#ty past brain for deciding right away to draw them

[mblue-art]

comfort ship for the soul 💕💜💙

[casspurrjoybell-22]

Master - Chapter 21a

*Warning: Adult Content*   

When I'd mentally accepted the fact that I'd be receiving a punishment from Kalem, the possibility of the punishment falling under the category of sex had never crossed my mind.

All the possible outcomes my brain produced, revolved around cleaning in some form.

I'd concluded that he'd perhaps ask to clean for a longer period during the day than his usual set time or even continue spreading his love for cleaning to the parts of the castle I'd denied him.

My worst-case scenario was for him to make me clean alongside him.

But it had turned out to be none of the above, in typical Kalem fashion he went in the complete opposite direction, producing two bipolar punishments with my name on them.

"Master you're making the car move too slow," Kalem declares from the back seat, drawing my attention to his reflection in the rear view mirror for a split second before I refocus it on the busy motorway. "You have to go faster so you can get your punishment."

"It doesn't matter what speed I drive at, you still have to eat dinner before we get to any of that," I reply, glancing back to find him pouting as he slouches into his seat and looks back out the window with little interest.

Despite the nature of the punishments, I was happy to have Kalem acting like himself again.

It had been a gruelling last couple of days for the two of us, the strain on our relationship a noticeable one that had us both walking on a thin layer of ice. 

With Kalem feeling so torturously uncomfortable and unsure in his own skin, nothing had gotten through to him, no amount of love or reassurances could bring him out of his own mind.

Nothing until I came to him, from the mindset of a slave and reminded him of our rules.

It still made me miserable to think of him in that light but Malcolm had been right, it was the only way to get through to him and it had worked.

As disheartening as it was to admit, Kalem's roots would always set from his past as a slave, tying the stems of his personality to it for the rest of his life. 

It'd come time for to me to realise and accept that keeping that reality in mine would save us both a lot of heartache in the future.

So, here we were, on our way to carry out my first punishment which wasn't really a punishment. 

Neither of them was honestly speaking but they both made my abandoned spirit twist with displeasure in some form, so I suppose they were serving their purpose.

Kalem had always been the hugger between the two of us, I'd simply grown accustomed to and fond of that constant display of affection from him. 

But my heart still clamped down on itself when I thought that he'd be refraining from doing so until he decided otherwise.

‘Perhaps they really were good punishments.’

"Master," Kalem calls, drawing my attention away from my thoughts once more.

"Yes, love."

"Can I have the crispy meat for dinner?" Kalem asks hopefully, his chest pressing against his seatbelt as he pushed forth in excitement.

"Bacon," I supply and he gives me a little nod. "I can add it to your meal if you really want it."

"Thank you, Master," Kalem says, releasing a muffled squeal as he shifts excitedly in his seat.

"I told you didn't I, that one day you'd be asking me for more food," I remind him, as I take the turn off that lead back to the garage. "I'm glad to see that I wasn't wrong."

"Me too Master," Kalem replies quietly and I sneak a peek into the rear view mirror in time to see his cheeks heat up, taking on a lovely rose shade. "M-Maybe one day I c-can try pizza again."

My eyes widen in surprise at this suggestion since Kalem had been pretty adamant about his hatred for pizza. 

It'd left a bad taste in his mouth being the first food he tried outside of that disgusting gruel nonsense and only left a worse impression in his mind since he'd soon after thrown it up.

"Maybe," I reply with a delicate sense of pride welling up in my chest. "There are many different types of pizza, I'm sure you'll like at least one."

"Do you have one you like Master?" Kalem asks as I reach down to scoop up my gate opener from the cup holder.

"When I indulge in eating, I like sausage and green peppers on mine," I reveal and Kalem's face crumples at the mention of the new foods. "I'll have you try those soon enough."

"Okay Master," he replies hurriedly as I park the car amongst the rest of my collection. "I hope I like them both too so that if I do eat pizza again and I like it, we can have something else we both like."

As I had been doing since meeting Kalem, a smile twists my lips upwards as my chest warms from his innocent words. 

Kalem's pure intentions melted my heart within it’s cage and imprinted themselves into my skin.

"That would be very nice," I reply, letting him see my smile before getting out the car.

It doesn't take long before we find ourselves back in the comfort of our home, the quiet expanse welcoming us with its usual silence.

Several months had passed since I'd first brought Kalem here, this forgotten castle that we'd made into our home. 

The time that'd passed was an equivalent of minutes to my lifespan and yet there was an unmistakable change in this place since his arrival.

And it wasn't just how clean the old castle had become, no it was something in the atmosphere. 

Something full of life and light that had Kalem's little fingerprints all over it.

Things were changing, the same as I was.

It was almost as if, this lost, ancient castle was coming to life again just as I was now that I'd found my purpose for living. 

And it, like I was, was ready to exercise it's original purpose.

"Take your time and clean yourself carefully as I showed you," I say to Kalem as we stop in the doorway of his bedroom.

"I will Master," Kalem promises before he presses himself up on his toes to deliver a light kiss to my lips.

"Good boy," I praise when he settles and he eyes practically sparkle at the praise. "I'll be in the kitchen when you're done."

"Okay," he says and I leave him to shower.

In the kitchen, I begin pulling out the different ingredients I'd need for Kalem's dinner and chuckle to myself as I survey the spread.

I'd always known how to cook and for a decade or two taken the time to learn the bases of the world's different cuisines.

But with time, as I seemed to do with most of my hobbies, I lost interest in the activity.

Especially seeing as I didn't need to eat food to survive, it was really just a waste of time and resources and though I may have an endless supply of both, it didn't appeal to me any more.

Yet here I stood, centuries later, putting on an apron to make dinner for my heart and soul.

‘And I wouldn't change a single thing.’

Using my Vampire speed, I chop up the vegetables and season the potatoes lightly before putting them all in the oven to bake before placing a pan to heat for Kalem's bacon.

I chuckle at the random request, he had a tendency to crave certain foods at any other time than their usual eating times.

I fill the pan with as many slices as it could take, Kalem's stomach had become a black hole the second his appetite grew and his taste buds were reawakened.

It was nice to see that his body was no longer outlined by visible bones and his face wasn't hollowed but full, his cheeks chubby to match the little stomach he'd grown.

‘It was progress.’

[ghost-ghost-baby]

Narcissist (alpha!readerxOmega!Bakugo soulmate au)

An: this is heavily inspired by the song narcissist by younger hunger definitely recommend listening to it!

An: BIG TY TO MY BETA FOR EDITING THIS ABSOLUTE MONSTER OF A FIC WE STAN!

Word count: 3.2k (ur welcome)

Summary: Bakugo being a little shit basically- Mina and Denki r sick of him- reader runs out of scent blockers-

Warnings: omegaverse, swearing, Bakugo being a dick, reader just thinks he’s hot, gets a bit spicy but nothing graphic, non traditional dynamics (subby alphas) drug use (weed)

You were in a familiar room, one you’d come to love since you’d started dreaming of it, and you sat on the bed and waited… any moment now.

“Oi, are you here, shithead?” The voice of your omega was dreamier than it was in real life; his harsh words unable to punctuate the tranquility of your dream.

“I always am, Katsuki!” You chirped, grinning as he slowly faded into existence. The black tank top and jeans he wears make him look far too good, and your brain short-circuited for a few seconds.

“I told you not to fucking call me that!” He growled, but you only laughed. Reaching out to grab his hands before he could stop you, you pull him down so you could kiss him. Any anger he had quickly melted away, and Katsuki had pulled one hand away to rest on your shoulder and pushed back. You got the point, you pulled away for air and leaned back on your elbows as you did. Katsuki followed and straddled you without a moment of hesitation. His mouth latched onto your neck and you let out a hum. With one hand gravitating to tangle in his hair, he gave you another push that had you lying flat on your back.

“Hey-”

“Shut the fuck up, don’t ruin this.” Katsuki bit down on your throat and you squeaked, although he licked over the mark seconds later to soothe it, and only pulled away to kiss you when you tried to talk again. You melted, let your hands wander down to his thighs, and had your thumbs rubbing absent-minded circles. Then, Katsuki was unbuttoning the shirt you had on, hands quickly trailing lower to-

“Y/N! Did you hear what Mr. Aizawa said?” Mina’s voice brought you back from the dream you had the night before, and you blinked at her as you blanked.

“No way I'm working with their dumbass!” Katsuki snarled as Kiri forced him into a seat at your table, and you turned your head to Sero with a questioning look. He usually knew what was going on in class.

“We have a group project for a presentation, Mr. Aizawa picked the groups-”

“Oh hell yeah, all my best bro’s working together? Sounds like fun to me!” Denki leaned over to hug you and Mina, and the pieces started to click together. You were working on an art project, with your mate, who hate-

“How could anything be fun with Y/n around, they fucking ruin everything.” Katsuki grumbled to himself, refusing to meet your eyes despite sitting opposite you. Kiri mouthed an apology to you from his seat next to Katsuki. Honestly, you had no idea why he’d decided to act like… such a brat really, but it was just an act, however annoying it was. The two of you were soulmates, he’d come around, eventually.

“Oh hush, Bakugo, Y/n’s a riot and we all know it! You’re the one who goes to sleep at like, 8pm” Denki came to your aid. The electric blonde then pressed a kiss to your cheek that had Katsuki gritting his teeth.

“So, what's the project, guys?” You flipped through your book to a fresh page, resting your chin on your hand as you waited for the others to speak.

“We have to show the versatility of styles and composition under a singular theme!” Kiri was the one that answered you, and the group immediately started throwing around ideas.

“I think we could do horror, a lot of horror artists have different composition styles and still manage to convey the-”

“Tch, that’s the best you could come up with? I’m not surprised, an alpha as shitty as you can’t be capable of any decent ideas.” Katsuki sneered, but you only smiled at him as the group agreed with your idea. Your omega merely grumbled and hunched over in his seat as the group discussed the different artists you could use as examples.

You’d stayed late to double-check something with a professor, and you were still flipping through your notebook as you walked through the unusually empty halls. You weren’t paying attention to where you were going, and before you knew it you ran into someone, the same someone who shoved you against a wall seconds later, but your fear subsided when you realised it was just Katsuki.

“Watch where you’re fucking going, dipshit.” Katsuki wasn’t even sure why he’d pushed you up against the wall, but being this close to you, touching you… it was..nice…

“Tch, god your scent is so weak, you smell like a fucking beta, how’d I get stuck with such a runt, huh? Some sick kind of joke.” Katsuki’s tone didn't match what he was saying. The way he leaned forward to rub his cheek over your scent gland definitely said otherwise, but you stayed quiet, he always found some excuse to scent you, but he’d usually get embarrassed and storm off if you dared to say anything.

“You’re pathetic, you know? Being this submissive for an omega, are you sure you’re not a beta? It’d make more sense.” You bit your lip when Bakugo pressed a kiss to your neck, only hesitating a moment before he started sucking a mark onto your skin. His words bounced right off of you because all you could focus on was how hot he was and how he’d subconsciously put his thigh between your legs and thank fuck you were on scent blockers, or you’d never hear the end of it.

“Really, you aren’t even going to try and defend yourself? You’re even weaker than I thought.” A growl next to your ear made you shiver, and Katsuki pushed away with a snarl when he was satisfied. He cursed at you again and warned you ‘not to tell anyone or he’d kick your ass’ (he wouldn’t) before he walked away, leaving you to walk home with your head completely in the clouds.

“What took you so fucking long, huh idiot?” Katsuki was on you the second you appeared in the dream, pulling you down into a rather ferocious kiss before you could say anything. He bit your lip when you didn’t open your mouth fast enough, swallowing any protests you would have made, and continued to kiss you until you were dizzy. “I’ve been waiting two hours…” He pulled away to kiss under your jaw, and if you didn’t know him so well you’d miss the insecure tone in his voice.

“Sorry, Midoriya wanted-” You stopped when Katsuki growled, biting down so hard you were surprised he didn't draw blood.

“Why the fuck are you saying his name here, huh? Are you tryna piss me off?” He pulled away to sneer at you. You opened your mouth to explain, but the words died in your throat when he unzipped your hoodie, and any coherent thought you had went out the window when he started to kiss your neck.

Everything was ready. The lounge room was set up, complete with snacks, drinks, and stationery for you and your friends to work on the project. They were meant to be here any second, and you couldn’t help but hover near the door to your apartment. You weren’t used to having people over and it still put you on edge having others in your space. But that thought left your head when a knock sounded on your door. You quickly opened it and were almost knocked over by Denki and Mina engulfing you in a hug.

“Thanks so much for hosting bro!”

“Awww you laid out all these snacks and stuff too! An omega’s gonna be really lucky to have you one day Y/n!” They pushed inside. Denki closed the door as Mina oohed and aahed over the setup, their praise had a slight blush rising to your face as you sheepishly rubbed your neck. Sero was next, quickly hugging you before he joined Denki and Mina, then Katsuki and Kirishima last. The blonde pushed past you without saying hello, but Kiri pulled you into a hug so tight you couldn’t breathe for a second, and was complimenting the setup as you took a seat. You tried to sit next to Mina, but Denki let out a whine and the pair was pulling you down between them before you had time to protest. Denki immediately leaned on you once you were settled. Katsuki couldn’t focus on the project, how could he, when his two dipshit friends were all over his mate. And you weren’t even doing anything to stop them! In fact, you were leaning into their hugs and giggling at every stupid joke they made! It had Katsuki fuming. Kirishima was the only one close enough to smell the angry shift in his scent, and he glanced between his friend and you, slowly putting the pieces together. You really had no idea what was happening, but Denki’s head was on your shoulder, and Mina’s arm around your waist as she asked questions about the project, giggling and pressing a kiss to your cheek whenever you got confused, which happened more than you’d like to admit. The blonde gritted his teeth when Mina’s hand went to your thigh, you were his! Nobody else should ever be touching you like that! You should know better! So when you excused yourself to grab something from your room, of course he made up some excuse about needing the bathroom so he could follow you.

The door to your room closed with a click, and you quickly spun around, expecting to see Mina or Denki, anyone except Katsuki to be honest.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing?” He was seeing red at this point. He cornered you and made you stumble back until your waist hit your desk.

“Uh- getting more pens-?” You held out the pack of pens with a confused look on your face that only made Katsuki angrier. How were you so stupid? And so fucking cute when you were- he cut off that thought, he needed to focus on yelling at you. Not the way your brows furrowed and how you nervously bite your lip as you waited for him to say something. Wait- were you blushing? Fuck, maybe he should-

“Katsuki? Are you oka-“

“Shut the fuck up, dipshit.” He snarled. Then, catching you both off guard, he leaned forward and kissed you. Your eyes fluttered closed immediately. He’d only kissed you in your dreams, which was nothing compared to this, and you hesitantly placed your hands on his waist. His hands went to your hair to pull you closer, tugging it until you got the message and parted your lips for him. Katsuki let out a hum of approval as he deepened the kiss, why hadn’t he done this sooner? You couldn’t focus on anything other than how much Katsuki tasted like caramel, he didn’t taste like caramel in the dreams. You couldn’t help but whine when he pulled back. Another insistent tug on your hair had you tilting your head back, and Katsuki didn’t waste any time kissing over your neck. You were so lost in the feeling you almost missed the words he growled against your skin.

“You should know better, you’re mine. Other people shouldn’t be fucking touching you like that.”

“Do you think they’re like…. Finally-” Mina made a hand gesture that had Denki cackling, even Kiri cracked a smile.

“I hope so, it’s getting hard to watch all the back and forth.” Sero sighed, dropped his pen, and stretched.

“Yeah, have you seen how mad Bakubro gets though? It’s pretty fun to push his buttons like this!” Denki grinned as he leaned his head on Mina’s shoulder, and she wrapped her arm around his waist.

“I don’t know… Bakugo’s uh… stubborn, to put it nicely.”

“Your scent is weird… are you wearing a different perfume?” Mina leaned her head on your shoulder, arms wrapped around your waist as you glanced at Katsuki. After whatever the fuck had happened in your room, he’d gone back to acting like he hated you, so, you’d kept letting Denki and Mina do whatever they wanted. He had his eyes fixated on the work, and you turned back to Mina with a smile.

“Oh, sorry about that! I forgot to refill my scent blockers and my doctor’s not available until next week.”

“Don’t be sorry, bro! It’s nice, like really, really nice!” Denki came up behind you, throwing a quick glance at Katsuki before he leaned forward, crooning and rubbing his cheek over your scent gland, Mina doing the same a moment later. The pen Katsuki was holding snapped, his angry scent pumping out in waves as he glared daggers into the book in front of him, all too aware of you laughing.

You were hyper-aware of how strong your scent was, this was the longest you’d gone without scent blockers since you’d presented, and you’d lit a scented candle to try and cover it up. It hadn’t really worked, maybe you should light some incense-

“Y/n! Sorry we’re early!” Mina’s hand on your shoulder broke you from your thoughts, and you shook your head before you smiled. Denki cut you off before you could apologize about your scent.

“Damn Y/n! It smells like you baked cookies- oh my god did you bake-”

“Don’t be stupid, babe, it’s just their scent.” Mina shoved him inside, shaking her head as she followed and closed the door behind her.

“Oh! Of course!” Denki nodded, and he and Mina linked arms with you. They walked you over to the couch and sat you all down with grins on their faces.

“Uh… guys-?” You didn’t trust that look, it never leads to anything good.

“Well, since the project is like, 99.5% done-” Mina started, hand coming up to play with your hair.

“We thought we deserved a reward!” Denki interrupted, reaching into his bag and producing a blunt. You felt your own grin forming.

“Oh my god- is that from-”

“Shinso! You know he sells the best stuff on campus, I decided to splurge for my bros!” Denki looked incredibly pleased with himself, and you couldn’t help but tackle the blonde in a hug.

“Oh my god Denki, you’re the best!”

The three of you were blazed by the time the others got there. Sero happily bounced over to share the blunt, while Katsuki and Kiri just sighed and sat down with you. Katsuki’s eyes instantly zoned in on where you were lying on Mina and Denki on the couch. He was oddly silent as he tried to keep his cool, the nagging thoughts that had always been there slowly got stronger. He’d always had to be strong, people perceived him as weak just because of his dynamic, so he’d rejected the thought of being with an alpha, hoping for a beta or omega. Or you. You never made a big deal out of your dynamic, and always treated him as an equal. Then the dreams started. He loved you, he really did! But his whole reputation would go down the drain if he was claimed by an alpha, especially one with such a weak scent and mild presence. So…. he pretended to hate you in public because the two of you had your dreams, where nobody could judge him! Even if they did pale in comparison to real life. But lately… he couldn’t stop wondering… were you getting tired of waiting? With the way you were acting… the thought made his stomach turn and his canines come out. Especially since you had run out of blockers. Your scent getting stronger and stronger as the days went by. You were his alpha! You shouldn’t be scenting other people! Especially omegas! And you certainly shouldn’t be laying on them while you were ignoring him! You hadn’t even said hello to him! You were too busy getting high with those assholes like you didn't belong to him! You were his, it wasn’t fair!

Mina was the last out of the apartment. She kissed your cheek and winked at you as the door closed. The exhaustion set in as you leaned against the door.

“What the fuck was that?” Katsuki growled and made you startled when you saw him by the table. You only shrugged as you went to pack up the stuff on the couch.

“Denki got us some weed because the project was done-”

“Not that, dickhead! They were all over you!” He marched over to you, trying to ignore how good you smelled up close.

“And? We’re not-” You responded, and Katsuki was shoving you before he realized, ignoring the way you yelped as you fell on the couch. You sprawled on your back and glaring up at him.

“Katsuki! What the fuck!” Katsuki didn’t reply, eyes traveling over your vulnerable form. Flush rose to his face as he realized how provocative the position was, causing warmth to pool in his tummy. If kissing was so much better in reality, what would it be like to be inside you? Feel you clench around him and pull his hair when he hit your sweet spot? Would your thighs shake the same in real life when he just kept going? The omega didn’t even realize his scent had changed, he just licked his lips and stared at you with hooded eyes, fuck he wanted-

“Are you okay? You zoned out.” Fuck, when had you gotten up? You were so close now, your scent overwhelming. He never wanted you to go on blockers again.

“Fuck, Katsuki! Katsuki! Are you in heat?” It finally dawned on you. Katsuki’s scent had taken on a sweeter tone it didn’t usually have, and with the way he kept zoning out, it was obvious. Plus thoughts of him on top of you that wouldn’t leave your brain alone. Your question snapped him out of his daze, and the omega snarled at you, stepping back and stumbling when a jolt of pain went through him.

“Fuck off, like you could trigger-” His voice cut off as another wave of pain went through him, causing you to reached out to steady him without thinking. The omega was going to let out a growl but it quickly changed to a whine as it escaped his mouth. You pulled your hand back like it had burned, although your mate’s temperature was so high it wasn’t out of the question. You took two steps back and froze when a feral snarl ripped through the room, dark red eyes pinning you in your place.

“He-hey Katsuki…” Your voice stopped his growling, and it took every ounce of self-control you had to stay coherent as he advanced, your rut already trying to cloud your judgment. Your eyes darted around the room, maybe you could make it to the bathroom? Then Katsuki could ride out his heat and you could talk about it? yeah. Katsuki was only a foot away from you now, the grin he had on was somehow more unsettling than the snarl, and you shook your head to get some of your resolve back. Okay, three, two, one-

You made it maybe ten centimeters before Katuski caught you, and pushed you back down on the couch. He wasted no time sitting on your lap and tilting your face up to look into his eyes.

“You’re not getting away from me, Alpha. I know you want this. I should have done this months ago.” Sincerity shone through your omega’s lidded eyes, and you felt your small shred of resolve shrink away even more. Your hands flew to his chest to push him away.

“Ka-Katsuki it’s just- just your heat, you don’t mean-“

“Don’t tell me what I do and don’t mean, alpha.” Katsuki was back to growling at you. His hands grabbed your wrists, pinned them down, and used his knees to keep them in place. He went back to cupping your face, red eyes boring into yours as he thought of what to say and a growl leaving him whenever you dared to look away. You were so, so obnoxiously pretty, it made it even harder to focus. Katsuki kept getting distracted by little details, like how your eyes shone and you kept biting your lip.

“You’re so fuckin stupid, ya know that? Of course, I fuckin want you, you’re my alpha- I don’t… I don’t care what other people think anymore, I just want you.” Katsuki’s tone was softer than you expected, and you could only gape at him as a blush quickly rose to your face. You knew he didn’t hate you, but hearing him say that lifted a weight off your shoulders you’d been carrying for who knows how long. The moment passed, all the softness went away as Katsuki leaned down to kiss you, and this time you kissed him back without any reservations.

[bubbleteaimagines]

The Babysitter

Kuroo Tetsuro Oneshot

NSFW CONTENT

Summary || After months of sexual tension, Kuroo can’t resist fucking his pretty little babysitter on the couch

Pairings || Kuroo Tetsuro x Babysitter!Reader

Warnings || Smut, fingering, blowjobs, age gap (reader is 20) light praise, pet names, unprotected sex, creampie, daddy kink

Authors Note || In celebration of 3k, here is some Dilf!Kuroo that we all need in our lives

It was inevitable, you supposed. The tension between you two was simply too thick, and it had been for months— ever since you had started working for him.

Kuroo was a man that was very busy, and with a two year old daughter and a mother that was absent, it was no surprise that he needed some extra help.

That’s where you came in- fresh faced and right out of college, majoring in (Y/M/N) and needing a job for the summer.

A friend of a friend had been the one to hook you up, Kuroo taking a liking to you almost instantly.

He had to admit, it was your pretty face and bright smile that draw him in at first, but truly, you were most qualified candidate for the job.

Like a ray of sunshine, a breath of fresh air if he’d ever seen one.

Not to mention how his daughter absolutely loved playing with you from the moment she met you, so in Kuroo’s mind it was a no brainer.

That’s how it started— but your story with the older man would end much, much different.

With lingering glances here and there, subtle touches and late nights where you’d both just sit down and talk, it was no surprise to either of you that ended up here— face down on his couch and completely at his mercy.

Truthfully, it wasn’t supposed to end this way. You were only supposed to have a few drinks and then head home for the night, but somehow before Kuroo could even open the wine, the tension between the two of you had reach the boiling point.

Everything between you two had been spilled in an instant, and now you were a moaning mess as Kuroo’s soft lips attached themselves to your clit, biting and sucking softly while his long fingers worked magic on your cunt.

“You like that babygirl?” Nicknames, so many of them, and they sounded so sexy coming from his lips. You damn near came right then and there as he leaned down to whisper in your ear, nibbling a little while his assault on your pussy continued.

“Y-Yes,” You found yourself squeaking out a reply, too wrapped up in pleasure to respond with anything coherent. But alas, Kuroo wasn’t satisfied. He gave you pointed look as he fingers came to a still, a whine leaving your throat at the loss of contact.

“Kuroo!”

“Ah, ah, ah. That’s not my name. You know better,” He said disapprovingly. It only took you a few seconds for your brain to catch up, a spark of realization flowing through you before you uttered out the correct word.

“Daddy.”

“That’s it,” Kuroo gave you a huge smirk and in no time, continued on with brining you to your high. Admittedly, the man was skilled. Despite never having explored your body before, he knew exactly where to touch you, knew exactly the right spots to make you see stars. “Let me hear you baby- let see hear you cum for me.”

“F-Fuck, fuck!” A breathless moan left your lips as you threw your head back, pleasure taking over every sense. You could barely breathe, too focused on the orgasm that came crashing over you, knocking the air out of your lungs and rendering your brain useless.

You came, harder than you ever had before, all over Kuroo’s slender fingers. In fact, your little pussy made a mess all over his expensive couch but at the moment, Kuroo didn’t care.

His cock was growing harder by the minute as he watched you come undone under him, because of him.

He’s never seen anyone look so sexy, already looking fucked out even though he just started.

“You alright there babygirl?” He’s kind enough to ask, leaning down to stroke your cheeks. Wordlessly, you nod, but Kuroo can tell there’s something on your mind. Suddenly, you sit up, and there’s a hopeful look in yours as you crawl over towards him and pout.

“I wanna ride you, daddy,” You tell him, jutting out your lower lip and tugging on his belt. Fuck. How could Kuroo resist you when you looked at him like that? All needy for him, pussy throbbing at just the idea of him fucking you senseless.

“Fuck, you sure, baby?” He checks to make sure you’re serious before making his next move, and sure enough- you nod eagerly and tug at him again, a whine leaving your throat. He was moving too slow, being a gentleman, sure, but right now you wanted him to fuck you like a whore.

“Yes daddy, I’m absolutely sure,” You tell him confidently, and it doesn’t take much after that to get Kuroo to agree. Quickly, his hands replace yours at pulling at his belt, fumbling with the material and cursing himself for tying it too tight. Eventually though, he manages to get the damn thing off and throws it across the room, making a small clatter that neither of you pay attention to.

And suddenly, Kuroo’s sitting down on the couch and letting you do all the work of undressing him, chuckling at how eager you are. You grab at his clothes like your life depends on it— first his shirt, then his pants, and finally his boxers come off and Kuroo has the absolute pleasure of taking in your ‘O’ shaped mouth, jaw dropping at the size of his cock.

“D-Daddy, you’re so big,” You tell him, eyes wide. Way bigger than any of the college boys you’ve been with. Kuroo was hung and is was making your mouth water, desperate for a taste.

“Go on,” He softly encouraged you after seeing the look on your face, snaking his hands behind your head and gripping your hair. “Give it taste. Let me cum all over those pretty little lips babygirl.”

You’re all eager to fulfill his request, blinking innocently before leaning in and darting your tongue out. Kuroo groans at the action, back straining against the couch as you do it once more before finally giving him the real thing.

Your mouth is hot and tight wrapped around him, pure Heaven, Kuroo thinks, as you get to work and start sucking him like a pro.

Your head bobs up and down, taking him as much as you can and using your hands to stroke the parts you can’t reach. You open up your throat and take him deeper- so deep that you start gagging on his cock.

Kuroo moans at the vibrations and despite your teary eyes, he pulls your head further down and stuffs your mouth with his cock.

He moans again as he feels a pit in his stomach, his orgasm bubbling up the more you pleasured him.

You could feel it, too, by the way he was turning into putty under your touch and groaning every time you stroked him. Slowly, you look up to meet his eyes as you tease his tip with your tongue Kuroo suddenly lets go- sinful noises leaving his lips as thick, white ropes of his cum shoot out and down your throat.

Like the good girl you are, you swallow every last drop before finishing off with a ‘pop!’ Kuroo panting heavily as you sit back on your knees.

“Was I good, daddy?” You ask him, Kuroo frantically nods as he pulls you up, positioning you on his lap and just over his cock.

“The best, babygirl. You took me so well,” Kuroo praises you, stroking your hair before smiling. “You think you’re ready to take my cock now, pretty girl?” He asks, and you nod frantically.

“Yes, please Daddy. I want it so bad,” You tell him, gripping his shoulders, and that’s Kuroo needs to hear in order to spread your legs and lower you on his cock.

You moan as his tip begins to push past your tight walls, the breath leaving your lungs the more he fills you up. God, he’s so big, and he knows it too which is why he give you a little time to adjust to his size before slowly fucking into you.

“Fuck!” It’s so painful and delicious at the same time. The way you stretch around him, your little pussy desperately trying to take him. You throw your head back in pleasure when he bottoms out, hands coming up to steady you.

Your movements are slow at first, only rocking your hips and bouncing a little while you ease into a rhythm. However, you’re practically dripping around him and that makes it all the more easier to move, finally being to able warm up to his size.

The pace that you settle on leaves you both a moaning mess, trying to keep it down as to not disturb his daughter that’s sleeping upstairs. You have to bury yourself into the crook of Kuroo’s neck in order to mask your moans, walls clenching around his cock.

He’s so deep that it has you crying out every few seconds, wrapping your body around him to keep yourself ground. Kuroo doesn’t mind though, in fact he pulls you into a deep kiss as you continue to bounce around him, both of you moaning into the other’s mouth.

Somehow, your hands find his messy hair and you tug on it gently as you begin to feel another orgasm rising up. Kuroo can feel the way your walls are clenching around him, and decides to take the lead. Grabbing your hips, he steadies you before thrusting up and matching your pace, pounding into you while you try to hold on for dear life.

It’s no use though, pleasure clouds over you in an instant, your vision going in and out as you moan and whine against his lips. Eventually though, you’re forced to pull away for air and take deep breath, your body shaking. You’re not sure how much longer you can last like this, and Kuroo knows.

He feels the way you’re squirming and whining against him, he loves the way you’re going absolutely feral for his cock. He wants nothing more than to make you cum around him, and so he snakes a hand down and rubs at your clit, teasing you just enough to send you over the edge.

“Shit, shit, shit, shit!” You cry out as your walls clamp down on him, creaming all over Kuroo’s cock. Your eyes roll into the back your head and you hear Kuroo groaning underneath you as you squeeze him like never before. Fuck, you’re so tight that he has no choice but to cum too, a loud moan leaving his lips as the milky white substance paints your walls.

He stuff you full of it, his good little girl milking him dry before he pulls out at watches run down your thighs.

You’re breathing heavily as your eyelids slowly open, coming down from your high to see Kuroo as equally as flustered. You both need a minute to calm down before you speak, slowly moving off of his lap and collapsing on the couch next to him.

“That was...” You don’t even have the words for it. You’ve never been fucked so good before, the man making you cum twice which had never happened with any of your other hook-ups. It seems that Kuroo was feeling the same, a low chuckle escaping his lips as he nodded.

“Yeah,” Kuroo agreed as he leaned back on the couch, sweat dripping down his forehead. Even in his fucked out state though, he still looks incredibly handsome. Black hair sticking to his face, brown eyes wide with blown pupils...man, he really was beautiful.

You found yourself smiling the more you admired him, and Kuroo quickly caught onto your stare.

“What? Is there something on my face?” He asked jokingly, shying away from your gaze. You grinned at the light blush that crossed his cheeks.

“No, no...I just...you’re really handsome, you know that?” You found yourself saying, taking Kuroo by surprise. His brows furrowed together at your words, but he quickly recovered, a sly smirk forming on his face.

“Took you long enough to notice, didn’t it?” He teased, lightly nudging you. You giggled at the action but shook your head.

“No, I’ve always noticed. But honestly I didn’t think-”

“You didn’t think I’d see you that way,” Kuroo finished knowingly. You nodded. “Huh. Well isn’t that something.”

“I just thought...well I dunno. I didn’t think you’d be interested in me. I mean after all I’m just the babysitter, kinda cliche isn’t it?” You said.

Kuroo chuckled. “Yeah...I suppose it is. But this...us...it’s not just a one time thing, is it?”

“Not if you don’t want it to be,” You tell him seriously, turning to face him. “I mean...I’m willing to you know...be more, if that’s what you want.”

“You mean like a date?” Kuroo asked, shocked.

“I’m free on Friday’s,” You tell him shyly. But despite this, Kuroo finds himself smiling and slowly nodding at your proposition.

“Friday yeah? I’d say we’re doing things a little backwards, but I’d love to take you out,” He can’t help the goofy grin that spread across his face, his heart pounding a little at the shy, relived grin on your own.

“Okay...Friday it is then,” You beam, reaching for your lost clothing that’s been scattered on the floor. It was getting late, and you really should be getting home before your roommate starts to worry, but you find yourself not wanting to leave at all. Kuroo had completely intoxicated you, making you want to do nothing but stay in his arms for the rest of the night. Unfortunately though, you both froze as a cry pierced through the house and Kuroo cursed as he frantically got up, and slipped his clothes on

“I’m sorry,” He sent you an apologetic look as Kiana began to cry, having woken up from her sleep. “I hate to leave things like this but...”

“It’s fine,” You shake your head, smiling a little as you gesture upstairs. “She needs you, I understand. I’ll get my time on Friday, yeah?”

“I can’t wait,” Kuroo tells you honestly, stopping momentarily to press a quick kiss on your lips before darting to the stairs. “I’ll call you later this week, okay?”

“I can’t wait,” You repeat his words, grinning at his toned figure before watching him disappear up the stairs. Even from where you were, you could hear Kuroo gently cooing and trying to soothe baby Kiana (named closely after her uncle) and it made your heart absolutely melt.

Shaking your head, you gathered the rest of your stuff and quickly slipped out of the door before you ended up in a puddle due to the cuteness. Already, you had your phone out and rang up your roommate -also your best friend- as you walked to your car, excitement bubbling through your veins.

“Hello?” They answered on the first ring.

You grinned. “Y/F/N, you will never believe what just happened to me...”

[michiigii-writes-mysme]

Today will be a depraved, Unknown kind of day~

Fandom: Mystic Messenger

This is during Ray’s route, so spoiler alert, I guess?

And technically an AU considering I added an element to her room…

July 10th - Ice Cube Cool Down - Mr. Saeran x MC

Mr. Saeran was in a terrible mood. The sweltering heat of the day could irritate the most patient of people, and since his change, Mr. Saeran was anything but patient. Since noon, he had been stomping around the grounds, between angrily pounding at his keyboard and yelling at other believers. When he finally made his way to the specially locked room, none of the other residents of Magenta envied his Toy.

The girl flinched when her door crashed open, but when she saw who it was, she didn’t move from where she was on the bed. She was lying on her side, admiring the wilting flowers on her table and trying to ignore the gnawing feeling in her stomach, trying to forget the stifling heat of the windowless room. He hadn’t allowed her breakfast or lunch, and while she hoped he would bring something for dinner, she knew the best she could hope for was stale bread and tepid water.

“Uggh, it stinks in here,” the white-haired hacker growled, passing a hand over his face, “The heat makes the stench even worse…”

He means the opposite. He means the opposite, she thought to herself, her mantra since her darling Ray had drowned in green elixir, He doesn’t mean it. He doesn’t mean it.

Mr. Saeran slammed the door behind him, locking it securely. The girl on the bed slowly sat up, noticing that he was holding a glass of something.

“Are those…ice cubes?” she asked, her voice hoarse as the question made its way past her cracked lips.

“What if they are?” he sneered, stalking across the room to her.

Before she sat up completely, his hand was around her neck, pushing her back down onto the bed.

“You thought I would bring you a treat?” he spat, “Stupid toy! It’s so hot, it must have destroyed what little brain cells you have! What makes you think you deserve ice?”

He hauled the girl by the hair to the centre of the bed, and reaching to the bed posts, Saeran pulled out two lengths of leather that had seen good use since he had made her his plaything.

“Ray, wait-“

She tried to slow him down, grabbing at his wrists, but she was so weak from hunger, he easily swatted her away. Even with one hand holding the cold glass of ice cubes, he made quick work of tying her wrists with the leather, pinning her down to the bed.

“How many times do I need to tell you, Toy? Ray is gone. He’s left you and now you’re mine.”

“What are you going to d-“

Stifling her mouth with his hand, he glared at a spot just behind her ear. He never looked her straight in the eye, she noticed; whenever he accidentally did, he would get even more unstable and abandon her in moments.

And, curse her pathetic heart, she didn’t really want him to go. He might be rough with her, but he never actually hit her. And even if he wasn’t really her Ray, she still wanted him close. There were moments in between the screaming and throwing items around her room, where he would pause, and she would get glimpses of…something. He wasn’t Ray, anymore…but the monster that he became wasn’t really him, either. There was something more in Saeran, and she wanted more than anything to reach out and draw him to the surface. And she couldn’t do that if he left her alone.

Saeran frowned when he saw there was no place to put his glass, then with a cruel grin balanced it right in the centre of her chest, on her breastbone just beside where her curves began. It was cold! Too cold! His hand muffled your gasp, but his lips curled higher when he saw your eyes widen and your legs spasm in shock.

“What, Toy? Doesn’t that feel so much better than the heat?”

Taunting her, he ripped the front of her dress open, buttons flying across her bed, exposing the rest of her body as he tore the dress completely open. He tugged her bra down, releasing her breasts, and cupped one in a greedy, possessive grip. His hands were still cold from the glass; again, she gasped, but they could both hear that the sound wasn’t completely born from pain.

“You filthy girl,” he sneered, squeezing her breast and easing another moan out of her, “I only wanted to chill you, but you’re actually enjoying this?”

She shook her head to deny it, then flinched when a freezing drop of condensation slid down the side of the glass, splashing against her skin.

“Bad girl,” he growled, releasing her mouth and taking an ice cube from the glass, rubbing it against his bottom lip pensively, “You know you should never lie to me.”

She opened her mouth to maybe deny it, or beg for mercy, but as soon as her lips parted, he pushed the ice cube into her mouth. Instinctively, she closed her lips, her teeth clicking around the ice before he could try to take it away. It was life-giving water and she could almost cry at how refreshing it was.

But Saeran hadn’t wanted to show mercy; he had wanted her silenced, and he had succeeded. His hands moved to play with her breasts, her nipples already erect from the cold. One was a little shyer than the other, much to his disapproval. He took another ice cube, the glass ever balanced on her chest, and traced a lazy circle around her areola; she whimpered at the intensity, but his eyes darkened as he watched her nipple perk up.

“You may be a useless fool, Toy, but it is fun to make you squirm,” he muttered, dragging the ice cube over her tip.

She wanted to cry out, but she would risk choking on the cube in her mouth. She wanted to turn away, to ease the sensation even a little, but then the glass might tip. So, she stifled another yelp, her legs twisting this way and that, trying to subdue the heat that was pooling between them.

He finally released her other breast, but to her chagrin she saw him take another ice cube from the glass. He was running it through his fingers, as if trying to figure out what to do with it, while he continued to torture her nipple with swipes of ice. She wanted to shut her eyes, to not watch what he would do to her next, but when she tried it, every touch and every icy drip felt even more sharp and intense. Better to watch and expect the teasing, she decided, turning her agonized gaze back to her captor.

She relaxed a little when Saeran popped the ice cube into his own mouth. He must be hot, too, she knew; maybe now that he had something to drink, he would calm down. Instead, he lowered his body against hers, his mouth coming down to latch around her nipple. She gave a choked cry, fingers clawing at the open air, unable to break free from the leather straps at her wrists. She felt his icy tongue tease her sensitive nub, then suckle while the ice cube played in his mouth. Wet warmth and freezing cold played at both her breasts, exquisite torture that made her head spin. It wasn’t until he pulled back that she realized she had been screaming; the ice cube in her mouth had disappeared without her realizing it.

“Shut up!” he snapped, putting both half-melted ice cubes into his mouth, then shoving your lips against his. A rough, bruising kiss, and when her lips parted, both pieces of ice slipped through; again, she was silenced.

Through a thick, hungry and lust-filled haze, the girl could hear the glass tinkling again, and sharp cold surprised her just above her bellybutton. Saeran moved down her body, sweeping the fresh ice cube left and right across her stomach, distracting her so she never felt him remove her damp panties. It wasn’t until the ice cube was at her mound and he had hooked her thighs over his shoulders that she realized what he was going to do.

“Nnn!!” she tried, legs spasming, but deep down, she wanted him to keep going, and he was very determined to splay her legs open for him to feast.

He rested the ice cube just over her pearl, close enough that she could feel the cold, but not enough that it would hurt her. Even he knew that an ice cube on her clit would be too much for her, especially in the dripping, needy state that she was already in. Her breath quickened in anticipation; she couldn’t see it, but she could feel a drop of melting ice already starting to slide down. Her eyes squeezed tight, feeling tension mounting as the icy water slowly grew bigger and bigger, teasing towards her clit, the sense of almost being touched making her head spin. Whether she wanted it to drip and sting her with its coldness, or whether she wanted to avoid the overwhelming sensation, she wasn’t sure.

Then, just when she should she couldn’t take it anymore, Saeran buried his face into her pussy, sloppy as he spread cool, melted water wherever he could feel wet velvet against his tongue. He didn’t try to be neat, or have any modicum of finesse; he wanted her to feel everything, both painful and pleasurable, and he wanted her to feel it now. With every twist of his tongue, every drop of icy water, even his fingers as they greedily pushed into and writhed in her core, he wanted to tear ecstasy and need and moaning and rapture out of her. Even as he felt her buck and try to break free of him, he devoured her, head shaking back and forth as he hunted for her release.

He wanted her to feel the intensity that he felt when his eyes met hers. He wanted her to cry. He wanted her to gasp. He wanted to hear her beg him for mercy as she screamed his name.

He wanted her shattered and undone and unable to function without him.

So he suckled and nibbled and impaled her on his fingers, never relenting until his goal was achieved.

—————

Hours later, he stood over her, her spent body curled up on the bed. He had pulled the blanket over her bare form, the starlight the only witness to this tiny show of kindness that she would never remember.

It had been such a hot day. But she had refreshed him.

And yet, already he craved more of her.

“…disgusting,” he grumbled, pulling his clothes back on, “Pathetic fool…”

He stalked out of the room, refusing to look back, to examine her sleeping face, to watch her dream and breathe easy.

Refusing to acknowledge that he wished he could stay with her.

—fin—

[cassanovancats]

felicitate. nine.

eight < current > ten

Dec. 24, 2017

You make yourself comfortable on the rooftop, debating if you should go ahead and text your brother. He would be almost as disappointed as you were; Satoru had taken to calling himself the captain of your ship with Yuta and Toge, even coming up with a nickname that incorporated shortened versions of all three names. You sigh, deciding it’s probably best to not text him. He’s likely already worried about leaving you in charge, no need to add a worry about something that isn’t deadly.

A sudden yell disrupts your thoughts and you jump into position, nocking an arrow and aiming towards the scream. You hitch your breath at the sight: Geto is striding into your school alone, leaving a trail of headless assistants behind him. One of the bodies is familiar and you recognize her as the assistant that gave you chocolate with a bright smile after a mission with unfortunate timing left you covered in curse blood and your own. She didn't flinch or offer pity - just a single chocolate kiss. Now she is covered in gore and blood, her previously pristine white shirt coated with her own brain matter.

You feel your resolve hardens. Geto is a curse-user, a human at his core, but he also is a monster. The arrow flies an accurate course but the man dodges, leaving it to embed itself into the wall instead of his torso. He turns to your rooftop, calling out, “Ah, (y/n)! And here I thought your brother would lock you in a tower.” Geto unleashes a grade-one curse that looks similar to a wolf and sends it after you. He is infuriatingly unbothered by your presence and continues his steady gait into the school grounds.

You start running across the rooftops, jumping over gaps and dodging the curse’s attempts to bite you. The rooftop tiles bite into your hands and knees. It faintly registers that a nail broke when you almost missed a jump, narrowly avoiding falling to the ground.

Satoru didn’t say how long to keep this secret, but you assume now is a good time to give Maki and Yuta a heads-up. You spot Maki stepping away from a classroom, so you run there, drawing the curse after you. On the roof next to where she stands, you plant your feet and turn, suddenly drawing your katana and slicing at the wolf. It draws back, avoiding your attack before lunging suddenly. Its claws sink into your leg. You cry out in pain, falling to your knees. When the curse lunges again, this time aiming for your throat, you fall on your back and thrust your blade into its stomach. You force the blade down its body with a grunt, disemboweling the creature. The teeth around your throat loosen, but the dead weight of the curse dropping on you prevents you from getting up immediately. Guts slide out and onto you and you suppress a gag. You feel a lot like Carrie on prom night.

When you finally stagger to your feet, you see Maki has engaged Geto in a fight that she’s obviously losing. You cry her name and rush to her side. She doesn’t get a chance to acknowledge you as Geto, in one fluid moment, breaks her weapon and sends her flying. She falls to the ground as a ragdoll, bleeding heavily from her side and head. You watch her body land, horrified, before you’re snapped back into the fight rudely.

Geto is now the closest to you he’s been since you were a child, frightened and unable to communicate with the people around you. He feels some long-forgotten sense of pity as he slides the blade of his knife further into your stomach. “W-wh-?” You look at the handle sticking out of your body curiously, blood starting to leak from the corner of your mouth. The pain hasn’t begun to register but your body understands that you are unable to fight. You faint, missing the entrance of Panda and Toge by a few precious seconds.

When Yuta comes out from the classroom, he isn’t sure what he’s expecting to find. He felt a few earthquakes and thought it best to find you and Maki to wait out any aftershocks together. Yuta was sure it was to be a little awkward after his rejection, but also wanted to be sure you were okay. He didn’t expect to find you covered in blood, the same cute gym clothing you were wearing that morning when he rejected you ruined. A quick glance around and he sees the rest of his classmates, his friends, in similar form. Inumaki is clinging to consciousness.

Geto, the one who grabbed Yuta months earlier, stands surrounded by the bodies, hardly winded. “I truly wanted you to live, Okkotsu, but this is for the future of jujutsu.” Yuta wonders how he can fight this man. How can he protect his friends, the only ones to give him a chance since Rika, when Geto already destroyed the strongest people he knew. He was so, so weak compared to each of them.

Inumaki desperately calls a slurred version of his name and says, “Run away.” The fact that the command does nothing, that Yuta feels nothing, breaks him from his spiral. He summons Rika in a rage.

“I am going to kill you!” He declares. Yuta doesn’t think he has ever felt such anger and despair, the feeling of watching Rika die now multiplied by four.

Geto simply says, “You are going to die.”

-

A sudden pull on your stomach wakes you harshly. “Shit!” Your eyes snap open, to see a sheepish Panda holding the knife that was previously in your stomach. You automatically go to apply pressure on the wound but your hands find Maki’s already there, dressing the wound. “What happened?”

“The fight’s over, but we need to find Yuta,” Maki explains. “He must have healed all of us, but you still had the blade in you. It needed to be removed before you get up. All of us are going to be fine, (y/n), you can rest now.” She helps you to your feet and you cringe looking at your ruined outfit. Maki catches your pout and smiles, glad some things never change.

Toge comes to your side to take Maki’s place as your crutch. You hug him tightly, unable to express in words how relieved you are. He hugs back, equally overwhelmed after seeing what seemed like your corpse. Toge helps you limp along as you all start tracking Yuta’s residuals. Panda clears his throat and asks, “When did this happen?”

“Only a few days ago. Don’t act like you didn’t see this coming,” you explain with an eye-roll.

“No, I totally did. Just curious who won the bet.”

“If we didn’t just fight for our lives, I would kill you.” You four continue to try to have a light conversation until you come upon Yuta’s unconscious body. Toge helps you sit on the ground and you move his head onto your lap, muttering about checking for a concussion. All of you needed medical attention but you were desperate to help any way you could now.

Yuta begins to blink his eyes open and sits up urgently. “Your wounds… Panda! Your arm!” He seems to be working himself into a frenzy. You place a comforting hand on his shoulder as Panda explains that everyone will be okay. Yuta urgently looks over you, trying to determine how much blood was yours, before he seems satisfied.

“Thank you for saving us,” You whisper. His eyes fill with tears and you wonder how scared he must have been. You maintain eye contact, hoping to communicate how much you admire him, before Rika’s jumbled voice makes the both of you jump. Yuta stands, leaving the circle your class formed around him.

“Sorry to keep you waiting, Rika,” he says, approaching her.

“What’s wrong?” Maki asks, a little fearful at how resigned Yuta looks.

Yuta hums a little before answering, “In exchange for her power, I promised to go with her.”

“What?” You screech and the suddenness of the yell pains your wound. Your classmates join a chorus of disagreement. Panda and Inumaki both grab fistfuls of his shirt to prevent him from walking any closer to Rika. Instead of her usual retaliation for someone restraining Yuta, her form just falls away to reveal a young girl. Four of you are confused but Yuta just mumbles, “Rika?”

A clapping distracts from the drama. You turn as best you can with a hole in your stomach to see your brother without any eye wear approaching your group. “Congrats. You broke the curse,” he continues to clap and stands next to you.

“Who’re you?” Yuta and Maki ask, causing you to snort before you groan at the pain.

Your brother pouts before replying, “Everyone’s favorite good-looking Gojo-sensei. Do you not see the sibling resemblance?” He gestures between your face and his, before carefully putting you on his back. He doesn’t even flinch at the grime covering you transferring onto him as well, relieved to see you awake and alert. You rest your chin on his shoulder and listen to him explain.

“I thought Yuta was interesting, so I looked into his lineage. Apparently, you’re a descendant of Michizane Sugawara. So, super-distant, but we’re relatives!” You groan and hide your face in Satoru’s neck; the teasing to come will be unbearable.

Your classmates look dumbfounded at the information while Yuta just goes, “Who?”

“One of Japan’s big three vengeful spirits.”

“A big-shot sorcerer.”

“Tuna.”

“The annoying side of the family,” you add.

Your brother takes back control of the conversation. “Yuta, you’re right. Rika isn’t cursing you, you cursed her. When the curser severs the bond tying servant to master and the cursed doesn’t desire punishment, the curse is broken. Though it seems you figured that out by yourself.” He gestures at the little girl and Yuta.

“Oh my god,” Yuta collapses in tears. “It’s all my fault…. Hurting so many people, Geto coming after me, it’s all my - all my -” He begins to hyperventilate. Inumaki takes a step to comfort him, but before he can, Rika approaches and hugs his trembling form.

“Thank you, Yuta. For giving me time and letting me be by your side. I’ve been happier these past six years than I ever was alive. Good-bye, be well. And don’t come over too soon, ‘kay?” She gives a bright smile, toothy and pure as she dissolves into bright ashes. Yuta stares at where she stood, long after all the ashes disappeared and everyone else walked away.

“See you,” He says to himself, before getting up to follow his friends to Doctor Ieiri.

[sokkascroptop]

traitor. (sokka x f! reader) pt 1

part 2 | part 3

Azula was good at that, doing and saying things that made you want to yell back. It was her favorite thing to do on purpose and had become like second nature by accident. Y/N, in response, had become very good at holding her tongue over the years, and very good at calming herself when she wanted to lash out. More than once when they were children Azula had lobbed a fireball in her direction that had singed the clothes or skin it was aimed at. 

“Do you remember when we first met?” Azula asked. She was lounging on a chaise near the window cleaning her nails with a sharp blade. The sun was setting behind her basking her in a glowing, warm light. It made her gold eyes brighter, gold eyes that were staring intensely at her, waiting for an answer. 

“Of course I do. I came to the palace for a party with my parents,” Y/N responded. She was a ways away on Azula’s bed lying on her stomach. She flipped over and hung her head off the bed letting the blood rush to her cheeks. Azula was smirking at her. 

“No, at school. When I chose you.” Azula tossed the knife she was using and it thudded into the dark wood of her door frame. A door frame that was sliced with notches of where the girls–her, Azula, Ty Lee and Mai– would measure their heights when they were younger; or where Azula would stab her knife deep in the wood, for safekeeping, she would always say. 

Chose. That was a word that Y/N was familiar with. It usually meant that you were special, but to her, to Azula and the girls and Y/N’s parents, it just meant she was lucky. 

“Of course I do,” Y/N repeated.

Y/N started at the Royal Fire Nation Academy for Girls later than most. She was already nearly ten and had always had a slew of private tutors. But her father had been recently promoted to Commander and it was insisted that his daughter, his progeny, had the right type of upbringing–and apparently that meant not running through the forests of Ember Island barefoot. 

She not-so-fondly remembered the heavy uniform they wore, so different than her thin cotton pants and tunic she was used to. The Capital City was in the same climate as Ember Island, so why did they wear silk? It was so hot. Y/N had hated moving back to the Capital City, and out of their summer home that had become her year round home the minute her mother decided it was much better to be away from the city. 

“That first week was hellish. I’d never had to listen to authority before, or hang out with children my age and suddenly that’s all I had. You saved me.”

“Saved you,” Azula scoffed. “I do remember you being quite the little heathen.”

“Hey! I just meant from lashings from the teachers,” Y/N laughed and threw a decorative pillow at Azula’s head. She caught it quick as a cat-snake with one hand and brought it to her chest. 

They sat in an easy silence, Y/N wondering why Azula had brought up the moment they met. The first words that she’d ever said to Y/N echoed in her mind. “We’re going to be great friends.”

Azula wasn’t wrong when she prophesied that they were going to be great friends. Azula wasn’t necessarily the ‘welcome with open arms’ type, but she did whatever was closest to that with Y/N. She became a part of them, almost instantly. They had class together, they ate lunch together, they went back to the palace and trained together. Everything, together. Ty Lee was the most friendly of them all, she often braided Y/N’s hair over and over, taking it out and braiding it back, just to have something to do with her hands. Mai was sweet once you got past her glum exterior. Azula was, well, Azula. She was cold one minute and hot the next, literally. Her emotions changed as quickly as the weather. She might throw a fireball at your head if she was mad. But the next moment she’d sweeten you up with fruit tarts she’d stolen from the kitchen and all would be forgotten. 

Y/N kept thinking about Azula’s words as she trained with one of the palace guards later that evening. He wasn’t the best with a sword, but he was a fire bender, and that gave her a better workout. 

Y/N was a non-bender, but masterful with a sword. It was her father’s favorite hand to hand weapon and he had insisted on her training with it even at a young age. By the time she started at the Royal Academy, she was able to beat her trainers regularly.

Becoming friends with Azula gave her access to some of the best fighters in the Fire Nation, and even that was becoming boring. 

Y/N slashed at the guards neck. He threw a fireball at her that dissipated harmlessly where she once stood. She landed in a crouch and kicked her leg out at the back of the guards knee, it buckled and he fell. She bounced to her feet and pointed the tip of her sword at the back of his neck. She saw a swatch of pale skin there which dripped with sweat. A small part of her wanted to dig her sword in and draw bright red blood. 

A slow clap echoed through the courtyard that awoke her from those dark thoughts. Y/N smiled at her friend and patted the guards shoulder. “See you later.” 

She jogged to join Azula who was starting to walk away. “Come to watch and fawn over me for old times sake?” Y/N giggled and wiped the sweat off her brow. She sheathed her sword and felt the familiar weight bounce against her hip. 

“You give yourself far too much credit.” Y/N could tell Azula was in a good mood. A better mood than she’d seen in a while. They reached Y/N’s room and she dropped her sword on the bed.

“Why are you so chipper, ‘zula?”

The left corner of her mouth tilted up in the ghost of a smile. “Father wants to speak to you.”

Y/N’s eyes widened. “Me?”

“I think I know what it’s about but I won’t ruin the surprise. Come on, we don't want to keep him waiting.”

Y/N’s stomach turned. She’d only stood in front of the Fire Lord a handful of times. The first being the first time she traveled to the palace when she was very young. At the time she didn’t know the weight of what she was doing, now she did and she was filled with terror. What in Agni’s name could he want with her? She was just a Commander’s daughter who had befriended his daughter. 

The throne room was cold despite the summer heat outside and the fire burning around the Fire Lord. It was dark as well, the black marble floor and columns absorbed the only light from the flames licking upward to their Master. The only sound was the crackling fire and the click of Y/N’s boots; Azula was always so light footed she hardly made a sound. 

A drop of sweat leftover from Y/N’s workout dripped down her spine and she shivered at the feeling. Ten yards away from the throne, Y/N dropped to one knee and bowed her head. Azula bowed slightly and stood behind Y/N’s right shoulder. 

“Fire Lord, it is an honor to be in your presence,” Y/N said. She could feel the heat from the flames now that she was closer. Whether from nervousness or the warmth that filled her face, she began to sweat. 

“You may stand.” The Fire Lord’s voice was higher than she remembered. It didn’t fit the aura he gave off and he sounded bored. Y/N stood with her hands behind her back at attention. She didn’t want to have any excuse for Azula to chastise her when they left. “Azula tells me that you are gifted at sword fighting.”

Y/N fought the urge to send a questioning look to her friend. Azula talked to the Fire Lord about her? She stared at the black outline of his tall figure seated in his enormous chair. “I’m adequate, sire.”

“Beating every single one of my palace guards is more than what I would call adequate,” the Fire Lord remarked.

“Your palace guards are extremely well trained in fire bending but not in sword fighting, sire.” Y/N grimaced and ducked her head, cursing internally at her mouth that was too quick for her brain.

Azula chuckled softly behind Y/N. Now she did turn around to stare at her friend. She whipped her head back not knowing how disrespectful it was to turn your back on the Fire Lord. 

“Azula will be leaving tomorrow for the Earth Kingdom to capture my brother, General Iroh and the Fire Prince Zuko. I want you to go with her.”

Y/N paused for a beat. Capture them? The last she heard was that they were on a pointless mission to catch the Avatar. Iroh was disgraced and went with Zuko when he was banished because Iroh couldn’t face his brother when he abdicated the throne for his failure at Ba Sing Se. What could they have done searching for a dead Avatar that could get them into more trouble? Y/N could feel Azula’s sharp nails dig into her arm behind her back and she knew she had waited too long to speak. 

“It would be an honor to accompany Fire Princess Azula on this mission, My Lord.” Y/N clasped a fist in her left hand and held it below her right palm and bowed deeply. 

If the Fire Lord was pleased with her, his tone didn't show it. “Wonderful. You’re dismissed.” 

Y/N couldn’t get out the room fast enough. 

Azula was more excitable than ever on their walk back to their rooms. She grabbed Y/N’s arms and tugged like she was a small child. “This is going to be so amazing for me, Y/N! For us!”

Azula seemed to notice Y/N’s hesitation to agree with her. This earned her a sharp look. “Don’t you want the honor and recognition that bringing home two traitors would give you? You’d be promoted higher than your father. Agni knows you’d be more deserving of the title.”

Y/N gave Azula the smile she was waiting for. “Of course. I guess I’m still a little shell shocked at the Fire Lord giving me such an amazing opportunity.”

“Well you can thank me for that.”

Y/N stopped at the door to her room. “Thank you, Azula,” she said before she could snatch the words back. Azula rounded the corner to the stairs that would take her to her room and Y/N took a deep, calming breath, working hard to push away the anger the Azula had incited. 

Azula was good at that, doing and saying things that made you want to yell back. It was her favorite thing to do on purpose and had become like second nature by accident. Y/N, in response, had become very good at holding her tongue over the years, and very good at calming herself when she wanted to lash out. More than once when they were children Azula had lobbed a fireball in her direction that had singed the clothes or skin it was aimed at. 

She slid down the wall inside her room. Did Y/N want the honor and glory that Azula talked about? She should, with how she was raised, but now that it was offered on a silver platter, Y/N wasn’t so sure that it was for her. Recently, it became all Azula wanted to talk about. Training and war meetings had become her life so suddenly. And if they were Azula’s life, they were Y/N’s life as well. Y/N wasn’t allowed to sit in on the war meetings but it didn’t matter because Azula always came back to relay what happened in them. ‘Relay’ was the wrong word, more like brag about them. Azula was anything but informative when she spoke. Y/N tried to find some interest in the things the Fire Nation was accomplishing but to Y/N it just turned her stomach. She’d never admit it to anyone, especially Azula but she was sickened by the war. 

When did life become this way? All about war and capturing cities and cleansing the world? She wished things were back to simpler times when the girls ran the palace wild and teased Zuko and the maids. She knew that in the past three years since Zuko’s banishment, Fire Lord Ozai had been calling on Azula more and more frequently, upping her firebending training to half the day. But Y/N never thought it would come to this. 

Y/N skipped out on dinner that night, just told the maids to take the tray of roast turtle-duck back to the kitchen. Her stomach had been in knots since leaving the throne room. Her and Azula were leaving. Sure, Y/N hadn’t lived with her parents in years; this would be her fifth year of calling the palace home, but for some reason, she didn’t feel like she was going to come back. 

Y/N instead slid into a hot bath that she drew for herself for once and mulled in her thoughts. As if the steam in the room was steeping her memories like tea leaves she thought of what this mission was supposed to entail. Things that happened around the palace and behind closed doors were usually hidden from her unless she heard gossip from the servants or occasionally, Azula. But she didn’t seem like she was going to give up any information about it. What did Iroh do to betray the Fire Nation? He was one of the best General’s they’d ever had, even after his defeat at Ba Sing Se. And what did Zuko do that was even worse than his banishment? 

None of that matters, she told herself. Her previous ideas about the kind of men they were didn’t matter anymore. If the Fire Lord said that Zuko and Iroh needed to be captured, then that’s what needed to be done. 

A/N: uh oh, settle in for more inner angst as y/n tries to figure out where her heart lies. what is more important? honor? friendship? peace?

[emwritesfootball]

Sotto Voce: Chapter Four | John McGinn

Word Count: 1,549 Warnings: 'audio' descriptions of semi-public sex, mentions of being tied up and multiple orgasms

- - -

She spends the next few weeks going through TheScottishLad’s audio portfolio. He’s got the standard scenarios, but they’re even hotter to her than the audio she occasionally listens to and she can’t explain it. John’s name is on her lips with every orgasm, but she quickly grows accustomed to her ‘new normal’. Her lust for him increases tenfold, but at least she’s got her new Scottish audio porn to get off to now.

There are a few she can listen to over and over again while still cumming as hard as the first time she heard it. Among them is the very first audio he put out because it makes her think back to all the times she’s worn one of John’s kits to bed and woken up in it the next morning, grabbing coffee and breakfast in it without him saying anything; it’s what she’s secretly always wanted to happen, and now every time she does it, she can’t stop thinking about the audio whenever she reaches for a mug and hears John’s sleepy voice behind her. Another one of her favourites is just five minutes of TheScottishLad stroking himself, his breathing and occasional grunts and groans go straight to her clit each time.

The audio titled ‘Mutual Masturbation’ is by far her favourite. TheScottishLad spends nearly fifteen minutes edging himself as he talks her through her own orgasm. She always has at least two orgasms when she listens to it, especially when he says, ‘Cum for me, love’ in the thickest Scottish accent she’s ever heard, her pussy spasming around the toy as she cums hard.

When she’s finally through all of his audio catalogue and is waiting weekly for content, it’s easier to figure out. It takes her longer than she should have to put the puzzle pieces together, but once she does, she can’t unsee it.

TheScottishLad is John McGinn.

Or, more accurately, John McGinn is TheScottishLad.

All of the weekly audio drops are based on something that had happened a week or two prior, and it blows her mind. She goes through TheScottishLad’s page again, her mind racing as she puts it all together. The week before his first audio, she’d worn his kit to bed and he’d caught her in the kitchen before she’d changed. The sexual tension had been palpable (to her at least), and now she knew he felt the same.

The bathroom audio - the first one she’d stumbled upon - was uploaded the week after she’d hung out with him while he was getting ready.

There are a few other similarities that match up with her theory, but she doesn’t have complete proof yet. Her first thought is to confront him, but she doesn’t want to be wrong or end up scaring him away.

After his most recent upload, she gets her idea.

***

TheScottishLad’s most recent audio somewhat corroborates her theory.

She hates that she presses ‘Play’ without a toy in her hand or any sexual frustrations she needs to get out; this is purely for research, and a part of her wishes it wasn’t.

“Look at you, all dolled up in your sundress,” is the opening line, and she gasps. “Your hair frames your face as your eyes meet mine across the room and you give me a small smile. I smile back, watching you blush as you look away, trying to focus on something - anything - else.”

She can picture it now. It’s almost exactly like last weekend's team get-together at Tyrone’s place. She was wearing a sundress and her hair had been styled to frame her face. At one point, she and John had shared a look across the room; she’d been certain she’d hid her blush from him well, but maybe she hadn’t. She pressed play again and TheScottishLad continued…

“We both know what’s coming next, but we have to wait. After all, we can’t fuck in my friend’s place.” A pause and he chuckles, the sound making her pussy clench around nothing. She tries to remind herself that she’s just doing research right now, but her body can’t stop betraying her.

“I mean, we could, but we run the risk of getting caught. Does that make you wet, love?”

“Yes,” she can’t help moaning out loud as she pictures John coming up to her at the party last weekend and whispering that question in her ear.

“‘I can’t take it anymore’ I whisper in your ear when I’ve had it,” TheScottishLad says and her eyes flutter closed as the fantasy comes to life. “I know you want this. I do, too.” He lowers his voice. “Meet me in the upstairs bathroom in five minutes.”

The audio continues, the sounds of steps and a door opening and closing setting the scene.

“It’s been five minutes,” the voice resumes, and she pictures John waiting in the upstairs bathroom at Ty’s place for her. “Where are you, naughty girl?”

The door opens and shuts again, and he whispers, “Finally.” The sounds of kisses fill her headphones and she imagines being pinned against the bathroom door by a needy John McGinn. “I wasn’t sure you’d come,” he says in-between kisses, “but you were just as needy as I was, weren’t you?”

It keeps going on until TheScottishLad makes the girl in the audio cum quietly, and she has to stop it there. Her body is flushed from head to toe and she’s sure she’s breathing heavily. She wants John to make her cum like that, but she isn’t sure how to make it happen.

***

The next morning, she wakes up feeling more than a little sexually frustrated. Her mind had been racing all night and she’d been unable to get herself off no matter how hard she tried. All she kept picturing was John with every audio she played - even the ones that weren’t by TheScottishLad - and she knew she wouldn’t actually be able to cum again until John’s cock was inside her or she found out the truth; whichever came first.

“I found the best audio porn recently,” she blurts out as John’s making breakfast, hoping to shock him.

“Oh yeah?” He asks, seemingly unfazed as he stirs the eggs into a nice scramble. “Good for you.”

“I’ve never cum so hard in my life.” Now she’s really pushing it and she hates that he doesn’t really react.

“Better than with a man?” John turns off the heat, transferring the eggs to their respective plates and handing her one of them.

She shrugs, a smile playing on her lips. She’s got him right where she wants him. “Honestly? I’m not sure. It’s been over a year since I’ve fucked anyone - I’d probably cum from a kiss or the right touch.”

A flash of something unrecognizable flashes in John’s eyes but it’s gone a moment later before she can truly get a read on it. “Makes sense. Your body’s probably so sensitive at this point.”

“Mmhmm,” she hums in agreement, taking a bite of her eggs. “I’m sure the next guy I hook up with will end up making fun of me for cumming so quickly.”

***

Since her confession, all week she can feel John’s eyes on her when she’s preoccupied or her attention isn’t on him. She doesn’t call him on it and he doesn’t press her for any additional information after breakfast that morning.

A sick sense of glee fills her when she logs into the website to find that TheScottishLad has uploaded his new weekly audio. She’s almost certain it’s John now, especially, when the audio starts.

“Look at you, all tied up in my bed,” he chuckles, and she knows it’s him. He’s disguised his voice well, and anyone who heard him speak like this wouldn’t even put it together that it’s him. Except she has, and only because she’s paying attention and knows what to look for. “You’ve been a little tease all week, love, and I’m gonna make sure you regret it.”

A moan escapes past her lips as she thinks about being tied to John’s four-poster bed. She’s sat on it plenty of times as she’s watched him get ready for match days and training, and she knows how plush it is - and how good it would feel to be restrained and at his mercy.

“Don’t think I didn’t read between the lines earlier this week - I know exactly what you need. You told me you wanted someone to help take the edge off because you were sick of having to do it yourself. Don’t worry, love - you won’t have to do anything. I’ll make sure you get all the orgasms you need.”

John keeps speaking as he does various things to the girl in the audio, drawing out almost five orgasms before he stops. “Good girl,” he praises over the sound of the restraints being untied, the praise going straight to her already-sensitive pussy.

A wave of jealousy washes over her as she realizes that John might already have a girl he’s been using for these audios. The girl always seems to be silent, but her jealous brain can’t think of any scenario other than that.

The day after John’s audio drops, she decides to play one last game. She calls in sick to work on Monday, finally putting her plan to work.

[toilet-bound-messenger]

TBHK theory: is Tsukasa really the "abuser"? + the meaning of the ropes

So I know that it is a common belief in the fandom that Hanako was abused by someone close to him since he did say that "he forgives it". And since he forgives it, it's obvious that it must be someone important to him, right? And that someone is most likely Tsukasa... or is it?

The reason why we think that is because of Hanako's reactions to when he runs into Tsukasa. So I guess a lot of us just assumed that he reacted that way because he's scared of Tsukasa. But I think that rather being scared of Tsukasa, he's scared of himself. Remember when he jumped on Yashiro after Tsukasa first showed up? I can't find the post anymore but I do remember someone saying that reenacting a past traumatic experience is a common way to "deal" with it. Thus he jumped on Yashiro to emulate that because seeing Tsukasa made him remember when he killed him. Which is why he's always so uncomfortable around Tsukasa: because it makes him think of a traumatic event. Not necessarily because Tsukasa was the "abuser".

We also have this image:

Which makes us think that Tsukasa might be the abuser because Hanako is bound by ropes while a shadow that looks like Hanako is saying something in his ear. A common idea here, is that the shadow is Tsukasa, however I'm not sure about that. If it really is Tsukasa, then why does he not have the patch on his right cheek? It might just be me, but besides the clothes, I think that the obvious way to tell Hanako and Tsukasa apart is the patches they have on their cheeks. Hanako's is on his left cheek and Tsukasa's is on the right. But as we can see the shadow doesn't have Tsukasa's patch. If the shadow does have a patch then it's on the side that we can't see: the left side, the same as Hanako's.

Thus, I think that this shadow might, or might not be a metaphoric representation of Hanako himself, fucking himself over and tying himself town out of guilt because he killed his brother. Hanako is blaming himself. After all, we can also see the knife being bound as a way to remind himself of what he did.

Oh, and let's talk about the ropes.

Another belief is that maybe Hanako was abused with ropes, that Tsukasa may have been into... bondage?? And he did that to his twin brother?? This doesn't sound right, doesn't it?

Tsuchigomori says: "you're always covered in cuts and bruises" but there's no mention of ropes. I mean, I'm only assuming here, but if the abuser really did use ropes then wouldn't they be easy to see? Tsuchigomori also says that it happens every single day so all the bruises he has on his body must always be fresh/recent, right? I would guess that rope bruises are really easy to identify whether you're a nurse or a normal person.

But then... What the hell do the ropes mean?! Well I have an easy answer to give: those ropes are a recurring theme in TBHK.

Almost all of the covers of the volumes have ropes on them and even side art from Aida.

Look at this:

So there could be 2 different explanations for this:

1) Aida likes drawing ropes

2) Ropes are a metaphor for something

I think it's obviously answer n°2.

Maybe what I'm going to say sounds super obvious, but I feel like ropes are a way to show us that all of those characters are "bound" together. Their stories and lives are all tied together since they're all important characters in the story and they're the ones to move the plot forward.

We can see it especially here:

The rope is tied to Hanako's pinky finger, and most times, in Japanese culture they call that the "red string of fate". Basically, you're tied to someone else. Which is most times your soulmate. That whole rope thing means that all of those characters' fates are tied to eachother.

But now the last point: if I don't think that the abuser is Tsukasa and that the rope doesn't mean that Hanako was abused with ropes then what the hell does this all mean? Who's the abuser?

Well to be honest... I don't know.

I think the obvious answer here would be their parents. I mean, we know nothing about them. Where are they?? Could Hanako and Tsukasa be orphans?

Maybe they were abused in the orphanage, after all, it's common knowledge that Japanese orphanages are shit. (Or at least they were shittier back then, maybe now it's better but I'm not a specialist in the subject.)

Also, isn't it weird how we always saw past Hanako but never past Tsukasa? Why? Why haven't we seen him yet? Maybe because Tsukasa was abused even more than Hanako.

Let me explain: we got this whole explanation

This is in chapter 46 when Amane was talking about Scorpius and Antares, and how they're actually twin stars but that one of the 2 is brighter than the other so you can only see one of them. (Sorry for the quality of the image, I can't find better.)

This is obviously a metaphor for Amane and Tsukasa. So what does it all mean?

Well, long story short: I think that Tsukasa wasn't allowed to go to school while Amane was.

If my orphanage theory is correct, then I would guess that the orphanage had funding issues (I mean, it's a problem even to this day and not only in Japan. Orphanages being short on money because the governement doesn't care enough to help abandoned kids is ocurrent.)

So I don't find that hard to believe that the orphanage might've been like "Fuck it! Let' send the older twin brother to school and the younger one can stay here. We can't afford to send all of our children to school after all." I mean it's weird, right? That in the flashback Tsuchigomori didn't even mention Tsukasa. If Tsukasa was really going to school and was the abuser then wouldn't Tsuchigomori be like "oh, it's weird how your twin brother doesn't have any bruises while you do. Is he the one to do this?"

But no. There is absolutely no mention of Tsukasa whatsoever. Which is really, really weird. I had twins in my classroom throughout elementary school and middle school and they were always put in the same classroom. So if Tsukasa really did go to school I would guess that they would not only be in the same classroom, but also Tsuchigomori would bring him up.

Thus while Amane was in school, Tsukasa was the one being abused, and that's why he's so fucked in the head. Because Tsukasa was actually the one getting most of the beatings, the cuts and the bruises.

Of course, school in Japan lasts longer than in the west with the clubs and all. But I would guess that Amane didn't join a club because he wanted to get back as quickly as possible to help his brother. That's why Amane didn't have any friends. Because he would always rush to the orphanage after school.

I think, Amane being the caring big brother he is, he would take the abuse instead of Tsukasa when he was "home" to protect him as much as he could, but since he was at school most of the time, Tsukasa was the one taking most of the beatings.

And since Amane was going to school, I would guess that they went "easier" on him so the teachers wouldn't call the cops on them. That's also why Amane decided "not to go anywhere anymore."

Because whenever he's away from his brother, Tsukasa gets hurt. Amane decided to throw his dream away to protect Tsukasa from the abusers.

And so, that is also why I think that Tsukasa has a mental illness. That's why he's so much more emotionally unstable than Amane. Hanako has obviously problems too, but Tsukasa is the one who got the short end of the stick.

I would guess, Tsukasa may be a sociopath at this point. A current belief, is that sociopaths like to hurt animals/kill them to feel something. When someone is abused, what the brain does is to "repress" emotions to feel less pain. That's how different mental illnesses get born.

For example, "dissociating" to feel like you're not you, to believe that it's someone else who's suffering right now your brain tries to make you believe that you're "out" of your body.

Dissociative personality disorder makes you develop multiple personalities inside yourself so you can switch between them and feel like you're safe while another personality is taking the abuse for you.

And then, of course, sociopathy, your brain "turns off" your emotions for you to stay "sane" but funnily enough, in the long run it makes you insane since you can't feel emotions in normal situations anymore.

A lot of mental illnesses come from traumatic experiences, they're defensive mechanisms after all. Mental illnesses are your brain trying to protect you from excessive pain...

This got dark real quick, sorry.

Anyway, this whole theory started with a thought I had: "Why would a sibling, not to mention a TWIN, abuse his brother?"

The conclusion I came to is: they wouldn't.

I'm not saying that it's definitely impossible at a 100% but I always found that weird how everyone thinks that a twin sibling would abuse his other sibling. Especially since twins are so close.

And to end it all...

I think that what went down with the Yugi siblings is that, one day they decided to end it all. They couldn't take the suffering anymore so they decided to kill themselves.

But right at the end, Tsukasa's emotions finally kicked in and he got scared at the last moment. And so, he begged Amane to finish the job. Amane then got traumatized from killing his brother and he ran to the girls' bathroom and hung himself out of guilt. Or maybe he also stabbed himself like Tsukasa? Who knows.

[spoookymuulders]

my friends are leaving the party (but i’m down for one more drink)

read it on ao3 here word count: 2,632 summary: you meet a handsome stranger at the bar one night. notes: hello friends!! this is my first attempt at anything avengers-related even though i've been watching the movies since iron man came out??? this is also my first attempt with a reader-insert!! this is after endgame, though (clearly) i've changed up steve's ending a lil bit!! enjoy! <3

    It’s a girls night out - at the insistence of one of your very best friends - and you would rather be anywhere else but this bar. Well. Almost anywhere else. You close your eyes for a moment, thinking back to Wednesday night. You’ve been having a shitty week, and walking into your apartment to find your boyfriend butt-ass naked on the couch with your roommate had really been the icing on the cake.

   You shake yourself a little, pushing your hair back and putting on a smile as the bartender walks past. He completely ignores you and your smile falls flat as you cross your arms on the bar and rest your forehead on them for a moment. Tonight is supposed to be fun, you remind yourself. Fun . Your friends took you out tonight so you could have a good night and forget about Joshua for a few hours.

   You’re vaguely aware of someone occupying the stool beside you, but you ignore them, lifting your head slowly and eyeing the bartender as he comes back your way. You’re ignored again in favor of the new guy next to you, and you press your lips together as the bartender eagerly takes his order. He finally turns to you and you ask for another round of drinks, rolling your eyes as he gives a half-assed response and turns back around.

   “Rough night?” Asks the guy beside you. You glance at him, determined to be annoyed with him, but those sparkly blue eyes and that warm smile throw you off completely.

   “Rough week.” You say after a minute. He nods, and you take him in for a moment, tipping your head thoughtfully. Something about him is familiar, but you can’t quite place what it is. “My friends wanted to take me out but I don’t particularly wanna be here.”

   He hums thoughtfully, nodding his thanks when the bartender sets a beer in front of him. He takes a slow pull, watching you in the mirror behind the bar, and you feel suddenly naked. You shift in your seat, glancing over your shoulder at the booth full of your friends as the bartender sends a waitress over with the drinks. Your phone buzzes in your pocket suddenly and you dig it out. A handful of texts from the groupchat, all along the lines of who’s the blond and are you about to get laid?!

   Shaking your head, you shove your phone back into your pocket and turn to your unexpected companion, surprised to find him looking right at you.

   “Penny for your thoughts?” You say slowly, unsure of what else to do or say. He chuckles, taking another slow sip of his beer before turning his stool to face you properly.

   “Why’s your week been so rough?” He asks. You blink - not exactly where you were expecting this conversation to go, but nobody else has asked, so why the hell not?

   “Work sucks. I’m stuck in this shitty dead-end job and everywhere else I’ve applied either won’t call me back or requires way more experience than I have.” You sigh. “And on top of that, I came home Wednesday night and found my boyfriend with another girl.” He whistles once, long and low.

   “You want me to beat him up?” He asks, and you laugh, surprised at both the joke and yourself. You’ve been in such a shitty mood this week, it feels good to laugh.

   “That’s not even the worst part.” You tell him. He raises a brow, and you continue. “I found him totally naked, on my couch with my roommate. Her underwear was flying towards the door as I opened it.” He whistles again, and you nod. “What about you, you look about as miserable as I feel.” He hums thoughtfully, and you can see the wheels turning in his brain as he tries to decide what exactly he wants to say.

   “Friend of mine died recently.” He says finally. “Although.. We weren’t exactly friends. I respected him, but we almost never got along or saw eye-to-eye.”

   “I’m sorry for your loss.” You say, and some bold part of you reaches out and touches his arm gently. He hums again, glancing at you, and you offer a small smile. He gives one in return, and you draw your hand back slowly. “I’m Y/N.”

   “Steve.”

****

   You’ve been sitting and talking with Steve for at least an hour when your friends finally come over. Michelle tugs at the end of your ponytail lightly, then rests her chin on your shoulder, stepping back when you excuse yourself and turn around.

   “We’re gonna take off.” She says, peeking around you at Steve. “D’you need a ride?”

   “Uh. No. No, I’m good.” You tell her, glancing over your shoulder and giving Steve a small smile. He tips his bottle in a greeting to the rest of your group as you turn back. Michelle nods and pulls you into a hug.

   “Call me when you get home, okay?” She whispers in your ear, “And get some!” You laugh, pushing at her shoulders as she plants a kiss on your cheek and steps away. You wave to the other girls and watch them shuffle along out of the bar, then turn back to Steve.

   “I’m not keeping you, am I?” He asks. You shake your head quickly.

   “No! No, not at all. They’re probably gonna go home and drink more.” You assure him. “I’m good here.” He nods, smiling a little as you put your chin in your hand. “Plus, I don’t have work tomorrow, so.” He nods again, watching as you twist a lock of hair around your finger absentmindedly. You fall back into an easy conversation, and after what feels like only a few minutes (but in reality is a couple of hours), the bartender is shouting about last call. You check your phone, eyes widening slightly at the time - 2:45 AM.

   Steve closes out his tab, insisting on paying for your drinks as well, and you slide off your stool, making sure you have everything before following him outside. Goosebumps rise on your skin as you step into the chilly fall evening, and you suppress a shiver. Steve notices, though, and drapes his leather jacket around your shoulders. You smile up at him and hum a thank you, sliding your arms through the sleeves and reveling in the warmth, the scent of leather and woodsmoke and lavender overwhelming you for a moment as you meander along the street.

   “Do you need a ride home?” He asks suddenly, looking down at you. You glance up at him, suddenly reluctant to leave him, and shake your head.

   “I only live a couple blocks away.” You say. He hums and nods, and though he doesn’t ask, you can tell he plans on walking you home. You wander for a while, pausing outside a 24-hour pizzeria and peering in through the windows for a moment before slipping inside. Steve trails behind you, watching as you order two slices of cheese pizza. The clerk behind the counter hands you two impossibly large slices on paper plates and you pass one to Steve, paying before scurrying back outside. You wander again for a while before perching on the curb, adjusting your skirt beneath yourself as you sit.

   Steve settles beside you, the two of you nibbling at your slices silently, taking in the hustle and bustle of the city - that’s one thing you’ve always loved about New York, even before you’d moved here. Even now, at three in the morning, cars are going by, people are wandering, talking on their phones, chowing down on bar food they managed to sneak out before last call.

   “How long have you lived in New York?” Steve asks suddenly, and you realize you’ve been staring around. You shake yourself a little, humming as you think.

   “Ten years now.” You tell him. “I moved right after my twentieth birthday. What about you?”

   “Mm. Lived here pretty much my whole life.” He says. “I spent a few years in England, but I always dreamed about coming back.” You nod, nibbling at the crust of your pizza.

   “What’d you do in England?”

   “I was in the army.”

   “In England?”

   “‘S where they sent me.” He shrugs, and you squint at him for a moment, but you decide to let it go. You hop to your feet, dusting your hands off and tossing your plate into a trash can nearby. Steve does the same, falling into step beside you again, and you begin to make your way home. You come to a stop outside your building, leaning against the wall for a moment and looking up at him. You fight with yourself internally before making a split-second decision.

   “D’you wanna come up?” You ask. He watches you, tips his head thoughtfully.

   “Are you sure?” He asks, “I wouldn’t wanna intrude-”

   “Steve, who are you gonna intrude on? It’s just me. My roommate doesn’t live here anymore.” You say. He laughs at that, light and warm and hearty, and you can’t help the smile that lights on your own lips. He nods finally, and you smile wider, turning to lead him inside and upstairs.

****

   You sleep together, but you don’t sleep together. You’ve been up all night already, but even when you get inside you find that you’re not particularly tired. Instead, you toe off your shoes and tell Steve to make himself at home. He hovers in the doorway, watching for a minute as your cat rubs between your legs and you pause long enough to tug your tights off before flopping onto your bed. He chuckles, removing his own shoes and padding further in.

   “You can sit down somewhere.” You giggle, propping yourself up on your elbows and watching him. “Seriously. Nosferatu won’t bite. He’s a big baby.”

   “Nosferatu?” He repeats, setting his jacket on the arm of the couch and crouching down to let the cat sniff at his fingers.

   “Nosferatu.” You confirm, smiling when Nosferatu rubs up against Steve’s hand. He smiles, giving the cat a few gentle strokes before coming to sit beside you. You crawl further up your bed and lean against the headboard, drawing your knees to your chest and resting your chin on them as he shifts to face you.

   You chatter for a while, and at some point you disappear into your bathroom and return a few minutes later in a t-shirt-and-shorts pajama set, tying your hair up into a bun. Steve has scooted up to lean against your headboard as well, having abandoned his button-down, and he looks much more comfortable and at home in just a t-shirt and his jeans. You settle beside him, drawing your legs up and leaning against him lightly.

   “Tell me something about you that nobody else knows.” You say softly. He hums, settling his arm around your legs lightly and drawing his finger along your shin absently. You put your chin on your fists, watching him as he thinks, and you admire the way the fairy lights catch on his hair and in his eyes, the shadows they cast along his cheekbones and jawline.

   “I’ve always wanted a tattoo.” He murmurs. You smile, brushing your fingers through his hair lightly. “I’ve been thinking about getting one lately.”

   “What would you get?” You ask softly. He tips his head up, watches the ceiling for a moment as he thinks.

   “Something for my mom.” He says finally. “She was incredible. One of the kindest people I ever met.” You nod, leaning your head against his shoulder. “What about you?”

   “What, tattoos? I have a couple.” You tell him. He chuckles and shakes his head.

   “No, something about you that nobody else knows.” He says. You giggle quietly, watching the world outside your window for a moment as you think.

   “I’m not actually allergic to peanuts.” You say finally. “I tell everyone I am ‘cause I don’t like peanut butter, and it’s easier than having to defend why I don’t like it.” Steve laughs again, the sound making your heart flutter, and you laugh too, tucking yourself a little closer.

   The two of you sit together for a while longer, talking softly and getting to know each other better by the minute, and before you know it, you’re fast asleep, curled up against the headboard and leaning against this guy that you met just a few hours ago, and you’re happy .

   You wake the next morning having scooted down to lay on the mattress properly, and there’s an arm around your waist and a solid chest against your back, and you burrow back into the warmth behind you for a moment before remembering last night. A glance over your shoulder confirms that Steve is still here, and you smile lazily before shifting away slowly, being careful not to wake him.

   Having successfully wormed your way out of bed, you grab your phone and pad to the kitchen, popping a K-Cup into your Keurig and setting a mug under it. It spits coffee out as you unlock your phone, surprised to see the number of messages from your friends. You frown thoughtfully, reading through all of them quickly and growing more confused with each one.

   Michelle    UM DO YOU KNOW WHO YOU WENT HOME WITH LAST NIGHT

   Sophie    Y/N!!!    Y/N ANSWER ME NOW

   Claire    Dude holy shit.

   You frown thoughtfully, texting Claire back a few question marks. She responds with a link to a tweet and you tap it, setting your phone down to prep your coffee while the tweet loads. You turn back, sipping at your caffeine and scoop your phone up - and promptly choke on the coffee as you read the tweet. Setting your mug down, you hurry back to your bedroom, where Steve is sitting up slowly and stifling a yawn. Before he can even say good morning, you’re clambering onto the bed and shoving the phone at him

   “You’re Captain America ?!”

   He blinks at you a few times, and you feel a little bad for attacking him with this barely thirty seconds after he’s woken up, but holy shit! He takes the phone from you, rubbing at his eyes as he squints at the screen, and you shift your weight anxiously at the foot of the bed. The tweet is from a news outlet and reads America’s Sweetheart? Captain America Spotted With Mystery Woman. It’s accompanied by a photo of you and Steve leaving the bar last night (this morning), you looking smaller than ever in his leather jacket and smiling up at him. He looks up at you and smiles sheepishly, passing the phone back. You take it, acutely aware of the way your hands are shaking, and Steve clears his throat.

   “Why didn’t you tell me?” You ask, still completely baffled by this bombshell he’s just dropped on you.

   “You didn’t treat me like a superhero.” He says simply, shrugging his broad shoulders. “It was nice not to be.. Put up on a pedestal for once.” You watch him for a moment, take him in - his rumpled t-shirt, his sleepy eyes, and some serious bedhead - and you decide that there’s no way in hell you could possibly be mad at him. If you were a superhero and met someone who didn’t know who the hell you were, you’d do the same thing. You crawl further up the bed and settle yourself in his lap, draping your arms around his shoulders. He sets his hands on your waist lightly, watching you, and you give him a small smile.

   “What do you want for breakfast?” You ask, and it’s almost painfully domestic. It is all Steve Rogers has ever wanted, and he smiles at you like you’ve put the sun in the sky.

[spaceskam]

it’s smarter to be lucky than it’s lucky to be smart

for @malexweek day 1: meet ugly! warning for mild violence

ao3

"How'd you like to make some money?"

Alex looked up over his drink to the set of pretty eyes across from him. They belonged to a face Alex knew well, a little older and a little more hardened than he remembered, but the eyes were the same.

"You sure know how to rope a guy in," Alex said, putting his drink down and smiling. Kyle rolled his eyes.

“I know how to rope you in,” he said, sitting down and leaning back, “So, you wanna?”

“I’m gonna need more information.”

“There’s this guy, he’s a collector,” Kyle said, looking around before leaning forward and raising his eyebrows, “You know, a collector.” Which was Kyle’s not-so-subtle way of saying he collected alien artifacts.

“Okay, and?”

“And I think you would benefit from him,” Kyle said. Alex snorted a laugh.

“No one’s listening, just spit it out,” Alex prodded. Kyle narrowed his eyes at him which just made Alex even more amused. He missed Kyle. You know, even if he was always scared of taking risks or getting his hands dirty. “Alright, I’ll do it, whatever it is. You clearly need help.”

Kyle took a deep breath to bury his annoyance.

“Tomorrow, 6 PM, I’ll text you the coordinates. Wear a suit.”

“Always.”

-

“A pen? You went through all this trouble so I could steal a pen?” 

Alex’s day job was working IT for a big, boring office building. His hobby was stealing from the guys who owned big, boring companies. He was a good con man, always had been. He hadn’t gotten caught since he was six and didn’t understand the concept of security cameras. So Kyle bringing him to an alien dinner party to steal a pen felt like a waste of his talent.

“It’s not just a pen,” Kyle hissed, grabbing him by the elbow and tugging him to the front door, "It's made of alien technology, it can help translate the thousands of pages we can't read."

"Why do you want to translate it? You sound like those guys who want to blow up the Sphinx of Giza to see what's inside," Alex told him, "Gotta have what's not ours, right?"

"Wrong," Kyle said, squeezing his arm. Alex grinned.

"I like it when you get all rough."

"Stop," Kyle groaned, "I need it because those papers are the last thing I have that might tell me where my dad is." Alex very quickly got serious.

"Okay," he agreed, "I can get it, don't worry."

"Thank you," Kyle breathed, letting him go before knocking on the front door of the large house that was already bustling with humans and aliens alike.

Shockingly, the owner himself, Michael Guerin, answered. He was just like the pictures: slightly tamed curls, a specially tailored paisley suit, and a charming smile tying it all together. A martini glass was in one hand, resting in a fist full of expensive rings. Alex knew those rings. He'd stolen some just like them from another rich alien with an ambiguous job. It was like their calling card. But this alien was much more attractive and his eyes immediately landed on Alex.

"Forgive me, I would know if you were in my invite list," he said, voice smooth and fitting.

"Well, I know who you are, Jay Gatsby," he said and Michael smiled wider, "Oh, sorry, Freudian slip."

“He’s my plus one,” Kyle interjected. Michael reluctantly gave him his attention. “You didn’t specify if there was anyone off-limits.”

“There isn’t,” Michael said, eyes drifting to Alex again, “And if there was, he would not be on that list.”

“Alex,” Alex introduced, deliberately excluding his last name. Michael nodded, looking him up and down slowly despite Kyle saying he was his plus one. Alex raised an eyebrow and Michael just hid his grin behind his glass as he took a sip.

“Come in,” he said after a few seconds of staring.

They walked into the house and Alex’s mind immediately started to calculate when would be the best time to sneak up the stairs and to his office where the pen was. Kyle had shown him a map of the place that he’d gotten his hands on. Up the stairs, hang a right, fourth door on the left. The pen was on his desk, probably, blending in with regular ones that looked just like it.

“So, Alex,” Michael said, leading the way towards the main room. Alex didn’t let his eyes linger on the stairwell or the balcony from the second floor that overlooked the large dining hall. It’d be harder than he wanted to sneak up there without someone noticing. “What do you do?”

“I work in IT at Pryze Inc,” Alex answered. Michael gave him an impressed look. “It’s just IT.”

“That’s where it starts, though, just IT. Give it a few years, you’ll be something great,” he said. Alex hummed, stepping past him to steal two champagne glasses from a caterers tray.

“I’m already something great.”

“I can believe that,” Micahel breathed.

“We all can,” Kyle agreed, accepting the second glass from Alex’s hand. They both took a sip and Michael looked between them.

That’s sort of how it went for the next hour. Alex made small talk and tried to find a good way to slip away. Michael eventually had to make nice with other people, but his eyes did stay on Alex for most of the night. It was a little more than infuriating. Did he know why he was here? Was that why he was watching him?

“I’m gonna go to the bathroom, watch my drink,” Alex said, tilting his head at Kyle. He seemed to understand well enough and grabbed the glass from him. Alex dragged his hand over his arm as he passed, heading for the bathroom.

There were two options, he figured. Either the bathroom excuse would make Michael go the fuck away for long enough to let him get upstairs or, if it didn’t, make he could get Michael to show him upstairs himself. The man was clearly interested.

Alex checked himself in the mirror before pulling out a flask from his suit jacket pocket. He poured a little bit of acetone over his fingers and then dragged them over the underside of his jaw and then dabbed some on his lips. If Michael wasn’t going to leave him alone, he might as well distract him some other way.

When he stepped out of the bathroom, he saw that he made the right decision because Michael was still fucking lingering. He either knew exactly what Alex was here for or Alex was hotter than he even realized. Both were entirely plausible.

Alex walked right up to him.

“You’re not subtle,” Alex said. Michael grinned, his eyes drawing towards his lips and his jaw. Alex decided not to let his smug smile show.

“I’m rich, I don’t have to be.”

“Yeah, well, rich is boring,” Alex responded.

“You really believe that, Robin Hood?”

“I do.”

“Right,” Michael said, enunciating the word deliberately. Alex tilted his head.

“Why don’t you show me upstairs?” Alex asked.

“I thought you’d never ask.”

Michael led the way and Alex looked over the banister to wink in Kyle’s direction. He gave a small smile of encouragement and Alex absorbed it, ready to woo this rich alien for long enough to steal the pen. Then he could leave and never deal with him again.

Alex became more sure than ever that Michael didn’t know why he was here whenever he took him directly into his office. It was pristine and well put together, something out of a movie set that didn’t factor in that most people left shit out on their desks in real life. There was a pen cup in the right corner. Four of them looked identical, but only one of those four had that distinct blue tint to the metal clip.

“Have you ever modeled?” Michael asked, “Because I think you would be fantastic at it.”

“Funnily enough, I never was interested in that,” Alex said, turning his back to the desk to make it seem like he hadn’t spotted the pen, “I’m more about brains.”

“So am I,” Michael agreed, stepping closer.

“Are you? I would never have assumed that. It seems you like the show of being rich,” Alex said easily. Michael shrugged.

“Maybe it’s just the best way to meet new people when you’re in my position,” Michael said. Alex eyed him.

“Maybe.”

He got closer and Alex waited for him to go in for a kiss. He knew he would. They always did. And, inevitably, he fell right into that trap.

He pressed into Alex’s space as he kissed him which made him stumble a step back against his desk. Perfect. Alex grabbed his jaw, holding him in place as he let him get a little intoxicated off the taste of his lips. It was just too easy.

Alex used that hold to switch places, pushing Michael into his own desk. He stepped between his thighs, all but holding him in place with one hand on the back of his neck and one on his jaw. Michael seemed to enjoy being manhandled which worked for Alex on more than one level.

It was a slow process. Alex kissed him, drawing out little, pathetic sounds. Alex grinned against his lips and slowly let go of his jaw. He kissed him harder and Michael grabbed his hips, pulling him in closer. Honestly, if he wasn't on a mission, he'd probably let himself get carried away. But, Alex was on a mission and he opened his eyes through it all, checking that Michael was completely distracted before memorizing where the pen was on the desk. He slowly started to edge his hand in that direction, pulling on Michael’s hair for good measure. He groaned in response.

It was a slow process, but Alex managed to slip the pen up his sleeve and hook the clip onto the little armband he had beneath his shirt. Too easy. Way too easy.

Alex kissed him for a few more seconds, but he stopped it when Michael’s hand started to wander.

“Probably a bad idea,” Alex breathed, “We should get back downstairs.”

Michael nodded, reluctantly letting him go. Alex was halfway to the door when he felt an outside force wrap around his arm and the pen was taken from him. Alex snapped his attention to Michael who was still leaning against the desk. He no longer had that kissed-out look on his face.

“You should know who you’re dealing with,” Michael said simply as the pen hung in the air between them. Alex stared for a moment before he dug his hand into his jacket pocket, putting out a little vial of yellow powder. He unscrewed it and tossed it in Michael’s direction easily.

“And you should know who you’re dealing with.”

In the few seconds that it took Michael to get over his shock, Alex dove forward and caught the pen before it hit the ground. Then he turned and quickly exited the room, slipping it in his pocket. Michael was right behind him.

Instead of heading down the stairs, Alex decided to save them both the troubles of making a scene and took a right. He ran down the hall, grinning with satisfaction, and Michael ran after him, decidedly less giddy. Sure, this technically was him getting caught, but Alex knew he was still going to get away. He always did. This was no different. Simply a temporary setback.

The last door in the hallway was a closet that apparently had a secret little latch that led to a set of stairs that led outside. The house was old enough to be built in a time where servants were commonplace and that was a nice way to make sure they didn’t directly interact with your company. Alex was going to use it as a getaway.

He quickly closed the door behind him once he got in there and shoved a conveniently placed umbrella beneath the doorknob. Alex was smiling ear to ear as he found the latch and ran down the steep staircase, taking them two at a time. Kyle would be outside with the car running, waiting for him to just jump in and they’d peel off. He just knew it.

However, when Alex busted through the door, Michael was standing in the way.

“How the fu‒” Alex started to ask without thinking. There was no way any human could make it all the way down the winding staircase and out the door and all the way to the side of the house in the same time it took Alex to get down those stairs. But, then again, he wasn’t human. So, instead, he stopped talking and just threw a punch.

“Alex!” Michael exclaimed, somehow shocked again, and Alex broke into a sprint towards Kyle’s car.

But the car wasn’t started. And Kyle wasn’t in it. He was outside of it, sitting on the hood.

“What the hell are you doing?! I got it, let’s go!” Alex said. But Kyle just gave a smile and shook his head. A feeling of dread slowly started pooling in his gut. Did he really let his childhood fondness for Kyle distract him from a fucking trap? Was that what this was? 

Alex turned and saw Michael coming closer, wiping his bloody lip with his thumb.

“You have good instincts,” Michael said as he neared them. Alex was already trying to figure out how he could get out of this. He could run down the street, maybe hide in the shed of one of the other rich people he lived near until the next morning and people wouldn’t be looking for him. “You think fast and you trust yourself. That’s a good quality to have.”

“This was a setup,” Alex said, whipping back around to face Kyle, “Why the hell would you set me up?!”

“Just listen to him,” Kyle urged, nodding his way, “You’re not in trouble.”

“You still set me up!”

“Yeah, set you up for an interview, one you clearly passed,” Kyle said. Alex’s eyebrows furrowed.

“An interview?” Alex asked. Kyle again gestured towards Michael. Alex slowly turned to face him again, feeling more confused than he cared to admit.

“I run a little underground business, so to speak,” Michael said, “I have a collection of alien artifacts, but it’s harder to get my hands dirty, so I have other people do it for me. Whenever I needed a new face, Kyle suggested you. And he was right. If I didn’t know exactly what you were stealing, I probably would’ve had no idea. And you still almost got away. I could use someone like you.”

“Sorry, I’m freelance,” Alex spat, feeling betrayed as he looked back to Kyle, “You could’ve told me what was going on.”

“If you knew it was a test, you would’ve gotten too cocky. I wanted to show him what you’re actually capable of,” Kyle said, “Don’t be mad.”

“You could quit your day job,” Michael said, “You could make this your full-time gig.”

“You’re a piece of shit, I don’t want to work for some guy who collects artifacts,” Alex said.

“Better than working for Pryze,” Michael pointed out.

Alex stared at him and then Kyle. He didn’t know what to say or how to feel about any of this. He still felt wronged, but also… 

“So what do you say,” Michael asked, “How’d you like to work for me?”

--

if you’re interested in this universe, it’s expanded a little more here :)

[whattodowithace]

Open, for flowers (Chan)

Title: Open, for flowers

Pairing: Reader x Chan (A.C.E)

Genre: Fluff, flower shop AU

Word count: 3201

Writer: Kpopmadness (Ju)

“Chanie, wait for me!” A little girl screeches to her best friend as she runs frantically down the gravel road. Her ponytail swinging in the breeze behind her.

“I am waiting.” The little boy answers shortly, stopping mid run to wait for her small legs to catch up to him.

She huffs as she comes up beside him. “Where are we going?” She asks impatiently.

“My book says this time of year there’s special flowers blooming. I want to go see.”

Chan loved everything flowers and wildlife. He had a big book that he used to chart when certain flowers would bloom, how long they would keep, the list going on and on. He had a sketchbook that he carried with him everywhere. Inside were thousands of sketches of flowers he had found. Some he even kept dried and neatly pressed inside the sketchbook.

“You’re weird for a boy.” The little girl teases, nudging him with her shoulder.

Chan smiles at his best friend. “You don’t have to come with me you know. I know everyone thinks I’m weird. I won’t be sad if you think the same.”

The little girl looked at him. Her eyes holding some sadness and hurt at his suggestion. “I like going with you, Yuchan.” The little girl answered truthfully, masking Chans eyes widen in surprise.

“Besides,” she adds. “You’re nicer to me than the other boys. Donghun pulls my ponytail all the time.” She rubbed her head as if she could feel his hand tugging at her hair. Making her head sore.

Chan lets out a giggle. “That’s just his way of saying he likes you.” He reassures. His smile turning his eyes turn into crescents, making her smile back.

The little girl suddenly gasps in excitement, making Chan take a step back. “Maybe when we grow up we can open a shop together, Chanie!” She squeals. “Just for your flowers!”

Chan tilts his head to the side, her suggestion new to him. “I never thought about doing that.” He admits.

“I think you should do it.” She encourages. “And I’ll help you.”

That summer day on that gravel road with the warm air circling around the two children was a pivotal point in their young lives. They just didn’t realize how much of one it was.

``

“Yuchan!” I call into the small shop. The sweet scent of flowers greeting me as i enter. The smell making me feel like i was home.

A full head of blonde hair peaks behind a door to my right, a smile on his face. “Hi love.” Chan greets warmly.

I smile at my best friend. “Hey. Have you been busy today?”

Chan wipes his hands that were smeared with potting soil off on his apron as he says, “Not too bad. But i am ready for your help if that’s what you’re asking.” He says with a sly wink.

I laugh and set my bag down on a free chair by the door. “Can i go freshen up upstairs?”

Chan nods quickly as he turns his attention to a row of cactuses lining the store window. His eyes catching a certain gleam to them that they always did when he was working in his element.

I rush upstairs to the loft where Chan lived after store hours. The old building was one Chan had been saving up for since he was eight years old. The downstairs portion was his own flower shop, the upstairs was his apartment. A small loft with a large window overlooking the town and letting gentle rays of sunlight spark across the small space.

I smile happily. I loved this place. Chan bought it right out of high school. He let me have a job with him here once it became established. I worked part time throwing papers in the early mornings, and then in the afternoon i worked with Chan. Although many nights i ended up going upstairs with him to watch our favorite movies and play games with the guys.

I change my shirt from a long sleeve to a short sleeve. The spring air getting warmer everyday. I swoop my hair back into a ponytail before tying on my apron and heading downstairs to help Chan work and arrange flower decorations and take any orders we might have had.

My foot hits the last step when i feel a hard tug on my ponytail, making me screech in more annoyance than pain.

“Would you stop doing that, you brat!” I yell at Donghun. Who wears an evil smirk on his face as he stares down at me.

“Nope. I’ve done it since we were kids and I’m going to keep doing it.” He tells me with a sly wink. His dark puppy eyes shining.

I pinch his arm before shoving past him to go behind the checkout counter with Chan. Who greeted me with a warm smile as he handed me a freshly potted cactus to place behind the window for display.

I head to the large window but quickly stop when i see the man leaning over one of the cactuses, his hand hovering over the spikes that covered the succulent.

“Seyoon, what on earth do you think you’re doing? You’re going to hurt yourself.” I scold him, pushing him away from the cactus before he did damage to himself or said plant.

“I wanted to see how sharp it was.” Seyoon whines, his bottom lip pouting.

“I also dared him to touch it.” Donghun adds in.

“I had no say in it.” Jun chimes in. I hadn’t seen him come in earlier.

“But we did think it would be fun to see if he would actually do it.” Byeongkwan adds, who was standing next to Donghun.

“We just didn’t think he would actually do it.” Donghun chuckles as he shakes his head. A crooked grin lining his face.

An older woman with silver hair walks into the store about then. The doors bell ringing as she opens and closes the door.

“If you aren’t going to help us then leave you guys.” Chan hisses. “Before you destroy my shop.”

I give the boys pointed looks, agreeing with Chan. In the end Byeongkwan and Jun stayed to help us. While Seyoon and Donghun ran off somewhere else.

But before they left Donghun was sure to give my ponytail a final tug, making me kick his shin as he scurried out. Seyoon was thoughtful enough to hug me before they left. But he always did that.

Me and Chan worked together feverishly until the sun started dipping into the horizon. Its rays and warmth fading from the streets. Jun and Byeongkwan left, leaving me and Chan to balance the checkbook and clean up for the next day.

I sat at a bar stool carefully arranging a set of red roses for display when Chan came down the stairs from his loft. Two hot cups of coco in his hands as he made his way to me.

He sat on the stool beside me as we drank our coco in silence. Our legs tired from constantly walking all day long.

But my mind wouldn’t settle down. A nagging subject i had been delaying bringing up to Chan tying my stomach in tight knots.

I set the mug of hot chocolate down carefully before taking a deep breath. “Chan?”

“Yeah, love?” Chan answers me. Not really meeting my eyes as he picks dead leaves off a chrysanthemum.

“Mom and daddy want me to go to collage soon.” I tell him bluntly. This makes Chan stop and face me. His big brown eyes going sad. But he remains quiet and patiently waits for me to finish.

“They say i cant spend all my life with newspapers and flowers.” I choke out, trying not to cry. “Daddy wants me to go to med school this fall. He says he wants me to follow in his footsteps.”

My father was the top leading brain surgeon in the US. His name well known to many and his heroic acts publicized on many social media platforms. My mother ran a fashion business. I was never much into clothes. That much showed from my jeans with rips in them and a plain T-shirt. I only ever wore one sweatshirt. And it was one Chan gave me while we were in high school. I wore it nearly everyday. Which she hated. It was too repetitive. She had scolded many times.

“Is that what you want?” Chan asks quietly. His voice unbearably low.

“I don’t know.” I sigh, hiding my face in my hands. Tears threatening to fall down my cheeks. “I do like the world of medicine.” I admit.

Chan nods, “You were always really good at identifying certain herbs that would help with illnesses when we were younger. While I was just good at naming different types of flowers.”

I let out a soft chuckle and shake my head at the memory. “But I don’t know that’s what i want to do.” I tell him, meeting his eyes. “But just for once, i would like for my parents to be proud of me.”

Chan gives me a small smile before standing up from his chair and wrapping his arms around my shoulders, his chest pressing into my back as he rested his chin on top of my head.

“You should do whatever makes you happy, love.” Chan whispers. “You know i would miss you horribly if you decide to move away to a big collage. The shop wouldn’t be the same without you. But i also want you to know that I’m proud of you. Even if your parents aren’t. I’ll support whatever decision you decide to make.”

I feel my chest tighten and tears burn my eyes. My admiration for Chan swelling at hearing his kind words.

I place my hand over his arm as he continues to hold me tightly. “Thank you, Chanie. Really.”

“Anytime, love.” Chan whispers, squeezing me tightly. “And besides,” he adds, “We have all summer before we need to worry.”

````

The days got longer and warmer as time dragged on. The shop was always at its busiest time during the summer months. New types of flowers and plants were imported in to sell, drawing people to buy them. Sometimes even in mass quantity.

I tried to ignore the pressing issue of collage and possibly having to move away. The very thought making me sad immediately.

Chan worked almost nonstop during the summer months. He loved this time of year. His skin would become a dark shade of brown from standing outside the shop tending to the flowers that preferred being outside. His hair going blonde from all the sun it was receiving.

But the summer breeze brought a lot of change with it. One afternoon i sat at the counter deep in thought. A sinking feeling plaguing me.

Chan walked in from outside, a large cement pot in his arms. He set it down gently before taking in my dream state.

“Are you lost, love?” Chan asks with a chuckle. A smile tugging at his lips.

I smile and let out a sigh. “Do you realize i have never had a boyfriend before, Yuchan?” I blurt out.

Chan blinks at me, his eyes wide. “Umm...”

“I mean,” I continue, not noticing him tense. “I went through high school with no love life whatsoever. And now I’m faced with maybe going off to collage this fall and i have no idea what it feels like to kiss someone or even be in love.”

Chan hesitates, his jaw slack. “Maybe...maybe you just haven’t found the right person.” He stutters. Trying to keep the tightness out of his voice.

I give him a wistful look. “I know half the boys in this town, Chan. The right man is taking his sweet time coming my way.”

Chan shifts his weight nervously. “Maybe... you.. I mean. Maybe you should wait?” He says quietly. His voice so low i can barely hear him.

“What do you mean wait?” I ask.

“I mean just wait until you know if you’re going to collage or not before thinking about having a boyfriend.” He answers. His voice holding a certain clipped tone to it i had never heard before. His ears a bright red against his tan skin.

“Are you okay?” I decide to ask. Genuinely worried about him.

Chan stares at me. Holding my gaze for much longer than needed. Making my heart pick up its pace.

Chan picks up the cement pot against before grumbling, “Just forget it .” And storming off. Leaving me feeling confused and not any calmer.

````

Rain beats heavily against the shops windows. Thunder rumbling across the sky with lightening streaks occasionally lighting up the night sky.

I rush into the store, my hair and clothes soaking wet from the heavy rain. I see Chan cleaning up the shop, a mop in hand as he takes in my appearance with a smirk.

“Is it raining?” He asks sarcastically.

I give him a glare as i pull my wet hair off my neck, a shiver going down my spine.

“I came to see if you needed help bringing some of the flowers in. The storm is only supposed to get worse as the night goes on.”

“I’m okay, love.” Chan reassures. “I brought all the plants in earlier today. I’m sorry, i should have called and told you to stay inside.”

I shake my head, dismissing his apology. “I needed to get away from home anyway. You were my excuse.”

“Well then help me mop the floors and shine up this place.” Chan tells me as he hands me a dust rag.

I smile at him as i start cleaning. Both of us getting lost in easy conversation as the storm continues to rage outside. Rain attacking the windows as we work together.

Eventually, after a moments lapse in the conversation i decide to ask. “Chan, did i say something wrong the other day? When i said i wanted a boyfriend?”

Chan freezes, his shoulders going tight. “Umm.. n.. no”

He stutters. His ears going a bright shade of red.

I give him a quizzical look. Not believing him. “Chan, be honest with me. Please? Did i or did i not upset you the other day?”

Chan lets out a heavy sigh, running a calloused hand across the back of his neck. He slowly turns to face me as he admits, “I just... I don’t understand why you want a boyfriend so bad all of a sudden. There’s only two months of summer left and you decide to worry about how you’ve never been kissed before.”

“I want to know.” I say defensively. “If I’m going to be confined to studying for the next few years i want to experience things that other people have.”

“But... does it have to be with someone you hardly know? And why worry about it? It’s nothing to be ashamed of.”

Chan counters, trying to keep his voice calm.

“Because it means a lot to me. And i want to feel like I’m loved and appreciated by at least someone since i hardly get that from my parents.”

Chan stares at me wide eyed. He scoffs and rubs his eyes, a soft growl escaping his lips. “You just want to feel loved?” He repeats.

“Yeah.” I answer, my voice a little shaky.

“Then what have i been to you all these years?!” Chan shouts, making me jump.

Chan slowly closes the gap between us as he continues, “I have patiently listened to you, let you cry on my shoulder, let you work with me, shared meals with you, everything! What did you think that all meant?”

“Chan, calm down.” I say shakily. Taking a step back but my legs hit a table behind me, stopping me.

“No.” Chan snaps. “I’ve been patient for years. Never once interfering with your life. But all those times you stayed with me to watch movies and would fall asleep on my shoulder, all the times we would talk about how to make this place better, talk about our future, share secrets together, that all made me fall more in love with you.”

I feel my entire body freeze. I stare at Chan wide eyed, his eyes full of tears. Suddenly i feel stupid for never having seen it before.

Chan looks down at the ground, his hands going into fists beside him. “You talk of not knowing what to do with your life. About no one loving you and no one seeing you or caring what you think. But i have always cared, and I always will. But the only future I can see having is one with you in it.”

I feel tears sting my eyes from both joy and just feeling dumb for never having noticed my best friend in that way before. I quickly move forward and wrap my arms around his neck, encasing him in a tight embrace.

Chan freezes for a moment, his arms not going around my waist. His muscles tight as i hold him close to me.

“I should have known.” I tell him, my voice breaking. “I’m so stupid. You’re right. About everything.”

Chan takes my face in his hands, our faces inches apart. “You mean, you feel the same way?” He asks me in disbelief.

I let out a choked laugh, “Chanie, there is no one i would rather fall in love with more than you.”

Chans lips split into a huge smile before he closes the gap between us. The feel of his lips on mine making me tense slightly before relaxing and wrapping my arms around his neck to pull him close to me.

I smile into the kiss, getting lost in his touch and the way his lips taste and feel on mine. I feel my body go limp slightly when he runs his tongue across mine, his hands sliding up my back to pull me closer to him until there was no room between us.

I let out a gasp as he picks me up slightly to set me on the table behind me. One hand resting on my thigh as the other hand stays at the back of my neck, keeping me close to him.

His lips slide over mine softly, both of us just enjoying the feeling of being so close. I pull away from him slowly, resting my forehead against his as he breathes heavily against my lips.

“Does this mean you’ll stay?” Chan whispers, his voice raspy.

I smile and kiss his nose gently. “I’m staying with you.” I answer him, making him smile as he leans in to kiss my mouth again.

Eventually, i slide off the table. Chans face a bright red as we continue cleaning the rest of the shop before going upstairs to his loft. Where we end up talking half the night before i fall asleep on his chest while watching movies. Our limbs tangled together tightly as we bask in the warmth and feeling of security we brought each other. Our new relationship starting a new chapter for the both of us.

[nelllraiser]

chains and grace | adam & nell

TIMING: october 30th, the full moon, just before sunset. LOCATION: the trees near dark score lake. PARTIES: @walker-journal & @nelllraiser​ SUMMARY: adam and nell prepare themselves for their first full moon as werewolves.  CONTENTS: medical blood (sacrificial fingerstick prick)

Fallen leaves rustled under Adam’s feet, forming a carpet of brilliant oranges and yellows while subtler strings of red and browning rot. The waning afternoon sun forged the forest canopy in halcyon golds. The shadows of the sun-silhouetted branches played across Adam’s face as he affixed more chains to the trunk of the stoutest tree he could find. Adam had no idea how strong he’d be on the first transformation, but he wasn’t taking any chances. 

Kaden may’ve not wanted to kill him, but Adam had more than a few former coworkers with aim that’d put an army Ranger sniper to shame and fewer qualms about pulling the trigger. Thus a remote location and strong bonds were preferable here. 

Adam ‘I love fine ass and incendiary rounds’ Walker realized that there might just be a certain ironic justice in him worrying about trigger happy paramilitary. 

“How’s yours going,” Adam asked his dance partner for this lunar stakeout.

 If Nell hadn’t been treating this evening as a sort of funeral for life as she knew it, the autumnal palette of the trees paired with the steadily setting sun and the company of Adam would have made for a wholly enjoyable setting. As it were, the somber feelings she’d been trying to avoid ever since being bitten by the werewolf were quickly encroaching, refusing to be shoved away in these last moments, effectively ruining any hope for a happy or peaceful outing. 

“I’m going for a nice cat’s cradle look,” Nell answered, still managing to refuse the dread in her stomach access to her sense of sarcasm, even if the joke fell flatter than it normally would have. “I thought it’d be a nice last ‘screw you’ to the wolf part of the situation.” The chains alone were enough to cause her anxiety to prickle uncomfortably, not exactly a fan of imprisonment ever since she’d been trapped beneath the Ring. “What about you?” She looked to Adam as she reversed the question, posing it both as an attempt to get a read on his tree to chain ratio, as well as how he might be handling the situation as a whole.

“Kind of just going for restraint over style here,” Adam noted as he strained his way through some of the last preparations, the muscles of his neck and upper arms wiry the fallen Hunter leveraged one foot against the tree he was trying to bind chains around. “Y’know”, Adam posited, leaning back far enough to look at Nell upside-down he continued to heave at the chain into place around a huge super maple while pushing against the bark with a leg. “I’d hoped when we were going to start tying each other up it’d be…”

This particular train of thought was interrupted by a rasping click as the last chain link slid past the main knot into tautness. Adam stumbled backward, taking off guard by the unexpected success and tripping over a root. 

“Guess what I mean is,” Adam amended, changing his tone and just decided to own the mishap by sitting up with his back against the chained tree. “We still don’t have to do this together if you don't want to,” he prevaricated carefully. “When we first change we’ll have no control, and I honestly dunno if like...we might end up hurting each other with the chains? I dunno.” 

The truth of why he thought Nell might not want him here on the night she lost her magic had little to do with safety, but Adam wanted to give her an easier out here if she wanted it. 

In the end Nell would most likely be banking on the power of her magic when it came to the hardness of her chains. Physical knot tying wasn’t a practical skill she’d been taught when the same end could be achieved with a simple spell. Still- she sat back on her heels to take a look at her handiwork, head tilting to the side to gain a new perspective that didn’t actually provide any other insights. Sparing Adam a flicker of amusement both at his words and momentary fumble, she dusted her hands on the sides of her pants restless now that she didn’t have the chains to preoccupy them. “Never say never. Maybe it could be a treat for making it through the first full moon.”

Maybe Nell had misjudged where that sentiment was going, though. Was Adam having second thoughts? “Why wouldn’t I want to? Do you not want to? Do this together, I mean.” Nell generally gravitated towards having what she perceived as moments of weakness by her lonesome, preferring not to have audiences for the times she felt most vulnerable. But in a break from tradition— she’d been grateful to not have to do this alone. There was nothing more she could do for the chains, and she let her own back slide down the trunk of her tree before settling onto the ground. “I thought werewolves don’t usually go after each other.” Or was there a different reason he might want to change their plan, and go his own way.

Adam sat on leaves at the foot of his chained tree, glancing up at the boughs swaying above him in the canopy overhead before looking back to Penelope. He drew a knee up and laid an arm across it, flexing his fingers and ignoring the whisper of imagination that visualized claws tearing their way out of them. 

“I’m down to do this together,” he assured carefully, pushing images of shredding skin and distending ribs out of his brain. “I just...I dunno.” 

“Feel you are losing a lot more than me here,” the fallen Hunter pointed out softly, “thought you might want me not being here when… y’know.” 

“Oh-” was Nell’s unintentional filibuster of a reply, unsure if she wanted to open the floodgates concerning that particular can of worms. For the most part she’d been avoiding it, preoccupying herself with learning as much as she could get her hands on when it came to Bloody Mary, the mysterious sands, and Adam’s own disappearing abilities. The looming loss of her powers left her feeling as if there were a black hole deep within her stomach, and if the witch so much as stood still for a single moment to spare it a thought— it would pull her in, dragging her under like a similar hole had threatened to do when Bea had been killed. “I just...you know when Bea died?” she began, not entirely certain how to express herself. “And sometime afterwards you let me come over- and it was nice. I don’t know-” she backtracked self-consciously. After all, sharing emotions in person was not one of her stronger suits. “I guess maybe I thought it’d be nice again or something- if you were here.” As for what there was to lose... “Do I? I mean I know your abilities are gone right now, but I’m sure whatever strength and senses that come from being a werewolf won’t be the same as what you had, right? And- well- I can’t imagine it’s all that comforting to become something you were trained to kill.” Dark brown eyes that appeared nearly black in the fading light of the setting sun rose to find Adam’s while she finished.

Adam nodded as Nell alluded to when he’d broke down and they were together. While some fraternity mates had given him knowing nod the morning after the truth was….more vulnerable than that. Adam’d played along with lascivious implication because it was easier to let play it off as just another fuck-romp then admit he’d been falling to pieces. “I’m glad you’re here Nell,” he said with steady directness. “No matter what happens.” 

“I’m more ...worried that I am trained to kill and I kinna get lost in it,” Adam admitted. He was past the point of pretending that he wasn’t an adrenaline junkie who got a rush when his family had warned he should only feel dutiful dispassion when dispatching the enemies of mankind. “Part of me can’t get enough and it made me good at what I do for all the wrong reasons,” confessed one who might’ve become a very different man if he hadn’t been born into a Hunter family that stressed moral utilitarianism and military discipline rather than bloodsport. “I tried not to let that control me but uh…”

“Guess what I’m trying to say is that if I’m this fucked up as a human,” Adam tried again, “what is wolf-me going to be like?”

“I’m glad you’re here, too,” Nell answered with her own unwavering certainty, a gentler smile granting itself to Adam. It was softer- calmer than her usual confident grins and smirks, though just as sincere. “Whatever happens I’m glad we can do it together.”

The mention of her magic had reminded Nell of the flower seeds she’d brought along with her, hoping to create one last thing with her gifts before she had to say goodbye to them. Not yet retrieving them from her pocket, she began to draw a circle in the dirt between their two trees, a single finger paving the way of runes and sigils as it trailed along the forest floor. 

Her spellwork paused as she listened, looking up with a slight frown as he shared. “I don’t think you’re fucked up,” she said reflexively, never enjoying those she cared about speaking of themselves in such a way. “I think we’re just...doing the best with what we’ve got, you know?” But she knew it went beyond that. There was no denying that werewolves had a natural bloodthirst about them the closer it was to the full moon, and it made sense that Adam might dread what result that would garner when paired with a desire that was already present. “Well that’s why we’ve got each other, right?” she asked, referring to the unofficial pact they’d made to check on one another when it came to questionable deeds. “To make sure...we’re still the people we want to be. I won’t let it happen-” Her voice was strong, Nell’s sheer determination peeking through. “If getting lost to that isn’t what you want- if it seems like you’re getting close...we can figure out how to pull you back. And I think at the end of the day the fact that you don’t want to become that says more about you than liking the rush of a kill says. Intentions are more powerful than people give them credit for,” she ended, somewhat aware that her words bordered on lines of witch-hippy speak, but also knowing it to be true after a lifetime of powering her magic with just that.

“Thanks Nell,” Adam managed with a thick swallow, wanting to echo her sentiment but feeling guilt for being the impetitus of this whole situation. Seeing Penelope perform this last swan song of a spell just hit it home that he’d fucked up the life of yet another of his friends. 

Ma’al had suggested another way right? Service to Hell for being a Hunter again? 

But ..Nell was losing her powers for the sake of saving his life. If Adam was really considering taking on the mark and swearing himself to the Hells, shouldn’t it be to restore her powers, not his?

“Nell uh.” Adam swallowed, feeling the horrible tension of this last option in his chest as the sky gained streaks of livid violents and yellows in the countdown till sundown. 

“If I could make a deal to save your powers...even if it might mean doing something morally uh, not so great.” That admittedly was probably an understatement given what Ma’al true form actually was, but Adam didn’t want to foist that on Nell’s conscience. “Would you take it?”

He felt real shitty dropping this on Penelope as they were trying to resign themselves to their fate. But if he could offer her a chance to keep this part of herself...wasn’t even becoming Ma’al’s new pet wolf worth it? 

“I’ll do it if you need me too,” Adam assured, suddenly thankful for the tree’s unyielding support against his back. 

Nell’s face had been turned towards the sun as it continued to sink lower, half-convinced she could see every single millimeter disappear behind the horizon as it went. It felt as if it were some great celestial clock counting down the minutes she had left with her magic, and the moments left until she’d lose a piece of herself that was as much as part of her as an arm or leg. Then as Adam called her attention back, she sat back on her heels next to her tiny circle, satisfied with the work she’d done. “A deal?” she echoed first, not entirely certain what he’d meant by it. Her reflexive gut reaction was a quick reply of “Don’t do that.”

The little indent between her eyes furrowed as Nell tried to truly process what it was Adam was offering, and potentially at the expense of himself. “Listen-” she began carefully, hoping she’d somehow manage to find the right words. “When I came to help you- Sure- I didn’t know that it’d result in losing my magic. But well- the thing is-” She paused on the precipice of her words, still not quite used to bearing herself openly though she was getting used to it with Adam. “I’d still do it knowing what I know now.” Though her magic was the biggest price she could think to pay, there was one thing that she knew would demand an even larger toll, and it was losing someone she cared for as much as she did for the hunter before her. “And if it’s morally questionable- and I just got done telling you I’d help keep you from that…I wanna keep that promise to you.” There was a pause before she continued on. “I don’t know what I am without my magic,” she admitted with a hitch in her voice, “but I know it’s not a person that wants to have a hand in something that might hurt you.” This time she leaned forward to place a tentative hand on top of Adam’s. “But thank you.” She wasn’t sure how else to show that the gravity of his offer hadn’t been lost on her.

She glanced back at her circle, finally taking the daffodil seeds from her pocket. “Do you wanna help me?” she asked with a nod towards the magic runes, deciding that if they were going to have this transformation together- why shouldn’t they do this together as well? 

Adam wasn’t going to force anything on another person, but Nell’s decision still made his teeth grit down. Guilt and the trainwreck he’d brought his friends’ lives seemed to line his gut with lead. 

Morgan had told Adam something about what it was like to wield magic and lose it. Adam couldn’t really relate to be able to feel the universe coursing through him, that meld his pure intent with quantum fields, or beckon beings across universes through sheer desire. In truth, Adam was a pretty physical guy who was content with the simpler animal pleasures of life. 

Sure, he knew a lot more about other dimensions and otherworldly beings than people might expect from his test scores, but Adam's soldiering upbringing had viewed the multiverse as a dark and pitiless infinity full of eldritch predators and malevolent alien gods. 

Not exactly something you want to “embrace.” 

He wanted to be there for Nell, to be a pillar for her while she went through this loss like Morgan's girlfriend had been. But Adam worried that he couldn’t relate enough to how Penelope experienced the world to be who she needed him to be. When Nell had said earlier that intentions were powerful, the cold utilitarianism of ‘threats’, ‘tactical priorities’, and ‘strategic objectives’ that Adam was brought up in almost led him to say something dismissive before he stopped himself. 

It was that impulse Adam feared. Ideological baggage doesn’t just disappear. That bullshit stays with you, lodged deep in your brain stem somewhere, jumping out whenever you were scared or uncomfortable. Like when you were about to literally split out of your own skin and become something hunted by your own people. 

As just a random example. 

Adam got up and dusted off the leaves from his jeans and walked over to Nell. He took a knee by the arcane diagram. “So uh...we need to chant ominously in Latin or…?” 

Despite the heaviness of the air surrounding them, Nell cracked the beginnings of a smile while Adam posed his question, reminded of the time they’d worked on the demon amulet in her greenhouse. “I think I can carry the chanting part and make it just ominous enough.” Tearing open the seed packet with her teeth to sprinkle them over the center of the circle, she felt her the ache of her loss rise to meet her as she reached for her magic for the last time that mattered. “Remember when I said emotions can make magic stronger? Like the wolpertingers at my birthday party?” she asked. “They help fuel it and make it more powerful if you focus on them. And then it’s almost like you can just pour them into the spell. Just letting them leave you to create something new that isn’t exactly them.” Nell couldn’t help but feel that no amount of the dread and premature mourning for her abilities she put into the spell would be enough to chip away at them, but at least she could use them to form something that would live past that loss. “It’s like free magical therapy,” she tried to joke, though her hands wavered as she passed them over the seeds. “So if you just focus on what you’re feeling, and let them go into the spell- you’ll be helping too.” 

Nell reached forwards to lightly clasp Adam’s wrists in her hands, trying to guide his palms to the center of the circle where the seeds lay before resting them atop the soil. Pulling a hidden fingerstick out of a bobby pin from her hair that was kept for situations such as these, she looked at it for a moment too long— realizing there’d be no need for it after tonight. How many more things like this would she find after her magic was gone? Like little knives hiding around her life to slip between her ribs when she least expected it. Shaking the thought away she pricked the tip of Adam’s finger, letting the droplets of blood wet the dirt. Then she did the same to herself before covering the hunter’s hands with her own, the Latin falling from her as the blood mixed. She let every emotion she’d been forcing down for the past month painfully bubble up inside her until it felt like she might burst before letting it spill over into the magic. Slowly but surely, green shoots began to sprout through the cracks of their fingers, the stalks reaching towards the setting sun as new life was born, already desperate to survive. Nell could have gone further- taken the plants to completion and let them bloom. Instead she let the magic end after the daffodils had grown a few inches above the ground, wanting them to find their own way in a new world just as Nell and Adam would have to do in the coming days. 

“Well- that’s it, I guess,” Nell said shakily. It was over. “Chain time now?” she asked as casually as she could, tilting her head back towards their respective trees.

Adam looked up at a sky the color of blue slate, crisscrossed by the lines of cirrus clouds that’d had been lit up in a conflagration of deep carmine by the setting sun. The branches of the forest’s canopy stretched across the sky panoramy like arms through up against the crepular glare, the autumnal reds and oranges of their leaves transmuted into titian gold by the last sunlight passing through them. 

But shadows deepened in this last fading flare, lengthening from the trunks of trees, gnarled masses of roots, and undersides of the softly swaying branches. The leafy carpet of the forest floor darkened until the conjured daffodils seemed defiant against the gloom in their lush newborn yellow, basking in the last dappled rays. 

Adam glanced from the blood lingering on his finger to the daffodils that’d blossomed in the span of seconds. It occurred to him that...in a way...these flowers had come from him and Nell, there was a tiny part of him in those stems and blooms. “Woah Nell, like...that's amazing,” he breathed, not sure why this small last act of fertility should get so much more of a reaction then the crazier stuff he’d seen Nell do on the battlefield. 

Maybe this was part of what Morgan had meant about the universe becoming a part of you?

A cold dismissive part of Adam reminded himself that he wasn’t thoughtful or smart and he shouldn’t be doing galaxy-brain bullshit about some fucking flowers. It was the same remorseless inner voice that’d always reminded Adam that orders were orders, he needed to focus on the mission not the distractions. 

The boyish sense of wonder snapped off like a light switch. Even in his last minutes of humanity, the bone-deep conditioning still put blinders on Adam’s selfhood. 

“Yeah we need to get ready,” Adam rose to his feet again. He hesitated a moment, wondering if he should hug Nell, say something that he more felt for her then knew. 

Adam’s lips parted as he searched for words for a moment, but they closed as he swallowed down his own sense of guilt and failures as a man. He’d tried to meet Nell’s eyes, but quickly averted his own gaze and started busying himself with the chains, affixing heavy iron locks to his wrists. 

Nell mirrored his hesitation after they’d stood, knowing she wanted something in that moment— but uncertain how to act on it. But tonight they didn’t have time to find the words or motions, seemingly already a prisoner to the rising moon and setting sun despite the shift having not yet happened. The last grain of sand had fallen through their hourglass, and now they had to face the inevitable. This wasn’t the end— not really. But no matter how many times Nell tried to tell herself such, she couldn’t get the words to stick. Things were changing after tonight whether she liked it or not, doors closing and opening. Some were clear cut and well-defined like the loss of her magic, others were shrouded in darkness, unable to be found in the gloom of uncertainty that was where they went from here. The rooms the doors were closing on were the ends of many a thing she wasn’t wanting to relinquish, and even if she lived to see the sunrise it wouldn’t be what it was before.

At least Nell wouldn’t have to do it alone. This was the only good she could think of that was coming of tonight as she glanced over to Adam once more, still trying to find what it was she wanted to say. Instead she focused on shackling herself, locking the cold metal around her wrists in a way that was little too reminiscent of her prisoner days in the Ring. Ignoring the shiver that went down her spine, she decided this was her last chance to say something and did her best. “This is gonna sound shitty- and I don’t mean it like that but...if I was gonna get bit I’m glad it’s with you.” It wasn’t perfect, but it’d have to do. 

The last ray of light blinked out of existence in those last moments, and Nell waited- not knowing in the least how to prepare for what was coming, going forth into the darkness with the realization that at least she had one, tiny lantern in the form of the guy who’d stumbled into the Ring looking for a demon amulet all those months ago. She didn’t know how they’d gotten here, but even now she wouldn’t change it, somehow grateful in these last moments for it. Nell waited until the pinks and purples of the sky stopped reflecting against the new glass of the lake, waited for what felt like hours but couldn’t have been more than mere seconds. Waited until she heard the first cricket begin its song, and there wasn’t a scrap of light left in the sky. But there was nothing. Her hands were still her hands, her feet still encased in the sneakers she’d worn, and her magic…

Nell reached for it once again, a half-laugh, half-cry of relief breaking from her lips as she realized that one in a million had come to fruition. The full moon had come, and she was still here, human and magic and everything she’d been before. Instantly she tried to crane her head towards Adam’s direction, struggling to get far enough away from the tree to see him clearly in the new darkness. “Adam?” she asked carefully, unsure whether she’d get words or a wolfish snarl in response. She repeated his name more insistently. “Adam? Are you there?”

Adam felt the moon in his blood. The air felt heavy around him, as the tidal pull of the moon was ripping at his body. Energic pressure seemed to press down on Adam. His heartbeat hammered in his temples. 

Nell said something to him. Where was he?

Red tinged thoughts flooded into Adam’s head, a visceral longing that quickened his breath and brought up goosebumps of frisson along his skin. 

He needed to snap Nell’s neck, to hold her close as she went still and cold. 

It’d make him strong again. Whole again. 

The Hunter’s Moon whispered in Adam’s veins like wine seeping deep into his bloodstream. 

But Adam looked down at his hands and saw only human fingers. 

The fuck? Why’d he feel this way...the moon...what was going on?

“Yeah I’m here.”

Nell muttered a spell to unlock the metal around her wrists, a wave of relief once tumbling through her as Adam voiced his confirmation. “You’re okay? You’re human?” she asked again, as if she could hardly believe it. And why should she? Kaden had said their odds were one in a million and here they were— apparently two in one million. “You’re sure?” Another breathless laugh found her as she marveled at their luck. “We fucking did it,” she said before stepping forwards to unlock Adam’s own shackles, even though they’d had no hand in deciding their fates when it came to turning into werewovles or not. Gone was the hesitation she’d felt before they’d locked themselves to the tree, rushing forwards to throw herself into Adam for a hug as elation made quick work of any previous uncertainties.

Adam looked at the places on his wrist that Nell had unlocked the shackles from. There were no signs of struggle. He hadn’t just wolfed and out blacked out. His clothes weren’t shredded and Nell was elated. 

What happened? Had his mutation differentiated into those of a Beast Hunter after that encounter with the wolves, granting him immunity? But if that was the case how had Nell not contracted it? 

Adam took Nell into his arms, just content with the reassuring presence of it as his brain still tried to go through the stages of shock, acceptance, and relief. He tried to banish that ingrained Hunter paranoia and just enjoy being alive and human with Nell. “Yeah, we made it,” Adam affirmed back to her in a murmur as he held Penelope close. 

The moon burned like molten silver in the sky, seeming to briefly ripple into deep crimson in Adam’s vision like a heat mirage. He could feel Nell’s heartbeat against his chest. Even as he craved Nell’s touch to reassure him that this was real, that they were really going to make it, a small savage thought slithered into Adam’s mind. 

What would it be like to feel that heartbeat stop?

Somehow Adam knew...without knowing how...that it’d make him strong, vital, ecstatically alive.

He pushed the thought away, hoping it was just some lingering trace of lycanthropy in his bloodstream reacting to the full moon.

Yeah, must be. 

His embrace tightened around Penelope, content to just hold her close and just ...be..for a little while, enjoying this unexpected act of mercy from the universe.

[ofmythsandmadness]

i need a favour - two.

PART TWO - don’t call me baby. or, klaus always knows how to make things a little bit more tense, even without meaning to (but no one can ever hate him for it)

WORD COUNT: 3000 or so. PREVIOUS PART(s): part one

A/N: i was surprised at honestly the good response? i wasn’t considering anyone liking it, but i’m glad. i’ve got a little series tag list going on for those who requested to be updated on this - if you want to be added, just ask and I can do that :) I’m updating this at three in the morning, because I didn’t have much inspo for finishing it til now? if it’s badly written and honestly, i feel that with the ending, i’m super sorry. but on another note, there’ll be more parts if I can get my shit together, at least a couple more chapters because i want to have a proper growth session (yee haw, buckle up i guess). I’m still getting used to writing x reader things, I don’t normally even read them, but this is pretty fun and it’s something I can do. and i’m happy people enjoy reading it. (sorry for the super long a/n.)

FOR MOST, IT WOULD BE STRANGE TO SEE a teacher smiling as they went through a stack of to-be papers. Frowns, or grumblings were more common, only covered by a constant reaching for more coffee to keep them alert. But for Y/N and her creative writing class, it was nothing unusual. She largely favoured the course to teaching AP English, and most of the time enjoyed reading what the students came up with. The prompts were fun and the followup even better - no matter the spelling and grammar mistakes, the students were not without creativity. If she was being honest, it might just be the greatest opportunity a young teacher in her position could get. And she was not without appreciation for that.

The prompt that week perhaps made her marking job even more entertaining. She asked them to tell her about their childhood hero, and a large portion of the class had chosen to write about the infamous ‘Umbrella Academy’. Even if they were on the younger age and only saw the group in the later years, more than half of her students still fawned and gushed about the super-beings. The one in hand just then particularly favoured a certain Number Two - citing him as their first childhood crush, someone that their small self quite adored.

She snorted at their shy confession. If only they knew Diego like she did - maybe the mask and knives would not be so attractive.

Just before she could turn to the next page, her phone lit up and she had to place the red pen down. The number was not recognised by her phone, but she hardly spared a thought on that, sighing before bringing the device to her ear. “Hello, Y/N Y/L/N here.”

“Well, don’t you sound professional.”

Speak of the devil. She fought back a smile. “You really have to get your own phone, you know.”

“Why, so you can get even more excited it’s me?”

“No. So I know not to answer.”

“Ouch. You’d say that to the love of your life?”

Y/N transferred the phone to her other ear, pressing it into her next and jaw as she fixed her piles. “Okay, hold on. Thought you were my fake boyfriend, not ‘the love of my life’. Did I miss that in our agreement?”

“Ain’t that the same thing?”

“No,” she shot back. There was no point elaborating, she knew he was joking - and yet for some reason, the casual question did sting a little. She quickly brushed the thought away, though, and continued. “Why are you calling me? I’m working.”

“I’m calling on your break, aren’t I?”

“Sure, but you’re interrupting my paper-grading.”

She could practically see the teasing smirk on his face, imagining him leaning against the telephone booth with the device pressed up to his ear. Trying to be stupidly suave. What she wouldn’t give to trip him up. “Sorry to interrupt that, I didn’t know you were having such a great time.”

“Well, I’ll have you know I-” she cut herself short as the door swung open. Her frown quickly shifted to a polite smile and Y/N gestured for the student to come in, motioning silently to her phone. She turned back with a lower voice and new sense of urgency. “Do you need something, Diego, or are you just calling to tease me?”

“C’mon, don’t flatter yourself.”

“I’m about three seconds from hanging up-”

“-okay, sure. I do have a question.”

She shifted in her seat, sparing another glance to the waiting student just to make sure she was still there. The girl stood patiently - well, in the sense of trying her very best to pick up on just what the conversation was without being obvious. Y/N smiled a little at that.

“What is it, then?”

“They’re moving dinner to Sunday. Can you make that?”

Y/N did not have to rack her brain to know her answer. “Yeah, probably. I’ll have to bump all my plans around, but I guess I can make it work.”

“Oh, right. Cause you have so much going on.”

“Screw off, Diego, ‘else I might just be too busy to show up to dinner.”

He sobered up then, though he did force an exaggerated sigh. “Fine. Thanks.”

“Uh-huh. We can talk later about details but-” she shot another glance the girl’s way, gesturing she would just be one more minute, “-I have to actually go. Okay?”

He laughed softly into the phone. “Sure. See you, sweetheart.”

“Bye, loser - and don’t call me that!”

He hung up with nothing more as a response, leaving Y/N to sigh and slam the phone back down to her desk. She smiled apologetically at the teen. “Sorry about that, Trish.”

“Oh, no worries,” the girl grinned. The smile was sly - a look only a curious high schooler knew best. “Everything all good?”

“Oh, n...yes, yeah.” Guess she had to go along with the teasing remark - not that Trisha had been sent as a spy by the Hargreeves siblings, trying to test the validity of their very not real relationship. But it did not hurt to push the narrative. “Yeah, that’s just my...uh...boyfriend. Confirming plans, no big deal.”

Trish’s smile grew larger. “Sounds cute.”

How someone could sound cute, especially when she had not even heard him actually speak, Y/N could not say. But she just laughed it off, played the part she had dealt herself. “Yeah, he’s...great. But anyways, how can I help you?”

||

AT THE FIRST KNOCK, Y/N was throwing the door open, rubbing at her eyes so she could take in the situation properly. Her eyes flitted down Diego, scanning frantically for any wounds or issues that would need serious work, or just any sign in his face of what could be an urgent matter. There was no bloody giveaways on his clothes this time, though, and his face was warped into strangely, a stiff grin, instead of a look of pain.

“Well, at least you used the door this time,” she sighed, opening it wider so he could come in. She stiffened, though, as he moved closer than normally, brushing her into a one-armed hug before pulling away. Y/N’s mouth fell open to question the embrace, but fortunately her eyes fell on the answer before she could be made a fool. “Oh. Oh. Hi, Klaus...?”

“Long story,” Diego mumbled into her ear, disguising the whisper with a kiss to her temple. She tried to focus only on the word and not how the strange shiver shot down her back at his touch, no matter how she felt. “Picked him up, he wouldn’t leave me alone and I really didn’t want him wasted up somewhere bad.”

She only nodded in response and turned her arms to Klaus, wrapping him up in a hug. He felt warmer than he had the last time they hung out - a bit more meat seemed to be on his bones, too, though he was still a willowy, langly man. A somewhat sober nature did suit him.

“My darling Y/N - congratulations!”

“Congr-”

“-you managed to do the impossible - and oh! How happy I am to welcome you to our crazy family!”

Oh, right. That.

“I always had a feeling that there was something between the two of you, but I never knew that the day would come where you’d actually admit it..” Klaus’ arms slung easily around both Diego and Y/N, drawing them close to him with a ferocity neither expected. Their heads very nearly knocked together, before Diego could wriggle out of the hold. “My dear little Y/N, tying down this grumpy asshole.”

She laughed semi-nervously. “Guess that’s me, yeah.”

“You two always looked good together, so adorable,” he continued, letting them go without a second thought. Luckily, he missed her glare to her supposed boyfriend, as well as the mouthed apology, too wrapped up in his own thoughts. “And between all the pining looks and - well, I don’t think anyone should be surprised you two finally decided to bump uglies!”

If there was any water in her mouth, Y/N would have done a classic spit take right then and there. As it were, she could just choke on air and attempt to keep her exposure in the face of a bold-face lie. 

Fortunately, Diego was there to swoop in - somewhat. “I did not pick you up so you could badger Y/N about our sex life, Klaus. Say your shit or get out.” He sank into her couch and Y/N did not miss the flash of pain across his face - there was something wrong. She could already feel the frown of concern forming.

“You’re the one who forced me into your car.”

“Yeah, well,” he shot back through gritted teeth, “you were gonna get yourself killed, dumbass.”

“So now I can’t go anywhere without a babysitter, simply because of a slight issue in the past?”

“You are a recovering add-”

“-the details don’t matter, Diego,” Klaus muttered, only flinching the slightest bit under Diego’s withering stare. “And it’s not my fault everyone’s now so busy with their lives. I mean, you do really show up at the worst of times, just to bust me and not to catch up on all that quality ‘bro’ time we missed out on!”

Y/N gently pushed him forward and into a seat before moving onto Diego. She fished out the little aid kit kept under the kitchen sink and sank into the couch beside him. “Show me what’s wrong. And Klaus, what about Luther? Allison?”

“Both too far,” he whined back.

“Okay...stop squirming Di...uh, don’t you have Five?”

“Five can’t legally do anything except for like, drive. And even then, is he even old enough to have a license yet?” He paused for dramatics, only to sigh when neither gave much response. “I just worry for that boy, I can’t be the only one questioning this.”

“Vanya, then.”

Klaus shook his head once more. “I love the girl, but sometimes, a bit too dry for me. We don’t have the same tastes, and I’m afraid I might be tone-deaf. Severely so. Incurably so, darling.”

“Aw, Klaus.” She poked at Diego’s side, sticking her tongue out when he tried to push her away. “Shirt up, let me see how bad it is.”

He rolled his eyes. “S’barely a scratch. Let it be.”

“C’mon, I don’t want it getting infected, let me see!” She poked again, forcing him to lift the shirt up and reveal the nasty scratch. He still fought her hands away, even when she was obviously going to win the fight. She swatted his calloused fingers off, however, and inspected the wound despite his protests.

Diego was just about to shoot another insult her way, eyes a-flashing in that sly, tired way that only came out in the wee hours, when they were both cut off.

“Oh, don’t tell me I’m going to be interrupting a moment here?”

Immediately Y/N felt herself stiffen and everything feel a little bit colder. She could not lift her gaze from his wound, too anxious to look and see how Diego was reacting to the comment.

“I can leave, if that’s wanted? I understand the whole new couple thing, believe me. Been there, done that, and I’m always ready to try and start that over again tonight!”

She bit back a groan.

In all the fuss of getting them in and dealing with Diego, she had hardly spared a thought to the night ahead. Sure, she had realised it was going to be awkward every time a Hargreeve mentioned their ‘relationship’, but not like this - not where she would be left stammering, trying to defend herself to one of her closest friends. Not even defend, but...well, she was not sure what she was supposed to be trying to do. Aside from not combust from all the hot blood rushing straight to her face.

And all she had wanted was to sleep.

But there was no way she would kick either or both of them out, not in their states. Diego would end up staying anyways just like he always did, grumbling as she fussed over him - and she would not just kick Klaus out like that. She adored the both of them and had made a promise. 

So, Y/N sucked in a breath and forced a gentle smile. “You’re not interrupting anything, hush.”

“Oh, I don’t mi-”

“-you wanna stay a while, Klaus? I have a feeling Diego’s not gonna be moving, and I don’t want you wand’ring the streets alone in your state.”

Diego’s eyes immediately shot to her, but she ignored the pointed stare.

“Oh, I’d hate to intrude on your relaxation session. Truly, I’ll just go!”

Gross, Klaus, she mused to herself - the guy was injured, for hell’s sake. “Seriously, you’re not. Please, just stay. There’s plenty a’room and I had nothing going on, anyways.” Aside from sleep - but that had been thrown out the window the second the pair had shown up, anyways.

A smile broke out on Klaus’ face and he shot up, moving to awkwardly hug Diego’s shoulder - much to the man’s chagrin. “I don’t know how you managed to convince her to like a prick like you. She’s an angel - you’re an angel, Y/N really.”

“You’re too sweet, but seriously, I don’t mind the company,” she grinned, swatting Klaus’ hands away. Hers were pressed against Diego’s torso, trying to wipe away the blood already drying around the wound. It, luckily, was not too bad- though serious enough to need serious attention. “Make yourself comfortable, just please don’t touch the booze!”

As his brother’s laugh floated away, Diego groaned. “Can’t we kick him out?”

“The more the merrier,” she sang back, ignoring the glare shot her way. “C’mon, I promise I’ll make it up to you later, baby.”

Diego did not bother to even try and hide him flipping her off. If anything, he brandished the action proudly. She just grinned back, trying to fight back her beating heart and flushed cheeks. She just had to deal with this - it was what she agreed to and it was just them. She hung out with the two of them for years and years. The only difference now was that she and Diego were supposed to be ‘bumping uglies’, but she could deal with Klaus’ comments.

Right?

||

“YOU COULD TRY AND BE A LITTLE NICER,” she said, swatting at him with a towel. “He is your brother.”

Diego rolled his eyes. “He’s an asshole, is what he is.”

“Why, he interrupted our quote-on-quote ‘alone time’?”

“No,” he grumbled, “but I didn’t really come here to put on a show.”

Y/N wanted desperately to then ask, ‘well why did you come’, but the words just would not come out. Instead, she just shook her head and played along with ignoring the implication. “C’mon, dummy. Would you rather we kicked him out and left him to do...well, whatever Klaus does? That wouldn’t be good.”

He sighed, running a hand through his hair. Y/N watched as he absent-mindedly stroked the silvery scar carved into his head, a motion she thought probably was not even intentional. “I know. I know. S’why I brought him here.”

“So…”

“...all I’m saying is, I didn’t expect to have ‘im here all night.”

She shot him a teasing smile before twisting away, reaching up towards her top cupboards. Her fingers grazed the wood but could not quite reach the glasses pushed to the far back. How had she reached them before? 

“If you wanted to just hang out with me, Diego, you could’a just said. I mean, I get it. I am irresistible and adorable in every which way.”

“I agree. You are super irritating and annoying.”

“Oh, wow, those are some big words!” Y/N gritted her teeth, stretching as far as she could forward to grab the glass - but ended up just sinking back to her toes with a sigh. “You been reading that dictionary I bought you?”

“You really just carry that teacher voice around wherever you go, don’t you,” he grinned. With ease, he reached up and brought down the glass she had been reaching for, earning a muttered ‘thanks’. “And for your information, I don’t even know where that thing is.”

“Liar.”

“Not kidding.” 

“You lost my heartfelt gift to you?”

“Nah, I probably used it as target practice.”

She rolled her eyes, even if he could not see her face when focused on her hands. She poured a little more than halfway, pausing before shrugging and bringing it up to her lips. Still turned away, she swallowed. “You’re maybe the most insufferable boyfriend I’ve ever had, you know.”

“Oh, come on. That can’t be true.”

“No, I mean that. I don’t normally date people who bicker with me and lose my hard thought-out gifts like that. Assholes like you.”

“Yeah? What about Ty?”

“What about him?”

“He was an asshole.”

Y/N shrugged and focused her gaze on the cupboards opposite her. Better that than his face, right then. “Sure he was. But I think he took care and kept the presents I gave him. I mean, ‘til shit hit the fan, but still. They were appreciated.”

“You’re really comparing me to one of the biggest dicks because I didn’t value your joke gift?”

At that, she chuckled and finally looked his way. One glass of wine down and her sense of smart humour was already fleeing fast. “Can’t compare what I don’t know, can I? Though, he, he was packing, I will tell you that.”

That did not even make much sense, but her messily dirty joke still took a jab his way. Immediately, Diego’s face fell into a look of disgust - though, funnily enough, his cheeks shone red in the dim kitchen light - and Y/N could not keep her laughter in. 

“Sorry, that didn’t even make any sense...”

“You’re gross,” he grinned back, shaking his head in fake disgust. “Don’t know what I see in you.”

She giggled mercilessly at him, ignoring his mumbles to keep quiet, caught up in the adorable face he made.

Wait, she interrupted, not adorable. Not in the adorable nature as - well, it was cute, but like in a little kid sort of way. Yeah. Was that a better way to look at it? She was not sure, but it still left her sobering up pretty quickly.

Her eyes fell down to the counter, tracing the swirls of wood before lifting once more. A low hum left her lips. “Nah, you’re right. He sucked. And you do too, don’t get me wrong, but not as much as Ty, or Todd. Or - pretty much all of them.”

“Well, I’m flattered.”

She grinned, but it was softer, weaker as she sipped her second glass. “Sure. Not like it’s much of a competition - I don’t think I have very good taste, sadly.”

“Sure you do,” Diego shot back, bending to pick out a bottle from the fridge. He leaned against the counter across from her, eyes slightly squinted as he took her in. “I mean, you’re dating me.”

“Ha, ha. This - this is a business arrangement, darling, not a relationship. And I didn’t even choose to be in this!”

“Well shit, tell me how you really feel, Y/L/N!”

“I mean nothin’ against you, ‘course,” she hummed. Why was she feeling awkward, all of a sudden? “It’s just not the same as actually having someone who genuinely cares about me - in the like, romantic sense.”

Diego nodded somewhat solemnly at that. “Mm. Sorry, I think?”

“Eh, don’t be. I agreed to this. And I still appreciate you, even if you aren’t interested in me past what benefits you.”

Her words were supposed to come out teasingly, a joke in the most bitter, light-hearted sense, but that was not the case. Instead, they came out all wobbly and unsure, like she had been biting them back but could not hold onto the feeling any longer. Which, was not really the case, she was not desperate for a hand to hold and certainly not from him - but she could not change the words said.

His eyes averted and hers softened, half from embarrassment and half unconsciously at the face he had pulled. She pulled away from the counter. “You still hungry? I can get you something.”

“Nah, I should - get him home.”

Y/N glanced back at Klaus’ silhouette, sound asleep and slightly snoring on the couch. “I think he’s okay, Diego.”

“Yeah, but it’s late. You’ve got work tomorrow and I got shit to get to.”

“Do you have to get to it?”

His smile was tired, like he was barely holding back a sad secret behind the pretty grin. Honestly, with a look like that? He was already half out the door and there was no point to arguing. “Who else is gonna keep this city from burnin’ down?”

She did not bother to argue with him - there was no point to giving him logical points, because he just deflected them all. Diego Hargreeves was a lot of things, but reasonable, he rarely could claim. At least not when it came to his own wellbeing.

Instead, Y/N just leant back and watched as Diego moved to his brother and in surprising tenderness, woke him up. It was rare to see him so gentle, but also a sign that made her smile - no matter what the man said, he truly loved his siblings. Especially Klaus.

“Hey, Diego?”

The man stopped, holding a half-asleep Klaus carefully upright in her doorway. She fought back the urge to smile at his lolling head.  “Yeah?”

“Be safe.”

“Sure-”

“-no, I mean that,” she interrupted, “truly. You’re too reckless sometimes and it’s gonna get you killed.”

Diego grinned. “Aww. You gettin’ soft on me, Y/N?”

“Shut up,” she grumbled, trying to will her face to not heat up at the accusation. “I’d just rather not have to pretend to cry at your funeral and play the grieving girlfriend role.”

“Ha. Love you too, baby.”

Y/N did not bother to throw any comeback after his retreating figure. She was too shaken by the way those four words had left his lips - sure, they were sarcastic, but they still sat heavy on her tongue as she silent repeated them. They made her feel weird, tingly in a sense she could not quite understand.

The door slammed shut, and she let her forehead fall after it, resting on the cool wind with fists at her side and questions swirling in her mind. Maybe she could do with another glass and miss out on attempting to sleep - not like she ever could after nights like this.

She sighed and made a mental note, one she knew she was going to forget in minutes, to yell at him about calling her baby again. 

TAGLIST: @rangotangomango @fandomsandmore394 @thatkidofwarandpeace @antoouu (let me know if i missed you/you wanna be added)

[dancingthesambaa]

CBT Chapter 2

Chapter 2 Silence is Golden... and Necessary

It’s been a few hours since Branch had left Pop Village and entered the Deep Forest, the sun had already begun to set, so he decided to settle down for the night. It was when he was staring at the campfire, waiting for his food to cook, when he realizes that he has absolutely no idea what he should even do when he sees the Techno trolls, let alone how to talk to them.

“Welp i’m screwed,” Branch deadpanned as he flopped down on his back. “I barely know how to talk to the trolls that are in the village. How am I, the most cynical and least friendly troll, supposed to talk to a brand new species of trolls that I just literally heard about barely a week ago!” He quieted down when he realized where he was and took a deep breath.

“Okay. Alright. Okay. Alright... Let's make a list of how to approach them then make our way up.” He sat up and took a loose leaf from one of the various plants. “Maybe just by starting off with a hello, that usually works...most of the time. Should I try maybe just jumping into it like poppy- Nope never mind. Not gonna happen.” He scraped off that idea before it could fully form. “I’ll be more likely to scare them off than be seemingly friendly.” He humorlessly chuckled.

Gear, wanting no part of that negativity lingering, bit his ear once again.

“Yeah, yeah. I know.” He rolled his eyes at his partner. “If all comes to fail then a simple handshake would work.” Branch looked at his hands...his very gray hands and then he realized that this was just gonna be another group that will look down upon him for his skin.

“Right, I almost forgot about it.” He continued to look despondently at his hand. “This is just gonna be another repeat isn’t it.”

Gear buzzed around his head before landing on his shoulder and cuddled up under his chin for comfort.

“Thanks. We'll worry about that when we get to it.” Branch wordlessly put away his list and collected his now cooked berries and began eating before heading back to the back of the Beetle, where it acted as a sleeping quarter, and rested up for the night with Gear sleeping soundlessly beside his head.

——————

The next few days seem to have flown by as he continued on his way. Branch expected the untrodden area to be different, but he didn’t quite realize it until he saw that the usually obnoxiously brightly colored trees have turned into a tranquil umber. This was very strange to see as the trees that surround the Pop Village stays the same color all year round, so this is his first time seeing a tree that isn’t trying to murder his eyes with color.

“I bet some of the trolls in the village would just love this.” Branch said to Gear, who was casually drinking the water from the river that they just crossed. “They wouldn’t have to use brown dye anymore.” Then he thought about it. “Or maybe not, they would actually hate this forest as barely anything here is colorful for their taste.”

He then walked over and plucked a piece of bark from the tree. “Honestly, it kinda is strange to not see brighter colors, but it goes to show just how different everything is the farther we’re away from the village.” He paused at what he just said before throwing away the bark and marching back to the Beetle Trail. “Come on Gear, it’s best we get going.”

She locked her beady eyes onto Branch and silently made her way back into his hair.

Branch leans back in his seat as he goes over the map. “So we are here by the river, so we need to go past those mountains and keep straight until we hit that large mass of water. I wonder how they managed to keep such a large kingdom above the water? It should be near impossible, but I guess we’ll just have to see for ourselves.” Branch closed up the map before heading out once more.

It was in the middle of his eleventh day of travel when he finally caught sight of the mountains, and they were a sight to behold as he stopped the Beetle to get a good look at the massive tower of nature.

There wasn’t just one, as Branch first thought, but multiple mountains that littered the region. They had a heavy russet tone that just continued to climb higher and higher until finally changing tune and switching into lighter texture, it almost looked like snow. He was amazed by it and that was the only one in which he can somewhat see the top. The rest towers above the first one, they almost seem to reach the heavens, as the sight continues to climb upwards and past the milky white clouds.

“Amazing,” Branch breathed out. “This is simply breathtaking.” He got out the Beetle and proceeded to take out his notebook and began to write down in vivid detail the sight he was witnessing. He had long decided to bring a notebook to chart all the new things he might learn in case he can ever use it in the future.

“It’s a good thing I brought another notebook, it’s almost the second week and it has almost reached the halfway mark.”

After the hour had passed it was decided that it was time to pack up and head back on the path.

——————

“No! For the last time, you are not gonna have another honey rose, you know eating too many of those is bad for you.” Branch exasperatedly said while he drove through the quiet plains.

“Buzzz bzzz!” She fluttered indignantly.

“I don’t care if you only just had one, you know you can’t have more than you're supposed to!”

“Bzzzzzz!” She spewed angrily as she flew out of his hair and above the car, keeping pace as he continued to drive past a hollowed-out tree.

“Don’t you take that tone with me! The last time I let you eat more you couldn’t fly for days! Remember how I had to carry you everywhere in the bunker?!” Branch was more than done with this conversation, he was so engrossed though that he didn’t even notice the many ditches along his path.

“Zzz...buzz.”

“It was not worth it! You cannot fly there and tell me-,” he was cut off as something leaped out, next thing he knows he stopped in the middle of the road alone. He was alone.

Gear was not with him.

He leaped out the Beetle and immediately followed the sound of his distressed friend humming. In fact, Branch notices, as he continues to run forward to her, it was the only sound other than the leaves that break under his feet and the stem that creaks as he uses his hair to leap himself forward.

When he finally catches up he sees, or what he assumes, a large creature that was almost twice as big as a pod, its main body consisted of a cerulean shell that engulfed its body so much that all that was seen was its legs and head. There were also vines surrounding the creature, it even had some draping across its shell. But what caught Branch eyes was its own eyes, or rather his lack of eyes as all he saw of the face was a mouth and tangled up in the vines a few feet away was Gear.

He inhaled sharply at the sight of his friend being held down.

Then a few vines hoisted itself up, as if they were being held up by strings, and suddenly shot in his direction. Branch luckily just managed to push himself to the side as the vines viciously attacked the now empty spot Branch was previously in. When it realized that nothing was there anymore they slowly started to coil back to their previous spot and that’s when Branch noticed something as he watched the vines. The vines on the creature's back were also doing the same thing, in fact, it seemed to be receding down into its shell.

‘The vines are not on the shell, it’s a part of it!’ Branch thought as he continued to watch and see if he could use this to his advantage. ‘But why would this creature require the vines?’ Then something clicked within his brain. ‘No senses! The vines must act like its eyes and ears since it has none upon its face, this must be how it catches its food.’

Branch looks back to Gear, who was now looking at him. He gently smiles at her before putting a finger to his lips. Gear nodded her head and settled down, she trusted her partner to help her out of this mess.

He leans down and slowly grabs a few of the clumps of dirt that erupted from the tossed up ground of the vines’ previous attack. He mushes a few of them together until he has five solid clumps of dirt. Then he carefully picks up the pieces with his hair and flung it as far as he can in the opposite directions.

The vines began to track the sound and follow it, they were a lot more vines that followed the dirt than there was before, which was what he had planned. He then uses his hair once more to grab Gear, who now only had one vine tying her up rather than the multiple ones and grabbed her from its surprised, or what he guessed was surprised, hold and proceeded to run as fast as he could as he swiftly flew through his previous path.

“RAWRRRR!” The beast roared from where he was and could almost hear the vines now hissing. Branch didn’t know that vines could even hiss.

He decided to run faster.

He could hear some of the vines closing in on him. Their hisses seemed to be drawing nearer no matter how fast he swung or ran they always seemed to be coming closer. He needed a plan, but what could he even do. Then a thought came to mind a very risky, but possible, thought.

He looked down at Gear, who had now moved into his arms as he needed to have full use of his hair, and gave her a squeeze as he swung down in front of a plant and leaned his body against it. He took a deep breath and waited.

He could hear the hisses of the vines as it continued to move closer and closer until finally, he saw it. He finally saw the vines, it’s voices angrily hisses as it continued its charge forward to catch their prey. Branch stiffens as one of the vines' body is laid just inches away from his foot, another is draped above the plant he was leaning against and one was on his other side coiled around another plant. There was no exit if he made a sound, no matter which way he went or how fast he ran, the vines would catch him faster, he holds Gear tightly almost as to shield her from their none existent eyes.

It seemed like hours had passed when the vines slowly decided to move back to its main body as they couldn’t find their prey. The vines surrounding the duo had also finally retreated back until finally, they were alone. Both of them stayed silent until Branch worked up the nerve to walk, not run especially not now, back to the Beetle. Gear was still held tightly to his chest as his eyes began to dart back and forth as if to see if the vines or any other creature would try to make itself known.

When they reached the Beetle Branch carefully got into the car, Gear also carefully flew inside his hair, and drove slowly through the uprooted path, to which he can now assume were other unlucky victims that made its presence unfortunately known. He kept driving and driving until he finally stopped when the only available light was the moon in the sky, neither one of them made a sound throughout the entire trip.

Branch didn’t make a sound as he leaned his seat and just stared at the stars. Gear then flew her way down to his chest and also began looking at them; neither one made a sound as they slowly fell asleep.

————-

Almost three weeks have passed since they left Pop Village and it’s been five days since they were attacked, he definitely wrote down in his notebook where he came in and left and made an approximate guess on the recommended distance away from the creature vines. The Shell Constrictor, yes he has terrible names but Gear seems to agree on its accuracy no matter how bad the name, was temporarily wiped away from his thoughts when they see something blue. They had finally reached the lake where the Techno trolls lived, except for one small detail.

“This is not a lake.” Branch unemotionally said as he continued to look at the water that for miles and miles ahead, he couldn’t see the land on the other side.

He looks to the left, nope still all water.

He looks to the right, well would you look at that more water.

Branch stopped his Beetle on the shore of the not-lake and just stared, not in wonder like the mountains, but horror.

‘I’m going to have to cross this.’ He thinks as he walks out his car and looks out upon the waters. Gear nervously hovers next to him as Branch walks to where the water reached the sand. He watches listlessly as the water gently caresses his feet as it continues to move in and out, to and fro, back from its starting point and forth to towards his feet.

‘I’m going to have to cross this.’ His mind repeated once more than he kneels onto the sand and screams.

“What was I thinking! What was I thinking! How stupid could I EVEN BE!” Branch screamed out the frustrations that have been plaguing him since he left his bunker. “To think that I could even believe that I had a shot at this! Boy was I fucking stupid! I’m not brave! I’m not! I’m not!” He bashed his head upon the sand, Gear flying around his head and bumping into him as if to wake him up, but he just pushed her away.

“I’m just a paranoid kid who was too scared to not trust anyone and decided to fuck off on my own and look where that got me! The King thinking I was so independent that he send me on a suicide mission in the hopes of having aids! Well, guess what?! HE PICKED THE WRONG DAMN TROLL! I can’t even talk to a troll without screaming at them or them looking disgusted at my skin, what made him think it was a good idea for me to start this whole mess!” Branch paused and looked at his hands. “What made him think that I was even good enough?” He said nothing as he moved his hands to his hair and began to grip it tightly.

Gear was fluttering around trying to find anything that could help. Until she stopped and zoomed into the pack, almost ripping the ties Branch made for it, and dug deeper inside, passing the crispy succulent honey roses, until she finally found the treasure she was looking for. She flowed out of the sack holding it and quickly and carefully draped it around his shoulder and a part of his head.

Branch freezes as he felt a familiar cloth embrace him, it’s a cloak. It’s a simple light blue cloak that has violet dots following a dark blue firefly at the bottom.

It was the same cloak that Grandma had shown long ago, she told him that his father had crafted and gifted this treasure to someone special.

It was the same cloak that he clenched tightly to when they had finally escaped from the bergens.

The same one which he wore when he was hyperventilating deep into the bunker after a rough day.

This was his mother's cloak.

He desperately clung onto the cloth and began to listen and count his breathing to calm down. It wasn’t until breath number hundred and fifty-two that he noticed that he was still in the water. He quickly walked out of it loose pull and went back to the Beetle, to which Gear quietly followed, and leaned to the side of the car and slid down until he had touched the sandy bottom. Gear silently made her way to his pack before dragging over a berry to him as she landed on his knee.

Branch looked at her then smiled as he patted her head. “Where would I be without you?” He said as he munched down on the berry.

“Bzzz.”

“Yeah, I wouldn’t know either.” Branch looked at the cloak once more then back to the firefly. “How did you even know I would need this?”

“Uzz, Buz,” she looked at him then went back to his pack and grabbed herself her honey rose.

“If I can have a breakdown in my home then I could have a breakdown anywhere else, huh make sense.”

After their meal they continued to watch the waves, then he had an idea as he dusted the sand from his cloak.

“If I wore something to cover my skin then maybe I would have somewhat of a chance to talk to them.” Branch then leaped up and looked through the shell of the Beetle until he found a dark green cloak with a hood attached to it. He placed it on and it covers the whole skin with just his face showing, which he can pass it off as the shadows from the hood.

“Yeah, this can work,” He nodded to himself as he gently placed his mother's cloak back into his pack for safekeeping. “Thanks, Gear.”

She buzzed as she placed herself in his hair to take a nap.

“You do that, we’re gonna have a long ride before we can get there.” Branch hopped back into the Beetle, not before triple checking locks and food, grabbing a pair of black goggles and pulled a few levers as he drove straight into the not-lake. The wheels had moved inside the car and a propeller had popped out from the back.

He took a deep breath, clutched his cloak once more and steeled his eyes in determination as he began his drive across the waters. Thus began their trip across the not-lake as their now boat soared through the cerulean waters.

—————

“Nothing. There is a whole lot of water, fishes, weird rocks and nothing, absolutely nothing.” Branch deadpanned as he continued to sail through the waters. He thought he would at least catch sight of anything by now, but unfortunately luck wasn’t on his side. It’s been a couple of hours since they last left shore and Branch was so close to ripping his hair out in frustration and bottling that deep-seated panic that he is lost in the middle of the eternal unknown waters.

Even Gear had woken up at this point and tried flying around the area also in hopes of finding anything that resembled or left clues of the elusive Techno trolls. But still nothing.

Branch let out a frustrated sigh as he stopped his boat near one of the bright green rock structures. He had come across more of those on the fifth hour upon the seemingly endless waters. Instead, he decided to take a closer look at it, he wasted enough time searching and decided he needed a break before his body decides, or worse Gear, needs one for him. He placed his hand upon the rock when he felt it.

Thump Thump Thump Thump

He stared for a bit before looking at Gear, who was floating along with water, and called out to her.

“Gear, come here for a bit, cause I want to double-check that i’m not as crazy as I usually am.” She then lifted her body over to where Branch was and he just pointed to the rocks. When she placed her feet on there she instantly took it off in shock, but then placed it back down, cautiously. She looked to Branch and nodded.

“Okay great, just checking,” Then Branch looks down at the water, brings out the goggles he had placed to the side, places them back on his face, and takes a deep breath and submerged his head inside the water.

He then realizes that the weird rock structure was only the tip of the iceberg as the rest of its structure just went further down under, passing the brightly colored fishes swimming underneath, into the water depths. And he can’t see the bottom.

Great

He lifts his head back up and lightly knocks it on the rock structure. “You have got to be kidding me.”

On one hand, the Techno trolls have to be a highly advanced species to have an underwater nation and still be thriving. They must have all sorts of machinery that are helping them breathe underwater and be thriving underneath. It actually made Branch a little excited, not even the mechanics at the village are up to par with what these trolls can do.

But on the other hand, this means he has to dive down, to who knows how many feet down, into the still very unknown waters and hope that he would find civilization first before any of the predators of the deep have the taste for this troll and firefly.

Branch looked towards Gear and she dropped her wings when she realized what they were about to do. She fluttered back to him sadly and glumly settled into his hair.

He scratched her ear in apology. “Yeah, I know but just bear with it for a few hours. Hopefully, we can find them soon and you won’t have to be stuck in here.”

So with that Branch once again triple checked the boat, making sure everything was safe and secured, then sat back down pushed a few buttons then slowly turned the knob, and as he turned the knob a clear dome had made his way from the back of the shell until it finally settled at the front.

Branch doesn’t often use this part of the Beetle very often, mostly when he goes exploring underwater in the lake of the Deep Forest, and those times were severely limited. But he made sure this was up to snuff before he left, after all, it never hurts to be prepared for anything and Branch will damn try to be prepared for anything.

So when he dived in, but not before twisting the knob a few times to make sure it was locked in firmly, making sure the dome wasn’t cracked and checking up on the downtrodden Gear, he followed the now increasing large rock structure down under and continued to make his way down.

He passed by a few fishes, one of them have what looks like a stereo for a mouth, tried his best not to be in front of underwater caves, who knows might come out of it, went through the most strangest of underwater plant life, there were plants growing out of the rocks, until finally after the third hour he spotted a bright neon green light in the distance down below.

As he grew nearer he could now hear the ‘Thump’ sound and then he saw it. He saw more of the weird brightly colored rocks that changed colored with each different beat. He could see the green light now that shifted into blue as it emitted from some of the strange rocks. But most of all he saw in the center a giant green heart that was made up of smaller green hearts and being held up by two pillars of rocks with plant life growing out of them. The entire structure was just floating high above the sandy floor.

‘Stunning,’ Branch thought to himself and he went closer to get a better look, but then he noticed something was surrounding the structure. It was a bubble. And when he took a look past this bubble, there were many other bubbles as well, some looked to be tubes connecting to other bubbles and others leading straight up.

He stopped the sub right outside the bubble of the heart structure and looked around to see if he could find an opening, then he saw down below an eight arm neon yellow creature swimming it’s way to the bubble. Branch continued to watch as he saw the creature harmlessly make its way through the bubble and then had fallen and crawled its way to the structure.

Branch lowered his sub to the ground, slowly and carefully, pushed his sub forward and felt no resistance as he made his way through. Then it plopped to the bottom of the sand. This gave a momentary scare to the duo but as they sat down for a moment they eased up when they realized that nothing had snatched them up. He looked back and sure enough, they were inside the dome, but he couldn’t get his submarine to move.

‘Interesting, it seems like the bubble keeps the air in while keeping the water out,” Branch thought as he tried to distract himself from being out in the open and defenseless.

He took a deep breath then turned the opening knob only a sliver and cracked open the dome, he paused for a bit to make sure no water had entered, then continued to slowly open up the dome. When it was halfway open Gear had lifted out of his hair and right into the sweet freedom.

“Gear wait!” Branch leaped from the machine, quickly triple-checking to make sure the Beetle was secured, and followed after Gear.

His feet crunched against the cobalt blue sand and he constantly had to swerve around the weird rock with the stringy neon plants that rested on top. He then stopped when he saw Gear making his way back to him, more relaxed than she has been in the last three hours cramped up in the underwater pod.

“Next time give a troll a warning alright,” he lightly scolded her before looking up at the heart structure and now that he is closer to it, he can see that there are different sized stereos within the rocks. He marvels at the architect before looking right in the middle below the heart, there was a stand.

He uses his hair to reach one of the rocks that supported the heart and made his way up. He continued to climb up until he finally was under the glowing heart. Branch looked out and saw that he may have come in from the side as a large neon-colored bridge formed an opening.

“This must be where parties are held,” he theorized, since the entire set up just looked very similar to the ones at the village, except this one is underwater.

“Oh yeah, our parties are pretty wild!” A voice happily stated.

“AH!” Branch swung off the rock structure and hid behind the pillar to shield himself from the unknown entity.

“Oh, seashells! I am so, so sorry about that!” She, Branch assumes, cried out in panic. “I did not mean to startle you like that. It’s just that I was looking for Barnaby, my wee baby octopus, since the silly goober just loves to explore. Then I saw you here and I was very curious cause you looked very different, I mean you don’t have a tail! Wait, was that offensive? It probably was, I am so sorry once more! And well here we are and now I’m just raving like a mad stingray who is fighting with a raging jellyfish!” Silence filled the air as she took a few breaths before continuing. “And now I just realize that I haven’t even introduced myself. Hi, my name is Bliss Marina it’s nice to meet you, what’s your name?”

Branch had no idea what to do. He knows he should go out there and introduce himself, but he can’t. He knows that he has to talk to the troll, but he just can’t. He is utterly petrified and his legs can’t move.

He can’t move.

“Wha-hey! Whoa, um can you please stop that?” Then she started to talk to something else. “Whoa there, wait what are you? You look so cute! Almost like a glowing guppy!”

‘Glowing-! Gear!’ Branch almost forgot about her, he then moved to face his friend and the Techno troll. Or what he assumed was the Techno troll. She was a bright pink with the most vibrant magenta color hair he has ever seen, and that says a lot coming from where he grew up in. He then saw that she had no feet, instead, it was replaced with an equally bright pink tail that is decorated with blue and yellow dots along the bottom. It matched her arms as it was raised in a calming motion against a furious Gear, who was buzzing furiously against her face.

“Gear, i’m okay! You can stop that.” Gear then noticed that her friend was okay, she was about to throw down against the pink menace when she saw her partner hiding from her. She then fluttered around him to make sure he was okay.

“Yeah, i’m fine. No need to worry,” He scooped her up then stiffens as Marina pink eyes meet with his gray eyes. He tightens his cloak around his body.

“Oh. My. Oceans. You are different!” She squeals and her pink and blue gills fluttered at the same time. Now that he got a better look at her he saw that her body didn’t touch the ground, in fact, she was seemingly floating in the air as she zipped around him almost teleporting from one place to another. Branch stiffened and took a step back, his back now touching the pillar and his hair slithering out of the hood just in case he needed a quick escape.

Unfortunately for him, Bliss took notice and stilled her movements. “Wait, wait don’t go! Sorry, sorry! I just sometimes get so excited at times and well you are something new Mr. Troll!”

“...Branch,” He said quietly after finding his voice.

“Can you repeat that please? I didn’t quite catch that,” She asked politely.

“My name is Branch, it’s nice to meet you too,” Branch took a slow breath and took a step towards her.

“Branch, nice name. And such a nice voice as well!” She happily smiled at the unknown troll, she felt really bad for scaring him. She didn’t mean to frighten him but she was just so curious, though her brother always did say that staring at people without them knowing did frighten them when they finally noticed her. Though she has a blast when she does it to her brother, he just never learns. “Sooo, who are you?”

“I’m-,” Gear settled onto his shoulder in support, he pushed forward “i’m a Pop troll, from above the water.”

“Above the water! Amazing! Many trolls have been above the waters and they never went farther than the shores because of the dangerous predators that rest farther within. Are you telling me that there are more trolls outside of the ocean!?” She completely ignored Branch's mention of being an entirely different species, she was more invested in trolls surviving and living on land. There were so many dangerous creatures above the waters after all.

“Yeah...ocean?” Branch raised his eyebrow at the strange word.

“You know the water that surrounds us? This is an ocean, are you telling me that this is your first time seeing an ocean! Is there no ocean where you're from?” She questioned, she simply can’t imagine a life where there is no ocean. Bliss couldn’t even think of anywhere without water.

“Not really, we have these small bodies of water called lakes.” Branch takes a look around the bubble. “It’s almost the size of this bubble.”

“Wow,” Her body slumped forward in amazement, he then saw that right smack in the middle of her body was a glowing pink heart. “Only the size of an air bubble, that is unbelievable.” She then turns to see Gear, who was still glaring at her. “Who is that then?”

Branch lightly scratched Gear in an attempt to calm his friend down. “This is Gear, she is a firefly.”

“Coool, what’s a firefly?”

“A firefly is an insect that can light up in the dark and be used to send letters to other trolls.” He calmly explained to her, he slowly calmed down with each minute that passes. At first, he assumed he was talking to an underwater version of Poppy, he thought she would invade his space without permission, but even when she was flying around him she had never gone too close to him. He appreciated it.

“Ooh, sounds like a dragonfly and a glofish meshed together. Dragonflies help transport our letters and glofish lights up and can make for vibing strobes lights!” The mermaid-like troll cheerily smiles, she was glad that he wasn’t as scared of her now. “She’s very protective of you, she was as feisty as a tangler fish, she was ready to fight me when she thought I was trying to harm you.”

He smiled at his friend, who puffed up in pride. “Yeah, she is.”

“She is almost as cool as- Barnaby!” She shot up and started to frantically look around. “Barnaby, I was looking for Barnaby! Have you seen him?!” She faces Branch once more. “He is neon yellow with eight cute little arms and the most soulful orange eyes! I was looking for him all day!”

Branch thought back and remembered a creature of that same resemblance entering the bubble. “Yeah, I think I saw him entering the bubble before I did.”

Her eyes lighten in glee. “You have! Can you show me where?!” She then began to follow Branch to where he last saw her bundle of gooey laffy taffy.

They eventually saw him at the floor below the rock structure they were on, Branch using his hair once more to swing down to get off of the structure safely.

“Oh Barnaby, don’t you ever scare me like that again! I couldn’t find you anywhere near the caverns, next time tell me if you go exploring so that I can join.” She started to squeeze the tiny creature close to her. Then she swirls around to face Branch. “This is Barnaby, my wonderful octopus, Barnaby this is Branch and his amazing partner Gear.”

Barnaby looked at the two strange creatures in front of him and slowly raised an arm in ‘hello’. Gear flew up and in front of the strange creature and buzzed back in reply.

“Aww, look at that, they're already becoming friends.” She smiled down to watch the two interact with one another.

Branch continued to watch as well, he was glad that she was making friends. She never quite got along with the other trolls at the village, apparently she was a bit too headstrong for them, or what he had heard when he listened to some of the trolls gossiping.

“Speaking of friends, you should definitely meet my brother!”

Branch's small smile vanishes as he stiffens once more, but forces his body to relax again as he knows that she’s not trying to trap him and only trying to be friendly. “I don’t know, i’m not the best at...socializing.” This conversation alone was barely one of his better ones, he hasn’t screamed at her...yet.

“Don’t worry he is great at socializing. I mean he has to do it all the time.” She floated a few feet above as she flew her hands above her head to emphasize herself.

“Well I don’t know- I mean-,” Branch stumbled on his words. Usually, he would just say no and move on, but he needs to make a good impression and right now it’s not working out so well for him.

‘And besides, it’s not like she did anything wrong.’ He thought as she continued to gush about her brother.

“I mean he even djs the most flippin parties of all times!! And! And!” She freezes as she was cut off as a dark blue hand covers her mouth. Branch did the same as well.

“You have got to stop this Blissy,” the voice chuckles as Branch's eyes slowly follow up the blue hand and past the rainbow-colored arm. “I think everyone from this reef and back knows how vibin these parties are without your play by play.” His eyes then saw an equally blue body with a pink, blue and indigo tail and then his eyes met electric blue eyes. The same ones that were looking right back at him curiously.

“Well, this is new,” The blue troll tilted his head to get a better look at the cloaked troll, but Branch took a step back. “Whoa, my bad didn’t mean to startle you. it's just that, well-” Bliss cut him off.

“This is Branch, don’t worry he’s chill,” She scooped up Barnaby “He even helped me find Barnaby and I was searching for hours!”

“Is that so?” The brother then smiled at Branch, “Well if you're cool with my sis, then you're definitely alright by me. Welcome to Techno Reff, the name is Trollex Marina or King Trollex as some of my peeps like to call me. Now, who are you? Cause as far as I can tell, I don’t think you are a Tech troll.” The King chuckled warmly, he has a feeling this was the beginning of something interesting.

It was then that Branch realized that he was not only in front of the King of the Techno troll but also the princess, Bliss Marina, the same troll who he was a giant mess around.

Great

—————

That concludes it! Next chapter we will finally dive deep into the Techno trolls and all the world-building!

If anyone doesn’t mind I would love to hear how you feel towards certain music and just what songs do you think would mesh well with this story. If it clicks then I will put it in!

Peace!!

[returningwriter]

Suiting Up for Her

Part 1: By Her Side Part 2: At Her Place Part 3: At Her Work Part 4: There For Her

Kara puts on a special suit for Lena p.s. I have no idea why I wrote this!

Kara studied herself in the full-length mirror. This felt good, strange but also very good. Despite what people thought, mostly Alex and her friends, she wasn’t as oblivious as they all probably thought she was when it came to women. In fact, she had noticed and remembered quite well how Lena had looked at her that day the CEO had marched into the CatCo offices with an armful of red roses to stake her claim. And since she'd deduced that Lena liked seeing her in a man’s shirt and a jacket it was only fair that she'd indulge her girlfriend’s desire in that regard further. Thus, calling in a favor or two, she’d ordered a new suit to be tailored for her. Not a super-suit, but a real suit.

Buttoning up the blue waistcoat of her newly acquired three-piece suit she grinned at her reflection. It was of the same blue color as her Supergirl suit in fact and that was by design. Lena would love this and hopefully be suitably shocked. Fixing the red tie which she’d picked out because matched the color of her cape, she adjusted the knot. When it had come to tying the actual knot, YouTube had been a big help and she decided that she might write an article about it later.

Taking her hair and pulling it up into a tight bun, she then fixed the golden cufflinks that adorned her pressed white shirt. With her hair done up and cufflinks ermm cufflinked she looked at herself from the front and the side smoothing the shirt and vest down over her breasts. The pulled-up hairstyle looked good she decided and putting on her thin-framed glasses she took a deep breath. What she was planning to do would be a first for her, and she didn’t want to mess it up.

“Miss Luthor, I’m here to pick you up for our date,” she said, practicing sounding more like Supergirl while being Kara Danvers.

“Hi, I’m here to take you out,” she said, testing out another version of the line, and tried making her voice a little bit deeper.

“Lena, would you come with me please?” she asked in an even deeper voice but then broke down into giggles.

Shaking her head, she pulled on the dark blue jacket that completed the look and buttoned one of the buttons before deciding against it. Leaving the jacket open, she carefully folded up the matching red pocket square and stuffed it into the breast pocket of the jacket. After a bit of a fight with the crimson piece of silk, she finally got it the way the YouTube tutorial had said it should be.

“No big deal, picking up Lena in a suit that’s all,” she reminded herself and sat down on the bed. A bed she’d shared with the green-eyed genius on three occasions already and the sheets still smelled of Lena’s perfume and other aromas. Blushing at the thoughts the smells aroused she cursed her stupid super senses.

Pulling on a pair of dark brown shoes over her red socks, she laced them up tightly and began giving them a good polish because she wanted to look her very best for Lena today. The raven-haired CEO had been so good to her over the past few weeks and even though they were Facebook-Official now, which had freaked Alex out, she felt like she owed the woman a grand gesture.

Finishing polishing up the shoes she grinned at the memory of Alex showing up at her apartment the morning after she and Lena had made things official. In Alex’s defense, her sister couldn’t possibly have known that Lena would be standing in the kitchen in only an old worn and stretched out Midvale High t-shirt and with one sock on and to Lena’s credit she wasn’t fazed at all when Alex had pulled a gun on her. Speaking of stretched out t-shirts. Oh yeah she loved that her girlfriend was busty!

Her calling from the bedroom for the raven-haired beauty to get her fine behind back into bed because she wanted seconds. That had in Alex’s words scarred her for life and no amount of good whiskey, graciously provided by Lena, could erase that memory from her sister’s mind.

“I can do this, I’m Supergirl, I can do this,” she said to herself in the mirror and adjusting her belt she grabbed the car keys from the nightstand.

The car she'd be driving was J’onn’s car, which she managed to fast-talk her space-dad into letting her borrow for today. Since she couldn’t very well fly and carry Lena while wearing a three-piece suit. Picking up a single red-rose, picked from a garden in France and carefully flown across the Atlantic, she checked herself in the mirror one more time. Satisfied that she was sufficiently suited-up, she drove to L-Corp with butterflies in her stomach.

Parking outside the L-Corp building she fixed her glasses in the rearview mirror and steadied herself one last time. Time to be bold Danvers, time to be bolder than you’ve ever been in your life! She thought to herself and got out of the car drawing the attention of a few passers-by.

The elevator ride felt like it took forever but the secretary smiled at her and waved her inside. When she stepped into Lena’s office, the mind-numbingly pretty CEO was hard at work, with her hair up in a messy late afternoon bun and those stunning emerald eyes focused squarely on her laptop. Holding out the rose she cleared her throat and pushed her glasses up on her nose before she spoke.

“Come here often?” she asked and instantly wondered to herself why that was the first thing to come out of her mouth.

“I think you could say I live…” Lena replied with a smile, but the words died on those red lips when the pale-skinned and raven-haired beauty looked up at her. “...here,” the stunned CEO finished.

“Well I think…” she started off sounding too much like Kara Danvers but then she stopped herself and tried again.

“Good thing I'm here then, I’m here to take you out to dinner,” she declared while sounding as firm and in command as she could muster under Lena’s piercing green-eyed gaze as she held out the red rose trying not to shake.

Lena in response, looked her up and down like she was a snack. The woman’s green eyes were appreciative of the blue suit she could tell but that unyielding gaze made her stand up straighter. Come to think of it, probably the only thing straight in that office right then and there was her posture.

“Is that so?” Lena asked playfully and pushed herself back from her desk.

With the CEO of her heart uncrossing her smooth legs, she could see that the woman, she'd somehow lucked into dating, was wearing a form-hugging black pencil skirt with a white blouse open at the collar and a matching black vest.

“Yes, and no ifs or buts about it,” she replied but struggled not to grin and then not to drool at what Lena did next.

“Feeling forceful this afternoon, are we?” the raven-haired CEO asked while undoing the messy bun holding her hair up and shaking all that lustrous, soft, and dark hair free.

“Yes, now close that laptop and get into my car already,” she playfully ordered the green-eyed genius. Who responded by sauntering up to her and plucking the rose from her hand.

“Or what? You’ll pick me up and carry me over your shoulder downstairs past all my employees like I've been a bad girl?” Lena teased her back and put one hand on her arm while raising her eyebrow suggestively.

“Don’t tempt me,” she countered the woman's teasing and flexed her bicep under that gentle touch. This was too much fun but it was also making her feel hot under the collar. Oh and she finally got what that saying meant!

“What if I like tempting you?” the green-eyed temptress asked innocently and brought the ruby red rose up to her cute nose for added effect.

“Then I’d say be careful, or you'll get what's coming to you,” she replied, purposefully lowering her voice an octave and letting her hands fall on those shapely hips.

“Oh darling, we both know that you...” Lena started teasing her again but she had no intention of allowing the brilliant and beautiful woman to finish what she'd started saying.

Leaning down she captured those wonderfully red lips in mid-sentence and thoroughly kissed the girl of her dreams while pulling her in closer. The rose dropped to the floor and she could feel those pale hands pawing at the front of her suit and then with a content sigh, Lena let her win. Running her fingers through all that soft dark hair she growled and Lena whimpered into the kiss. Pulling away only when the raven-haired beauty had been kissed to within an inch of her life and was left sufficiently breathless, she flashed her own version of a cocky grin.

“As I said, we’re going out. So close that laptop and get in my car... now,” she repeated herself and the reaction from Lena fried what few functioning brain-cells she might have had left in her head after that kiss.

“As you wish, daddy,” the green-eyed goddess replied demurely and breathlessly as she batted those long and dark eyelashes up at her.

Lena glided back over to her desk with a sway to her hips that was hard to ignore. She closed the lid on her laptop while making damn sure to bend over suggestively as she did so. Then turning back around the stunning woman walked back up to her with that same hypnotizing wiggle to her snake-like hips and fixed her tie with those soft and pale fingers while humming. Finally, the CEO of her heart adjusted her glasses and wiped away the smudges of red lipstick from the corners of her mouth before flashing her a smirk.

“I love the suit by the way,” her girl purred and brushed her hands down the front of the blue waistcoat then pulling away right before her fingertips reached the belt.

“I thought you might like it,” she replied, now feeling very cocky and offered Lena her arm which the still grinning woman took with an uncharacteristic giggle. She had no illusions about this, however, Lena would always be the boss, but being in charge every now and again felt nice too.