#this ones probably gonna be the longest one by far i just went a little insane. they wont all be this long or ill fucking die

[spearxwind]

For the prose thing ... Hunters getting devoured by Talas during a storm?

Like... They see the purple light under the waves... Just how big that leviathan is... And then he emerges. Also! I suppose since Talas is a hunter himself, he'd be quite smart about fighting them. Would maybe also terrify these guys. I wonder if they'd figure out in their last moments that this infamous leviathan is also a person.

And storm for cool setting. And you like storms, so yay, storms!(?)

Could be the story to your current header... ?

A story for my current header sounds GREAT, actually :] I may have gone a bit too overboard (heh) just bc it was a fun prompt and I am not immune to ocean violence. Whole thing is under the readmore. Hope you enjoy?? 😳😳😳

Oh and, in case I change my banner, here is the post with the full image in it

-----

Something was tugging at the lines. Hard. 

It caught the crew by surprise, as their prey had been long weakened, and the hooks in it had simply been set to reel in the body for transport. The vessel had been made to fight gigantic creatures, leviathans. It had been fit to reel in the massive creatures, once dead or dying, and tug them to shore. But this? This was too much. The strain on the cables was immense, the gears on the mechanisms screeching from the pressure. 

“Shit. SHIT- We’re capsizing!” The bosun’s scream tore through the storm wind, panicking as they realized what was happening. “We have to loose the cables or we’re going under!” 

And yet, before anyone could react, the sudden resounding twang of one of the lines snapping made everyone pause in shock. Their galleon grade steel cables had snapped. And then another. And another. The pressure was violently lifted off of the boat, it’s straining engines suddenly jolting the boat in the opposite direction, the crewmembers thrown off of their feet and slammed onto the deck, just in time to see the culprit show itself. 

The massive head of a leviathan, impossibly huge, erupted from the ocean, the hunters’ quarry hanging limply from its jaws. The bosun raised their head up just long enough to see the tail disappear down the monster’s maw moments before the creature dove beneath the surface again, the omen of its purple glow now visible through the foam of the enraged waters. 

The Worldeater.

This was it then. The crew already knew. No one had encountered this thing and lived to tell the tale, especially if you saw it up close. As if on cue, it reared its head once more on the opposite side, knocking out the radio tower on the main mast, the trajectory of its bite headed directly for the deck. The jaws of the monster closed firmly around the ship, tendrils worming their way out of its throat and into every nook on the vessel to secure its fate further, grabbing any unfortunates on the way and dragging them to their end. Now the hull itself was fighting against the pressure, the groaning of the metal echoing through every hall, the roar of rushing water drowning out the panicked screaming from the crew as the sea poured into the vessel through the bite punctures. 

As the vessel was pulled completely under, the bosun was, somehow, still alive. At the mercy of the waves, surrounded by debris from their vessel. They wondered if they hid among the rubble, eventually the leviathan might leave and they may be able to flag a passing ship for a rescue. That was a good plan, right? Drowning wasn’t an issue after all. 

And yet. 

Through the warped frame of the already sinking wreck, its eye was honed in on them. A piercing glow ripping through the blackness of the storm. 

How could it have known they were there, when they were completely hidden? How could- 

They didn’t have time to finish the thought.

[slut4polidori]

𝖓𝖔𝖈𝖍𝖊 𝖉𝖊 𝖘𝖊𝖝𝖔

peso pluma

inspired by noche de sexo by wisin y yandel!!

it was late at night at houston hassan has just finished his last concert in texas for this tour im so happy for him and everything he’s accomplished so far

i make my way backstage waiting for hassan in his dressing room but for some reason the vibes backstage were not it,i wonder what’s going on i hope everything is alright.

i make my self comfortable back stage stuffing a raw cone for him so he can wind down a little bit after preforming such a great show, i put the cones down and here the door open and slam really hard which caused me to jump a little bit

“que pasa bebé?” i asked hassan standing up immediately walking over towards him i can see that something is wrong but i also don’t want to bother him

“ay nada princesa solo quiero ir al hotel a pasar la noche ya estoy cansado” he sighed pulling me into the warmest longest hug, i hate when he shuts his feelings out and doesn’t pay attention to my boundaries, that communication is everything in a relationship and i just wanna be there for him and listen to all of his problems and be his support system while he’s going through these stressful times so i just agree to his request so we can get out of here and i can see that pretty smile before closing my eyes for the night

time skip

the whole car ride back to the hotel was completely silent i can tell something went wrong or something happened he is not his usual self after a show especially a huge show like houston, that was probably his biggest one yet. i know he wants to tell me all about it i thought to myself checking him out a couple of times after going on that mental rant, he is so handsome. his hands the way he’s lightly choking the steering wheel is causing me to go crazy right now

“hassan por favor háblame papi me doy cuenta de que algo no está bien” i just wanted a couple of words out of him or even a shrug i don’t care i just wanna know what’s going on

“y/n mi vida ya basta” i look up at him rolling my eyes because i know he’s trying to be funny instead of trying to talk to me, he’s giving me an attitude right now for no reason and im not fucking with it

“pero que te pasa hassan no te he hecho nada para que me trates asi” he smacked his lips ignoring me for awhile, the hotel is pretty far away and he wanted to go on drive to ease his mind anyways so i know this is gonna be a LONG drive i sighed

“mira princesa, estoy muy frustrada en este momento y realmente no puedo hablar de eso ahora. Tiene algo que ver con méxico y mis conciertos” he sighed pulling into the parking lot of the hotel calling his security to meet us in the back and to escort us to our room. oh how that worried me but i know hassan and i know he’ll be okay so i nodded and waited for security, i was still a little bothered with how he treated me but i understand i just hope he thinks before he does that again.

hassan opens up the door allowing me to go in first and i smile at him thanking him i put my bags down and immediately grab my suitcase to look for some comfortable pajamas i can feel his eyes undressing me i smirked to myself thinking about what i can do to tease him just a little

i pulled down my skirt exposing my bare ass to him as i bent down to grab the skirt that fell to my ankles and throwing it in the hamper i turn around smiling at him and he’s just in awe

i love how he still makes me feel beautiful after the year we’ve been together he’s completely in love with my curves, i love his touch his long bony fingers and those vainy arms. i immediately start thinking about all these dirty thoughts which lead me to walk up to him just in my black bra and thong

“tócame por favor” i bit my lip grabbing his hands so he can grope me and manhandle me in any kind of way he wants too, i want him to take control and release any kind of angry and stress on my body tonight

the way my words and my actions just cause this man to go crazy makes me even more turned on the way that i have him wrapped around my finger is so sexy the thought of this causing me to get wetter and wetter

hassan quickly grabs my neck and starts giving me little kisses the way his hands wrap around me neck perfectly it’s like a little chocker such a perfect accessory, i bit my lip softly moaning leaning my neck to the side to give him more access and space

“pero qué bien hueles y sé que sabes igual de bien, ¿verdad, cariño?” hassan finally whispered out while grabbing the back of my bra to unhook it exposing my boobs to him his eyes went wide and he reached up to grab one licking his lips to lick it as well

i throw my head back in complete pleasure for his warm saliva on my cold nipple i grabbed on his hair lightly singling to him that i loved the sensation which made him suck on it causing me to let out a small moan that made hassan chuckle

“i wanna suck your dick” he flashes a big smile at me which lets me know that he likes this idea too i always loved to give hassan head it was probably my favorite thing to do all that sloppy saliva everywhere edging him every now and then using both of my hands to make him cum making sure to take him all in my mouth and throat his pulling of my hair and him uttering curse words grabbing my head causing me to go faster controlling my movements and my speed taking his dick in and out of my mouth smacking it on my face and lips ugh he just drives me crazy

i kneeled down in front of him stroking him outside of his pants which caused him to grab my face caressing my face and lips with his thumb i kissed it taking his grey sweatpants off along with his boxers licking ny lips just at the sight of him

i guide him into my mouth kissing his tip and grabbing the rest of him slowly putting him in my mouth fully taking in his size bobbing my head up and down waiting for his hands to take control and fuck my face i grab his thighs for support while he fucked my face aggressively causing me to gag in response and gripping his thighs

“mira mi niña hermosa” he said in awe i moaned just at those words causing him to chuckle and go deeper and slower i knew he was close but i didn’t want him to cum yet he knows how much i loved getting praised

i pulled away from him wiping away the messy saliva and lipstick he looks down at me with a slight annoyed expression on his face still on my knees in front of him

“no creas que hemos terminado y/n” he said in a strict manner and grabbed my wrist pulling me up towards him smiling at myself knowing what’s to come

✮✮✮ ✮✮✮ ✮✮✮ ✮✮✮ ✮✮✮ ✮✮✮ ✮✮✮ ✮✮✮ ✮✮✮

a/n ; his guys in finally starting to get back in the mood for writing but i had a similar request for this one but i just can’t find it anymore but this is one is specifically for you!! reminder: this is my first smut and english isn’t my main language so my mistake if the grammar is kind of messed up!! anyways i appreciate all the new followers!! please be more then welcomed to request for any person/character and any time of imagine (smut,fluff, etc!!) thank you for reading and i hope you enjoy pumpkins 🖤

[kaliforniahigh]

MEDUSA - Part Six.

This is the longest chapter so far. Finally they're letting some feelings show :')

Warnings: death threat, curse words, mentions of guns.

WC: 2.8k

Summary: Y/N is a private dancer at a Gentleman's Club called Medusa. Noah Sebastian is a crime boss. Their paths cross when one night, Noah pays for one of her dances and they can't seem to be apart from each other.

Series Masterlist

Noah was sitting on his chair in his office when he heard three knocks on the door. Telling the person behind it to come in, he saw Jolly with an envelope on his hands.

"Hey, this was left on the front door not too long ago. No one saw who delivered it and we didn't want to open it because it's addressed to you", he said, making his way into the office and handing Noah the envelope over the table.

"Well, I don't usually receive letters", he responded, with an edge of suspicion in his voice. "I'm gonna open it. Thank you, Jolly"

The other man nodded, and said if he needed anything, they were available, leaving and closing the door behind him. Noah looked over the envelope, seeing that it was indeed addressed to him, his full name written on the front. Flipping it over, there was nothing else written on the back.

Ripping the envelope open and taking out a piece of paper, he saw it was a handwritten letter. He unfolded it and began to read.

I know what you've been doing, lover boy. To be fair, she is a pretty little thing. I wouldn't be able to let her out of my eyesight either. Is she in your eyesight now? What do you think she is doing? Well, too bad whores don't always have a happy ending. Take care, JC.

Noah was used to receiving threats, they're not uncommon in his life and he has send out a few of his own. But they were always directed at him or one of the boys. But this one was a direct message to you.

His hands were shaking and he had to take his coat off because he suddently felt like he couldn't breath. He had to stop and think about what you were doing right now. It was night and you were probably at work. He had to get there as soon as possible. He couldn't afford to think that it was too late.

Before he got the chance to stand and make his way out, his phone rang. It was you. He picked up in a haste and wasn't able to get a word out before you were talking to him.

"Noah, oh my God. He sent me a threat, here, at work. I don't know what to do", he heard the desperation in your voice and he could tell you've been crying.

"I know, I got one as well. Listen, where are you right now?", he tried to talk as quickly as he can, not wanting to waste anymore time. Already grabbing his coat and wallet, making his way out of the room.

"I'm in the room where I usually meet clients. The envelope was on the chair and no one saw who delivered it. How can people not see someone coming in and out, Noah?", you said in disbelief.

"I need you to stay there. Are there keys on the door for you to lock them?"

"No, they don't leave the keys here for our safety. Noah, are you coming here?", your voice was small and he felt a pang in his chest.

"Yes, I'm on my way, honey. Stay on the phone with me, I'm not hanging up until I get there", he looked around and spotted one of his security guards, demanding that they check the security footage on the front door and yard. Running out of the door and getting in his car.

You went quiet, the only indicator that you were still on the line was your heavy breathing. The sound of a car speeding filling your ears.

"Noah, he called me a whore" you broke the silence and also his heart.

"You're not a whore, he only said those things to get to you. Don't let him get to you", he wished he could teleport to you and engulf you in his arms right this moment.

"He said no one cares about whores like me. I mean, he isn't wrong. All I'm good for is shaking my ass for some cash. If I'm gone tomorrow, they're just gonna replace for another pretty girl", you couldn't help but let your thoughts roam out loud.

"Please, don't say those things about yourself. I care about you and I'm coming to get you and nothing is gonna happen, ok?", you answered softly and he heard you take a sharp intake of breath on the other side. "I'm pulling up outside. I'll be there in a minute, don't worry. Can you meet me at the back entrance?"

"Yeah, I'll get my bag and meet you there", you answered, getting up from your position on the couch.

"Can't you come straight to the back entrance? I don't want you roaming around in there anymore than you need to", he tried not to be too paranoid as to not alarm you anymore. But every second that went by with you not by his side, was another second of him wondering if you were ok.

"Noah, I'm currently wearing a bra and panties. I have to get my bag. I'll stay on the phone", he didn't like it, but agreed nonetheless and told you to be quick.

In about three minutes, he saw you leaving. You spotted his car instantly and ran to it, getting in the passenger seat. He got your bag from your hands and put it in the backseat. You could feel the tension leaving your body as soon as you were in Noah's presence, finally feeling some sense of security.

"Noah, what am I gonna do?", you asked, running your hands over your face.

"You won't have to do anything. This is on me and I'm gonna keep you safe. You won't have to worry about that", you got a good look at him and realized that he actually thought this was his fault.

"This is not on you. I texted you, telling you to come here so I could give you the information. I fell into this by myself", you tried to reason.

"And I went to your house and gave you my number", he was unwavering and you decided that it wasn't worth it arguing about whose fault it was at the moment. "I'm gonna take you to a safehouse. I'm not gonna take you to my house because I got a note delivered there as well, so it isn't 100% safe", you only nodded, trying to grasp how your life did a complete 180 in just a few hours.

As he drove, he made a few calls, informing everyone of what's happened and giving orders of things he needed done. Not too long after, you were leaving civilization behind and all you could see were trees lininig the gravel road.

Noah took a right turn, the forest getting denser now, only giving way to the car driving through the marked path. You looked up through the windshield and you could barely see the sky above the top of the trees.

Stopping at a gate, you noticed a few men around the perimeter, all carrying guns on their hands and their holsters. You tried not to think about it. Just after the gate, Noah parked the car in front of a small wood cabin. Despite all those men outside and the situation you were in, you could admit that the place was beautiful.

Noah got out of the car and you followed suit, you noticed the wind was chilly and the air was clean. You looked up once again and as the trees swished from the gusts of air, you could see the sky was littered with stars.

"It's nice out here. I wish we were here under different circumstances, but I hope you enjoy the scenery anyways", he said, your bag was in his hands and you only nodded and gave a small smile. He led the way to the entrance. The lock was automatic, it read his fingerprint and you heard it unlock. You figured this place was only simple from the outside. It is a safehouse after all.

He got in and dropped your bag on a small table by the door. You looked around and there was a living room to your right and the kitchen to your left, a dining table between the two spaces.

"The bathroom is at the end of the corridor, your room is the door on the left and mine the door on the right", he pointed forward and you could see the doors leading to the rooms and the bathroom.

"I think I'm gonna take a shower", you looked at him and saw that he was taking his coat off, a simple black tank top underneath, revealing his tattooed arms and shoulders. For a second you were distracted by the way he moved. His biceps flexing as he reached up to hang his coat. His hair getting in his face, he pushed it out of his eyes as he turned around to aknowledge you.

"Yeah, are you hungry? I can make us something to eat", he totally caught you checking him out if the smirk on his face was any indicator.

"Sure, I'll be right back", you tried to get out of the situation as fast as possible. You just received a death threat, you did not need to have a crush on this man. Grabbing your bag, you made your way to the bathroom and locked the door.

Noah stayed in the living room, making sure everything was in it's place. He had someone come here and clean up every week, but he still wanted to check. He made his way to the bedroom you were going to be staying at. There were clean sheets and pillowcases already on the bed, so he didn't have to worry abou that.

Opening the fridge he started on the task of making you something to eat. A sub would have to suffice for now. He would get someone to pick up groceries later. He heard the bathromm door open and seconds later you came walking into the living room. You hair was wet and he could smell your perfume freshly applied. You were wearing a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie, looking rather comfortable.

You sat down in one of the chairs on the dining table. "What's on the menu for tonight?", you asked, trying to make light of the situation. You felt safe here and figured there was not much you could worry about for now.

He approached the table with one plate in each hand. "I made us a sandwich, I hope that's okay? I'll get someone to buy groceries so we can eat some actual food", he set one plate in front of you and sat down across the table.

"It's perfect, thank you", you really were grateful and you hoped he knew that. After a couple of bites, you couldn't contain your curiosity any longer. "What's gonna happen now?", you asked him.

"You'll have to stay here until we can get this problem solved", he answered, and you could tell he was holding something back.

"And how are you gonna get this problem solved?", you inquired. You felt like you knew how, but you wanted him to talk to you, you needed some sense of clarity amidst all this darkness.

He sighed out loud, setting his sandwich down on his plate and preparing himself to say this to you. He didn't want you knowing anymore than necessary, but since you were already dragged into this, the least he could do is be sincere with you.

"There's this group, you could say they're our competition. They want to take over the bussiness in the city and in order to do that, they have to eliminate my friends and I", you flinched when said "eliminate", he noticed, but continued nonetheless. "When I went to Medusa the first time we met, it was a recommendation from my friend, he said I needed a scape from this situation. Some of our shipments were stolen, some came with only half of the supplies and others disappeared all together. I was kind of losing my mind"

You were paying close attention to his words, he wasn't specific and you were curious about what they shipped from overseas, but refrained from asking. "That day I went to your house, we were at the port talking to our supplier when their group attacked us. They took us off guard but we were able to get out of there with only minor injuries", you smiled, knowing he was talking about Jolly and the fact that you patched him up that night.

"We think that was a test for what's to come", he said this part lower, half hoping you weren't going to hear him or that you wouldn't question it. That was proved wrong when you asked what that means as soon as the words left his lips.

"We have a big shipment coming soon, the biggest of the year. And we think that what you heard at the club can be a reference to that. They're gonna strike again, but this time they're gonna do it for real"

Noticing you were uneasy about this information, he tried to comfort you. "Thanks to you, now we are prepared and we can anticipate what is coming our way. You really helped us." He reached across the table to take your hand in his and give it a squeeze.

You appreciated the way he always tried to take care of your emotions, and even though you were in this situation now, you decided that you did the right thing by telling him what you heard.

When he went to your house unannounced, it made you so angry that you didn't see the way he took care of people around him. He was there because he was worried about one of his best friends. And now he is here with you because he is worried about you. You felt your heart soften for him more and more.

You both finished your sandwiches in silence, but it was comfortable rather than awkward, and you missed the warmth of his hand on top of yours.

You tried to take the plates to the sink to wash them, but Noah didn't let you, telling you to go to the living room instead, and pick something for you to watch and that he'll join you in a few minutes.

You saw an array of DVD's on the shelves on both sides of the TV. You tried to steer clear of any romantic movies or horror movies, so you picked My Neighbor Totoro, one of your favorites. You heard Noah let a hum of appreciation from behind you, pleased with your choice.

You noticed he sat two blankets on the couch, one for you and one for him. The couch wasn't too big, but still, you sat on one end of it and he sat on the other.

"I wish we had popcorn now", you noted and pouted a little.

"I'll make sure to add it to the list", he chuckled a little at your disappointment towards the lack of popcorn.

You both got quiet and settled into your spots to watch the movie. Halfway through, you could feel you eyelids getting heavier, sleep seeping into your body that has finally calmed down from the events of the day.

Noah looked over at you and saw your eyes closed, soft breaths leaving through your nose. He admired you for a few seconds, looking so soft bundled up under your blanket, so different from the tough woman that greeted him on your doorstep just a couple of days ago.

Het let you nap for a while, not wanting to disturb you, but as he started feeling tired himself, he decided it was smart to move to the bedroom. He tried to shake you awake, calling your name softly, but you stirred a little and went right back to sleep. He smiled to himself.

Decided to not leave you on the couch and risk you waking up with a stiff neck, he grabbed your legs and waist from under the cover, lifting you up with ease and carrying you to the bedroom. You arms instinctively went around his neck and you head rested on his shoulder. He shivered a little from your touch, but tried to not think about it.

You were under so much stress and he didn't want to feel inappropriate around you. You were beautiful and he couldn't deny his attraction towards you. But now wasn't the time to act on it. Maybe when this was all over, you would let him take you out on a date.

Setting you on the bed and covering you from head to toe, he smoothed you hair from your face. He closed the curtains so you wouldn't wake up with the sun in your eyes. Taking one last look at you, he softly closed the door behind him and went to his own room to rest for the night.

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Dividers: @cafekitsune

[trashpandacraft]

What are your cats' names? I love them very much 🥹

you are my favourite person. thank you so much for asking this and giving me a chance to talk about my cats, my precious terrible babies.

we have three cats, as you can see in this photo of them supervising me watering the garden yesterday.

the brown tabbies are brothers, and are two years old. the grey one was adopted at the same time, but is younger—about eighteen months. they're terrible. i adore them.

this is darcy. he's impossibly beautiful, so full of beauty that there's absolutely no space left in that precious little head of his for anything as trivial as thoughts. look at those eyes. his mind is absolutely empty.

darcy enjoys hanging his chin over things, feather toys, helping me manage any wool products that i'm using, sunbeams, yoghurt, tearing apart cardboard boxes, and being lightly thunked along his sides. does he like being pet like a normal cat? not really. what he loves is when you aggressively rub his sides up and down like you're trying to towel off a very wet dog, or when you play bongos on his ribs.

darcy is our babiest boy, and also the fanciest and most beautiful boy. he doesn't walk, he prances. his tail is an enormous peacock plume. his mouth is so so so pink. he's also our most timid boy—very friendly, but very cautious, especially when it comes to anything physical. big jump? no thank you, darcy will simply hop down to the floor and take the long way. he's our longest and probably our sturdiest cat, but he does not care to put that to the test.

this is bingley. you may notice, in these photos, that he's missing the paw on his front right leg. this is because he put every single one of his ability points into soft and didn't leave any for paw. he feels like this was a reasonable trade, and is entirely unbothered by its absence.

bingley likes sofa, plush fishie toys, biting and biting and biting his siblings, cotton, being tall, getting onto the bed by jumping directly on my face, and trucks and machines of all types. you have a spinning wheel? this guy is obsessed with spinning wheels. garbage is being picked up? he is tearing into the office so he can watch it out the window. toddler-ass behaviour, frankly.

darcy and bingley are brothers, and when we went to the shelter, we were told that they were a bonded pair, and that darcy relied on bingley for a lot of social cues. this was, at it turns out, 100% correct. darcy is timid and anxious and very reluctant to trust his own abilities; bingley is confident and loud and knows absolutely no fear. this cat has opinions, and by god he's gonna tell you about them. bingley makes the biggest jumps, and is the cat who figured out that he could jump from the knee-high cat tree to the top of the more-than-two-metres wardrobe. i'm honestly glad that he's missing a paw because i feel like if he weren't a tiny bit nerfed, he'd be A Threat. he is also far and away our smallest cat, even though he sometimes makes himself look quite large in photos.

this is goblet. goblet is rightfully called silver—my child named him, thus the thematic disconnect—but i have to admit that i've almost never called him that. you see, when we got him, he was very young, and he had hilariously oversized eyes and ears, which made him look like a goblin. a very small goblin. a goblet, if you will.

goblet likes food, the plastic bottle caps from sports drinks that he fishes out of the garbage, being in things (baskets, drawers, cat beds, etc), headbutts, having his belly rubbed, and sitting with his front paws tucked up very politely.

he's our most skittish boy—if there's a loud noise, he's gone—but also the snuggliest. which is great, because he's also the most trustworthy when it comes to craft supplies. if i pull out my knitting, there's like an 85% chance that he'll appear on my lap within ten minutes or so, and then he'll just hang out there. i've used his limbs to tension yarn before and he just purrs. he's sort of middle of the road on the bad life choices scale—too skittish to have bingley's eyes closed, three paws, can't lose attitude, but more confident than darcy. he's also the smartest cat.

additionally, he has weirdly, freakishly grippy paws. he's not polydactyl, but he very much uses his dewclaws like thumbs. he really holds on to things. it's messed up but also very charming, because he holds on to everything.

anyhow, thank you so so much for sending me this ask and giving me an excuse to tell you way more than you wanted to know about my cats!

[thefrontofmymind]

nothing's changed (teacher!ross x teacher!reader)

a/n: here she is! this was like the longest oneshot i think ive ever written. i would like to thank @hypersonic04 and @abiiors for letting me talk at them about this, i needed the encouragement.

WC: 7.1k

masterlist

The music in the crowded club was overbearing. You were never one for parties in your teenage years, and the same could be said for your two years so far at university. You could hardly think straight. 

Shuffling between the hoards of people–as drunk as you wish you were, just so you could loosen up just a little–balancing the drinks for yourself, your flatmate, and her newest boyfriend. You quickly placed them on the table your group had set up shop at, the three glasses were moments away from slipping between your fingers.

“Last drink here, is that alright?” You flatmate, Ellie, yelled into your ear.

You nodded.

“Okay.” She took a sip of her vodka, lime and soda. “Some of Jack’s friends are at a bar like two minutes away, we were gonna link up with them for a while.”

You just nodded again. You were always going along with her, and her boyfriends’, plans. Ellie was always so much more social than you. You met the first week of your first semester at a Fresher’s party and you’d just clung on since then. 

For you, university was a means to an end, not for fun–because it was always more stressful than fun for you. The end in question; a fulfilled life. Living in a comfortable life with a job that you didn’t have to love, just not hate, in a flat that didn’t have to be the fanciest, just not the dingiest, in a historical city with good enough public transport. 

You downed your drink as fast as you could, just itching to get back to your flat to have a nice shower and to lay in your fresh sheets.

It was colder outside than what you remembered it being like only an hour ago, the wind had picked up and went right through the denim jacket that was wrapped tightly around you.

The three of you walked to the next bar. Jack had an arm around Ellie, pulling her into his side to keep her warm. You walked alone.

“So what are these friends like, then?” You asked on the way.

“They’re so nice! You’ll love them!” Ellie said excitedly. Obviously the four drinks she had at the last club had caught up to her.

“They’re good blokes,” Jack answered. “You’ll like ‘em, I think, a lot of them are into music stuff so you’ll get on with them.”

Pretty much the only thing Jack seemed to know about you was that you were studying music teaching, so if some of his friends–who you assumed would be just as…’lad-ish’ as him–had the same interests as you, perhaps this wouldn’t be a total drag of a night. Who knows, maybe you could even get one interesting conversation out of it.

You got through quite quickly, being a group of mostly women, the security guards ushered you three right in. This bar was a bit calmer; not as packed and they were playing music that was more than just electronic beeps over and over again.

Jack pointed out a group huddled in the corner. Probably around 10 people, all laughing with each other.

After multiple introductions of “I’m Ellie’s flatmate” you could finally get to the bar and get another drink. As you were waiting, a figure walked to stand beside you. One of the guys you’d just met, but for the life of you, you couldn’t remember his name in the blur of everyone you’d just met. …Ron? No that’s not right…Chris?

He smiled at you politely. It was only then that you realised you’d just been staring at his face with your eyebrows furrowed in thought. You quickly snapped out of it, focussing your gaze on the bartender who was slowly making her way through the hoard around you.

“So I didn’t catch it…what are you studying?” He asked.

“Music teaching, focusing on secondary school,” you answered.

“That’s cool,” he said. “I’m studying teaching too, history.”

“Are you a second year?”

“No, third. You?”

“Second.”

“Right…that’s why you asked me if I was second…” He said, seemingly mostly to himself. “I’m in a band though.”

“Oh! Really?” You asked with a smile.

Your drink was finally handed to you, but you stood at the bar and waited for…Ryan? To order.

“Yeah, with Matty and Adam over there…” He pointed to the group, though you had no way of knowing which of them was Matty and which was Adam. “I’m the bassist.”

“Always the coolest instrument!” You commented.

Once he’d gotten his pint, you both walked back over to the booth the group was currently occupying. You were glad it was more of a ‘sit down and drink and talk’ kind of bar and not a ‘dance with sweaty strangers in the dark’ kind of one. The man slid onto the end of the booth, before shoving the person next to him to shuffle over, then patting the newly made spot next to him. You sat down. It wasn’t a lot of room, but when he noticed, he kept an arm around your waist to keep you from slipping. The only thing you could think was just how comfortable it all felt.

“So this is Matty, the-uh-singer,” he said pointing to the guy next to him with square-framed glasses and a mop of dark hair on top of his head. A stark contrast from the buzzcut of the man with the arm around you.

“Oh c’mon I’m more than just the singer, Ross!” Ross! It was right on the tip of your tongue!

You barely even thought of Ellie, your safety, the rest of the night. You drank and chatted with Ross and you didn’t think you’d ever enjoyed someone’s company as much as his. Somehow, you both just understood each other, you agreed on everything.

The clock ticked on and the group began to get thinner and thinner. Ellie crouched next to you at your spot in the booth around 3.

“We were thinking of going home,” she said. You didn’t want to leave. You didn’t want to go back to being lonely and be forced to listen to Ellie and Jack have sex through the wall for the thousandth time. She saw your face. “Please! My feet are killing me and I just want to go home!”

“I’ll be happy to take you home if you don’t want to leave yet?” Ross piped in, looking at you.

You nodded without even thinking.

“Okay!” Ellie said. “See you later!”

Her and Jack were out the door in seconds flat, leaving you now with a group of only four strangers. Well, three strangers and Ross.

You joined in the conversation between the group for a while, but it was getting late and you were starting to get tired. You leant more into Ross, resting your head on his shoulder.

“Want me to take you home?” He whispered to you–now possible with just the last stragglers left in the bar.

You groaned. “Those two are probably fucking, I really don’t want to walk into that.”

He let out a small chuckle. “Well, do you want to come back to mine then?”

You knew what he meant with the question. And it was something you didn’t have to ponder on much at all.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

After saying your ‘goodbye’s and ‘it was great to meet you’s to the group, you and Ross left, his hands never leaving your waist as you let him out onto the street.

“It’s just down this way,” he said, nodding his head to further up the now pretty deserted street. “Couple minutes.”

On any other night, you would’ve been scared to walk around the city at night, but with Ross you just felt so safe. With a constant grip on your hand as you both walked, you never felt unsupported.

His flat was small–expected with him being a student like yourself. You noted the bass sitting on a stand in his living room, and the teetering stack of textbooks next to it.

“Do you want some tea or something?” He asked, moving to his kitchen to click the kettle on and get a bottle of milk out of the fridge. “I also have coffee if you want, but-y’know-it’s a bit late.”

“Tea sounds good,” you answered. “With two sugars, please?”

“Of course,” he said.

As he made the tea, you got comfortable on his sofa–taking off your trainers and settling into the corner of it. You began to daze out, your eyelids were getting heavier and heavier. You didn’t even notice them shut completely until you heard a light clank of Ross placing the two mugs on the coffee table. You jumped awake.

“Sorry! Didn’t mean to wake you!” He said.

You moved your legs from taking up the whole sofa so he could sit. Without words he pulled your feet onto his lap, like it was the most natural position in the world.

“I wasn’t asleep!”

“No, you’re right,” he answered. “Snoring with your eyes shut is always the make of someone wide awake.”

“Oh God, was I snoring?” You suddenly felt so insecure. Sure, you felt so comfortable with Ross but you still only met him a few hours prior, it wasn’t time for you to be so…honest.

“A little,” Ross said. “More like little snorts, it was cute.”

You couldn’t help but blush a little. “You’ll need to play me a song one time.” You motioned to the teal bass on the other side of the room.

“Oh, I don’t know…Bass lines are so boring, they're like nothing.”

“Hello? You’re talking to a music student here!” You laughed. “If anyone would appreciate bass, it’s me.”

“One day then…” He grinned.

Conversation was just so easy. Even in your exhausted half-asleep state, you were never bored and it all just flowed so easily. Somehow talking to Ross–now alone–woke you up.

You weren’t sure when it happened, but somehow, you’d scooched down the whole length of the sofa, and were perched in Ross’ lap, wrapped in his arms.

Your faces were so close together, it would’ve been weird if you didn’t kiss him. And boy, were you glad you did. You've watched so many movies throughout your life where they talk about fireworks with the perfect kiss, and you thought it was just a movie cliche, until now. His kiss was warm, but somehow at the same time, like a breeze of fresh air. There was no awkward shuffling around, you both just fit together so well.

You felt his tongue swipe across your lips, you opened them. As the kiss got deeper and deeper, you both got more and more handsy–roaming around each others’ bodies, discovering every curve and outline of each other.

Eventually you had to part for a proper breath, though you didn’t stray far, keeping your forehead resting against his.

“Hi,” you said once you’d both opened your eyes again.

“Hi,” he chuckled.

You wanted to go further, you really did, but fatigue was hitting all your muscles at once, you couldn’t go on.

“I’m sorry…I’m really tired,” you said.

“Don’t apologise, it’s okay,” Ross answered. “Do you want to just go to bed here?”

You nodded. “Do you have like a shirt or something I could change into?”

“Yeah, of course.”

It felt like when you were a kid after a long summer day, so exhausted and yearning for the comfort of rest. Ross’ bed welcomed you well, so cosy and soft you practically sank into it.

You’d never gotten to sleep easier than that night, in the arms of a stranger who you felt like you’d known forever.

~~~

You thought after you were out of school, the end of summer wouldn’t affect you as much. Though you didn’t take into account that the end of summer would mean the start of your working year.

For some reason you were nervous–a new school with new students and new coworkers to meet, but that wasn’t something foreign to you. It was your sixth school, your second as a full time teacher. This time you were replacing a retiree, big shoes to fill.

You walked through the hall that would take you to your class, a route you took a couple times during the summer to prep the room and make sure you knew the layout just a little–though the ladies in the reception office were kind enough to give you a printout of a map of the school, you never were all that great with anything visual.

You got there early, there was a staff meeting before the start of the day and you wouldn’t miss it for the world. After setting up the room for your first class, Year 9’s, you headed off. You weren’t alone in the route, a woman about your age came out of the room next to yours.

“You must be the new music teacher!” She said. “I’m Lou, drama teacher.”

After introducing yourself, you both walked together. You couldn’t quite hide your nerves, you’d never been able to hide any emotion well.

“Don’t be nervous, alright?” She placed a reassuring hand on your forearm. “After the old bag Higgins before you, the bar could not be any lower.”

“So I won’t be hazed or anything?” You joked.

“God, no! Some of us threw a party the day he announced his retirement!”

You smiled. At least now some of your fears were alleviated.

But just as some fear left you, your blood ran cold with shock as you walked into the staff room. Standing at the coffee machine, was the man you hadn’t seen since you were in university, the man that still had the power to shatter your heart into a million pieces now over a decade after you last spoke. Ross.

He was bigger–burlier–than before. And his hair was long, tied up neatly in a small bun on the crown of his head. You were surprised at how he pretty much looked the exact same, just different. You could tell his skin had seen a good handful of sunny days, and as he squinted to look at the screen of the fancy coffee machine, you could see the lines on the corners of his eyes that showed a decade full of smiles and laughter.

Lou stared at you, as you stared at him. You were frozen in place, silent as a church mouse. Once the new figure had caught his eye, he saw you.

“Hi…” He said. And seemingly without thinking, his feet brought him to stand in front of you and his arms independently wrapped you in a hug–a hug you hadn’t had in years.

“It’s been forever!” You squeezed him as tight as you could.

In the elation you felt, you realised that a coworker who you’d only known for about five minutes was still standing next to you two.

“So you know each other then?” She asked.

“We went to uni together!” Ross grinned. How you missed his smile.

The headmistress, Janine–your boss–entered the staff room.

“I see you’re getting to know the rest of the team,” she said, sternly.

“Old friends catching up, Janine,” Ross answered.

The whole staff sat down at the tables around the room as Janine called to attention. You panicked for a second–suddenly you were back to worrying about who to sit with–until Ross pulled a chair next to the one he’d settled in.

~~~

You woke up to glaring sunlight, and an unfamiliar bed. You quickly put the pieces together from the night before; the bar, and Ross, and his flat. 

You could hear his TV on through the closed bedroom door. You didn’t know why you were trying to be quiet, maybe somehow Ross forgot about your existence and you didn’t want to frighten him. Opening the door, you were met with the sight of Ross on the sofa, watching an old episode of Gavin And Stacey.

“Good morning,” you said, all gravelly.

“Morning.”

He didn’t look at all ill at ease, unlike you. He was ever so relaxed lounging on the sofa with his legs taking up the whole length of it.

“Can I sit?” You asked.

He patted his lap. It was a bold move, but one that you wouldn’t say no to. You laid on top of him on the sofa, shuffling a little to get comfortable. You instantly felt warmer as he held you. 

“I’m sorry about last night?” You said.

“What d’you mean?”

“Like you bringing me here and then us not…you know.”

“Oh, don’t apologise,” he scoffed. “I didn’t…ask for it.”

“Well you kind of did…”

“I was doing a favour for a friend,” he answered. “You needed a place to stay, and I had a place.”

“So we’re friends then…” You said–more to yourself than to Ross.

“If you want to be.” You felt his hand on the small of your back grip like the tiniest bit tighter.

“I don’t know if I could be just a friend,” You said. “But I’m not…ready to be more than a friend.”

“I’m sure we could figure out an arrangement.”

And you kissed him. Even with the morning breath and the awkward angle, it had as much heat and fire as you kiss from the night before. This was definitely something you couldn’t give up.

~~~

Ross was kind enough to walk you back to your class. ‘In case you get lost’ was his reasoning–not that you complained. You two got right back into the rhythm of the past, talking like you hadn’t spent years desperately not trying to look each other up to see what you both were up to.

It was kind of strange. It was like you’d been transported back to being your nineteen year old self again, anxiety and all. Though like then, simply Ross’ presence was enough to calm you. It was muscle memory, walking close enough to him to feel the warmth off his skin and keeping the pace to keep up with him.

Saying goodbye to him at your door, it was hard to not ask him to stay–like old times, though now he really couldn’t stay, and no badgering and begging would be able to convince him.

You just couldn’t fathom your luck. Out of thousands of schools you could’ve worked at, the one that hired you was the one he worked at. You thought you would never see him again after…everything. You didn’t realise that you were very well close to losing that vivid memory of his face, his smile, the joy he brought to a room.

Your morning lessons were spent trying not to think of him. You were working, you had to focus. Your students weren’t nearly as intimidating as you thought they would be, it seems they all had the same sentiment for your predecessor as your coworkers had. 

And by lunchtime, you already had a few favourites. A group of Year 10s who sat at the very front of the room and constantly asked you questions about yourself instead of the material you were teaching–Hayley, Daniel and Lily. You told them a little; where you grew up, the music you liked as a teenager, and you may have let it slip that you knew a teacher, though you managed to catch yourself before letting them in on who. You didn’t quite know how to approach all this, you didn’t know quite what you could say. You should talk to Ross first, it won’t be an easy conversation but it has to be talked out.

You didn’t have to wait long, because as you sat at the desk in your classroom, fiddling with the salad you brought from home while going over your lesson plans, you heard a knock on the door.

“Yes?” You said, trying to put on your best ‘teacher voice’.

“It’s me.” A voice you recognised very well.

Ross stepped into your classroom–oh so gently, as if his steps had the capability to break the floorboards. He took a seat at the desk closest to you. 

“So how’s everything so far?” He asked. “No one giving you trouble?”

“Couldn’t ask for better pupils,” you answered with a smile.

“Good…I’d have to tell them off otherwise.”

You laughed. “I wouldn’t want to be on the receiving end of that!”

“Oh c’mon you know I’m not scary…” He leant in to whisper to you. “Just don’t tell all them.”

You were surprised at just how natural it all came back to the two of you, falling back into that groove. You had a great sense of relief, gaining more and more with each playful quip.

Though soon enough you heard the bell that meant the end of lunchtime, and Ross had to go back to his classroom.

“So I’ll see you, then,” you said to him.

“Yeah, coworker,” he smiled.

~~~

You got into a routine with Ross. You acted like friends most of the time, but with enough liquor or loneliness running through you, you couldn’t keep your hands off each other. You loved the exhilaration of sneaking away on nights out with your amalgamation of friends to get up to filthy things at whoever’s flat was closer–or a public bathroom or two if it was just too far of a trek.

All your friends pretended not to notice your looks at each other, not because they disapproved, it just wasn’t something you two either spoke about–even when Ross would spend the night at your flat and Ellie would get a fright in the morning seeing him making two cups of tea in the kitchen. It was more like an open secret, something people only knew about if they really paid attention.

You both still went on dates with other people, that was part of the appeal. You only wanted flings, and it seemed that no one else was on the same page as you–apart from Ross. And it worked the other way too, you knew Ross would go on just as many first dates as you, though he never really divulged to you like you did to him. You worried he didn’t want to hurt your feelings–like you could have your feelings hurt…

You were never as happy when you weren’t with him, sweaty and basking in the afterglow. You told each other everything, all your secrets, all your stories from your childhoods, everything you hoped for in the future. Something with the two of you just fit, call it fate or whatever else you believe in, but somehow you met at just the right time for it all to come together perfectly. Well, almost perfectly.

“Did you have any boyfriends when you were in school?” He asked one morning when you both had nowhere to be and made yourselves very comfortable in his bed.

“Jealous?” You laughed.

“Just making conversation…” He explained with a smile.

“There was one, Will, he was nice…” You answered. “And no one else of much importance.”

“Well what made him so important?” Ross asked.

“He was my first boyfriend, my first love, you know?”

Ross sighed. “Not really, not been in love before.”

“Really? Not ever?” You asked in disbelief.

“I guess I’ve just been too busy for it,” he answered.

You felt bad. As much as love had hurt you, it was a good kind of hurt, the kind you need in your life.

“It’s not that bad,” he continued. “I don’t lead a totally sad life.”

“I know…”

~~~

Your spine felt like jelly as you cleaned up your classroom after the end of the school day on your first Friday. A couple of the teachers you’d gotten close with had planned a little night out to welcome you–Ross included–and as much as you appreciated the gesture, nights out were never really your thing. You wondered if Ross told them, you wondered if they knew at all about your history. Though he was never much one for confrontation, that must’ve been it.

You were going to get a ride with Lou. You realised you both lived just a street away from each other and you really didn’t feel like forking out your entire life savings for one Uber ride. She’d become a sort of guardian angel for you–showing you the ropes in your first week. You had Ross as well, and he helped when he could, but you pretty much resided on opposite sides of the school and you couldn’t exactly go all the way to him every time you had a question or query. You’d gotten comfortable with your coworkers at school but not out of that very controlled environment, a night out would show the real you.

You’d chewed the ends of your fingers raw once you’d gotten home to shower and get properly ready. You were very quickly going into a spiral. What if I say something wrong? What if I get too drunk? What if I don’t get drunk enough and don’t enjoy myself? What if Ross has told them everything?

You checked your phone as you were waiting for your post-shower skincare to sink in. There was a text from Lou just to confirm your address and then another text from a contact you haven’t seen for years.

looking forward to tonight! see you there! -Ross

It took you by surprise. Not the message, itself, but the notion that he would have to sign off on a text, otherwise you wouldn’t know who it was. You smiled at the thought of him worrying that after all these years you’d deleted his number from your phone, and then when you realised he had kept your number just as long. You typed a reply.

you know me! buzzing for it! (no really, you know me…i’m giving it a go)

A bubble popped up immediately, showing he was typing. Like touching a hot pan, you instinctively threw your phone onto your bed the second you saw it. After a minute or so you looked at your phone again. No notifications. Must’ve been a mistake, you thought.

You got ready for the night. You hadn’t worn this much makeup in ages, but you thought for a special night, you should make the effort.

Lou was at your doorstep with an Uber in tow at 7 o’clock on the dot. You’d been so frantic with getting ready for the night and feeding your cat, Benny, and giving him enough attention to last him until you’d get home, you hadn’t checked your phone after that dreaded but brief conversation with Ross. You saw a text from him sent an hour after your last message.

good to know nothings changed!

With a yell of “bye, Benny!” you left with Lou.

“So now that we’re not working…” She started. “Can you tell me how you and Ross…know each other?”

You let out an awkward laugh. You did tell her that you couldn’t talk about it at school, you had the fear of God in you that a student could walk by at any moment and hear it all. But still, you hadn’t spoken to Ross about it, you didn’t want to overstep and embarrass him.

“We knew each other during uni,” you answered.

“Well I already knew that!” She said–a little too loud.

You laughed with her. “What has he told you?”

“That you two were friends…But I’m not stupid, I saw the way you two looked at each other.”

“It’s not my place to tell you everything.”

“So there is a story there!” She yelled.

You couldn’t help but laugh again, though not without a tinge of fear that that was enough for her to know everything in some psychic link between the two of you that you were unaware of.

The pub wasn’t far, you arrived at the curb in about fifteen minutes. Lou checked her phone as you both climbed out of the modern sedan.

“I got messages from Tracy and Nathan, they’re already here, and…Leanne isn’t far away.” She said. Upper English, Social Studies, and Phys Ed, respectively. You hadn’t met a single teacher so far who you didn’t like, everyone was so welcoming to you. Janine, the headmistress and your boss, on the other hand…It wasn’t that she didn’t like you, you figured she just liked things done a certain way and you didn’t exactly fit the mould there.

It was pretty busy inside–not a surprise for 7 o’clock on a Friday night–but it didn’t take you long to see the group who all excitedly yelled their ‘hello’s to you. You quickly got settled with a drink in the booth that Tracy was lucky enough to snag in the lively pub. Soon the group got bigger and bigger. Still, you had yet to see the man who could not stop invading your mind. 

By 9:30, you were yearning to see him–in all his newly grown-up glory.

At ten, you had become resigned to the fact that he was just not going to show up. All your worry and effort was for nothing. You didn’t think he would be like this, he was never like this. After his texts, and then his resounding absence, you truly didn’t know what he was getting at. You just wanted to hole up in your bed and try to forget this whole embarrassing ordeal.

“I think I’m gonna head home,” you said to Lou–admittedly slurring a little, time seemed to pass quicker, the more drinks you had.

“Would you mind going alone? I don’t-I’m not ready to leave just yet,” she answered, just as intelligible as you.

“No worries.” You pulled up the Uber app on your phone as you stepped out of the pub. You pulled your jacket closer to your body as a shiver ran up your spine, it was just beginning to get colder, though you could only really tell during the later hours.

The street was busy, people walking–or stumbling–by you, trying to find the next bar in their nightly crawl. Somehow, you got caught between two people at the most perfect–or imperfect–time. You tripped on one passerby’s foot and saw the pavement get shakily closer. 

Until two firm hands caught you by your shoulders.

“You alright, darling?” You could recognise that voice anywhere.

“Hi,” you said, finally looking up at Ross. There was a panicked look in his eye. “Yeah, you?”

“Yeah, I’m good,” he answered. You steadied yourself on your feet and you both floated closer to the front of the pub you were just in to avoid the foot traffic. “Sorry I’m late, Matty–you remember Matty?–his girlfriend broke up with him the other week and he’s been having a hard time, there was a crisis.”

You breathed a sigh of relief. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to come, he couldn’t.

“It’s all good,” you grinned. “I was actually just about to head off though…Tired.”

He let out a knowing chuckle. “Well could I come home with you?” He saw your eyes widen for just a second. “I mean, I was only coming to catch up with you…Pretty hard to do if you’re not there…”

“I’ve just ordered an Uber,” you said without even thinking. Not like you had to think, the answer would always be a ‘yes’.

You couldn’t stop looking at him while you waited for the car. He looked more confident than when you’d seen him last, like he was easily carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders–and was happy to do so. You barely even noticed that your hand was in his until he squeezed it to get your attention.

“You alright?” He asked. “With all this?”

You didn’t quite know what he meant. With the job, this night out, or him. But the answer was the same for all of the above. You nodded. He smiled, and in an act that felt as natural as breathing, he brought your hands up to his lips to place a kiss on the back of your much-too-cold hand. It was the kind of kiss you’d see with a couple married for decades, nothing too passionate but with just enough love–that frightened you just a little, if you were completely honest.

The ride was silent. You daren’t utter a word for fear that Ross would know how you felt about his warm palm planted firmly on your thigh.

At your flat, you made tea for the two of you. You couldn’t help but reminisce on the first night you knew him, when he brought you back to his tiny flat in the middle of Manchester and was kind enough to be your friend. It was strange how your life seemed so cyclical.

It was quite cold in your flat, you always worried if you turned on the heating when you were out that Benny would get too hot. Speaking of the dark grey feline, you noticed him jump when you came home not alone, he quickly retreated to his cat tree in the corner of your living space. You just laughed and told Ross that he did that with everyone he didn’t know.

You handed Ross his cup of tea–no sugar with just a splash of milk and eye-wateringly strong–and sat down on the sofa next to him. 

You were transported to that night in your second year of uni, the night you started your friendship with Ross. A night when you could’ve been swallowed whole by your loneliness, but were instead embraced by a stranger who you very much grew to…like. A lot…

“So…” You sighed once you were comfortable. “How’s Matty doing?”

“He’s alright…Just…you remember what he’s like…” He answered.

You laughed. “Always…”

“He’s alright though…Just has his moments…” He chuckled. “And then I told him I was going to see you and he got excited.”

“What? And you weren’t excited to see me?” There was a sudden streak of courage running through you.

“I’m always happy to see you, love.” He was laughing, but you both knew there was truth in his statement.

“Good,” you smiled. “Got a bit upset when I thought you wouldn’t show.”

It suddenly dawned on you the glaringly obvious fact that instantly snapped you out of whatever trance you were in. You were coworkers. You had to be professional, even if it was him.

Now his smile–one you could just about read as giddy–made your heart drop into your stomach. His eyes were so soft, a glaze over them–not from tears, just admiration for who he was looking at. Your smile faltered. Ross noticed.

“What’s wrong?” He asked, sounding very serious.

“I…” You didn’t quite know how to phrase it. “We can’t…It’s not…professional.”

He sighed, then stayed silent for a moment.

“It’s not that I wouldn’t want to,” you continued. “But if anyone found out…it would be hell.”

“Well then how about we just don’t tell anyone?” He asked quickly. 

The question was enough for your body–independently from your mind–to launch across the sofa and into Ross’ lap. You placed a gentle hand on his cheek. You weren’t used to his now-thicker beard, it was much smoother and softer than his old stubble. 

Kissing him was like returning back to your childhood home after years of not visiting. You still knew him so well–his taste and  the softness of his lips, it was so familiar to you.

As you deepened the kiss, your tongues now well into exploring the familiar landscapes of each other’s lips, your hand that was so firmly planted on his cheek travelled further back. On some kind of instinct your fingers laced through the hair at the back of his neck, tugging just a little on the roots. Ross let out a deep moan into your mouth, you couldn’t help but grin a little into the kiss. Duly noted.

~~~

It was the first day of spring when you finally had the realisation that sent a shock down your spine. As the flower buds began to grow it became apparent that you only had a couple short months before Ross would graduate. You’d had conversations back when the only way to get warm was to be in his embrace, his plan was London. A city with more job opportunities than you knew what to do with. 

It was like all of a sudden you were dreading seeing him, like you were putting off the last time. You couldn’t admit it to yourself then, but you knew that his impending departure would be heartbreaking.

After three days of radio silence, you found him sitting on the curb in front of your building. You were frozen in your spot.

“Sorry, I know this is kinda weird of me,” he said, standing up from his place on the concrete. “You haven’t answered my texts, I got worried.”

Your heart both warmed, and shattered even more at the same time. It was getting dark, and it wasn’t quite the time of year for warmer nights yet.

“Sorry, I’ve been…” You couldn’t quite think of an end to that sentence. You let him into the flat with you.

Ellie was out for the night, so you planned for a night alone–a feast for one in the reusable bag you placed on the kitchen counter. Ross slid off his shoes at the door–something he always did–and got comfortable on your sofa. As you put away the groceries you heard your TV turn on the flicking of switching channels. There was something so domestic about it. You let yourself daydream for a moment that this could be your life if you so pleased, putting away groceries while Ross watched TV. You snapped out of the fantasy when he spoke.

“GoldenEye is on!” He called out to you. You’d had many conversations about your favourite movies as kids, and all the James Bond movies were his–as well as the video game.

You floated to the sofa after everything was safely in its place. You’d watched the latter half of the film all the way to the end credits without even realising. Somewhere along the way, you’d gotten comfortable in Ross’ embrace–a common home for you as of late. Your cheek was beginning to hurt from laying on his chest watching the small TV on the other side of the room.

Ross wriggled a little, so you sat up, realising just how tired you were. With a stretch and a yawn, you let him sit up properly. The film was a nice distraction for a little while.

“I’m sorry,” you said after a much-too-long silence between the two of you.

“For what?” He asked.

“You know what,” you answered. “I’m just…not dealing well.”

“I got that,” he chuckled. “I am too. But what do we do?”

“I don’t know…” You said, your final word cracking as your eyes welled with tears.

Ross was immediately engulfing you in one of his almost-bone-crushing hugs, and you let the tears fall. 

“I didn’t mean to get like this,” you said through sobs.

“I know.”

“And I’m gonna miss you so much.”

“I know,” he repeated. “We were good while it lasted, eh?”

“So that’s it?”

He’d finally pulled away again, giving you the chance to wipe your tears and snotty nose on your sleeves. You looked at him, he was just as teary with such an…apologetic look on his face.

“I’m so sorry, darling,” he said.

“Can you at least stay for the night?”

“Of course.”

~~~

You went back to work on Monday with a spring in your step. You spent the whole weekend in your flat, just the two of you. It was like before, only better. The sex was better, the conversations were so easy,  you were right back where you were, and you couldn’t be happier about it.

Ross left your flat late on Sunday night, and you hadn’t spoken to him since then. Granted, it had only been around twelve hours, you were still itching to see him again. Not the time, though, you had a job to do, so you tried not to think of him.

At the start of morning break, you were stuck in your classroom helping out a student, Daniel, on some of his homework. Though you were happy to help him out, he and his small group had been so nice to you and you’d already found yourself getting carried away with conversations with the three of them during most of your Year 10 lessons in the past week.

You heard a knock on the doorframe, three firm knocks, to be exact.

“Yes?” You asked. You hoped you knew who it would be, and you were right. You watch Ross walk in, dressed in a crisp light blue button-up and the hair that you’d been pulling on all weekend was neatly tied up into a small bun. “Ah, Mr MacDonald!”

You saw the look of panic in his eyes as he noticed the 14 year-old boy that was standing at your desk with you. He straightened up a little and pulled a smile you could go wobbly-kneed over.

“Hi Mr MacDonald…” Daniel said.

“Hello, Daniel,” he answered. “Not causing any trouble?”

You saw a cheeky grin shared between the two of them. It warmed your heart at thinking of Ross having in-jokes with students, you knew he was a good teacher.

“I promise,” Daniel laughed.

“Good, or else I’ll have something to do about it.” Ross slyly winked to you, making you have to stifle the giggle that almost erupted from your lips.

“Won’t be a minute,” you said to him.

“No worries,” Ross answered, taking a seat at his usual desk for your break-meetings, the one closest to your desk in the front corner of the room. Taking out the packet of crisps from his bag and trying to eat them with as minimal crunches as possible–as to not disturb you.

You didn’t fail to notice the wide eyes of the student in front of you. You had to keep from laughing until he’d left the room.

“Well that rumour’ll be all over school by lunch,” Ross laughed.

“You think?” 

“Oh yeah, I know that kid, he’ll be flipping his shit about it!”

“Does it worry you?” You asked, but Ross looked confused. “Rumours…that we’re together and all that.”

“Well they’re true aren’t they?”

“That’s not the point, I just don’t want to jeopardise our jobs or anything.”

“If someone asks, we can just say it’s a rumour,” he answered. He caught your brief look of worry for just a split-second. “Hey? That doesn’t mean I don’t…love you any less.”

You couldn’t fight the Cheshire cat smile that spread across your face. “Really?”

“Of course. We can just tell them when we’re ready.”

[thetickleeraven]

What's That Under My Armor?

Delicious in Dungeon

Summary: Laios gets a mysteriously ticklish feeling on his abdomen after putting on his armor. [THIS IS A TICKLE FIC]

REMINDER THAT THIS BLOG WILL BE DELETED WITHIN THIS YEAR (probably) AND ALL MY FICS WILL BE ON AO3 FOREVER.

>>>BOOKMARK MY AO3 HERE<<<

---

Laios took another slurp of his soup, happily soothing his rumbling tummy. Yesterday had been another long day in the dungeon and a long time to meal prep, but, as always, the meal at the end was worth it, and lucky them, they had plenty of leftovers for today's breakfast.

They had set up camp near a stone building that was falling apart at the seams. There were no beds inside nor roof overhead, so camping just outside the building, closer to the fountain nearby, was an overall better decision.

Senshi was telling a story near the campfire while everyone ate and listened. Good company, good food, good banter; mealtime was easily Laios' favorite time of the day.

In the middle of Senshi's story, the group was startled by a loud thud from the building they were camped next to. One of the tapestries had fallen. At the noise, Laios jolted and turned towards the sound, sending some of his soup spilling over his shirt and the chestplate of his armor he had sitting next to him.

"Oh, crap." Laios groaned at the mess and, worst of all, waste of food.

"Clumsy as ever." Chilchuck huffed and rolled his eyes.

Laios looked around for any type of napkin to clean himself off, but found none. He picked himself off the floor and jogged over to the torn up tapestry. He ripped some of the cloth and hurried back to his armor.

"You're using a tapestry to clean up your soup?"

"Hey, we don't have anything else and it's already torn up! What's the harm, right?" Laios explained as he began wiping down the inside of breastplate where the soup had fallen. He then took off his shirt, now with a giant stain, and wiped the leftover mess on his chest.

"Agh, this cloth is terrible. It's shedding all over me."

"Shedding?" Marcille asked.

"It's coming apart, I'm covered in little bits of cloth." Laios wiped some of the bits off of him, but most of them stuck to him like glue.

"So you've got some lint on ya, big deal."

"Chilchuck's right. Just put your shirt back on and have another bowl of soup. A little string and and a stain on your shirt isn't gonna ruin your day." Senshi said, pouring him a new bowl of soup.

Laios sighed and nodded before taking a seat closer to the campfire and reaching for the new bowl. The leftover cloth bits were a little itchy, but he's dealt with far worse in the dungeon than a little itch on his abdomen.

The group continued their conversation like nothing happened, aside from Laios' occasional scratching at his midriff. God that fabric was awful.

"Alright, I think it's about time we get going." Senshi said as he began putting away the dishes.

"Sounds good. I'll start putting on my armor." Laios always took the longest to get ready, mostly because heavy armor took like ten minutes to put on. By the time he'd get his armor on, camp would have already been cleaned up. Better start soon.

He turned and began absent-mindedly putting things on. It was a daily routine at this point. As soon as he had his armor in hand, he turned back to keep his eyes on his friends, tuning into their conversation while he went through the motions.

Last of his armor was his chest plate. He had slid it on and was adjusting it to be where it needed to be when he felt something off. He furrowed his brow at the squirming feeling but remembered the stupid tapestry. He rolled his eyes. That was going to be an annoying feeling all day. Maybe he needed to jump in a body of water.

Laios began twitching. Okay, that feeling was definitely different from before, like something was crawling over his shirt.

"You alright, Laios?" Marcille asked, noticing her friends' jerking and twitching. The group now had all eyes on the resident knight who looked very concerned and confused.

Laios' face twisted into alarm as he felt the crawling creep up the shirt, off the fabric, and into his underarms.

"W-Wait!" Laios stuttered out.

"What?!" His three party members asked in unison.

The blonde's face reluctantly contorted into a big goofy grin. "C-Crahap!" He let out a choked giggle. Laios began frantically trying to remove his armor but could barely muster the strength to lift his arms with the sensation marching across his skin.

"Uh, are you gonna tell us what's going on or do we have to guess?" Chilchuck asked, raising an eyebrow.

Laios was starting to panic. Whatever was causing this was HORRENDOUSLY ticklish and, worse, was crawling towards the most ticklish part of his body.

He was biting his cheeks and tensing every muscle in his body, trying desperately not to collapse laughing. Every time he reached up to try and take his armor off that terrible sensation kept his arms glued to his sides. It was a matter of time now before he broke.

Think. What the Hell was going on?

At first he thought it was the tapestry. Something about the cloth? What cloth would do this? Maybe there was a monster involved?

"Are you sick? Did you get food poisoning?" Marcille hurried to Laios' side, at a complete loss for how much concern or alarm she should be showing as she had no idea what was going on.

"Why would he be smiling, though?" Chilchuck pointed out.

It would make sense if it was linked to the cloth, considering bits of it are stuck to the armor and his body.

The cloth can't be alive. Maybe something that eats the cloth?

Wait.

That's it!

"Spit it out, boy!" Senshi shouted right as the crawling started across Laios' belly.

"DUHUHUNGEON CLEHEHEHEANERS!" Laios exploded in laughter and fell to his side, clutching his middle and helplessly lost to the torturous sensations.

The three other members exchanged confused glances.

"I think you'll have to be more specific." Senshi said with a furrowed brow.

"Yeah what do dungeon cleaners have to do with you laughing your ass off? What, dungeon biology is suddenly a comedy gold mine?" Chilchuck stared at him, completely bewildered.

"Ihihihin my ahahaharmor!" Laios laughed, kicking his legs on the ground in hysterics.

"Oh!" Marcille clapped her hands as everything clicked for her. "The tapestry is seen as damaged dungeon. Some of it was still in your armor. If you put it on without looking, that means you could've missed a bunch of dungeon cleaners doing their job, and now they're all over you."

"And now they're... tickling him?" Chilchuck questioned.

"I don't think they're doing it intentionally. I think their crawling just happens to be ticklish to him." Marcille calmly explained as if there wasn't 200 pounds of armored tall-man cackling like a damn hyena on the floor.

It wasn't just the crawling, Laios realized. They were cleaning the leftover tapestry on his person too, eating the cloth scrap off his bare belly and chest and in the name of all that is holy was it ticklish-

"How long do we have to deal with him like this? Chilchuck sighed.

Marcille winced. "Dungeon cleaners can take a long time to clean. Plus, I don't even know if they can get out of his armor on their own."

"Well, we'll have to pull the armor off Laios and help get the little buggers off him." Senshi huffed, putting down the dishes he was packing away.

"Ugh, fine. Let's rescue Laios from the dungeon cleaners." Chilchuck picked himself up off the floor and the three approached the tall-man who was quite literally rolling on the floor with laughter.

"Ihihihit tihihickles sohohoho BAHAHAD!" Laios squealed the last bit as a few travelled over a particularly sensitive spot.

"Yeah, yeah, big guy. We're here to help."

"I'll grab him and try to hold him steady while you two get the chest plate off of him." Senshi directed. He cracked his knuckles and reached down, grabbing Laios by the waist and holding him up in a steady sitting position.

The other two grabbed his chest plate and tried to lift it up but we're stopped by Laios' arms.

"Laios you have to lift your arms up."

"Ihihihi cahahahan't." Laios was nearly in tears from the tickling. "Ihihihi'm tryihihihing Ihihihi swehehehehear!" He lifted his arms a few inches above his waist but couldn't muster much more than that.

Senshi wordlessly let go of his waist and grabbed his wrists, hoisting them far above his head so the other two could begin working off his armor.

Laios' laughter grew more frantic as he could swear the dungeon cleaners were travelling back up to his now pulled-taut underarms.

"Pull it together, man." Chilchuck sighed as they were just starting to get the damn plate above his elbows.

"Ihihihihit's sohohoho hahahahard!" Laios wheezed in between bouts of cackling, a tear now falling from his right eye. "Ihihihit tihihickles sohoho bahahahad!"

"There!" Marcille shouted as the two got the armor to Laios' wrists. Senshi released Laios' arms so the pair could quickly pull off the plate and throw it aside. There were a few dungeon cleaners still on the plate, but it seemed most of them had ventured down Laios' shirt.

"Now let's see how bad this infestation really is." Senshi let go of Laios' wrist so he could yank up the tall-man's shirt. Sure enough, there were dozens of tiny little dungeon cleaners going to town on his belly and chest.

Marcille shivered. "Ew, that's so creepy."

Laios was finally starting to feel hope this would end soon. He was just starting to let relief flow through him when he felt something that made him stiffen. One started crawling-

"NOHOHO!"

-right into his bellybutton.

Instantly Laios began thrashing like his life depended on it, practically screaming in desperate laughter as the little cleaner had apparently found something to clean in his navel of all places.

His party members stepped back as he became a whirlwind of flailing limbs. Just as he was getting help, he had become a danger to everyone around him.

"STAHAHAHAHAP! PLEHEHEHEHEASE GEHEHET THEHEHEM OHOHOHOFF!" Laios cried, tears streaming down his burning face.

"Well stop thrashing and maybe we will!" Chilchuck shouted.

"He can't help being ticklish, boy. He's acting how his body's telling him to act." Senshi lectured Chilchuck as he stretched his arms. "Unfortunately we still gotta help him even with him whipping his arms every which way. I'll grab him and keep him steady, you two get all those little buggers off of him."

The pair nodded and waited for their cue. After a few moments of waiting for an opening, Senshi grabbed both of Laios' arms and pinned them to the ground.

"Just approach from the side so he doesn't kick you." The dwarf advised.

The two did as told and each took a seat next to the tall-man who was still cackling and and wheezing.

Marcille eyed the crawling critters on Laios' belly and cringed. "Do we really have to?"

"We got to get going through the dungeon again and, I don't know about you, I don't want to tug a laughing Laios the whole way through." Senshi said.

Chilchuck got to work plucking each cleaner off the thrashing man while Marcille watched with an uncomfortable expression. He'd scratch at a spot with his fingernail to loosen the thing's grip off Laios' skin, then pluck it off with his finger and thumb to toss it to the side. The process, admittedly, was still ticklish to poor Laios.

"PLEHEHEHEASE! THEHE- THEHEHEHE NAHAHAVEL! GEHEHEHET IHIHIT OHOHOUT PLEHEHEHEHAHAHAHA!" Laios pleaded, begged, cried for relief from that one specific cleaner. The rest he could maybe bear but that one in his bellybutton was driving him to insanity.

Chilchuck groaned reluctantly but acquiesced and stuck his finger in Laios' navel to claw out the cleaner there. As Chilchuck's finger made contact Laios' whole body jolted enough to have Senshi struggling to keep hold. Laios' laughter was growing, causing his core to absolutely ache from strain.

"Sit still, idiot. I'm trying here."

Laios' only response was some hysterical babbling and more tears streaming down his face.

"Got it!" Chilchuck pulled back with the problematic little cleaner sitting on the tip of his finger.

Immediately Laios calmed down. He was still giggling uncontrollably from the rest of the cleaners, mind you, but he was worlds away from where he had been mere seconds earlier.

"Th-Thahahahahank yohohou." Laios laid his head back as his fighting and thrashing finally calmed down. The rest of the cleaner removal went smoother, though still full of laughter.

Finally, the last one was pulled off and thrown aside. Senshi released Laios' arms and the tall-man instantly curled into a tight ball, giggling exhaustedly.

"Well that took forever." Chilchuck said.

"Let's learn to pay more attention to things, huh, Laios?" Senshi patted his back and stood up, heading back to the pile of dishes.

"You okay?" Marcille asked softly, crouched next to his head.

Laios was an absolute wreck. He was panting like he hadn't taken a breath in days. His face was burning red. He had messy tear track stains across his face. His hair was a wild mess. His core ached as if he had planked for a thousand hours. And his abdomen was buzzing, just barely on this side of ticklish.

"I'm," Laios hiccuped. "okay." He sighed with a wobbly tired smile.

"I had no idea you were that ticklish." Marcille sat beside him.

"Oh yeah, really bad."

"You don't say."

They both chuckled. Laios sat up beside Marcille.

"Falin and I used to get in constant tickle fights when we lived together. I had strength on my side, but it doesn't take much to bring me down so Falin usually won." Laios rubbed his neck.

"It's good information to know." Marcille gave him a mischievous smile.

"Please no more tickling." Laios put up hands to guard himself. "I was just tortured."

Marcille put her hands up in a placating gesture. "Oh, I'm not going to."

Laios let out a sigh of relief.

Marcille stood. "Today at least."

[purple-obsidian]

Wellll, since you said it was okay, allow me to analyze this fic like I'm in an English lit class.

First off, what I've been thinking about the longest is him tugging the blanket over her at the end. It's such a small gesture, but it's gonna mean so much when there's almost never any casual intimacy. I would be thinking so hard on what it means. He's offering just the slightest hint of comfort after what seems like a constant battlefield and why? He feels guilty? He wants to show her that he's there? Its the only thing he can offer her when he's so hurt himself? Those are the kinds of actions that would make you stay because he still has to love her. Or at least, that's what you tell yourself when you're alone on the couch.

Next, the scene set up to him cutting her cheek. Oof. I can only picture what he saw in himself in the mirror. I mean, doing the same thing your torturer did to you to your partner? Ouch. And that fact that she still has to try and comfort him and be strong when he's the only that literally hurt and scared her? Ugh. That was painful and she's trying so hard only to get beaten down emotionally every single time. No wonder she was dark circles cause I'm drained just thinking about it. But that would also make me feel guilty because he went through so much more.

And the fact that she had to learn how to react to him! She's only trying to do right by him and gave him space when he asked- aka leaving the apartment- and he hunted her down over it? Wild. But he probably thought she was leaving him. I'm thinking how panicked he was until he found her and then the anger set in once he saw her. I feel like he probably wouldn't have noticed she left very fast. I'm picturing she leaves the apartment very quietly to not disturb him.

On one hand I'm seeing a public scene, but I feel like he would just follow her until she was alone so there's no witnesses. Now that rooftop scene. That's where I feel like she would go to wait to go back to the apartment. Cause it's a comfort, so much so she actually uses it to dissociate. I'm not a writer so I really can't put it into words. The only problem with a confrontation on that rooftop would that any fight that would happen there would taint the memory. So maybe she goes somewhere else that used to be special?

Anyway, I really loved the fic and obviously I have lots of thought. I am still thinking about how he laughed at her in front of his men in the first part. So thank you so much for writing them!

[this is related to my ak jason x reader fic for those who may be confused]

it makes me so happy to hear your thoughts! i put a lot of thought into the little things like the blanket and other details to weave in symbolism and parallels that aren't all explicitly called out, so it makes me happy that they're noticed 💜

that mirror scene was a really intense moment for our poor jay, he had some realizations that he didn't process very well. and the reoccurring theme of 'oh he suffered more so i shouldn't complain or speak out about my suffering' is not doing reader ANY favors.

for that reference to him hunting her down, i initially pictured it to be something like reader gives him space after a fight where he tells her to leave, so she goes for a long walk or to a bodega to get food or whatever or just running a relatively normal errand, with the intent of coming back in a few hours. the only reason his men let her leave the building is because they heard him yelling and telling her to leave too. jason freaks out 20 minutes later and goes off on his men for letting her leave, maybe fires someone idk, and starts searching like reader is america's most wanted.

[i don't think he would go as far as to hurt or fight with his hired men for letting reader go, like he's emotionally unstable and very much not okay but he was still sharp enough to be the arkham knight and go through all that and plan shit out, he's still a fucking tactical genius in my opinion so i don't think he would be THAT unhinged, esp. around people who have shown him loyalty, yanno? but if reader ended up hurt or they actually got away and never came back, that would be another story, but until he knew for sure he would just wanna leave and find reader A-S-A-P like homeboy is DESPERATE to get his person back.]

i like your idea about the rooftop. like if reader needed to calm down first, that could definitely be one of their first choices. with the errand idea, i had a scene in mind where reader is carrying a bag of groceries or some library books or whatever item[s] from whatever errand[s], and rounds a corner to literally walk into the brick wall that is jason and drop their shit while he's still as a statue just fuming. or possibly, he walks up to reader while they're on the sidewalk talking to a random person about directions or the weather, and he's just a menace and yells at them to leave reader the fuck alone, threaten some violence, before dragging reader away by the wrist or even picking reader up and throwing them over his shoulder.

and the memory of him laughing at her in front of his men? i almost wrote that out as a mini-flashback in the first part, like how i did with the rooftop memory in part 2. maybe i'll have to do a little snippit or something to flesh that out some more for ya ;)

thanks for taking the time to share with me! i see your second ask, oh boy i have some thoughts 😈

xoxo sid

[marvel-ous-m]

*another installment of Modern Elementary School Steddie AU* *TWs: Hospital visit, medical scare*

It’s a rainy Friday in March when everything goes to shit. They’re coming up on Steve and Eddie’s 6 month anniversary, and Eddie’s using his lunch break to browse some potential weekend getaway spots. They can’t go too expensive- they’re both living off of a teacher’s salary after all, they can barely afford their living expenses, plus Valentine’s day just happened and they went a little overboard with a nice dinner- but Eddie had picked up a couple extra shifts at his old shop over the last few weekends while Steve was busy grading papers and lesson planning, so he had a little money set aside to treat Steve to something special. 

Eddie’s just about to press the ‘reserve’ button on an AirBnB in Chicago for the weekend when Mike Wheeler and Will Byers walk into his library holding hands. 

Unaccompanied.

And Mike looks like he’s been crying. 

Eddie stands from his chair and circles his desk, crouching in front of the two boys. “Hey guys. You should be doing…” Eddie searches his brain for a moment, trying to remember Steve’s schedule for the kids. “Math problems right now, right? Does Mr. Steve know that you’re here?”

“He told us to come here.” Will sniffs, and Eddie notes that he looks on the brink of tears. “He stopped teaching and then turned all the lights off and then sat down and then made us come an’ get you. ‘S he gonna be okay?” 

Eddie tries very, very hard to keep the panic off of his face. He honestly has no clue what’s going on, but he doesn’t waste time trying to figure it out. “Let’s go make sure. Good job being safe by coming here together, boys.” Eddie walks out of the library with them and down the hall- and goddamn why was Steve’s classroom so far from the library?!

Finally, after the longest three minutes of Eddie’s life, they make it to the classroom and Eddie finds a dark classroom of quiet kids sitting politely at their desks and Steve sitting at the front of the room, his forehead against the metal of his teacher’s table. Eddie clears his throat, smiling at all the kids. He needs to check on Steve, but if something is seriously wrong, he knows that Steve wouldn’t want the kids to see it. “Alright everyone, line up, we’re gonna visit Mr. Argyle’s 2nd grade class. C’mon, hop to it.” 

Argyle teaches across the hall, so Eddie figured it would be fastest to usher the kids across the hallway to him. He gets them all in a line within a minute (which is probably a world record for any elementary school anywhere, but he doesn’t exactly have the time to parade his accomplishment around at the moment). Argyle accepts the kids without question, having them all join him on the carpet at the front of the room for story time. He must see something in Eddie’s expression because Argyle waves him off the second the last kid steps into the classroom.

Eddie’s back across the hall in a heartbeat, kneeling next to Steve and brushing some hair out of his face. “Hey pretty boy. What’s goin’ on?” 

Steve lets out a low groan, shaking his head slightly against the table. Eddie sighs in response. “I need to know what’s wrong so I can fix it, babylove. Can you give me any direction? Is this a need-a-break-for-30-minutes thing or a need-to-call-the-paramedics thing?” Eddie sends a quick prayer to whatever being is listening that it’s not the second option. 

Then Steve unfurls his fist that was previously clenched in a fist and holds up two fingers, and Eddie’s stomach drops.

He uses Steve’s phone to dial Nancy’s extension, petrified of letting Steve out of his sight. He tells her it’s a code red and that she needs to come to Steve’s classroom pronto. Steve doesn’t complain about anything, like, ever. They were making dinner one night about a month ago and Steve cut his hand open on a potato peeler and laughed it off- then kept laughing it off as they went to urgent care to get him stitches. 

Eddie meets Nancy in the hall- reluctant to leave Steve, but also conscientious of not freaking Steve out as they go through the motions of getting him help. Nancy’s got her cell phone out and she dials for a paramedic first, then texts Johnathan to let him know that his afternoon library session had to be canceled. They both wait with Steve in the dark of his classroom until Nancy gets the call from the front office that the ambulance arrived. She stalks off, returning five minutes later with four paramedics and a stretcher. 

Eddie is pushed out of the way- and fuck, he hates having to stand by and watch, chewing at his fingernails as he sees the gaggle of paramedics speaking quietly between themselves and making Steve respond to questions and open his eyes for them to shine a light and check his pupils. Then they’re loading him on a stretcher, and everything starts to go by too quickly for Eddie to process.

Eddie blinks, and he’s in the back of an ambulance, his hand wrapped around Steve’s ankle- the only spot Eddie feels like he can touch without messing with wires, but he’s desperate to hold onto something. To show Steve that he’s here. 

He blinks again, and Eddie’s standing at the doors to the emergency room, staring at the doors through which they had just taken Steve, the doors through which he was not allowed to follow.

Another blink and he’s sitting at Steve’s bedside, head in his hands while Steve takes a medically-induced nap next to him. He’d been taken in for scans- MRI, CT, XRay- Eddie wasn’t sure, he got the letters mixed up in his panic, all he knew was that they scanned his head because his pupils weren’t dilating correctly, then took his blood to run some tests, then put him to sleep because he had thrown up from pain and had begged for them to turn the lights off.

Which, Eddie hated the image of Steve feeling that way. He could barely stand it. But he was glad that the nurse had told him- because seeing Steve wheeled back to the hospital room asleep had scared Eddie in an entirely different way. 

Steve woke up about two hours after he had been returned from his scans. He was groggy, but had reached for Eddie almost immediately and said that he was feeling a lot better, which made Eddie’s heart rate go down to a semi-normal bpm (in comparison to the previous extremely high heart rate- his anxiety was a bitch). A doctor joined them a few minutes later and Eddie held Steve’s hand as they got the update. 

Steve had a migraine, which the doctor explained could be chronic- Steve would need to speak with a neurologist about that. The emergency room doctor said he suspected it was due to head trauma and was latent until something knocked it into presenting itself. And that’s how Eddie found out that Jonathan Byers, 5th grade teacher, once beat up Steve when they were teenagers to protect Nancy Wheeler’s honor? Which... it was a very confusing timeline, not aided by Steve’s exhaustion, but Eddie made him promise that they would talk about it in detail when Steve was feeling better. 

Then Steve confessed to getting in a bar fight with a guy that happened to be Max Mayfield’s much older step-brother, where he had a beer bottle smashed over his head (a story which Eddie also couldn’t follow due to Steve’s current condition, and also made Steve promise to tell again when he was feeling better). 

Then there was a story about Steve getting punched by a Russian guy who was mugging him a year or so ago- which, how does that even happen? 

Then Steve finished off his recounting of his head trauma history by sharing that he’d slipped on some ice at the bottom of the stairs of his apartment complex about a month ago, and that the back of his head had hit the bottom step when he fell. He apparently didn’t think much of it at the time other than that it hurt like hell (which made Eddie have Steve promise to tell him anytime he got hurt- because things like this couldn’t keep happening). 

After recounting all his concussions, the doctor handed them a referral to a neurologist and had a nurse get them discharged. Eddie took Steve back to his place that night, unable to let Steve out of his sight. Steve was exhausted from the day, and in Eddie’s opinion, rightfully so. Eddie helped him get changed into sweats and then changed himself into more comfortable clothes. Finally, after they were both settled in Eddie’s bed, Eddie wrapped himself around Steve and kissed Steve’s forehead, watching his boy sleep the day’s stress away. Nancy gave them both the rest of the week off, knowing that Steve needed the rest and Eddie needed the peace of mind.

The two went to the neurologist that weekend and, after some more tests, Steve was diagnosed with chronic migraines due to multiple traumatic brain injuries. He was prescribed a daily medication, a preventative medication in case he began to feel a migraine coming on, and some high-strength pain medication to take if a migraine happened. He was also given strict orders to avoid any activities that could cause further brain injury, as that could lead to results that, for Eddie’s own health, were best not to talk at length about. 

Their anniversary money ended up getting used to offset the costs of the specialist visit and medication copay, and they ended up spending their 6 month anniversary curled up in Eddie’s bed while Eddie read Steve The Hobbit, but if the experience taught them both anything, it was that they didn’t need fancy trips out of state or five-star dinners to celebrate their love- the most important thing was just having time with each other, because they could have lost that completely, and they were never going to take that for granted again. 

Taglist: @goodolefashionedloverboi

Drop me an ask if you want to get added to the taglist or if you have any ideas/questions about this series!

[bcbdrums]

Top 10 Soul Eater episodes?

As in, favorite episodes?? Or best episodes??

I'll do...favorites I guess? If that's even possible my gosh... I'm hard-pressed at this point to find any I don't like, and others are like...yes this one and this one and this one and this one.... Like the whole underground battle series of like seven??? Is just one giant episode to me, lol.

ANYWAY.... FAVORITE Top Ten episodes, listed in airing order not a ranking cuz that's impossible, lol.

Now, to absolutely no one's surprise...

These are all Stein and/or Spirit feature episodes. Except maybe two. Here we gooooo!

Episode 4: "Engage the Witch Hunter! A Remedial Lesson in the Graveyard?"

Why a fave? Okay well first of all...we get to see the four main characters fighting together against an enemy. The episode starts with the feeling of...okay, here we go... Like setting the tone of the anime after the concept and chars have been introduced. Gonna be a monster of the week thing, fighting new enemies and collecting souls. Like Digimon but not you know?

So we see awesome techniques from both Maka and Black Star and Sid as a char is super creative, so it's all that stuff to start with. And then...then we start to get that tiny bit of backstory at the end about Spirit and Stein and it's like, wait say what now?? The red-head is more than a comic drunk deadbeat dad? So then...

Episode 5: "Shape of the Soul – Enter the Ultimate Meister, Stein?"

Yeah okay... I mean. Obviously. We see Stein and it's like whoa that design is creepy this guy is creepy and then we hear Spirit blubbering drunkenly about the past and it's like creepy and oh snap I am now sympathetic to Spirit and there is a far deeper backstory going on here with these adults cuz we had the privilege of seeing Sid alive before you know and suddenly he's dead in the prior ep so mystery and...yeah. And then it's very much presented as wow...Stein is...unbeatable. They're doomed. And that twist ending I was just as much huh??? as Soul was and I just. Got captivated by the backstory.

Episode 7: "Black-blooded Terror – There's a Weapon inside Crona?"

More Spirit and Stein stuff. I swear that hospital scene was my favorite scene in the entire show for the longest time. It's hilarious, I still crack up watching it. The toes thing is just... And that way too long dramatic pause and camera pull before he reveals the divorce, and Stein freaking already knows and just...yeah I'm getting giddy thinking about it. But ALSO it's like, okay...now we've departed from the casual anime silliness. We skipped the 30+ eps of growth like Digimon and went straight to the big major character issue. Which you know, makes sense the further into the anime we go for this anime. But...yeah. It gets. Real. Not kids anymore. Crona with Ragnarok are hilarious I love them, and Crona is highkey relatable; Crona is every teenager to exist ever. But yeah then Soul's sacrifice, for Maka... It's just...wow. Yeah it got real.

Episode 8: "The Witch Medusa – Bearer of the Great Terrible Soul?"

Truthfully, probably my favorite episode as things stand right now. My mind may change later. Why? Because obviously...Spirit and Stein get to fight together. We get to see what the future is... It's like seeing the past in Star Wars, the very beginning of Ep. 1 you know where we see Qui-Gon and Obi-Wan fight and it's like...yessss this is how things are supposed to be in a world that isn't broken. Seeing Stein and Spirit fight together like that is just... Yeah my heart is pounding thinking about how insanely awesome that is. Also Stein is hot. Plus more of that...not kids anymore. Maka's pure terror at sensing Medusa's soul, seeing her...seeing what a real witch is. Like yeah kid the little kishin egg monsters and magical cats you've been playing with are nothing. Maka realizes the world of meisters and weapons she's in is quite a bit different than her experience so far. And can we talk about how Maka wasn't going to leave Soul's side??? Was just gonna take the hit and die right beside him, because he died for her??? MY HEART! Also Stein is hot yes I know I said it already it bears repeating and man that...seriousness...the way Stein looks at Medusa, the way the witch knows who they are which in itself shows a greater threat... That utter gravity that falls over that moment at the end there, after Stein blocks her attack and it's like....oh snap. Now what? Not to mention all the new tiny details we get about soul resonance and the possibilities and how a weapon can take on features of their meister in the special attacks! (Spirit takes on stitches here on the witch hunter blade, and in the last episodes he takes on Lord Death's skull face on the kishin hunter blade. That's so cool...) Okay I have to stop. I could go on. Like I said...favorite episode as things stand right now.

Episode 13: "The Man with the Magic Eye – Soul and Maka's Diverging Soul Wavelength?"

This one surprised me because initially I didn't care for it. I don't care for Free's design, shark!wolf just doesn't appeal to me. But over time this really grew on me. The writing is excellent and soooooo many major things happen. We get the first bit of touching on the morality issue, like, is DWMA really the correct moral power? Free says something about it and then it becomes a bigger theme going forward. We get the beginning of the black blood effects and the battle against/with it and the start of what all that means... The start of the "acceptance" theme even if it isn't named. We hear Soul's piano for the first time even though it isn't named as such until Brew. We get to see Soul and Maka both so confused but both so dedicated to each other, and the maturing starting to happen, that needs to still happen... It's a huge ep for their relationship. And also...Eruka. I love Eruka. All things Eruka. Any episode with Eruka is a delight. But yeah this episode is just SO deep and excellent, it needs more love. (Also in the candle room fight if you listen close we hear that Spirit has an outy belly button and I'm just alksjdahkjghsd how silly.)

Episode 14: "The Super Written Exam – Heart-Pounding, Reeling, and Restless. You're Kidding!?"

Ehhh heheheh...heheh... Pure absurdity. Pure comedic awesomeness. Everything about this episode. I love things where many characters are featured in more than a cameo and get real attention. We see more of all their homes, more of what they do and who they are when not in battle... Spirit being an absolute fool... That hilarious buildup timer to the end of the exam... Blair ruining what should have been something GOOD agh silly cat I'm still annoyed, lol. I'm not gonna say much here since I said so much about the last episode but man, yeah. Just pure comedy gold, I never ever tire of this episode. "Giraffe, giraffe~" Heheheh.

Episode 23: "Dead or Alive – In the Rift between Revival and Dazzlement?"

Okay like I said before... The entire underground battle, starting with the anniversary party, I consider one giant episode. I name all of those as favorites. I selected this one for here because it's where we get some of Stein's backstory I think? Flashback to he and Spirit as young teens, and we learn where Stein's mental state really is. We get to see more of his and Spirit's dynamic, how they work together both successfully and less successfully... Many headcanons borne of this battle in this episode. My gosh I just...can't put it into words in any brief way. I could write an epic length post breaking down nearly every line, look, gesture... And is this also the episode where the kishin emerges and my gosh if that isn't the creepiest most suspenseful moment I've ever seen. Also, we see more of Eruka! I adore her. And Free. But yeah whole episode... Fantastic.

Episode 25: "The Death Scythes Convene – Stop Dad's Staff Reassignment!?"

And this episode...also silly and ridiculous, but awesome because we get to see a little more of the "adult" side of the DWMA and how things operate. Comedically yes, cuz Soul Eater is a comedy, but still there's quite a bit of seriousness too. Stein's madness as a plot point... But my gosh... Marie, Azusa... Justin... The dynamic between all the adults. I would give ANYTHING for a prequel anime where we get to see all these complete idiots in the academy and how it all went down between them. And my gosh we've had plenty backstory teased already with Stein's experiments against Spirit, Sid and baby Black Star... Seeing the adults as kids would be the perfect "reboot" series for me. Plus that basketball ending, bringing it all full-circle in terms of...okay, here we are again, and here we go again... Onto the next phase of the show/of our lives. It's a fantastic turning-point episode and I never tire of it.

Episode 31: "Drying Happiness! Whose Tears Sparkle in the Moonlight?"

This one...so much happens here. We get delightful glimpses of normal life, we get the reminder that Soul plays piano which becomes important quite soon... We get the comedy of Spirit having to parrot Lord Death to Justin because they just won't make the kid take out his earbuds! We get a moment of Crona and Ragnarok actually getting along and having a normal conversation and ohhh myyyy gosshhhhhh I wish we'd had more of that in the show. I adore Ragnarok. But then...ugh. The saga of pain that begins. You get everyone reaching out, you get to see Crona happy... Marie after wandering around lost, saying if there's ever anything you need... Later inviting Crona to her home... Only to be betrayed. And the absolute skill and execution of the writing as they make us believe for a moment that Marie is okay in returning the pen...and then it's revealed that Crona put a snake in the coffee. Just. Oh man. Ugh the pain. Whyyyy Crona whyyy when you had the entire academy to back you up, everyone on your side, full protection from friends, from a death scythe who trusted you to invite to her home, from Lord Death who gave you a second chance... But you still betrayed them all. And then of course, that little snake then is the catalyst for SO much of what happens in the next episodes... Big deal. This ep is so huge. So many different feels...

Episode 40: "The Cards Are Cut – Medusa Surrenders to the DWMA?"

Spirit feature, Spirit feature! I like getting to see a little more of Spirit's responsibilities other than hovering at Lord Death's shoulder waiting 800 years bound to Death City what the heck his poor death scythes for battles that will never come. I know logically he has other jobs as the death scythe, but it's nice to see him doing some of it and more of his relationship with Lord Death (those two raised their children side by side I mean come on there's so much comedic opportunity here). Also the sheer TENSION in the episode from the fact it's Medusa, and Maka's reaction, and Stein's reaction, and then the deal at the end... It's like...okay this is a serious tone-shift and no clue now what is coming. It's a lot of weight all at once leaving me feel like I'm in a whirlwind and kicks off the final arcs of the show and...yeah. This is a good one.

Also hey guess what!

Turning this ask into a tag game! So...what are your top ten favorite episodes??

@midnightcaptions @memethebum @chickycherrycola @blackbloodteeth @mellancholy-morose @beeejayy (that's right Sunny start interacting with fandom LOL) @takeyourcyanide @cannibal-nightmares

AND...anybody else who wants to take this on! Have fun!

And BONUS... Any and all episodes with Excalibur are awesome and if you don't love him you are wrong. That's okay you're allowed to be, you do you. 😘

[thorns-and-rosewings]

And here we shall have the Part 4 of the Reaper King AU💀. With this one explaining some of this families relationships between family members and more of the story I have so far for this AU.

TW: LOTS of mention of murder in this one. Also touching on some really more sensitive topics as well.

-Killcode is not a pacifist at all and indulges his need to hunt and kill regularly. He's not always picky about his targets, he's fine killing animals just as much as people. His particular favorite animals to hunt are Bears (As they fight back and it's a challenge) Mountain Lions, (A mix of speed and strength and a good fight) and Elk. (A prey animal, but extremely fast. Excellent for agility training)

-He does enjoy cooking, but his family often lack the patience and happily eat meat raw... Seeing as how none of them are technically human anymore it's unsurprising their tastes have shifted from their humanity with humans occasionally being on the menu.

-Also they are no longer human and have developed very unnatural powers, KC teaches his adopted children how to make use of their new abilities. Usually against human visitors to their domain.

-For example, in the winter they will find some campers who were stupid enough to get too deep in the woods and Wendigo will exert his power over them... Making it feel 10x colder than it is and an unnatural hunger will overtake their victims. Leading to cannibalistic situations.

-The family usually is nearby watching... Bloodmoon making bets with his sibs on who is gonna live or who dies.

-Its necessary to understand that all of these kids had been through truly horrific experiences prior to being adopted by Killcode and Bloodmoon. They each happily have rejected living amongst humans ever again and essentially shed their humanity, resulting in their new inhuman forms.

-None have any qualms or cares about killing humans of any sort. BUT they are careful to abide by their fathers laws. Which probably helps anchor them to some shreds of humanity still left within themselves.

-The two older children, Wendigo and Banshee have sometimes discussed their lives prior to their adoption by Killcode and linger on some of the good memories... For Wendigo when his mother was still alive, before he was just left with his abusive father. For Banshee it was when she lived with her grandparents before they passed and she reverted to the care of her drug addict mother and her boyfriend of the week...

-They will even occasionally visit the graves of their deceased loved ones to tend them. Often bringing flowers... KC actually completely understands this and has even helped them find some flowers to leave on the graves before.

-Lycan and Vampire lack any really decent memories of familial figures, having spent most of their lives in crappy foster homes. They only had each other for the longest time and were a bit more of a handful for Killcode in the beginning... But they were in ways very similar to the Bloodtwins, so they were able to forge a bond with Bloodmoon a little faster before eventually accepting KC as much as the rest of their adopted siblings.

-They are the most feral of the formerly-human children, in spite of their young ages they can cause a lot of chaos. Much to the amusement of Bloodmoon.

-Wisp is essentially the odd one out of her family. Not only due to a significant age gap between her and the other kids, but because she was technically brought into the family by BLOODMOON rather than Reaper Killcode.

-Believe me this was a shock to EVERYONE

-Short version is that Bloodmoon was hunting and had been planning on breaking his fathers laws... He'd been stalking a young family with multiple children but the youngest was clearly treated with disdain than any of the other loved children. The older children were left at the campsite while the parents went to spend some quality time with the youngest... Who looked so happy to be being given attention...

-Until they tried to throw her off of a cliff... actually seeming to succeed. Only to turn around and get ripped apart by the extremely angry murderous animatronic...

-Something about being singled out to be unloved by a parental figure, whereas others were given affection just sent him into a manic episode.

-But she survived, courtesy of a branch jutting out from the cliff. Now Bloodmoon did retrieve her, but he planned on killing her (Quickly though; an odd mercy from him) But the way she clung onto him and cried... Even when he put his hands on her neck to snap it... He just couldn't do it.

-So he brought her home.

-Obviously getting the story, KC was initially pissed that Bloody intended to disobey him... But... He let it slide because it became clear that he IS learning some restraint. And he accepted this new addition to the family with open arms.

-For a bit she was particularly clingy to Bloodmoon which was understandable, but made him regret his mercy... But in a bit of time it evens out to her being clingy to all of her new family. And she mutates into her 'Wisp' form extremely quickly.

-Once mutated she resembles a girl made of a tongue of blue flame. She regularly floats around her siblings and her size is apparently negotiable. With her often becoming very small. She might be able to grow but doesn't seem to want to... But her power as a Will O'Wisp means she can lead anyone to anything. Which means she can find anyone hiding in the woods.

-She is undefeated in Hide and Seek.

-Even though time has passed she is still particularly close to Bloody. And he does make use of her ability to find prey for him... But he also genuinely likes her company.

-Now getting back to recent times...

-Shortly after the adoption of the baby, Killcode has to significantly reduce his hunting time, due to the fact he had to care for a newborn which required more attention. The whole family did help out as well, which drove down the amount of disappearances and deaths in the park.

-During this lull in deaths... A new Forest Ranger was hired. A nice soul... Who genuinely doesn't know what they just got into.

(I literally have no clue about a name or really anything about this character yet. So this part is pretty incomplete atm sorry 😅)

-After lasting longer at this job than most, this individual opts to walk the trails... Just as a thick fog is rolling in.

-At this time though, the older kids are watching the baby so KC can go for a hunt with Bloodmoon. And amongst the swirling mists, this Park Ranger encounters the Reaper King face to face.

-But something happens...

-Killcode gazes at this individual and just... Freezes up... Much to the confusion of Bloodmoon and the human escapes. But KC stops Bloodmoon from hunting them down.

-Bloody is not upset, actually way more concerned about his father as this has never happened before. And KC is clearly unnerved as well. Because he doesn't know what happened himself...

-Over the next few weeks, Killcode is staking out the ranger station. He's delibrately observing this human... And he's pretty confused about why he actually feels something, let alone how the more he observes them... The more this feeling grows.

-He's worrying his kids.

-But Bloodmoon groans as it hits him... And he drafts Wisp and Ban to help him with a project.

-He has Wisp steal the humans phone... He needs to make sure something is there... (And it was) While Ban acquired a laptop.

-After this all the kids encouraged KC to go out and hunt by himself. To get his mind off things. Frankly he suspected they were up to something but he did go off to hunt.

-Once he left, all the kids gathered around their eldest brother and the laptop...

Wendigo: So... What exactly are we doing?

Bloodmoon: Something we never imagined we'd be doing... Ever...

Vamp: Ordering a veggie pizza?

Bloodmoon: No... Far worse...

Banshee: What-?

Bloodmoon: 😒 We're going to set up a Tinder Profile for our father...

[rising-volteccers]

I have a prompt for Friede. He gets sick but he's the last one to notice. Like everyone is taking care of him in their own way.

Thank you very much for sending this prompt! I'm currently sick myself and wrote this all in one go while medicated and sporting a 102F fever. I suppose I just wanted to make him suffer alongside me hhh...

Anyways! Hope it's still an enjoyable read! I think this is the longest piece I've written thus far so I'm pretty proud of it still haha!

Series: Pokemon Horizons

Characters: Friede, Cap, Murdock, Mollie, Orla, Liko, Roy, Ludlow

--

Waking up that morning, Friede found himself struggling to sit up. His body felt heavier than usual, though he supposed that was expected when he took night shift for the past couple of days. Manouvering the ship through a storm, battling strong winds and dipping temperatures took a lot out of someone. At the very least his crew didn’t lose too much sleep over it, especially the children.

Cracking a huge yawn that he barely covered, Friede went through his usual routine at a more sluggish pace. He briefly forgot where he kept his goggles and he almost exited the room without tying up his hair. Cap gave him odd looks throughout it all but aside from a questioning noise, he scampered up his shoulder as he headed to the dining area.

By the time he entered, everyone was in the midst of digging into the wonderful breakfast spread Murdock put out. He barely stifled another yawn when Orla greeted him with, “Morning sleepyhead. Thought you were gonna skip breakfast there.”

“Mm? Nah, I would’t miss it without someone getting on my case about it,” he replied with a cheeky little grin at Mollie, who merely raised an eyebrow at him. Friede ignored her sudden interest as he took a seat at the end of the table.

Friede wasted no time in pouring himself a mug of coffee. With how tired he felt, he needed a bit more caffeine in his system. The first sip made him pause, and he pulled the mug away to scrutinize the dark liquid.

“Hey Murdock, did you use a different coffee blend?”

Murdock looked up from his own plate. “Hm? Nah, it’s always been the same. Why, it tastes weird to you or something?”

Huh, if nothing changed, he supposed it was his taste buds being weird for some reason. Oh well, nothing that he couldn’t drink. Friede gave an airy wave that made Murdock stare at him for awhile longer before he passed the bread basket to Roy.

With a half mug of coffee in him, Friede found himself lacking a bit of appetite which he chalked up to his tired state. His stomach felt a little weird after a piece of toast and a few berries so he decided to stop before any accident could occur.

“That’s all you’re eating?” Orla commented as he drained the rest of his mug.

“Yeah. Guess I’m not as hungry as I thought,” he replied, once again stifling a jaw cracking yawn. As he rubbed his eye with a finger, he missed the way his crew exchanged glances with one another. 

“You feeling alright?” Murdock asked, sounding oddly cautious.

“Yeah, probably just all those late nights catching up. Nothing that going to sleep earlier tonight couldn’t fix.”

Suddenly feeling a little stifled from the attention he garnered, Friede stood up from his chair–placing a hand on the back of it to steady himself through a brief wave of lightheadness. 

“Hey–”

“I’ll catch you guys later then,” he spoke quickly, flashing them all his usual smile before turning on his heel to exit the dining area. Cap quickly finished his own food, cheeks stuffed and then dashed after him.

That was a little weird, admittedly. His crew stared at him like he had two heads at the end. Couldn’t figure out why but oh well, maybe that was a one time thing. Friede paused to allow Cap a chance to settle on his shoulders again. It was his turn to do some chores today so he might as well get to it now if he wanted to nap later.

–

After he cleared the table and washed the dishes with Roy’s help, Murdock went to the cabinet to pull out a tea caddy. He opened the lid to check what blends he still had left. Only he, Liko and Mollie really enjoyed tea while the rest were coffee drinkers (or in Roy’s case, a Tapu Cocoa fiend). He rarely made tea for those outside their little group but he figured it was necessary today.

Murdock knew that Friede wasn’t feeling well. If his sluggish nature wasn’t a tell, then his lack of appetite spoke of an uneasy stomach. While Friede couldn’t match Roy’s huge appetite (typical for a growing boy and one where Murdock encouraged), the good captain usually ate his fill before going about his day. 

The chef took out the honey jar as well as a half cut lemon from the fridge. While he waited for the water to boil, he took out a red thermos from a different cabinet. Rarely used seeing that he was more than happy to make the crew something from scratch but one that should fit his purpose right now.

Within twenty minutes, he exited the kitchen with the thermos in hand, filled with a blend specifically made for uneasy stomachs. Murdock found Friede and Cap quickly enough; it was his turn to mop the deck, which he found him to do with slow, sluggish swipes.

Swallowing down the flare of concern, Murdock called out, “Hey Friede!”

Friede nearly dropped the mop in surprise but he straightened up with a tighter grip, then turned around to regard him with a semblance of a pout.

“What’s with the attempted heart attack so early in the morning?” he grumbled. Another check towards his unwell state was him being a little testier than usual.

“Sorry. I just wanted to give you something. Here you go.” Murdock handed Friede the red thermos. At the questioning look, he gave a disarming smile, keeping his voice light. “It’s honey lemon tea. I’m slowly using up what we have left before we restock in a few days.”

“Okay? Thanks I guess.” Murdock knew him well enough to not take the somewhat dismissive response to heart. Likely confused when his brain wasn’t running on all cylinders, not to mention the choice of beverage given. Coffee or Tapu Cocoa were the go-to more than a whole thermos of tea. 

“No problem. I’d appreciate if you could give it a try later and give me some feedback on it. Wanted to see if the ratio I put works or not,” he added. By framing it this way, Friede would find himself obligated to do so, which Murdock hoped involved him taking a break whilst drinking it.

“Yeah sure.”

“Right, I’ll leave you to it. I’ll see you around lunch then.” Murdock didn’t stick around after that. Had he tried to push more, Friede might get defensive, stubbornly loveable fool that he was. The chef decided to make a hearty soup for lunch to see if his captain could stomach it later. 

–

“What’s on your mind Liko?” Roy’s question startled the girl out of her thoughts. She jumped a little in her seat, spooking Sprigatito who fell off her lap in turn. She spent a few minutes apologizing to her starter before answering Roy, who looked a bit guilty after that.

“I’m sorry for startling you. I didn’t think you were so out of it,” he apologized, hugging Fuecoco tighter to his chest.

“N-No it’s fine! I was… mm, I was thinking about earlier.” Liko replied, shifting to the side so Roy could take a seat seeing that she piqued his interest.

“What about earlier?”

“You know… how tired Friede looks.” Having been a part of the Rising Volt Tacklers for awhile now, Liko had time to observe the crew’s habits and behavior, storing everything into her little mental file cabinet. She knew that Friede’s sluggishness was unusual for the seemingly upbeat guy. At least, he’d try to hide if he felt off on account to avoid worrying others.

“I guess you’re right. I don’t think I’ve seen him yawn so much during breakfast! That’s usually my thing!”

Liko giggled at his words, though her expression drooped into a more thoughtful one. “Yes, which is why I think he’s not feeling 100% right now. And he’s either not admitting it or he doesn’t think much on why he’s feeling so tired. A-At least that’s what I think.”

Roy tilted his head, so much so that Liko could practically see the gears turning. “I think you’re right. I remember Orla mentioning once that he’s a stubborn, lovable oaf of a man that thinks he needs to shoulder everything himself!”

She blinked in surprise at that. She hummed, fiddling with a lock of her hair. “I-I see. I think you should avoid mentioning that to either of them…”

“Hm? Yeah, alright.” Roy hugged his Fuecoco once more. “So… do you think we should help him?”

Liko nodded, swinging her legs. “Yeah! I think we should! Maybe he’d feel better if he gets some more rest. It’s his turn to do most of the chores today I believe.”

“We can help him out with that so he can go take a nap or something.” Roy had a huge grin on his lips, hopping up from his seat. “What are we waiting for?”

Liko quickly got up to join him, leaving Sprigatito to curl up and nap on the couch for the time being. The two kids hunted down their mentor until they spotted him carrying a basket of laundry, heading towards the back of the ship where they hung them out to air dry.

“Hey Friede!” Roy called out. Liko saw the way Friede startled, almost dropping the basket before his grip tightened at the last second. She quickly joined Roy to stand at his side.

“Liko, Roy,” he began slowly, eyes narrowing slightly. “Did you need something?”

The kids exchanged a quick glance before Liko stepped up to answer. “W-We were hoping if we could… um, swap chores today!”

“Yeah!” Roy was quick to follow up, steamrolling through whatever response Friede might have said. “We have plans to do some training tomorrow so we were hoping if we could do our chores today to have some free time tomorrow!”

“Training?” Friede sported a questioning look but Liko took note of the fact that it wasn’t an immediate dismissal. 

“Y-Yeah! We… wanted to get more practice on battling so we can help defend our home if stuff happens.”

Liko resisted the urge to squirm from Friede’s assessing gaze. Roy wasn’t as nearly affected but she had a feeling the boy too waited with bated breath for a verdict. At last something in Friede’s eyes softened, and he sighed.

“Well, I guess I can take over your chores tomorrow. Make sure to inform Mollie about the change, alright? Don’t need her coming after my neck for foisting off work onto you two…”

Liko had a feeling that they weren’t supposed to hear that last bit. She chose not to say anything aside from carefully grabbing the laundry basket from him. Friede sighed once more, regarding the pair with a half smile. 

“If you want to practice with Cap too, let me know. I’m sure he’d be up for it.”

“Y-Yes, thank you!” she responded, injecting as much enthusiasm into her voice. Liko supposed training was on tomorrow’s agenda. Hopefully Sprigatito would be up for it.

“Yes! Me and Fuecoco are ready for the challenge!”

“Alright, alright.” Friede covered his mouth from an abrupt yawn that sneaked out. He ran his fingers through his hair, then stood up straighter. “If you two need me, I’ll be at the captain’s deck.”

“Okay!” She clamped down the urge to add I hope you’ll feel better soon!

The two kids watched Friede walk away and up the small steps until he disappeared into the room. 

“You think he’s going to nap?” Roy asked.

“Mm… I hope so.” Liko eyed the laundry in hand. “Come on, we better go hang this up while the sun’s up.”

“Okay!”

Liko hoped that Friede would feel a little better with some rest, knowing that Roy too shared her sentiment.

–

Ludlow slowly pushed the door to the captain’s deck open. Peeking his head inside, he found Cap staring inquisitively at him before recognition flashed in his eyes once his gaze landed onto the folded blanket in his arms. The Pikachu raised a paw at him, forming a little thumbs up.

“Don’t mind me,” he uttered softly. Ludlow shuffled his way inside, steps light in comparison to the soft snores escaping the young captain’s lips. Once he reached the large chair, he took a moment to observe Friede.

Being a fisherman by trade and at heart, he knew to be patient whilst keeping his senses open for even the slightest of changes. Be as still as a calm lake, hand ready to reel in the moment his lure caught something. Ludlow of course applied this in his everyday life, too.

Thus without it being explicitly stated, he knew that the rest of the youngsters were looking after their ill captain. He knew why they’ve yet to outright state it to his face; Friede could be infuriatingly stubborn, insisting that he was fine despite feeling otherwise. Ludlow supposed it matched his ambition at least. One couldn’t have thought of converting his fishing boat into an airship without being strong-willed and just a little eccentric.  

Still, he personally believed that there was a time and place for everything. Friede truly was lucky to have such caring people in his life. Ludlow didn’t exactly place himself in that circle, preferring to continue his observation of these youngsters from his spot day in and day out. 

Carefully, he unfolded the blanket before draping it over the slumbering captain’s form. Ludlow could do nothing about the rather uncomfortable position he slept in without the risk of waking him up but he did his best to tuck the blanket in. Cap too assisted him, using his paws to tug the blanket higher up.

Friede remained fast asleep throughout it all. Ludlow eventually took a step back, shared a knowing nod with Cap before shuffling his way out of the room.

–

Orla toiled the morning away within the engine room but her mind drifted every so often towards a certain someone on this ship. She didn’t let any of those thoughts affected her work as she didn’t want to worry the Pokemon that assisted her. By the time she emerged from the hot room around lunch time, she was free to ruminate about that stubborn, loveable oaf they had for a captain.

She knew that Mollie and Murdock shared similar thoughts during Friede’s time at breakfast earlier. All of them knew him well enough to know that he either refused to acknowledge his ill state or he didn’t connect the dots. 

Friede was a brilliant man, that Orla won’t deny. His plan to fashion an old fishing boat into an airship was successful mostly due to her work but the layout he presented helped with the foundation. Orla built around his vision until they had a home in the sky, soaring high and free.

As intelligent as he was, the guy could be fairly dense in keeping track of changes to his body. Sometimes he actively hid that fact, believing that he could handle it by himself until one of them had to drag him by the ear to Mollie. Other times, it just didn’t click that maybe, just maybe his body wasn’t feeling all that well. 

Orla had a feeling that it leaned more towards the latter this time. He wasn’t as defensive, though his exhaustion may have tempered it down. Regardless, his infuriating stubbornness likely remained, as it won’t even if his brain actively cooked itself. Thus Orla would give him a bit more time to come clean before dragging him to the infirmary.

In the meantime, she went to freshen herself up for lunch. Worrying about that knucklehead made her hungry, so she wasted little time in carving herself a spot at the dining table. Murdock informed them that soup and sandwiches were today’s menu. Orla lacked any doubt that it was in consideration for Friede. 

Who, as lunch progressed remained absent. Liko and Roy exchanged glances, while Murdock looked like he wanted nothing more than to get up from his seat. Ludlow and Mollie ate on as usual but she took notice on the way Mollie tapped a finger on the surface, signalling her rising ire and worry.

Orla bit back a sigh. She quickly finished up her meal, then declared to the table that, “I’ll go check up on Friede.”

It felt like the table collective exhaled a relieved breath. Murdock flashed her a grateful smile while the kids exchanged soft smiles with one another. Mollie looked up, quiet but her eyes sent a clearly defined message. 

Let me know what happens. 

The engineer dipped her head once, then stood up from her chair.

“He was napping in the captain’s deck last time I checked,” Ludlow spoke up, surprising them that he knew in the first place.

“Oh, so he did get some more rest…” She barely picked up on Liko’s muttered words prior to her exit from the dining room. Her steps were collected as she made her way up the steps to the deck.

Orla opted to enter without knocking. Her entrance drew Cap’s attention, who looked a little relieved. Her heart rate sped up slightly as she closed the distance between the door and the captain’s chair.

Taking one look at Friede, she knew why Cap reacted that way. Putting aside the uncomfortable position he fell asleep in, she spotted the dusting of red high on his cheekbones. Sweat dotted his forehead, easily revealing a fever once she pressed the back of her hand against it. 

She hated being right in this situation. Orla pulled out her Rotom Phone and sent a quick text to Mollie to prepare the infirmary since she was bringing a fever stricken idiot there within the next ten minutes. After that, she gently placed a hand on Friede’s shoulder and gave it a little shake.

Friede groaned, looking like he was trying to free his arms from the blanket in order to swat her hand away. Orla gave a harder shake, this time punctuating it with, “Hey Friede, come on wake up.”

Eventually hazy yellow eyes opened, and he blinked in confusion for a few seconds before they settled onto her face. 

“Orla…?”

“Yeah, it’s me. Come on, I’m taking you to the infirmary. You’re sick,” she stated promptly. Before his ill timed stubbornness kicked in, she needed to make decisions so that he only had time to react and not think.

It took a bit of effort for Orla to pull Friede to his feet. She had to shoulder the sudden weight pressed against her, his deep heavy breaths spoke of a sudden wave of lightheadness that he tried to get in control of. She gave him time to stand a little steadier on his feet, then with an arm around his waist for support, she started to guide her sick captain towards the infirmary.

–

Mollie had things prepared by the time Orla and Friede came stumbling in. She wasted little time in helping Orla get him on the bed, where he struggled somewhat from the hands that wanted to take his flight jacket off.

“I don’t want you in too many layers,” Mollie spoke, gently gripping Friede’s shoulder as to ground him. She waited until he settled down before starting her check-up.

After Orla left the infirmary, her hands swiftly went from one test to another; checking his temperature, pulse, the inside of his throat when he mumbled about a scratchy throat during her questioning session. Eventually, she came to the conclusion that Friede was in for a few days minimum of bed rest until the worst of the symptoms eased up.

Mollie raised an eyebrow at the mullish tilt to his eyebrows once she gave him the verdict. “I don’t want you to pass out nor increase the chance of spreading this to everyone. I’ll be having my hands full looking after one stubborn idiot.”

“Harsh,” he mumbled, cowering when her eyes hardened. Mollie could be a little cold when someone had the misfortune of igniting her ire. She preferred a cool sense of professionalism rather than allow fear to settle in. Friede genuinely worried her but as the nurse on this ship, she had to keep rational if she wanted him to recover as quickly as possible.

“Am I wrong?” she challenged.

Perhaps something finally clicked into that feverish brain of his as Friede hunched in slightly, eyes darting to the side.

“No,” he admitted. “Sorry for worrying you.”

As much as she wanted to keep a hold of the slight thrum of anger beneath her skin, Mollie simply heaved out a deep sigh, briefly pinching the bridge of her nose.

“I wish that you’d stop hiding when you’re not feeling well, Friede.” Her eyes settled onto his contrite expression. “Do you realize that you’ve got everyone worried today?”

“I, uh, I actually didn’t.” His voice sounded like a child being reprimanded, which she supposed wasn’t far from the truth. “Honest, I just thought I was feeling more tired than usual. But I guess that’s why Murdock gave me that tea, and the kids offering to switch chores with me…”

It took a lot of willpower to not roll her eyes. Honestly, this brilliant man could be so dense at times. 

“I don’t know whether it’s better that you’re ignorant or stubborn. Regardless, you’re on bedrest for coming days. I’ll give you some medication to take after you have something in your stomach. Murdock made soup so that should be easy on it.”

“He did?”

“Yes Friede. Everyone noticed you weren’t feeling well–except for you, unsurprisingly.” Her blunt tone didn’t quite match the way she slowly draped a blanket over his form. “Now you’re going to briefly rest here while I have Murdock bring some soup for you to eat. I expect you to eat as much as you’re able to, then take the medicine. Do I make myself clear?”

“Crystal,” he mumbled, sighing blissfully once Mollie placed a folded damp rag over his forehead. 

Mollie smoothened the blanket once more, her own expression softening somewhat. “Try and get some sleep, alright?”

“Mm…” She supposed that after the fight drained from his body, he couldn’t resist succumbing to some much needed rest. Mollie observed him for awhile longer, then checked her cabinet for the appropriate medicine to give Friede later.

With everyone pitching in to take care of their stubborn, loveable captain, it was her hope that he’d return back to full health before the week was up. Until then, she was in for a whole lot of whining in her immediate future… 

Not that she fully minded, she supposed.

[kammieceleek]

A Personal Farewell to a Fic

So...

I've done these before, usually as a last note for a fic I did very few author's notes on, but I've never done one on Tumblr and most people probably don't want to hear this, but fuck it, I'm writing it.

This is my personal farewell to Bride of the Monster Duke, a fic that to this day is my longest and most popular and will probably remain so for quite a while. It's a fic that has a lot of meaning to me as a project and a symbol of how far I've come in a decade of writing fanfiction, and looking back on those ten years I've definitely come a long way from that lonely thirteen-year-old writing Warriors and Gravity Falls fanfic in her room.

And honestly, to that thirteen-year-old, I wanna say you've got this. Don't stop writing, don't stop creating, don't give up on anything because one day, you're gonna write things that people will love. You're finding yourself in your work, someone that people will love and care about deeply if you just take the time to put it out there and find those people.

Anyway, this is about a current work done by me in my twenties, not soothing my inner child, heh.

I started BOTMD as a personal project last May, inspired by a love of romance fantasy manhwa, at the time not realizing that not only would it become my most popular story ever but it would lead me to meeting friends online, people I probably never would've met otherwise. Star (love you so much, funky little internet-sis) and I were in the same server, but the same could not be said of Storm (love you too, big internet-sibling!). I only got into contact with them because I put this particular work out and they read it. And that's not even mentioning all the artists who for some unknown reason thought my writing was good enough to make art for it.

I was utterly flabbergasted with how much love BOTMD received, and I cannot be more grateful than I already am for everyone who's ever read the fic. Whether you found it on day one or you're finding it a year from now, everyone who's given the story this level of love and support deserves the biggest fucking internet hug I can give.

Thank you, everyone.

Thank you to the artists who brought this brainchild to life.

Thank you to Dana Terrace and the Owl Crew for bringing me this show that I fell in love with.

Thank you to Hunter and Willow for being my biggest inspiration and the source of my biggest writing streak in years.

Thank you to Star and Storm for sticking by me with this story and helping me write it, even when I was being weird and crazy, and for being my partners on our next project, Legends of Gravesfield.

And of course, thank you to the readers, because you guys made sure this story went around and more people read it.

Love all of you.

So long and thanks for all the fish!

[vivisols]

digital circus 👀👀 any theories?

I HAVE SO MANY...

specifically about this shot... this shot has a lot to me!

we get this shot of the spinning objects during the "day after day" part of the intro

theres a teapot, old record player/gramophone/whatEVER its called, flower pot (which we see start clipping through the stage), an eye, a pure white sphere and a pyramid!

maybe im reaching but i think these items represent each of the cast.. how so you may ask? WELL! (under the cut)

the eye is clearly caines since hes the ONLY guy in the show to have green eyes. also he has hundreds of all seeing eyes (as he himself said) so thats obvious. and yeah the other objects representing the other cast seems a little far fetched but it makes sense to MEE….

as for the teapot... we see those EXACT teapots during the trip both to and back from the funny dev room. now tech wise the teapot actually has a bit of history LMAO.. the teapot model is known as the utah teapot and is one of the first ever models created using bezier curves! it was made in 1975 and is typically considered a test model for rendering/testing how lighting reacts to complex curved models the only character we EVER see interact with the teapots/get tied to the teapots is pomni. so i think its safe to say the utah teapot is representing pomni! ALSO. CAINES EYE IS INTENTLY FOCUSED ON IT. could be because she's causing a whole bunch of glitches in the system…

the gramophone is interesting especially to me. i mean its REALLY detailed. like that would be polygons GALORE. unlike the utah teapot. all the promo for the vinyl record they sell has caine using a normal record player and NOT a gramophone so… its not caines! now whose would it be? im gonna go out on a limb and say its kingers. IT MAKES SENSE TO ME OK. kinger has been in the circus the longest and the other items in the circle are a LOT simpler. like a LOT a lot. it makes me think that as time goes on the computers strength/power is deteriorating which is evident by all the glitches/collision issues in both the pilot/episode 2.

ALSO IN THE TEASER WE SAW FOR THE EPISODE WHERE KINGER HAS A SHOTGUN HE'S IN A DARK ROOM WITH DIM GREEN LIGHTING

WHICH WE ONLY SEE AGAIN FOR THE TAPE RECORDER THING

AND IT KIND OF HAS A CONNECTION WITH RETRO TECHNOLOGY??? man idk LMAO this is probably the most straw grasping ive ever done. like theyre probably not in the same episode if im being realistic….

the gramophone could also be gangles object bc gangle is like. comedy and tragedy mask. and something something theater music gramophone i DONT KNOW ☠️

the flower pot is probably ragathas. she has the most blue on her after all + shes pretty sweet. now thats a very surface level connection BUT WE HAVENT EXACTLY SEEN IT AGAIN YET so… nothing else i can add really…. im trying ok LOL

now the pyramid is obviously representing zooble. i mean. they have triangle head… and pyramid is triangle….. IN THEIR ROOM TEASER WITH THEIR PIN THEY LITERALLY HAVE ONE...

ALSO THE PYRAMID IS ONLY OTHER GREEN THING BESIDES LEAVES OF THE FLOWER POT AND CAINES EYE. AND ZOOBLE IS THE ONLY CHARACTER TO HAVE ANY SORT OF GREEN ON THEM. even if it's more cyan/teal…. listen i can hope 😭😭😭😭

now the white ball is ESPECIALLY INTERESTING TO ME. BECAUSE ITS SO NONDESCRIPT. it could be gangle OR jax or even kinger if i misattributed the gramophone…. personally i think its gangles because her masks are #fffff white like the ball is…

and what if i went feral and said this was fuel for the "one of them is an NPC" theory…. BC LIKE. WHOEVER THE WHITE SPHERE IS. WOULD BE A REAL PERSON. WHILE WHOEVER DOESNT HAVE AN OBJECT IS THE NPC. NOT TO MENTION THE LAST SUPPER IMAGERY AT THE END OF THE PILOT.

and yeah nothing here really represents jax that i can think of though maybe it will more obvious in later episodes... soooo YEAH shoutout to the "jax is an NPC" theorists.

honestly whats most likely is that everyone has an object except for pomni because she just got there LMAO 🤕 i mean caine doesnt acknowledge her arrival until AFTER she fucks up the intro….

not to mention that kaufmo had been abstracted presumably the WHOLE day and wasnt in the intro so maybe his object wasnt there because he wasnt there… yeah this whole shot probably means nothing and im just yapping about nothing xDDD

[kangaracha]

i tried to goad people into asking me the ao3 questions like five times this month so i'm just gonna treat myself and answer em

How many words have you written this year? 247, 190

How many works did you publish this year? four

What work are you most proud of (regardless of kudos/hits)? nevermore! and not just for wordcount either, though maybe a little bit because i've spent so much time with it. i'm just extremely pleased with the world building i've done and the complexity and depth of the plot and how i've gotten so far into it and i don't feel like i've become wayward yet, which is what usually happens even before i reach this point. i'm so pleased. i'm so excited to reach 200k and see where i'm up to and what's ahead.

What work of yours has the most hits? linger, which is funny because just like the ghosts it was about it haunts me

What work of yours got more feedback than you expected? to go beyond your borders, considering it's hard to get readers to come to something that's nearly completely original and it's just my silly little mental health fic, the audience that it gathered in the short time i was actually updating it regularly was really surprising and i love them

Favorite title you used oh lyre lyre for sure, i went to great lengths to ensure that title made a modicum of sense for that fic

If you use song lyrics, which artist’s songs did you pull from the most? hahahahaha stray kids all day. nevermore is skz cinematic universe so of course every chapter title is a lyric

Pairing you wrote the most for this year? so much gen fic, so little time. original fiction pairings.

Favorite pairing you wrote for this year? HMMMMMMMMMMMM from my original fic, leo/nes. they're funny.

What work was the quickest to write? queenmaker is the quickest to write, takes like an hour per chapter if that. in terms of strictly ao3 fics, lyre lyre was the fever dream of a few days.

What work took you the longest to write? well i started nevermore on the 4th of march and as of the 29th it is disgustingly far from being finished at 140k so i just don't know if i can say anything else. nevermore doesn't actually take long to write though really, it's just that it's a 300k kind of project. relevant to word count though, the unpublished pirate fic is actually probably the thing that's taking the longest, and my original all that is good/holy.

How many WIP’s do you have in your docs for next year? not counting every single novel i have sitting around, it's around 15, but a very casual 15 because i just go with the vibe to the extreme and with no intention to really finish any of them except like two of em

What’s your longest work of the year? hehe nevermore at 139, 583

What’s your shortest work of the year? apart from the cheeky 3 sentence fic the other day, overwinter at 1278

What WIP are you taking into next year with you? nevermore

What’s your most common “Additional Tags” tag? oh. Angst.

Your favorite character to write this year? hehehehe lee minho

The character that gave you the most trouble writing this year? Y/N for queenmaker

What’s one pairing you want to explore next year? more gen fic please, tired of romance. if i had to pick one, angie/raihan from to go beyond your borders

Which work of yours have you reread the most? to go beyond your borders, although i am about to start a full edit of nevermore which is uh no mean feat.

How many kudos in total did you get this year? 202

Which work has the most comments? nevermore by a mile

Did you do any collaborative works this year? you know what they all ditched me to collaborate on their own, and they didn't even post the fic. can you believe it.

Did you write any gifts this year? uhhhh yes, it isn't gifted on ao3 but lyre lyre was for rain and i believe overwinter was for zom mom? keeps? one of those two

Did you receive any gifts this year? yesssss i received neverwas from keeps for my birthday and it was really cool and if you read anything on this list honestly make it that one, it stands alone and it's really weird and vibey

What’s your most common category? Gen

What do you listen to while writing? liked songs or a specific fic playlist on spotify on repeat. usually kpop only these days but it depends what i'm working on.

Favorite work you wrote this year? nevermore

Favorite line/passage you wrote this year? oh my god. out of 240k? yeah no worries i'll just pull it up. um. uhhhh. uhhhhhhh.

Biggest surprise while writing this year? oh that i finished nanowrimo and that if i didn't work such a physically demanding job it would have been easy. if i had all my time spare in that month i would have done 80-100k, when before this year i couldn't get past 25k a month. realising i had that capability just sitting there was crazy.

[okthatsgreat]

SENDING ASKS AT YOUR REQUEST MY LIEGE. OC asks in particular. ONE. Any songs you associate w your ocs? Which songs for which ocs? TWO. Who took the longest to come up with? Who're you still working on? THREE. Whose arc took the longest to come up with? :) Who still doesn't have an arc? FOUR. Who's the most fun to draw? Who's the hardest to draw? Answer as many or as little as you like... ENJOY!!!!!

vibrates wildly yessss YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ONE: any songs i associate with my ocs?

TOO MANYYYYYYY TOO MANYYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!! FAR TOO MANY. my oc playlists are so scattered and strange bc they’re all a mix of like. songs they would LISTEN to and songs that REMIND ME of them/have lyrics that apply to them lmao. i’ll try to choose a few!!!

- JUST BECAUSE SHES THE CHARACTER IM CURRENTLY PLAYING IM GONNA GIVE HER TWO SONGS LOL. “sinking boat” by infinity song for sadie!! extremely relevant considering the rp takes place on a cruise ship LMAO. song all about not worrying about rocking a boat that is doomed to sink anyways :) feels relevant lol. but the one i think is MOST relevant right now to her is “paranoid android” by radiohead!! told from the perspective of somebody very miserable and paranoid but still finding a way to place herself above others

- “cop car” by mitski for sæunn. literally every lyric of this song………… so good for her. she DOES get mean when she’s nervous like a bad dog. she doesn’t think about the past because it IS always there anyways. FUCK man FUCK!!

- i KNOWWW ive said this so many times before but “the fear” by lily allen for pippy/erin it’s just such a good song for her……. losing yourself to fame the image of stardom you portray…..

- “nothing bad ever happens to me” by oingo boingo for ryobeee :) this is HIS song lmao, truly so in his own head that he can’t feel empathetic to the tragedies around him, especially because nothing bad seems to be going wrong for HIM

TWO: who took the longest to come up with/who am i still working on?

UMMMMM to be completely honest with you ALL of my ocs are in constant states of reworking LMAO they’re hardly ever complete!!! there’s always little minor changes being made all of the time…….. i’m not too sure who took the longest to come up with i’ll be entirely honest just because they mostly come to be like prophetic visions in the middle of the day BUT YOU KNOW WHAT. ryobe took a bit of reworking LMAOO. went from the ultimate tv host to the ultimate prankster to the ultimate content creator, design changed up a whole bunch, PERSONALITY got switch up

THREE: whose arc took the longest to come up with/who still doesn’t have an arc?

UMMMMM honestly as of right now probably sadie LMAOO purely because she’s an rp character that’s in the middle of an arc right now!! however with sae and erin (my other two rp characters) i had a pretty solid idea of what i wanted their arcs to look like (pippy progressing into erin, sae taking on more of her fathers temper). with sadie i ALSO had a few ideas, however it just so happened that chapter 2 fucked her up BAD STYLE and how her arc inevitably ends will depend on how things progress………. teehee :) other than rp ocs i think ries whole deal didn’t really click for me for a bit either, but i really like how tragic it is that when she does truly learn to step away from the persona she had created it leads to her class voting incorrectly and getting sentenced to death . awesome sauce!

oh there are a few ocs of mine that only have vagueish arcs LOL. like mika girl sorry you are vague 2 me

FOUR: who’s the most fun to draw? who’s the hardest to draw?

THEYRE ALL PRETTY FUN TO DRAW i do especially love drawing pippy just because she’s super bright and colorful and always has the worlds LARGEST grin on her face like this -> :D

A LOT OF MY DND CHARACTERS ARE HARDER TO DRAW AND THAT IS SOLELY BECAUSE OF ARMOUR LMAO. i LOVEEEEEE drawing for null but it definitely has been pushing me into more dynamic poses!!! it isn’t super expressive in its face but is VERY expressive in its body language, not to mention how inhuman and strange it’s supposed to look

[hannibalcatharsis-zero]

I normally don't write these anymore or quite like this but I'm tired

I don't know if it's the meds or just me, possibly both. Yesterday I was told these meds seem to put me on a lower mood, which was definitely the point since the last ones I was basically in manic constant and felt super nice but couldn't focus and so I was actually overmedicated and it wasn't a healthy "good", just the equivalent of being on a manic episode if I was bipolar, which so far Im not. So the meds were changed to balance the hype, and at first I wanted to double the dose because I was getting worse and the good wasn't good anymore, but I couldn't do that.

Now apparently they've caught their effects up but what was meant yesterday was that I'm more depressed again so yeah

Is this all chemically induced or just me? Am I just gonna get my period or something?

I don't write for 10 months. I was cool with that for the longest time, but now I feel Im missing out. I read old stuff of mine and i felt like coming back. I tried translating today and I feel null.

I've been sewing these past months. All cool at first, but now I'm understandably tired. I wanted to make plushies but they feel like they'll be more of the same. But I was really looking forward to that.

I wanted for weeks to do a wig base and when I did it and it went well, I realized I couldn't go in a Uber or bus with that on due to shame and though I easily saw I just habe to dress at a con, I felt super overwhelmed with something that should have made me feel happy

I can't focus on anything, I am overwhelmed with things to do but nothing feels good enough

I started another wig and I'm kinda wanting to glue it but let's see

A family member died and I felt something, yeah, just not for the deceased.

Today is an important date and I just don't feel what I want to

I just want to lie down

I feel if I only organized myself everything would be much better and I wouldn't have what to complain about

I'm getting paranoid again and it's getting worse I hear what people will say in my head that they hate me its getting worse

Is this all chemically induced or just me. There's more going on and it's probably the hubris of the issue but let's must keep this as little personal as possible on the internet

Oh forgot to add a good song Bury the light mashup