#they'd be fun to climb tho

[tabieeee]

Same anon as earlier who asked about the titan trio HC, wanted to ask another question of, what do you think the titans would be doing after the war? Assuming they win and such, can't exactly go back to anything

There would probably be an attempt to make them into lil guys again but I doubt it would work

Oh man we thought about this in discord and it was saaaaad What if the titans just become idle? A living statue that waits until they're needed again, sitting in the middle of the city as life goes by them, too big to do anything. hard to do stuff when you're a weapon

Maybe they hibernate, and over years of peace they become overgrown by plantlife and every now and then somebody visits them to say hello

Until one day they are woken up because someone needs their protection once more

alternatively, the three of them hang out together and wrestle for funzies. giant mech battle show wew

[noemilivv]

Here I am with the ask!!! I was wondering if I could request headcanons for Adam, Alastor, Lucifer, Vox and Lute with how they would be with a sloth like S/o. I saw someone ask this on a blog I follow and I was stoked, I love this concept so much it's so funny I decided it's my favorite. INSANELY sleepy s/o, they sleep ALL the time and still manage to be super sleepy, they'd be walking down the street? They randomly fall asleep while walking, needless to say that's very dangerous in hell. In heaven a bit less, but let's say falling asleep while flying is definetely dangerous too. They're talking to someone? They might be trying to pay attention but still can't help help falling asleep, characters like Adam and Luci would definetely have no problem with that tho. They are incredibly slow, and also have the sloth tendency to climb(for the tall ones) and cling to said partner and hang onto them like ragdolls. They can stay awake if they replenish the energy they use immediately or by being monitored, but they're very concerning. I imagine warm milk would probably knock them out cold, coffee probably does little to nothing, maybe a huge amount would keep them on the brink of consciousness lol. (Sorry this got long, that's how much I find this concept hilarious, you don't actually have to include all everything I said if you don't wanna I was just rambling)

heyy again!! this is so cute and honestly i’m fangirling at the ideas i have for this haha, enjoy!!

Adam, Alastor, Lucifer, Lute, and Vox x Sloth!Reader

Adam

There’s a solid chance he makes fun of you for your sleepy antics, but only he can do that, no one else!

Unlike Hell, if you fall asleep on the side of the road in Heaven, he’ll just toss ya over his shoulder like nothing happened

Honestly, Adam is pretty tall, and he’s got a bit of muscle under his fit, so he doesn’t mind a bit if you climb about him and all that

Alastor

Honestly, Alastor doesn’t mind your sleepy antics, it gives him an opportunity to get whatever he needs done for that time until you awake again

Although, he probably won’t let you climb him though, due to his dislike of physical touch, but dw he’ll let you cling to him a bit

If you start to daze off while he’s talking he won’t mind, his smile will soften, and he’ll tug you to his chest, talking you to sleep

Lucifer

You guys don’t go out much, so it’s not often you fall asleep on the streets, but if you do, he’ll pick you up bridal style, he won’t make a big fuss about it, at least until you get home

Like Alastor, if you fall asleep mid convo, he won’t mind, he’ll just bring you to his chest and talk you to sleep

Although he is on the shorter side, if you wanna climb him, he’ll certainly let you! He thinks it’s the cutest thing!

Lute

Honestly, Lute hates it when you sleep a lot, as because of her job, she’s busy most of the time and can’t see you, so when she does see you, and you’re asleep, it’s eh…

If you climb on her, she’ll tense up a bit, but she won’t deny it, but there’s a chance she will the first few times. Affection is new to her.

Vox

He’s another tall one, so you could climb on him, but he’s a bit of a twig tbh, so he might not be able to hold you 😭

If you fall asleep during conversation, he’ll be all pissy, but if you fall asleep ON him, bro glitches so bad

Tried to make sure you don’t fall alseep on the streets in the first place, but if you do, bitch is waking you up, ain’t no way he’s carrying you

[lilacgaby]

day four

~2.2k

chapter select!

she woke up well-rested and smiley.

she decided to go ahead and prepare for the day as well, greeting mirko as she got a drink of water before going to shower.

the mission wasn't until two in the afternoon, which meant they'd have to be at best jeanist's agency at noon.

so she had three hours just to herself.

she soaked in the sun, effectively getting her meal for the day, as she scrolled mindlessly on her phone.

huge weights were off her shoulders with bakugo, but still

she'd promised she'd explain her feelings after the quirk wore off.

"you really shouldn't be worrying about that today,

not unless you really wanna die. and i kinda don't want my best partner to die so.. leave it for later."

rumi (mirko) said, while handing her tea.

she accepted, and sipped it slowly.

"yeah, you're right. for tomorrow then.

tomorrow."

for the rest of the time, she relaxed around, soaking in just enough sun so she wouldn't get a stomachache, but not too little so she wouldn't get a headache.

she watched some t.v, ate some snacks for fun, doom scrolled again,

all until rumi ordered her to start her ready.

it's not like they weren't late yesterday already, but she guessed real missions were a lot more important than debriefings.

the only sound in the huge room was music as rumi and [name] both prepared for the mission at hand.

[name] admired herself in the hallway mirror as she waited for rumi to hurry up.

as soon as mirko stepped out, [name] opened the door for them both, and shut it behind them.

as they walked, [name] texted mina, thinking she'd be too busy to respond.

                                                      flowered[name]

                                crazy stuff happened yesterday

                           accidental confession gone right

                    but i worked it out with bakugo so my

                                  life is no longer the worst :))

                                                                    delivered

now that that's out of the way-

oh mina texted back.

alienqueenslime

NO WAY

YOUR LYING

            

                                                     flowered[name]

                                                                          youre*

                                     and i'm telling the truth so

                                       do w that what you will

  i got a mission tho so i won't respond at all :D

                                                             

alienqueenslime

you can't just drop that and leave ong

omg**

the second u step in the dorms your explaining what's up [name]

read 10:47

she muted the suddenly lively "OPERATION [NAME] x BAKUGO" chat.

she had to focus, her life was on the line from now on.

after a familiar walk, with an even more fmailair annoyance at the time they lost because of mirko's rabid fans,

they arrived at the agency, [name]'s heart in her throat.

she'd be dealing with real murderers, people who viewed her as a disgrace to society. people who wouldn't care about killing her.

she had to be flawless. it's all she could afford.

⋆｡˚ ⋆｡˚ ❁

the walk to the area was calm.

she couldn't stop her hands from trembling as she walked. the missions she'd been on before had involved murders, injuries, and blood splattered. it'd involved her hurting people to the brink of death, seeing the destruction she caused.

but in her mind this was another level of cruelty though. they were killing heroes just to prove something.

how many bodies would they let fall to prove their point? would she become on--

she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"calm down. you're strong, and the rest of us are too. you're not gonna get hurt. or fucking die or something, got it?"

"got it."

best jeanist and mirko continued to lead them through a building, they had to climb to the top.

now was the waiting game.

genie would pass through this alleyway at approximately three o-clock sharp. it was currently two-forty.

the twenty minutes of waiting was pure anxiety manifested.

katsuki kept annoyingly walking around in a circle, seemingly bored as hell.

mirko wasn't any better, the thumping of her foot revealing her anticipation.

best jeanist had been eyeing the same spot in the alleyway for the entire duration.

and [name] was fighting off the internal deja vu that came from being on the building.

"you scared?" katsuki suddenly asked.

"yes."

"oh yeah, almost forgot you're a truth teller now or some shit."

"right."

she continued to mess with her hands, now  shaking slightly. even more with his added presence.

"so, you think i'm too weak to save you? is that it?"

[name]'s face scrunched up in confusion as her truth left her mouth. "no. where did that come from?"

"do you think dumb and dumber behind me can't save you?"

"no. why are you asking me this?"

he turned to look her in the eyes, his arms moving dramatically to make his point.

"then wipe that look off your face and focus. we're all strong as hell, you're strong too, you being on this team is proof.

so, get the fuck out of your head already. it's pissing me off."

he turned and got back to his strolling around.

he's right. [name] thought.

he always is.

just as [name] was about to thank him, she suddenly sensed the presence of a group of people in the building under her.

nine.. no.. twelve vigilantes were waiting for genie too.

mirko sensed it too, and immediately signaled to bakugo and jeanist not to speak anymore.

it was time.

as genie did their routine inspection through the alley, calling out for any homeless or lost civilians  along the way, they suddenly became surrounded by.. it had to be at least twenty villains.

one of them suddenly spoke out to them.

"does it feel nice to be rich because of us?"

"what?" genie replied, genuinely confused.

"you're only rich off the suffering we cause to people. the suffering of humanity as a whole."

"what are you talking abo--"

"if people like you didn't exist, heroes who are only in it for the money, heroes who misuse their quirks to hurt people, villains or not, we wouldn't need heroes at all."

"maybe, but that's not what's happening. that's not the society we live in, so you all should stop playing hypotheticals." genie reasoned, trying to discreetly call for backup.

before one of them noticed and used a string quirk to snatch the device out their hands.

genie scoffed. "so what? you kill me and a couple heroes, go back and feel good about yourselves? why not kill a couple villains instead--"

"we have. and don't worry about your future, it was set in stone the day you began to study as a hero. playing hypotheticals might be what we're doing now but,

soon it could very much be a reality."

the twenty villains all assumed fighting stances, it seemed at least five of them were quirkless or had non-combative quirks, as nothing manifested directly from their bodies.

genie was suddenly bound by strings, and before they could manifest their three wishes, they were silenced by another villain's quirk.

mirko and jeanist motioned to both bakugo and [name] to get ready for battle. they were jumping in.

with mirko and bakugo as close-range fighters, and jeanist and [name] as support, they ran in to stop the fight from progressing.

"oh, so more heroes joined the party? don't you feel bad using literal children to fight your battles?"

"oh shut the hell up! you don't know what you're talking about, i'm here because i'm destined to be the best, number one. and you losers are nothing to me!" bakugo proclaimed, letting out a huge explosion with his gauntlets.

while it managed to knock out a couple of the villains, the talkative one seemed to have a deflective quirk.

"so, you're interested in heroism just for the money and fame too huh? guess we have to take you out before you become a future problem, kid."

the same explosion that was absorbed by the man's reflective ability was then released back,

with his aim on mirko.

she dodged just in time.

jeanist used the fibers in the clothes around them  and managed to restrain another handful of villains.

it seemed they had  only had a small number of actual combative quirks, and used their pure numbers as an intimidation tactic.

the six left standing were protected by some sort of force,

they thankfully had no bargaining power, as genie had escaped during bakugo's first attack.

the force didn't extend to the ground beneath them, so [name] let out a devastating attack that scattered the group evenly across the wide alleyway.

it seemed whoever made the force field couldn't keep it up unless they weren't at harm.

only two of them had now revealed their quirks, with the rest being unknown.

bakugo and jeanist blazed through their enemies, explosion after explosion was let out as they plowed through.

the energy-absorbent man became no issue as jeanist focused on him instead, giving him no power to bounce off of.

mirko and [name] however waited for the others to make a move first.

a villain finally did, with blades unsheathing from every part of his body he ran in to attack mirko.

if [name] didn't have to worry about the two suddenly charging her, she would've had an easy advantage over him.

"you heroes think you're so much better than we are, you're not! take this!" he threw a star shaped object at her, and it clung to her body.

she tried to rip it off fast, but she was suddenly winded by a punch,

crap. that other lady.

she was thrown into the ground, a painfully harsh exhale leaving her lips as she made contact with the floor.

"[name]!" katsuki yelled, attempting to rush over to her aid.

jeanist had finished restraining the other villains, the ones she and mirko were facing were the only ones left.

but a forcefield suddenly overcame her.

the realization set in as she saw the strange purple field set over her.

she'd have to beat the two herself.

katsuki, who skidded to a stop at the sight of the forcefield, felt at a loss.

he needed to help her, but he couldn't. he felt so helpless.

"fuck! [name] don't you dare die or ill fucking kill you!"

his words didn't reach her as the villains started to mock her.

"are you scared little girl? you picked a big fight."

"i'm scared as hell." i didn't want to say that.

"but ill try."

"try what?"

"try to win."

she was so terrified. terrified at the realization that these people didn't care if she died. they'd even prefer it that way. she was so preoccupied that she didn't notice mirko had taken down the blade-filled man, and was now attempting to break down the forcefield.

the villains mocking words and laughs were incoherent as she tried to form a plan and fast.

okay, if i take out the force field. i can get help.

the woman is the one who's upholding it, so i have to focus on her, no matter what.

the grass that had been under the laid concrete that was destroyed as she fell was now partly exposed. a small leaf from the overgrown side of the building right on top.

i can win.

she got up, and feigned attacks at the man with the--

wait, what was his quirk anyways?

as he dodged her attacks, he started counting down out loud.

"ten, nine, eight,"

she didn't know what would happen, but she didn't want to find out. his words revived the huge pit of despair that she had grown accustomed to. she frantically used the rocks around her to attack as fast as she could, while slowly growing a vine towards the force-fielder.

"seven, six, five"

the vine was almost reaching the lady's leg, just a little further. her arms were burning from the force she was exterting.

"four, three, two"

all the tenseness had finally left her body.

a smile adorned her face.

it made it.

"one!"

as the star shape object blew up on her body, the vine had rapidly grown to fully restrain the other villain.

while the damage on the exterior of her body was a wound that resulted only from the small explosion that occurred on her body, it sent a paralysis through her that sent her falling.

i won.

mirko tackled the star-wielding man, effectively knocking him out.

jeanist quickly restrained the remaining villains and called for a medic, as katsuki ran to her side.

she was awake, just in shock.

"hey, [name], you okay?" katsuki said, his voice unsure, and softer than usual. He shook her lightly."

"i'm so scared, but happy.

i won.

did you see?"

it felt like katsuki was the one hit with a truth quirk at the question.

"of course i did, you went insane [name]."

she let out a satisfied laugh, accompanied by an "ow!" afterwards after she had tried to reposition herself.

"okay, well, as my victory reward, i'm gonna go to sleep.

don't think i'm dead or anything."

she shut her eyes immediately after. what she didn't know was that her absolute happiness at being recognized by her crush, who she respected so much, made small pink roses blossom out of the crack in the floor.

all that she remembered before she drifted off to sleep, was the feeling of being picked up, and the distinct smell of caramel.

prev | next!

taglist (comment to be added!): @cc1306 @reads-stuff-quietly @dazqa

[fluffle-writes]

Sky!MC just out here constantly holding Grim for light lol since his ears are fire

poor guy is probably clinging to sky!MC when they start flying around with him

Also the charades 😭 there's just sky!MC desperately trying to tell someone something important and they're just like 'is it a movie? James bond! No?' (cough ace cough) and sky!MC is just so done with this bs

-☁️

Absgsha sorry I took so long to reply I forgot my inbox existed (⁠;⁠ŏ⁠﹏⁠ŏ⁠)

Anyway yes! Haha, both the Sky kid and grim would be like little lantern buddies whenever it's dark - like in the mines in the prologue! They'd probably have people trying to stop them from climbing into lit fireplaces and touching the flames of candles, so Grim is the easiest flame source to recharge from. Like a little moth!

He'd most definitely be averse to the idea of flying though, haha! Some random students hear him yowling above them, only to look up and see the sky kid flying around with him in their arms lol. He eventually gets used to it, and then it's time for some of the other guys to experience flight via Uber hahaha!

Ooh, they'd probably participate in flight class! Flying between the brooms, scaring everyone when they nosedive on purpose, only to forget to pull up as they end up nosediving... Only to hop right back to their feet! They can crash into pretty much anything and they're still good! (Attacks from overblots being like krill attacks tho,,, and Grim reviving them with cuddles!)

Heheheh the confusion and miscommunication of charades! Consider: the sky kids don't understand the characters either so when one of the guys (perhaps Deuce or Kalim) think that they understand what the sky kid is saying, the sky kid sees them nod and thinks they were able to tell them what they wanted to say! Cut to shenanigans (like Deuce freaking out while holding the hand of a flying Sky Kid)

They're such fun lil guys to think about, I love sky kids so much lol

[sillyclowncircus]

Oh no, silly brain rot

@o-i-w-u come get some gore

Au where the tsams characters all work at a school- but ya know me, murder murder murder- so uhm- everyone has a small twinge of evil- or a lot

And all the kids are orphans to explain why no one notices kids missing

Ack- murder school

Uuuhm- gore mention besties

Tw: gore, murder, death, children death, esting flesh, EVERYONE IS MURDERERS

Sun does art classes :D he really enjoys painting the most, and red just happens to be his favorite color! And who else but those misbehaving students to provide him with that red paint his loves so much? Whats a little loss of a misbehaving student for the cost of art after all? Besides, hes been teaching these kids for 3 months now! If their art hasnt improved yet, what use are they to him but paint providers?

Moon! Going with that basic bitch science teacher for him. He enjoys science and loves it even! It's such a nice pass time for him, something he can relax while doing! Thats why its so annoying when one of the students have to mess up his relaxation time! How could a student be so stupid to mix ammonia and bleach!? Some students just have to learn by being the victim of their own failed experiments... even if it results in a little death sometimes.

Killcode is a gym teacher. After all, who but the fast predator to be one? Kill code is well aware that he scares the students, and he thrives on that terror. He loves to give students difficult tasks. What does he care that you're getting ropeburn from climbing that 20 foot(about 6 meters, i think-) rope? If you fall, then you best get up and run and keep running til someone else falls, or you're going to find yourself torn to pieces to feed his family and other students.

Earth does both cooking and gardening! She loves planting things! Especially things like Castor Beans, Winter Daphne, and Dendrocnide moroides! She has a love for plants that are dangerous and well... dont be surprised if a Castor Bean seed ends up in your food if you happen to be rude to one of her favorite students. Earth may not like killing, but she does like knowing punishments have been given, even if it results in death. She pften cooks the meat of dead students so it doesn't go to waste. It is a shame to waste such good meat after all... and meat is good plant fertilizer.

Lunar does zoology! He brings animals into the school and lets the students meet them! Who cares if last weeks wolf killed a kid? Not Lunar, he's metal. The wolf couldn't hurt him! The raccoon had rabies, and it bit you? Well, the only way to tell with animals is cutting their head off and sending it to the lab, so say by to your head and off to Moon's lab it goes! And if he so happens to take you outside and into the woods within the schools the 3 miles of fencing? He's just there to feed the animals he keeps, and you happen to be the meal.

Bloodmoon does anatomy! If a body comes in whole, they'd use it to carve ooen and show their class, maybe eat an organ or two. When there's not one? Well... no one is gonna miss that short kid in the back, right? It would be fun to cut open a live one and let their students see a heart pumping, lungs drawing their last breaths.

BM1(Bloody) he especially loves the gore, he personally loves the live students to work on, finding the dead ones boring since they don't squirm and scream. He prides himself in making the students both terrified but intrigued

BM2(Harvest) prefers working on the dead bodies. The struggle of the live ones annoys him, too squirmy, too wriggly. Tho he does hate the cold feeling of the dead bodies, so sometimes he just kills a student the moment they walk in class to have a warm cadaver to work on.

SolarFlare teaches both math and reading. Personally, he doesn't like killing that much... but someone getting answers wrong irks him. He's worked so hard with these students for months, and that can't spell something simple that 'Knowledge' correctly? Or what 2544 ÷ 48 is? It's 53! They aren't worth his time, and he doesn't feel that another teacher should waste their time either. So he kills them, his go-to method being to break their necks so its quick and not too messy.

Solar is the janitor and technician. He's just... tired. There is too much cleaning to do, too many dead kids, and most of all... ugh, Eclipse is annoying. But he doesn't break his role of janitor, knowing that he really has nothing outside this school anyways, so whose gonna judge him for snapped and punching a student who annoys him? No one. At least he's not killing... or if he is, no one noticed... It's amazing what hydrogen peroxide can clean out of clothes after all.

Eclipse is the principal. He doesn't mind all the killing, but he prefers not to get his hands dirty. It's enertaining to watch students come complaining to him, though. He will kill, tho. A student breaming too many rules, making too many messes, out with no hall pass... those who break rules have no place in his eyes. So a quick death should do fine. But if there's one he just particularly hates... He's happy to take his time to peel off someone's skin

[sharks-n-bones]

TINY DIAMOND FLOOD AU TIME BABY LET'S GOOOO

When the world started flooding, Tiny wasn't concerned at first. No one else was worried about it, maybe the rivers overflowing was normal

Tiny wasn't worried until all of Pop Village flooded and they had to relocate. Pop Village was their home, and now it's all underwater

He tried asking why it was flooding. Asked his daddy, aunt Poppy, uncle Branch, hell he even asked grandpa Peppy! No one knew though, and if the grown ups didn't know, then this probably hadn't happened before

Next thing he knew, everyone was building boats and rafts to survive on the water. How much was everything gonna flood if they needed boats? Tiny helped his dad where he could with the boat building, but a lot of stuff was either too big or too heavy for him, so he'd usually either chill in his daddy's hair, ride around on someone's shoulder or he'd chill with Mr. Dinkles

- Finally the boat they'd be on was built, and Tiny and Guy moved into their new room. They set out on the sea, and Tiny forgot his worries because the sea was so big! And they got to explore it!! This was an adventure, and he was excited for it

- As the months passed, everyone still sang and danced and hugged and had fun on the ship even while working! They'd stop and islands and gather more wood for cooking and fixing stuff, fruits to eat and then they'd all relax and play in the waves. Tiny got a bit taller as the months passed, but not by much. Maybe a couple inches (troll sized inches tho if that makes sense)

- It was one of those days where they'd found an island, gathered some resources, and were now relaxing in the water for a bit before they'd get back to work. His daddy was floating on his back, and Tiny himself was body surfing and laughing as the waves tumbled him back to shore

- He was about to try and catch another wave when he felt something slide across his foot. He yelped a bit and eyed the water, trying to see what had touched him

- Suddenly, a huge fish (huge to tiny, at least) came up and bit his leg! Tiny screamed and used his free leg to kick it because ow it hurt!! He managed to get his leg free and started frantically swimming for his daddy, yelling for him about the fish

- Guy swam towards him just as rapidly, and just before he could grab Tiny, Tiny felt teeth clamp down around his chest and arms before he was dragged under the water

- Tiny thrashed and kicked and did anything to free himself. He could see his daddy trying to dive after them before the fish turned tail and swam away with Tiny still fighting for his life in its mouth

He kept hitting and kicking the fish but it wouldn't let go! He managed to get an arm free and the sight of the holes in his arm nearly made him pass out

The fish passed a sunken tree, and Tiny managed to grab a stick as they passed and quickly stabbed the fish’s eye with it. The fish freed him, and he swam to the surface with all his little might

He breached the surface and immediately started coughing for breath. He spotted a piece of driftwood and managed to climb on top of it. The adrenaline from almost being eaten wore off, and Tiny tried not to cry

His whole body hurt. So bad. It hurt to move and it hurt to lay down on that wood cuz it pressed against the bleeding holes in his chest and arms and leg and it hurt

- He looked around, trying to spot the island or the ship or his daddy but it was all gone. Just ocean, as far as his little eyes could see. Tiny cried

- It hurt his chest like crazy to cry, it made the injuries pull painfully, but he couldn't stop. He was almost eaten and now he's lost in the middle of the ocean and he was scared!! Tiny didn't like being scared

- Eventually, he had no tears left to cry and night was approaching so he grabbed onto the edges of his little piece of driftwood and tried to lay in a position that didn't hurt so bad

- A couple days passed like this. He was so tired, he hadn't slept ‘cause he was so scared of falling off his little piece of driftwood and either drowning or being eaten, so he stayed awake

- He was borderline delirious. He was dehydrated, the sun was beating down without mercy, and the driftwood was covered in so much blood, Tiny would've been shocked he was still alive if he had his wits about him

- Then, something big blocked out the sun. He was fished out of the water and someone cradled him so gently and he fell asleep the moment his sleep deprived brain realized he was safe

- He didn't know how long he slept, but it felt like years. When he woke up, his body still hurt but not as bad, and he was covered in bandages. Someone rescued him

- Tiny looked around the room he was in. It looked like a bedroom. He was on a bed that fit him perfectly, with a soft blanket and pillow. There was an adult sized bed next to his, a desk, what looked like a woodwork station and two doors. One closed, one open

- Tiny called out for whoever his rescuer was, and a teal troll with dark greenish-blue hair and big goggles on his head came out the open door

- The man, JD, told him how he found him and latched his wounds. He asked why he was floating in the middle of the ocean, and Tiny told him what happened. JD seemed concerned about him, and Tiny couldn't tell if he hated it or not

- They hung out a lot after that. Tiny was on bed rest but a few days of that and he couldn't take it anymore, so JD made him a little staff to help him walk around with while his wounds healed

- When he could walk around without the staff and without worrying that his wounds would reopen, JD turned his staff into a spear and taught him how to fight with it so he wouldn't be almost eaten again. He also taught him how to fish and how to do a few things around the ship

- They talked a lot. Tiny would tell stories of his dad and aunts and uncles, and JD would tell stories of his brothers. He said that he was searching for them, and that he'd help Tiny find his dad

- This guy had a lot of brothers, from what he told Tiny. One of them, he said his name was Bitty B? The way he told stories of Bitty B kind of reminded him of Branch. That wasn't possible though, so Tiny didn't say anything

- One day, JD came into the bedroom and said he'd spotted another ship at an island. He had Tiny hide in his hair to be safe while he went to talk to them. Tiny held tight when JD swung himself onto their ship

- They were talking for a bit, when JD suddenly shouted for Baby Branch! Tiny’s eyes widened and he immediately poked his head out of JD’s hair. When he saw his family, he grinned before realizing his dad wasn't there. Before they could even be excited that Tiny was alive, he asked where his daddy was

- Everyone went silent. Tiny’s brows forrowed and he jumped into JD’s waiting hand. They shared a look. Surprisingly, it was Branch that spoke up. He said that Guy was in his room, and that it wasn't a pretty sight. He led the way and JD followed and Tiny was so, so concerned. What did Branch mean by that?

- They got to his room — their room — and Branch spared a crestfallen look at Tiny before letting the door swing open

- JD walked in and Tiny’s eyes widened. There was Guy Diamond, his daddy, laying in bed and… grey… he was grey. The sun shine into the room from his window but his skin didn't sparkle anymore. He was curled in on himself, facing away from them, and he looked so sad and grey and Tiny wanted to cry.

- He called out to him, his voice cracking slightly. He saw Guy jolt a bit, as if surprised, and he quickly called for him again. Reassuring him he was there and alive

- His dad bolted upright in his bed and turned to look at him. Seeing his dad's face made Tiny want to sob. There were bags under his eyes and tears on his cheeks and he was so grey. When his dad laid eyes on him, fresh tears filled his eyes and he sobbed, rushing out of the bed and taking him into his arms.

- "Tiny!!"

[magicalqueennightmare]

Sins & Amends Chapter 3

Gif not mine. (We're gonna pretend it's Billy for the sake of this chapter tho)

Billy Russo x Female Reader (60 part story)

This follows pre- the punisher into the storyline of daredevil, punisher season 1 and beyond

This is NOT Canon Billy. This is decent human being Billy left with bad options over worse decisions

This was also posted to A03 under: WaywardGaPeach. That account and this one is the only place you'll see me post this. If you see it on any other platform/account know it's not me.

Chapter Summary: During Billy and Frank's time stateside you and Billy start to form an actual friendship

It took a little while for you and Billy to really start to warm up to each other. The fact of your best friends being married meant the two of you were thrown together quite a lot. Somewhere along the way he'd dropped the flirtatious banter and really started to be at ease around you. While it was true he was gorgeous and charming as hell you knew you were probably far from his type from the start so it was easy to shove him into a friend category.

It didn't take you long to pick up on the fact that Billy used his god given features to hide behind at times. He was a lot more than his looks. When it came to the kids you could see how much they loved him just watching them with him. His bond with Frank was just as strong as the one you had with Maria and the two of them with Curtis? Sounded like three brothers hanging out.

Before the guys left on their next deployment all of you were having dinner at the Castle house. All meaning Frank,Maria,Frank Jr, Lisa,Billy and you considering Curtis was having dinner with his aunt. Lisa was sitting between you and Billy and kept tapping his arm then when he'd lean down she'd whisper something in his ear and the both of them would crack smiles that made you question what exactly they were hatching up "Easy there aunt Y/N I don't try to stop your fun with the kiddos, don't try to stop mine" Billy replied with a wink before turning his attention back to something Frank had said. It'd only been a little under two months since they'd been home but you'd gotten to know Billy pretty well during that time.

When dinner was over and you were headed out to the cab you'd call to take you home Billy stopped you at the door "Y/N can I split that cab with you so I don't have to wait on another one?" You nodded "Yea sure" since the kids were already in bed you both called out goodbyes to Maria and Frank before stepping out into the cool night air.

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

The cab ride was silent until you got to your place and Billy climbed out behind you. "You aren't going home Russo?" You asked and he shrugged "I can walk from here plus this way I make sure you get home ok" You narrowed your eyes for a moment as you stared at him until he grinned "Frankie might have asked me to make sure you got home since it's so late"

You couldn't help the smile. Frank was always going to be overly protective but you loved him for it. "Well c'mon then might as well walk me to my door" He fell in step next to you until you opened the door leading into your apartment building. You hesitated before stepping inside and bit your bottom lip in thought before finally letting the thought that had playing around in your head spill out "Does anyone write you when you're gone?"

He actually looked stunned for a moment which made you shrink down in humiliation. You knew enough about his past to know he didn't have any birth family. Why the hell had you asked something so personal? You started to attempt to back track but he'd already schooled his features back in place to respond "No. Are you offering?" You knew him well enough to tell he was being sarcastic so when you answered "Actually, yes" you watched as a few different emotions flickered across his face.

He was silent for a moment then licked his lips before nodding "I'd like that" "Good. Now good night. I'll see you tomorrow for the farewell dinner?" "I'll see you tomorrow" He smiled then turned to walk away after making sure you'd gotten in the building safely.

The day Frank and Billy were to leave again you'd just got off a eighteen hour shift and wanted nothing more than to crash for a few hours but when Maria called to ask if you'd go to the airport with her and the kids you instead grabbed a quick shower and tried to see just how much coffee you could manage to pour down your throat before she called to call she was outside your apartment building.

When she called to say she was downstairs you grabbed your to go cup of coffee off the counter and headed down willing yourself to seem lively enough to give Frank a good send off and to be there for her and the kids. You hadn't expected to open the side door of her van to find Billy's long legged ass sitting on the back seat.

You climbed across Lisa's car seat and nearly landed in Billy's lap when your foot caught the underside of the seat "Well are you falling for me after all?" he asked with a smirk which caused you to roll your eyes "Sleep deprivation is a serious thing Russo. Might make you seem appealing" "Oh Bill she gets that point" Frank called from the front seat as you sat down next to Billy and Maria pulled out onto the road.

He glanced at your coffee mug before asking "How long of a shift you getting off of?" "Eighteen" You replied stifling a yawn. "I know you came for Maria but it's nice seeing friendly faces before getting on the plane" he said after a moment so you reached over and bumped his leg to get his attention before saying "I came for you and Frankie too. We're basically friends now Billy and as long as you're Frank's best friend you're stuck with me anyways"

"Well finally something good comes out that friendship" he replied with a wink when Frank growled "I heard that Bill" from the front seat.

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

You were used to the routine with Frank pretty much. He'd say his goodbyes to Maria then the kids then pull you into a hug during which he'd usually whisper his thanks for you being there for them in your ear before pulling away.

You watched Billy standing to the side so after the kids hugged their dad and told him goodbye you leaned down to them and motioned for them to come closer "Yes ma'am?" Lisa asked so you nodded towards Billy "I think uncle Billy needs some goodbyes too. What you think?" they both scurried off to hug him goodbye but you were caught off guard when Lisa said "Aunt Y/N are you gonna hug uncle Billy like you do daddy?"

You cut your eyes at Maria and Frank who were both a bit misty eyed at once again being seperated but seeming a bit amused too so instead of making a show you simply walked over to Billy and pulled him down into a hug. When he slid his arms around you your breath caught in your throat. Damn he smelled amazing and felt even better. "Thanks Y/N" he whispered then once you pulled away from each other he added "Take care and I'll be looking for a letter"

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

You stood with Maria and the kids until the plane was taking off then the four of you headed for the parking lot you and her both carrying a kid. "I'm tired Ria" you admitted and she smiled "Let's go home. You can take a nap in mine and Frank's bed and then we can get some take out with the kids" "That sounds good to me" you agreed.

You had just slid into the passenger seat when she asked "Did Billy said he'd be looking for a letter?" You shrugged "Yea I said I'd write him. I mean I've always written Frank and Curt so that's a friend thing to do right?" She nodded "Yea Billy only has us so it'll be good for him" then pulled out onto the road.

Tags: @intothesoul

@weallhaveadestiny

[a-small-batch-of-dragons]

Code Words | Trauma Protocols

Augh, I loved the new fic so much, I love Janus getting all protective over Roman it's just sooo. Ngl tho I'm a logince girlie at heart, platonic or otherwise, so I think it would be fun to see THEE Logan dealing with all the mess the agency put Roman in. Especially if he works together with Janus, they'd be vicious and unstoppable – anon

Read on Ao3 Part 1

Warnings: unintentional self harm, childhood neglect

Pairings: gen

Word Count: 5058

Logan comes to knock on Roman's door.

There's a knock on his door.

On instinct, Roman curls up tighter on his bed, refusing to entertain the possibility that someone’s come to see him, especially after the absolute fucking fiasco that was yesterday, but when it persists, he drags himself reluctantly up to peer through the peephole out to the corridor.

At the sight of his old mentor, his chest stutters.

In an instant, he’s jolted back to memories of the training floors, the sour rubber smell of the training mats making his nose twitch. Memories of scoreboards, of whispers and the click of pens against clipboards. Of clenching jaws in the simulation rooms and being sent back to his quarters for an 'attitude readjustment.' Of being eight years old again and dreading the knock on his door.

He shouldn't have gotten out of bed.

But he did, and he knows his movement's been heard, so he swings the door open and stares at the floor, his jaw clenched.

"Thank you," Logan says smoothly, "may I come in?"

Roman shrugs.

"Was that a 'yes?'"

It was a 'we both know I've got no fucking actual choice so yeah, let's pretend I do before you yell at me,' but he doesn't say that out loud so he grits out a yes and watches Logan walk inside.

He shuts the door—carefully, he doesn't need to give Logan something else to yell at him about—and clenches his hands, watching Logan make himself comfortable on his desk chair. He sees Logan glance at his desk and make the choice not to scold him about how messy it is, and he looks down again.

Shouldn't have gotten out of bed.

"Will you come join me?"

He moves robotically, climbing back into bed and curling up near the headboard, picking at the dead skin near one of his fingernails. He can tell Logan's waiting for him to say something.

Jokes on you, I've just spent years being brutally interrogated, I'm not gonna say shit before you do.

Logan's delicate sigh is almost enough to make him regret his stubbornness. Almost.

"Roman, do you know why I'm here?" Roman shrugs. "Can you use your words, please?"

You won't fucking like the ones I'd choose. He shrugs again.

"I'm here because of what happened yesterday." Ooh, big fucking shock. "I've heard the story from a few others, but I'd appreciate it if you could tell me from your point of view."

Oh, no, he knows that trap. No fucking way. He's fallen for it one too many times, he'll be damned if he's falling for it this time.

"Roman? Did you hear me?"

Yeah, I fucking heard you. That's why I'm not saying shit.

"There's no need for all of that," Logan says, and oh, there's that famous disapproval, "you're not proving anything by being stubborn, not to me."

Well, maybe not everything's about you, did you ever fucking think of that? They spend a few more moments in silence before Logan sighs again, shifting forward to lean on his knees.

"I understand you're embarrassed," he says in that stupid soft way that's probably meant to be understanding but just comes off condescending as shit, "but you shouldn't let that stop you from telling me what happened."

Oh, that's not what's stopping me, he thinks, but he's not about to correct him. See, I do remember shit from your training, never correct a false assumption they have about you. Aren't you fucking proud of me?

His rage, dormant through the night, resurges with a vengeance and he tightens his grip on his own knees.

Aren't you fucking proud of me? I spent years getting tortured by one of our best, apparently, and I didn't give him shit. I spent years terrified and traumatized and I didn't give up anything. I didn't give him a single fucking inch and I remembered what you taught me, aren't you fucking proud?

"There's no need to glare—" there is every fucking need to glare— "we can just talk like civilized people."

"There's no need to glare," Deceit purrs as the white-hot sting of pain fades, his chest burning as he frantically gasps for air, "we can just talk like civilized people."

Roman squeezes his eyes shut, flinching against the headboard. He presses his head against the smooth wood and forces himself to slow his breathing. He's not there, it's over, he's not there, nothing can fucking touch him right now, he's beaten Logan in sparring matches before and he's not fought him in years, he's got a few tricks Logan won't see coming. He's fine. He's fucking fine.

Logan at least has the decency not to say anything else until his breathing finally evens out. He hears a quiet rustling that must mean he's moving before he lets out another sigh.

"Roman, I can't help you if you don't talk to me."

Funny, that's what Deceit said too. Did you fucking talk to him or something?

"I thought you'd grown out of this."

The smart thing to do would be to keep his mouth shut. To stay there, curled up against the headboard, not saying a goddamn thing. That's what he's been taught, after all, he remembers training sessions like this, where he'd be poked and prodded and he was supposed to not move, not say anything, not give anything up. Shit, he's spent years doing just that, he'd not given a damn thing to Deceit or anyone else in that fucking gang, he knows how to do it, he knows he should just keep his mouth shut.

But Logan, fucking Logan, has always known what buttons to push.

"Fuck you," he growls, glaring at Logan who doesn't even have the decency to look ruffled, "and get the fuck out."

"Language, Roman."

"Don't you fucking dare."

"There's no need to be—"

"Oh, there is every fucking need." Roman's grip on his own leg tightens. "You wanted me to talk? Fine. I'm talking. Now fucking get out."

"Roman—"

"What? What the fuck can you do to me? Don't like my fucking language, great news for you, you don't have to fucking hear it, you can leave. In fact, that's a great idea, why don't you leave right now?"

"I'm not leaving, Roman, you need to—"

"I don't need to do shit. Don't you remember the fucking trauma protocols? Get out!"

"Of course I remember the trauma protocols, Roman, that's why I'm—"

"Then you know you've already broken two of the rules! You triggered me twice and you're not respecting my boundaries. You're violating the protocol. Get the fuck out."

Logan frowns. "How did I trigger you?"

Roman scoffs. "You fucking quoted him at me. You quoted him from while he was torturing me. This is an interrogation. And unless I haven't made this crystal fucking clear, I want you to get away from me."

At last, something akin to regret passes across his mentor's unflappable face as he holds out a hand in a way that's probably meant to be placating. "I didn't know about that, Roman, I assure you—"

"Oh, you didn't fucking know something!" Roman throws his arms up dramatically. "Wow, what a fucking shock that must've been! I wonder what that's like, to not fucking know something!"

He's panting by the end of it, his arms still outstretched, glaring at Logan, and to his absolute fucking horror, he sniffles.

"Oh, Roman," Logan says quietly, and that's it.

No, Roman screams at himself as he starts to cry again, no! Don't fucking cry in front of him, when has that ever fucking ended well? Stop it! Stop it, stop it, stop it, stop it!

Forgoing whatever dignity he hoped to maintain at the start of this, he angrily throws himself against the bed and clutches a pillow so tightly he can feel his fingernails start to tear the fabric. But fuck it, if Logan thinks he's being some horrible child throwing a tantrum and refusing to deal with this like an adult, he'll throw his fucking tantrum. He can still smell those awful rubber mats and hear Logan's disapproving voice and hear the laughing from all the other trainees and so yeah, let's throw a fucking tantrum.

He doesn't scream, though. There's no need for him to trigger himself too.

He's just so fucking mad. How dare Logan come here and try to act all high and mighty, how dare he act like this is something Roman's doing on purpose, how dare he tell Roman he's behaving out of line? He's still a child in his head now, curling up on the bed after Logan's left, after some scolding and reprimanding that's supposed to be 'for his own good,' or 'just to make sure he's learned his lesson,' or some other fucking platitude where Logan's supposed to be on his side or whatever, and he just wants him to leave so he can hurt all on his own.

It's safer that way.

And isn't that fucking sad, that he started to look forward to getting back to that sad empty apartment because it was sad and empty and his and so it was safe and he could be as messy and hurt as he wanted and no one could tell him shit because he was upset and hurting and that was fine because he could be by himself and fix it, and get better all on his own and be safe and alone and no one was there to hurt him anymore, whether or not they tried to justify it by saying it was good for him.

God, he wants that apartment back. He wants that stupid apartment where the heating didn't work and the stove wouldn't turn on the first time and the bed was all creaky and the springs would dig into him when he turned over. He wants those dirty walls and the cracked ceiling and the window that wouldn't shut properly. He wants to go there and curl up in that horrible bed and sob his fucking eyes out and be hurt all on his own.

In that apartment, no one lied to him. No one hurt him. He was safe there. The world was safe there.

He cries for that apartment, for the version of him that cried there too.

…when was the last time he cried this much?

He truly has no idea how long he stays there on that bed, certainly long enough to forget that Logan hasn't left yet. But when his pillow is gross and his body is sore, he hears the tell-tale rustle of someone moving.

That anger's gone. Now he's just a scared and vulnerable little kid again and he really doesn't want to be yelled at right now.

He could stay here again. He's got even less energy than he did before and with the rage gone, he can devote all of it to staying right here, around this gross and wet pillow. He could try and fall asleep, probably, he's worn himself out enough. That sounds like a great idea, actually, and he keeps his eyes closed, not bothering to shift around enough to get his face out of the disgusting mess, and tries.

He does.

Honestly, he tries.

But every few seconds he hears Logan shifting and his entire body won't stop screaming that someone else is in the room, and he comes to the horrifying conclusion that he's not going to be able to go to sleep until Logan leaves.

And, like it or not, he knows the best way to make Logan leave quickly is to cooperate.

Fuck, I really don't want to be yelled at.

He drags himself upright, peeling his face from the pillow. Curling around it, he sits himself against the headboard once more and plants his chin on the less-gross part, sniffling a few more times. He wipes his face on his arm and waits.

Logan doesn't say anything, not until he glances up at him. His expression is still blank, but his hands are woven tightly together, clutched in his lap. His knuckles are white. He still doesn't say anything.

"Well?" Fuck, is that really what I sound like?

Logan shifts. "Well?"

"What did you want me to tell you?"

He's quiet for a moment—he's hesitating. Logan doesn't do that. "Why were you so certain I was going to be angry with you?"

Roman scoffs, but when Logan still looks at him like he wants an answer, he curls in on himself a little more. "Why else would you be here?"

"What?"

"You only come here to yell at me or when I'm in trouble. You don't come here for anything else. You never have. Wasn't exactly a hard conclusion to reach."

Logan's mouth opens as if he wants to deny it, but no words come out. After a moment, he closes it. Then he takes a deep breath. "I'm not angry with you, Roman."

He scoffs again.

"I know you don't believe me—"

"That's right, I don't."

"—but I give you my word. I'm not angry, not with you. You—" he takes another deep breath— "you were put in an awful situation by irresponsible people and you've been hurt because of it. You reacted in a way that is entirely understandable. You haven't done anything to warrant my anger."

Roman just eyes him warily. Logan's jaw works for a moment.

"I apologize for triggering you," he says, and Roman's eyes widen, "and for making you think that I would be angry with you. And for not respecting your boundaries."

"You don't apologize," Roman mumbles, edging closer to the headboard, "you don't—you've never apologized."

"Then I owe you another one, for not doing so for the things I have done in the past, and for failing to recognize it on my own."

"What are you doing?"

"Apologizing?"

"No, why are you doing this—" he jerks his chin— "this, the whole…gentle thing, why?"

"You're hurting," Logan says as though it's the easiest thing in the world, "you deserve to be treated gently."

"Then why the fuck didn't you start like that?"

Logan sighs again, his shoulders slumping and Roman's struck by how old he looks. "I…wrongfully assumed that some degree of familiarity would be comforting. I thought that if I behaved as though this were not the… abominable circumstance that it is, it might help you feel safe enough to talk to me."

He shakes his head slowly.

"But instead, I've done nothing but upset you and trigger you…and possibly reinforce the idea that you have no one you can trust here in the Agency."

Roman toys with the edge of the pillow. "…yeah."

Silence for a moment, then Logan shakes his head again.

"The second time in as many days that someone has barged in here against your wishes and forced you to talk," he muses, a note of true dismay entering his voice, "isn't it?"

"Yeah."

"I'm sorry, Roman," Logan says and he's gotta stop dropping bombs everywhere—it's kind of nice, though— "I'm…I've done this very wrong."

"Well, you didn't actually torture me, so…you got that going for you."

A humorless laugh. "Oh, how low our standards have fallen."

"You get used to it."

"What a horrible thing to get used to."

There's another moment of quiet. Roman fiddles with the zipper on the pillow case. Logan shifts a few more times.

"Did…did I really never come here except to scold you?"

"Yeah."

"I never came by for any other reason?"

"You came once after I broke my leg to see how I was healing, I guess, and you had to come wake me up a few times at the beginning, but after that…no, not really."

Logan buries his face in his hands. Roman stares at him. Unflappable Logan, immovable Logan, the Logan that watched him do all manner of things and fuck up in all manner of ways, the Logan that barely fucking blinked when an explosive round went off right next to him, that Logan looks like he's about to cry.

"I must apologize," he says a moment later, his voice growing more and more hoarse by the moment as he drags his hand along his face—wait, is he crying?— "here I am feeling sorry for myself when you're the one most in need of support."

"I—um—I mean—"

"Have I ever told you how proud I am of you?"

"…who are you and what have you done with Logan?"

Absolute devastation crosses Logan's face and shit, Roman's about to start crying again at this rate. "I've been truly awful to you, haven't I?"

"N-no, you're—" Roman takes a deep breath— "you were strict, yeah, and I didn't—I didn't always want to be around you but you—you weren't awful, Logan. You—you were fair and you did teach me and you—I know you let me get away with stuff when I really wasn't feeling up to it and you—you—"

Did he ever imagine he would be saying this to Logan? No, but then again, he didn't exactly envision that any of this would happen.

"You—I didn't always want to, but I could come to you and you would fix it," he mumbles to his knees, "you'd fix it. Even if it was completely my fault, you'd—you'd help me fix it."

***

Roman wiped the tears from his cheeks as the door slid open. Logan stepped through and he shot up from the bed, already holding out the tablet.

"I've contacted the various regional offices to let them know what happened," he said before Logan could say a word, "and I've compiled a list of steps that need to be taken in order to manage them efficiently. The suppliers know there's going to be a delay and what safety measures to put in place. I've also talked to the medical wing about what might happen if it spreads and they've told me what else needs to be stocked in order to properly contain the outbreak."

He scrambled for another set of notes on his desk.

"Um—also there's a list of who all was involved and what their risk levels are—we managed to get the contagion vented before it could get into the main ventilation system but—" he grabbed a map too— "here, I've highlighted all the sectors that might be at risk and I've let the building security know that too. Um—a-and I've researched when the symptoms are most likely to peak so that we can brace for another wave after the initial infection."

Logan took it silently, looking at it. He flipped a page over.

"A-and I wrote my list already too." Roman reached for the last notebook. "I know it's not a priority or anything but I needed to—there was a moment where I was on hold while the specialists were checking something and I thought—it was a more productive use of my time than just sitting there."

Logan took that too, still not saying a word. Roman knit his fingers together, worrying his bottom lip. After a long pause, Logan nodded and handed it back.

"Contact the local media outlets as well to warn them of the outbreak. It's unlikely that the contagion will spread farther than campus, but better safe than sorry."

"Yes, sir."

"And, Roman?"

He braced himself, but Logan just laid a hand on his shoulder.

"This too shall pass," he said in a surprisingly quiet voice, "we'll get through this."

"Yes, sir."

***

Logan looks at him with such open affection that Roman feels tears prickle at the corner of his eyes again. Logan notices them—because of course he does—and makes an aborted move toward him, jerking to a halt when Roman flinches.

"I won't get closer," he says, raising his hands, "not until you say it's alright, I give you my word."

"Why didn't you leave," Roman croaks, his voice cracking," when—when I told you to—why didn't you go?"

"I should have, I apologize, I should've realized I was just making it worse."

"Will you leave now?"

"I can't," he says and to his credit he truly does sound as sorry as he looks, "but one of the protocols involves not leaving someone if they're at risk of injuring themselves, and…you're bleeding, Roman."

Is he? He looks down. Oh.

"I won't come any closer, you have my word," he says again, "and we don't—we needn't talk if you don't want. It doesn't have to be me, either, I can fetch someone else, someone you might be more comfortable with?"

Roman closes his eyes, the unfortunate truth already on the tip of his tongue.

"I don't trust anyone else," he whispers.

He can hear the aborted noise from Logan's throat, but he just murmurs a soft alright and doesn't move. Roman glances up to see him staring off into space, hands back to white-knuckled in his lap, but he doesn't seem intent to break his promise of not moving or speaking unless Roman permits it.

All of a sudden, he's filled with a terrible longing. He wants someone he trusts here, in all of this mess. He wants someone to help him with all of this, he wants someone to hold his hand like a child as he cries, he wants someone.

"C-can we—" Logan's head turns and Roman swallows— "can we try again?"

"Try what?"

"Can you—can you try again? Can you try coming in again?"

Recognition crosses his face and Logan nods, standing up slowly, smoothing the front of his clothes. "Do you want me to go outside again, or just come in as though I've just shut the door?"

"Can you go outside? I'll let you in," he says when Logan hesitates, "I know the protocol too."

"I don't want you to feel as though you have to, Roman."

"Please?"

"…alright."

Logan walks to the door, opens it carefully, and shuts it with a click. After ten seconds, he knocks quietly.

Roman could refuse to let him in. He could bury his head in the pillows. He could barricade himself in the bathroom.

But the longing hasn't gone away and so he gets up and goes to open the door.

"Hello, Roman," Logan says, softly, so softly when he looks up at him, "I'm so sorry to hear about what happened yesterday, what can I do?"

Oh, fuck.

Fuck it.

A sob escapes his throat and he throws himself at Logan, wrapping his arms tightly around his waist and burying his face in his chest. Logan's arms wrap around him immediately and he feels his knees buckle. But Logan has always been there to catch him and he does, holding him so close that he just starts to cry in earnest.

"Can we go inside," he hears murmured against his head, "can I look after you there?"

Roman drags him in and kicks the door shut and this is Logan's fault, he agreed to this, so now he gets to see the side of Roman's hurt he's never seen before, which means it's going to be clingy and messy and awful and he's just going to have to deal with it. He half expects Logan to start trying to calm him down, saying it's a bit too much, or something, but nope—Logan asks if he can pick him up like he did when he broke his leg and carries him to his bed, holding him all the while. Which is just not fair, because Logan is big and warm and safe and Roman's not going to stop crying for a long time.

"They laughed at me, L-Logan," he hiccups, scrabbling weakly for a better hold, "they l-laughed at me!"

"Who laughed at you?"

"The—the supervisors, in the—in the meeting—" he hiccups again— "someone told me that—told me that Deceit was—that Deceit was in the building so I asked them where—them where and they said in the meeting room and I went and I tried to—I tried to—and they laughed at me!"

"They shouldn't have laughed at you, Roman, you were scared and trying to do what you thought was right," Logan says in his solemn way where something is just true, and smooths his hand over Roman's head. "Can you tell me what happened next?"

"I r-ran—I ran away."

"Where did you run?" Logan asks as he tightens his grip. "Here?"

Roman sniffles and nods. "Then Janus—Janus came and he wouldn't l-leave and he—he—they lied to him too."

"You're doing very well, Roman, good job, I know this is hard." Logan rubs his back. "Just breathe for a moment, alright? Just take a moment…yes, that's it, very good."

Logan walks him through a few slow breaths and where the fuck has this been his whole life?

"Do you think you can keep going?"

"Y-yeah."

"Alright; what did they lie about?"

"I was supposed to have a way out," he says into Logan's chest, "th-there were supposed to be code words and Janus thought I knew them."

"And you didn't?"

"They didn't even tell me he was undercover!"

The hand on his back stutters for a moment before Logan bows his head, breaths warming the top of Roman's ear. "I'm so sorry, Roman. I'm sorry. I should have…"

Roman's chest tightens as he feels Logan's chest shudder.

"I should have protected you," Logan whispers as something wet hits his head, "I'm sorry."

Roman scrambles up. Logan is crying. Logan is crying. Logan is staring at him with tears on his cheeks and he reaches for him again and he hugs him, he's hugging him, Logan's hugging him!

"I've got you," Logan warbles and Roman just burrows into his hold, "I've got you, little one, I'm right here. You're safe, now, you're safe, I won't let anyone touch you, nothing is going to happen to you while I'm here, I'm so sorry…"

"You should do this more often," he blurts out before he can stop himself, "the—the whole hugging-me thing, you should do it all the time."

Logan laughs wetly. "Okay, little one, I will."

"Yeah?"

"I give you my word."

"We should stay like this for a while."

"Yes, yes, I think that's a good idea too."

And so they do. They stay like that until they've cried themselves out and the sun has moved clear across the sky. They stay like that as people pass by in the halls and vehicles drive by the windows. They stay like that until Roman's half-dozing in Logan's arms and Logan's chin rests on top of Roman's head.

"Do you know," Logan asks softly after a long, long time, "how proud I am of you?"

Roman stirs but says nothing. If he moves too much it might make Logan remember that he's not supposed to be doing this or that he doesn't actually want to say it out loud.

"Because I am," Logan continues, "I am so proud of you. Your skills at observation are nigh impeccable, your resilience is—a force unto itself, and your compassion, Roman, is…I can't put into words how truly, truly proud I am of you."

Roman swallows. "Why…why did you never say it before?"

His head moves up and down as Logan sighs. "You always carried yourself with such confidence that it seemed like arrogance. I suppose I…didn't bother to think it was anything other than that. I hope…I am sorry for that, Roman."

"'S okay."

"Is it?" Logan asks gently, so gently, such a far cry from the way he used to.

"…no, not really."

"I am proud of you, Roman. I will always be proud of you. And I will always be here for you."

Roman fiddles with the hem of his sleeve. "Janus said he was going to go yell at the person who briefed me yesterday."

"Mm."

"Do you think he did?"

"No, I don't. He called me as soon as he spoke to you—hush, little one, he knew I was your mentor, he thought I should hear about it from one of you before someone else told me," Logan soothes as Roman tenses again, "hush, hush, I'm not in on this with him, I'm not taking his side, it's alright, I'm just worried."

"We're not on different sides," Roman grumbles as he settles back down, "it's us versus whoever briefed me, isn't it?"

"Yes, that's right, you were both hurt by it, but he did hurt you, Roman. Quite significantly."

"I know."

"So it's alright if it takes you a while."

"That's what he said too." He shifts. "Why don't you think he went and confronted them?"

"I advised him not to."

"Why?"

"We're still in the debrief period. Anything that happens before psych clears you both can be dismissed. If we want to make the charges stick, we should file them after."

Roman makes a face at the idea of waiting, but… "'We?'"

"I told you," Logan says, leaning back so he can look Roman in the eyes, "I'm here for you. I will always be here for you. And believe me, I am furious that this was allowed to happen, that this did happen. I will help you, little one, however I can."

"…okay."

"Can I persuade you to have something to eat?"

"I don't really want to leave."

"We can order pizza," Logan suggests, and laughs at how surprised Roman looks, "let's order pizza and get you something to drink, alright?"

"You should do all of this more often, by the way. The saying things you mean and the hugging and the being nice. You should do all of it more often."

Logan chuckles and ruffles his hair. "Come on, little one. Pizza."

As Logan stands up and goes to order pizza, Roman chews on his lip. "Where do you think he did go?"

"Hm?"

"Janus. Yesterday."

Logan lets out a breath. "I imagine that in much the same way he called me, he went to someone to help support him."

"Oh."

"Now come on, what would you like on your pizza?"

General Taglist: @frxgprince@potereregina@gattonero17@iamhereforthegayshit@thefingergunsgirl@awkwardandanxiousfander@creative-lampd-liberties@djpurple3@winterswrandomness@sanders-sides-uncorrect-quotes@iminyourfandom@bullet-tothefeels@full-of-roman-angst-trash  @ask-elsalvador @ramdomthingsfrommymind@demoniccheese83@pattonsandershugs @el-does-photography @princeanxious@firefinch-ember@fandomssaremysoul@im-an-anxious-wreck@crazy-multifandomfangirl @punk-academian-witch@enby-ralsei@unicornssunflowersandstuff@wildhorsewolf @thetruthaboutthesun @stubbornness-and-spite @princedarkandstormv  @your-local-fookin-deadmeme @angels-and-dreams@averykedavra @a-ghostlight-for-roman @treasurechestininterweb @cricketanne @queerly-fluid-fan @compactdiscdraws@cecil-but-gayer@i-am-overly-complicated@annytheseal@alias290@tranquil-space-ninja @arxticandy @mychemically-imbalanced-romance@whyiask@crows-ace @emilythezeldafan@frida0043 @ieatspinalcords @snowyfires@cyanide-violence@oonagh2@xxpanic-at-the-everywherexx@rabbitsartcorner @percy-07734@triflingassailantofmyemotions @virgil-sanders-the-gay-emo@cerulean-watermelon@puffed-up-bees@meltheromanstan@joyrose-fandomer@insanitori@mavenmush@justablah65@10paradox10@uhhh-hi-there-i-am-nervous@cutebisexualmess@bella-bugatti-frogetti-baguetti@ultrageekygirl

[insertsomthinawesome]

*pokes head out of the great expanse of information that is the internet* DID I HEAR YOU SAY KAEYA ZHONGLI BESTIES AGENDA do elaborate because I am. I am. in need.

AHAHAAHAHAHAHAH YES YOU DID HEAR CORRECTLY. Look They have so much inherent angst based on Kaeya's origins and Zhongli's orgins. And I'm definitely going to get into some fanon/headcanon territory here. But like- I headcanon that whatever part Zhongli played in destroying Khaenri'ah he feels horrible about it. Meeting Kaeya would be a grenade of emotions for him. Like on one hand: Hey! This guy is a living Khaenri'ahn, maybe i can do small things to pay him for what I've done Not that I could ever total repay it ON the other: OH SHOOT I MESSED UP SO BAD BY HIM I SHOULD JUST NEVER SPEAK TO HIM EVER AND IF HE WANTS ME TO PAY FOR MY CRIMES I WILL. Initially Zhongli would probably just be a good ole formal acquaintance. Being pretty normal about everything (he's good at compartmentalizing and burying pain) except in weird instances where he'd get really intensely invested in Helping Kaeya. Kaeya is like "Okay this dude is strange. Nice! But strange." Eventually the truth would come to light and that would be a mess, not exactly sure how it would go down? I usually play with the idea of Kaeya being pretty angry with Zhongli and softening when he realizes how much Zhongli regrets and how human he is. The start of their actual friendship would be climbing over the hurdle of Zhongli.... well being overly gracious essentially?

Kaeya would have to slap him being like "Dude you need to not bend to my every request for star's sake." Like, kaeya can understand given how much he feels like he messed up, but at this point he genuinely wants to be friends with Zhongli, not have Zhongli be his dutiful archon butler. It'd take a bit for Zhongli to shake the behavior because the guilt complex runs DEEP. Also Kaeya would have to open a lot. Zhongli is old as dirt (ha) So he can probably see through Kaeya waaaay more than he's comfortable with. Zhongli is thankfully not horribly heavy handed? But I can see him being somewhat petty or poking at Kaeya before he's ready.

Kaeya would have the bonus of Zhongli already knowing his Origins! But he would still have to contest with worrying about him flipping out over the spy thing (not to mention Zhongli was the Contracts lord.) Zhongli would also not be super cool with kaeya's more reckless and under-explained stunts. Its probably already somewhat nervewracking for him that most of his friends are mortal. Them making ill-advised decisions would not sit well with him. but with time I think they'd have a beautiful friendship! They're both protectors and have Older Family member vibes (grandpa and older brother) Zhongli would be invested in seeing Kaeya grow past his trauma and the horrible things that happened to him and his people. And Kaeya would be invested in seeing Zhongli live a happy unburdened life (he understands too well holding what feels like the weight of the world.)

And just in general I think the way they can play off of each other is really fun? Just personality wise. They're both really smart but also feel like they'd have a great time discussing stuff over tea, Really random or inane stuff. I imagine they're both kinda fed up with the Anime Plot they're born into xD

I feel like they're both little things people. LIke zhongli going on and on about the flowers being beautiful this morning and Kaeya would just be sitting there like "yeah :]" They realize how much that stuff matters.

Somebody save Zhongli if Hu Tao and Kaeya are in the same room tho. SFDLSDIHGDFIGLDHFGLASIDGHDFG Also they'd both be doing "Woe, therapy be upon ye" at each other SADLFIHSDGLIDFHGDFGHFG

Also both of them adore kids. ;;v;; The capacity they have for understanding each other's pain. Just being the "stop being strong, I know, you can't hide it from me." and "i'm sorry you have this burden, you should've never had it." and "i'm so afraid of what I am harming the people I love." THere could be so much solidarity and comfort and understanding. And conflict and frustration too! I can see them easily being very hypocritical with each other without intending too xD

So yeah! Just their whole deal can be so fascinating and fun, both of them would have so much baggage to work through with each other. And I can see every step of that journey being delightfully fun to dig into and play out in different ways!

[honeydots]

I always love these ask games: For Xanlow- 18, 23, and 24.

OTP ask game

putting this under a cut again LMAO

18: What are they like when they're drunk? How do they act together? & when 1 is drunk, while the other one's sober?

MMM i think laslow gets progressively more chatty the more he drinks. you could get any number of secrets out of him if you get him to drink enough & despite that he's pretty much aware of this it doesn't always stop him...... xander relaxes a little for once in his life LOL but also gets more physically affectionate? and perhaps he laughs a bit easier. honestly i think it's pretty rare that he'd drink until he's drunk tho, usually he's just buzzed at most, esp when around other ppl. he'd *drink* in public, but absolutely wouldn't get drunk

TOGETHERRR i feel like they'd be a "get a little drunk and then sit in bed and talk for a while" kinda couple. warm and comfy. taking the edge off a hard day. and again, they probably drink together every so often, but they don't often get that drunk laslow drunk and xander not drunk is probably xander being amused at his ramblings and then putting him to bed. xander drunk and laslow not drunk is probably laslow trying to figure out how the heck xander got so drunk, poking fun at him until they inevitably have some sort of sweet talk, and then going to bed together

23: Who initiates cuddling more?

probably ULTIMATELY laslow but i think xander would more frequently initiate physical contact that isn't necessarily cuddling. xander will wrap an arm around laslow's waist, or a hand on his back, but laslow's the one who tends to, like, climb directly onto xander while he's reading on the couch bc he's being needy LOL

24: Sleeping/cuddling positions? (Big spoon, little spoon, etc.)?

i think... laslow likes being the little spoon, but still really wants and enjoys being the big spoon sometimes. xander i think *prefers* being the big spoon, but indulges laslow when it's the opposite. he probably also enjoys it more than he admits, but i think xander's ultimate preference is when he's facing laslow in some way. on the topic of sleeping i feel like when they fall asleep cuddling laslow ends up faced with needing to get up to use the bathroom but is being squished by xander entirely. does he LIKE being squished? yeah, actually. but is it productive to getting him to the bathroom? no. fsdfjskdfj i think when laslow wriggles out he probably does end up waking xander up a little bit. but then when he comes back xander can go right back to squishing his husband so its fine HAHA

[excaive]

WOAA POST STORY ROGER? My beloved??? head over heels, woo’d, awed, staring fourth with INTENSITY !! i really like current roger but whatever post story roger has going on? yes yes yes yes !!!! KJ and Roger are two very distinct and VERY likeable characters and i love the dynamic you’ve cultivated with them !! Roger’s upgrade is especially on a new level!! i looove it! (the eyes on his cat socks too, god!!!)

You think I could bother you for some extra post-story Roger&KJ fun facts? I can’t get enough of them!

Sorry it took a hot minute to answer!

BUT YES!!! SHAKING UR HAND I love post-story Roger sm and I'm so glad you enjoy him and also KJ :] I've worked a lot on both of them, so I'm glad when people like em 💖

But yes post-story facts for Roger & KJ!

KJ is very passionate about skating and spends a lot of time being involved with making events and such at skateparks that are open to everyone to join from kids to adults with various experiences with skating. Just a fun time overall!

KJ is slowly teaching Roger to skate, but it's less about learning tricks and more just the two of them going on a skating trip around the city or parks. It's very cute, and for the most part, Roger has bad balance on the skateboard, so he can't do anything fancy but it is a great excuse to hold KJ's hand as they roll about :p

I'm not sure if I've mentioned this on here, but Roger is a wicked parkour boy. Don't let his bad balance on a skateboard fool you, he'll climb places with ease and find shortcuts you could only dream of. Roger's balance is actually real good, but not on moving objects. I can't explain properly but like Roger would have a way easier time learning how to walk a tightrope than he has learning how to turn on a skateboard.

If he ever figures out how to jump on a rail with a skateboard, he'd flawlessly grind along the rail, and then land ungraciously.

honestly i think roger would be way too powerful if he mastered the skateboard. he'd absolutely be skating on rooftops and do tricks that would kill a normal man if fucked up.

Both Roger & KJ enjoy being active. One thing they'll do sometimes race each other - KJ with their skateboard and Roger utilzing his parkour skills. They both know the layout of the region they live in pretty well, so it turns out to be a tight race to the finish line, even with the pros & cons they both face with the routes they take. Doesn't matter who wins, they're just having fun :3

Roger and KJ and Cass live in the same apartment!

Cass is studying tho and does have like a place close to the uni where she stays with a few other students, but she usually comes home in the weekends or whenever she's able.

It was a bit rocky at the start between KJ and Cass when they got to know each other, but they're real homies now and team up to be a menace to Roger (affectionately). They'll get Roger on board with silly ideas bc how can he not with his two besties <3 even if he'll realize it was not a wise idea - here's an example

Roger trust em both but KJ loves a little chaos <3 (and Roger literally won't fall bc Cass is stupid strong and KJ is way stronger than they look, so they'd only fall if Cass slips or trips on anything :p)

Out of the two, KJ is more inclined to use petnames for Roger. They'll go "where's my carrot??" "my dear/sweet/love/beloved!!! check out this rock i found, touch it it's so slimy, isn't it gross??" "aw don't worry babe!! not everyone can handle the truth that the right way to eat peanuts is with the shell on <3" etc. stuff like that

KJ is very physically affectionate and loves hugging or kissing Roger's face whenever. Sometimes if Roger is just talking about something, KJ might decide to just. Pick him up to hold. Despite being used to this Roger usually loses his train of thought because KJ is way stronger than you'd think and they can easily just pick him up 😳

Because of this, Roger will also purposefully fall asleep on the couch so KJ will scoop him up to tuck into bed <3

Generally for romantic gestures, KJ will take Roger different places for dates. Whether it be dining out, going to the cinema, skating, shopping etc. KJ loves going places with him and also just getting Roger things or taking him places he's been wanting to go to but haven't for whatever reasons.

Roger's gestures are more present at home. He'll cook/bake things KJ likes, do crafts to make something for them, and he's pretty verbal about how much he appreciates KJ and tells them whenever something reminded him of them.

He's also the one who primarily initiates more intimate moments because KJ hasn't been in love with anyone before Roger, so they tend to feel self-conscious about being a freak (or more specifically they are very new to being open and vulnerable with Roger and also their friends) so they worry they're too weird - even tho Roger has been crushing on them for like [checks notes] like 3-4 years before they eventually get together. He likes KJ because they're fucking weird and care about people a lot. If KJ's mouth tendrils or enjoyment of messy makeouts deterred Roger, he wouldn't constantly find opportunities to kiss them :p

I can easily go on but it'll take forever if I do, and you guys can always just ask more, I love talking about my ocs 💖

[noblehcart]

what are some of your favorite ships with your oc? -For Liesel and Stefan <3 <3

ORIGINAL CHARACTER QUESTIONS & HEADCANONS @myhiraeth

OKAY SO, I will say this first that what's listed below is in no particular order of most to least. Nor is it all my ships which I adore all of them, but these ships are the ones I get to do/write/talk about most.

SO FIRST OFF WE'RE STARTING WITH YOU SINCE U SENT THE ASK-

JASON & LIESEL- Were our first ship?? AND BOY DOES IT SLAP. I love love Jaseliese for each other because its that sweet niche of misunderstood almost-bad boy and soft nerd girl. They have this fantastic I love you despite what anyone says because we know this love is RARE. I think I will always be able to think of new aus for them because they have new mountains to climb together which make it so much fun and I adore them so much. I feel like they recognize each other's selves in each other (if that makes sense) like if things had worked out differently they could've been each other as well because they're both soft hearted, fierce for those they love and love lit that had things been switched they'd be each other still and value what they see in the other. I just adore them ok ok??

STYXX & LIESEL- ok HERES MY THING THO....how tf did Styxx and Liese meet???? YEAH I DONT KNOW EITHER BUT WE BOTH KNOW THAT THEY WORK. Styxxliese is a match made in heaven. Sheer perfection. What was their first date? IDK. Who kissed who first? IDK? But we do know what their apartment looks like, what their wedding looks like, what they look like together lounging....WE SET UP EVERYTHING ELSE but the beginnings and i fuckin love it. THAT IS WHEN U KNOW IT MESHES. It just *works*. He has enough heart and wisdom and hope in humanity and sees the best of it in her and she sees this kind, wise and hopeful person who has every reason not to be and they just love each other for it.

STEFAN & CERCI- OUR EMOTIONALLY COMPROMISED CHILDREN. Ah, steferci, I could write a thesis about but I won't because this would be a ridiculously long post. Stefan and Cerci had that immediate styxxliese like connection that I'm like 99% certain that within 3x of meeting they were already half in love. Their chemistry is off the charts and they're steely walls just melt for each other. I cannot believe how quickly this came together but I am so here for it. He's just turned this emotionally repressed soldier into a puddle for her. They love each other for their flaws and appreciate their strengths and admire in the other what they do not have themselves and its fantastic- I LOVE it.

@lordofthestrix

TRISTAN & LIESEL- They were NOT supposed to be a ship. I went into their interactions with the full intention of 'i'm lucky that he wants to ship with olga and that's all.' and yet here we are deep into the multiverse of alternate universes for these two. I don't know how that happened and I still don't know how Tristan isn't thoroughly irritated with Liesel yet, but here we are with her ready to destroy an imperial family and revolutionize a country to maintain a timeline to save the future she has with him. If that's note love I don't know what is? Tristliese is this wonderfully fun and complex ship that always keeps me on my toes and has been such an amazing delightful ride of creativity.

@paramounticebound

KHAN & LIESEL- Were absolutely not supposed to be a ship on my end of things IDK about you, but for me I absolutely didn't intend for this ship. Everyone wants to ship with a villain and I thought it'd be much more fun to befriend the villain. To see the push and pull of these two very intelligent characters on complete opposite ends of the spectrum....and yet HERE WE ARE. I was so sURE he was going to shoot her out an airlock and we are waist deep in aus and them being ridiculously passionately gravitationally drawn to each other which is so *fascinating* to me. I loove the sharp contrast of his intensity and her softness, his intention and her caution. They're this fantastic polar opposite spectrum of a relationship that is absolutely WONDERFUL. I cannot wait to see where else we take them.

@holyguardian

AERITH & LIESEL- OKAY BUT....this ship has ALWAYS STUCK WITH ME and its the most chaotic and fun thing. Like I never ever expected Liese to have a girlfriend because she swings 98% of the time for the boys, but Aerith has that voodoo and Liesel adores her. SO MUCH. And I know we haven't talked about them *that* much but its something that lives rent free in my brain 24/7 because I just love all the details we pulled out together for them as a couple. How they dress, how they shop, how they take care of each other and its just so WHOLESOMELY CHAOTIC that I had to throw it here in the list <3

@walkingshcdow

RAHADIN & LIESEL- okay so we have had SO MANY ships over the years and especially with Liesel that I can't just pick one from our bajillion so since I know you're mostly dnd oriented I thought I'd toss these two out here. Rahadin and Liesel have such a fantastic slow burn that I absolutely love no matter what AU its in. I think the only AU where they don't slowburn is Selkie au for obvious reasons. Liesel loves the soft soul that is still there willfully beating in his chest and he admires her for managing to keep that same softness in a world like Barovia where there's little compassion to be had. They're a fantastic couple.

[scooby-doodaphne]

finally finished a bunch of c!bbh concepts >:3

first up we have his main little dude design! I like to think he's from the end even tho it isn't supposed to be reachable in the dsmp. maybe he ended up in the overworld due to some extraneous circumstance? Idk. I thought it'd be fun if he was part of a genus with species in the end, nether, and overworld tho 🤔 like polar bears and grizzly bears lol

bbh's end species might generally look like him! I figure the end would be pretty chilly so they might wear a lot of long layers and have super short and thick fur. Maybe bbh would wear something like the outfit above before ending up in the overworld. Lots of purples and whites since fibers and dyes would probably have to come from chorus plants? he's got his little scarf too

Most of his inspiration comes from bats for his wings and feet, and then opossums for his tail. I think it'd be fun if he could hang upside down and stuff from chorus plants and the other vertical structures in the end. I also don't think they'd have to have great eyesight since its pretty dark and there's not a lot to see in the end anyway, so bbh would only wear glasses in the overworld maybe

next up we have the nether species!! I see a lot of headcanons of him being from the nether which is super fun, so I wanted to make a nether interpretation of my design. They'd probably look generally like this guy, with netherrack-esque coloring, some longer fur, and more forward-facing "tusks" and horns and stuff. maybe they'd have beef with other nether mobs? so they wear a lot of armor and things.

Most of their inspiration comes from ostriches, bats (again) and pigs/boars. I think it'd be fun if they did a lot of hanging out on the nether's ceiling, so they use their wings and claws and stuff to latch on. I looked at some pics of ostrich feet to brainstorm since I wanted them to be able to run fast lol

lastly we have the overworld guys :3 I think they'd live mostly in tall tree biomes like giant taiga and jungles. I thought it'd be fun if their coloration was mostly based on camouflage! so they have blue undersides to blend into the sky when flying and green/brown flanks to blend into the vegetation when walking around. They reflect this in their outfits!

I was mostly thinking of jaguars, macaws, and horned beetles when designing these guys since they'd be in trees the most. They're all feather unlike the other 2 species and maybe they'd do a lot of climbing and running around like the nether guys, but with tools better equipped for the oveworld

and here's the full lineup! bbh is around 5'7 for reference for the avg height for the guys from the end, and the other 2 are avg heights for their respective species.

this doesn't really have any basis in the actual dsmp, i was just messing around :P I also haven't forgotten that bbh is 9'6 or something, and I plan to share my thoughts and designs for that too!! ^^

[risu5waffles]

And a rare score of TEN from Sweden.

i don't know what that's even supposed to mean. What sport would i possibly be playing at the international stage? Competitive Vague Weird Girlery? Whatever. i decided we'd work wiv TEN for this bit, and i'm sticking to it.

A fun enough level for what it is. i always feel like, when i run into these old, straight-forward races, that they must have been a hoot multiplayer. You can still get a feel for it, but it's just not the same by yourself.

This is a cute little one. It's rare to run into one of the old Pitagora Switch levels that actually still run, tho' this one is probably saved by having no pistons in the mix. Even then, you can see some of the bigger dominos really struggling wiv momentum. i'm glad it all ran smooth in the end.

Those bikes were always so easy to turn turtle, weren't they? i don't know what was going on at the midpoint of the level, maybe if i had waited around longer an elevator would have dropped, but i figured it was broken, so i took the scenic route of "LBP1 players didn't know they'd eventually add 16layers to the game." i was lucky the scoreboard was on the floor. i've run into levels on stream where we could use that trick to get around a break, but the scoreboard was up someplace we couldn't access anymore. i think it's kind of cute i'm the only person who beat this level. Like, even the creator said, "i dunno, it's kinda shite, tho'?" i didn't think it was shite, Snakeryder. Not, perhaps, particularly great, but i had my fun wiv it.

We talked about this one last Friday. It's still as weird as it was then.

So... this one starts as a "save the kids, destroy the kindergarten" level, and it ends as an offroading, mountain climbing adventure(?). Really liked the 4WD, it was a neat little vehicle, and i'm wondering how they set up the suspension. The first half is definitely the stronger bit, a lot of little details, or at least as far as we could get from simple LBP1 techniques. It's fun enough, and worth a quick playthrough.

We talked about this one a little along wiv Vanilla Breeze last week, and it's still a neat, inventive, artistic, frustrating as heck piece of work. Like i love the presentation, and i dig what Kipmonlin was trying to pull off, but gods... just such a pain in the butt from almost start to finish. i wonder how this played natively in LBP2. i know the jump off paint technique doesn't quite work in LBP3 the way it did back then; but i don't think translation would account for things like how poorly the sackbots track you during the paint the targets bit. Still love the animated paint(? liquid? something?) bit. Like, that's just magical.

i wanted to like this one more than i ended up doing. Alpenglow02 does really good work, and there're some solid ideas here, but i feel like the presentation can get a bit confusing in what platforms you can actually interact wiv, and it's just a touch overbight. i really liked the sine wave platforms in concept, like, they're really cool to look at, but the longer section before the secret kirb was just miserable to try to time. i actually got to talk to Alpi some about that, and he did say that he struggles nailing proper difficulty at times, and that's a feeling i can definitely understand. That being said, the glowworms? Loved 'em. Neat effect, cute as heck, right level of challenge for the area. And the central mechanical conceit was a cool one that really added to the level. i feel like i've only seen folx go all in on that idea a couple of times, so it was really nice to see it here.

i am cursed by LBP1-era horrible gas. It is just the worst. i would have given this one more chance, but having to redo the entire slow section, just to get to a bit i could barely visibly read, get killed, and have to do it all over again? Like, i'm sorry, i really am, but i only have so much time to work wiv, and 14minutes was more than this one deserved. The submersible was nice, an interesting workaround to that kind of vehicle in LBP1, and i did dig on the eely enemies (even if they were a total pain in the bum to actually hit); but, yeah... this one really needed checkpoints.

A level that plays itself?! Naw dog, sorry, changes to physics and pistons makes this a level that throws you into spikes whether you touch the controller or not. i was disappointed, but it wasn't the creator's fault. Although, to be vaguely fair to Sumo, which is as much as i ever feel like doing, these kinds of levels tended to be fiddly even in their native state, and plenty of them wound up broken all on their own. Can't say for certain which is the case wiv this one.

i really wound up liking this one, even if i struggled wiv it at times. A really neat take on the Wedding theme, using a lot of the decorative and collected objects flourishes, but to its own ends. Really the best way these kinds of levels can end up. i'm going to have to go back to anrga7ightwish on one of our streams; i'd love to see if they have some other levels that'll click wiv me like this one did.

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

So, that's our TEN this go about. Some real nostalgic ones in there, and some very solid on-their-own standouts, and aside from the Minisub one, nothing i feel like i could walk away from and say i didn't enjoy at least something in them.

We're going into another really busy period here in meatspace. Well, kinda meatspace. i'm going to have to scramble after blowing through the entirety of a three week backlog on a mixture of a depression spiral (really bad) and gender clinic-ery (really good! But kind of annoying! But really good!). i want to try and rock up to the next clinic on Monday. Their website said there was no appointment necessary, which is good, because i couldn't get ahold of them by phone. i'd wanted to spend yesterday boning down (shut up, it doesn't mean that!) on some HRT specifics that i could talk to the doctor about. The scuttlebutt i've heard is Japan's not super great on what and how much they prescribe, and i want to be able to say to the doc "ok, but what about [X], [Y], and [Z]?" And not have to say, "[osmotically sourced, but ultimately vague, nimbus of knowledge from a dozen different conversations]" Like, i feel like specific details would help my case, but specific details are very much a sometimes treat when it comes to memory retention for me. i mean, even if i do get to talk to the doc, it won't be more than bloodwork, and initial talking points, but still. Here i am, i want to keep moving.

[internal-bleating]

So it took my subconscious long enough, but I FINALLY had a dream with Jack Horner in it and OF COURSE it was really fucking weird.

So first off, I was in this sort of Shrek AU where Shrek never did what he did so Farquad was still running the show with an ironfist and then at some point, idk how or when, Jack Horner sort of took control over from him? He also ruled over everyone with an ironfist(also the fairytale creatures were free to wander around the kingdom instead of being banished). And I think I remember him at some point saying something along the lines of "I want this to be a pleasent place to live but(something threatening about everyone obeying or else idk)"

And now we get into the weird part. The fuckin muppets had this entire underground rebellion opporation going on to take Jack Horner down. Ms. Piggy and Kermit even had a wedding at their secret home base before starting the more serious part of their plan cuz they weren't sure if they'd both make it out of this alive. Also Kermit and Jack had this very dramatic crime noir-esque scene where they both passed eachother on the street and without looking at eachother were like "I'm gonna take your ass down" in low serious voices.

I was pretty much a silent observer from above in most of the dream but there was one part where I was a part of the rebellion as a faceless unknown character with no describable features(I think i was a guy tho cuz I tend to be a guy in my dreams a lot?) and I had a couple of scenes, one of which where I was ranting to somone else in the rebellion about how there was nothing but city now and no more trees and I wanted to see a forest again(cuz Dulock/Far Far Away??? suddenly just, morphed into an endless sprawl of modern city as far as the eye could see and was surounded by a wall to keep everyone from leaving).

And I did somehow end up in a forest?? There were a couple of other people there too but they were all running and hiding from these big mechanical dogs which my dream implied were controlled and answered to Jack Horner(seriously what's up with Jack having machines and pistols and walkie talkies all of a sudden??) and they were hunting down these runaways. I could sort of float so I was able to avoid them for the most part, but then I started to float down and grabbed onto some tree branches to stop myself from sinking far down enough to be in reach of the mech dogs(I was sort of less affected by gravity and thats why I could float I guess). I started using the branches to launch myself back upwards by pushing off them, but then the mech dogs started CLIMBING THE TREES with their metal claws cuz I guess they sensed me. They ended up catching me I think and I was like "well shit there goes my place in the resistance..."

I also vaguely remember a part where there was this big gathering and a commotion happened and I guess it was backstory on how Jack gained control of everything? I can't really remember...

There was also this part where I was kind of just wandering down this endless row of outdoor cooking stations and when I got to the portion with the ovens I started freaking out cuz it was too hot and I was scared I was gonna get burned so that's fun lol.

[jameui]

GUILTY MISTAKE

PAIRING: Kang Yeosang x M!Reader

GENRE: Angst, Fluff

WARNINGS: M!reader bullying sweet baby Yeosang, bad friends

SUMMARY: You've made a huge mistake once when you were a child and it's been in your head for the rest of your life, haunting you unless you've done something about it.

Just last month, you had turned six years old and you couldn't be more happier. For some unknown reasons, you liked how you grew older after every year, mostly because you receive gifts from your mom and dad and, of course, your friends who were about a year older than you.

Every year, on your birthday, you'd get expensive items and presents that you have been wanting for so long and foods that you get to eat with your family and friends. Loud music booming through the speakers, giggling while you made jokes with your friends laughing at almost everything due to the excitement and adrenaline that rushed through your bodies.

But, once everything was over and you know that everyone had to leave, you just keep on wishing that it was your birthday everyday. That way, everyone could still have fun and be happy with you, but then again, where's the thrill in that? They'd probably grow tired of it.

Right now, you were playing with your toys that you received creating specific sounds that corresponds to the action you controlled them to do, when you heard the doorbell ring making you gasp with joy at the thought of having a guest paying a visit.

You stood up from your position, your short legs running towards the door as you reached for the knob and turned it to open the door for the person behind it. The door moves wide open and reveals a woman who didn't look quite older than your mother, while you smiled and looked up at her. "Good morning!" You greeted her.

The woman's eyes fell down to you, beaming with glee at your politeness. "A very good morning to you, too, deary." She replied. "Is your mom or dad around? We're actually new to the neighborhood. We just moved from Busan."

You nod your head to answer her as you walked up to your mother who was in the kitchen cooking lunch. "Mom, someone's at the door for you."

"Really? Who is it?" Your mother asked you, wiping her newly washed hands on her apron.

You shrugged your shoulder, holding onto your mom's hand. "Neighbor said she was new." You and your mom was now in front of the door and the two women greeted each other as the other woman handed out a basket to your mom while you waited patiently for your mom to give it to you.

As soon as she did, you waggled your small feet towards the table before you caught a glimpse of a kid, not much taller than you, peeking from behind his mother's pants. He looked scared and shy, but it seemed to you that he wanted to approach you, but he was just too timid to do so.

You gave him your million dollar smile that made the small boy giggle at your friendliness, you jumping down from where you sat with a small groan when you hit the floor. You ran back towards the door, now seeing the chubby boy whose tummy was curving like a small hill on his stomach.

He wore a blue tiny jumper that fit perfectly onto his body, with a striped long sleeves under his jumper, white socks and shoes that almost looked worn out. You approached the boy a comfortable distance away and looked behind the woman that looked to be like his mother, a wide smile still present on your face as you waved a hand at him hello.

The boy bashfully hid, only leaving his arm to be left seen while waving back at you hesitantly. You could see how much the boy struggled to make friends with you so you decided to close in on the distance leading your feet towards the boy and poked your head out that made the boy flinch. "Heya there!" You said, now standing in front of him as the little boy hid his eyes away from you. "Don't be scared. People tell me I'm kind." You giggled softly, the other boy glancing up at you before quickly looking away once again. "I'm M/n, by the way. How about you? What's your name?"

He looked up at you shyly and stammered. "I-I'm Yeothang."

"Yeothang? What a unique name." You beamed, but he shook his head to correct you.

"No, no. Yeothang."

"Oh, you got a lisp." You said at the sudden realization and he nodded his head. "So, Yeosang?" He nodded again. "Yeosang. You have a pretty name." You said, finally noticing the birth mark that decorated the side of his left eye. You gasped and pointed at it. "Wowza! You have a cool looking tattoo!"

"It'th... It'th not a tattoo, M/n." Small Yeosang said, hesitating to call you by your name. "Mommy told me it'th a birth mark."

"Ooh, a birth mark. I wish I had one just like yours." You pouted. "I've got nothing."

Yeosang giggles at you making you smile. "That'th okay, M/n." He said and looks at you with his small brown orbs. "You look great even without them." He said, before he sniffed due to his runny nose that caused a snot to fall from his nose.

You were able to see this and pulled the hem of your shirt to wipe it from his nose and smiled brightly at him, which in turn, earned you a face of shock from Yeosang. "There."

"But, I dirtied your shirt." He furrowed his brows.

You waved it off and gave him assurance. "Don't you worry. My clothes get cleaned pretty well, so it's alright." You told him. "Oh, hey, wanna eat the snack your mom gave us? I saw cookies there. I bet you love cookies."

He nods his head once and immediately, you took his wrist into your small hands that barely closed around it as you pulled him inside and to your kitchen table. You let Yeosang take a seat first, since he needed a little help from his small size. You were next to take seat, settling on the seat beside him. You opened the basket that was wrapped with a cling wrap to secure it properly.

You let yourself drool at the sight of all the delicious delicacies that was inside the basket. "That is a lot." You chuckled cutely, unable to decide which baked goods to eat first. Throughout your process of thinking, your mother and Yeosang's mother had finished their conversation and the latter was called over. Yeosang gave his mother a small 'coming', before climbing down the seat as you pouted. "You're leaving already."

"I'm afraid tho, M/n." Yeosang replied sadly as you thought.

You pondered for a moment before you hastily took a bunch of the delicacies from the basket and went down to give it to Yeosang. "Here. I want you to take this with you. Eat them, or else."

Yeosang nodded and gave you a look of delight at your kind and cute gesture. "I will, M/n." He said before he jogged off to his mother showing her what you gave to him.

"Bye, Sangie!"

"Bye, M/n."

The following day, you were with your friends by the children's playground playing a round of tag, you being the tagger. "Tag, you're it!" You yelled on top of your lungs once you were able to catch up with the smallest of your group of friends, who whined in protest and stomped his foot.

"I'm always 'it'! Why can't it be—"

"Can I play, too?" That all too familiar sweet, honey like voice came from behind him, taking all of your attentions as your head all turned to him and revealed the very shy Yeosang. "I know how to play the game. We uthed to play that back at home."

"Yeosang, of cour—" You were about to reply, but your friends' rejection to his action of joining cut you off.

"Ew, no way. We don't want your boogers and sticky green nose liquid on us. Get away!"

"Yeah, go away! We don't want you playing with us."

"Booger boy!"

"Go play in another playground!"

Those were the words that your friends threw at him that got you shocked from hearing what your friends were saying to Yeosang. Your eyes had widened in shock while you could clearly see the hurt in his eyes that was now glossy with his forming tears from the mean comments he received from your friends. You clearly didn't know there was something going on with your friends and Yeosang.

Yeosang's pleading eyes was placed onto you as he waited for your answer, fiddling with his fingers. Your friends were the best people you could ever have and losing them never crossed your thought, so to avoid this situation from happening, you did what you thought was going to keep them as your friends. "Sure. You can play with us." You said, which made Yeosang hopefully smile, but he immediately took it back from what he heard next from you. "If you weren't so disgusting."

At that, you smirked and all your friends bursted out laughing giving you a clap at the back, the dejected Yeosang hanging his head low, feeling embarrassed. Although he was shamed upon, he still knew you had that kindness inside you and guessed you might have done that for a reason, so he gleamed and looked back at you. "Alright. Maybe next time? When I'm not snot booger rocket anymore." He snorted while laughing that made you all look at him like he's a weirdo.

"Go away! We never want to play with you, again."

And what you thought was just a one time thing, became a permanent bullying towards the poor little boy who only wanted to make friends and play with you. Before they left Busan, he had promised his mom that he wouldn't be the shy boy his parents knew him as, and become friends with the children at their new home, but it looked it was 'friends' that didn't want him.

Their first day, the day he met you, he was so excited and happy that he was able to make a friend, even if it were you who was the first one to approach him. He admired how you were so brave to befriend him and your politeness was one of the things he praised you for. He also thought you were a really kind and friendly kid, but looking at it now, it looked like he was wrong as he was once again rejected to play with you, seating on one of the swings that were a far distance away from where you and your friends played tag.

He sighed, but he didn't want to give up that easily so he ran to you while giggling repeating the words, 'I wanna play' over and over again which got to your friends' nerves, to the point where one of them pushed Yeosang to the ground which got your mouth gaping at the shock, while Yeosang stared up the person who pushed him, eyes starting to swell with tears. As though the fact that he was pushed to the ground wasn't enough, the same person kicked him by the leg which got Yeosang shouting in pain, before standing back up crying and ran home.

You made your way to your friends and glared at them. "Hey, that was too much."

"Why do you care so much?" He sassed at you. "He deserved it."

Your glare didn't falter, but softened when your eyes caught sight of a crying Yeosang. While your friends started to pile up in the middle of the place, you were still caught up in your thoughts, wishing you had just been nice to Yeosang and left your friends for treating Yeosang like that.

Yeosang didn't deserve it. He was a sweet, innocent and kind-hearted boy. He was too pure for this world. He didn't even give up once on trying to be friends with you, but all you ever did was tease him and mock him, call him names like 'booger boy' as you all called him as, 'weirdo', and all sorts of things. Finally realizing your fault, you sighed and regretted the treatment you gave Yeosang. "Sangie..."

A month or so after, you heard about the Kang family moving to another neighborhood which made you feel so bad and hate yourself totally. You didn't even get to say your sorry to Yeosang properly. The little boy never again showed up at the playground and only did when he was asked to throw the trash, all bundled up under so much clothings, since it was winter. That was the only moment you could ever see him.

You rushed out of your house and saw that they were now entering their car, you zoomed across the street and called Yeosang. "Yeosag, Yeosang! Wait!"

This got his attention, snapping his head towards you with a big smile. "M/n! You came to thee me off?" He giggled, making you feel guilty.

You shook your head and knitted your brows. "Why are you leaving? Where are you going?" You asked all in one go.

"We're moving back to Buthan, thince mom wath able to find a plathe there where it'th rent free and could all fit uth in." Then, he leaned in close to your ear to whisper. "Don't worry. I never told mom that your friendth hated me." He giggled secretly.

"Sangie... I also did bad things to you.." You told him sadly.

"I know." Yeosang smiled. "But, I know you didn't do it on purpothe."

"Yeosang, the car's about to leave."

"Oh, I gotta go now. Bye, M/n." He said and waved you goodbye while entering the cab and rolled the windows down while he smiled up at you. "Hope to thee you thoon again, M/n." He said one last time before the car drove off to their destination.

And there it goes. Your last chance to say sorry. Lost. Now, you're left with a lingering feeling of pure guilt and regret.

-------

Years after and you have disbanded with your friends, you are still living with the regret that you made from when you were young. You had just turned 18 years old last month and you were even sadder than the last. Instead of wishing gifts and presents from your new found friends and families, you were only wishing for Yeosang to come back so you could just tell him how much you were sorry and hug him so tightly that he wouldn't be able to breathe.

Your sullen look was noticed by your mother, who by the way, already knew your sin towards Yeosang since you had told her about it already. The first time you told her, she was aggravated with you for not being the child she had raised you to be. You told her the purpose of your action, thus the reason why you left your friend group and boy was your mom right to have let you leave them. What once was playful, turned harsh and violent and you didn't want to be a part of that. "What's wrong, honey? Don't you like your gifts?" Your mother asked you in concern.

You shook your head and sighed. "It's not that. I'm just... feeling like a total jerk."

Your mother sighed at you sadly and sat down beside you, patting you lightly on the back. "Honey, what you've done was wrong, but trust me when I say that Yeosang has a kind heart and if you ever tell him you're sorry, he'd forgive you right away."

"Thanks, mom." You said. "But, people change as they grow."

"Not Yeosang."

You rolled your eyes at your mom with a smirk. "Sure mom. Not Yeosang." You shook your head in disbelief. "I just wish you're right, mom."

You stood up from your seat, as your mother did and walked your way out the door taking in the fresh air of the morning during spring season, when all the trees stood straight and tall, the flowers blooming with all their beauty. You smiled at the sight and took the camera that was hanging by your neck, over a sling and took a picture of the ethereal scenery.

You walked past your porch and started heading to the park to get some takes on your camera to post on your Instagram to entertain your million followers. As you did, you were able to pass by an ice cream stall, so you took a quick stop and bought three scoops of (favorite ice cream flavor) with chocolate syrup and sprinkles to top it off.

You were wearing a smile, happily licking your ice cream away. You let your eyes explore the world around you, finding everything interesting. All these years, the place had been making a lot of changes. From buildings to parks and work towers, everything just felt new, as if you never got to spend time, at least once visiting these places throughout you're whole eighteen years of existence.

You finally arrived at the park, everything from your childhood flashing back through your head. The once only a children's playground is now a family park, but rather than being reminded by the joyous memories, you were able to remember the memory that's been haunting you for life.

You couldn't believe yourself that you had the ability to bully such an innocent kid, while you kept blaming yourself for their sudden moving away. If you had the power to turn back time, you'd make things right with Yeosang and be a better friend to him, which you couldn't do because you wanted to be with the 'cool kids' when all they ever did was make a person's life miserable.

You found a bench to seat on and checked through the pictures you took on your camera, laughing at a video of Mingi getting drunk with Yunho, carrying him like he was a puppy. You just missed those two so bad. You never got another chance to meet them, not even once, since they're both now busy with their job and you're still here trying to find a way to pass the college entrance examination.

Whenever they're around, you three would always be loud as fuck and wouldn't care a thing about the world, just as long as you three are happy. Of course, you didn't go too far just to be happy, unlike the friends you once had.

You still had the smile on as you sighed satisfied and rested your camera back down to let it hang on your neck. You looked around you and saw children playing by the fountain, their parents watching with glee at the sight of their children playing happily. You grabbed your camera and took a picture of the wonderful scene.

You took a few more shots, satisfied, you were finally about to leave with not much else to do, when in a distance you heard a gruff voice call out to you. "M/n? Didn't expect to see you here."

You looked behind you to see Mingi who was in his suit holding a case, his golden wrist watch shining brightly under the sun's light. You smirked and scoffed. "I could tell you the same thing." You said all the while crossing your arms over your chest. "Mingi, are you slacking off?"

Mingi rolled his eyes at your teasing. "I take my job seriously, M/n. I'm not the same person who cuts classes."

"Sure. Sure." You mocked him, while he glared at you. "Anyways, how are you and Yunho doing?"

The brown haired male smiled at the thought of the taller male and sighed. "Oh, you know. The usual. Us missing you and wanting to baby you."

This time, it was you who rolled your eyes, the smirk on your face growing wider, if possible. "You both still on that?"

"Well, you're pretty much the reason how we got together. So, it's just a way of us showing our gratitude for having you in our life." Mingi patted your head making you giggle at the simple contact.

"I just hated how you two were so dense with all the signs you both tried so hard to make the other notice. I had to do something, at least." You said.

"But, weren't you the one who told me you had feelings for Yunho?" He teasingly wiggled his brows at you, making you blush profusely.

"Shut up. There are pasts that should be forgotten and it includes that." You huffed, puffing up your cheeks making you look like a little squirrel. "And you promised we would never speak of this ever again." You pulled your brows in disappointment, looking up at him. "All you do is lie."

"Hey, hey. I don't go that far." Mingi defended himself, before pulling you into his arms to hug you. "But, if you're so embarrassed about it, it'll be just our little secret."

"Don't even promise me if you're just going to break them in the end." You deadpanned making Mingi let out a deep voiced chuckle.

"Alright."

Soon, the two of you parted ways, waving your hands to each other to say goodbye. You were making your way back home, when you noticed a moving truck from the house next door. A new neighbor? You walked up to the truck driver to greet her and do some important interview. "Good morning, ma'am. Did someone just move in?"

"Oh, nice to see friendly faces up in here." She chuckled. "It's not everyday you get the luck to meet one." She sighs from her aching back, before exhaling deeply. "Yeah. Rich families, to be exact. Paid me a good tip." She said making you giggle.

"I see." You laughed lightly. "Well, have a great day, ma'am. Hope to see you, again." You waved her goodbye, the woman doing the same to you.

You hummed to a song as you finished your walk, now in front of your porch, your mom tending with her flowers. "Had a good day, honey?"

"Better than great." You replied. "I met Mingi on his way to his job. Thought he was slacking off like he usually does." You chortled, earning a playful slap on the back from your mom.

"Oh, you." She told you before she led you inside and went straight to the kitchen. "Oh, by the way, have you met the new neighbors next door?"

"Nope." You answered, popping the 'p' with a purse of your lips at the end, then sat down on a seat excited to eat the apple pie your mother made while you were away. Once, it got placed down on the table, you hurriedly dug in with your barehands, but before you could, your mother slapped your hand making you pout as she folded her gardening apron.

"That's for the neighbors." She informed you, your mouth opening in understanding while nodding your head. "And I'm letting you do the honors to give this to them, since I believe, the new neighbors' son was a friend of yours."

"A friend? Who?" You asked with a raised brow, but your mother only gave you a wink and carefully hands you the apple pie. With no other choice, you stood up and wore your bunny slippers, too lazy to put your shoes back on, as you headed to the house next door.

You walked up the small stairs that led up to the house's front door and knocked three times. You waited for a reply, but you received nothing, so you waited before knocking on the door, once again just in case they didn't hear you.

Alas, a male's voice was heard, shouting a loud 'coming' to inform you that someone was finally coming for the door. You stood there patiently with a smile, practicing in your head what you will have to say to the male. The door soon flew open and appeared a tall man, who looked freakishly handsome, his features flawless that it's making it hard for you to look away. He was so surreal. Like a character pulled straight out from a comic.

You tried to utter a word, but the lines you prepared in your head was long forgotten. "Uh..." Was the only word you could ever stable.

"Er.. Is that for us?" The male asked you, snapping you from your thoughts and nodding your head, taking notice of the small lisp he had with the letter 's'.

"Uh, yeah, yeah. It's for you and your family." You said. "It's actually a tradition, so we make the new neighbors feel welcome." You added and slowly gave it to the male infront of you, a smile gracing upon his features. Goodness, his smile is so stunning.

He accepted the gift and took it into his hands. You bowed curtly and had decided to make your way back, when the male had caught your attention. "Wait, don't go just yet. Why don't you come inside and have a bite?"

And who were you to turn down an offer from a cute guy? "Uhm, er, sure. Yeah, I'd love to." He lets you walk inside first as he closes the door, a small creak and click coming from it.

"Hol'up, you're not a pedophile, are you?" You suddenly asked out of fear. "There's been a lot of news going on around the world and I've prepared my whole life, so I can fight you."

"No, no. For sure, I'm not." He said as he walked by past you, leading the way to the kitchen to guide you. Once you two made it to the kitchen, the things on the table were cleared, the car keys hiding it in his pockets. "Take a seat. I'll go grab some plates."

"Your mom and dad?" You asked out of the blue, making him chuckle.

"You're so full of questions." He told you. "They're buying groceries."

"Oh." You let out silently, sitting down while fiddling with your fingers since you got nothing else to do.

The male came back with what he intended to get and placed one on your side, then one on his, moving to the kitchen isle to get a knife to cut the pie. "So, how's your life going?"

You thought for while taking a long deep breathe. "Well, I guess you could pretty much say, complicated." You answered and when he didn't speak back to let you keep on talking, you continued. "There's days where I feel so happy, then there are days where I feel miserable." You looked up at him while he cuts the pie. "I just wish... I..." You trailed off once you were able to catch a glimpse of the discoloration of a certain area on the side of his head. Wait a minute. That birthmark...

The moment you were able to figure it out, you jumped up from your seat and widened your eyes in shock. "Yeo.. Yeosang..?"

He let out a small chuckle, before stopping his actions and looking up at you. "So, you saw my tattoo, huh?"

You couldn't believe it. He was back, but different. He's no longer the chubby little boy with snot running down his nose, he's now a total hottie and he's even taller than you already. "O-oh my gosh.. Yeosang.. You look so.. different."

"Well, I wanted to be your friend badly, I decided to change for you, but it was also a self-decision, so don't feel so bad, M/n." Yeosang said. He did change, but his personality is still the same old Yeosang.

"Yeosang, I was your friend. I was just a coward." You sadly said, your guilt even growing bigger. "I'm so sorry."

Yeosang moved to your side and pulled you into his arms, the strong scent of something sweet and musky all at the same time, tickling your nose. His embrace was so warm and caring that you never wanted him to pull away. "M/n, I have forgiven you a long time ago, already. You don't have to say sorry, anymore."

"Just let me do it, Sang. The thought of not being able to see you again keeps plaguing me for days." You admitted. "I kept on blaming myself that I was the reason why you moved away."

"No, M/n, you're not. Please, don't be hard on yourself." He said, caressing your hair. "It was a family business, so we had to move to a place near dad's work place."

You gave him a light punch and stifled a laugh. "You should have told me sooner."

You both got into a comfortable silence, before Yeosang decided to break it. "Well, how about we eat and catch up on each others' lives, yeah?"

"That sounds lovely."