your cheeks, your forehead and your lips while he continued to stretch your insides. When he filled you up entirely, he stopped, waiting to see your features relax. He felt a warm liquid enveloping his cock. He glimpsed down to see a small amount of blood tainted the Egyptian silk sheets and he felt a strange sort of vanity, knowing he was the one you had chosen to offer yourself to.

“Are you alright ?” he murmured in your ear.

“It’s hurt a little bit,” you admitted.

“It’s normal, bunny,” he said with a soft tone, “It will be better in a moment, I promise.”

Of course, you trusted him and he was doing his really best to be gentle when all he wanted to do was thrusting hard and fast your tight insides.

He kissed you again and again before asking you if you were ready. You weren’t able to verbally answer any of his question, but a mere glimpse at your eyes full of desire was enough to him starting to move inside you. The initial pain ebbed away while you felt a fire invading your whole body.

“You feel so good,” growled Lionel while sucking one of your nipple.

“Lionel, oh Lionel... oooh,” you moaned while your insides were throbbing with pleasure.

Soon he thrusted faster and you let out a strangled cry when he accidentally stroked your G-spot. You grabbed his shoulders, pulling him closer to kiss his neck, totally lost in your building pleasure.

“Please Lionel, faster,” you pleaded, the stretch of your walls making you feel sensations your fingers had never let you experienced before.

“Bunny, you’re so tight... aaah... so tight and only mine,” he stuttered, licking your breasts.

You felt your muscles tensed and you knew you were close.

“Lionel... I… I will…” you couldn’t think clearly, even less talking while your back was arching to let your cunt receive more of Lionel’s cock.

He tried his best to hold back, wanting to let you come first.

"Don't close your eyes, bunny, I want to see you when you will come," he ordered.

You didn't last very long. He stroked your sensitive clit with his thumb, which had for effect to make you finish. You clung to him, letting out a cry which was a mixture of his name and other nonsense, as you were totally hazy with pleasure.

Lionel thrusted into you three more times before releasing himself with a loud groan inside your clenched cunt.

Out of breath, Lionel slipped out of you cautiously. You were panting and sweaty as well as was Lionel. He looked at you with adoration, his eyes twinkling with love.

"How do you feel ?" he asked while you cuddled up, your head on his chest, trying to find solace into his arms, still basking in the afterglow of your encounter.

"I'm happy," you whispered.

"Are you sore ?" he asked with trepidation.

"A bit," you answered honestly.

"Do you want me to run you a bath ?"

"No. I just want us to snuggle in bed."

"As you wish, my love."

He planted a lingering kiss on your forehead, a fond smile on his lips while you fell asleep. He felt a surge of love for you, one he never felt before for anyone and certainly not for his first wife.

You were certainly something else, a strange pretty little thing who had miraculously fallen into his life by the chance of your stars which were made to be crossed at some point in your life.

He took a glimpse at the blood in the bed and inwardly, he felt a wave of happiness at the mere thought of you who had been waiting for such a long time to be sure to give your virginity to the right man and knowing that he was the one for you made his heart swelled with pride.

"I will never let you leave, bunny. You're mine forever," he whispered in your ear.

You stirred a bit in your sleep but didn't get awake. Lionel let out a chuckle while his hand grabbed possessively your hips. Maybe you had waited for a major party of your life to find the right one, but so did he and now, with you in his arms, he felt the relief of the certainty. The certainty that he will have someone to share the rest of his life with.

[writteninlunarlight-years]

Hiya! Could you do a one-shot of Alastor x fem! reader who is like Art the clown (from the terrifier movies, all hallows eve and the ninth circle)?

Perhaps they met when Alastor first got to hell and reader wanted to kill him at first but due to his old fashioned ways (the courting and such) along with him being quite sadistic when it comes to killing, she became more curious about him and it led to a relationship?

How would their relationship be? Would it become more of a one sided thing? Would she try to harm him after he comes back from his seven year absence? I’d love to see your interpretation on this!

~ 🕷️

Terrify Me~

Alastor x Art Reader

(Anon, I promise I did not forget you! I have never seen these movies and call myself a horror fanatic! So I watched them all as I had the time to try and be better at this writing! I hope you enjoy and stay hydrated!) TW: Torture, Death, assault, Suggestive, Sad, Comfort

Hell was far more entertaining than back up on the earth, though yes, it sucked dying to those damn cops. This was where it was at. You had free reign to torture and torment those around you; the good deal was that people didn’t die permanently as long as you used the right tools. This led to such an easy time finding prey to stalk. It also allowed you to develop incredible powers as people begged and pleaded with you for deals on being free from torment. 

You were a terrifying creature, a black-and-white marionette doll with no voice box. Your movements and attention to detail got you through your life in hell. You were sadistic and cruel to whoever became your prey for the time you spent stalking them, hunting them, and slowly driving your enemy mad. You were so good at the job that people recognized you as an Overlord before even discussing it with you. Of course, who would dare get in your line of sight less you make them the next target? 

You didn’t care about hell’s silly hierarchy or games; you only cared about getting your fill. Your mind was on the prize of listening to beautiful screams and cries. Like a masterful puppet pulling strings, your looks did not portray your abilities all that well. You may have looked like the prey, but you were the top predator. You were deadly, mind, body, and soul.

Years had passed of your reign as the queen of torture till a new man arrived on the scene. Alastor, the radio demon, died not too long after your rise to fame and began to make waves in the underworld as he broadcasted screams of the damned and tortured. His show quickly became one of your favorites, and you would play it as you killed and murdered innocent demonic souls, hoping to make a deal with you for safety. 

Eventually, though, your love and passion for the radio demon's show turned to disgust and hate as he began to take your place in the world of torturing the damned. You had found a new prey to stalk, and it was someone who was equally matched. 

Your stalk began small, with just hushed whispers and knowledge of the man you wished to end. You found photos and some video of him, but it was grainy and distorted. He was a handsome man. He would be so beautiful strung up. As you thought of many ways to torture and abuse him, the next phase of your plan was in order.

Though you were an ‘overlord,’ you never attended meetings. However, you did start when it came to hunting Alastor. Watching his every move and emotion, you saw he was good at mimicking and faking just like you. Yet you had to say you were just that much better at it. When you two first officially met, you could visibly see the disdain on his face when you couldn’t speak. Like many powerful beings, Alastor puts weight on words, something you have no control over, always giving you the upper hand. 

You found every excuse to be around and speak to the man. Eager to move on to stage three of your plan to capture and torment this soul. Actively seeking Alastor out, you began to carry a notepad to speak with him. Small conversations that would sometimes run long. You enjoyed his voice, at least. You thought it would sound lovely, screaming in pain and agony. 

Though you had these sick, twisted thoughts about Alastor, you couldn’t help but be curious about the other feelings he elicited. You wanted to hear him sing, watch him smile, and enjoy his murder. His many good qualities interested you even more. You even sought medical help in the man before you as you didn’t understand these stirrings you had around him and him alone.

As the final plan commenced where you would capture and torture him, you were caught off guard by a single black rose being placed before you. Looking at it and holding it gently, you felt your undead heart flutter. This situation happened many times over and over.

You would go to kill or capture Alastor, and right there, every time you would execute your plan, he would have a trinket or doo dad for you to keep as your own. He began to touch you gently, shoulders, face, sides. Things started to shift in you; you were being courted, and it wasn’t until you experienced this love that you realized it happened: Alastor had you under his spell. 

Your plans of killing Alastor were long gone; now, you just wanted to have the joy of torturing others together. Come a year of your stupid game; you were now officially Alastor's partner in crime. It was charming how he always let you get the first stab and helped you stalk and scare others. He even taught you how to cook and kill the dead sinners. Things were well between you two, so well that domestic life began to become a norm for two sadistic sinners. Yet it all changed one day suddenly. You had been out on a kill someone you and Alastor had stalked for months. However, when you returned covered in blood and a dead body in tow, Alastor was nowhere to be found. You waited a year in that small home you two made, and he never appeared.

After seven long years, you returned to the top of the food chain; you were vicious and cold-hearted. Bloodthirsty. You allowed yourself to be blindsided by a man who couldn’t even say goodbye. Anger consumed you as the years passed, and you became known as the terrifier. You were deadly on a much larger scale than your first time on the scene. You were always longing for Alastor just to come back home. You were longing openly to all that you would kill him and make him pay.

While on the town killing, you heard a familiar buzz. Your blood ran cold as the familiar sound flooded your senses. Running to the old home, you two shared the life long forgotten: you hoped so badly to see him standing there as he once did. Would you kill him? Let him live? Fall into his arms again?

As you entered the house, he wasn’t there. It was still empty, still intact, the same as you left it six years ago. Sighing, you left and walked to the nearest brothel to kill some easy dirtbags. That's when you saw the shadow. Was this a game? Some sick, twisted game to make you think Alastor had come back for you.

Following the shadow, you grew more rabid and curious. Eventually, you found yourself atop a hill where the Hazbin Hotel sat. Walking in, it was silent; it was late at night, and you assumed everyone was asleep. Stepping further into the forbidden territory, you looked around cautiously. It was homey and bright, too bright for your liking, yet some of the decor looked like what you saw in your old home with Alastor.

You felt the presence before you heard it, and suddenly, a bright smile overtook your face. He was here; he was back. Seeing before you Alastor, the radio demon, your lost love, you took a step towards him, afraid it was fake. You don’t know what emotion overtook you the most. You wanted to tear him apart, yet seeing him there, everything felt so surreal. His smile, for once, was authentic, and as he opened his arms out for you and you rushed in, you heard the faintest, “Oh, how you still terrify me…”

[williamrikers]

On the subject of consent in recent BLs

In this analysis, I will take a look at several love scenes in recent Thai BLs, how they frame consent and the sexual agency of the characters, and why those matter.

(KinnPorsche deserves its own post: I’m sure people have already written in detail about how much emphasis is placed on issues of consent/non-consent throughout the show and how fundamental consent is to the relationship arcs of both KinnPorsche and VegasPete, and I won’t belabor the point here. Also, special shout-out to The Warp Effect for what it brought to the conversation about gay sex, but TWE isn’t technically a BL so I decided not to include it in this analysis.)

I am going to take a closer look at the following shows in this essay: Not Me, The Eclipse, A Boss And A Babe, Step By Step, and La Pluie.

Not Me and The Eclipse predate the other shows by two years/one year respectively, but I feel it is valuable to include them here because both show very explicit negotiations of consent that I feel are spiritual successors to the wonderful scenes we’ve been getting in the other three shows.

Why am I even writing this? There used to be an unfortunate tendency in the genre to have a power imbalance between the “seme” and the “uke” character, which translated into the seme deciding when to have sex and what kind of sex to have—and even though recently, several shows have done good work in dismantling the seme/uke dynamic and questioning the associated stereotypes, it cannot be denied that the archetypes are still an important part of most BLs, and even in cases where the tropes are played with and questioned, understanding those subversions still requires a knowledge of and familiarity with the original tropes on the part of the audience.

However, gone are the days of Until We Meet Again and Dean’s “I’ve waited long enough, make sure you’re ready.” (I enjoyed UWMA a lot but that was. Yeah. Not Great.) Now, we see characters actually talking about and negotiating their limits, and doing what feels good to them.

Let’s start from the very beginning. Not Me was an absolute trailblazer in this regard, and not mentioning it here would be a gross oversight. The first time Sean and White have sex, it happens in their version of the beach episode. (Which, in Not Me, is the two characters briefly living in a tent inside an abandoned building. This show is the best.) Sean and White are removed from their usual environment and protected from the outside world by two barriers: the walls of the old house and the tent that’s literally enveloping them and giving them a space that is unequivocally theirs, shared, in which neither one of the characters has any sort of power over the other. And what happens in that space when they’re about to have sex is extremely interesting: the first thing Sean asks is whether White is afraid of him, which White denies. The following exchange goes like this: White: "So, what are we doing?" Sean: "What should I do to you?" White: "That’s up to you." (Watch the whole scene here.)

I find this exchange incredibly meaningful because this already turns the seme/uke dynamic that can be found in a lot of other shows on its head. OffGun as a branded pair can easily be stereotyped into the seme/uke dynamic just because of their physical appearances, and clearly spelling out that both characters have agency in this scene is incredibly important.

And then it gets better! Sean assumes that White is sexually inexperienced (which is not true but the fact that White was actually in a relationship with a woman back in Russia never comes up again after the pilot episode, so maybe the show expects us to assume this, too), and suggests they try different things and White can tell him what he likes and doesn’t like. Compared to the stuff we’re getting now, this scene isn’t very high heat at all, but it’s one of my favorite intimate scenes ever because them asking each other “Do you like this?” after every kiss, every touch, is so incredibly unique and transports a wonderful sense of figuring out sexual pleasure together, as a couple.

Sex in Not Me is not something one character does to another, it is something that is discovered and shared together, and we even get an afterglow scene in which they gently tease each other about their fast beating hearts. (And don’t get me started on the importance of White choosing to ask Sean whether Sean is okay with White not being like Black in that moment right before they have sex, because he doesn’t actually want to have sex with Sean as Black! He wants to discover and share intimacy with Sean as White, as himself, not as his brother! The layers!)

Anyway, I think that scene paved the way for a lot of the conversations around consent we’re now getting in BL, just because it is so explicitly, unashamedly putting forward a definition of sexuality that has nothing to do with one character actively giving and the other passively receiving, but frames intimacy as something that is built together. (More on giving and receiving later!)

Now, moving on to The Eclipse. I decided to include the first time Akk and Aye have sex for a different reason: while we don’t really see them actually talking about consent, we see them practicing non-verbal consent. Let me explain. Akk’s and Aye’s whole thing is teasing each other. At first, Aye is usually the one doing the teasing, but Akk gets the hang of it towards the end of the show and teases his boyfriend right back. When they’re in Akk’s childhood bedroom together, Aye clearly alludes to the fact that he thought they might use this opportunity to have sex for the first time, which Akk pretends not to understand, all while alluding to it himself. I love this guy. (Watch the whole scene here.) Anyway, Akk says he wants to sleep, lies down and once again, tells Aye jokingly he just wants to sleep, clearly expecting Aye to do what other BL protagonists do at that point and not take no for an answer (sidenote: I HATE the “saying no as foreplay” trope with a passion and as far as I’m concerned it should die already).

However, Aye is not like other BL love interests, and he backs off. He stops touching Akk, lies down with his back to Akk, showing Akk that he takes him by his word: if Akk says he wants to sleep, Aye is going to let him do just that. So now, it’s on Akk to say that, no, that’s not what he meant, can Aye please come back to cuddle. And then Akk is the one to escalate from cuddling to kissing, which is extremely important: we know that Aye has been ready to have sex with Akk since forever, it’s Akk who’s been having hangups about intimacy this whole time.

They don’t put consent into so many words on this show, but Aye shows Akk that he respects his limits and that Akk only has to tell him he doesn’t want to do something and Aye will take him at his word.

So, these are, to me, two foundational scenes of establishing consent: one that shows consent as something that is established verbally, as an ongoing conversation, and one that shows consent as something that is established physically, by showing your partner that you respect their choices and limits by way of simply acting accordingly.

Now, let’s get into the fun part: scenes we got so far in 2023. I’m writing this post on the 13th of June, and I’m sure this year still has some great things in store for us, especially because Step By Step and La Pluie are both ongoing and neither of the main couples are actually together yet at time of writing. However, they’ve both already given us AMAZING scenes on the topic of consent, so I feel it is worthwhile to write about those already.

I want to start off by talking about A Boss And A Babe.

Let me just preface this by saying that the intimate scenes in ABAAB are some of my all time favorites in BL ever, because in them, sex is something that is just so normal. When Gun and Cher have sex, we don’t see them very passionate, excited, reluctant or wide-eyed innocent (which are some of the emotions traditionally associated with sex in BL). On the contrary, in every single scene that shows them being intimate, both characters are incredibly calm. They’re certainly happy to be with each other, but in a subdued way. Someone described their second intimate scene as them seeming like they’ve been married for a few years. They’re both just… incredibly normal about having sex with each other. It’s simply something they like to do together. It’s a part of their romance but it’s not more or less important than any other aspects of their lives.

And consent is at the very heart of it.

When Gun and Cher have their first time, we see Gun explicitly asking for consent two times: first, “Can I kiss you?”, then, “Can I do more?” The second one even comes with the promise that if Cher says no, Gun will immediately go to sleep without mentioning it again. And then it is on Cher to say yes, to pull Gun close and kiss him to show him that he is comfortable with taking things further. (In the show, these two questions were shown apart from each other, I cut together a version of the whole First Time Scene in its entirety, watch it here.)

Now, things get more interesting: the second intimate scene shows Cher initiating the encounter (watch the whole scene here). Cher pretty consistently falls into the uke category, both physically and as far as characterization is concerned, but he’s certainly not shy in the bedroom. And this time, he’s the one who asks for consent from Gun: Gun asks “You’re starting it?” and Cher’s response is “Can I?” Despite him being framed physically lower than Gun, basically at Gun’s mercy, he still seeks confirmation that Gun is okay with the way things are going. Not to overstate it, but to me, this feels revolutionary. Once again, we’re being shown that sex is something two people do together, as a shared activity, and that the “seme” character isn’t expected to just be up for it. He, too, has the right to say no.

On this show, sexual agency is taken extremely seriously, and it is clear that both Gun and Cher give each other space to decide what they’re comfortable doing. This is shown in non-intimate scenes as well: there are so many moments on ABAAB in which the characters negotiate physical touch and closeness, asking each other for hugs before actually hugging each other, Cher leaning on Gun’s shoulder in the car but not allowing Gun to touch him because that’s not what he’s comfortable with in that moment, and so on. (The only exception to this otherwise pretty consistent rule is the kiss in the car scene, which I’m still extremely confused about because it seems to go completely against Gun’s character. Who knows what happened there.)

Of course, the fact that so much emphasis is placed on negotiation and consent isn’t surprising on a show that has such obvious kink undertones and whose Our Skyy 2 entry basically consisted entirely of Dom/sub roleplay at work—I’m just saying, I think someone on the writing team is way into BDSM and knows all about the importance of enthusiastic consent from all parties involved, and I would like to send them flowers.

Step By Step hasn’t really reached the point where we can analyse the dynamic between the main couple (although we can take some educated guesses based on the interactions we’ve seen so far). However, last week’s episode had an extremely important scene between Pat and Put: Pat wanting to have sex with Put, then changing his mind mid make-out (watch the whole scene here). I really like the way this scene was done. No matter how shitty Put treats Pat at times, in this instance, he immediately understood and respected Pat’s change of mind without Pat even saying or explaining anything—at the end of the episode, Put says to Pat that Pat should tell Put when he feels ready to have sex. (We already know this will never happen because of course, Pat and Put are not endgame, but I do appreciate the sentiment.)

BLs rarely include a whole storyline in which the protagonist is in an actual, serious romantic relationship with someone other than his endgame love interest (hi Moonlight Chicken!), or if they do then just to up the angst factor. In this case, however, I feel that this scene raises our expectations for Jeng even further: if the guy who is definitely not a romantic match for Pat treats Pat with this much respect in the bedroom, then Jeng has to do at least that and then some. I do feel confident that Jeng won’t disappoint in this regard, but it’s fascinating to see a show frame this kind of respect as the absolute baseline minimum, with the endgame love interest expected to do even better.

Now, the one you’ve all been waiting for. The one that made me write this whole essay in the first place: La Pluie.

Oh boy. Where to start.

A week ago, we got an incredible make-out scene on Saengtai’s floor, which ended in Patts stopping the encounter because he could tell Tai wasn’t really comfortable taking things further—@bengiyo talked about that scene in detail here. And then, three days ago, La Pluie gave us the most unique, trope-defying, timeline-changing blowjob scene of all time, and I want to talk about it.

Tai and Patts are making out on their bed, Tai is not ready to go “all the way” and stops Patts from undressing him. We see a very realistic frustrated reaction from Patts, who nevertheless immediately stops and accepts Tai’s wishes—it is clear that Patts does not expect things to go any further at this point, and that he won’t pressure Tai into anything.

And then, Tai offers to blow him.

(Unfortunately, this show is only on iQiyi so I can't link to it, but you can get a good impression of the scene here.)

I mentioned the concepts of giving and receiving earlier: other people have said this more eloquently than me, but there is a tendency not only in BL but also in wider society to view sex in terms of giving and receiving, with a lot of expectations and stereotypes attached to the roles during different sexual acts. On other shows, that blowjob might be framed as a consolidation or an apology, something that the giver does out of a sense of obligation without enjoying it much. Not so on La Pluie! Tai is shown incredibly happy and satisfied afterwards, both when they’re sleeping next to each other, as well as on the morning after (see also @ginnymoonbeam's post about that here). Tai offered to blow Patts because he simply wanted to, not motivated by guilt or anything of that sort. And he genuinely enjoyed it! In the post I linked above, @bengiyo points out that La Pluie consistently centers queer desire, or more specifically in this case, male desire for a male body; much in the same way that the camera fucking loves Force’s body on ABAAB: the sensuality of the skin, the hands, the abs, the flat chests, the broad backs and shoulders of these men is explicitly emphasized, and Tai’s desire for a dick in his mouth is made absolutely crystal-clear. Of course, since this is a TV show and not a porno, we only see Patts’s thumb in Tai’s mouth instead of his dick, but the imagery, the implications, are clear as day.

And it is such a gentle framing, too: Patts caresses Tai’s lip lovingly, Tai opens his mouth slowly, seductively, then faces Patts’s crotch with a soft look on his face. We do get a clear sense of this encounter as tender, and gentle, and most of all, desired. Tai’s queer desire is at the heart of this scene, and at the heart of the afterglow scene as well. He wanted this man’s dick in his mouth, openly suggested it, showed Patts he was sure about his decision after Patts asked him whether he was, and ended up clearly happy and satisfied with the sex they had. This post, also by @bengiyo, goes into more detail on that.

This, once again, shows us sex as a conversation rather than a series of predetermined acts, shows us sex as a shared activity, as something that can be wonderful and intimate and make people happy without following what society views as “the correct steps”. I think this is extremely important because one part of queer identity is figuring out one’s own relationship to sexuality, one’s own desires and needs, and BLs that ignore this aspect fall a little short in my opinion. Sure, those men are kissing, but do they experience queer desire? Do they experience joy in their queer desire?

For me personally, a show that does not shy away from these questions is a lot more meaningful than a show that does, and consent is at the heart of it all. By framing sex as a conversation, as something that is built and shared together, the shows I looked at here are actively positioning themselves against the idea that there should be predetermined roles for partners during sex, and instead suggest that queer joy can be found in communication and consent. Understanding sex and intimacy as something that is built together, with both partners as equals in conversation, is just as radically queer as a man waking up with a smile on his face after giving his soulmate a blowjob the previous night.

And quite honestly, a male character who clearly, passionately, unquestioningly communicates that he wants a dick inside of him—that is incredibly sexy. But maybe that’s just me.

[2996-sana]

lost in japan

loosely based on lost in japan by shawn mendes :D

being a soloist in the industry is a bit like riding a rollercoaster of emotions. while it brings creative freedom and a chance to shape your own journey, it comes with its share of loneliness. unlike being in a group, where you share every step of the journey, as a soloist, you navigate the entire process – from making albums, promotions, gigs, to tours and interviews – all by yourself. sure, you have your crew and team, your chosen family, but seeing groups together makes you a bit envious. they get to share the highs and lows, the crazy moments, and the struggles. it's a camaraderie you sometimes wanted.

but being a soloist has its perks. you get to pour your soul into your music, writing and producing most of your songs. music isn't just a job; it's a deeply personal expression. every note and lyric carries a piece of your story, every emotion, and experience that left a mark on your heart.

and then there's the subject of love.

in the vast expanse of the industry, finding love can be a challenge. all eyes are on you, not just in korea but globally, and being an idol only adds to the scrutiny. but that hasn't stopped idols from dating, and who can blame them? when love comes knocking, it's hard to resist.

for you, love arrived unexpectedly in the form of a blind date, set up by mutual connections. specifically, yeri from red velvet, who passed down the idea to nayeon from twice. and believe it or not, love turned out to be a member of the renowned girl group twice.

love felt like magic, and at this moment, love happened to be right beside you on the couch in the recording studio.

"baby, i'm gonna miss you like crazy," sana pouted.

"i know, baby, but it's only gonna be a few weeks, right?" you ask, trying to offer comfort.

"three weeks, yeah, but i hate being away from you," she replies, eyes still a bit teary.

turning to your girlfriend, you put down your guitar and scoot closer to sana. "i understand, baby. if i didn't have schedules lined up for the next few weeks, i'd come with you guys," you say, your voice carrying a tinge of sadness.

sana sighed in defeat and planted a playful kiss on your cheek. "you should write a song about me while i'm away," she teased.

you rolled your eyes. "they're all about you, i don't know what you're on about."

sana giggled, fully aware that it was true. despite this knowledge, hearing every new song you wrote about her never got old and it never failed to make her swoon. your love story held a special place in both your hearts, and having it immortalized in your music felt special. especially since the general public remained oblivious to the fact that the songs were about her or your relationship. it was like a secret world that only the two of you shared, untouched, and safe from the prying eyes of the public.

as much as sana wanted to shout about your love from the rooftops, she found solace in the fact that you both hadn't given anybody the power to take what you had away. having your close circle and family know felt like enough for now.

"i adore you so much, baby. i feel incredibly lucky," sana confessed, locking eyes with you.

"i love you, baby. we're both really lucky," you replied. "are you excited to be home and visit family?"

sana's eyes lit up. "yes! mom and dad wanted to see you, though. but yeah, it's been a while, so i'm excited."

the joy on her face brought warmth to your heart. "i'm excited for you, baby. send me lots of pictures, okay? and don't worry, i'll give you a call when you're together with your parents."

that night, you had to take sana and the rest of twice to the airport. well, technically, you were in the same car they were dropped off in, but you couldn't get off due to the swarm of reporters and fansites. now, that would be a headline.

you gave sana one last kiss and waved goodbye to tzuyu, dahyun, mina, and jihyo, who were sharing the same car.

"be safe, you guys," you said.

"we'll miss you, unnie!" tzuyu exclaimed, and the rest of the girls echoed her sentiment.

"i'll miss you the most, though," sana said sadly.

you reached for her hand and gave it a soft kiss. "i'll see you real soon, baby."

"y/n, you better pay me extra to keep sana from talking everyone's ears off about missing you this whole trip," jihyo joked, earning laughs from the group.

"bank transfer?" you suggested playfully.

"yah!" sana feigned annoyance.

"alright, alright, you guys go. the rest of the girls are already outside."

as the car door closed, you sighed. a busy week awaited you with recording sessions, and on top of that, you didn't have a girlfriend to come home to for the next few weeks. *+:｡.｡　　｡.｡:+*

a week drifted by, and there you were, sprawled out on the cushy couch in a hotel in taiwan, peering through the grand glass windows that framed the city's glowing lights. the sun descended gracefully, painting the sky with warm hues. you wished sana was there with you. memories flooded in — of quiet evenings cocooned on the couch, watching anime after demanding days, and lively moments in the kitchen, dancing and singing together.

"it's cool. just two more weeks," you mumbled.

suddenly, a soft buzz broke the silence.

m.by__sana tagged you in a post

you tapped the notification, revealing snapshots from a dinner a week past, capturing the comically overcooked steak you had made.

당신은 여전히 최고입니다, 셰프님! ♡´ (you're still the best, chef! ♡´)

a gentle chuckle escaped you.

당신은 미친 듯이 나를 그리워하고 있을 것입니다, you playfully commented. (you must be missing me like crazy)

almost instantly, you got a reply.

당신은 모르고 있어요 (you have no idea)

you released a resigned sigh, well-acquainted with the sacrifices that came with being idols. both of you knew the drill — the inevitable stretches of separation that, despite understanding, never got easier.

you knew sana was currently holed up in her hotel with the other girls, having just gotten off a facetime call with her. it didn't make the distance any more bearable, and resisting the urge to fly over and be with her required more self-control than you cared to admit.

wait…

with a swift move, you grabbed your phone and opened up the voice memo app. "na na na na, do you got plans tonight, baby? something something, lost in your paradise. the only thing i’m thinking ‘bout is you and i, i can’t get you off my mind," you sang, a mix of determination and confusion in your voice as you attempted to untangle the tune in your head. recording the snippets, you couldn't help but hope that this spontaneous burst could turn into something.

as a musician and songwriter, you know that when inspiration hits - seize it and craft it into art. luckily for you, sana was the kind of girl who could fuel a billion songs, and the thought of writing about her never got old.

fueled by the sudden inspiration, you reached for your guitar.

*+:｡.｡　　｡.｡:+*

"sana, you okay?" mina inquired, concern etching her features as she observed sana lost in thought, brows furrowed.

"she's fine. just being dramatic because y/n hasn't replied," nayeon chuckled, finding the situation amusing.

"you don't get it; she never takes this long to reply, even when we're both busy," sana whined, her frustration evident.

"unnie, isn't she in the middle of preparing for a comeback?" chaeyoung suggested. "maybe she's stuck in a meeting or recording something."

despite chaeyoung's rationality, sana's irritation persisted. she wasn't worried; she was just plain mad that you weren't responding.

the day dragged on with your replies limited to one-word responses, fueling sana's growing annoyance.

"who does she think she is?" sana slammed the door of her and momo's hotel room. "she didn't even pick up when i called her at my parents' house, and she specifically told me to!"

momo racked her brain, knowing sana's penchant for needing attention. she silently cursed you for leaving her with a moody sana.

"sana, it's okay. she'll eventually reply. i'm sure she has her reasons," momo sighed, offering a reassuring smile.

sana, across the room, sprinted to momo, shoving her phone in her friend's face. "what is this, then?"

momo squinted at your instagram story, revealing a tiktok of you and jennie doing a dance. momo silently cursed you again.

"uhh, scheduled post? maybe it's a new challenge," momo suggested, attempting to ease the tension.

sana rolled her eyes and threw her phone on the bed. "i don't care anymore."

"we can go out tonight, satang!" momo encouraged. "you'll get your mind off y/n."

sana shook her head defiantly. "i'm not going out! i'm staying in."

"nope, you can't," momo declared, standing up and joining sana. "you promised, remember?"

sana groaned. "fine, whatever, but i won't like it." *+:｡.｡　　｡.｡:+*

sana and the group entered mina's cousin's newly opened restaurant, exclusively reserved for the night. despite the collective effort to lighten sana's mood, she remained unusually gloomy, a stark contrast to her typically bubbly self.

"sana, you look ugly when you’re frowning," jeongyeon teased, eliciting laughter from the group. sana responded by sticking her tongue out playfully. just as sana was about to retaliate, their food arrived, and the delightful aroma of the ramen momentarily diverted her attention. she was clearly hungry.

the dinner unfolded with vibrant conversations about their promotions, and even sana couldn't resist breaking into a smile and sharing a few laughs. after finishing her ramen, sana reached for a napkin on the table and discovered something tucked underneath — a small note?

do you have plans tonight?

suddenly, the lights dimmed, causing gasps from everyone. a soft strumming of a guitar filled the air.

"all it'd take is one flight,

we'd be in the same time zone."

sana could recognize that voice anywhere. her eyes shifted across the room, finding her girlfriend perched on a high stool with a guitar, singing just for her. sana could barely wrap her head around what was happening. she glanced at the girls, who were all smiling with their phones up.

as you sang, it dawned on sana what the song meant. her eyes widened as she listened.

“do you got plans tonight?

i'm a couple hundred miles from japan, and i

i was thinkin' i could fly to your hotel tonight

'cause i can't get you off my mind.”

you smiled and threw her a wink. sana couldn't help but cover her blushing face with her hands.

“do you got plans tonight, baby?

i was hopin' i could get lost in your paradise (paradise)

the only thing i'm thinkin' 'bout is you and i,

and i can't get you off my mind.”

sana should've probably known you were up to something. you wouldn't have left her hanging like that. but who would've thought you were crazy enough to leave in the middle of your schedules and fly to japan for her?

“let's get lost tonight,

let's get lost tonight,

baby, you and,

i can't seem to get you off my mind.”

the guitar strumming gradually faded, and the girls were howling and clapping. you walked toward sana with a single flower in your hand, wearing a big grin.

"hi," you said, still grinning.

sana got up, playfully shoving you before throwing her arms around you. "you are crazy!"

"crazy in love, apparently," dahyun giggled.

"are you complaining, though?" you laughed, ruffling her hair. then, you whispered in her ear, "if love doesn't make you do crazy things, then are you really doing it right?" *+:｡.｡　　｡.｡:+*

"lost in japan is trending," sana giggled from the couch.

you joined her, tossing a blanket over both of you. "you think they're putting two and two together?" you laughed.

sana laughed, sharing a message from a fan on the bubble app.

"that new song from y/n is definitely about you and i'm taking no arguments."

[muffinsin]

how amused would the sisters be by a multilingual s/o? One that knows at least three languages fluently, is learning more and is definitely planning on learning Romanian too alongside many others.

Let’s see!👀 Hoping this one gets me out of this writer’s block XD

Masterlists

Bela

Bela catches onto your talent- as she likes to call it- early on

She’s incredibly impressed by your vast knowledge as it comes to different languages

While she has taught herself many languages-

such as French, German, Italian and even Spanish

-over the years, she is quite surprised to see a mortal possess such talent and willpower

She knows, it takes time, willpower, patience and determination to learn an entirely new language

She encourages you to learn more whenever you speak of it

She likes to learn with you, or help you learn

Some languages, she doesn’t even know

She only knows those that she finds books written in at the library

When you speak in languages she doesn’t understand or know exist, she is flabbergasted

Usually, she asks you what your words mean

She’s very eager to learn!

Bela is incredibly flustered whenever you call her a petname in a foreign language

Bela grows incredibly flustered with French poems especially

She does think it truly is the most romantic language

She loves Italian petnames

As one or two of the vast languages you speak match with ones she understands, she keeps quiet at first

Though, a gentle, knowing smirk is set on her lips whenever you speak and curse in a different language, thinking she doesn’t understand

It’s a game to her

She likes to let you believe she doesn’t understand you, until she catches you off guard by replying in a proper manner eventually

One thing that surprises her?

When you learn Romanian, one of her native languages

Her cheeks burn bright pink whenever you give her a Romanian petname

Words stammer from her lips when you ask her things in Romanian

She practically melts when you tell her how pretty she is in Romanian

She thinks your accent lacing over the words is incredibly attractive and cute, she encourages you speak more

She also likes to read books together, even more so when they’re in a different language and she gets to hear you speak and read aloud

(Bonus: Bela is very keen on you calling her romanian petnames in bed)

3

Cassandra

She speaks English and Romanian, and that’s about it

Upon hearing you curse in a language foreign to her, her eyes go wide

She’s amused by you

As well as intruiged

When you cup her cheeks and whisper a word, “beautiful” in a language she doesn’t understand, she immediately bares her teeth a little

Cassandra’s default thought?

You’ve just insulted her!

Unfortunately for her, you know she won’t hurt you, and so her reaction only brings a smile to your lips

She can’t help but whine a little when her nose is kissed

“What did that mean?”, she insists to know

She’s very intrigued about the languages you speak

While she won’t actively learn them, she picks up on words you tend to say and their meanings

You chuckle when Cassandra drops her sickle once and curses in Italian

Even she has no idea where that comes from, and just sends you a wise grin

Of course there are other words she picks up on…

Cassandra is surprisingly easy to fluster like that

Her playgirl reputation and lack of proper love have left her incredibly deprived and unprepared as it comes to love and affection

And so, when you cup her cheeks and tell her she’s pretty, she is immediately flustered

When you press yourself against her and ask her about her hunt, she’s barely able to keep talking

She gets flustered by far too easy by simple, affectionate words and gestures

She likes to turn the tables a little by picking up on these words

Beautiful, fierce, golden eyes, beauty. A few of the words she can now understand in the languages you speak

Soon, she pins you

“Mon amour?”

You can’t help but grin at her

When she finds out you’re working on speaking Romanian fluently, she’s incredibly flustered and intruiged

You- speaking Romanian?

She’s into it. Incredibly

Cassandra can be made incredibly flustered when you hold her chin and speak in Romanian

Random bits of words in Romanian

Romanian pet names

But her favorite?

When you offer her to drink from your neck, words spoken soft and in Romanian

She can’t hold back at all, nor does she plan on even attempting it

(Bonus: She loves making you beg for her in Romanian. If you don’t know how yet…ah, that’s your problem then)

Daniela

She speaks a little bit of French

Just enough to understand the petnames and a couple of phrases in her favourite novels

She’s so intruiged by you, even more so when she finds out you speak so many languages

She’s had French and Italian lessons as a “teen”, but nothing ever really stuck

Now, Daniela loves learning new things. Yet, she has such difficulty doing so sometimes

This makes you even more impressive to her

She loves nothing more than to listen to you talk and read her French novels to her

With her head on your chest, she occasionally repeats words she understands

She is flustered easily by being called various petnames in different languages, and will often shyly ask what you’ve said

Her favourite language remains to be French

Sometimes, she throws words right back at you, the pronunciation a little messed up, but with her large grin making up for it

She loves to “help” you study new languages

Really, this just means she giggles along at words she thinks are funny and distracts you by kissing you after each successful sentence

A reward, she insists

After a while, she usually gets bored and opts for laying on top of you as you study out loud

You’re quite impressed when she accidentally picks up on a few words and says them randomly

She’s very easy to convince and inspire, and it shows yet again here

Sometimes, quite often even, you receive little notes of hers in whatever language you speak or are trying to learn

Of course, these are often adorned with little drawn hearts and flowers

Daniela supports you no matter what! And she definitely supports you trying to educate yourself further and learn even more languages

She’ll ask Alcina and the duke for books and dictionaries of different languages, and often gift them to you randomly

Upon turning your attention to Romanian, Daniela in enthusiastic

She insists, she can teach you!

And, really, she’s an amazing teacher. She’s smart and patient, and has a vast vocabulary she loves to share with you

However, your little Daniela is quite the brat

Often she makes you “compliment” her sisters to “gain their favour”

These are the times Bela and Cassandra share an annoyed glance upon being called butt licking donkeys

[gorlygorlx3]

More Random Human/Humanoid! AU Headcanons

Chica is an advocate of all kinds of weird food combinations, especially pineapple on pizza. The only one she hates is milk before cereal. “The cereal would get soggy faster.”(PREACH!!!)

In my AU, Sun and Moon were the same animatronic. Yes, same mechanic with one transforming into the other via light exposure. Besides the clothes changing color, Sun’s skin would turn paler and the freckles would disappear as he turned into Moon. The coolest thing was the hair would also grow longer and change color as well. Though when Moon reverts back to Sun, the excess hair would fall off, leaving Sun to clean it. Another thing was that it hurt like hell. Swapping really cause both brothers lots of pain. Every time Sun had to switch for nap time, he had to go to his room and scream into a pillow in agony while transforming into Moon to not scare the kids. And vice versa.

When you made the twins separate bodies, the two would bicker about who’s the “older” twin. Even though they were technically born the same day. 

“I’m obviously the older one.”

“Nuh uh! I woke up before you did, so that’s means I’m older.” Sun woke up during the separation process but you forced him back to sleep.

”I don’t that counts.”

I like to think that each animatronic has a lot of random facts or knowledge about some topics. Like Chica knows about what stretches and exercises help what muscles. Monty, obviously, has knowledge about golf, but also fun facts about rock bands over the years. Roxy has knowledge about mechanical engineering, cars, and fashion history. DJ has music history. Freddy, Sun and Moon all just have general knowledge that they just say randomly. 

“Did you know that your brain is constantly eating itself?”

”Freddy…of all that fun facts…” You were scarred that day.

Monty may not have a good relationship with Moon, but he does with Sun. Which is strange considering the childish behavior Sun emits sometimes would’ve steered him away. It was one day when Monty needed a place to stay since he trashed his room again. The daycare doors were opened as the lights were on. Monty kinda waltz in there before Sun properly welcomed him. After that they chatted for a bit, which made Monty surprised by how mature Sun is. He really thought he wasn’t gonna understand anything he ranted about but Sun took it in emphatically. In the end, Monty left with a new friend and an origami frog made out of a ten dollar bill. 

Chica’s great at both rollerskating and skateboarding. Idk why she just is. 

Monty was jealous of Bonnie back then. Actually, he was jealous of the whole band. When he was born (built created idk), the Glamrocks were the hottest thing in the plex. Gator golf had very little people coming in even though it was a new attraction. He really did want the attention they had. 

The thing is…Bonnie’s known to be aggressive. So him coming to Gator Golf with an aura like that, Monty had to defend himself one way or another.

To this day he’s still mad about the rumors floating around about his “murder”, how he decommissioned a beloved animatronic because of “primal rage” and “envy”. Only one of those things were true, but wasn’t the motive behind it.

Foxy and Roxy shared a father-daughter relationship when he was around. Sure the main three mourned over his decommissioning, but Roxy was incredibly hurt. Foxy made her loved children the way she does now and set her straight when those doubts kicked in. On that day, she lost the one person who motivated her to be kinder. Sometimes she recites the words Foxy used to say to her to herself silently. 

Now truly, I believe Eclipse was the first daycare attendant before Sun and Moon were even theater bots. Eclipse did the standard things for the daycare; lunch time, naptime, etc. while Sun and Moon, who came later on after the company realized how many children come to the daycare, would entertain them when they would go to the theater. A little thing they had were anger issues, or rather, just little anger spurts, usually formed from abusive parents child live with or careless human attendants who really don’t care. And when they’re angry, ooo boy…they’re angry. Angry enough to snap a broom in half. Twice. 

I also believe Eclipse wanted to be decommissioned via due to knowing the horrible secrets of the missing children and not wanting to live with that. Sun and Moon didn’t know them well enough, but it was already too late...

DJ was kinda oblivious to romantic advances. The moment you told him he was hot was when he realized it. 

A bit self-indulgent, but you, reader/(y/n), have entomophobia. One day you were hanging out with DJ in the tunnels, literally hanging around, when suddenly you felt something crawl on you. Screaming and panicking, you thought it was a bug. You were right! Kinda…it was a music man. Though your fight-or-flight response was to curl up to DJ and tell him to kill it. 

“Woah relax (Y/N), he’s cool.”

”Huh?”

And that was how DJ introduced you to the music men.

[haleingstorm]

Welp ao3 is down so I don't have anything better to do. Let's revisit my HOO Found Family AU.

Right so first they visit Boreas in Quebec. That's like 8+ hours from New Yorkish? So they've been on the dragon for a while. And look I get bored on car rides that are 60 minutes+ and I have the internet I can't imagine how bored they've got to be. So they play get to know you games. (It was Leo's idea) this rapidly turns into what-does-Jason-remember kind of thing which then turns into why-the-fuck-does-Jason-not-know-common-knowledge-things. They should be catching on to something hear but Leo and Piper are on opposite spectrum for money. Which means neither of them really know what's normal either. However as a reader we start realizing that Jason doesn't know stuff he really should. I'm talking like public transportation, food like oreos, or the Internet. This plants seeds about where he could have come from as well as start tentive friendship bonds bewteen the three of them. And point out differneces bewteen fake!Jason and real!Jason

Boreas goes basically the same way but both Piper and Jason protest very hotly about Leo being allowed in. Leo does not crush on Khione or any of that, we're nipping that in the bud. Though he will point out she's hot than back peddle and flail as he tries and fails to make a joke about her actually being cold because she's the daughter of the North Wind. Leo is forced to stay downstairs because Khione is incredibility powerful and they are not. Piper can still speak french and their actually meeting with Boreas goes pretty much the same, creepy implied ice statues and all.

[laly]

The sons of feanor may be super powerful, hundreds of years old elves but they're also spoiled princes. Here's my HCs which basic skills/knowledge they don't possess:

Maedhros: doesn't know shit about farm animals, which got incredibly embarrassing when he started ruling over himring. Animals in and around the fortress are essential to keep it going and maedhros quickly appointed someone more competent to organise their keeping after he learned that in fact only hens lay eggs, no roosters. (The three servants who were witness to his realisation were an example of self discipline and did not start laughing)

Maglor: how to tell north/south/east/west without a compass (his compass broke at some point and his soldiers were trying really hard not to giggle while showing him the north star)

Celegorm: cook anything that's more complicated than "put it on a stick and hold it over a fire" (anything he cooks in that manner turns out GREAT though.)

Caranthir: laundry. Most of them have never done laundry but he's just completely oblivious to the process, he doesn't have the slightest idea which fabrics with which stains need what treatment. Tried ironing once. It did not go well.

Curufin: Any basic gardening eludes him. No idea about plants, no idea how to take care of them. hasn't even kept a house plant alive.

The Ambarussa: they have only ever seen some fruits already cut up and prepared. Mangoes, kiwis - they wouldn't recognise them on a tree. One of them doesn't know raisins are just dried grapes and not a whole other fruit.

All of them have at least one moment where their servants have a very amusing time figuring out that their lord does not possess that skill. Maedhros, Maglor and Curufin start to overcompensate from that point on and become absolute nerds about animal farming, navigation and gardening respectively.

[paigegonerogue]

Here’s why the infected scene in episode 5 of TLOU works so well…

Buildup: As of episode five in the series, we’ve seen infected multiple times already, and every appearance has built up this “threat-level” of them. In the first two episodes we see both the larger scale of the infected and how scary they can be in hordes (like the driving scene and the capitol building, as well as the absolutely brilliant overlook scene), but also how threatening they can be solo (Joel and Sarah in the diner and the museum scene)… also in episode three we get Bill’s little “ehehe” from an infected death which is just as if not far more important as well.

By the time we see the infected come running out of the crater, the writers have already intentionally and precisely given us the knowledge of just how scary the infected can be.

That’s also why I’m glad they only did this type of massive battle once in the series, because once they did it, it becomes impossible to recapture that buildup and almost “unleashing” of the infected, of seeing just how scary they are.

The buildup also includes the more typical rising tension of the episode (which was, like everything else in the show, done absolutely fantastically), and the foreshadowing of the infected by both Kathleen and Henry.

Scale: The infected scene in episode 5 is by far the biggest in scale action sequence of the show. The huge amounts of infected pouring out of the rubble and the massive Bloater, as well as how many people are involved, the fighting in the background, it makes the whole battle feel huge. It leaves you in this sense of almost “awe” that so many great action sequences have.

Horror: In the sequence there are horror elements added in to make it feel scarier (complementing both of the points above). Obviously zombies are already horror-esque, but that’s not what I mean.

I feel like the best example of horror elements being incorporated into the fight is the part where Ellie is in the car. Enclosed spaces are a horror staple. Ellie being trapped in the enclosed space with an infected, and later Henry and Sam trapped under the car, transition this battle beautifully into tension-filled smaller scale sections in this massive battle, with parts so pinprick focused on the people we care most about, and how bloodthirsty and terrifying these monsters are.

We also see it in Kathleen’s shocking and gruesome death, and the power of the bloater, almost reminiscent of the predator or other near-unstoppable horror forces.

Cinematography: The lighting in the battle is so good, with the fire and darkness adding to this scary effect of the battle, as well as this extra layer of dynamism and contrast.

Also, I’m always a sucker for background fight, following characters as they navigate through violence. The way this sequence does it is also incredibly well done, with the background ever-shifting and changing, with the focus of the shot being on someone actively trying to avoid the fight and get past this living mass of gore.

The handheld style of TLOU is something I can write essays about (and I will! Post about cinematography coming soon lol) but in this sequence it makes you feel like you’re on the ground with the characters as the battle rages around you.

Monster Design: This one is self-explanatory, I’d say. The clickers, and the Bloater, my goodness the Bloater, look so incredibly good. And the way that they created this almost alien thing overtaking regular peoples bodies and turning them into monsters is incredibly amazing, and the practical effects make it look so real and detailed (they had the makeup guy who did the Night King and Vecna)

Emotional Resonance: This one’s pretty simple. The battle makes you feel things. Not just fear for the characters, though there’s definitely a lot of that, but also showcasing Joel and Ellie’s growing bond, with Ellie trusting Joel to have her back and Joel desperately trying to protect her.

It was absolutely magnificent, and an absolute feat of filmmaking.

[schweizercomics]

THE GREATCOATS by Sebastien de Castell

I drew these up as one of the (mostly literary) paper figures I do each month for Patreon.

Despite always being drawn to the trappings of fantasy, there are precious few fantasy books (or movies, etc) that have resonated with me. One very notable exception is the Greatcoats series, four novels that follow a trio of comrades from an effectively-dissolved band of dueling magistrates, who, in their heyday, had been charged with enforcing unpopular verdicts against politically powerful folks who had, until that point, been untouchable by the rule of law.

It’s kind of a thrust-the-Musketeers-into-a-medieval-setting thing, and there are swordfights and sucked-into-political-intrigues-even-though-you’re-ill-suited-towards-them a’plenty, for folks who like that sort of thing, and I very much do.

From the first read (I’ve now read them all thrice, along with a collection of short stories), these have become some of my very favorite books, and I could not recommend them more highly. They can, at times, be a hard read; the world in which the Greatcoats live is an unjust one, and whatever terrible things you can imagine people doing (torture, sexual assault, murder, animal cruelty, etc) can and probably are enacted in it, but what has, to me, set this series apart from some other “grim” fantasies is the balance between the knowledge that the world is an unfair, cruel, and terrible place, with the wholehearted belief that it shouldn’t, and doesn’t have to be. Idealism colors every action of the leads, and there’s something incredibly moving and powerful about characters who persevere against impossible odds towards fairness and justice despite encountering the very worst examples of their absence, never in ignorance or denial but out of pure stubbornness.

De Castell crafts a narrative with masterful control over how it’ll affect the reader; it’s melodrama in the best way, with huge operatic emotional beats. They never feel calculated – they’re all earnest, and they’re all earned. There are sections that make you weep, that make you laugh, and (I suspect this is the rarest, and most difficult to achieve) that make you want to cheer, stomp, salute. Moving speeches, incredible narrative payoffs, characters for whom you desperately root. Plus, of course, the suspense of peril and the best action sequences I’ve ever encountered in prose. De Castell’s first-person narration of fight scenes from the point of view of a strategist follows a pretty wonderful pattern of beginning the fight, edging the audience, and then turning to an aside that informs the context of the fight - a lesson learned long ago, an observation about the human condition, a technique frequently incorporated by duelists, an anecdote – and then return to the fight, the new context both heightening the peril and also providing a means by which the reader can fully appreciate the very clever way that the hero(s) win despite being outmatched. It’s a great internal “meanwhile, back at the ranch” and it gives each action encounter (and they are joyously plentiful) narrative weight.

Again, I can’t recommend the series more highly. It has some truly great characters – the leads, the supporting cast, the villains are wonderful and terrible, and the setting is rich and immersive. De Castell describes it as “swashbuckling fantasy,” and it swashbuckles its heart out.

You can get it in print, or in unabridged audiobook (Audible has it, and probably your library does, too), wonderfully narrated by Joe Jameson.

There are a number of other great characters, too – co-leads in their own right – but to draw them is to provide spoilers, so rather than do a whole cast, as I sometimes do, I’ve stuck to the three that you get from the first page.

Design (for process buffs)

There’s not too much visual description about the characters; Kest is described as of average height and build, with short hair, Brasti has hair long enough to tie back and a beard and is tall… and I think that’s it (at least so far as I’ve noticed, or remember).

There’s a tendency to make archers lean and wiry – it compliments the arrow imagery, and a tight, sinewy form seems a carryover of the bowstring to its user, but I wanted Falcio to be lean and triangular, and stoic Kest to be square, so it got me thinking that Brasti ought to have rounder features to offset and compliment the others. He’s a country boy, too, and where I’m from the troublemakers are often a little meatier, so it felt fitting, though it does suggest that he's physically imposing in a way the stories don’t push. But I kind of like that beefy, country swagger he’s got. He’s carrying two bows, as it’s a plot point that he has bows for different purposes: a fast one, and a powerful one.

The eponymous coats were tricky; they’re practically magic; serving as armor (via little bone plates sewn under the leather) and utility belt, with little pockets for whatever the story may require the characters need. I wanted a way to make them modular, so I figured on making a pretty sturdy chest piece that folds back to allow the coat to be open and unbuttoned, and a rolled epaulet that unrolls and can be used as a gorget to protect the neck during a duel (or from the cold).

I wanted each of the characters to be able to wear the coat differently, to reflect their personalities: Kest, always at the ready and doing things the “right” way, has his greatcoat fully rigged. Byronic Falcio needs to be able to dash about with tragic romanticism, so his coat needs to be a little more open – I probably should’ve had the chestpiece partially unflapped ala the Rocketeer, but I also wanted it to read clearly. And Brasti wears his because he has to, so he has all the trappings tied or buttoned back.

Last Thoughts

For artist and writer pals, I’d highly recommend listening to any of De Castell’s interviews on podcasts or on youtube; he’s generous with his process and has a lot of great thoughts about the act of writing.

[tokoyamisstuff]

Can i get headcannons of stein wooing weapon reader who has twins?

A/N: Not sure if this was exactly what you had in mind but we all need more Dad! Stein content tbh. Enjoy! ⚘️

Since the doc never had a real family before, he always doubtet that he was cut out to be a father - always telling himself he wouldn't need anyone. But ever since you had stepped into his life, he opened up more and more to the idea.

Will notice your pregnancy way before you do. Not due to his soul perception but because simply nothing ever goes past him.

Much to his own surprise, he's pretty hyped up about the whole situation, especially when he learns that you'll have twins.

You'll get the whole package of medical care. Vitamins, regular checkups and as many ultrasounds as you like, even if it's only to see the children. Hell, he'd even deliver them himself if you want to!

He's pretty inconsiderate about some stuff you though, like telling you that you've gained a lot of weight and not getting how this is upsetting you. It's a good thing, right?

Your partner is quite the opposite of romantic or considerate, so you need to be specific and vocal about you need. But then, anything you want he will provide. Well, maybe he'll whine a little but do it either way.

Your normal emotions are just as illogical to him as your mood swings, so he mainly just shrugs it off even if you lash out at him. He has learned over time that he just need to put you into his arms until you calm down - and better keep his mouth shut to not make things worse.

Tries to prepare himself the best he knows how - making up for his poor emotional intelligence through knowledge. Millions of books about pregnancy, childcare and twins are scattered all around in his laboratory.

That man can talk smug all he want, but as soon as the babies are there, he'll be completely overchallenged. How do you even hold this thing? Why are they crying now? Oh god, how could he ever think this was a good idea?!

Needs a lot of reassurance that he's making for a great father tbh, but is incredibly insecure at first. Doesn't want to be alone with the children and freaks out whenever he's needed to do even the most simplest things with them.

Realizes very fast that it's way easier for him to be around children than adults - he's somewhat of a big child himself, ya know? And they're always honest and straightforwards, not confusing him with weird subtext or etiquette.

Would obviously never experiment on your children but he will gather an incredible amount of data on them over the time.

Is especially intrigued when they're identical twins. Like, whether both of them turn out weapons, etc.

Will educate them very early on, like teaching them easy sign language to tell you when they're hungry etc.

Really, it's better to have him at your side, especially during the first years. Descendants of a Death Scythe and the Strongest Master are sure a powerful mixture, and they're certain to develop their powers very early on.

Only when one day he saw you and the children snuggling in bed together, it all came down to him: You three really were the best thing that ever happened to him.

Stein really is full of surprises, and seeing him care for your children with so much passion only makes you love him more.

[lunaprincipessa]

ENTRY 314

Today is my Pagan birthday. Not sure if that's actually a thing, but I'm making it one!

August 29th, 2019 was the day I converted to Paganism and I started practicing witchcraft shortly after... And I have never felt more at home.

I grew up in a Christian/Catholic type of environment where none of the information I was given ever resonated with me. It just didn't feel right, and I felt so out of place at the churches I was forced to attend.

What did resonate with me, through and through, was how I always felt good outside in nature with animals and trees. I even made an altar without knowing what it was or what it meant. My friends all loved looking at it as much as I did. That felt good.

My very first altar. I wish I had a picture of it. It had three tiers and was loaded with pictures and fresh nature. Something I wanted to do and put together naturally without knowledge or guidance. That being said, perhaps I didn't convert. Perhaps I just eventually realized what I was.

Anyway, I was Agnostic for a long time lacking the motivation or will to see what else was out there. I knew there was something but discouragement overpowered me and I gave up on all things beyond the physical for a time.

However, life shifted and I found myself with a new set of challenges that tested me on every level and I needed something else in my life to turn to. I no longer wanted to tell myself "no" when I'd look up at the moon and night sky in desperation.

"Paganism" I thought. But why? What is it? To this day, I have no idea why that word just came to me without any education on it. While I may not know why, I remain grateful.

Since researching, studying, gathering, and eventually finding my place as a Pagan and an eclectic/solitary practitioner of the craft over the past few years, I really have to say it has been an amazing journey and the feeling of belonging is unlike anything else I've ever known, aside from motherhood. I've watched spells like good fortune for friends for example come to fruition and I feel heard for the first time.

I heard not to buy up too many spiritual tools to leave room for what you acquire along the way and I remember the days of not having anything wondering how that might come to pass. How fun it is when what's meant to be yours finds its way to you without missing or harming another. Just fascinating the way the Universe speaks and moves sometimes.

And my Gods and Goddesses! I had none before. Now I have five! And they're all incredible. How connected I felt when I read about them. I knew then why I chose them, or why they chose me. A thought and emotion provoking journey that puts me at peace. I will spend the rest of my days learning and I'm okay with that. There's such a sense of wonder that comes with those initial discoveries and I'm always happy to experience them. I'd be sad if those types of feelings were lost to childhood regardless.

Wrapping up but yes, my little Pagan birthday. Nobody gives a shit but me. That's alright though because I give a shit enough to make up for any and everyone else. This is and has been an awe-inspiring path to take, accompanied by remarkable benefit for the mind, body, and soul. It feels nice to have. More thoughts later.