#they are. i just chose those who are outside the three houses

[sinner-as-saint]

no masters or kings - 2

Priest!Bucky x Reader 

Read part 1 here

Run-through: Father Barnes’ life had been rather peaceful for years. He never complained though, he chose this. Between mass on Sundays, bible study sessions during the week, and office hours, the amount of time he has left he dedicated to reading and keeping his body active. There wasn’t much to do in this small, almost forgotten town. Then a new face appeared. A woman, married to some businessman who leaves her all by herself while he grows his fortune in the city. Father Barnes seemed determined at first, to herd and care for the new, young, lonely little lamb. But that is until he found himself tempted to sin like never before. 

Themes: priest!bucky, smut, degrading kink, infidelity, explicit language, (sacrilege, blasphemy, and all the other bad stuff), mild c*m play

a/n: @cadence-on-beat Father Barnes and I love you <3

“Where were you?” 

There was already a chill in the air which had you shivering for the past few minutes that you’d been in here. In the darkness, in the cold. Standing all by yourself in front of the ancient looking pulpit, inside the empty church at near midnight. Then the tone of his voice added to the shivering. You were properly trembling as you turned to face him. 

He hadn’t been out running tonight. No work out clothes. He was still wearing the black slacks he always wore. With the black shirt, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, and that white collar. Hands shoved in his pockets, he stood there near the pews and watched you. 

The lights were off. The lamps outside and the moonlight coming in through the stained glass gave just enough light for you to see him. Not clearly, but you didn’t need to see his face to sense his displeasure. It echoed around the empty room. Not just his voice. His authority. His dark desires as well. 

Three little words and you were ready to drop to your knees and beg for forgiveness. He always had that effect on you. His handsome face only made him seem more lethal. Unreachable. Like he was some forgotten god who was known to be greedy, but you kept throwing yourself at his altar despite the warnings just for a possible glimpse of his beauty. 

You were enamoured. And you could only tell him the truth. Lying to him felt wrong. 

“My parents hosted a dinner party over the weekend. Plus there were a few fundraisers to attend. So um, my husband and I had to–,” 

He cut you off with enough venom and bitterness in his steady voice that it felt like a thorny vine wrapping around you, squeezing and hurting. “So you were with him?” His accusatory tone didn’t go unnoticed. 

–

Bucky was well aware he had no right to be jealous. He had absolutely no right to question you regarding your whereabouts. But he so selfishly enjoyed the way you squirmed in front of him. After not having seen you or heard from you for days, he was beginning to get worried. 

Each time he walked by your house, he made sure to look for any signs that you might be home. But there were none. By the second day, he realised you must’ve gone away. He just didn’t know that it would affect him so much upon hearing that you’d been away, for days, spending time with your showy family and husband. It made him borderline murderous. 

Dinner party. Fundraisers. Those were so far from his world. Plus you looked like you’d just gotten back from one such pretentious event. Judging by the deliciously low cut silver evening gown with a slit at the front, the expensive shoes, the diamonds in your ears and around your neck, and that excuse of a shawl you had wrapped around your shoulders – it looked like you’d come straight here to see him. It made him stand a little taller. 

He watched as you took the smallest step towards him, as if unsure whether or not you could get close to him. 

“I came back as soon as I could.” You explained, looking down at the dark red carpet beneath your feet. 

Bucky took some steps closer to you. “But you were with him. Did he touch you?” 

This made you look up at him, as if betrayed. As if it was unthinkable that your husband would touch you. “No. I told you about him and I. We’ve never–” 

He cut you off again, stepping closer and closer as he spoke until he was right in front of you. “Did he hold you in front of everyone? Pulled you close?” He began listing. “Showed you off? Held your hand, kissed you, danced with you? Did he do all the things I have no right to?” He reached out and his fingers stroked your cheek just barely. 

He was crossing a line. He knew it. He couldn’t stop the jealousy from spreading, from coursing through his veins. He begged his god to make it stop. Begged. But here it was again. That same jealousy, stepping out of a dark cave like a beast that’s been chained underground for too long now finally seeing the light again. It was angry. Raw. Hungry. Demanding. 

–

His jealousy, his possessiveness felt like a drug you wanted more of. 

“He did none of that.” You explained. “We slept in separate bedrooms in his penthouse.” 

You gasped as Father Barnes’ hand moved, his gentle touch on your cheek turned into him grabbing the back of your neck and bringing your face closer to his. Your chest pressing against his. His body heat wrapped all around you as he sneered, “What if he wanted to? Hmm? What if, as it is his right, he walked into your bedroom at night and said he wanted to fuck his wife? Would you have denied him?” 

Your breaths were shaky. Your mind was already foggy just by being this close to him. He didn’t feel human. He always felt more. He was too put together. Too steady. Too pretty to look at. 

He scoffed, “You wouldn’t deny him.” He whispered, his lips just an inch away from yours. “Your pretty little brain doesn’t think about anything else, does it? Of course you’d say yes. All you think about is men fucking you, owning your body, making it theirs. It doesn’t matter whose cock it is at the end of the day, is it?” 

He gave you a sinful smirk. One that made your whole body pressed against him even more. 

Then he leaned closer, so that his soft mouth brushed against yours as he said, “You just need that pretty pussy to be filled at all times. Doesn’t matter who does it, your husband, a stranger, a priest. It’s all the same to you, huh? All you care about is having a man on top of you. You sick, twisted, immoral woman.” 

He spoke those words with a gentle caress. His tone hushed, still jealous and authoritative. But quiet. Like he wasn’t chastising you. 

“Please.” You murmured, mouth brushing against his. “Please.” 

He ignored your pleas. Tightening his grip at the back of your neck as his other hand came up to that risqué slit at the front of your dress, fingers sliding in to touch your inner thighs. “Is that why you showed up here, dressed like this? Because you need a cock to fill you up. Hmm? Look at you,” He said, his fingers now finding their way in between your legs, cupping you there, “You’re trembling already.” 

He chuckled in that boyish way of his when he noted the lack of underwear, sliding his finger inside you with ease. Followed by another finger, and said, “Is this what you want? To be nice and full?” 

You looked up at him and nodded, pleading with him with your eyes. 

–

Bucky loved the sight of you like this. Expensive gown, diamonds all over you, his hand in between your legs, that sorry excuse of a shawl as if anything about your behaviour was even remotely modest. 

The soft moans coming out of your mouth. Too perfect. Your appearance, the lipstick, the hair, the gown. He wanted to ruin all of it in the best ways. So he thoroughly enjoyed the gasp of surprise he earned when he pulled his fingers away abruptly. 

“Not so easily.” He whispered. “Get on your knees.” 

He watched as you dropped instantly, right there in front of him on the dark red carpet right in front of the pulpit. Your shawl fell behind you, your silver gown spilled around you, the slit widened and exposed more of your smooth skin and legs. You looked up at him and waited. 

Bucky undid his pants, his eyes daring you to move without him asking you to. He lowered his slacks just enough to free his throbbing, hard cock and let it out there in front of your face. He let you watch it bob once, twice. He smirked when he saw the way you almost begged for it. But he wasn’t that cruel, nor was he too patient. 

“Go on, use your mouth.” 

– 

It felt forbidden. Well, it was. But as you reached for him, as you brought your mouth closer to his tip, it felt like you were entering a territory that could change your life forever. Like you were entering a domain which would swallow you whole, and you would happily let it. There was no coming back, you knew that. 

You were too far gone. There was no forgiveness for this. No repenting. Nothing. So you went for it. You wrapped your hands around his cock and placed your mouth on his tip, your tongue slowly circling his tip before sliding him into your eager mouth. 

Bucky slid his hand down to your neck, pulling your head forward as he slowly pushed himself deeper into your mouth. “What would your rich, conservative family do if they saw you like this, hmm? On your knees for a man you shouldn’t want. What would your husband do?” He threw his head back and let out a strained moan, followed by an arrogant chuckle.

You kept your eyes on his handsome face as you sucked on his cock with all your might. He closed his eyes momentarily, lips parted and gasping as he tilted his head back. You wondered how long it had been since his cock was inside a warm, wet mouth. 

He moaned as he pushed himself deeper, fucking your mouth like he owned it. The carpet would surely leave marks behind on your knees but that was the least of your concerns as he bucked his hips forward into your mouth. 

“This hungry, slutty mouth of yours feels so good…” 

You repeated your actions again and again, hollowing your cheeks. The growls and moans which escaped his lips made you squirm and only added to the dampness which was forming in between your legs. 

“You��ve been craving this, haven’t you?” He quickened the pace at which he moved in and out of you, eager to chase his orgasm. “Needing a cock in your mouth, so fucking desperate you came begging all the way here for it.” His voice was raspy, heavy with lust. It made you squirm. 

You knew you couldn’t wait any longer for the sake of your sanity. You needed him. So you took him out of your mouth, licking his cock from bottom to top while your hands toyed with his balls. He looked down at you with a warning in his eyes. 

“Are you that eager? You can’t wait? Hmm?” That gentle voice of his was back again. “Just want to be done with me as quick as possible so I can fuck you, huh?” He looked down at you with his intense blue eyes. His longish hair a little out of place now. 

You nodded before taking him back into your mouth. You felt the veins of his firm cock against your tongue. You felt his muscles tightened under your touch, and you knew he wouldn’t last much longer. So you quickened your pace, and he groaned as he reached his high. 

With one final, rough push into your mouth, you felt him starting to come undone. His hand came to the front of your neck, a warning, as he growled, “Don’t swallow just yet.” Then his cum filled your mouth as he gradually pulled himself out of your mouth and bent down to look at you from up close. Your lips were swollen. Cum and spit ran down your chin, out the corners of your mouth. 

You were panting, waiting. He looked into your mouth, finding a small pool of his cum in there. He smirked in that devilish way as he slid two fingers past your lips, gathering the wetness on the tips of his fingers as he, almost naturally, brought his wet fingers to your forehead. 

“You’re mine.” He said to you while you trembled, and it wasn’t because of the cold night. 

There, as both of you were in that post-sex haze, he drew two overlapping lines on your forehead. Then dragged his wet fingers down your face, painting your skin. Down the bridge of your nose and back into your mouth. Pumping them in and out, causing more cum to fall down your chin. 

Causing it to fall down your neck, all over the diamonds that your husband possibly bought you. All over your chest, ruining your expensive gown, your makeup. 

Fuck. Fuck. Fuck. 

Your lipstick was smeared, you had his cum all over your face and he had never felt so close to ecstasy before. He felt free. Tingly. Floaty. Like nothing mattered, but every little mattered. 

This must be the feeling people seek. He thought. Why they beg at altars, and worship old gods and new. 

You were so close to begging again. You needed him, terribly. 

And he knew. 

–

Bucky stared deep into your eyes as he said, “Get on your back. Pull your dress up and spread those legs for me.” 

He watched as you did just as he asked, while lowering himself on top of you right there on the carpet. He was ready to go, all hard again. So he wasted no time in pushing himself fully into you. He watched you grimace in pleasure as his cock stretched you out. 

You whined as he slowly slipped out of you completely, before slamming back into you with a slightly bigger force. He groaned at the feel of your walls wrapped around him, squeezing and clenching around him. 

“Fuck you feel good.” He groaned. “This warm pussy missed me, huh?” 

Your back arched off the carpet, your chest pressed to his as you moaned. You wanted to feel his naked body against yours, to feel his warm chest press against your bare skin. But if this was all he’d give you then you were willing to take it.  

“You’re gonna keep coming back here over and over again, no matter where you go. You’ll come right back to me, won’t you?” He asked, hips moving in a way that made it hard for you to think straight. 

But you nodded. “Yes…” 

“Yes what?” He barked.

“Yes, Father Barnes. I’ll always come back to you,” You whispered, a moaning mess under him in no time. 

He worshipped your body. He grabbed your thigh with one hand, hooking it up to his waist, allowing him to fuck deeper into you. He mumbled how good you felt in your ear, groaning as you bucked your hips to meet each one of his thrusts as well. He kissed you roughly as he pounded into you, his fingers wrapped around your throat. He fucked you raw and relentlessly, watching how your face morphed into frowns of pleasure. 

“Tell me you’re mine.” He looked down to where your bodies connected so intimately. So sinfully. So beautifully. 

“I’m yours,” You whined, looking up at him. Even in the darkness, he was ethereal. Looking down at you with that animalistic, primal and fiery look in his eyes. 

His lips parted as he panted while he fucked you like he owned you. He did. He did from the moment you laid eyes on him. 

You whimpered even louder when his hand slid in between your connected bodies and furiously rubbed your clit. It wasn’t going to take much to make you come anyway, you were already too turned on. 

“Please,” You whined in a higher pitch, “Please, please, please…” 

“What do you need?” He panted, still fucking you hard and fast. “Tell me what you need and I’ll give it to you.” There was that priestly tone again. 

You couldn’t talk as the pressure in between your legs became too much to handle, and you craved for release. Still you mumbled out, “I need to come, please. Can I come?” 

“Fuck!” He swore as he felt you clench around him perfectly. “Go on, come for me.” 

You did. 

You came hard around him, moaning and whimpering under him as he finished right after you yet again. 

—

He helped you up after a minute or two, helped you fix your dress and appearance as best you both could. 

He had seen your car outside earlier so he knew you’d be okay to drive yourself home. You didn’t live far from the church anyway. And right before you left he said, “Leave the door unlocked.” It was a safe town, so he felt free to ask that of you. “Who knows? I might want more later.” 

Might. He could come back for more, or maybe he simply wouldn’t. Maybe he wanted you to go to bed still thinking, guessing, anticipating, and waiting. 

And he knew you would. Think. Guess. Anticipate. And wait.

---

part 3

[most-datable-datable-bracket]

ROUND 5 MATCH 6

Claude propaganda:

"To say Claude has trust issues is an understatement—you have to spend half the game earning his. (Claude isn't even his real name!) Once you have it, though, he's absolutely ride or die for you until the stars go out. He is so full of heart and ambition: He wants both sides of his heritage to get along, he wants to open borders and eliminate xenophobia and promote equality between commonfolk, and deep down, I think he craves a partner to stand with him at that new dawn, or an equal who sees his vision for the future and will fight for it just as hard. Nobody believed in him when he was a kid, but if you put your faith in him, he'll return it tenfold. Some people don't like that he's calculating, or has to leave the player character at the end of the game to go back to his homeland, but both are necessary elements for his goals to change things. He will always come back, and everyone who bets against him and his love for his companions is wrong with a big fat W. #KhalidForMostDatablePrez"

"Claude is a fun little onion of facades. He calls himself the embodiment of distrust, he acts like he's carefree and without worries, an unscrupulous schemer--and so many in universe buy into that hook line and sinker. He's used to others viewing him with suspicion and uses it as armor to obscure his not-so-dark truth: that he cares immensely, that he values minimizing the loss of life, and that above all he has so much hope that people will fundamentally choose to do better given the choice.

His front guards a center that his conflict filled world would be happy to tear apart. As the child of people from two nations in constant conflict--one of which is explicitly isolationist and dehumanizes those outside its church's reach--he hasn't really had a place where he can be without his facade. As a child he thought he could run, but when confronted with the fact that this hatred existed no matter where he ran, he chose to instead try to create a more just and kind world.

His inability to let others in beyond his facade at first may lead to a sense of distance, but isn't it then all the more satisfying when you're allowed in? All he wants is a little trust, a little faith, and--like what he wants to give everyone--a chance to be better.

And like that you got a charming young lad with a fun personality that your grandma would be thrilled to have stay forever."

Josephine propaganda:

“you get to have a full Disney princess style romance with her, she is the most precious, the most sweet, I love her so much 🥺”

“Josephine's one of the "behind the scenes" companion for the protagonist and she advises them on diplomacy-related matters.

Her personal quest and romance is fairy-tale worthy: she gets threatened with assassination, you help her restore her family's fortune, you get threatened by her best friend to not break her heart, she doesn't dare to hope you mean anything serious when flirting until you spell it out for her, after which Josie agrees to a deeper relationship... And immediately after that she finds out her family has engaged her to a random noble without her knowledge!! You publicly challenge the suitor to a one-on-one duel to win her hand, she finds out and interrupts the duel because she's worried of the Inquisitor throwing literally the entire plot away and risk life in combat for her... To which of course you can confess that they're doing it because they love Josephine, and they get the cutest cutscene with Josie jumping in the Inquisitor's arms and them spinning her around before kissing each other <3 The betrothed steps away because he sees true love between the two. She and the Inquisitor stay together through the end game and after it, gaining a "second home" with her and her family.

She really believes in the Inquisitor's cause and from the very first conversations with her, she asks questions about your background and tries to make you feel welcomed (especially appreciated if the Inquisitor isn't human since people are less trusting of them). She's politically smart but dislikes violence, overall very sweet but still strong... Josie tends to overwork herself (she's a perfectionist) and at first she tries to keep a professional air at all times but if you encourage her, she will rant to you and spill all the tea about nobles lol.”

[reasonsforhope]

Paywall-free version

On the outskirts of Austin, Texas, what began as a fringe experiment has quickly become central to the city’s efforts to reduce homelessness. To Justin Tyler Jr., it is home.

Mr. Tyler, 41, lives in Community First! Village, which aims to be a model of permanent affordable housing for people who are chronically homeless. In the fall of 2022, he joined nearly 400 residents of the village, moving into one of its typical digs: a 200-square-foot, one-room tiny house furnished with a kitchenette, a bed and a recliner.

The village is a self-contained, 51-acre community in a sparsely populated area just outside Austin. Stepping onto its grounds feels like entering another realm.

Eclectic tiny homes are clustered around shared outdoor kitchens, and neat rows of recreational vehicles and manufactured homes line looping cul-de-sacs.

There are chicken coops, two vegetable gardens, a convenience store, art and jewelry studios, a medical clinic and a chapel.

Roads run throughout, but residents mainly get around on foot or on an eight-passenger golf cart that makes regular stops around the property.

Mr. Tyler chose a home with a cobalt-blue door and a small patio in the oldest part of the village, where residents’ cactus and rock gardens created a “funky, hippie vibe” that appealed to him. He arrived in rough shape, struggling with alcoholism, his feet inflamed by gout, with severe back pain from nearly 10 years of sleeping in public parks, in vehicles and on street benches.

At first, he kept to himself. He locked his door and slept. He visited the clinic and started taking medication. After a month or so, he ventured out to meet his neighbors.

“For a while there, I just didn’t want to be seen and known,” he said. “Now I prefer it.”

Between communal meals and movie screenings, Mr. Tyler also works at the village, preparing homes for the dozen or more people who move there each month.

In the next few years, Community First is poised to grow to nearly 2,000 homes across three locations, which would make it by far the nation’s largest project of this kind, big enough to permanently house about half of Austin’s chronically homeless population.

Tiny-home villages for people who have been homeless have existed on a small scale for several decades, but have recently become a popular approach to addressing surging homelessness. Since 2019, the number of these villages across the country has nearly quadrupled, to 124 from 34, with dozens more coming, according to a census by Yetimoni Kpeebi, a researcher at Missouri State University.

Mandy Chapman Semple, a consultant who has helped cities like Houston transform their homelessness systems, said the growth of these villages reflects a need to replace inexpensive housing that was once widely available in the form of mobile home parks and single room occupancy units, and is rapidly being lost. But she said they are a highly imperfect solution.

“I think where we’re challenged is that ‘tiny home’ has taken on a spectrum of definitions,” said Chapman Semple. Many of those definitions fall short of housing standards, often lacking basic amenities like heat and indoor plumbing, which she said limits their ability to meet the needs of the population they intend to serve.

But Community First is pushing the tiny home model to a much larger scale. While most of its homes lack bathrooms and kitchens, its leaders see that as a necessary trade-off to be able to creatively and affordably house the growing number of people living on Austin’s streets. And unlike most other villages, many of which provide temporary emergency shelter in structures that can resemble tool sheds, Community First has been thoughtfully designed with homey spaces where people with some of the highest needs can stay for good. No other tiny home village has attempted to permanently house as many people.

Austin’s homelessness rate has been rapidly worsening, and the city’s response has whipped back and forth... In October [2023], the official estimate put the number of people living without shelter at 5,530, a 125 percent increase from two years earlier. Some of that rise is the result of better outreach, but officials acknowledged that more people have become homeless. City leaders vowed to build more housing, but that effort has been slowed by construction delays and resistance from residents.

Meanwhile, outside the city limits, Community First has been building fast. [Note from below the read more: It's outside city limits because the lack of zoning laws keeps more well-off Austin residents from blocking the project, as they did earlier attempts to build inside the city.] In a mere eight years, this once-modest project has grown into a sprawling community that the city is turning to as a desperately needed source of affordable housing. The village has now drawn hundreds of millions of dollars from public and private sources and given rise to similar initiatives across the country.

This rapid growth has come despite significant challenges. And some question whether a community on the outskirts of town with relaxed housing standards is a suitable way to meet the needs of people coming out of chronic homelessness. The next few years will be a test of whether these issues will be addressed or amplified as the village expands to five times its current size.

-via New York Times, January 8, 2024. Article continues below (at length!)

The community versus Community First

For Alan Graham, the expansion of Community First is just the latest stage in a long-evolving project. In the late 1990s, Mr. Graham, then a real estate developer, attended a Catholic men’s retreat that deepened his faith and inspired him to get more involved with his church. Soon after, he began delivering meals as a church volunteer to people living on Austin’s streets.

In 1998, Mr. Graham, now 67, became a founder of Mobile Loaves and Fishes, a nonprofit that has since amassed a fleet of vehicles that make daily rounds to deliver food and clothing to Austin’s homeless...

Talking to people like Mr. Johnston [a homeless Austin resident who Graham had befriended], Mr. Graham came to feel that housing alone was not enough for people who had been chronically homeless, the official term for those who have been homeless for years or repeatedly and have physical or mental disabilities, including substance-use disorders. About a third of the homeless population fits this description, and they are often estranged from family and other networks.

In 2006, Mr. Graham pitched an idea to Austin’s mayor: Create an R.V. park for people coming out of chronic homelessness. It would have about 150 homes, supportive services and easy access to public transportation. Most importantly, it would help to replace the “profound, catastrophic loss of family” he believed was at the root of the problem with a close-knit and supportive community.

The City Council voted unanimously in 2008 to lease Mr. Graham a 17-acre plot of city-owned land to make his vision a reality. Getting the council members on board, he said, turned out to be the easy part.

When residents near the intended site learned of the plan, they were outraged. They feared the development would reduce their property values and invite crime. One meeting to discuss the plan with the neighborhood grew so heated that Mr. Graham was escorted to his car by the police. Not a single one of the 52 community members in attendance voted in favor of the project.

After plans for the city-owned lot fell apart and other proposed locations faced similar resistance, Mr. Graham gave up on trying to build the development within city limits.

In 2012, he instead acquired a plot of land in a part of Travis County just northeast of Austin. It was far from public transportation and other services, but it had one big advantage: The county’s lack of zoning laws limited the power of neighbors to stop it.

Mr. Graham raised $20 million and began to build. In late 2015, Mr. Johnston left the R.V. park he had been living in and became the second person to move into the new village. It grew rapidly. In just two years, Mr. Graham bought an adjacent property, nearly doubling the village’s size to 51 acres and making room for hundreds more residents.

And then in the fall of 2022, he broke ground on the largest expansion yet: Adding two more sites to the village, expanding it by 127 acres to include nearly 2,000 homes.

“No one ever really did what they first did, and no one’s ever done what they’re about to do,” said Mark Hilbelink, the director of Sunrise Navigation Center, Austin’s largest homeless-services provider. “So there’s a little bit of excitement but also probably a little bit of trepidation about, ‘How do we do this right?’”

What it takes to make a village

Since he moved into Community First eight years ago, Mr. Johnston has found the stability that eluded him for so long. Most mornings, he wakes up early in his R.V., feeds his scruffy adopted terrier, Amos, and walks a few minutes down a quiet road to the village garden, where neat rows of carrots, leeks, beets and arugula await his attention.

Mr. Johnston worked in fast-food restaurants for most of his life, but he learned how to garden at the village. He now works full time cultivating produce for a weekly market that is free to residents.

“Once I got here, I said, This is where I’m going to spend pretty much my entire life now,” Mr. Johnston said.

Everyone at the village pays rent, which averages about $385 a month. The tiny homes that make up two-thirds of the dwellings go for slightly lower, but have no indoor plumbing; their residents use communal bathhouses and kitchens. The rest of the units are R.V.s and manufactured homes with their own bathrooms and kitchens.

Like Mr. Johnston, many residents have jobs in the village, created to offer residents flexible opportunities to earn some income. Last year, they earned a combined $1.5 million working as gardeners, landscapers, custodians, artists, jewelry makers and more, paid out by Mobile Loaves and Fishes.

Ute Dittemer, 66, faced a daily struggle for survival during a decade on the streets before moving into Community First five years ago with her husband. Now she supports herself by painting and molding figures out of clay at the village art house, augmented by her husband’s $800 monthly retirement income. A few years ago, a clay chess set she made sold for $10,000 at an auction. She used the money to buy her first car.

“I’m glad that we are not in a low-income-housing apartment complex,” she said. “We’ve got all this green out here, air to breathe.”

A small number of residents have jobs off-site, and a city bus makes hourly stops at the village 13 times a day to help people commute into town.

But about four out of five residents live on government benefits like disability or Social Security. Their incomes average $900 a month, making even tiny homes impossible to afford without help, Mr. Graham said.

“Essentially 100 percent of the people that move into this village will have to be subsidized for the rest of their lives,” he said.

For about $25,000 a year, Mr. Graham’s organization subsidizes one person’s housing at the village. (Services like primary health care and addiction counseling are provided by other organizations.) So far, that has been paid for entirely by private donations and in small part from collecting rent.

This would not be possible, Mr. Graham said, without a highly successful fund-raising operation that taps big Austin philanthropists. To build the next two expansions, Mr. Graham set a $225 million fund-raising goal, about $150 million of which has already been obtained from the Michael and Susan Dell Foundation, the founder of the Patrón Spirits Company, Hill Country Bible Church and others.

Support goes beyond monetary donations. A large land grant came from the philanthropic arm of Tito’s Handmade Vodka, and Alamo Drafthouse, an Austin-based cinema chain, donated an outdoor amphitheater for movie screenings. Top architectural firms competed for the chance to design energy-efficient tiny homes free of charge. And every week, hundreds of volunteers come to help with landscaping and gardening or to serve free meals.

Around 55 residents, including 15 children, live in the village as “missionals” — unpaid neighbors generally motivated by their Christian faith to be part of the community.

All missionals undergo a monthslong “discernment process” before they can move in. They pay to live in R.V.s and manufactured homes distinguished by an “M” in the front window. Their presence in the community is meant to guard against the pitfalls of concentrated poverty and trauma.

“Missionals are our guardian angels,” said Blair Racine, a 69-year-old resident with a white beard that hangs to his chest. “They’re people we can always call. They’re always there for us.”

After moving into the village in 2018, Mr. Racine spent two years isolated in his R.V. because of a painful eye condition. But after an effective treatment, he became so social that he was nicknamed the Mayor. Missional residents drive him to get his medication once a week, he said. To their children he is Uncle Blair.

Though the village is open to people of any religious background, it is run by Christians, and public spaces are adorned with paintings of Jesus on the cross and other biblical scenes. The application to live in the community outlines a set of “core values” that refer to God and the Bible. But Mr. Graham said there is no proselytizing and people do not have to be sober or seek treatment to live there.

Mr. Graham lives in a 399-square-foot manufactured home in the middle of the village with his wife, Tricia Graham, who works as the community’s “head of neighbor care.” He said they do not have any illusions about solving the underlying mental-health and substance-use problems many residents live with, and that is not their goal.

“This is absolutely not nirvana,” Mr. Graham said. “And we want people to understand the beauty and the complexity of what we do. I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else on the face of the planet than right here in the middle of this, but you’re not fixing these things.” ...

From an experiment to a model

Community First has already inspired spinoffs, with some tweaks. In 2018, Nate Schlueter, who previously worked with the village’s jobs program, opened Eden Village in his hometown, Springfield, Mo. Unlike in Community First, every home in Eden Village is identical and has its own bathroom and kitchen. Mr. Schlueter’s model has spread to 12 different cities with every village limited to 50 homes or fewer.

“Not every city is Austin, Texas,” Mr. Schlueter said. “We don’t want to build a large-scale village. And if the root cause of homelessness is a loss of family, and community is something that can duplicate that safety net to some extent, to have smaller villages to me seemed like a stronger community safety net. Everybody would know each other.”

The rapid growth of Community First has challenged that ideal. In recent years, some of the original missional residents and staff members have left, finding it harder to support the number of people moving into the village. Steven Hebbard, who lived and worked at the village since its inception, left in 2019 when he said it shifted from a “tiny-town dynamic” where he knew everyone’s name to something that felt more like a city, straining the supportive culture that helped people succeed.

Mobile Loaves and Fishes said more staff members had recently been hired to help new residents adjust, but Mr. Graham noted that there was a limit to what any housing provider could do without violating people’s privacy and autonomy.

Despite these concerns, the organization, which had been run entirely on private money, has recently drawn public support. In January 2023, Travis County gave Mobile Loaves and Fishes $35 million in American Rescue Plan Act funds to build 640 units as part of its expansion.

Then four months later came a significant surprise: The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development approved the use of federal housing vouchers, which subsidize part or all of a low-income resident’s rent, for the village’s tiny homes. This will make running the village much more financially sustainable, Mr. Graham said, and may make it a more replicable blueprint for other places.

“That’s a big deal for us, and it’s a big deal on a national basis,” Mr. Graham said. “It’s a recognition that this model, managed the way that this model is, has a role in the system.”

Usually, the government considers homes without indoor plumbing to be substandard, but, in this case, it made an exception by applying the housing standards it uses for single-room-occupancy units. The village still did not meet the required ratio of bathrooms per person, but at the request of Travis County and the City of Austin’s housing officials, who cited Austin’s “severe lack of affordable housing” that made it impossible for some homeless people with vouchers to find anywhere else to live, HUD waived its usual requirements.

In the waiver, a HUD staffer wrote that Mr. Graham told HUD officials over the phone that the proportion of in-unit bathrooms “has not been an issue.” But in conversations with The Times, other homeless-service providers in Austin and some village residents said the lack of in-unit bathrooms is one of the biggest problems people have with living there. It also makes the villages less accessible to people with certain disabilities and health issues that are relatively common among the chronically homeless....

Mr. Graham said that with a doctor’s note, people could secure an R.V. or manufactured home at the village, although those are in short supply and have a long waiting list. He said the village’s use of tiny homes allowed them to build at a fraction of the usual cost when few other options existed, and helps ensure residents aren’t isolated in their units, reinforcing the village’s communal ethos.

“If somebody wants to live in a tiny home they ought to have the choice,” Mr. Graham said, “and if they are poor we ought to respect their civil right to live in that place and be subsidized to live there.” But he conceded that for some people, “this might not be the model.”

“Nobody can be everything for everyone,” he said.

By the spring of 2025, Mr. Graham hopes to begin moving people into the next phase of the village, across the street from the current property. The darker visions some once predicted of an impoverished community on the outskirts of town overtaken by drugs and violence have not come to pass. Instead, the village has permanently housed hundreds of people and earned the approval and financial backing of the city, the county and the federal government. But for the model to truly meet the scale of the challenge in Austin and beyond, Chapman Semple said, the compromises that led to Community First in its current incarnation will have to be reckoned with.

“We can build smaller villages that can be fully integrated into the community, that can have access to amenities within the community that we all need to live, including jobs and groceries,” Chapman Semple said. “If it’s a wonderful model then we should be embracing and fighting for its inclusion within our community.”

-via New York Times, January 8, 2024

[echantedtoon]

Perhaps In Another Life P2

Part 2 of this let's go!

This is inspired by a similar post by @o3o-aya and I wanted to put my own take now. Daki will be included but their own parts will be PLATONIC!! COMPLETELY PLATONIC!!

Summery is the reactions of the Upper/Lower Moons watching you run back to your Haishira s/os upon their defeat. Will stay sfw etc.

Warnings for yandere themes, kidnapping mentions, death, Karaku and Enmu ARE their own warnings, possibly some innuendos,etc.

Zohakuton will be included as a part of Hantengu's but bit he's written as PLATONIC!!

ENMU:

Your husband warned you not to get on trains.

This was the reason why. How you ended up being trapped by a sadistic gremlin like demon who took fascination in you. First it was just an idea to hold you as bait for your Flame Haishira husband seen sneaking around the trains lately but it quickly became a more intimate fascinating for him as he watched your dreams and thought the tears you had as you begged to be reunited with your husband was so delicious.

So that's why he cursed those brats who killed him and glared with the hatred of a thousand nightmares at the Haishira who gave him a similar stare of his own holding you unconscious body in his arms.

However he's smugly satisfied knowing he forever put the fear of loosing each other in your minds. His part will always be in your minds.

GYUTARO (+PLATONIC UME/DAKI):

He knew something was up when Daki brought back a woman that was infiltrating the houses to find them. Stupid really. But he had her comb through the other houses quickly in order to cut down on anyone.

She ended up finding three other women including you.

You were so pretty. So pretty it made his sister pause seeing her brother's reaction to you and gave her the idea of keeping you as a kind of doll and gifting you to her brother. He agreed. Asked his sister to get rid of your wives. Got angry when he learnt you married. Got angrier when your husband showed up looking for his wives.

And now here he was crying out to his sister and blaming her for allowing those damned brats to find where they hid you. Watching with tears as you were group hugged by your wives. Clinging to your severely injured husband as poison pulsed through his body.

He wanted to cry out for you. But his mouth was already disintegrated. All he could do was cry a few miserable angry tears and hope in your next life he could claim you first.

HANTENGU (+CLONES):

You were kind and compassionate. That's what the Love Haishira loved most about her girlfriend, a.k.a You. And you loved her just as much. Unfortunately it was that kindness that was your downfall. You showed some kindness outta fear when you ran into the Upper Moon Four, and he had taken you.

Deluding himself into believing that you two were in love all along and the evil slayer brainwashed you into thinking you were in love with her instead.

So he couldn't stop sobbing when he saw the pink haired woman he had been fighting swinging you around in her arms happy to have you back. You were crying too, latching onto her as she twirled you around.

COULDN'T YOU SEE HE WAS THE VICTIM ALL ALONG?!

SEKIDO:

DAM SLAYERS!! DAM YOU!! HOW DARE THEY TAKE YOU FROM HIM!! HOW DARE YOU EMBRACE THAT WOMAN!! He's angry with everyone until the bitter end as he watches through Zohakutan's eyes.

URAMI:

Like Sekido he's so angry and bitter! He resents the way you chose your wide over them and he resents the pink haired Haishira most of all.

AIZETSU:

CRYING. SOBBING. He wants to yell out to you and beg you to come back. They'll be better he promises! Unfortunately his tears and turmoil can't be heard outside of Zohakutan as they all disintegrate into coming.

KARAKU:

He's mostly numb to be honest. He wants to say something but doesn't know what to say. He couldn't anyways even if he tried being trapped inside with the other three. But he does feel deep regret making you cry like that.

UROGI:

His first instinct is to try and make Zohakutan screech at them. He panics when he realizes that he's unable to do that. Like Aizetsu, panics and cries from within where no one can hear them.

ZOHAKUTAN:

Like Urami and Sekido, he's angry and resentful. However being the clone of hatred it's amplified to the extremes as he hears the other sevens' mixed reactions.

[yyawnjun]

CIGARETTES AND DAISIES

nonidol!jeonghan x reader ; summary: calmed by the light of a starry night, amidst the daisies and the scent of cigarettes, 1k wc warnings: smoking cigarettes; @kflixnet

cigarette smoke comes out of your mouth and mixes with the steam produced by your body because of the temperature change between your warm body and the cold of the outside. you had been at the party for about an hour, and you were already mentally scolding yourself for going. you didn't despise parties, but the atmosphere on that night was particularly hostile to you: the music was terrible, the drinks were mid, and the people were particularly unpleasant and loud. you were at that party with a few friends, and usually, those annoying things didn't irritate you so much. but, on that particular spring evening, perhaps out of tiredness, you chosed to be out in the garden by yourself getting some air rather than suffocating with all those drunken people.

so that's why you went out and you found yourself smoking your third cigarette, by yourself.

time passed and you decided to take another one because you were starting to feel the cold more and more. however, you were startled by a noise you heard; a dark-haired head with curls peeked out from the doorway. it was Jeonghan, who had left the house to get some fresh air, with his usual cocky look. (he would never admit that he had spent at least ten minutes searching the entire home for you).

it was clear from his expression that he was a little more than tipsy. he arrived and sat down on the grass next to you without saying anything, and he was staring at the moon at this point silently.

he's too drunk, you thought to yourself as you returned to making yet another cigarette paper for a smoke.

but you were too tired, and damaging your breathing was already that boy sitting next to you. as you watched him, you noticed that he had started playing with the blades of grass and daisies in the garden where you were sitting. was he perhaps that drunk or was he nervous?

you tried not to focus too much on him and wait for him to start the conversation.

"this party is boring," he muttered in a tone mixed between alchool and sleep.

you turned to face him as soon as you realized he was already staring at you, smiling. he was standing with his legs crossed and his hands still on the flowers, just turning his head in your direction; his black eyes were locked on your face, his hair was immobile, his lips were slightly parted, and his stare seemed more attractive to you than before.

he smirked at your expression when he saw that you matched his gaze without saying anything.

"what? you like what you see?" he asked you. you rolled your eyes first reflecting on how drunk he was to say such a thing. "because I do" he continued the sentence naturally.

You almost choked on cigarette smoke.

"may I?" he asked as he came dangerously close to you, pointing to the packet with the tobacco and rolling papers.

you nodded, unable to answer. for a split second, your hands touched, and you felt an immense warmth spread from your hand to your head. you gave him the stuff he asked for while once more ignoring the effect that he had on you. the moon was lighting the sky on its own, and that was what you wanted to keep your attention on.

to prevent yourself from becoming lost in thought and thinking about him, you decided to begin counting stars.

one, two, three stars—who knows what in the world Jonghan is contemplating? no. it does not matter.

one, two, three, four, five six stars.

just as you were counting the seventh star you noticed that you were staring again at jeonghan.

after carefully inserting the tobacco, jeonghan continued to lick the cigarette paper. the level of alcohol in his body appeared to have disappeared based on how precisely he held the cigarette. he touched the paper with a slow movement of his tongue, then quickly but carefully closed it.

and something very appealing was present in those specific gestures. It captivated you so intensely that you were unable to look away. you observed his fast lips, focused stare, and alcohol-flushed cheeks. his face and chest were highlighted by the moonlight; his face was pale, and you could see outlines of his muscles under his shirt.

"seven stars," you whispered as your gaze remained fixed on his figure.

"big dipper," he said without looking at you.

"huh?" you uttered. "It's a constellation made up of seven stars, it's essential for finding the North Star," without allowing your eyes to meet again until a specific moment when he leaned very close to you once more and said, "please?" while pointing to your lighted cigarette.

you didn't understand for a few seconds that he was asking you to light his cigarette with yours. you also walked up to him without giving it much thought, until the tips of your cigarettes met. you felt a hand slide your hair behind your right ear, exactly as his cigarette was lighting. you quickly realized that he was getting farther away from you and that someone had put a flower behind your left ear.

was this his way of saying thank you? or flirting? the thought of the proximity that existed just milliseconds earlier made you flush. you took a deep breath to bring yourself back into control and attempted to pull yourself together. you also began playing with the nearby daisies and grass blades, realizing how well they alleviated stress.

you felt calmer until you felt jeonghan removing his jacket and putting it on your shoulder, as you were leaning against a low wall; and after that, he placed his head softly on your shoulder.

your heart was pounding, and so was his. but while you tried to stay awake and impassive as you watched the moon and let your gaze wander, he did his best to pretend to be asleep so that he could stay so close to you for five more minutes.

you carefully put your head on his as the moon rose in the sky, allowing yourself to lose yourself in the aromas of the fresh air and the young man who was "sleeping" next to you.

[skzstannie]

"Watch and learn, my dear"

SKZ drabble -> ot8 x fem!reader [PLATONIC] genre: Fluffy fluff wc: ~1300

Hi again! Next will be a Seongwha request I got a few days ago. Not sure when it'll be out, as I am a college student and have a lot of assignments to catch up on this weekend, but be on the lookout for it.

Alsooo, if anyone has any tips on how to make my blog look more aesthetic, plz do tell hahah

Happy scrolling!

"Watch and learn, my dear," Han sends you a playful wink.

You are currently on a team with Chan while playing cornhole. Your opponents are Han and Seungmin, and Han chose to throw from the same side as you.

It's a nice summer day, and you, along with the whole Stray Kids crew, are spending it outside. You started off the afternoon in the pool, but then I.N almost cracked his skull open when attempting to dive, and you all decided that was enough of the pool for the day. You then moved on to riding bikes, but then Changbin and Felix's wheels collided and they busted their knees up on the asphalt. It was a whole ordeal, and somehow Changbin ended up forcing Hyunjin and Han to carry him all the way back to the house.

After those exciting events, we decided to reign it in a little before someone got seriously injured. So, we now reside in the driveway, playing a nice and calm game of cornhole. I.N has been resting inside since the pool incident, saying he has a killer headache and just needs a nap. Hyunjin, Felix, and Changbin have taken cover from the heat in the garage, while Lee Know sits in the middle of the yard, bathing in the warmth of the sun.

"Han, no offense, but you haven't actually hit the board yet, and we've been playing for 10 minutes," you laugh, smiling harder when Han looks at you with an insulted look on his face.

"I'll have you know that I've been doing that on purpose, Missy. Didn't want to give away my ace of an arm too soon."

Upon hearing this from the other side of the driveway, Seungmin scoffs and gives him a bothered look. "You better be joking. The score is literally 19-0, I think you could've pulled it out a little sooner."

"Shh, I have to focus," Han narrows his eyes before hollering something sounding akin to a screaming donkey. He does a little dance, spinning around quickly in a circle, making you giggle. He faces toward the other board again, pulls his arm back and launches the beanbag high into the air.

All those theatrics, just for the beanbag to unceremoniously hit an unsuspecting Lee Know right in the face, who, up until that point, was peacefully sleeping.

“Wha-,” he startles, standing upright in a second. Your eyes widen at the intimidating look he throws at all of you, and you immediately shove your thumb in Han’s direction. You smile to yourself as you look and see that Seungmin and Chan are doing the same. “Han, you brat,” and with that, Han is gone in a flash racing to hide somewhere behind the garage. You walk over to Lee Know’s chair and drag it up to your cornhole game.

“What? You’re finished now? We were about to win!” Chan whines, playfully pouting at you.

“Well, Dandy-Boy over there just lost his partner, and I don’t know about you, but I wanna see whatever’s about to go down. I want a front row seat.” You kick your legs out, turning your attention to a, now screaming, Han. Lee Know has acquired the hose, and you know all hell’s about to break loose.

"Please! Please stop! I can't run much more!" Han yells, gasping for air.

"Well then stop!" Lee Know deviously yells back, gaining on the younger.

Han bends over with his hands on his knees, surrendering to the cold jet of the hose. "That actually feels pretty nice," he comments, standing upright and stretching his arms out to his sides to let the water cool him down.

Lee Know sprays Han for a few more seconds before feeling bored. "It's no fun if you're enjoying it." He huffs and stops spraying the hose, looking back to the three of you still silently watching from the driveway. A smirk spreads across his face; one that you know all too well.

You quickly stand from the chair, scurrying inside the garage to take cover. "Run!" You scream, using poor Felix as a human shield. Lee Know sprints into the garage, blasting the water in a swaying motion, soaking everything in it's path, including Felix and the innocent party of Hyunjin and Changbin. They all gasp, looking up at Lee Know.

"If my knee wasn't throbbing right now, I'd so get you back," Changbin narrows his eyes at Lee Know.

"In my defense, I was only trying to get y/n. So if anything, blame her," Lee Know argues back. He turns his attention to the three completely dry soon-to-be victims hiding out near the house, and he takes off after them, eliciting a multitude of screams and yelps.

Hyunjin, Changbin, and Felix look to you. "You've got to be kidding me. I'm innocent!" You nervously back up, making your way towards the garage door. "We're on the same team!" You try, but in the blink of an eye, Hyunjin is after you. You scream, running towards nothing specific.

"Avenge us, Hyunjin!" You hear Felix yell, followed by a chorus of Felix and Changbin giggles.

You run throughout the yard, hurdling and ducking between random objects to try to lose your attacker. But to no avail, and Hyunjin rams into the back of you, soaking your perfectly dry clothes. You screech, struggling in his grasp before ultimately giving up, knowing he's much stronger than you are. He squeezes the life out of you once more, you and him watching the chaos ensue on the other side of the yard. Somehow, Seungmin has ended up with the hose now and is running for his life from Chan, Han, and Lee Know. "Poor guy's not gonna make it," you say to Hyunjin, watching as Seungmin trips over a lump in the grass, awkwardly hitting the ground and dropping the hose in the process.

"Mercy!" he yells, gripping his ankle and writhing in pain. Chan drops down next to him in concern

"What happened? Did you hurt your ankle?" Chan worries, placing a comforting hand on Seungmin's shoulder. Hyunjin finally lets you go and you both quickly make your way to them. Changbin and Felix also make their way out of the garage upon hearing Seungmin's cries.

"My ankle, I think I broke it," he cries. Chan looks up to you guys and you can tell dad-mode has been activated.

"Can someone go get a bag of ice? Changbin, help me lift him." Chan orders, standing up.

In the blink of an eye, Seungmin jumps up and quickly grabs the hose, spraying all of you and laughing menacingly. You all stare in disbelief, jaws dropped, not knowing Seungmin was that good of an actor.

You observe him and notice he's the only one who hasn't gotten wet yet. "How are you still dry?" You question him. You and the rest of the boys slowly start inching towards him.

He stutters a little, taking slow steps back, feeling uneasy. "Uh-"

"He won't be for long! Get him!" Lee Know answers for him, being the first to make a move and run towards the puppy. Seungmin turns and runs the opposite direction and the rest of you follow.

The shenanigans keep up for about 30 more minutes. At some point, I.N emerged from the house to see what all the noise was about. Unfortunately for him, Lee Know once again had the hose, and he wasn't feeling very merciful. As soon as I.N stepped foot in the yard he was bombarded with a blast of icy cold water, completely waking him from his after-nap grogginess. The hose gets passed around numerous more times, and you all, including Seungmin, end up completely soaked from head to toe by the time you're finished.

While you guys never finished your cornhole game, all too exhausted from the days events, it still ended up being a fun afternoon.

You and Chan will just have to beat Seungmin and Han a different day.

[strawbeerossi]

Friends Like You

Pairing: Gender Neutral!Reader x Spencer Reid

Description: After your father relocated to Las Vegas, Nevada, you meet a new face at the school bus stop.

Content/Warnings: Some minor angst with Spencer’s past, bullying mention, some minor violence mentions, Spencer being a little awkward and sweet baby.

Word Count: 1.1K

Navigation || Masterlist || Request

New mini series?? Let me know what y’all think!

AN: This should go without saying that it’s an AU where Spencer goes to high school at the appropriate age and not as a preteen! I thought it would be absolutely adorable. I hope you guys like it!

Spencer Reid never saw a day of peace in his life since he was a child. His father was a piece of shit who abandoned him as a child for his own selfish reasons, leaving a child with the burden of caring for his schizophrenic mother.

While he absolutely loved his mother and would do absolutely anything for her, a child shouldn’t have to be tasked with being a parent. While his friends were outside playing, he was sitting with his mother in bed while listening to her read an assortment of novels and other literature. 

High school was no easier than his early childhood. On top of caring for Diana, he spent most of his time fighting for his life within those hallways. The popular crowd, his peers, even certain teachers contributed to the anguish. There was no winning for him. 

It was a Thursday morning when he was standing at the bus stop, his satchel draped around his slender frame. He had a backpack but after too many times of it being pulled off of him and being hidden or defaced, he chose something he could have around him at all times. Nobody could just pull it off of him without dragging him with it. 

He had to figure that out the hard way.

The autumn air added a chill to the air, the crunching of the dead leaves on the ground signaling someone approaching. Typically he kept his head down to ignore the likes of Marcus Frank, Tyler Simpson, and Luke Halpert; three football guys who had a problem with the quiet, more socially awkward male who liked to fade into the background. Instead of being shoved and greeted with various ugly remarks, there was silence. There was the presence of someone beside him, so he let curiosity get the best of him.

What he saw knocked the wind out of him, even more than a punch to the gut from one of the men he dreaded seeing. 

You had recently moved to Las Vegas, your father getting a new job opportunity. It was an extremely hard move, one that drained you. The loss of close friends, family, as well as losing everything that you absolutely adored doing back home was something difficult. 

Your new house didn’t seem so homely, your neighbors were mostly old people who seemed uptight and had too many issues with the knowledge of a family moving next door. It wasn’t a welcoming city in the slightest so far. School couldn’t be that bad though, right?

Right?

Arriving at the bus stop was about as typical as it was back home, except there was only one person there so far. He was quiet and avoided your gaze, so you already felt like this was a bad start. 

‘Maybe I seem unapproachable?’ You thought to yourself. Some people did say that you suffered from a chronic case of resting bitch face, so maybe that was it? You were pulled out of your thoughts when you felt a pair of eyes on you. As your gaze lifted, it wasn’t long until you were facing Spencer. “Hi.”

Your tone was soft, almost quiet enough where Spencer couldn’t hear you. His face was red as he offered a tight lipped smile. “Hi. I’m- I- uh-” He laughed awkwardly while he rubbed the back of his neck. “I’m Spencer.” He finally broke through his stammering. 

It was charming in a way. He seemed so sweet and shy. You suspected he had a hint of social awkwardness.

“Y/N. It’s nice to meet you, Spencer.” With a hand offered in his direction, he was slowly putting a hand up. “Did you know that our hands carry on average 3,200 different germs belonging to more than 150 species?  Your hands can have anywhere from 100,000 to a few million germs at any given time.” 

The sudden fact had your eyes widening as your gaze fell on the palm of your extended hand. “Are you serious? That’s how many germs lay in our hands? Good lord, no wonder why we are always spreading new diseases.”

The tone of your voice had Spencer letting out a soft giggle as he was reaching in his satchel to retrieve some hand sanitizer. “That’s why I always carry this.” He explained, pumping the disinfectant into his hands before offering some to you as well. 

“What other facts do you have?” You suddenly asked, rubbing the liquid into your hands as you were now staring up at the taller male. Spencer wasn’t used to this. Most people ignored him or they didn’t even look in his direction, much less ask him about the plethora of knowledge and statistics that plagued his brain. 

“Too many to name.” He admitted, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “Ask me anything and I bet that I can tell you a statistic or a fact about it.” There was a rush of confidence, Spencer liking the idea of the possibility of having a new friend to listen to him.

“Hmm. Scotland.” You spoke while raising an eyebrow. “Oh! That’s too easy. Did you know that golf was actually invented in Scotland? Scotland is the country with the highest proportion of golf holes per capita in the world. The city of St Andrew’s has 12 golf courses.” He grinned proudly.

“Wow, are you some kind of genius or something?” You asked with a smile. “You could say that.”

This whole conversation was refreshing for Spencer. He’d never had anyone actively want to speak to him before. Most girls looked at him like he was an alien, the males would rather use him as a punching bag than speak to him like civilized people. 

He felt alone a good chunk of his life due to the fact he was.. Different from others. 

You were a rainbow shining boldly after a dreadful, miserable storm.

The school bus had rolled up not too long after though, the screeching breaks and the squeak of the opening doors were probably the most familiar thing you’d experienced. “After you.” Spencer spoke, gesturing to the open doors.

The vehicle was packed, other students scattered from other stops in the neighborhood taking up most of the seats, leaving just a mere few at the front being open. “You wanna sit with me?” You asked, the glasses wearing teenager beside you feeling the burn in his face, neck and ears from his blushing.

Despite his brain trying to give him rational ways to deny sitting with you, he couldn’t bring himself to say no. You were nice. You had a nice laugh and smile. You were safe.

Instead of verbally answering, he was taking the seat closest to the window with a soft smile, which prompted you to match his expression and fall down on the outer area of the seat. 

This was going to be the start of an interesting friendship.

[azrielslightintheshadows]

Shadows and tears

So this is a series about Azriel and reader. English is not my first language so please excuse any mistakes. I hope you like it!

Summary: Reader is a tortured soul who barely escaped the brutality of the Illyrian camps finding shelter in the Day Court. Her identity was well hidden until she caught the attention of the Night Court’s Shadowsinger. Will the mating bond be enough for their love to settle in?

Warnings: angst, mentions of abuse and trauma

You don't need a tissue box.....yet

Masterlist

Prologue , Chapter 1 , Chapter 2 , Chapter 4 , Chapter 5 , Chapter 6 , Chapter 7 , Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10

Chapter 3

Three sisters for three brothers

After a long bath to clear your mind, you decided that you had enough of sulking around, you needed to get out of the house even if it meant you were going alone. You started tracing your hands all over the dresses Mor gifted you trying to find the perfect one, the dresses were scandalous, but they didn’t shock you, living in Illyrian camps where the warriors and the women most of the time wore outfits that left almost nothing to the imagination you were used to it. You chose a low-cut midnight black dress that showed off your cleavage, your back was bare, and it reached mid-thigh. You pulled your hair in a high ponytail and wore matching midnight black heels. You stared at the mirror, you didn’t mind the scars you had, after one year in the day court they had faded and you only felt stronger now, wearing your scars like a true fighter. You thought of Helion and how he helped you see the scars this way and felt nostalgic, by this time you and him would be sitting on the balcony staring at the city with two glasses of wine. You shook those thoughts away when someone knocked on your door. “Come in” you shouted expecting to see Rhysand, but it was Mor who walked in wearing a similar dress to yours but red. “The house hinted me that you were planning to go get some drinks. Now I can’t say that I’m not a little hurt that you didn’t invite me but anyway would you like some company?” She said with a smirk “Yes I would like that, I just didn’t want to pull anyone of you from your schedules” you replied staring at your feet “nonsense we have to get to know you baby” she winked.

You two walked in the main room heading for the door, when you saw Azriel with that girl sitting on the couch laughing. You noticed how domestic and comfortable they looked, him staring at her eyes with a smile, his hand on the back of the couch behind her and her laughing leaning towards him. What you didn’t expect was that Azriel’s shadows weren’t there around him. He must be so comfortable that he doesn’t need them. You thought. They realized someone had walked in and turned to look at you. You could swear that Azriel took a sharp breath when he saw you, staring at your figure and the way the dress hugged your body.

“We are going out” was all that Mor said offering a tight annoyed smile and she grabbed your hand leading you outside. After you exited the wards, she winnowed you right outside of a place called Rita’s or at least that’s what the sign read.

“What was that?” you asked referring to her annoyance at the couple hoping you weren’t prying.

“Azriel and Elain…. Even though Rhysand ordered Az to stay away he doesn’t.” she replied with a scoff.

“But why?” you were utterly confused.

“Elain is Feyre’s older sister, and she has a mate that is not Azriel. I have so much to tell you, you don’t know anything about us” she replied and excitedly walked you both inside.

After way too many drinks and stories about everyone in the Inner Circle you were in tears some of them caused by sadness after Rhysand’s and Feyre’s story and others from laughter by the whole circus that is called warlord or Cassian or Cassie which was way too funny since he is literally a giant. The reference to the males as bat boys sent you into a fit of laughter and hiccups as you felt your head turning.

“Okay baby you had enough let’s get you back to the house” Mor said laughing. You decided that Mor could be a very good friend of yours and for the first time you felt sad about returning to the day court. Mor winnowed you back to the house and lead you to your room. “Goodnight baby” she said and left. You turned to walk into your room, but your shadows caught your attention they were trying to lead you somewhere so in your drunk state you decided to follow them tripping over your own feet, you managed to reach the balcony in way more time than you would soberly do and there he stood, Azriel in all his glory wearing his Illyrian leathers the moonlight falling on his sharp features, wings tightly tucked behind him staring the city. You know his shadows have already informed him about your arrival, but he doesn’t seem to bother as he keeps his cool stance, only turning his head slightly towards you. You moved beside him grabbing the rail. You stared at the view, the city was alive, laughter ringed in your ears, Sidra has never looked so good, illuminating the city lights and the figures of the people walking by, the moon was shining bright, decorated by the beautiful background of countless stars creating an almost purple colour around the sky. This scene could have jumped out of a painting, you could swear that it will probably be your favourite view, as you imagined this city being your home. You glanced at Azriel’s scarred hands gripping the rail tightly and maybe the alcohol took over but before you could stop yourself you took one of his hands, caressing his scarred skin with your thumb. He tensed and now you had his full attention, those hazel eyes staring deep into your own and his shadows hesitantly rising to cover his hand.

“Never hide your scars Azriel, they show the world that we are fighters” You muttered using your other hand to point at your own scars. His gaze darkened as he stared at the places you pointed to, his eyes lifted and softened when he captured your own in a tense eye contact.

“Who did this to you?” he growled.

“We all have our monsters” you replied and then pointed at his hands with your glance, “who did this to you?” you copied him.

“We all have our monsters” he smirked. You scoffed but he didn’t miss the amusement in your eyes earning a teasing smile. You wondered why he never smiles, he is indeed a stunning male but when he smiles? He looks like something made from an artist’s imagination.

“I wonder what I did to deserve to meet you… sometimes I think the cauldron is playing me” he replied taking a step back, his eyes never leaving yours.

“What do you mean?” you sent him a questioning look.

“I never thought I would meet someone who can understand the pain I’ve been through” he replied and took a seat on the ground his back resting on the wall behind him, his wings relaxed. You followed him taking a seat beside him, resting your head on his shoulder. Your own wings bumping into his but it didn’t bother either of you.

“Show me your monsters shadow singer” you breathed. “I can’t” he paused “they will haunt you forever”. “Will it make a difference? Mine already do” you replied with a sad smile. You felt him tense. “If I could, I would slaughter each one of them”

“How come you’re so open to me today?” you asked curiously.

“You won’t remember anything tomorrow angel” he replied with a chuckle knowing how drunk you are. Your lack of reply made him turn to look at you, he smiled noticing that you were fast asleep on his shoulder. He selfishly wanted to stay there all night but when he felt you shiver from the cold, he picked you in his arms and walked to your room. After taking off your heels and covering you with your duvet he left the room walking into his own, straight into the bathroom splashing cold water on his face. No this can’t be right. Three sisters for three brothers that must be it. He thought as he got ready for bed.

Three sisters for three brothers.

[twistedkans]

Yours - Part Three

→ A Glorious Masquerade Malleus x Reader x Rollo commission for my bestie

Warnings: mild Rollo-typical psuedoreligious content Characters: Yuu (Reader), Rollo Flamme, Malleus Draconia Word Count: 1.9k

Part One | Part Two

(Also available on Ao3)

༻ Yours ༺

“Now I'm even losing my name - it was getting shorter and shorter all the time and is now: yours” ― Franz Kafka, Letters to Milena

────────────────────────────────────────────

The bottom level of the bell tower looked more akin to the inside of a child’s treehouse than that which housed such a valuable artifact. Walls of old wooden planks that had seen better days, a pile of cleaning supplies thrown into the corner of the “room,” and miscellaneous items scattered about on the floor made it hard to believe this was property of Noble Bell College.

The ceiling above you creaked softly, then a figure emerged from the stairs.

You were taken aback by the heartwarming smile on Rollo’s face. It was as if he couldn’t contain his emotions, but what had him in such uncharacteristically high spirits?

“I assume you had no trouble along the way here?” His voice was soft, fluffy like a cloud, and happy enough to be contagious if it weren’t Rollo acting in such a way.

You shook your head. “No, but I think I accidentally took the long way…” With a quiet chuckle to ease your nerves, you turned your attention back to the walls. “This place looks like it could collapse.” Rollo hummed to himself and chose to humor you for just a moment. “I suppose it could look such a way to an outsider, but the Bell of Solace, and this tower, have stood centuries with naught to protect it, and it continues to stand as our symbol of hope.”

And for the first time, you felt the urge to smile at the man before you. His eyes didn’t hold that malicious fire or anger or disgusting pity towards you. He did not reach for his handkerchief, and his smile reached his eyes, now as bright as a young child’s curious gaze.

He looked…happy?

“Centuries? I guess that’s why it looks so old.”

Rollo cleared his throat, but that smile did not fade from his expression. “Yes, quite so.”

It couldn’t be said how it began, but you and Rollo engaged in casual conversation, everything from the bell tower’s history to that of Noble Bell College and even to the world you knew before coming to Twisted Wonderland. Although you weren’t too interested in drawn out history, especially when it was quite boring, you were interested in listening to Rollo’s joyful rambling. He reminded you of a few of your own friends who clung to all-too specific things and wouldn’t shut up about them. And, whether you would admit it or not, it was a trait the two of you shared, at least to some extent.

And to Rollo, nothing could be more interesting than anything you had to say. He would listen with bated breath to any anecdote you wished to give him, storing each little detail in the deepest part of his mind so that he may never lose these pieces of yourself you willingly offered to him.

His heart did not bleed, his feet did not graze the fires of hell, and his mind was no longer consumed by an endless darkness.

His beating heart threatened to burst from his chest, throwing him into a momentary state of panic.

What was this?

Whatever was he supposed to do with whatever this was?

You rambled on with yet another story, unaware of his distress. “–then Ace pointed his magic pen at Deuce, and Deuce ended up summoning a cauldron that nearly crushed me.” You laughed under your breath, remembering the moment with a fond smile. “He couldn’t stop apologizing after that, Ace too, even though he insisted it was all Deuce’s fault. You’d be surprised how many times I’ve nearly been hit with an awry spell from one of those two.”

Rollo’s heart was stunned. It turned to stone in an instant, no longer able to beat. His chest was a cavity of ice so cold he could not have a single warm feeling within it. Darkness stormed in his mind, taking apart and putting back together everything you said, twisting your innocent words to fit his sinister narrative.

Just like the knife that twisted in his heart, shredding it to pieces.

He shouldn’t be there. You shouldn’t be there.

It was easy enough to step away from you, to excuse himself from your presence, and to remember why he was doing any of this in the first place.

He failed to go through with his plan, but that wouldn’t stop him from doing what he needed to do to keep you safe from the cruel, magic-charged world.

────────────────────────────────────────────

The sky had darkened to a deep blue by the time you left the bell tower. The air was cool, and yet, there was a certain warmth lingering at your fingertips, nipping at your skin like a crackling fire. There was no fire though, or any noise at all. In fact, it was almost too quiet, and that terrible feeling in your gut refused to die down no matter how many times you told yourself everything was fine. The beating of your frantic heart in your chest did not quicken from your flustered state, but rather, the intense panic and dire peril you felt was approaching.

You ran the rest of the way to the ballroom, unable to shake the feeling that something was chasing you.

────────────────────────────────────────────

”I should thank you, Flamme.”

”I beg your pardon? Surely it is I who should be grateful to you for gracing me with your presence, Draconia.”

A standoff. Rollo sat at one end of the table, closest to the fire, while Malleus sat at the opposite end. Each held a metallic cup, one silver, one gold, yet who held which cup could not be discerned. Neither could Rollo’s mutterings, of which he did many as he covered his mouth with his handkerchief.

Malleus chuckled, though it no longer held a single ounce of friendliness. “And there it is again, this gratitude you spoke of before. Must you refuse to divulge the meaning of it? Or its purpose, perhaps, for you must be aware that I have little use for your gratitude, Student Council President of Noble Bell College or not.”

The response he received was a glare he made sure Malleus saw. “I loathe you.”

”As do I,” Malleus hummed. His sharp nails, gloveless, tapped against the wooden table and he took an idle sip from his glass. “Tell me, Flamme, what have I ever given you? Besides my presence, as you so humbly pointed out.”

Fire seethed through Rollo’s skin and weaved its way to his heart, but he could only laugh in the face of agony. “It is nothing of note, truly.”

Malleus, whose heart ached and burned with passion, longing, and anger, only offered a nod in response. “If you say so.” He raised his glass up and towards Rollo. “Shall we clink our cups together in honor of this marvelous evening?”

”We shall.” Rollo, who felt he had little choice in the matter, raised his own glass and let its rim tap against Malleus’, silver against gold, and they both took a sip.

”Cheers to this glorious masquerade.”

────────────────────────────────────────────

In all of your time running—how long had you been running for now?—you didn’t feel any closer to your destination. The halls feigned infinitude, but you were sure such a thing could not be possible. The gilded walls and thick stained glass murals that offered you no peek to the outside were beginning to give you a headache. Your feet were sore and your heart was racing and your damn hands were–

Something blocked your path. Something cold, something large, something–

”Malleus?” You looked up at those familiar, comforting emerald eyes, yet they only looked behind you.

”Yuu.” The voice that reached your ears wasn’t his.

You tried to turn around, but Malleus’ hands firmly held you in place, not even allowing you to tilt your head. Warmth did not reach your skin, only a frigid cold that seeped into your lungs and your heart. A question crossed your mind, one you had never thought of in all the time you’ve spent with Malleus

Am I safe?

”I admire how brazen someone of your status is willing to act, Flamme.”

Rollo approached the two, your only indicator being his footsteps as they intentionally clicked against the floor. You could feel a scowl burning into the back of his head, and as such, you were caught by surprise when the man’s voice was gentle, just the same as your conversation in the bell tower. “You are mistaken as I am no such thing.” A hand was placed on your shoulder, filled with a heat that nearly burned you, but it was quickly pried away by Malleus’ own hand. “I am nothing short of a man of piety and righteousness.”

Malleus didn’t miss a beat. “And who is your god, Flamme?” When he didn’t give a quick enough response, Malleus pressed on, hands subconsciously tightening around your small figure. “Who do you pray to? Who do you beg for repentance to? Who do you give gratitude to for each and every thing in life, for I know I am no such god to you? Who are you really grateful for, Flamme?”

A blanket of silence muffled your thoughts and deprived you of your words. Rollo’s unspoken answer weighed heavy in the air, yet you could not quite grasp it, not until his breath ran down your neck and his fiery hot hand reached around to stroke your jaw.

”Yuu, my angel, my god Yuu.” Rollo’s voice barely reached a whisper as the words forced their way into your mind. His lips touched your ear, an action Malleus seemed to allow. It was as if Rollo was nothing more than a starved child being offered the smallest of scraps for him to eat up with desperation for Malleus’ sheer entertainment.

It was the rawest form of depravity in his eyes.

A foot brushed your leg and tapped against Rollo’s, signaling for him to step back, though you were sure you weren’t meant to feel that. Just as a starved child would, Rollo clung to you for moments more before being properly kicked in the shin. It was only then that he let go willingly, but the embers remained against your skin, drawing his hands and lips against your body, unable to be forgotten.

”Do what you must, Flamme, so that I may thoroughly defeat you.”

Malleus finally loosened your grip, and you nearly ripped away from Malleus as you turned, coming face-to-face with eyes a shade of green-blue that were filled with more emotion than even your own. His cheeks were dusted pink, and you were sure yours were, too.

”Rollo…” You spoke his name with a wavering voice, filled with uncertainty.

He offered you a smile in return and a quick bow of the head. “Thank you, Yuu, for letting me be yours.” In one sweeping step he turned and began to walk away. “I shall look forward to the finale of this glorious masquerade, Malleus Draconia.”

It wasn’t until after Rollo left, when you and Malleus were alone once more, that he chose to speak. A single finger reached up to stroke the spot between your collarbone for just a moment before resting against your cheek. His hands were no longer cold.

”Are you alright?”

Your response was a dull nod. “Yeah…”

”Are you sure?”

You nodded again, this time with more effort. “Yes, Malleus, I’m alright.”

He leaned down, his breath tickling your neck as he whispered into your ear. “I love the sound of my name spilling from your lips.”

Your reddened cheeks only deepened in color. You turned so you could properly look at him. “And I believe I would love the sound of my name from you, too, Malleus. I didn’t give it to you for nothing.”

”Alright…” He tilted his head and captured your lips in a chaste kiss. “I’m yours, forever and always, Yuu.”

And that was the final part! Hope you guys enjoyed <33 - 🪄

Tag List: @girl-nahh-two

[panther-os]

Full Name and Family Headcanons

For the extended 141 family plus the fruity bastard betrayer (derogatory (affectionate)), some more complete than others. If any of this is directly contradicted by canon, I don't care, that's why they're headcanons

Soap

John Steven Donald MacTavish

Two loving parents, the youngest with at least 3 older siblings, all sisters. Closely enough related to the Chief of the Name and Arms of MacTavish to a) be considered low upper class and b) know his exact place in the line of hereditary succession. Also the kilt he wears on special occasions is always the modern MacTavish tartan, do your research. Grew up in Bonnyrigg outside Edinburgh and is emotionally attached to Sir Salter Scott

Ghost

Simon Lorcán Riley

Same family and circumstances as '09 Ghost (extremely poor, abusive dad, oldest of two boys), but give him loving maternal grandparents and three cousins. He's Irish by ethnicity and heritage, which a few family members kept alive and passed down to him, but British by nationality. His great-great-(great-?)grandparents migrated to Manchester during the Great Hunger, but his aunt moved back to Ballylongford where some of the family originally lived. His cousins and maternal grandmother are all alive but think he's dead and he keeps it that way for their safety. His middle name is after his maternal grandfather who died when he was young and was given to him by his grandma. I do also hc he's trans and have a deadname headcanon for him but I don't share those. The specific neighborhood he grew up in inside Manchester was Beswick

Gaz

Kyle Adam Garrick

Grew up in Brixton in London, relatively poor with two loving but working parents, but also with an enormous tight-knit community and more neighborhood aunties and uncles and cousins than he knew what to do with. Has one baby sister but she's 20 years younger than him so she's a baby baby and he was already enlisted and moved out when she was born

Price

John Matthew Price

Grew up in Anfield in Liverpool, near the football stadium. Avid fan, ropes Ghost into Liverpool vs Man United debates every season. Ghost doesn't even like football. Middle class, working dad and stay at home mom, older sister, younger sister

Roach

Gary Parker Sanderson

Working poor, older sister, younger brother

Laswell

Katherine Emma Laswell

Middle class child of divorce, no step-siblings or step-parents, lesbian wine aunt who's basically Kate Kane (coincidentally Kate's favorite superhero)

Nikolai

Nikolai Antonovich Pokrovsky

Absent parents, one younger sister

Farah

Farah Leyla Karim

Canon family - two loving parents killed by AQ, one older brother. Her middle name is the Georgian spelling of the Arabic name Layla (see my post about Urzikstan and Abkhazia for why this spelling)

Alex

Alexander Jeremiah Keller

Two older sisters, two triplet sisters (one an hour older, one three hours younger), two younger sisters, single mom, also raised by aunt and grandmother

Alejandro

Alejandro Ernesto Vargas Leon

Grew up working poor, dad died when he was three, mom had to work, older brother 4ys older took jobs for the cartel starting at 12-ish to make ends meet and left Ale as the "man of the house" at 8. Also has one 4ys younger sister (same dad, mom was pregnant) and 12ys younger twin baby brothers (different dad who chose not to be in the picture, oopsie babies). He loves the twins but wants to hang them upside down by their shoelaces more often than not, his sister is just as mischievous but more mature and subtle about it which made her easier to raise

Rudy

Rodolfo Ildefonso Parra Rosales

Born into a poor family, cartel killed his parents when he was three, adopted by a single mom after that. His new family is unrelated to the Cartel but his bisabuela is just as feared and respected as El Sin Nombre and La Araña before her, if not more in some parts of the city. Learned his best chancla skills from her. Only child but grew up in a massive multigenerational multifamily home with at least 20 older cousins - was the baby until he was 7 and now he's the second youngest

Graves

Phillip Windsor Graves

Upper class, born to parents who had an heir to the company because it was expected of them but who didn't actually want or like kids. Essentially raised by a rotating cast of nannies

[imabeautifulbutterfly]

Congratulations on your follower milestone, my friend!! I'm not surprised at all that you have that many, you are amazing!!

My favorite song: "Enter Sandman" by Metallica

Character: Hunter

If this isn't doable, just let me know, and I'll come up with another. I have so many songs I love, and it's hard to narrow it down to one. I just went by that old question, "If you could only listen to one song the rest of your life, what would it be?" And mine would be "Enter Sandman." But if that's too heavy, then I can totally come up with another, I'm all over the board with my musical taste. Unfortunately, I'm not deep with why I like what I like though...I just go by the sound. If I like the sound, I can listen to some pretty awful lyrics. Sometimes I don't even pay attention to the lyrics, which can get me into trouble. I'm more focused on the instrumentation, the beat, the stuff going on in the background, etc.

Thanks for doing such a fun event! I hope enjoy it as well.

Carol (@clonethirstingisreal)

Ohhh I love a challenge, and this was a perfect one.

Thank you so much love, for submitting a request and for not going easy on me. LOL.

I hope you liked my interpretation and how I chose to portray the song. Love oo

Enter Sandman

Warnings: Nightmares, guilt, fear of losing, grief, character death mentioned, held hostage, hurt/comfort. I think that's it, if I miss anything please let me know.

Main Master List   | Star Wars Jukebox Roulette |   AO3 Link

Hunter got up from his bed and stepped outside into the somewhat fresh air of Pabu. He leaned against the ledge of the parapet that enclosed their patio. No matter how many times he rubbed his eyes or closed them, he could still vividly see those eyes looking back at him. Hemlock’s eyes bored into his soul. 

Usually, his nightmares revolved around the close calls they had in the past, or seeing Tech fall from the railcar.

However, ever since they went to Tantiss to get both you and Omega back, all he could see every time he closed his eyes was you being held hostage by Hemlock. 

It wasn’t until after he rescued did he find out you had pushed Omega out of the way when Hemlock was about to slap cuffs on her, only to be locked to the madman. At this point he didn’t care who he held hostage, he just needed insurance to get away. However, seeing him hold the blaster to your head, the blood trickling down your face, and the fact you almost went over the railing with him … it’d been the single most frightening moment of his life. 

Now, it was impossible for him to sleep through the night, he felt he needed to keep one eye on you at all times, gripping you as tight as he could while he slept to make sure you were still there every time he opened his eyes. 

A loud sigh of exhaustion escaped his lips, as he rubbed his eyes. He took in a deep breath, trying to think of anything other than those terrifying moments where he almost lost you. 

You stood at the entrance of your house seeing Hunter’s shoulders tensing up under his shirt. You knew he was having nightmares, it was evident from how exhausted he looked, how tight he held you at night, the number of times he stirred from your bed in the middle of the night. 

You gave him time and space, waiting for him to come to you to talk, but he didn’t and now it been three months. 

You slowly walked over to him, wrapping your arms around his waist and pressing a kiss to the middle of his back, “Talk to me, Hunter. I can see your suffering. Talk to me.”

His hand rested against yours as he took in a deep breath relaxing breath for the first time that night. His fingers gently stroked yours, he couldn’t look at you yet. Not feeling as though he may have failed in some way.

You shifted one hand to lay it on top of the one currently stroking your fingers, on any other night that soothing touch would’ve devolved into a more passionate and intense evening, but right now you wanted him to focus, to put aside his worries. 

“I’m here, cyare.” You reinforced, “I’m right here, talk to me. Tell me what’s going on.”

He let out a shaky sigh, wet and trembling with fear as he fought back his tears, “I … I can’t lose you.”

“You haven’t,” you mumbled into his back, pressing your forehead against it. “I’m right here. I’ll always be right here. I’m not going anywhere.”

There was a warm lump rising in his chest aiming for his throat, he felt it was all too real, too much and too painful. 

“Whatever it is, it won’t change the fact that I’m here. I’m holding you. My heart is beating in sync with yours. You’re taking my hand,” you interlocked your fingers with his, squeezing tightly, “we’re alright. We’re safe. Omega is safe. We’re right here.”

He gripped your hand tighter than he ever had before, as his tears started to stream down his face, he turned in your arms, and buried his face into the crook of your neck. His tears dampened your shoulder, but you didn’t push him away, instead you wrapped your arms around him tighter, holding him as close and as tight as you could. “It’s okay, it’s okay.”

“When … when you almost went over the rail… I thought … I thought I was going to lose you… like I lost Tech… I can’t …” his voice was wet, broken, full of pain, “It’s like something or someone keeps taking away all the good things in my life… or almost taking them away. First, it was Crosshair. Then Tech. Omega. Then I got back Crosshair and Omega, only to lose her, you and the Marauder.”

“But you got Omega and I back, we’re here.”

“But I could’ve lost you…” he pulled his head back to look into your eyes, “What if next time I can’t? What if next time …” 

“We’re here because of you, Crosshair, Wrecker, Echo.” Your own eyes welled up with tears as you saw how heartbroken he was, “You’re not going to lose me, I’m going to stay right here, regardless of whoever or whatever tries to take me away.” You reached up and wiped his tears, “We’re stronger together, always. So take my hand and never let go, because I’ll be here, always.” 

Main Master List   | Star Wars Jukebox Roulette |   AO3 Link

Tag list:

@liadamerondjarin @badbatch-simp24@spicymcnuggies@lady-ren @firstofficerwiggles @darkangel4121 @discofern @kavecika @monako-jinn-stories @ladykatakuri @avathebestx @theroguesully @furyhellfire66 @carodealmeida @ciramaris @sprout-fics @twinkofthedink @dindjarin-mandalorian @ulchabhangorm @littlemisspascal @tortor-mcgee @vodika-vibes @clonethirstingisreal @crosshair-is-the-superior-clone @totallyunidentified @griffedeloup @leotatombs @leotawrites

[most-datable-datable-bracket]

ROUND 3 MATCH 22

Claude propaganda:

"To say Claude has trust issues is an understatement—you have to spend half the game earning his. (Claude isn't even his real name!) Once you have it, though, he's absolutely ride or die for you until the stars go out. He is so full of heart and ambition: He wants both sides of his heritage to get along, he wants to open borders and eliminate xenophobia and promote equality between commonfolk, and deep down, I think he craves a partner to stand with him at that new dawn, or an equal who sees his vision for the future and will fight for it just as hard. Nobody believed in him when he was a kid, but if you put your faith in him, he'll return it tenfold. Some people don't like that he's calculating, or has to leave the player character at the end of the game to go back to his homeland, but both are necessary elements for his goals to change things. He will always come back, and everyone who bets against him and his love for his companions is wrong with a big fat W. #KhalidForMostDatablePrez"

"Claude is a fun little onion of facades. He calls himself the embodiment of distrust, he acts like he's carefree and without worries, an unscrupulous schemer--and so many in universe buy into that hook line and sinker. He's used to others viewing him with suspicion and uses it as armor to obscure his not-so-dark truth: that he cares immensely, that he values minimizing the loss of life, and that above all he has so much hope that people will fundamentally choose to do better given the choice.

His front guards a center that his conflict filled world would be happy to tear apart. As the child of people from two nations in constant conflict--one of which is explicitly isolationist and dehumanizes those outside its church's reach--he hasn't really had a place where he can be without his facade. As a child he thought he could run, but when confronted with the fact that this hatred existed no matter where he ran, he chose to instead try to create a more just and kind world.

His inability to let others in beyond his facade at first may lead to a sense of distance, but isn't it then all the more satisfying when you're allowed in? All he wants is a little trust, a little faith, and--like what he wants to give everyone--a chance to be better.

And like that you got a charming young lad with a fun personality that your grandma would be thrilled to have stay forever."

Hades propaganda:

“Fields of Asphodel is a work in progress (but nearly finished!) text-based IF game where the MC plays the part of Persephone (you can rename your character tho) who get married to Hades at the behest of Zeus (being a giant douchebag per usual) and move to the Underworld. Hades is kind and respectful and cares deeply for his realm. He feels guilty that the MC was forced into this arranged marriage and does whatever he can to make the MC more comfortable. Even if the MC wants to leave, he puts the MC's feelings first. He drinks that respect women (gender neutral) juice everyday. Listen, this marriage is arranged by Olympus King Dick Zeus, so Hades has absolute zero problems if the MC dates someone else from his realm. Choose someone else's route (if you can!) He has the cutest kid, Makaria and of course everyone's favorite puppy Kerberos. Hades is a slow burn, he dodges and swerves the MC's flirting, pretending to be oblivious. He's not oblivious at all to the growing feelings between the two and that's what makes it sooo good.”

[coryothesub]

I became obsessed with Billie Eilish's "the diner" and now I couldn't stop thinking about what Coryo would be like as the stalker described in that piece of musical art.

Although it took me a million years to get around to writing this, I absolutely love this ask because it finally gave me the opportunity to explore a darker side of sub Coryo. I know the boy's unwell but I still love him sm, poor poor baby!!! Also the ending is a bit sad, but it's not as half as tragic as the initial version that I had planned for this story

nsfw / mdni / stalker!sub!coryo / dom!reader / toxic relationship / a bit of violence / nothing more I can think of

Your phone buzzed again and it made you jump a little. You had the late shift at the diner that you were working at so you had to stay after closing time to do some cleaning and deal with the accounting. 

You knew you could easily get fired for that but you had already had three shots from the vodka bottle and now you were about to take the fourth. It would be fine. You would replace the missing vodka with water and no one would notice. You really needed this after all. After finding out that he had been released from jail today. Would he actually obey the restraining order? The chance was slim to none.

You had met him right here, six months ago. 

“Coriolanus Snow,” he had introduced himself, flashing a big white teeth smile at you.

You would be lying if you said you didn't have a little crush on him when he started coming here. He was tall and handsome, always well dressed, his angelic face was neatly surrounded by his platinum blonde curls and those icy blue eyes, you felt like you could drown in them easily.

He started coming every day, and your coworkers had already nicknamed him “Coryo” on those occasions when they didn't call him your boyfriend. He was always charming and polite, he never overstepped your boundaries. Until he did…

You gave him your number yourself and then the messages started to arrive. Thousands of them. In his mind you two were in a relationship. You were his girlfriend, his fiancee, mother of his future children. He kept asking you about the wedding, had you already chosen the dress, what color it would be, what was your favorite flavor for the cake, whether you preferred a live band or a DJ.

“Coriolanus, this needs to stop!” one morning you hissed through your teeth while taking his breakfast order. He didn't seem to even hear you, he just kept talking about your beautiful life together and how you should stop working at the diner since he was able to provide for you.

You had told your boss numerous times that you couldn't work like this, and after many pleas he finally ordered the security guard not to let Coryo in despite the regular revenues he was bringing to the establishment.

Starting from that day he was just standing outside. Looking sad and confused, large tears running down his cheeks when he managed to catch your look through the window.

Then he was also standing outside your house. Your nearest grocery store. The bar you frequented with your friends. Until one day you found a vase full of fresh white roses. In your bedroom. There was no card, but you knew it was him. It happened again next week, and the week after that…

Why didn't you call the police? You did, numerous times, but the thing was that Coryo had never laid a finger on you. You couldn't prove that it was him who kept leaving the roses in your house. And standing on public land outside someone's property wasn't considered a crime.

The officers just brushed off your concerns and suggested you to change your number. But what about changing your workplace? And your home address? And even if you did all that, what if he found you anyways?

“How’s my queen doing today?” He approached you one day when you were getting inside your car after your shift.

“I just wanted to tell you that our wedding will happen on December 13. Since you didn't respond about the dress, I chose it and ordered it to be delivered to your house.”

“Coryo, please, just stop!” You lashed out at him, not being able to contain your emotions any more.

“We’re not in a relationship! We never have been! Just leave me alone!”

“I don't understand…” he looked puzzled and miserable. “But what about the wedding?”

“The wedding is canceled!” you decided to play along just as much as it would hopefully get to his deranged mind.

“No, wait, you have to explain…” for the first time ever he grabbed you by the hand, his blue eyes cold and filled with primal rage. Cold shivers ran down your spine. Could he actually be able to physically hurt you?

“Are you okay, Miss?” Some guy was just getting out of the car near you. “Is he bothering you?”

You felt too scared to even open your mouth and the stranger could probably sense the dread running through your every bone.

“Hey buddy, just let her go, okay?”

“Is this him?” Coryo yelled at you in jealous rage. “Is this the guy you’re sleeping around with? Is this the reason you're canceling the wedding?”

“Man you have clearly lost your marbles,” the helpful stranger tried to stand between you two. “Just go home and sleep off whatever you're on right now, okay?”

The next few moments were a total blur for you. The sound of a fight, screams, blood, someone calling the police. That poor guy ended up with a broken jaw. He pressed charges and Coryo was finally arrested.

You were still a bit salty that it didn't happen because of your complaints. But at least you got a restraining order. And he was out of your life. Or so you thought.

Earlier that day you had found out he’d got out on bail. Accompanied by an order to get a mandatory psychiatric treatment. But you suspected a psychiatrist wouldn't be the first person he’d look for.

After taking another shot you went to the toilet and messaged one of your friends asking to pick you up. It took all your willpower to ignore the countless messages from an unknown number until the last one came in. It was so short that you managed to see the whole text during the short moment while the notification popped up on your screen.

“I'm here, queen.”

Your heart dropped. What were you supposed to do? Call the police? But what if he was bluffing? What if “here” meant some other place? What if it wasn't even him? You had a new number, he probably did too, you had no proof unless you went out there to check.

You took a deep breath and opened the toilet door. The guest hall was empty and quiet. You couldn't see any people or vehicles outside in the parking lot. You let out a deep sigh of relief. And then you saw it. A single white rose laying on the counter.

Before your panic managed to kick in, you heard a familiar voice behind you. 

“You look so beautiful, my queen.”

You turned around and faced the man before you. Nothing much had changed, he had got a bit skinnier and apparently they had buzzed off his hair in jail. But his baby blue eyes had that same desperate glow.

“H-how did you get in?” You took a step back almost unknowingly.

“I let myself in through the kitchen door,” Coryo replied, he sounded chillingly calm. “My cellmate was a burglar and he taught me a thing or two about locks.”

He made a few steps closer to you and you could feel his hot, unsteady breath on your face. You just froze in place, afraid to even move.

“They let me out today, you know…”

“Yeah,” you replied in a nervous, high pitched tone, taking a quick look at your phone. “I figured that from the 453 messages you sent me today.”

The corner of Coryo's lip curled up in a small smile. 

“Yeah, it was quite a challenge to find out your new number, I had to pay someone and I spent every last dime I had left after paying that 250 000 dollar bail. But I memorized it right away, now I can reach from anywhere any time… I shouldn't have done that you know, but I just couldn't resist. I had to see you one last time.”

That last sentence hit you like a rock. One last time? What the hell did he mean by that? Did he have some insane murder suicide plot in his mind? You realized that you should have called the police when you had the chance, but now it was probably too late. He would just grab that phone right out of your hand.

“C-coryo?” You said, voice trembling. “Are you going to hurt me?”

His eyes widened at your question, making you fear that you had fetched him the idea even if it hadn't been on his mind before.

Suddenly he sank to his knees in front of you, hugging your leg with his cold, slender fingers. His grip wasn't too tight, but you were petrified nonetheless.

“I would never lay a finger on you, my queen,” he looked up at you, his blue eyes clear as day. He sounded so genuine that you felt a pang of embarrassment from your own suspicious thoughts. But could you really blame yourself? He was your stalker who was clearly breaking the law right now.

“What do you want then?” You asked quietly, looking down at the young man at your feet.

“I just want to tell you… I need you to know that now I understand. I know you didn't cancel the wedding because of that guy or anyone else. I know it was my own actions, my own devotion, which didn't let me give you enough space. I have nothing left. No money, no friends, no dignity. My love for you is all that I have…”

You heard his voice cracking and large tears were streaming down his face, falling on the floor beneath you. He looked so defeated, so miserable, so pathetic. It was incredibly sad. But also kinda arousing. You hated your own body for the thoughts that were currently running through your head, but it didn't seem like a taboo any more, it was almost like an act of charity…

“Shhh, Coryo…” you whispered, your hand gently caressing his buzzed head.

He swallowed thickly letting out a few more sobs and you felt his lips touching your knee. His touch was so soft and delicate, the warmth of his lips mixed with the cold tears still running down his face.

“Please,” he looked up at you again, his eyes red and glossy. “Please, I need you. I have completely destroyed myself by falling under your spell, but I still need you so badly…”

Your thumb traveled down his forehead, gently caressing his cheek and somehow you found yourself pushing it into his warm wet mouth, his eyes closing immediately and his lips suckling on your digit blissfully.

He was looking at you with a silent plea and you nodded quietly, giving him the long awaited approval.

Coryo let your thumb out of his mouth with a silent pop and started planting soft kisses above your knee. You let out a small gasp as his lips traveled up your thigh. It was no point denying how much you liked it, the wetness in your panties would eventually give you away.

His buzzed head dove under your uniform dress and you felt his warm soft lips on your inner thighs. Damn it, this felt too good.

Coryo tugged at the waistband of your panties, he seemed to be hesitating for a moment but the way you were pressing your thighs together not to give away your treacherous wetness seemed to convince him and he pulled your panties down slowly, revealing your wet cunt to his eyes.

You heard a soft gasp, the blonde boy sounded as if he had encountered something unspeakably wonderful just before his mouth attacked your pussy with insatiable hunger.

Your whole body shivered as he started planting wet kisses along your folds. Your wetness surely encouraged him and you felt his lips wrapping around your clit and sucking hungrily, while his tongue danced around your sensitive bud, causing a soft whimper to escape your lips.

“Oh Coryo,” you moaned his name, desperate for more sensation. “You”re good, so fucking good at this.”

He could hear a mix of surprise and sheer desire in your voice and it encouraged him to try even harder, sliding his tongue inside you and starting steady movements that simply drove you wild.

“Oh fuck, don't stop!” You moaned, grabbing his head instinctively and pushing him against your wet cunt, looking for a deeper contact. 

You looked down at his growing bulge, intrigued by how prominent it was. You’d always thought he must have been some creepy incel whose dick probably didn't work, but apparently everything was more than alright there.

Coryo kept tongue-fucking you, humming blissfully against your sensitive area, the soft vibrations sending you into sweet oblivion.

You were almost there, but it didn't feel right. You had already come this far and now you needed him all. You stepped back, making him whine at the loss of contact and tilted his chin up, pulling him back to his feet.

The boy looked simply delicious, desperately catching his breath, his face glistening with your juices. You grabbed his chin and looked deeply into his icy blue eyes.

“I need you to fuck me!”

Coryo was staring at you in disbelief, his brain clearly trying to process what you were asking. He was taken over by fear. Afraid to deceive that one person that he unconditionally adored.

“N-now?” He stuttered. “I don't know, I-I…”

“C’mon,” you gazed upon him with a shit eating grin, sitting back on one of the tables and opening your legs for him, putting your hungry little cunt on full display.

“I thought this was what you always dreamed of… Now don't be a little coward that throws it all away just when we've come so far huh…”

Coryo seemed to be waking up from his stupor, lustful glimmer filling his eyes as he glanced down upon you. It almost seemed like his baby blues had got a few tones darker while he was taking in the tempting sight.

He exhaled nervously and stepped closer to you, scrambling to undo his belt.

“C’mon, baby boy,” you leaned closer, grabbing at the outline of his rock hard cock and palming it through his jeans. “Mommy needs you so badly.”

He pulled out his dick, making you bite your lip at the sight. The boy was way above average, his cock was so long and handsome. Your pussy clenched around the empty nothingness from the sight alone.

Coryo lined himself at your entrance and slowly pushed himself in, watching your reaction carefully. You were almost touched by the caring expression on his face.

“Oh, Coryo, you're so big,” you moaned out, feeling his massive cock stretching you out.

“Are you comfortable?” The blonde man asked, securing your waist in a tight grip. 

“Uh-uh, just keep going!” You instructed, watching his face filling with amazement at how easily your impossibly wet cunt took his impressive length.

Coryo kept moving at a steady pace, watching you with sheer adoration. He couldn't believe that he was actually fucking you right now and it made you feel so damn good.

You enjoyed each and every of his thrusts, throwing your head back and letting out a series of small moans and whimpers.

“Faster!” You commanded breathlessly, pushing your hips towards his pelvis, desperate for more friction. Coryo's lips radiated a blissful smile as he kept watching you, his look wide-eyed and full of adoration.

He was now pounding you relentlessly enjoying the sounds you were making and the feeling of your tight wet walls clenching around him.

“Oh my goodness, such a good boy!” Your praises sounded like music to his ears as you rolled your eyes back feeling the velvety tip of his hard member hitting your sweet spot repeatedly.

Coryo groaned deeply lost in his own immense pleasure, lewd sounds you both were making filled the empty room.

“You're so perfect,” Coryo mumbled between moans and gasps, while you were meeting each and every of his thrusts eagerly, aching for your release.

“I love you,” he whispered, looking so damn genuine and vulnerable that you pulled him close instinctively, pressing your lips together in a passionate kiss.

He kissed you with pure hunger and despair, whispering ridiculous love confessions against your lips. Along with his relentless thrusts it brought you over the edge and you came all over his cock with a desperate moan, your cunt clenching around him.

It almost seemed like it was too much for him to take and he exploded in an earth shattering orgasm, filling your cunt with a load of hot cum. His eyes bursted into tears, his whole body was trembling in your arms.

You pulled him in a tight hug, pressing his head to your chest as you felt his movements slowing down gradually..

“I love you, I need you, fuck, this was so perfect,” Coryo’s fragile frame was shaking as he sobbed into your uniform dress, completely dazed by his own pleasure.

“It's alright baby,” you hummed. “I'm here, I'm holding you, it's okay.”

It took a good minute until he calmed down and wiped his nose with his hand. You watched him zip up his jeans as kept glancing over at you with a teary look. You couldn't quite put your finger on it, but there was an eerie feeling lingering in the air.

“Thank you, my queen!” Coryo pressed another soft kiss to your lips. 

“I guess you're truly mine now,” a weird little smile crossed his face. 

You nodded faintly, starting to realize what you’d just gotten yourself into.

“And I'm always yours,” he said, caressing your cheek gently. You leaned into his touch, basking in his unconditional adoration.

Coryo took a few steps back, then walked over to the front door and let himself out. You watched him as he walked under the dim lights of the parking lot and then disappeared into the darkness.

You pulled your panties back up and grabbed your things, picking up the white rose from the counter almost instinctively and breathing in its alluring scent. You started to realize that you had probably just made the biggest mistake of your life. But for some reason it didn't feel wrong at all. 

You grabbed your keys and decided that you were gonna think this through tomorrow. Or at least after you’d receive an overjoyed text from Coryo.

But that text never arrived. You didn't hear from him again. And so did no one else in your town. Rumors started circulating after a while and you heard all kinds of stuff. That he had moved away. That he had taken his own life at a remote place and his body would never be found. Maybe he had found another object for his obsession. Or maybe he was finally happy somewhere far away, at least you hoped so.

You had no idea. But sometimes under the cover of darkness you opened your journal and looked at the single white rose that you had dried almost like a weird talisman. And then you couldn't help but think about that strange night at the diner. And about the young blonde man with icy blue eyes, secretly hoping that someday somehow you would see him again.

[alyswritings]

JJ X sister maybank reader please, she catches her brother with another girl and he tells her to get out when really she needed him the most. She then goes to kie and sarah.

Y/N sniffles as she gets back to the chateau, wiping at her tears. She looks around for her brother, going into the guest room that they use, opening the door, stopping when she finds JJ and a girl making out on the bed, JJ shirtless.

"Jesus! Y/N, what the fuck?" JJ questions the thirteen year old.

"I-- sorry. I just... I-I needed to talk to you." Y/N says.

"Well, do it later. Leave." JJ hisses.

"But, J--"

"Go." JJ growls, giving her an annoyed look, and he gently shoves her out of the room, shutting the door in her face, and she hears the lock click.

"Who the hell was that?" She hears the girl ask.

"Just my sister." JJ says. "Now, where were we?" The room goes silent and Y/N knows they went back to making out already. She huffs, feeling more tears fall down her face and she storms out out of the chateau.

Y/N quietly cries while sitting on the hammock as she thinks of what to do. She goes over to the shed and finds John B's old bike. After testing it, she gets on and pedals away.

Finally reaching Kie's house, Y/N jumps off the bike. She manages to climb up the side of the house, not wanting to risk having to make small talk with Kie's parents.

Reaching Kie's window, she knocks on the window. After a moment, Sarah is walking over, her eyebrows furrowed at the younger Maybank sibling. Sarah slides the window open.

"Y/N? What are you doing here?" Sarah asks.

"I, uh... is Kie here, too?" Y/N asks.

"Yeah. Yeah, come on." Sarah steps aside, letting the younger girl climb in.

"Y/N? What's up?" Kie asks.

"I, uh... can I stay here for a bit? Just, like, the night or maybe or something?" Y/N asks.

"Yeah. Yeah, of course. Why? Is something wrong?" Kie asks.

"Everything." Y/N mumbles. "My dad, my history teacher is out to get me, those kids are picking on me again." She lists, sitting on the bed, her eyes watery. "I went to JJ, but-- but he was making out with a girl and he kicked me out." She sniffles.

"Oh, baby." Kie sympathetically sighs, hugging her. Sarah frowns, sitting on Y/N's other side and rubbing her back.

"Why is your history teacher out to get you?" Sarah asks.

"He always humiliates me somehow. It's not my best class and when he demonstrates bad grades, he always uses my stuff. And I failed an essay the other day and he made me read it out loud so other kids would know what not to do."

Kie rolls her eyes at the teacher, her jaw clenching, wanting to protect the girl she views as a little sister.

"What about the kids?" Sarah asks.

"Just stupid comments that shouldn't bother me, but do. They made me spill my lunch yesterday. And please don't ask about my dad. You already know that kind of shit."

"I'm sorry, sweetie." Sarah frowns.

"How long has this been going on?" Kie asks.

"I mean... it kind of always does. It's just been worse the past couple of weeks." Y/N says.

"Well, we can have a girls night. Nails, movies, games, annoying gossip. Completely forget about all the shitty things in life, unless you're up for an amateur therapy session. How's that sound?"

"Good." Y/N smiles a little and nods.

- - -

The next afternoon, the three get to the chateau, always hanging out there as usual. They're all outside and getting ready to go out on the boat. JJ goes into the chateau to get drinks and snacks, Sarah and Kie following him.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Kie sneers, smacking JJ over the head.

"Ow!" JJ cries out, holding his head.

"You ditched your little sister for a hookup, JJ? Really?" Sarah asks.

"What the hell are you talking about?" JJ asks, putting some beer in the cooler.

"Y/N. She said she tried to talk to you yesterday, but you were making out with a girl." Kie says.

"Yeah. So?" JJ asks.

"So, she needed you, you fucking idiot." Kie hisses.

"What are you talking about?" JJ asks.

"She really needed somebody yesterday. But you chose a random chick over her." Sarah says.

"Well, she didn't say she anything. All she said was she had to talk." JJ says, shrugging.

"She didn't look sad or anything?" Kie asks.

"I-- I don't know. Maybe." JJ says. "I had other things on my mind." He chuckles and Kie smacks him over the head again. "Ow!"

"Look, leave her alone on the boat, cause if she starts talking she'll probably start crying, but when we were are back on land, you apologize to your little sister and you listen to her." Kie orders, a finger pointed in JJ's face sternly.

"Yes, ma'am." JJ salutes her.

"I'm serious, JJ." Kie states.

"Me, too. All right, I will. What was bothering her, anyway?" He asks.

"Bullies, history teacher, and your dad." Kie lists.

"History teacher? Come on, that prick again?" JJ groans.

"Yes. The teacher who should definitely not be a teacher." Kie says.

"Okay, okay, I'll take care of her later." JJ says, ignoring the guilt forming in the pit of his stomach.

- - -

JJ did subtle things to watch out for Y/N while on the boat. He gave her drinks even when she didn't ask for one, made sure to notice when she was tired or hungry.

They're back at the chateau and Y/N is inside and making a sandwich. JJ goes inside, slowly walking over.

"Hey." JJ greets, standing across from her on the other side of the counter.

"Hi." She mumbles, spreading the peanut butter on her sandwich.

"So, um... what, uh, what'd you wanna talk about yesterday?" JJ asks.

"Doesn't matter." Y/N dismisses.

"Right." JJ mumbles. "Look, Y/N, I-I'm sorry for kicking you out. Okay? I-- I wasn't in the, um... the big brother mindset. I'm really sorry. I should've noticed you were upset." He says.

"Thanks, I guess." Y/N mumbles.

"Look, um... Ki-Kie told me what you were upset about." JJ says.

"And she's the only reason you're apologizing?" Y/N assumes.

"No. No, I'm apologizing because I feel bad, kiddo. Really, I'm sorry. I promise to never prioritize a hookup over you ever again." JJ says.

"Okay." Y/N mumbles.

"So, uh... do you wanna talk about it?" JJ asks.

"Not right now. I don't really wanna cry right now, so." Y/N says.

"Right. Can I at least beat somebody up?" JJ asks and Y/N smiles a little.

"You'd get sued if you beat up my history teacher." Y/N notes.

"Well, I'm sixteen. It's still not really completely inappropriate for me to beat up some thirteen year olds." He smiles.

"Jayje..." She gives him a look. "I appreaciate the thought, but that's not gonna help anything. It'll only make them hurt me worse, my history teacher would probably sue us or get you expelled or something."

"I'm cool with that." JJ says.

"We're broke enough, don't you think?" Y/N retorts.

"I got a job." JJ shrugs.

"JJ." Y/N gives him a look.

"Alright, alright, alright, okay." JJ holds his hands up. "Fine. No violence." He gets up and walks over to her. "But if you change your mind..."

"Call our designated fighter, yeah, I know." Y/N says.

"Anytime." JJ hugs her, giving her a noogie.

"JJ." She whines, pulling out of his grasp. JJ laughs and gets some peanut butter off her sandwich. "JJ!" She complains again, watching him laugh as he eats the peanut butter.

"You love me." JJ grabs her head and kisses her on the cheek.

"No, I don't." She argues.

"Yes, you do." He ruffles her hair, grabbing a beer and going outside.

Taglist: @glxwingrxse @venomsvl @wildieflower @aliciacat20 @allyson15 @gabbylovesreading @itsmaneskinbitch @ironmaiden1313

[saturnzskyzz]

Smile for the Picture! 📷 Pt. 1

·˚ ༘ 𖦆 ꒷₊˚ ꒦꒷꒷꒦ ⑅ ʚ ⤜ ⨳ ࣪• ☼ ⋒ ⚡︎ 𐚱 ⊹˚˖⁺ ⤾·˚ ༘ 𖦆 ꒷₊˚ ꒦꒷꒷꒦ ⑅ ʚ ⤜ ⨳ ࣪•

Lee: Saiki

Lers: Kaido and Aren

Anyone still in this fandom?? Anyone?! I hope so, because I adore this anime so much!! Apart from the inappropriate jokes, I really love the plot and how comedic this anime is!! I barely see any comedy anime's that are actually good, but this show LITERALLY has me on the floor.

I still need to finish season 2 and get on with season 3 🥹

This is more so a comedy fanfic than a tkl fanfic, but bro still gets tickled, so 🤷‍♂️

Summary:

Kaido and Aren both drag Saiki along to the mall to have their photos taken as a fun way to get out of the house. What sucks for them is that Saiki is having a hard time participating smiling for the camera.

Warning:

| tickling | claustrophobia descriptions |

Enjoy!

·˚ ༘ 𖦆 ꒷₊˚ ꒦꒷꒷꒦ ⑅ ʚ ⤜ ⨳ ࣪• ☼ ⋒ ⚡︎ 𐚱 ⊹˚˖⁺ ⤾·˚ ༘ 𖦆 ꒷₊˚ ꒦꒷꒷꒦ ⑅ ʚ ⤜ ⨳ ࣪•

'Nothing like reading a comic on a clear Saturday evening to bring this peaceful evening together.. ' Saiki thought to himself. He held up an action comic that he had for years, untouched until this day. His dad bought him this comic when he was 14 for him to read, but Saiki had never gotten around to actually reading it because he thought it was something more of what his dad liked than himself. He proved himself wrong however, because he is now in the middle of reading chapter seven. He was nearly at the end of the comic while hoping that it would not leave off with a cliffhanger.

It explained the main character fighting this villain who just got done with its sappy story of how no one cares for his personality and likeability. 'ppt.. How pathetic, you chose to be a villain.' Saiki thought. Though, he can also understand why the character turned out to be a cold hard villain in the first place. I mean, who WOULDN'T understand one's backstory?

As he continued to read, he felt his telepathic senses tell him that someone was coming up to his door. Saiki scoffed at who it could be this time since everyone kept bothering him before picking up the comic.

"Hey, Kusuo? It's your dad.. There's people outside for you. They're wanting to know if you could go visit the mall real fast." The voice from the other side of Saiki's door could be faintly heard.

'What a bother. I finally chose a day to relax, and this is how the world treats my day off?' Saiki, once again, had thought to himself. He was irritated. Not only did he just finish the book that unsurprisingly left off with a cliffhanger, he now has to deal with what he assumed were two idiots who wanted to drag him along to the mall, and for what?!

'This could be a good time to search for the two other comics.. I mean, dad did only buy one of the other three.'

Saiki had to think about it for a moment longer. If he stays home, he could enjoy the peace and quiet for the first time in like, forever for the poor soul. But if he pushed himself to be dragged around by two fools who have no idea what it's like to favor time with being alone, he could find those two other comics that he desperately wants.. No.. Needs!

At the speed of light, Saiki got dressed in a casual, but yet a usual set of clothing. He looked around his room one last time to make sure he's not forgetting anything; not like he needs anything other than his wallet and cellphone. He did however, catch a glimpse of his Germanium ring that was sat neatly on his dresser, untouched.

He stared at the ring for a good minute or two before deciding that he should probably wear it in case of hearing unwanted spoilers for his comic that he is starting to realize, but won't admit to, to be obsessing over.

He walked out of his room once he had put the ring on, and headed for the front door rather excitedly than usual.

"Oh! Kusuo, deary! You're rather excited. Anything particular happen? You're not hanging out with some girl.. Are you?" Saiki heard his mother and her overly sweet, yet invasive tone, and stopped in his tracks to look at her with a deadpanned face.

'Welp, the excitement is gone now, thanks Mom.'

"What? Don't look at me like that sweetie, I'm only asking!" Kurumi said while walking up to the door to block it. She wasn't going to let him go until he tells the truth. It's not like he wanted to go or anything.

"I'm going out to get two other comic books that I started reading, now let me pass." Saiki kept it truthful, but left out crucial details to savor any more bombardening questions.

"Uh-huh? So when I open this door-" Kurumi started to say, going for the knob.

"Wait, don't open that door! You won't get off my back if you! -" Saiki reached out his hand to try and stop his mom from opening the front door, but missed by a millisecond, as she opened the door to show two patient students out front. 'Great, this is going to be a long day of parenting 101 questions..'

"Oh! Hi Mrs. Saiki! I hope we're not much of a bother, but we're just gonna empty your hands by taking your son with us to the mall to snap a few pictures for memories!" Aren, who was the first to speak, reassured Saiki's mother on instinct. Aren assumed that Saiki's mom was rather irritated given that her face looked like it was about to fly off her silhouette of a head. Too specific??

"Oh.. Oh! Ahaha, I should have known! My apologies, kuboyasu! You boys have fun, I don't want to keep you guys here any longer!" Kurumi placed her hands on Saiki's shoulders to gesture him out the door. She waved a goodbye to all three of them, and closed the door gently.

It was a good day to not hear the mopes of his own mother during this time. Because right now, she's probably thinking of how much her child has grown up to be hanging out with other people for once..

﹏﹏﹏

As the three walked together to the mall, Aren and Kaido were rambling like usual. Saiki instinctly followed behind so he knows that those two won't wonder off somewhere without his telepathic powers to notice.

'I guess this is babysitting but for the rookies.. I don't have my powers so it's going to be very tough to predict their thoughts and movements with this ring. It's a good thing that I don't actually have to talk though.' Saiki thought to himself.

"So! Saiki, I was quite surprised that you accepted our invitation on this journey. I thought you would say no and go read or something that you usually do." Aren blurted out.

'Well, there goes that assumption.. I was reading until the book left me with a cliffhanger..' Saiki thought once again.

Aren then walked a bit slower to get to Saiki's pace.

'What does he want now?'

"Is there any particular reason why you accepted to come with us to the mall?" Aren said, looking at Saiki with interest.

Saiki cursed at himself for not bringing the comic book with him to just show it to his classmate, but this is what he gets when accepting plans that he didn't want to participate in the first place.

"Just came for a couple of comic books.." Saiki said without glancing at Aren. It's unlike of Saiki to us his actual voice to speak, but he had no other choice so he just rolled with it, hoping for the best.

"..Huh. So you didn't want to take a photo with us?" Kaido budded in, slowing down to get on the same pace as the other two now.

Saiki only shook his head this time. He really didn't have time to enlight in conversation.

"Well, TOO BAD! because look!" Kaido linked arms with Saiki, surprisingly enough for him, and pointed at the mall in front of them.

"We're going in there to have our pictures taken, and we brought you along to join with! So let's go!" Kaido then sprinted, with Saiki being dragged, into the mall.

'What a p-pain.!' Ow. The grip that Kaido had on his upper arm was really getting to him. Who would have thought that the grip of a usually weak boy could do this much pain?

The mall was pretty huge for Saiki. He rarely goes to the mall, so anytime he does arrive he's always wondering if the building somehow got bigger. Who would of thought? Sometimes renovations can happen even for huge malls like the one that these two students dragged him along to.

As they got inside, Saiki started to look for a book store that might have obtained his comics. He saw clothing stores, shoe stores, food stands, jewelry stores, toy stores, but no book stores to be seen. It's not like this mall has a second story anyway?

"Hey look! The photobooth is right there, c'mon guys!" Kaido said. He started to run, not even realizing that he still had a death grip on Saiki, and he pulled him along with.

Saiki let out a gasp and a cough at the same time due to not realizing the grip as well, and because of how painful the pull was, but he managed.

Eventually, all three of them arrived at the photobooth, going in one by one. Kaido went in first, the boy to be the most excited for these photos, leaving Saiki to be uncomfortablely in the middle, and Aren coming in last. It was a tight squeeze, but they all managed to sit on the seat. It was fortunate that they were all in frame of the camera.

"Alright guys, I'll pay! The first set of photos we're going to pose all handsome and hot, the second photo is going to be a funny picture, and the third photo, we're going to make scary faces!" Kaido said quickly.

'Yeah, like I'm doing any of what you just requested. A normal blank face is all I'm really up for.' Saiki thought.

"Can't we just pose like normal? I don't think the first one is really necessary." Aren chimed in.

'The first and probably last time I will ever agree with you, Aren.'

"Fine fine, it's whatever! You guys do what you want, but I'm at least getting a smile from you two!" Kaido gave both Saiki and Aren a glance before pitching in his two dollars for photos.

As the booth counted down from 5, Kaido did what he requested earlier and went for a "hot" pose, while Saiki and Aren went for the 'peace sign' pose. Saiki had a blank face and as for Aren, he held up two 'peace signs' with a small smile and a wink.

3

2

1

*Click*

The booth made a clicking sound and showed the results on the screen infront of them.

It was at that moment that Saiki got scared with what the photo will show. 'Dammit! I forgot that any photo taken of me with these booths won't actually show my silhouette, making it seem like anyone who has ever took a photo with me in any booth, my mom and dad for example, will have them gasp and then do a double take with paled faces.. If they find out that I have psychic powers, it's over for me-'

"That's perfect! Saiki, could you express more with your face? Your blank stare is scary looking." Kaido blurted out, pointing at saiki's blank expression that was giftedly shown in the photo.

He blankly stared at the photo, seeing none other than him sitting in the middle with his pose. And then he looked at his germanium ring. 'Oh.. I forgot I had you on, you almost scared me half to death.' he then looked back up to Kaido and gave him a shoulder shrug. No way is he expressing more than just a stare to scare off any child who dares to look at someone else.

"C'mon Saiki! It will be once in a life time that we get 'high school Saiki' smiling for a photo! Do you know how rare that would be to us?!" Kaido all but begged to Saiki now, holding onto the psychic's leg.

'What a bother.' Saiki rolled his eyes and waved away Kaido's hands that were practically glued to his leg.

"Fine then, if you won't smile for the picture then have it your way." Kaido said, crossing his arms in a dramatic way whole pouting like a five year old.

'Like that's going to make me smile? You're at a loss pal.' Saiki just stared back at the camera, already assuming that it was going to count down soon.

5..

4..

As the booth counted down for a second time, Kaido went ahead and did a funny lookin' face that looked like it was aimed for Saiki to try and get him to crack a smile, but it was no use since Saiki didn't glace at him once, but Kaido still kept the pose for the picture.

Aren did a funny face as well, having both of his fingers to stretch out his mouth a bit, and had his eyes crossed inwards to look at the bridge of his nose. Unlike of Aren, but nonetheless, Kaido was going to be pleased with it.

And again, Saiki held a straight face for the camera, already knowing those two are wanting to get a reaction from the boy. He wasn't going to let that happen.

3

2

1

*Click*

The booth clicked on time to get a photo of the three. Kaido reached out for the photos to see how Saiki didn't lift up any corner of his mouth to make a slight smile.

"You've got to be kidding me! Saiki~ why can't you just smile for once in your life? this is just sad man!" Kaido whined to Saiki, shaking the boy by the shoulder.

'I'm not going to let in on your games, Kaido. I came here for a specific reason.' Saiki thought. He stared at the camera, not wanting to look at either of the boys. Unfortunately for him, however, Kaido had a mischievous plan to get Saiki to smile. He's never done anything like it before with Saiki; sure, he's done it with many of his friends, but Saiki? That boy is too stoic for his own reputation to get what's coming to him. Poor dude can't even sense what's about to happen because of the germanium ring, and yet Saiki is congratulating himself for putting it on to block out any and all thoughts around him.

"Okay guys, let's all smile like we mean it!" Kaido said, putting on an innocent smile for the camera. He swung his arm around Saiki's shoulder, having his hand rest just below his collarbone in a respective manner.

Aren then made a peace sign with his hand that was closest to Saiki, and held it up behind Saiki's head just enough for the camera to get it in; all the while tilting his head a bit towards Saiki, and smiled sweetly.

Saiki didn't think much of what they were doing, though. He had thought that Kaido tried to just urge Saiki to try and smile for the camera, but he wasn't going to let up on the act. And as for Aren? It's a weak move to try and gain any reaction over. He just kept a straight face with no interest whatsoever. How regretful he was going to be after making that decision..

"C'mon Saiki, smile~" Kaido sang, putting pressure with his fingers just below Saiki's collarbone. He didn't get a dramatic reaction from Saiki, but he did see how Saiki's eye had twitched from the on going touch.

'This is no funny business, Kaido. What are you doing?!' Saiki had thought. He tried to move his shoulder to dislodge the boy's hand, but he soon realized that Kaido wasn't going to let up until he smiled for the camera. 'What a bother..'

Aren saw what was happening when glancing over, and decided that he wanted to join in as well. He lowered his peace sign hand to now bring attention to the back of Saiki's neck to scribble the two fingers gently. This caused Saiki to twitch his head back just slightly before going back to his usual pose.

"C'mon Saiki! We know you want to~" Aren Dragged out, now moving his hand to the side of his neck with a bit more pressure than before.

"Y-you've got to be kidding me.." He whispered just enough for them to hear. He lowered his head down a bit, trying everything in his power to not make it seem like it's bothering him. If he ruined his "normal boring student" reputation, it's all over for him. I mean, who gets taken down by just a few tickles?

"Saiki~ the camera is about to count down; you better start smiling or we might never stop." Kaido said. He reached his other hand to squeeze at Saiki's side, which caused an embarrassing gasp from Saiki.

He grabbed at Kaido's torturing hand, and tried to pry it off his side, but Aren thought faster and grabbed at Saiki's bombarding hand to cease any escape. It was no use for poor Saiki, and he knew it.

5

4

'Good.' Saiki thought. 'If I just wait until the count down is over with a straight face then it will be all over.'

Well.. It was until Kaido decided that he was bored at squeezing his side and just reached for Saiki's armpit that Aren was closest to, thanks to him for pulling at Saiki's arm to reveal his vulnerability.

"AH-aha!" Saiki immediately ducked his head down, desperately trying to get his arm free as Kaido dug into his underarm. Saiki replayed the word 'embarrassing' in his head over and over again.

Kaido looked at Aren with a surprised, but hopeful face when hearing Saiki blurt out a laugh. "Saiki~ was that a laugh we just heard? Do it again, but look at the camera this time!" Kaido said, using his other hand to try and lift Saiki's head up. They just wanted his face in the camera, nothing more.. They were desperate to know how he looked when smiling, let's be real.

"F-fuhuck off!.." was all Saiki could say before he fought the accusing hand that was lifting his head up; he bit his lip to quit from laughing out loud and loosing his reputation. It's just two people Saiki, come on now, bud.

"Surely Saiki has a weak spot somewhere! We just have to find it in time before the timer goes off." Aren said while sneakily moving his hand away from his neck and now down to where his bottom set of ribs were. This made Saiki violently flinch away from the touch, and decided to us his free hand to grab at Aren's wrist to try and pull it away, but it was no use.

You know.. For how long this was going for, they all were surprised that the booth had stopped counting from 4.. Oh well! More fun for Kaido and Aren, at least. Not so fun for Saiki though, because he was desperately trying to keep his child-like giggles on a down low.. His bottom ribs weren't his weakest spot, but it still held some sort of sensitivity for the young boy to squirm a bit in his seat.

Saiki had pushed himself closer to Kaido to get away from Aren's hand, but he followed the poor psychic.

"Why can't you just smile for the picture?! That's all we want." Kaido urged to Saiki, digging a bit deeper in his armpit now. This earned him a surprised squeal and an inch closer of Saiki, who was trying to not push himself into Kaido, but it was hard to do so since both of them were attacking one side at once.

Saiki all but shrinked in on himself as well. All this tickling was a new feeling to say the least. He's been tickled before, yes. Many times actually; his parents always used to tickle him when he was a kid, and they always went for his weakest spot since discovering that his psychic powers limited his sense of sensitivity except for that specific spot. But ever since he's gained control of his powers, he knew when they were about to strike, and so he used his powers to get away from their daily tickle attacks until they became subtle. But right now? He's in ticklish agony! He's never felt more skiddish and childish ever since he was a kid until now. It felt weird to him, but surprisingly, he didn't quite mind the affection.

To be quite honest, he misses the affection. He was touched starved for sure, but he never realized he was until he put on that germanium ring. It was all new to him. It was overwhelming, sure, but it was definitely a new experience to have his touched starved thoughts be lifted away by a few tickles by his classmates.. Classmates. It makes sense for family to do it, but for classmates? Saiki was confused by it. It was all so new-too new. He was confused on why he was letting himself shrink to be this tiny version of himself just to get away from the touch. Why he felt the need to come into contact with Kaido so much when he desperately doesn't want to make the situation weird because he's usually not the touchy, or "clingy" type, from what he thought of it at first. In fact, He was more so confused on why he was letting himself finally laugh out loud with ease to his classmates for them two hear clearly now..

"Ahahah! Nohohot theehehere! Nohohoh! Stahahahap, AH-Ahahahah!" Saiki giggled out loud. He twisted as his back now faced Kaido, and with his free hand, he began to try and push Aren's hand away from his hip. His weakest and most sensitive spot. Saiki desperately tried to pry off Aren's hand, but Aren was too busy taking in Saiki's laugh to even register that he was trying to fight back.

Kaido just put his hands on Saiki's shoulders now that he doesn't really know what to do or what to expect now that he's finally hearing Saiki laugh. And it wasn't an obnoxious laugh as he thought it would be. It was like airy, child like giggles. His giggles weren't too deep, but they weren't too high either. It was like any other ordinary giggle that a boy would have. It was all too sweet for Kaido to handle that he just sat there and smiled out of pure joy. What can I say? His giggles were contagious.

For Aren, he looked at how Saiki was handling the tickling on his hip since he figured that this was a bad spot for him. Saiki had he's head down still, but he was able to see the corners of his smile to know that it was wide enough to show his happiness. And when Aren lightened up from digging into his hip, to lightly squeezing it now, Saiki squirmed even more, and allowed himself to hiccup every now and then from the touch-Both boys will remember that. It was an endearing sight to see for Aren.

"Okahahay *hiccup* okahay! Ihihi'll smihihile fohohor thehe-" Saiki was cut off by a click and a flash from the booth. All three boys looked at the camera, and saw how the photo came out of the slot.

"Was that supposed to happen?" Kaido said, lookin at both Aren and Saiki.

"I don't know, but at least it got it!" Aren said, looking at the photo with enthusiasm. And for some odd reason he was still tickling Saiki's hip.

"L-lehehet gohoho ahahalreahahady!" Saiki said, pushing even further into Kaido, which ended up with the blue haired to be squished against the booth wall.

"Woops! My bad.." Aren said, letting go of Saiki's hip. He turned his head to Kaido, who had the photo.

"Guys, look! It's showing Saiki's smiling face!" Kaido said, happily. He held up the picture infront of Saiki, who was finally able to turn back to sit normally on the chair, and Aren.

"Awww, for someone who had their picture taken from their side view, I'd say this suits you, Saiki. You look cute, man!" Aren said, going for his hip again, which caused the teen to flinch again.

"Aah-!" Saiki quickly moved on instinct to get Aren's hand off of his hip, which worked this time. He held his hand in the air for the time remaining of being in that booth for his own safety. Uncharacteristic of him, he of course thought to himself, but nonetheless, it's do or die.

﹏﹏﹏﹏

The three all got out of the booth, and started walking around the mall since Saiki had mentioned about the comics.. Not that he wanted them around, but his mom would kill him later if he just ditched them like all the other times he ditched them.

"What comic are you looking for exactly?" Aren questioned, looking at Saiki as they all followed.

"It's called 'The night Lurks within' these forests.'" Saiki said, blatantly. He looked from left to right, trying to find the comic store, but was faced with clothes stores and food stands.

"That sounds like something that a kid would read, haha!" Kaido blurted out.

Saiki stopped in his tracks to turn to look at Kaido with a straight, but offended face. "It's not a kids comic. If you read this comic, you'd be traumatized by how much gore and foul dialogue it has." Saiki said before turning back to look for the comic store.

Kaido all but had fear in his eyes when hearing Saiki be that straight forward with him. He looked at Aren who gave him a shoulder shrug, and then back to Saiki.

"I.. Uh, ehehe.. I know where a comic store would be in this mall-" Kaido started to say before he got interrupted.

"Where!" Saiki had stopped and turned to face Kaido again in a serious manner.

Then they were off. Kaido had shown the way to where one would be, and Saiki was following with enthusiasm in his steps. When they got the comic store, Saiki had stormed off, temporarily ditching Kaido and Aren to fend for the two other comics that he was desperate to get through out this whole trip.

"Saiki is a different person when trying to find something he's obsessed over, huh?" Kaido had said, looking at Aren. They waited on a bench that was close to the book store while they waited for Saiki to return with the comics.

"Yeah.. But I kind of like this side of Saiki. He's always so blunt and careful of what he does or says, so seeing him like this brings so much relief off my shoulders." Aren said without looking at Kaido once.

"Yeah, I think the same. I always saw him as someone who didn't care about anyone or anything, but this alone debunks my thoughts about him. I wonder why he's not like this at school."

"I don't know.. People can be too much for someone like him. He likes to be left alone, unbothered. I used to be that way, too. Even though I was in a gang. Being left alone is a great feeling until you find out that you really want to be with someone. Which I think is why he's acting so out of character with us all of a sudden, because he realized that he really needed someone to boost his social battery enough to act like himself." Aren said quietly, but just enough for Kaido to hear.

Kaido was quiet now. He understood what Aren said, and took it all in to realize that it might just be what it was that had Saiki be like this. Though it's subtle, they still knew that Saiki was acting different than when he was usually with them at school.

Just then, they see a satisfied Saiki who was holding two comic books in his hand. Did he also get a chocolate jelly out of a comic store?!

"That was quick! Did you find the right ones?" Aren said, looking at him with a smile.

Saiki just nodded happily and started to walk in the direction of where the exit doors were of the mall. Kaido and Aren both looked at each other with smiles on their faces, and walked with him to the doors.

Maybe Saiki isn't just this stoic and blunt person they mad him out to be afterall.

[alice-angel12x]

Dragons in Twisted Wonderland (Heartslabyul)

(Long Post) Pt.1

Heartslabyul, Savanaclaw, Octivinelle, Scarabia, Pomefiore, Ighnyhide, Diasomnia.

After turning in the stone, and saving Ace and Deuce’s student career. Y/n was surprised when Crowley said that they could join the student body, as a beast Tamer. He even made Ramshackle their official dorm and place to house their dragon. With that Ace and Deuce returned to their own dorm, while Grim, SkyCrest, and Y/n returned to Ramshackle. As Grim happily ran inside, Y/n stopped as they felt a pair of eyes on them, SkyCrest could sense it too. Y/n and SkyCrest looked at a nearby tree, to see the Skycutter from the mines. It hung upside down as it watched them, it slowly crawled down and sat before Y/n and SkyCrest.

"Hello again," Y/n greeted with a smile, the Skycutter tilting her head in curiosity. "Looking for shelter too?"

The Skycutter nodded, its pupils wide and curious. SkyCrest smiled as she hopped around the Skycutter happily. The SkyCutter being a proud dragon, merely watched in confusion as her head followed the light furry. Y/n smiled as they checked the SkyCutter's wing one last time, before heading to bed.

_________________________________________________

Y/n had a strange dream of a girl and strange card soldiers who were painted white roses red. Sadly the dream was interrupted by horrified screams outside.

Y/n quickly leaped out of bed and looked out the window, to see Ace had met the Skycutter. They made their way downstairs and outside to help and save Ace.

After getting Ace to calm down, the Dragons simply sat and watched Ace with curiosity.

"What are you doing here Ace?" Y/n asked the scared boy.

" Geez! I’m never returning to Heartslabyul. I’m gonna be a member of this dorm from here on! But I wasn't expecting another dragon this dorm, I thought you only had one," Ace said.

"That collar’s the same kind as the one that red-haired guy's, Why are you wearing it?" Y/n asked

"I ate a tart, that's literally it," Ace scoffed as he retold the story of how this happened. "ain’t it overreacting to seal my magic just ’cause I ate his tart?! It’s practically the same as tying my hands and my feet! Plus, there were three whole ones! He can’t possibly finish all of those!"

"But nobody likes getting robbed of their things," Y/n pointed out. As they rested on the porch.

" I came here thinking that you’d agree with me about the Prefect being a little tyrant, Y/n," He groaned.

"Eating someone else’s food is not good, you know?" Y/n said simply as they tossed SkyCrest a fish. "Go apologize to him. Grudges over food are scary."

Y/n says as they side-eye SkyCrest, who gives a slight glare in return as she playfully wacks Y/n's head with her tail.

"You two are close, huh?" Ace comments.

"She's my best friend," Y/n smiles as she scratches SkyCrests chin.

"That's pretty cool I guess, so what did you have to do to Tame a dragon?" Ace asked, causing SkyCrest to scoff. Causing the boy to flinch and back away.

"I did not tame her, she chose to by my friend of her own choosing," Y/n corrected. "Dragons are very strong and intelligent beings. And need to be respected."

"I...Get it, I think," Ace said, still having many questions. "And how do you do that, and get them to like you?"

Y/n looks to Ace, then Skycutter as she slowly grabbed his hand and raised it up into the air. The SkyCutter slowly started to approach.

"H-hey Y/n! What are you doing?" He asked starting to get finicky as the large dragon approached.

"Just breathe and Relax, SkyCutter dragons are very smart," Y/n said in a calm voice.

The SkyCutter got closer, and Ace quickly shut his eyes and expected the worse. The SkyCutter slowly studied the scared boy as his fingers trembled in Y/n's strong and warm hold. The SkyCutter slowly and gently leaned her face into Ace's palm. Ace gasped slightly as he slowly opened his eyes to see how gentle the beast was. The Dragon slowly moved back and went off to sleep someplace.

"So you're staying here till you apologize to Riddle?" Y/n asked a still-shocked Ace.

Who quickly passes out. Y/n and SkyCrest looked down at him and sighed as they carried him into Ramshackle. Dropping him on the dusty couch.

-------------------------------------------

Deuce had a better time coming to Ramshackle in the morning as the SkyCutter went out hunting for breakfast. So Ace, Deuce, Y/n, SkyCrest, and Grim made their first steps into the school as official students.

Grimm was proud and bragging about how all the students were looking in awe of him. When Really they were looking at the large 22-foot-long pearly Dragon standing by Y/n's side. Y/n decided to not burst Grimms hopes, so kept quiet. While SkyCrest smiled proudly and walked with a confident stride.

As they made their way into the magic mirror to Heartslabyul. Y/n, Grimm, and SkyCrest looked at this new place in awe. At the impressive palace-looking dorm, the fields of rose bushes and weirdly shaped bush hedges. Yet the light fury couldn't ignore the strange smell around the strange red roses.

"Oh, no. I gotta hurry and paint these roses red. If there are some left unpainted, it’s off with my head," said a worried voice.

The group looked into the rose maze to see an orange hair student, rushing about and painting all the white roses, red. This felt oddly strange and familiar to Y/n as they thought back to the dream. However soon the strange Orange haired boy noticed the first years watching him.

"Hm? Did you guys need something?" The boy asked.

"What’re you doin’?" Grimm asked

" This? As you can see, I’m painting the roses red," The boy said.

"Why would you do that? Why not just grow red flowers in the first place?" Y/n asked with a confused raised brow.

"Hm~ Your reactions are so fresh it’s kinda cute~!" The boy complimented Y/n. " Now that I look at you closely, you guys are the freshies who totally wrecked the 10mil chandelier and caused a ruckus yesterday."

"I feel like they won’t let that chandelier thing go until we graduate…" Ace sighed.

" Oh, I’m Cater Diamond, a 3rd year. That makes me your senior~ Call me Cater-kun, okay? Cate’s fine, too~♡ Heya, heya~," Cater smiles and gives Y/n a little wink. Y/n just rolls their eyes at his flirting.

"Is that a dragon, I've never seen one that looks like that. It's so pretty. Hey, hey~! Let’s take a pic together! Yay~! Hey, can I upload this? I wanna put hashtags so tell me your name,'' Cater bombarded them with questions and chatter.

"I’m Grim and that’s my follower Y/n," Grimm smirked but was whacked off his feet by SkyCrest.

"What a strange guy," Y/n comments.

"You’re the new prefect for Ramshackle Dorm! I’m surprised you can live in a place like that~! It’s so dark, and I feel like something’s gonna pop out~ I feel for ya, man~," Cater smiled.

"Rude," Y/n glares slightly and walked off. Cater was still smiling as Y/n walked away from him.

After Cater managed to trick the first years into painting the roses. He asked Ace about a replacement tart. This came as a surprise to all of them as Ace nervesly said no.

" Oh, man~ Izzat so?  Then, since Rule #53 of the Queen of Hearts states that “You have to replace things that you stole.” I can’t let you back in the dorm," Cater smirked as he readied his pen.

"Huh?! What the heck?!" Ace gasped, as Deuce readied his pen.

" You have to follow the rules if you’re staying in this dorm. If I let it slide, then it’s off with my head, too~. Sorry, but I’ll have you leave before Riddle-kun notices.

He suddenly multiplied as known dozens of copies of himself and tried to shove the first years out of the dorm. No matter how many clones Grimm and Deuce manage to take down, more just appear. Y/n quickly took out a pouch of zippleback gas, and tossed it into the crowd of clones. As SkyCrest shot it dead on. The explosion erased all of the clones and sent the real one flying across the ground. Mostly unharmed if a bit frazzled as SkyCrest growled down at the orange-haired boy.

"We don't need your help leaving, Thank you very much," Y/n said as they stepped over him. SkyCrest quickly followed as the boys did too.

Deuce covered his face and apologized as he walked around Cater, while Grimm and Ace with a smirk happily stepped over Cater. Said the boy was still trembling slightly.

______________________________________________

The school day was slow, and Y/n was bored out of her mind. They hated sitting still for hours on end with nothing to do. Nothing exciting happens here, nothing to do. P.E. was fine, it was at least doing something, even if it was just running in circles. Thankfully lunchtime came quickly, and taking care of the older hot-headed bullies was no problem. They quickly got cold feet when they noticed a dragon was ready to throw down on them.

"Whatever. Hide behind your dragon like cowards," The bully spat as he left with his buddies.

" Heh! All bark and no bite! Serves them right!" Grimm laughed.

"That was quite the predicament. To think that there would be such brutes in a prestigious magic school," Deuce sighed as they all sat down at a table to eat. Y/n and Deuce sat across from Ace, Grimm, and SkyCrest.

" Alright, let’s get back to business! I’m digging in~! Oh! This is so good! H-Hey!" Grimm gasped as SkyCrest started to sniff his tray of food. "Back Off This Is Mine!"

SkyCrest continued to put her snout closer to Grim's food as he desperately tried to keep it away from her.

"The omelet is so fluffy, and the cheese is so melty," Ace commented as he didn't help out grim.

"Minion! Do Something!" Grim shouted as he used his feet to keep SkyCrest's mouth away from his food.

Y/n sighed as they picked up a sandwich and handed SkyCrest their tray of food to the Dragon. SkyCrest happily inhaled the food, her eyes lighting up at the flavors in her mouth. Y/n was left with only half a sandwich.

"By the by, we saw your dorm a while ago, but what do the other dorms look like?" Y/n asked, trying to find something else to focus on. Other than their taken lunch.

"You’ve seen the statues of the Great Seven by Main Street, right? This school has seven dorms based on them," Cater said as he suddenly appeared and sat beside Y/n.

"Ugh! It's you," Y/n sighed as they shuffled a bit away from him. SkyCrest Growled at Cater.

"H-Hey, She's still not mad right?" Cater asked as he tried to hide behind Y/n.

"If you give her your food she may let you sit with us," Y/n said simply

"What?" Cater whined.

"Oops, my bad. My name’s Trey, Trey Clover. I’m a Heartslabyul 3rd year alongside Cater," Trey says as he moves Cater to his other side, away from Y/n and the dragon. "You’re from the Ramshackle. The new student who’s currently residing in the unused dorm, correct?  I heard all about it from Cater. Sorry for the trouble our dormmates caused you yesterday."