#which is why I spent 40 minutes writing it up

[ghostoffuturespast]

Works In Progress 2023: A Cyberpunk 2077 Year In Review

I thought for a hot minute about doing one of those snazzy templates that’s been going around, but editing photos just ain’t my MO and rather than going by month I picked 12 favs that I’ve posted in 2023. Some of them were popular, some of them weren't. Overall, I think I did pretty good for just doing vanilla photomode on console.

You might be wondering why there's a picture of a sticky note. I don't remember when I started doing this, and I'm horribly inconsistent as you can see by the dates, but I'll jot down my word count for my wip chapter and then jot it down again when I remember to later.

I write slow. A lot of times I sit down to write and it feels like the wheels are spinning in place. My minutes and hours don't stretch very far, typically don't add up to much. But days, weeks, months. That's when I can at least measure the progress.

Fic: So It Goes 40/44 - 438,946 words

My V x River Ward and tinfoil hat conspiracy theory long fic. I've spent way more hours on this then I have on any of my VP.

I got tagged by @just-a-cybercroissant @therealnightcity and @wanderingaldecaldo to do some WIP Whenevers. I post my VP pretty regularly, so it’s always seemed silly to do work in progress posts for them, and I don’t know when I’ll have any new writing to share since in between work and the holidays, I haven’t had much time to sit down with anything since my last chapter update. And I've been feeling very... stingy, lately. Especially when it comes to mine and other people's writing. So take this WIP/Year In Review as my offering. Both these series, as am I, are all very much still works in progress. 

I confined my reflections for this year below the cut. If you don’t want to read my long-ass essays, you can admire the pictures, maybe check out my fic, or just move along and have yourself a lovely day.

We’ll start with the easy one.

VP

After at least a year of multiple playthroughs (I’ve played all the lifepaths, done all the endings), it only occurred to me at the beginning of this year to start taking VP. Part of the reason I never did before was because I didn’t realize it was a thing and then by the time I did, I figured I didn’t have much to offer. I play on PS5 and only have access to vanilla photomode, so seeing everyone else’s high-fidelity, ultra ray-tracing, modded, posed, full on virtual photo shoot photos, I was like there’s no way. (Not that I’m hating on PC modders, it’s just not everyone has access to mods or a PC capable of running the game, and I’m all for making art and creative endeavors accessible.) On top of that, all I’d ever heard from most other folks was how much vanilla photomode sucked. In the glamorous world of VP, I didn’t think there was any room for me.

But I started snapping pics anyway. And sure, there are a lot of limitations with vanilla photomode. But what that really translates to is opportunities to get creative. I am also a hoe for subverting people’s expectations, and very much believe when there’s a will, there’s a way.

Environmental and landscape shots were my first subjects before I started branching out into portraits and then capturing story moments. Through VP I found an entirely new way to enjoy a game that I’d already played a ridiculous number of times along with also finally being brave enough to share my V with other people too. I’d always worried about that before, if people would like her. Granted, I know Grandpa’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but whether you like her or not, I certainly think she’s made a name for herself over the past few months. Even if most people haven’t really gotten to know her the way I’d hoped. 

I’ve taken hundreds of photos this past year. Most of which I’ll never share. There’s a lot of flops, a lot of weird experiments, ones that didn’t quite turn out the way I’d hoped, but I’ve learned something from every single one of them. I know how to spot good lighting, frame shots to create optical illusions, get a very limited toolkit to work in my favor, parkoured on all of the things, and heck, I even figured out how to make Grandpa smooch other NPCs. I’ve done atmospheric, mundane, down right goofy, as well as things that most people probably thought weren’t fucking possible.

I can’t say how long I’ll keep doing this, I’m sure I’ll move on at some point, but for now I’m still enjoying myself. There's a lot to explore in this game and I just can’t stop digging Night City.

Now, for the more complicated thing.

Writing

So It Goes… My peace, my war, my greedy and most ravenous of ghosts.

I’m operating under the assumption that most people following me here probably haven't read my fic or aren’t all that interested in reading it to begin with. It’s fine. But you need to understand this fic, my writing, is the main thing that brought me here. This is also Grandpa V’s story. Most of you have met her, but unless you've been reading, most of you do not know her.

I wrote around 185,000 words and posted 10 chapters this year. 2022 was about 253,000 words and 30 chapters, along with several unrelated one shots. However, I don’t think I’ve done a single chapter this year that was less then 10k, and my longest managed to hit 27k. As of the last update I posted, the fic is currently sitting at around 439k words, 40 chapters, and still isn’t done.

I have four more chapters to write. I have written a metric shit ton of words. This is, by far, the longest and most intense creative project I’ve ever endeavored to complete.

When I started writing, I was expecting this fic to be around 100-150k. That seemed to be the average for most long fics. I did not plan on being an outlier. I'm not sure you can ever really plan for that, but I guess I enjoy subverting my own expectations too.

For those of you who are reading my fic, it is my sincerest hope that it shatters every expectation of where you think it’s going. It’s not a joke that I tagged my fic “#an ode to my tinfoil hat”. An ode it has turned out to be. I’ve been sitting on this theory for two years. I have told no one about it. I hope it sticks the landing and hits the way I want it to. I don't know if it will. But fuck, I just want to be done with it so I can move on with my life, take a break, and give myself the opportunity to make and focus on other things before I have to get back on the damn horse.

I wrote less this past year then I did in 2022. I had a lot of life changes, most of which were good, but with times of change come times of adjustment. Along with some realizations that maybe you don’t understand as much as you thought you did. Looking back, I’ve been in a state of unsettled, kuzushi, for a really long time. Which is not a good place to be. It’s how your ass ends up on the ground with a knee knocking out all your teeth. I thought I knew better. Thought I had enough practice to get away from it. But bad habits have good memories.

I think given the circumstances, I accomplished a lot with my writing this year. I don’t know if my writing is exactly where I want it to be. I doubt it every will be, but it’s evolved, grown, and I wrote a pretty hefty stack of words considering I started working full-time again, bought a house with my partner, moved, and have been dealing with the millions of other beans that life tends to throw one’s way. That being said, and for full disclosure, I’ve also been dealing with some of the worst cases of jealousy and envy I’ve had since I was a teenager. 

Frankly, it sucks. They walk with me every fucking where I go, hold my hands to whisper back all my doubts. Try to persuade me to my baser instincts, to be cruel and lash out. But that's not aikido. Luckily, I’m not 16 anymore so it’s at least been easier for me to identify the problem. Though I’m still coming up short in terms of actually being able to do anything about it, and will be for at least a few months more. 

Yeah, I keep talking about it because I don’t know how many people know that I've been feeling this way. And I’m tired of not talking about it in a room full of creatives, because yeah, I know I’m not the only one that feels this way. And not talking about it just makes all that pent up resentment worse for everyone.

Don’t get me wrong, I love writing. But with the way I work and think, it’s a slow, tedious, and incredibly time-consuming art. With how much my fic has snowballed over the course of writing, it’s left very little room for the other hobbies in my life. And as my fellow writers probably already know, writing is an incredibly insular craft. And unlike a picture or an image, which only requires a glance, reading a bunch of words requires time and commitment.

So, when you put yourself out there and share what you wrote, it’s a lonely feeling not knowing whether or not anyone connected with what you put on the page. Especially, when the people who do read aren’t compelled to voice anything and when the people you’d hope would read don’t. And then you're stuck in the dark, not knowing, because neither of us says a goddamn thing.

I started writing this fic prior to actually joining the CP2077 fandom. And I joined the fandom because I felt alone. I’ve been here a while now, albeit in a few different places, and that feeling still hasn’t gone away. I’m still trying to find camaraderie with my fellow writers and carve out something that kinda sort of resembles a home or a sense of community. I watch my peers around me as they seem to build that with each other, except me.

I’m envious of the things that people make and jealous of the relationships those have created and fostered between said people, because for the life of me, it’s been a struggle to cultivate that since I got here. I know it’s selfish, but I also don’t know what about me makes people so hesitant. There have been a handful of strangers that have shown up for me regularly, but as far as people I call friends in this fandom that have shown up and actually stuck around, I can only name one right now. (I know we're all busy. And I acknowledge my writing's not for everyone. I know maybe some of you are quiet, or shy, or probably a thousand other things. I get it. But that doesn't mean it doesn't hurt any less. People will never know unless you say. Never know unless you take the time to interact or engage. Be brave. And that's true for a lot of things.)

The propensity is for the negative to outweigh the positive. I've got a lot of numbers on my fic, so you would think things would be fine, but at this point they just feel empty. They don't bring me any comfort or real satisfaction. And I hate feeling like the people I know don’t care and that most of you are just talking around me. That I’m some kind of annoyance not fit to interact with. Which may or may not be the case. I don’t know. Again, most of you have never said anything. And maybe I need to accept the fact that most of you never will.

But this is me trying to start conversation.

It’s really shitty, knowing that the thing I want the most is also the thing holding me back. I know how to work on it too, not that it’s any guarantee. The problem is I’m still writing and in a needy state of greed. And because I’m slow, I don’t have the time or the energy to be generous. I can only take right now. I can’t give. 

Relationships require both.

I can’t bring myself to read other people’s writing. I can’t comment, or like, or share if I haven’t read anything. I'm desperate for conversation, but I also don't have the time or assurance to facilitate it with other people right now. And for some reason people never seem to want to talk to me, especially when it comes to writing. I want to be part of conversations, talk deeply with other people. But I can’t speak right now, I'm not in a place to offer generosity without someone first giving it to me.

And generosity and grace is what we all need.

Four more chapters and I hope my ghosts will finally let me read in peace.

[clementine-writes-things]

Cara Mia - E.N

(This is about Paul Dano's Riddler, welcome Dano stans, welcome to my sinful blog and prepare for filthy and in-depth writing <3 if you're new here, all you need to know is that we LOVE including music in our fanfics and we LOVE realistic/detailed writing <3 you'll see what I mean and you'll love it sweetie)

Summary: Y/n and Edward were old friends who grew up in the same orphanage together. Not liking the person he is becoming, she tries to get him to find other ways to defend Gotham's civilians. Strangely, she succeeds in this. But, Edward still wants to show them how confident he has gotten since they last saw each other. (crappy summary, just read this post lol.)

Word count (everything below cut): 14,462 (GUYS WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED I THINK I WENT INTO A TRANCE WRITING THIS THING?! WHY IS IT 5 YEARS LONG!? PLEASE DON'T LET THIS FLOP I'LL MOVE TO ANTARTICA IF IT DOES I WORKED SO HARD ON THIS!!!)

Content Warning: AFAB!Reader, she/they pronouns (using mostly she for easier narrative purposes but Edward refers to y/n as they), non-binary reader, queer reader, mentions of homophobia, body dysmorphia, gender dysmorphia, transphobia, explicit language, panic attack, mentions of cigarettes, slowburn smut, penetration, mocking during sex, degrading/humiliation, praising, power play, ROUGH sex, slapping, dom!Edward, obsessed!Edward, sub!Reader, threats of violence directed towards y/n, angst, mentions of gore and murder, y/n is an artist in this <3, breaking in (ed breaks in to y/n's apartment), ed gets angry a lot, aftercare.

Songs for Inspo: (highly recommend you listen while reading (not in any particular order tbh)) bro i spent like 30 minutes finding the PERFECT songs that gave off the vibes I wanted Edward to have in this fic...pls appreciate D:

Aleph - Gesaffelstein

Anarchy - KMFDM

Something In The Way - Nirvana (not bc it was in the movie, it's just so aesthetically pleasing for this type of fic)

THIRST FOR ME! - Lumi Athena

YOU'RE TOO SLOW (Bonus) - Odetari

all I want is you - Rebzyyx, hoshie star

NALGOTICA! - Lumi Athena

Daydream In Blue - I Monster

MONTAGEM - PR FUNK - S3BZS

Lacrimosa - Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Y/n's songs:

mos thoser - food house

Ride - Sir-Mix-A-Lot

ecstasy (slowed) - SUICIDAL-IDOL

~*Read Below Cut*~

"Uh, yeah may I have an iced coffee please? With almond milk please."

The customer handed over a 10 dollar bill. Y/n smiled from behind the counter, nodding her head. She entered the purchase and gave the customer their change. Y/n's hair was put back in a ponytail that stuck out of her work visor. Going to grab a cup, she stopped, laughing softly. Turning to the customer, she tilted her head.

"Sorry, Ms. Andrews, what size did you want? I know you usually get a grande, but I just want to make sure." She asked politely.

The older woman, near her mid 40's chuckled. She swatted her slender hand at y/n playfully. Her nails were painted a bright pink with white polka dots, a suggestion from y/n herself. Earlier last week Ms. Andrews had asked for an idea of what to paint her nails. Y/n told her to go big and bold, have some fun! And, that's exactly what she did.

"Oh, y/n you are so kind. A grande is fine as always." She smiled.

Y/n nodded, grabbing the clear cup and scooping some ice into it. The woman placed a 5 dollar bill in the tip jar, which caused y/n to grin dorkily. It was only her working tonight, so she really appreciated the gratuity. Especially coming from one of her favorite customers.

"So, almond milk? What happened to oat? Are you trying something different?" She asked, making light conversation as she made the drink.

"Oh, nothing like that. I really love oatmilk in my coffee, but I find that it upsets my stomach. It's a shame really."

"Aw, well almond milk is a good choice!" Y/n replied cheerfully.

Placing the drink down, the woman smiled at her. Yawning, she covered her mouth with her hand. Y/n chuckled at the sight, wiping down the counter once Ms. Andrews took her drink. The smell of the cleaner filled the air, mixing with strong coffee beans and fruity mixtures. It was pungent, but the ceiling fan helped distribute it and filter it out.

"Get home safe, y/n. Gotham isn't safe for anyone, let alone a sweet person like you." The woman warned.

Y/n nodded at Ms. Andrews. Focusing back down to the counter, she waved good bye to the woman, watching out of the corner of her eye as she left the shop. Sighing, y/n rubbed a bead of sweat off of her forehead. She groaned, looking up at the clock. It was 11:55 p.m. Her shift ended in 5 minutes, and everything was all clean except for the utensils she just used. Getting right to work, she began to clean the dishes, zoning out as she did so. Thoughts of her childhood raced through her head, causing her to feel somber. It wasn't much of a childhood, growing up in an orphanage. But, she did have one friend.

~

"Eddie, I don't know the answer! Give me Sir Clawdius back!" Y/n groaned.

Edward, being taller than her by a few inches already, stood on top of a bucket. In his hands was y/n's teddy bear, well, the orphanage's teddy bear. Y/n decorated it however, giving it a makeshift crown made out of pipe cleaners, glue, and those colorful puffy cotton balls. Sticking his tongue out, he blew a raspberry at y/n.

"Nah uh! You gotta answer the riddle!" He explained.

"Ugh, fine! What was it again?" She asked, crossing her arms over her chest in a pout.

The two of them, being 11 years old at the time, looked like bickering 5 year olds. Edward had met y/n in the orphanage when they were 7, and they quickly became close friends. Y/n was always the hyper one who got into trouble easily, and Edward was the one who tried to help her wiggle her way out of it. He was definitely the smarter one out of the duo.

"What do you call a bear with no teeth?" He asked, waving the bear in the air.

"Be careful with him, he's a delicate soul!" She whined.

He chuckled awkwardly, holding it still above his head. Y/n looked at the ground, thinking hard about the riddle. She knew that it wasn't that hard, but she always had a difficult time with riddles. Perhaps, it was just because she was under pressure. Her eyes widened, snapping her fingers and bouncing up and down lightly.

"A gummy bear!" She giggled.

Jumping down, Edward handed her Sir Clawdius. Smiling, she grabbed the bear and held it close to her chest. Edward gave her a thumbs up, a big grin on his face.

"Hey, you're getting better, sketcher!" He cheered.

Y/n giggled when he called her that. The nickname was stupid, not making any sense to anyone else but them. The shoes that she wore all the time were sketchers, and she loved to draw. So, Edward, being a genius, came up with that intelligent nickname. The two of them both agreed it wasn't the most clever, but they both liked it either way. So, it stuck.

"Well, you give me lots of opportunities to improve, Riddles." She chuckled.

~

The dishes were all dry and put away as she finished thinking about her old friend. She still had a hard time believing that the little boy he once was was now planning the demise of Gotham. It was definitely jarring, and it was obvious that it was him. She knew Edward well, no one ever loved riddles as much as he did. If someone did, then that would be the day that pigs flew.

"Time to lock up..." She sighed.

Grabbing her tote bag, she hung it on her shoulder. She turned all of the lights off and made sure everything was put away and turned off. Once she was done, she grabbed the lanyard attached to her pants and locked the backdoor. She set the alarm for the building and quickly made her way out, locking the front door behind her. Shivering, she started to walk down the street, lucky that she only lived a block away. Snow fell down from the sky, landing on her eyelashes, disappearing once she blinked them away.

"Fucking shit it's cold out here." She mumbled to herself, rubbing her hands together.

She sped up her walking pace, ignoring how much her feet hurt from standing behind the counter all night. Not only did she want to get out of the bone-chilling cold, but she also wanted to get out of the streets of Gotham at night. Especially so close to the Narrows. No part of Gotham was safe, but the closer to the Narrows you got, the more dangerous it became. Y/n's mouth stretched out, forming an 'O' as she yawned harshly. Tears formed in the corner of her eyes, blinking them away rapidly.

"God, I'm fucking tired. Thankfully, it's Friday! This bitch doesn't work weekends for a reason." She quietly cheered.

Turning the corner, she sighed in relief when her apartment building came into view. Speeding up even more, she went inside of it, feeling like someone was watching her as she did so. Shrugging it off, she made her way up the stairs until she reached the floor she resided on. Reaching her door, she unlocked it and stepped inside, closing and locking it behind her. Standing still for a few moments, she dropped her tote bag on the table next to the door. She was too lazy to put it anywhere else. Groaning, she walked into her bedroom, stripping herself of her work clothes immediately. She made quick work of getting a pair of sweatpants and a hoodie on, humming to herself when the warmth of the fabric embraced her body. Not feeling fully 'swaddled', y/n slid on a pair of fluffy socks as well. She felt like a sheep who desperately needed it's wool to be shaved off. And, after walking in that cold, she was totally ok with that feeling.

'bing!'

Y/n grabbed her phone off of her bed, tossing it there when she was changing. Turning it on, the light illuminated her face as she read the notification. She pinched the bridge of her nose, groaning as she did so. Pushing the notification, she entered her pin number and grumbled to herself as a livestream opened.

"Hello, my loyal followers! Apologies, for such a late livestream..." Edward announced.

Y/n rolled her eyes, immediately typing in chat. She did not watch his livestreams because she believed in what he was doing. Well, she agreed with his thoughts, that corruption was taking over Gotham and that a change needed to be made. But, it was how exactly he was doing it that she didn't agree with. Plotting murders, wanting to blow up the sea walls, seeking attention from The Batman. He had not done any of these things yet, thankfully. But, just the fact that he had been planning and discussing it was disturbing to her. It was insane. Her fingers typed away, almost as if they knew what they needed to do without her brain telling them. However, she knew what would happen if she sent the message. But, she needed to. She wanted to get through to him.

'Riddles, you've got to stop this. You're taking this too far. There are better ways in which you can advocate for Gotham. And you know it. Seeing you like this breaks my heart. It's getting hard to watch these livestreams. - Sketcher.'

Edward, who was in the middle of talking, fell silent almost immediately. Y/n saw his eyes dart around behind his glasses, reading the message. He panted slightly, shaking his head vigorously. Scoffing, y/n shook her head as well, knowing what was about to happen.

"You don't understand! This is the ONLY way! We experienced this cities torment first hand! THIS IS THE ONLY WAY! Why don't you trust me, Sketch? Hm? All of my noble followers trust me. They KNOWWWW I can bring JUSTICE for them!" He shouted, his voice frantic and borderline desperate.

'God, someone find that buzzkill and kill them already...'

Edward's eyes widened as he read that chat. Y/n chuckled lightly, placing her phone on her bed, preparing for the tantrum that was about to ensue. Grabbing a hairbrush off her nightstand, she started to brush her hair, listening to her old friend scream.

"If you do that, I WILL know. And I WILL FIND YOU AND GUT YOU LIKE A FISH! I WILL FLAAAAY YOUR BODY AND SHOVE YOUR PEELED SKIN DOWN YOUR THROAT!" He shouted, his voice peaking in the livestream.

For the past few weeks, y/n had been watching his live streams. Every time he had one, she would leave a message, and he became obsessed with proving himself to her. In his mind, y/n was the one person who didn't believe in him. She was the one person he really needed validation from. Y/n sighed, placing the brush down. Quickly, she typed a response and hit send. Edward's eyes immediately scanned it, ignoring everyone else in the chat. His priority was y/n. He read the message out loud quietly.

"I'm going to bed now, it's been a long day. I'm starting to give up on you. You're not the same person you we- WHAT?!?! IS ANOTHER DAY IN YOUR BORING BLAND LIFE TOO DIFFICULT FOR YOU? I AM THE SAME PERSON I HAVE ALWAYS BEEN! THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS I HAVE FOUND MY PURPOSE!!!!!" He screamed once again, causing y/n to laugh.

Even though this was sad for her to witness, it was amusing to see him throw his tantrums. Steam was practically blowing out of his ears. If y/n was anyone else, she would be scared to death right now. But, she was y/n. She was Sketcher. And, even though Edward had changed a lot over the years, one thing would always remain the same. He would never hurt her. Y/n knew that Edward knew where she lived, and he has never once tried to go to her house. Though, y/n did worry about that every now and then. Not because she was worried he would hurt her, but because she didn't know if she could handle seeing her old friend so different.

"DON'T YOU DARE LEAVE! YOU are my INSPIRATION! My MUSE!" He exclaimed, laughing at the end of his sentence.

She scoffed, exiting the livestream. Once she did this, and Edward noticed, his face fell flat. The chat kept filling up with messages, but he just ignored them. When the chat got too overwhelming, he just ended the livestream without saying anything. He paced his room, back and forth, muttering to himself. Y/n still didn't understand him, even after preaching his cause every time she joined a livestream. He ripped his mask off, tossing it on his bed. His breathing got heavy as he started to hyperventilate. His chest heaved, causing him to stop pacing and sit down. Edward gripped at his hair, tugging lightly. When his breathing slowed down, he put his glasses back on, grabbing them from off of the floor. Sighing deeply, he cleared his throat and stood up.

"I need to see her in person. If I explain it in person, she'll understand. She has to. She has to understand!"

Frustrated, Edward got ready for bed. He was tired, and glad that he didn't have to work tomorrow. His eyes grew heavy as his head hit the pillow, drifting off into sleep as he thought of ways to show y/n that what he was trying to do was a good thing. That it was for her.

Y/n sat up in her bed, arms stretching out slowly as she yawned. A long and exaggerated groan left her throat as she rubbed her eyes, sleep in the corners of them. Looking outside of the window next to her bed, she watched as snow fell down, covering the railing of the fire escape. Y/n held her hand up to her face, breathing into it. She grimaced, displeased with her morning breath. Getting out of her bed, she slid on her slippers which were one of those animal kinds. She found unicorn ones at a store and just had to buy it. However, they seemed bland to her. So, she decided to make two fake cigarettes using some felt and cotton, sewing them to the unicorns mouth on each slipper. Y/n didn't even smoke cigarettes, she just thought it would be funny. And it was. So, mission accomplished.

"Shit, it's getting so cold out lately. It's Spring for fuck sake." She grumbled, going to the kitchen.

Opening her fridge, she scanned over her options. She didn't have much food, as she needed to do some grocery shopping. But, she did have enough to last her a couple more days. Sighing, she grabbed some leftover pizza from the other day and decided that it was the best thing she had for breakfast options. Well, she had other options, she just didn't want to cook anything. She planned on being a lazy shit today, and she was going to do exactly that. Placing the slice of pizza on a plate, she put it in the microwave for 30 seconds. While she waited, she took her daily medication, drinking the pills down with juice because if she used water she could taste the gross medicine. A beeping signaled that the pizza was warmed up.

"I'm so hungry..." She said, stomach growling.

She grabbed the pizza from the microwave, recoiling slightly because it was hotter than she expected. Apparently, 30 seconds was too much time. She would take note of that for future use. As if she had been starved for two weeks straight, y/n ate the pizza hungrily. Sighing, she washed the plate and dried it before putting it away again. Rubbing her eyes once again, she got rid of any remaining sleep that crusted in her eyes.

"Ok, time to relax."

'bing!'

"Oh, you've got to be fucking kidding me..." She mumbled.

Picking up her phone, she walked to the bathroom in her bedroom. She pushed the notification and propped it against her mirror as she grabbed her toothbrush. Edward, well, his persona at least, appeared on screen. His trademark green mask underneath a pair of clear glasses. Y/n shook her head softly, applying toothpaste to her brush before wetting it under the faucet. As Edward said hello to the people joining, y/n started to brush her teeth. Honestly, she had no idea why she joined the livestream. Perhaps it was her naivety that made her think he could change, but she still wanted to believe. Even if it wasn't looking so positive for her.

"Greeting, my loyalists. Your savior is here." He said flamboyantly.

Y/n rolled her eyes, spitting the mixture of water, spit, and toothpaste out of her mouth into the sink. She turned the water on, washing it down the drain. She rinsed her toothbrush off, putting it back where she got it from. Moving her head under the water, she took a small sip, swirling it in her mouth before spitting it out.

"He thinks he's royalty or some shit. It's so fucking annoying." She grumbled, grabbing her mouthwash.

Y/n decided not to text anything in the stream today, not wanting to deal with a tantrum again. She took a swig of the mouthwash, swishing it in her mouth. The strong mint smell and taste filled her senses, causing her eyes to water and mouth to burn slightly. Not able to handle it much longer, she spat it out. She rinsed out the sink once again, drying her hands afterwards. Y/n brought the hand towel up to her face, wiping off excess toothpaste.

"Sketcher. I know you're in here. Why aren't you saying anything?" He asked in a low tone, eyes narrowing behind his glasses.

Y/n brought the towel away from her face, hanging it back up on the hook next to the mirror. She picked up her phone, walking out of the bathroom and turning the light off behind her.

"Are you ignoring me?" His voice was hoarse, a hint of confusion lacing his question.

Y/n groaned, plopping herself down on the couch. She didn't want to listen to him anymore. He was becoming obsessed with her. Though, he had been acting like that since she watched his very first livestream. Part of y/n knew that it was because he wanted to prove himself to her, although she had no idea why. And another part of y/n knew, or at least believed, that Ed missed their friendship. To be fair, she missed their friendship too. It didn't necessarily end, more so evolved into something more. The two of them got an apartment together when they were forced to leave the orphanage after turning 18. It was difficult, but they managed. Living together caused them to share many life-changing moments of each other's lives together. Y/n remembered them so fondly, and she was sure Edward did too. However, one key moment stood out to y/n a lot more than all the other memories.

~ TW: gender dysmorphia, body dysmorphia.~

~

"Y/n, I'm back from work. They kept me late and wouldn't even explain to me why. Just wanted me to work longer, I suppose. But, at least I still got paid!" Edward said, walking in the front door of the apartment and locking it behind him.

He turned around, looking at the living room in the center of their apartment. His eyebrows furrowed as he didn't see y/n. Placing his keys in the bowl on the table next to the door, he hummed to himself. Removing his coat, he hung it up on the rack and removed his shoes.

"Are you in here?" He called out, slightly louder than before.

"Y-Yeah." Y/n responded, faintly.

Edward, who was looking at the door to her room, moved his sight to his door. Y/n's voice came from behind it, which confused him. Walking towards his door, he knocked on it lightly.

"Uh, why are you in my room?" He asked.

"Oh, I thought I lost my ph-phone charger in here. But, it's not in here." She answered.

Edward turned the doorknob, sighing in frustration as it didn't budge. He leaned up against his doorframe, shoulder resting on the surface. Crossing his arms over his chest, he looked down and saw her shadow move in the light that emitted from the gap of the door.

"Why is the door locked?" He asked bluntly.

Y/n didn't answer. Instead they stepped away from the door. Not sure what to do or say, she tried to pick up the mess she had made. Edward knew how to pick locks, thanks to growing up in an orphanage and trying to sneak dessert constantly. He would get inside eventually, and she didn't want him to see anything. Edward grimaced from behind the door, grabbing a bobby pin from his pocket. He tended to fidget a lot at work and he liked to play with a bobby pin. It was strange, but he found it soothing. He made swift work of picking the lock, which wasn't hard since it was not a complex lock at all. Opening the door, he pushed it open all the way, standing in the middle of it. Y/n froze, arms full of Edward's clothing, wearing one of his tank tops and a pair of his jeans. A bright red hue covered her cheeks as she made eye contact with her friend. At first, Edward just thought y/n was playing a light prank on him, just like they did in the orphanage. But, her eyes were watery and puffy. Her bottom lip was pulled down in a soft frown.

"Y/n? What are you doing?" He asked softly.

Y/n grabbed a blanket off of Edward's bed and pulled it over herself. Her figure under the blanket shook softly as she tried to contain soft sobs. Edward was perplexed by the scene before him, unsure of what to make of it.

"Don't look at me! Please, just get out!" She cried softly.

Edward, who was still standing in the doorway, walked over to her. He knelt down, reaching out to grab the blanket. Y/n scooted away, feeling his hand brush against the fabric. Edward slowly pulled his hand away. He sighed, looking around his room, hoping to get an understanding of what was happening. Y/n was known to have a few episodes regarding her childhood trauma, but they were nothing like this. They were never like this. This was very different. And Edward hated the feeling of not knowing what was wrong with his friend. His eyes landed on a few pieces of y/n's clothing, which he assumed is what she wore before. The rest of the clothes on the floor were his own.

"Why are you wearing my clothes?" He asked.

Y/n sniffled, poking her head out from under the blanket. Edward looked into her eyes, feeling his heart throb at her sad appearance. She sighed softly, removing the blanket from her entire body. Edward looked over her, other than the fact that she was wearing his clothes, nothing was out of the ordinary. Except...

Y/n covered her chest with her arms, trying to make it look like she was casually crossing her arms. Edward's eyes narrowed. The two of them were extremely close, and none of them were worried about the other looking at them in a creepy way. So, the fact that y/n was purposefully covering her chest set off some alarms in Edward's head. He paused for a moment, and then it clicked. Softly, he grabbed y/n's arms, pulling them away from her chest. He looked at it, noticing an extremely big difference. Y/n started to cry, hiding her face from him. Edward didn't look at his best friend's chest a lot. Not ever. He wasn't a creep. But, he knew that y/n was fairly heavy in the chest. And right now, she wasn't. He grabbed the bottom of his tank top that she was wearing, looking to her for permission. She didn't make eye contact with him, but Edward took her silence as confirmation. Lifting it up, he immediately winced. Y/n was not wearing a bra. Instead, her breasts were crudely duct-taped to her chest. The tape went around her entire chest, around her back, and connected in one loop, overlapping multiple times. The duct-tape dug into her skin harshly.

"Y/n..." He trailed.

"It hurts, Eddie..." She sobbed.

"I need to get this off of you." He stated, standing up.

Y/n reached out, grabbing his arm.

"No. I d-don't want to see th-em..." She choked.

He looked down at her, feeling his heart shatter. Edward already had a pretty good understanding of what happened while he was gone. But, that comment was what really set it in stone for him. He sighed, squatting back down and looking her in the eyes.

"You don't have to. But, I need to get this off of you." He said.

Y/n sniffled, wiping tears away from under her eyes. She nodded, pulling her knees to her chest as Edward grabbed some scissors from the kitchen. He felt stupid in this moment, not knowing exactly what to do. And, he always knew what to do. Panicking, he grabbed a bottle of aloe vera from the medicine cabinet and anti-bacterial ointment, just in case the duct tape broke her skin. Hurriedly, he went back in his room and placed the items on his bed. He bent over and picked y/n up, placing her on the bed as well. Edward got on his knees in front of her, noticing that she was avoiding eye contact with him. He grabbed the pair of scissors, placing a comforting hand on her knee.

"I will not look, y/n. I promise." He reassured.

Y/n nodded softly, a tear rolling down her cheek. Edward frowned, looking at the duct tape and trying to figure out where to start. Sighing, he looked at the part of y/n's cleavage that provided a gap to cut at. Using the scissors, he snipped a line down the middle before placing the scissors back on the bed. Just like he promised, he looked away as he lightly began to pull at the tape, wincing every time y/n flinched.

"Are you going to tell me why exactly you did this to yourself?" He asked, his voice undeniably stern.

Y/n looked out the window, Edward following her gaze as he continued to pull gently at the tape. She shrugging slightly, not sure of what to say. There was no way to say it other than to be blunt. But, she couldn't bring herself to be blunt.

"I don't like how I...I don't like my...I just wish..." She fumbled.

Edward listened, allowing her to take as much time as she needed. He ripped off a piece of duct tape slowly, crumpling it into a ball and throwing it on the floor. Y/n watched him throw it, lip trembling as she did so.

"I don't hate how I look. I like how I look. I just, there are some parts..." She sighed.

Edward nodded, removing another piece of duct tape. He kept his eyes way from her now revealed chest, moving on to her side. Y/n groaned, holding her head in her hands. This position made it harder for Ed to remove the tape, but he didn't say anything.

"I was born a girl, I know that. And, I like being feminine. I love it, actually. But, I don't feel like I'm just a girl...I don't want to be." Her voice was weak and shaky.

"Do you feel like one certain gender?" He asked, trying to help her navigate her feelings.

"No. I just feel like...me." She answered.

"Alright. Well, what are you?"

Y/n paused, looking down at the ground. She hadn't really thought about it before. It never really crossed her mind. But, now she was really thinking about it.

"I don't really want to be labeled as anything. I want to look feminine. But, I don't want people to think I'm just a girl. I don't feel like I'm just a girl. I don't know how to explain..." She sighed.

Edward removed the last bit of the duct tape off of her skin. Y/n shivered, her bare chest exposed. But, she was too numb to even care. Edward made sure he averted his eyes the entire time. He used some of the aloe vera and rubbed it into her red and irritated skin. Y/n hissed at the cold touch.

"I think, you explained it perfectly. As long as that is exactly what you feel. You're feelings in this situation are the only ones that matter. I just want you to know that I support you through whatever decision you make. Full heartedly."

Once Edward finished applying the aloe vera, he got up from off the ground. He walked over to his closet, grabbing something out of it. He looked at it for a little while, thinking to himself. Humming, he walked back over to y/n and handed the object to her, looking into her eyes the entire time.

"We can get a binder for you, if you'd like. I know it doesn't really work too well, but you can use this in the meantime." He said.

Y/n took the object and smiled when she realized what it was. It was a back brace. It was small enough to cover her chest. It wasn't the perfect size, but she appreciated whatever she could get. She put it on immediately, struggling only a little bit.

"Thank you..."

Edward tossed one of his shirts to her and watched as y/n caught it. She slid it on, smiling at how baggy it was. Ed smiled as well, giving her a pair of sweatpants too. Y/n looked at him curiously, her head tilting to the side.

"If you ever want to wear my clothes because it makes you feel more comfortable, you don't have to ask or be sneaky about it. You're welcome to wear whatever you need."

~

The meaningful memory made y/n tear up. He was so understanding about what she was going through. And, when she figured out who she really was, he was extremely supportive. Edward had immediately ask y/n what their pronouns were, to which she said she/they. Y/n said she didn't mind if people referred to her as she, but they was what they truly preferred. And ever since that day, he referred to y/n as they. Coming out as non-binary to their friend was easy because of how supportive he was. And then, the two of them started to date. Y/n remembered their first time with Edward. The two of them wanted it to be special. Their first time was vanilla, not wanting to take it too far. But, every time after that got hotter and hotter and kinkier and kinkier. Eventually, the two of them knew about all of their partner's kinks and turn ons. And, y/n was surprised to learn about how kinky Edward was.

~

"Oh fuck, Edward!" Y/n moaned, their fingers gripping at his hair tightly.

Their naked bodies were entwined with each other on his bed. Edward was normally a shy and reserved guy, but in the bedroom he was an entirely different person. He pulled away from biting on y/n's neck, licking a stripe from her neck to her chin. Y/n whined, bucking her hips upwards. Chuckling, Edward gripped their hips and slammed them against the bed. His dick was inside them, staying perfectly still.

"I know how desperately you want me to fuck you, but I expect you to have some control over your desires. If you can't be patient for it, then do you truly deserve it, chéri?" He teased.

Y/n moaned, they loved it when Edward would speak French. It was a language he taught himself in the orphanage, along with Italian and Latin. He sounded so suave when he talked in those languages.

"I'm so-orry..." Y/n pouted, trying their best to keep still.

Edward leaned his head back, letting out a sigh as he felt her tighten around him. His eyes squinted as he made a 'tsk' sound. Looking back down on her, Edward held onto their waist gently.

"Trop peu, trop tard..." He said softly.

Y/n tilted her head to the side, unsure of what he said. Edward smirked, a playful and mischievous glint in his eyes. He leaned forward, pressing his lips against their ear. His grip on her hips tightened, nails digging into their flesh.

"Too little, too late..."

~

Y/n shivered, feeling her stomach turn into a knot as she recalled the interaction. Swallowing a lump in her throat, she pushed the feeling away. It all ended when Edward started to talk about how he wanted to fix Gotham. His desire for a renewal eventually turned into an obsession, and y/n saw how dangerous it was getting. Even though it hurt her, she didn't want to be with him while he went down that path. It had been a year since they split up.

"I suppose, it is time I end this livestream my loyal followers." Edward said.

Y/n shook herself out of her thoughts, remembering that she was watching Ed's livestream. Looking at the time, she was shocked to see that she had spaced out for about 30 minutes, recalling her fond memories with Edward. She sighed, going to exit the stream when she realized she was the only one left in it. However, Edward's voice made her stop.

"Do you still live there, Sketcher?" He asked, voice monotone, almost a hint of sadness in it.

Y/n felt her breath hitch in her throat. Shakily, her hands typed an answer. For some reason, she felt scared of Edward in this moment. She never felt scared of him. His voice was ominous.

"I am not answering that, you should already know the answer."

Edward remained silent for a little while, staring at the camera. Y/n grew unsettled, unsure of what to do. He leaned towards the camera, cupping his hands over his mouth. Y/n prepared for him to whisper, holding the phone closer to their ear.

"FINALLY THEY SPEAK!" He yelled.

Y/n dropped their phone, wincing at their ear ringing. Edward chuckled from behind the camera, finding his yelling to be funny. Y/n grimaced, scoffing as she rolled her eyes.

"I miss you. Do you miss me? If you want me to come over, say nothing. If you don't, then say anything!" He giggled.

Y/n began to type, not understanding what he was trying to do. It was like he was purposefully trying to scare them. Like it was a game to him. And y/n didn't feel like playing it. But, before she could text anything, he ended the live.

"Dick." Y/n scoffed.

She glanced at the time on her phone, wanting to see how much time had passed by.

'2:50'

Y/n groaned, getting up from the couch, taking their phone with her. The whole conversation with Edward threw her off. Unsure of what she should do, y/n decided to draw. It helped calm their nerves when they got stressed out. They walked over to their desk that was in the corner of the room, right next to the T.V. Sighing, she pulled out her iPad, which they kept on the desk, and got their drawing software set up. They pulled up Spotify on their T.V and clicked the playlist they listened to when they drew. A song she didn't really care for played, so she used this time to go change into some better clothes to draw in. They discarded their current sweatshirt and sweatpants, left in their soft purple binder and matching underwear. They thought for a moment, not really sure of what to wear. As they thought about what to wear, they pulled their hair up into a ponytail, stretching out their back afterwards.

"Fuck it." She said.

Y/n pulled their sweatpants back on, not bothering to put a shirt on since the binder was fit like a tank top of some sorts. They slid their slippers back on, laughing at the fake cigarettes they added. Y/n walked back into the living room, going back to their drawing desk. They sat down and got right to work with their drawing.

Time had gone by fast as y/n was drawing, her entire mind being focused on her work. Y/n groaned, standing up from her chair to stretch out. Glancing at her phone, her eyes widened when she saw it was 9:52 at night. But, she hadn't finished her drawing yet, and she really wanted to. Sighing, they decided another hour or so couldn't hurt. She looked at Spotify, grinning from ear to ear as one of her favorite songs played. Walking to the kitchen, she grabbed a glass of water as she swayed her hips to the beat. Taking a sip, she brought it over to her desk, placing it far away from her iPad. What y/n didn't know though, is that someone was watching her from within the shadows of her apartment. Edward Nashton had slipped into her apartment when she went to the bathroom around 10 minutes ago, and was hiding and observing her. He watched as y/n danced to the music, mouthing the lyrics as well. Y/n's music taste, at least when they drew, was mainly hyperpop music with a few other genres thrown in. Edward had never heard of the genre until y/n introduced it to him. He liked some of the songs, but he preferred to watch y/n dance to them.

"God, my neighbors probably hate me..." They chuckled to themselves.

Edward remained silent, watching as y/n danced and made commentary. That was one of Edward's favorite things about them. He loved that when they thought they were alone, or even if things were quiet, they would start talking to themselves. It could be normal things or stupid things. In this case, y/n was quoting lyrics, adding commentary on them, and complaining about their drawing. It was very evident that they were partially sleep deprived.

"Fucking, ugh! Why is it so hard to draw dilfs?" They groaned.

Edward, staying quiet, found their comments to be hilarious. However, he didn't want to reveal his position just yet. So, he watched quietly.

"Grab your man he's trying to roleplay on me all snuggly..." They mumbled in a high-pitched voice, laughing like a dork at the end.

"This songs fucking weird, it's so me core. Me core. Fuck! Me! GOD!" They face planted on the desk, groaning afterwards.

"I'm not looking up crotch references...not again...I can't subject myself to that." They whined, muffled by the desk.

Y/n lifted their head up when their phone rang, causing Edward to fall back in the shadows further. Pausing the music as the next song played, they looked at the contact on their phone. Smiling, they answered it.

"Bitch, it's 10 at night and you interrupted one of my favorite songs. You better have a good reason." They laughed.

Y/n put the phone on speaker, placing it on the kitchen counter as she poured a bowl of cereal.

"You got something better to do than talk to me, huh?" Her friend asked.

"Girl, I was drawing dilfs..."

"Oh shit, that's awesome. Can I see?"

"I haven't finished...I'm stuck."

"On what?"

"Drawing the...crotch. I don't exactly have a dick to use as reference. Not that I'm drawing a dick, he's wearing pants, but like...bulge reference. Fuck, you know what I mean."

Edward smirked to himself, a thought crossing his mind. He dismissed it as soon as it appeared. He found their conversation to be entertaining.

"I've got a big dick right here for you to use as a reference." Their friend said in a deep voice.

Y/n nearly choked on their cereal.

"Shut up! What did you call me for you cretin?"

"Oh, well I just wanted to let you know that uh...that guy at my work gave me his number..."

Y/n swallowed the cereal in her mouth, squealing afterwards. Edward covered his ears quietly, not hearing them make that noise in a long time. He had forgotten how high-pitched they could get.

"No fucking way!!! Did he say anything?" Y/n asked, looking at their hair in the reflection of the fridge.

"Yes! Ok, let me know what you think of this...he texted me earlier. This is what he said...'Hey, can't wait to talk to you more. I'd love to meet you for lunch sometime this weekend. I hope I'm not being too forward. Hope you're having a great night, Caleb.'"

Y/n gasped.

"Oh my God, he's polite too!? You hit the jackpot! You two should fall in love, have really rough kinky sex, get married, have babies, all that jazz!" Y/n spat out.

"I was thinking the same thing!!! Well, maybe not the kinky part. I'm not a freak like you." Their friend giggled.

"I'm unique like that." Y/n chuckled.

"More like you're slutty like that..."

"Hell, I'll take that as a compliment. I consider myself a collector of kinks. Like pokemon, except sinful. And you know...no animals...what were we talking about?" They asked.

"Are you high or something?" Their friend laughed.

"No, just very, very, very sleep deprived and hyped up on a large bag of sourpatch kids I got from the store. So, kind of?" They laughed.

Edward rolled his eyes, trying his best not to laugh. He missed y/n. He missed them a lot. But now, he was seeing them again. Right in front of him.

"Oh my god, go to bed! You need the sleep." Their friend suggested.

"Who are you? My mom? My dad? My overlord?" They asked.

"No, I-I'm, heh, I'm your dad-daddy..." Their friend tried to say, laughing in between her words.

"Oh fuck off, now I'm definitely getting ready for bed. Every time we call you call yourself daddy and I am 100% certain that it's giving me brain damage."

"That's the goal. To get you brain dead so I can put you in a hospital for the rest of your life!"

"Aw, how sweet! I'll haunt you when I die and possess your vibrator so it never turns on."

"Ew! Grosssss!"

"Alright, I have some cereal I have to finish absolutely devouring. So, I'll call you tomorrow. Let me know how the lunch goes!"

"Ok, love you!"

"Love you too!"

Y/n hung up the phone, as if that was the most normal conversation they had ever had. Edward found the entire thing extremely amusing. Their friend was right though, y/n was extremely kinky. Edward would know. When the two of them were in bed together, things got hot and heavy quickly. He broke out of those thoughts, watching as y/n put away their iPad and pressed play on Spotify. Yawning, they went back to the kitchen, grabbing their cereal bowl. As the song played, they finished eating their cereal quickly. Once they finished eating, they started dancing and mouthing the lyrics of the song. Edward knew this song, from when y/n would practically force him to watch tiktok edits of various people from various shows, movies, and games. He knew y/n loved this song.

"Ride!" Y/n mouthed softly, spinning around in a circle.

Y/n swayed to the song, dancing like no one was watching. Even though, someone most definitely was watching. Edward kept a keen eye on y/n, watching every movement they made.

"Can I ride!?" Y/n giggled, pointing to a drawing of a blonde man they made.

Edward recognized the person, from the Resident Evil games. Y/n was obsessed with Leon S. Kennedy for a long time, so that's probably who it was. This caused him to smile to himself.

The song was coming to an end, although still playing. Edward took this as an opportunity to step out of the shadows slowly. Every footstep he made was quiet as he made sure not to step on any creaky floorboards. As the song died down, y/n turned around after hearing a quiet noise. They turned the volume down until the music was at the same volume as a person talking normally, placing the remote back down.

"Who's there?" They asked, grabbing a pocket knife they kept on the desk.

Edward stepped completely out of the darkness, the soft light from the T.V illuminating his body in a bright white outline. Y/n scoffed, tossing their knife back on the desk. Edward found it intriguing that y/n was not scared, not even in the slightest.

"Edward Nashton, what the fuck is your problem?! I have a fucking door for you to knock on you asshole! You scared the shit out of me! I thought you were someone breaking in!" They groaned.

"I am someone breaking in." He stated simply.

"No, Edward. You're Edward. Not a scary criminal. Well, not yet at least, who knows at the rate you're going..." They mumbled.

Edward stood there, watching them walk into the kitchen. Y/n rolled their eyes, getting a glass of water. They were slightly annoyed with Edward.

"How long have you been here? Actually, no, let me guess. When I went to the bathroom. Is that when you got in?" They asked.

Edward nodded slowly.

"You're so predictable, Edward. Are you trying to scare me or something? Why are you here standing in the shadows like a creep?" They spat.

Edward walked towards them slowly, planting his gloved hands firmly on the counter. Y/n raised an eyebrow.

"I'm here to show you what I'm trying to do for Gotham! You don't understand my cause!" He exclaimed behind his mask.

"Uh huh...yeah. Why are you wearing your mask? I know who you are." They said blandly.

He didn't answer.

"Look, Ed, I know you want to help Gotham. I admire that. You've always been a kind soul. But, this is not the way to go about it. Planning murders? Bombings? How will that help?" They asked.

Edward looked down, his confidence disappearing as the person he loved told him these things. Y/n noticed, sighing before taking a sip of water. They offered Ed some, to which he denied because of the mask that was on his head. Y/n groaned.

"Take that thing off. You're Edward. Not the Riddler."

Edward's eyes narrowed, knuckles turning white as he gripped the edge of the counter. He marched into the kitchen, standing in front of y/n, pinning them against the cupboards. Y/n felt their heart race.

"I AM the Riddler! Edward, Riddler, I am two in one!" He declared, voice muffled by the mask but still projecting well.

Y/n sighed, looking over Edward. He could sense the sadness in their eyes. They reached a hand up, grabbing his glasses before removing his mask. Once the mask was off, they put the glasses back on him. Edward felt sheepish all of a sudden, almost as if removing the mask removed his entire persona.

"You look different since I last saw you, Ed. You look good." They smiled, hand cupping his face.

"Don't." He said.

"You still love me, don't you?" They asked, thumb rubbing his cheek.

Edward looked down slightly, lifting his eyes back up to theirs quickly. He took a deep breath, chest puffing out. Y/n watched as his eye twitched, a telltale sign that he was anxious.

"Yes..."

"Did you think that this whole Riddler persona would make me fall in love with you?"

Edward didn't answer.

"Ed, I still love you. I always will. But, I don't love who you're becoming. It worries me."

"I just want to do good for the people of Gotham who suffered, just like we did..." He said shakily.

"Killing people is not the way to do it. That is not going to win me over, Edward. If you want to keep this Riddler persona, then that's fine. But, use it for good. Help law enforcement with finding criminals, the ones who make Gotham a terrible place. Don't add to it..."

Edward nodded, feeling a tear roll down his cheek. Y/n wiped it away, smiling up at him. He looked down at them, straightening his posture. He cleared his throat.

"Y-You're right. It's just, this whole persona gave me a newfound confidence. I wanted to do something memorable and meaningful with it."

"Edward, I love that you've found your confidence. But, you need to use it for good."

He nodded once again, the two of them falling silent. Edward looked into y/n's eyes, feeling his cheeks grow hot. Y/n felt a knot form in their stomach.

"Can you promise me that you'll stop this madness? Please? For me, Riddles..." Y/n frowned, tears forming in their eyes.

Edward's eyes widened, hugging y/n to his chest without thinking about it. He rubbed their back, heart racing fast against theirs.

"No, no no no, no please don't cry. I promise, Sketcher. I'm sorry that all of this happened. I caused us to drift apart, I don't know what I was thinking. I promise you, I'll stop." He cooed, nearly crying against their head.

"I believe you, Edward."

The two of them grew silent as they held each other. Despite the emotional moment they just had, they weren't sure what to do. It was hard to move on from such an important conversation, especially the one they just had. Y/n sighed, pulling away from him, back against the counter. Edward looked down at them, taking in their appearance.

"Y-You got your binder. It looks good." He commented.

"Thank you, it took so long to arrive. But, it was worth the wait. I have more in other colors."

Edward nodded.

"Ed, can I tell you something?" They asked.

"Y-Yeah, of course."

"Your Riddler persona scared me a bit, what with everything that you were planning. But, besides those things, I found that whole persona to be quite..." Y/n trailed.

Edward waited, anxious for what they were going to say.

"...hot?"

His eyes widened, watching as y/n blushed lightly. He reached down, lifting their chin up with two of his fingers. Y/n looked up at him, bottom lip out in a natural pout.

"You did?" He asked.

Y/n nodded.

"It seemed like you were really protective over me when you were doing those livestreams."

Edward's jaw clenched when he thought about that one chat someone sent. He could easily find their address, and he definitely thought about paying a visit. But, after the conversation he just had with y/n, he knew that was off the table. Even though the person definitely deserved whatever he wanted to do to him.

"That swine threatened you. No one threatens you and gets away with it."

"Mmm, that's the part of the Riddler that I like..." Y/n hummed.

"God, I've missed you so much, y/n."

"I missed you too, Ed."

He looked down at them, feeling the confidence he had when he broke in flood back into his body. Y/n saw this from how his posture changed. His stature was looming and a glint of mischief twinkled in his eyes. Y/n felt themself shrink beneath him, feeling cornered in the kitchen by him. But, it wasn't like they were scared he would hurt or kill them, no. It was anticipation of what he was going to do next. Edward always was unpredictable. Y/n's breath hitched as Edward brushed a strand of hair out of their face.

"You've always had a knack for intimidating, even dangerous, men. Haven't you?" He teased softly, looking down at them with dull eyes.

Those eyes, they drove y/n insane. His gaze had the ability to make their knees wobble, faltering their stability. He knew of this affect, and he basked in the feeling of power this gave him. Neither of them liked to consider themselves 'in charge' of the other. But, when things got intimate, y/n absolutely loved it when Edward would run the show. He did too.

"You shiver under my touch, cara mia. Why is this? Do you fear me?" He asked gently.

Y/n nibbled on the bottom of their lip, chest heaving from the tension. Edward grinned, leaning down to plant a soft kiss below their ear. His breath fanned on their neck, causing goosebumps to prickle over y/n's skin.

"Or does my presence simply make you tremble with desire?" He whispered.

Y/n let a quiet moan slip out of their throat, causing them to blush deeply. They were embarrassed to admit how easily Edward drove them crazy. The two of them would be lying if they said they didn't miss each other, both emotionally, physically, and sexually. They nodded, wrapping their arms around his neck.

"Of course it does. I know you promised you'd stop the things you were going to do. But, you're still The Riddler. And, having you in my apartment, standing over me...my heart's racing. Earlier today your persona was ready to kill someone for me and, as weird as it is, I found it hot..." Y/n gasped, breathing heavily.

Edward smirked, grabbing the mask from off of the counter. He glanced down at it, then back up at y/n. A sickeningly lewd idea popped into his head. Y/n looked up at him, adrenaline and wonder filling their vision.

"You know what else he would do for you? To you?"

Y/n's legs instinctively closed, causing Edward to stifle a chuckle. He gave y/n a quick glance, as if to ask if it was ok to continue. They nodded frantically. He took a deep breath, eyes closed as he calmed himself. Without saying anything, Edward put his mask on, placing his glasses on top of the now covered bridge of his nose. He let out the breath he took, coming out in a raspy exhale. Y/n felt a shiver go down their spine as the T.V light illuminated Edward in an almost ethereal green. His hands fell to his sides, clenching and unclenching in a fist. Suddenly, he reached out and grabbed the back of y/n's neck, yanking them towards him.

"He would fuck you until you scream his name." He said simply.

The bluntness of his statement made y/n throb. They let out a shaky breath, gripping onto his shoulders for stability as their knees buckled. A dark chuckle emitted from his throat, letting go of y/n and stepping away from them. Y/n almost fell to the floor, catching onto the counter at the last second. Standing up straight, they watched as Edward walked over to the couch, standing in front of the T.V. He stared at y/n, nodding towards the couch subtly. Y/n didn't budge, breathing heavily in shock of the situation. Edward let out a frustrated sigh, stomping his foot on the ground.

"GET OVER HERE!" He shouted.

Y/n was quick to get to the couch, trembling as they stood in front of him. Edward removed the piece of the mask over his mouth, only attached with a few of those small click-on buttons. Placing it in his pocket, he grabbed y/n's face, slamming his lips onto theirs. Y/n moaned into the kiss, being caught off guard by the suddenness of it. Edward groaned, pulling away from the kiss.

"Edward..." Y/n sighed.

Grimacing, he pushed y/n down on the couch. Y/n looked up at him, eyes dark as he looked down on their body. He let out a frustrated sigh that slowly grew into a groan. He pointed at his chest repeatedly.

"I am The RIDDLER in this moment. You WILL address me as such." He declared.

Y/n squeezed their thighs together, gasping at his harsh attitude. The Riddler smirked, his mouth on display to y/n. A song started to play in the background, causing y/n to blush when they realized what it was. He walked towards them, grabbing their hips and moving them onto his lap as he sat down.

"Do you understand?" He asked.

"Y-Yes, Riddler."

He listened to the song as it played, smirking at the lyrics. Y/n avoided eye contact. Roughly, he grabbed their chin and yanked it towards him. He pulled them down to his face, kissing them on the lips briefly.

"If memory serves me right, the last time you and Edward fucked, it was to this song wasn't it? That's quite fitting, seeing as how it'll be the first song the Riddler fucks you to." He said, laughing at the end.

Y/n moaned, mouth agape slightly. He gripped it, keeping their mouth open. Looking at their mouth, he remained silent. His analytical eyes observed the inside of y/n's mouth. They were slightly confused, but afraid to move.

"You'd take me well with that mouth of yours..." He stated.

Y/n moaned softly, whining at the end. He chuckled, releasing his grip on their jaw. He looked at y/n, pushing them off of his lap. Y/n stood up in front of him, panting and wide eyed.

"Strip." He ordered.

Y/n didn't hesitate, removing their pants. He watched as they slid their underwear off, causing him to let out a low grunt at the sight of their bare lower body. Reaching up, y/n hesitantly started to remove their binder. The Riddler held up a hand, signaling for them to stop.

"No. If you feel that that part of your body does not belong on you, then I do not find it desirable. I will not allow you to face dysmorphia once again." He said.

Y/n smiled, feeling their heart swell. It pleased y/n to know that Edward's Riddler persona was just as caring and supportive as he was. Giggling, they left their binder on. He stood up, unbuttoning his pants slightly, letting his bulge under his underwear poke out. Grabbing y/n's neck, he kissed them harshly and bit their bottom lip. They groaned as he pulled away. Edward hushed them, placing a finger against their lips as he listened to the song.

'Kiss me on the lips, choke me on the floor.'

'Drag me around, push me right against your door.'

'I'm your little doll, come and play with me.'

'Fucking chase me, fucking break me.'

Y/n hummed to the song very quietly and he grinned. Adjusting his grip on y/n's neck, he smirked down at them. The glasses he wore were reflecting the light of the T.V. He looked mysterious and dangerous. It made y/n's cheeks heat up.

"You like that song, huh?" He asked, rubbing his thumb against their skin.

They nodded.

"Of course you do. You like that shit, don't you?" He mocked.

They nodded again, frantically. He mimicked the way they nodded, even going so far as to imitate the soft moans they made. Y/n held the hand he had gripped around his throat, pouting up at him. He rolled his eyes. He knelt down on the floor, bringing them down with him. Y/n's eyes grew big as he pinned them against the floor, straddling their lap as he did so. The grip on their throat tightened, y/n gasping for air. The Riddler hummed to himself, swaying his head to the song. Pretending he spaced out, he looked back down to y/n. He faked a gasp, covering his mouth with his free hand. Y/n let out a choked moan, causing The Riddler's bulge to grow.

"You said you liked to be choked on the floor, isn't that true? I'm just giving you what you want." He cooed, reaching down to caress their face.

He watched y/n as they grabbed at his hand. The Riddler let out a yawn, releasing his grip on their throat. Y/n moaned, gasping for breath. He mocked their panicked breathing, holding his own throat with his hands. He faked chokes before breaking out into a soft and eerie laughter. Y/n felt filthy for finding his actions extremely hot.

"I thought you liked that? Hm?" He teased.

"I do..." They sighed, a moan slipping out at the end.

He reached down, grabbing the ponytail their hair was in. As he stood up, he pulled at their hair, causing y/n to stand up with him. He dragged them across the room by their hair, making sure not to go too fast. He wanted to be rough, not abusive. Walking inside y/n's room, he closed the door behind them before slamming y/n against it. They grunted, wrapping their arms around his neck.

"You wanted this. Your eyes were practically begging me to fuck you. Please tell me you didn't expect the Riddler to go easy on you, mon cœur?" He chuckled, a sick smirk tugging at his lips.

"No, I want it rough. I love it rough..." They panted.

He threw them on the bed, watching as they propped themselves on their elbows. Their legs were crossed over each other, hiding themself from him. He rolled his head to the side, letting his neck crack as he walked to the bed. He stood in front of y/n, menacing and ominous.

"Yes, I know. I know how filthy you are. I know how...experimental...you were when you were mine. I imagine you're still the same filthy slut."

Y/n nodded repeatedly, slowly opening their legs. His head was held high, exuding power with his stance. He let his eyes trail down, face emotionless as he gazed between y/n's legs. He breathed in deep, letting out a shaky sigh that made y/n moan. The Riddler found himself mesmerized by the sight before him, his muse, his love, all spread out and on display for him. It was a beautiful sight that made the blood pump in his veins. He felt his dick twitch and inhaled deeply before exhaling.

"Offering yourself to me, so...willingly...it brings a smile to my face. I assume you realize how whorish you look right now. Spreading your legs for a dangerous person such as me..." He trailed, leaning down and planting his fists on either side of the bed.

His body was hovering over the lower half of y/n. Underneath his chest was y/n's legs, spread open, exposing their body to him. Y/n moaned, nodding their head.

"I know how slutty I'm acting. But, I can't help it. You make my heart race and I just want to feel you inside me so bad..." They whined, squirming underneath him.

"Yeah, you want that?" He hummed.

"Fuck, yes!"

He made a 'tsk' noise as he stood up straight. Y/n watched as he removed the gloves he wore. He placed the pair in his left hand, glancing down at them. He looked back down at y/n, humming again. Throwing one of the gloves to the side, he reached down and dragged the one he kept over y/n's stomach. Slowly, he trailed back down, kneeling on the floor in front of the bed. He grabbed the underside of y/n's calves, yanking them towards him. Their legs dangled off the bed, lifting up as he hung them over his shoulders.

"As you'll recall, I have a strong fascination with games, puzzles, riddles, etc. How about we play a game right now? Will you amuse me and take part, cara mia?" He asked, letting his breath fan against y/n's slick core.

"Mmm, yes. I-I'll play a game with you, Riddler." They moaned.

"Oh how fun, I have high hopes for you."

He blew against their pussy once again, smirking cockily to himself as y/n squirmed. His hands gripped their thighs that hung over his shoulders.

"I'll ask you riddles and you answer them. If you get it right, you get a reward. If not, well...you'll find out, how about that?" He chuckled, waving his glove for them to see before sliding it on his left hand.

"What? I've never been good at your Riddles! That's not fa-"

"Those are Edward's riddles. You have not heard mine, have you? Besides, I just made them up a few moments ago, specifically for you. It would make me so upset if you chose not to play."

"Ok, fine. Just, ask me your riddles."

He chuckled.

"I can make you shiver and I can make you hot. I may take a while to arrive, but I can be fast in the right hands. What am I?"

Y/n groaned, holding their hands over their face. The Riddler giggled, finding their struggle amusing. While he waited, he looked between their legs. He licked his lips as he saw how swollen their clit was.

"What am I, y/n?" He asked.

"Damn it, I don't know! Mail?" They whined.

"Mail? Hm, not even close. Do you want a hint, cara mia? I'll let you have another try." He smirked.

"Yes, please..." Y/n groaned.

"If you're good I'll give it to you tonight..." He hinted suggestively.

Y/n furrowed their eyebrows, thinking for a moment. The hint was so obscure. It could be anything based on how he said it. After a bit, their eyes widened in realization.

"An orgasm!"

Chuckling darkly, he shoved a finger deep inside of y/n. Y/n threw their head back into the bed, a lewd moan leaving their mouth. The Riddler let out a sigh, enjoying the feeling of his finger inside of them.

"Oh, good job darling. I'm so proud of you. Are you ready for another riddle? You only get one try this time..."

"F-Fuck, u-um, yeah I'm ready..."

"A queen, a movie, I can chill you to the bone. If it comes from pleasure, some would call it a moan. What am I?"

"What the fuck...? Um, fuck, I don't know...I don't know!" They whined.

Sighing, he kept stood up, not all the way though. He wanted his finger to remain inside y/n. Caressing y/n's face with his gloved hand, he watched as they pressed into his touch. The smile on his face faded, turning into a frown. Swiftly, he brought the back of his hand across their face. Y/n gasped, mouth agape and looking up at him.

"SCREAM! I'M A SCREAM!"

Y/n whined, bucking their hips up into Edward's finger. He furrowed his eyebrows underneath his mask. He went back down between their legs and smacked their thigh lightly, signaling for them to stop. He sighed.

"You should have known that answer, it's one of your favorite horror movies. I'm disappointed. You only get one more riddle. If you get it right, I'll finally give you what you so desperately want. If you get it wrong, I leave you on your bed a wet, slutty, pathetic mess."

"Oh God..." Y/n mumbled.

"I am done when desperate. A dog for a treat, a criminal for their life, a traitor for forgiveness. What am I?"

Y/n thought, not wanting to get it wrong. They groaned, eyes shut closed tightly. A frustrated sigh left their lips, turning into a whine like a child pouting. The Riddler smirked.

"Riddler, I beg you please...just fuck me!" They pleaded.

"Oh, you're so close to earning that..." He chuckled.

Y/n went silent, eyes widening.

"Beg! It's beg!" They cried out.

He pulled his finger out, causing y/n to whine. Leaning down, he planted a kiss on their lips. A proud smile was on his face, a laugh coming from his throat.

"Very good, ange précieux. I'm so proud of you." He praised, standing up straight.

Y/n watched as he looked down on them, eyes crazed and bright behind his glasses. He stepped forward, the bulge hidden by his underwear directly in front of y/n's face as they sat up. Y/n waited for him to say something, but he never did. Instead, he slowly pushed his underwear down, letting his dick fall out. He groaned as it slapped their face. Y/n kissed it gently, letting their tongue lap around the tip. He hissed, not giving any warning as he grabbed their hair and shoved his dick down their throat. Y/n gagged on the length, tears forming in their eyes. The Riddler moaned, leaning his head back in pleasure as he held their head there. After a moment, he pulled them off, pushing them down to the bed.

"I was correct, my dick fits perfectly in your pretty little mouth. But that is not what I want right now, nor is it what you want. Admittedly, it would be nice to throat fuck you till you're gasping for air...but I digress. Now, spread your legs."

Y/n moaned, their back flat against the bed as they listened to his instructions. The Riddler removed his glove, swaying his hand in the air as classical music played on the T.V. He hummed to himself, knowing the lyrics by heart, going through a huge classical music phase a few years back. Y/n watched, finding it hypnotic and twisted how carefree he was about the situation. Meanwhile, y/n was desperate and horny, spread out on the bed.

"A beautiful piece..." He mumbled.

He stepped forward a little, grabbing the underside of y/n's thighs as he pulled them close. Abruptly, he spit in between their legs, the substance landing on their throbbing pussy. He quietly sang the lyrics, y/n not knowing what he was saying. It always baffled y/n how well he spoke Latin, French, who the hell knew what other languages he spoke. All y/n knew was that it turned them on. Tightening his grip on their thighs, he pulled them closer to him as he thrusted forwards. Y/n cried out, voice cracking as they moaned. The Riddler grunted, but continued to sing along with the song. Y/n whined as he stilled inside of them, causing him to groan.

"It's rude to interrupt someone. I like this song, now be quiet!" He spat, bringing a hand down to pinch their clit.

Y/n bit back a moan, biting down on their fist. He was torturing them, y/n was sure of it. And, they were correct. The Riddler knew how desperately they wanted to be fucked by him, but he was having too much fun to give it to them. Not without a few more teases. He moved very slightly, causing y/n to think he was about to thrust into them. When they realized he was playing with them, they let out a pitiful whine. Their back arched, covering their face with their hands as the pathetic noise left their lips. He watched this, the sight making him twitch inside of them.

"Oh, cara mia..." He cooed.

"Riddler, please..." They cried.

"Mmm, my name sounds so good coming out of your mouth. My dear pitoyable chérie. Do you want me to fuck you?"

"Yes! Please!"

"Tell me how filthy you are for wanting this. Tell me that you're mine. You know it's true." He groaned, pinching the inside of their thigh.

"Fuck, you're right! I'm yours, Riddler. I always have been! I'm your filthy sl-slut. Please! I jus-"

He reached down, grabbing their hair. Leaning down, he met them halfway as he kissed them roughly. With a harsh thrust he began to fuck into them at a brutal pace. Moaning into the kiss, y/n bit down on his lip. He groaned and pushed them back down, standing up straight again. Bending over, he crawled on top of them as he continued to plow into their sopping pussy. Y/n reached up and gripped his hair, incoherent mumbling sliding past their lips.

"Oh, you filthy thing...you want more? Tell me."

"Yes! Please!"

A guttural growl left his throat, cursing underneath his breath. He grabbed y/n, looking around the room. Spotting a mirror, he dragged y/n in front of it. Sitting on the bed behind them, he shoved y/n down on his dick, sitting on his lap. The Riddler fucked up inside of them, facing the mirror all the while.

"My, my, would you look at that?" He teased grabbing y/n's jaw and forcing them to look at the mirror.

Y/n whimpered, watching them bouncing on his dick as he thrust upwards. The pace was sickeningly animalistic, a speed that y/n didn't think was humanly possible. A dark chuckle resonated in his chest, y/n feeling it vibrate against their back.

"Look how good you're taking me. You were made for me, cara mia. My missing puzzle piece. You fit me so perfectly. So tightly." He moaned in their ear, voice raspy and low.

"Oh fuck, Riddler..."

"That's right, cara mia. Moan my name. I won't let you cum until I've heard you scream it."

His nails dug sharply into the excess flesh of their hips, leaving indents in the skin. The classical music playing in the back made the erotic scene even more vulgar. Ecstasy was thick in the air like pungent poison. It filled their sense and drove them crazy, searching for the antidote in each other's bodies and pleasure. The Riddler ripped the hair tie out of y/n's hair, letting it fall down. He buried his face in it, inhaling their sweet scent that he missed so much. Though he was the Riddler, his feelings for y/n were the exact same as Edward's. After all, they were the same person. Just a persona, a facade he put on. Like roleplay.

"Ri-Riddler...please." They begged.

Grunting, he stood up, holding y/n by their thighs. His dick stayed inside them the whole time as he flipped them over onto their back on the bed. Not giving them any time to adjust, he picked their legs up and held them high. With the better angle, he drilled into them, face contorting into pleasure underneath the mask. Y/n covered their eyes with one of their hands, arching their back. With the other hand, they gripped the sheets desperately searching for some stability. With every thrust he made, the Riddler pummeled directly into y/n's g-spot, making them moan each time. With every moan that left their lips, the next one became more pornographic.

"Oh, I can tell you are so close. You've reached the precipice of your desire, teetering on the edge, aren't you?" He moaned, gasping at the end.

"Y-Yes, please! I wanna cum!"

"You want me to push you over that edge, cara mia?" He taunted, slowing his pace.

"Fuck! Don't stop! Please! I n-need it so bad!" Y/n was crying, their sobs pitiful and sad to listen to.

"Then scream my name!" He growled.

He slapped them across the face, slamming into them roughly. Y/n let out a noise that was indescribable. However, the sound made him whimper. His thrusts quickened, no longer rough but rather sadistic. Y/n tried to get words out, but couldn't. He pinched their clit harshly, twisting it between his pointer finger and thumb.

"RIDDLER! FUCK!" They screamed, the multiple sensations overwhelming them.

"That's it. That's what I wanted to hear..." He sighed.

All it took was a few more thrusts, that's all. With those final powerful, sadistic thrusts, y/n came undone. He pulled out quickly, cupping his mouth over their sopping hole. The suction of his lips against their pussy guided them through their orgasm. The Riddler groaned against their sensitive skin, lapping up all their arousal and climax. With a satisfied moan, he unlatched his lips and swiped his tongue around them. Some of their orgasm dripped onto the mask, but he cared very little about that. Standing over them, he stroked his length, head tilted back as he did so. Eyes were closed shut as he felt himself nearing his climax. His breathing quickened in pace, chest heaving up and down as he let out soft groans. Y/n could tell he was about to cum. Immediately, y/n crawled towards him, albeit shakily, and lowered their mouth on his cock. A loud moan slipped out of the Riddler, looking down to see y/n sucking harshly on his dick. The sight pushed him over and he felt his dick pulse inside their mouth as he released inside of it. He gripped onto their hair harshly, tugging on it as he hunched over. Y/n popped off of his dick after swallowing the thick liquid. They hated the taste of it, but they so desperately wanted to please him. A string of cum and saliva connected their lips to the tip of his dick. Using his thumb, he wiped it off their bottom lip. Y/n fell back onto the bed, grabbing a pillow and hugging it tight to their chest. The both of them were panting, catching their breath that was lost in the sinful exchange they committed.

Edward stood still, tucking himself back into his underwear. He groaned, rolling his head around to work out a kink in his neck. Removing his mask, he placed it on dresser near the bed. Y/n watched him as he did this, giving him time to calm down. He removed his jacket, revealing a dark green tank top underneath. His pants were next to go, tossing it somewhere in the room. Mumbling to himself, he got in bed next to y/n, pulling them close to his chest.

"God, I missed that..." He sighed.

"Me too...does this mean we're back together?" They asked.

"I'd like to think so. What about you?"

"Yeah, I'd like that."

Edward rolled over on his back, staring at the ceiling for a moment. Y/n turned on their side, facing him. As he breathed y/n watched his chest rise up and down. The rhythm soothed them, almost like counting sheep. Sitting up with a grunt, Edward sat on the side of the bed. It was from this angle that y/n realized how toned Edward was. He had gained a bit of weight since they last saw him. But, that was honestly a good thing. He was very skinny before, almost unhealthy. Y/n was glad to see a little more meat on his bones.

"Whatcha doin'?" They asked.

"Honestly, trying not to pass out. But, I was going to get a washcloth to clean you up." He yawned, rubbing his eyes.

"Oooh, Edward Nashton's world famous aftercare. Can I have a glass of wine and a cheese platter as well?" They asked.

"Mmm, I forgot how funny you are after you get your guts rearranged..." He said sarcastically.

He stood up from the bed, tripping over his feet slightly as he made his way to the bathroom. Y/n giggled, missing their boyfriend dearly. The both of them were undoubtedly glad to be back together, even if it was a result of Edward breaking into y/n's apartment. After a few moments, he came out of the bathroom, glasses slightly crooked and eyes barely open. Y/n was rarely tired after sex, but Edward usually did get tired. It honestly just depended on how rough he was. And, he was extremely rough tonight. Y/n gave him a kiss, holding his face in the palm of their hand. Pulling away, y/n looked to see if it woke him up at all. And, surprisingly, it did. He had a dorky smile on his face as he held the damp washcloth in his hand.

"I can make you some coffee afterwards if you'd like?" Y/n suggested.

Edward nodded as he gently placed the cloth on their thigh. Rubbing softly, he wiped away their arousal. His eyes were so bright and caring, just like the subtle smile that was on his face. With one final wipe, he placed the cloth in the hamper. Y/n started to sit up, but Edward stopped them. Carefully, he dragged them to the edge of the bed, legs dangling off the edge. Y/n sat up very slowly, stomach sore from the sex. Edward walked to the dresser, thinking for a moment before he opened one of the drawers. He pulled out a pair of underwear. Holding that in his hand, he opened another drawer and grabbed a pair of sweats. He closed all of the drawers he opened and went back to y/n.

"I'm surprised I remembered which ones to open." He chuckled.

Y/n smiled as he slide the pair of underwear up their legs. He was cautious around the inside of their upper thighs. Edward knew they would be extra sensitive, so he did his best to be as gentle as possible. Once the underwear was on, he helped them put on sweatpants as well.

"Ok, uh, where do you keep your coffee? Same place?" He asked, standing up.

Y/n nodded, resting their head against his stomach. Edward smiled widely, patting their head softly. He leaned down, placing a chaste kiss on the top of their head. Pulling away, he started to leave the room.

"Go piss." He stated simply.

(a/n: everyone should pee after they have sex, it helps flush out any bacteria and prevents UTI's :) make sure you all stay healthy!)

"Oh God, Edward. Really? You couldn't have found a more blunt way to say that?" They laughed, slowly standing up on shaky legs.

"I could if I tried. Do you need help?" He asked, hand on the door frame.

"No, I'm ok. Thanks though." They said.

Edward nodded, leaving the room to let y/n take care of themselves. Yawning, he walked past the couch, stretching out his arms. He glanced at the T.V and chuckled. Earlier, classical music was playing. And now? Well, obviously, the Pokemon: Indigo League theme song was playing. Seeing and hearing the song gave Edward the sudden urge to watch the show. He got a pot of coffee brewing, the smell raising goosebumps on his skin. Edward knew that y/n worked at a coffee shop, they have been for the past couple years. He knew that y/n could make a really good cup of coffee. A few minutes later, y/n came walking out of the bedroom, legs shaking slightly as they walked. Edward had a cocky grin on his face.

"I think I did a pretty good job tonight..." He said softly, voice slightly hoarse.

"No shit, I don't think I'll walk straight for a whole week. Work is going to suck on Monday." They groaned.

Edward looked in the cabinet where the coffee mugs were, smirking when he found his old mug. He poured some coffee in the green mug, taking a sip immediately afterwards. He sighed, feeling better even after the first sip.

"You kept my mug." He said.

"Well, it was really all I had as a reminder of you." They smiled.

"Oh, that reminds me..."

Edward placed the mug down, walking over to corner of the living room. Looking around, he scratched the back of his head. Y/n grabbed a juice box from the fridge, suddenly craving something fruity. They watched as Edward bent over and grabbed something from off the ground. He made his way back over to y/n, holding whatever he picked up behind his back. Y/n raised an eyebrow, glancing to the T.V and seeing that Heavy Metal Lover by Lady Gaga was playing. Edward snapped his fingers in front of their face.

"Hey, no Gaga! Not yet. I've got something to show you." He chuckled.

Y/n brought their attention, biting on the straw of the juice box as they took a sip. Edward brought one of his hands out from behind his back and held it in front of y/n. Removing the juice box from their lips, the set it on the counter. They gasped, holding their hands over their mouth.

"Oh my God, Edward! It's Sir Clawdius!" They squealed.

Edward smiled as they snatched the bear out of his hand. When y/n and Edward split up, y/n couldn't find the bear anywhere. They had assumed that they lost it. But, Edward had it the whole time.

"I will admit that I snuck it away when I left, I just wanted a piece of you with me. I meant to return it, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I brought it with me because I was finally going to give it back to you. So, yeah...sorry." He looked down sheepishly.

"Oh Edward, I'm not mad. I'm relieved that he was safe with you!" They giggled.

"Oh, well that's a relief. I thought you might try to maul me or something..."

"Maybe..."

"What? Please don't..."

"I'm kidding. Go drink your coffee! I'm going to put this li' guy up on my shelf!" They said.

Edward grabbed his coffee, leaning against the counter as y/n walked to the desk they drew at. He smiled as the warm drink went down his throat. Standing on their tippy-toes, they reached up and slid Sir Clawdius up on the top shelf, right next to the Leon Kennedy drawing.

"Oh yeah, I meant to ask. Is that a recent drawing? Did you play RE4 recently?" He asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Uh, maybe...don't look at the game in my console..."

"Ok, well that answers that question. But, I have another question. Have you done a speed run of it yet?" He asked.

"No, I take my time playing that game. I like the graphics..."

Edward shook his head slowly as he finished the last of his coffee. Y/n looked away, fighting back a goofy smile.

"Oh yeah, the graphics...totally. By graphics do you mean you like getting Leon hurt on purpose because he moans every single time?" He asked.

"This is becoming an interrogation and I am exercising my 4th amendment. So, I don't have to answer anything."

"Ok. Well, you basically confirmed my theory. Plus, I've seen you play the game in the middle of the night when I lived with you."

"You did!?"

"A lot. Every single time you were either angling the camera to get a better look at him or running into fights on purpose. So..."

"Ooh! I'm going to ignore the fact that you said that and pretend like we never had this conversation! That sounds like a really good idea!" They said cheerily, sitting down on the couch.

Edward rolled his eyes, sitting down next to them. He exhaled softly and watched as y/n turned off Spotify and turned it onto the console. Lo and behold, the most recent game played was RE4. Y/n handed the controlled to Edward, gesturing for him to take it.

"I wanna watch you play. Every time you get hurt is another picture of Leon Kennedy I will draw."

"Oh wow, you are very sleep deprived aren't you?" He laughed.

Edward took the controller and started to play the game. While he played, y/n slid under his arm, resting their head against his chest. They watched him play until they eventually drifted off into sleep. Edward smiled and turned the game off, holding y/n close to him as he picked them up. Going in their bedroom, he placed them under the covers and crawled in next to them. He let them fall asleep snuggled up into his side as he rubbed their back. He had been through a lot of problems while they were separated. And it was true that he went down a very dark path. But, he was so thankful for y/n, glad that they snapped him out of it. For now, he was happy, holding the love of his life in his arms once again. That was truly all he needed in his life. The warm and comforting embrace of his best friend was the one thing that could cure him of any ailment, any troubling thoughts, and could bring him out of the darkness that clouded his mind like a thick fog. He was as happy as he could ever be in this one moment.

He would never leave them again.

~

[sepdet]

Have you SEEN the original moon landing feed, especially the scary bit near the end?

Now stay with me. I grew up hearing about these few minutes from my parents (in fact I took the TV they watched it on to grad school; DS9 and Babylon5 worked well in b&w).

This is even crazier than it looks like.

My parents were both scientists, my grandmother a planetarium director, and my dad was just about to land his job at a rocket company that built 95 small rockets that were part of the UpGoer Saturn V. (Yeah. Just the small ones. Saturn V was a BEAST.)

So my parents had a fair idea how dangerous this was, how Neil going manual was a bad sign, and just how close he was to running empty and crashing. They knew the problem that every ounce of fuel you carry requires even more fuel to lift off, so the Eagle was built light, carrying no excess weight even in fuel (it had to lift off the Moon with no rocket, after all).

But they didn't learn until years later just how jury-rigged and bespoke Apollo technology was. Every vehicle and part was designed like a Mythbusters build: extremely customized for the procedures it had to accomplish, using parts and even technology invented for specific mission tasks.

rope memory, predecessor to modern silicon chips: 1s and 0s woven by women (of course) at a Massachusetts textile plant

At the time, computers were the size of rooms and very touchy. Apollo's computer memory was core rope memory, never used before or since, to save space. The read/write guidance computer, too, was woven: physical media could better survive the rigors of space travel. (I suspect even my parents don't know it also used some of the very first integrated circuits, soldered by hand under a microscope by Navajo women).

Spacesuits were (and still are) designed and hand-stitched by Playtex bramakers. The lunar rovers' wheels were titanium meshes woven with piano wire to let dust through, and even had a clever navigation system despite no GPS or magnetic north.

They couldn't test these rigs with computer modeling. They didn't know for sure what the moon's surface would be like, apart from basic parameters like low gravity and near vacuum and a temperature ranging from 250°F in the sun to -250° in the shade. And it was nearly impossible to test for or practice in those conditions on Earth.

And then there were the unknowns. A massive solar flare between Apollo 16 and 17 might have killed or sickened them too much to operate their ship.

While the spacesuit and to some extent the rover design carried on, a lot of these hacks were so unusual that they might as well be alien tech. (I'm sorry woven technology fell out of vogue for several decades.) That goes some way towards explaining why humans haven't left Earth orbit since I was two.

The other problem, of course, is expense. Tech for human space exploration requires as much R&D and testing as fighter planes, which have developed through a century of multiple countries' military budgets. Human space programs are lucky to last two presidents; the next president usually doesn't think giving glory to his predecessor is a good use of money.

So for 40 years, NASA has mostly worked with other countries on human spaceflight or built robot explorers that can be launched in 3-4 years before Congress or the president can axe the program. They're less likely to shut down a mission when 99.99% of the money's been spent, and all that's left to do is download data and uplink occasional instructions.

TL:DR; Congress and the White House keep flashing the equivalent of that computer error message, every time NASA gets ready to send humans into space again. Overload. Abort mission.

Unless, you know, American citizens start saying Go. Go. Go. Go. We have some pretty important priorities down here on Earth (which Amazon and Disney and oil companies should be footing the bill for, though they try not to), but I bet the military can cough up the cost of a few fighter jets.

[mncxbe]

Just an Ango thingy I decided to write because I miss Paris !! season 2 spoilers

5:40♧

𝑨𝒏𝒈𝒐 𝒙 𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅𝒆𝒓

𝑮𝒆𝒏𝒓𝒆: slight angst/ happy ending

The rattle of the rails reverberated through the entire tunnel, announcing the arrival of the midnight subway. It was a chilly autumn night and you were heading home from work. Just like every night, you were going to take line 14 from Châtelet to Saint-Lazare, then switch to line 13 to get to Saint-Denis, a total of 12 stops. This half hour trip to your crappy apartment was usually spent listening to music or reading the awfully long book you started the day you arrived in Paris two months ago; but not today.

As soon as the automatic doors of the subway closed behind you, your eyes landed on the poster glued to the tube's metal wall. It was a picture of the Ookagawa river in Yokohama, its banks lined with blossomed cherry trees. A sudden wave of nostalgia took over you and the memories came flooding in, echoes of the life you left behind.

You usually avoided thinking about your hometown and the people there; the memories were so fresh, the pain so vivid.

Only four months prior you were sitting on one of the high, rotating chairs at Lupin, celebrating Dazai's birthday with Oda and Ango, the people you considered your closest friends; your family. The drinks came one after another and except for Ango, who had his usual tomato juice, you were all tipsy.

"Ey Dazai. You've got enough to cover the bill, right?" you half laughed as you heard Dazai whine.

"But it's my birthday. Why should I be the one to pay?"

"Don't worry, birthday boy. I got you." said Oda in his usual calm voice.

You gently nudged Ango's arm, causing him to tense "You sure you don't want anything to drink?"

"No. Someone has to drive you home anyway." he replied without taking his eyes off of the glass in front of him.

Ango was the newest addition to your group; quite a reserved and stoic guy but you still liked him. He would often give you a lift after you had a few glasses at the bar.

"Alright. Suit yourself then."

That evening you parted ways, promising eachother to meet more often. Dazai left with Oda and you with Ango; the latter opening the passenger door for you.

"Angoo" you whined as you dropped onto the cushioned seat "My head hurts"

"Of course it hurts. You've had a lot to drink" he said in a slightly amused voice.

You noticed a few weeks prior that Ango would often let his guard down when it was only the two of you. It was a subtle change but you still noticed it: his shoulders were less tense, the line between his eyebrows would almost completely fade and he'd laugh more often.

During the ride home you looked at his profile. You were mesmerized by the way the city lights reflected in his glasses.

Without thinking, you reached for his glasses and snatched them, causing the man to almost crash into a nearby car. He managed to pull over in an empty parking space.

"Jesus, Y/N. I almost hit someone what are you doing?" he questioned in a harsh voice; but all his anger dissipated when he saw you propped against the door, adjusting his glasses on your face.

"Looook Ango. I'm pretty just like you now" you blurted out while smiling from ear to ear. A slight blush tinted his cheeks as he seized his glasses, earning another whine from you.

You were both quiet for the rest of the ride and by the time he pulled into the parking lot of your building you were almost asleep.

"Wake up, we're here" he spoke, gently shaking your shoulder but you only shurgged.

"Don't wanna go"

Ango looked at you for a few minutes, debating his next actions. He could let you sleep in his car, but that meant he'd have to spend the night in the parking lot. Or he could carry you to your apartment, which is exactly what he ended up doing.

Luckily the building had a functional elevator so he needn't walk you up the stairs to the 16th floor. He unlocked your door and walked inside your flat, placing you on the bed. Even in this drunked state you were pretty; laying on your side, your flushed cheeks like ripe apricots.

Just as he was about to leave you opened your eyes, calling out his name.

"Stay Ango please. Need to tell you s'mthing" you uttered while patting the bed. He cautiously took a seat and you pulled him down next to you, your arms wrapping around his torso.

He tried to protest but to no avail; you wouldn't let him go. Instead, you shifted closer to him, your face finding its way to the crook of his neck as you whispered a soft "I like you Ango" before drifting to sleep.

From then on you started seeing the man more and more often, the relationship between you growing by the day. It was still complicated; Ango was secretive and distant but you compensated with patience and trust. He eventually gave in and in three weeks time you started dating. It was one of the happiest months of your life; the usual missions were followed not by lonely nights, but by wonderful evenings spent in the comforting embrace of your boyfriend. "You did great today", "I'm really proud of you" he'd praise you, his fingers tracing random shapes along your thigh.

You'd often go on small dates: walks in the rain, late night talks under the starry sky on the top of his apartment building, a glass of wine in your hand, quick runs to the bookstore and occasional visits to different art museums; other times you'd simply join Dazai and Oda for drinks at Lupin.

But regardless of what you did in your free time, you did it together, your lives and routines slowly bleeding into eachother.

Your relationship ended abruptly on the day Oda died. When you found out about his involvement in your friend's death you fell to pieces. Although Ango begged you to stay, claiming that he never knew what would happen, that he didn't mean to hurt anyone, you couldn't be with him any longer. At least not now. No, you didn't blame him for Oda's death but he still lied to you and you felt betrayed.

The decisive factor in your resolve to flee the country was Dazai's disappearance. When you received his note saying that he'd left the Mafia and was going under the radar for a while, you booked a one-way flight to Paris, packed your few belongings and left.

Your recollection was interrupted by a loud chime that echoed through the subway, followed by the familiar mechanic voice that announced your arrival at the last station.

You quickly stepped out of the tube and navigated through the maze of tunnels until you reached the surface. A light drizzle had started while you were underground so you hurried home, eager to be confined in the comfort of your apartment.

When you opened the front door, the unopened envelope that lay on the ground caught your eyes. You picked it up and immediately recognized the handwriting. Without wasting a minute you tore the cover and procured the letter inside, your eyes scanning the paper.

Dear Y/N

I thought about whether I should reach out to you or not but I think it's time I did. Since you haven't been returning my calls I decided to write you a letter. It's been two months since Oda died and things are rough here; I just want to know if you're okay and safe. Please come home soon, I miss you.

Ango

You stared at the written piece of papern, tears forming at the corners of your eyes, clouding your vision. A few minutes later you neatly folded the letter, placing it on the countertop.

Maybe you were going to answer him, maybe you were going to go back to Yokohama, to him, but maybe you should think about these things tomorrow. But...

By the time you fell asleep, the night sky was already giving way to the rosy colours of the sunrise. The warm rays that entered the room through your large window fell onto your sleeping figure, illuminating the screen of your phone.

Suddenly, its display lit up and a blip announced that you had a new message:

I see my letter got to you, thanks for texting me. I'm really glad you're doing okay. Whenever you decide to come back I'll be here for you. ~Ango

[ironstrange1991]

Safe In Your Arms

Hurt/Comfort/+18 Smut

Pairing: Defender!Strange x Fem!Reader (Established relationship)

Synopsis: The reader has a really bad day at work and Stephen helps her to feel better.

Warnings: Sexual content including cockwarming and creampie

A/N: I literally cried while writing this and I really hope this little story can make other people feel better on bad days.

You were used to having bad days at work, in fact most days were bad, but today had been the worst of them all and you couldn't deal with events like you normally did, basically just ignoring them and pretending it didn't affected you. You spent the whole day with that horrible feeling that you only knew how to describe as the same feeling you get when you're a kid and you have to go to school and you spend the whole period holding back your tears and wishing you were home in the comfort of your mother’s arms. But in your case, all you wanted was to be in the comfort of your husband's arms.

There were only 40 minutes left for you to go home. You were hiding inside the bathroom so that no one would see you crying and at that moment inside that ridiculously small cubicle you asked yourself why you put up with that. While you'd like to think of yourself as an independent woman, and indeed you were, everything you achieved in life was through your own efforts, you were also the wife and mother of the daughter of the greatest man in the world. Dr Stephen Strange, Sorcerer Supreme of Earth, founder and leader of the Defenders. So why would you allow yourself to be treated that way? All for an independence that made no sense.

You were absolutely sure that there was more dignity in just being a wife and mother than subjecting yourself to having a job where you were treated like a machine without feelings.

You sighed wiping the tears and flushed to cover it up and left the cubicle relieved to see the empty bathroom. You splashed water on your face and dried it with a sheet of paper, took a deep breath and left.

When your shift ended you left work and went straight to the building's parking lot, you sighed heavily throwing your bag on the passenger seat and turning the key, but the car made an irritating noise and refused to start. You sighed, trying to calm down, turned the key back on, waited a few seconds, and tried again. The car refused to start.

"Fuck, fuck, FUCK" you screamed hitting the steering wheel and surrendering to tears.

Stephen got home around 3pm which was actually a miracle considering he almost always got home after dark. He took advantage of his free time to dedicate himself to his daughter, helped her finish her homework and, as agreed, took her to her maternal grandparents' house to spend the weekend. He had barely returned home when the cell phone rang and before you even said anything he already knew something was wrong. He could hear you sobbing over the device.

"Hey baby, what’s wrong?"

You inhaled deeply trying to calm yourself down and then started talking "I... I want to go home but the car won't start and I'm so tired..."

Stephen ran to his room while trying to calm you down "Baby, talk to me, did something happen? Are you hurt?"

You were crying so loudly and so nervously. "Stephen, please, can you portal me home?"

He took his sling ring from the bedside table "Of course, baby. Just tell me where you are"

"I'm in the parking lot of the building..."

He turned off his cell phone and immediately opened a portal to you. He opened the car door and held your hand and just like a child who cries even more when see their mother, you hugged him and burst into uncontrollable tears. He put his arms around you "Baby you're scaring me, what happened?" You did not answer.

Stephen took you through the portal and made you sit on the bed and again opened a portal this time to the kitchen. He got a glass of water and came back and handed it to you and sat down next to you.

You drank it trying to calm down, your hand was shaking so he held it tight in his and waited what felt like a long time for you to stop crying.

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

You nodded but remained silent. He took the glass from your hand and placed it on the bedside table and then knelt down in front of you taking off your shoes. He touched your face nodding "Okay, tell me when you're ready. I'll prepare a hot bath for you." He got up, but you grabbed his hand like you were afraid he was going to leave you.

"It's okay, I'll be right back"

You let him go still with a lot of hesitation. He prepared the bathtub for you with warm water and lavender essence to try to calm you down and then picked you up and took you to the bathroom. He undressed you slowly and you sat in the bathtub letting the water envelop your whole body.

After the shower you put on a T-shirt and crawled into bed, tucking yourself under the covers. Stephen insisted that you should eat something, but you vehemently declined the idea. He sat down on the bed next to you and just stayed there, not imposing a conversation you weren't prepared to have. You sighed feeling your body slowly relax, just his presence was enough to make you feel better.

When your hand sought his after a while, he laced his fingers through yours with a sigh. You knew he was worried and you didn't want to leave him like that. "I had a really bad day at work but I don't want to talk about it" You said "But I'm fine, no one has done anything physically to me"

He agreed bringing your hand to his lips and kissing it affectionately "You know I'm here for you. I'll always be by your side."

You forced a smile "I know. Can I cuddle with you?" He smiles opening his arms "Of course, baby, come here"

You wrapped your arms around him and laid your head on his chest. His arms squeezed you against his body and he rested his chin on your head, his hand rubbing your arm up and down gently.

"No matter what happens at work or anywhere else, I want you to remember that you are loved and worthy of that love, okay?" Stephen said calmly and you felt the lump in your throat forming again, the tears welling up in your eyes again. "When I'm working, on this planet, or any other planet, sometimes in another dimension, fighting all kinds of things... I am always thinking of you."

He brought his hand up to your hair lightly stroking it and even though you were sobbing he kept talking calmly, his baritone voice almost whispered to you "I think of your smile, the way your eyes light up when you see that I've come home, the sound of your laughter and the way your shoulders shake when you laugh until you can't breathe" He kissed the top of your head lingeringly and then rested his cheek there pressing you against his chest even more "You give me the strength to endure all the horrible things I have to do. Do you know why? Because you are everything to me, you are my best friend, my wife and the mother of my beautiful daughter. You make me so happy. I need you to remember that."

You turned to look at him and cupped his face "I love you" Your voice was a mere husky whisper "I love you so much it hurts." You kissed him softly, just a touch of lips, but then you deepened the kiss, your tongue forcing itself against his mouth. He hummed in surprise but kissed you back with the same intensity.

There was a need to be close to Stephen that merely being in his arms didn't seem to satisfy, you needed to feel his body against yours and your hands were quick to free him from the shirt he was wearing, but he held your hands stopping you.

"Baby, talk to me. I am not sure about this"

You sighed "Stephen please, I need you"

He shook his head "I am right here. I will always be here for you, but we cant use sex to get away from everything."

You shook your head "It's not about the sex, it's about you, I need to feel you, please"

He was silent for a second, his lips a thin line, then he pulled his shirt off and revealed his bare chest to you. His hands went down to the hem of your shirt helping you get rid of it. He struggled with the clasp of your bra, his hands shaking more than usual. You smiled at him unbuttoning it and getting rid of it. Stephen touched your collarbone with the back of his hand and lightly trailed down one of your breasts, he sighed heavily as your hand cupped his cheek, leaning his face against your touch as if he needed it more than you did.

"You are so beautiful" You confessed in awe and he smiles pulling you to his lips and a second later you were lying underneath him, your back on the mattress, his hands going down to the waistband of your panties. He undressed you and then got up to get rid of his own pants and boxers and went back to bed lying on top of you, balancing his body weight on his elbows so he wouldn't crush you.

You sighed at the feeling of being skin to skin with him, Stephen was so warm, his scent was so intoxicating, you felt so good.

Stephen was walking on eggshells with you. He didn't want to have sex with you because he thought that was a terrible way to deal with the problem, but at the same time he knew he would do anything you asked. All he wanted was to make you feel better.

"Stephen..." you touched his face and spread your legs wider so he could fit better between them "I need you inside me, please?"

How could he say no to that request? Especially when you did that tearful pout like you needed it to live. He kissed you moving his lips down to your neck feeling your skin crawl with the feel of his beard touching you, his hand went down between you touching you where you needed him, you were wet but not enough and he didn't want to hurt you.

He reached over to the bedside table drawer and pulled out a small bottle of lube. He knelt between your legs and put some of the clear gel on his fingertips and entered you slowly with them. You moaned softly, your eyes fixed on him the entire time. He put some more lube on his cock and gave it a couple of jerks to get ready for you. He penetrated you slowly, a low moan escaping his throat feeling your walls accommodate every inch of him until he was bottomed inside you.

You cupped his face with both hands with sweet despair "You feel so good Stephen, can we stay like this just for a few minutes?"

Fuck, he didn't know how long he could last when you felt so good around him like that, but he had to remind himself that this wasn't for him. "Of course baby, anything you want"

He kissed you and made a point of whispering sweet nothings in your ear, biting your earlobe, kissing your neck, sucking the skin leaving read marks. Stephen couldn't say how long exactly you two stayed there like that, but he could feel your walls clenching around him which made it impossible for him to hold out a minute longer without moving. Fortunately, you felt the same way.

"Baby please move, make me cum" He kissed you, eager to obey your request, but at the same time afraid that he wouldn't hold out long enough. He could feel his balls tightening, his cock was pulsing already and all he didn't want was to come before you and let you down.

He moved slowly, making love to you in slow motion, whispering in your ear how much you made him feel good and how much he loved you.

Your legs twined around his hips, your nails raking his back, your breathing getting more ragged, there were tears in your eyes. "Stephen...kiss me" He kissed you hard and you moaned into his lips as your whole body shook beneath him with your orgasm, your pussy squeezing his cock so good carrying it into his as well. He groaned into your lips, your mouths never parted.

You never got tired of the feeling of Stephen coming inside you. It felt huge, it felt a lot and it was warm and right because in those moment he was proving you were his and there was nothing in the world that would make you feel better than knowing you were Stephen's. Fuck how weird it sounded, you liked knowing Stephen owned you.

He wiped a tear that was running down your face with his thumb and then he kissed the tip of your nose and gave you another kiss on your forehead managing to make you smile. He moved to get up, but you held him back. "No, please, I don't want you to pull out."

He nodded but held you tight managing to lie sideways on the mattress, your leg wrapped around his waist, your head on his shoulder, his arms around your body, he still buried deep inside you, your faces just inches apart. He kissed your eyelid and then the other watching your eyes close despite the efforts you made to keep them open. Your hand sought out his hair instinctively, your fingers playing with a lock, curling it around your index finger like you've done a million times before.

"You can sleep now, I'm not going anywhere" His voice was husky. "You promise?"

He nodded "I promise"

You smiled shyly at him closing your eyes and letting sleep slowly envelop you.

Stephen sighed feeling the post-orgasm relaxation drag him to sleep too, the movements of your fingers in his hair also contributed to making him drowsy, not to mention the feeling of being buried inside you. You felt so warm.

He knew very well that he would have to talk to you properly tomorrow. For months he had watched as your work drained you and it wasn't unusual for you to come home tired and sad, but he had never seen you like that and as far as he was concerned it would never happen again, but that night he would let you sleep feeling safe in his arms.

Leave a comment if you liked it. Interact! I will love to read all of your comments and opinions. It inspires me to keep writing ;)

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[shuttershocky]

Short answer: Wonder Egg Priority went from being one of the best-written, most emotionally raw shows out there to being one of the stupidest.

It went from being a brutal, heartbreaking, yet nuanced look at the suicide epidemic among young girls in Japan, to undercutting everything it had done to explore all the nuanced reasons why people do that by saying “um actually there’s this entity doing it”. It also tried to explain all the various parts of the show in a scientific way, when previously everyone had already assumed it was vaugely magical, didn’t really need and explaination for how it worked, and had already achieved suspension of disbelief. A suspension which was destroyed by them trying to explain it with science. Essentially every single plot detail introduced after episode…9 or 10 (?) was the dumbest thing ever. The production also basically completely fell apart, and the follow up episode they made due to delays (and had 3 months to make), which was supposed to be 40 minutes, was actually 20 minutes of recap and 20 minutes of animation that didn’t at all match the standard the series had previously set. Moreover, even putting the delays aside, people were already concerned about the series managing to wrap up all its plot threads conclusively going into the last 2 or so episodes that aired normally, and we ended up hoping the special ep would fix that. Hearing it was 40 minutes gave us some hope, because that might be barely enough to do a satisfying conclusion. Instead, in addition to the lacking amount of new content, it spent those 20 minutes SETTING UP a bunch of new plot threads and resolving none of them.

And y’know, bad shows with production disasters and terrible endings happen all the time. But the reason why people were so mad at WEP is because before it fell apart? It was an actual, legitimate masterpiece. WEP was set to go down in history as an instant classic, one of the most unique and striking and ponigant original animes ever written, pairing devastating writing and themes with jaw-dropping and endlessly creative animation. It was, before it fell apart, one of the most unambiguous 10/10 shows I’ve ever seen. So the reason people are mad at WEP, or rather at the writers (production issues can be forgiven, the animation team tried their best), is because the clusterfuck it devolved into destroyed the potential of something truly unique and beautiful.

if that was the short answer I sure am afraid of what the detailed one actually is

[waitmyturtles]

Absolute Zero, episode 2: I've spent the past 40 minutes trying to figure out what to write, which means this will be short, but how can I best put into words the feelings that this show is conjuring for me? As of right now, only two episodes in: this show is crisp, it's MOVING in its DELIBERATE pace, and it is playing with a LOT.

Adult Suansoon has moved to the past, and is connecting with teen Ongsa, which means age gap, and damn it if it's not being recognized and handled with GRACE by young and old alike in teen Ongsa's community -- including by Nan, the ultimate coffee auntie played by SINE INTHIRA, HELLO GODDESS.

And, just. Krist Teng Kanist's ACTING here. He is just, whoa. Adult Suansoon's gotta make some decisions about figuring out WHY he moved to the past, while adult Ongsa recovers from his terrible accident, all while adult Suansoon is just ENJOYING the moments he's getting with teen Ongsa, meeting teen Ongsa's friends, enjoying the life moments he's sharing in teen Ongsa's life with Nan, how teen Ongsa shows his caring side for adult Suansoon.

How Krist Teng is allowing his adult Suansoon to take his time in thinking about the move he needs to make to change the past for a better future. This show is giving him the room to start making some huge decisions, and in this episode, we got to learn a lot about adult Suansoon's emotional pacing, which will clearly be valuable information moving forward.

I took a note during the episode about what he means that Suansoon has spent the majority of his life parentless -- and how that will play into his decision, whatever that decision is, to mess with the past. I am wondering in the back of my head if Suansoon has, say, a fatalistic assumption that he will always end up alone. But -- would Ongsa's love, either from the past and/or the present, infiltrate to keep that from happening? I wonder. But I'm clocking this.

We have good BL elders in this show. Sine, Um Apsari (Pete's mom from Love By Chance), Tom Phollawat (Loong Krit, Korn's brother, from Until We Meet Again; Pear's dad from Be My Favorite).

But, man -- is Krist Teng ever mounting a comeback here. I didn't know that Nat from Gay OK Bangkok had this in him, but what an EVOCATIVE performance in this episode, managing everything from time travel to a dalliance in age gap, with attention and intention. This episode was so quiet and so huge. And WHOA -- just BEAUTIFUL to look at, exquisite filming. New Siwaj is just damn spoiling us.

[caricature-of-fic]

mini fic for btvs 1x05 Never Kill a Boy on the First Date

Buffy & Willow; gen; general audiences

---

coda.

“Willow, am I frivolous?”

“Hmm?” Willow kept her eyes on the page until she had finished the sentence and covered the period at its end with her index finger before raising her head. “Sorry, what did you say?”

“Frivolous.” Buffy wasn’t looking at her. Well, she wasn’t not looking at her, or at least, she was looking in Willow’s general direction, but she was doing it in a strange, avoiding-any-direct-looking way. Instead, she seemed distracted by the book, of all things. “Just… something that Owen said.”

“Owen said something? I thought he was kinda… you know.” An idiot who’d only gotten properly interested in Buffy once he realised she could give him adrenaline kicks, or something. “Out of the picture.”

“He is! Something he said before. Before all of… that.”

“Oh. Okay.” With only a small twinge of regret, Willow removed her finger from between the pages and replaced it with the bookmark. “What did he say?”

“Something about… that he doesn’t think dating is important. And that he doesn’t bother with it because he thinks most girls are frivolous. I kinda brushed it off at the time, I mean, he was on a date with me and dancing and all. But I just… Willow, he reads Dickinson. And I’m pretty sure he only thought I wasn’t frivolous is because I lied about liking Dickinson, too.”

A few potential responses ran through Willow’s brain at that, not all of them charitable. A lot of girls were frivolous, in her opinion. Which was what doomed Willow to unpopularity, because she wasn’t, but which also provided the comforting thought that she didn’t want to be like that, anyway. Not really. Even if it would be nice to be included, sometimes. Except she’d have assumed Buffy was like those girls, too, wouldn’t she?

And Buffy was, wasn’t she? She was pretty and stylish and got asked out by boys and didn’t like studying and didn’t care about books except when a cute boy made her lie about it. But… she also wasn’t like that, because she also cared about other people’s feelings and she hung out with Willow, which showed a clear at least sort-of disregard for her social status, and she spent a lot of time hanging out in graveyards and doing backflips at vampires before shoving stakes in their hearts. So that firmly differentiated her from, say, Cordelia.

Except. If Buffy hadn’t chosen to befriend Willow, Willow would never know all these things about her. She’d just see her as one more popular, shallow, frivolous girl with nothing but boys on the brain, someone Willow wanted nothing to do with while also desperately wishing to be accepted and included by, and she really preferred not to think too deeply on that contradiction because now it just made her wonder if maybe Cordelia was doing heroic things without anyone’s knowledge.

She probably wasn’t, but still.

“I tried reading Dickinson,” Buffy mumbled. Willow hoped this had been a natural continuation and not a despondence caused by her failing to answer for too long. “Why would you put that many dashes into a poem? You’d think she'd know how to finish sentences, if she writes so much poetry.”

“Not reading Dickinson does not make you frivolous,” Willow declared firmly. That much, she knew. “Reading it just makes you broody. Just look at Owen. 40 minutes straight, remember? See what reading dash-filled poetry about death does to you.”

“He wasn’t quite so broody anymore after seeing death for real.” There was a hint of bitterness in Buffy’s voice.

“I guess not. But, Buffy…”

“What?”

“Maybe—maybe someone who goes from ‘broody death poem reader’ straight to ‘let’s challenge death by starting bar fights at 3am’ isn’t really the best partner to have, anyway?”

“I… yeah. Yeah, maybe not.” Buffy huffed a laugh, and Willow grinned at her.

“There’s plenty of other fish in the sea. Or the school. Anyway, what’d that Angel guy actually want before we showed up…?”

[cynosdaydream]

𝙏𝙖𝙡𝙠𝙨 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧 𝙩𝙚𝙖

Now playing : Killshot by Magdelena Bay

Volume: ■■■■■□□□

HistoryProfessor!Zhongli x EnglishProfessor!Reader

Word Count: 1.4k words

A/N: I hope the ending made sense I genuinely have no idea how to write a confession scene

A heavy sigh of exasperation left your mouth as you stepped out of the classroom, already looking forward to your break which seemed so far away. A few of your students clearly woke up and chose violence, as they were extremely uncooperative during your lesson today. Your head hurt when you thought about what may be in store for you during the next class. While you were still wallowing in fatigue, you didn’t notice the tall figure heading in the opposite direction of you, only putting the pieces together after the files you were holding were knocked out of your hand, colourful folders spilling over the floor. Your eyes shot open, an apology on the tip of your tongue as you looked up at the unknown person. You were caught off guard as slender hands hovered over yours, and a deep voice following, “Ah, I sincerely apologise. Let me help you pick them up.” Freezing in your place, you tried your best to form a coherent sentence. “N-no, I can pick them up by myself. Thank you though.” 

After that incident, students were left wondering why you came to class 10 minutes late, with an extremely flushed face, no less. 

“Would you like to chat with me over a cup of tea sometime?” A now familiar voice could be heard from behind you. Over some time, you had befriended the school’s most popular history teacher, known for his good looks and tendency to go on about the history of osmanthus wine Zhongli. “Sure, when are you free?” You inquired, already looking forward to having tea with the handsome man. 

You two ended up having tea together on a Friday afternoon, making small talk about anything and everything while the warm breeze flowed through your hair. These tea sessions became more and more frequent, to the point that you had it written into your weekly schedule. “Teatime with Zhongli, 3-4pm” Even though those were hours that the Sun was shining down on Earth relentlessly, it was the only time both of you did not have lessons to teach. 

.·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ .

“I am going overseas with some of my students for a lesson on different cultures.” Zhongli suddenly said one day, taking a sip of his tea. “Oh.” you mused, not sure how to react to that piece of information. “I’ll be fine, I guess?” You said. Maybe you would miss him? You weren’t sure. These conversations over tea stirred foriegn emotions within you which you could not figure out for the life of you. Whatever, you’ll push them away and leave it as a problem for another time. 

·͙*̩̩͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩̥͙　✩　*̩̩̥͙˚̩̥̩̥*̩̩͙‧͙ 

Once again, you were left alone at your work cubicle, idly staring at the bright screen. What were you supposed to be doing right now? Checking your schedule, you realise that afternoons were usually spent drinking a wide variety of teas with Zhongli. You find yourself missing them, the absence of the history professor leaving a hole in your heart. You didn’t think you would miss him so much, thinking you weren't that close to him. 

Your students were once again left wondering why you were in such an irritable mood these few days. 

3 more days, 2 more days, one more day. You had recently gotten into the habit of counting down the days until Zhongli came back from overseas. Of course you had other friends to hang out with you, but 3 to 4 pm in the afternoons were spent tiredly answering emails or marking late work, scrutinising every little detail. 

Online texts with him were either rushed or dry, as handling over 40 students at once was tiring and left him with his hands full. However, in spite of all his fatigue, you would always fall asleep to a short voice message of him telling you about his day and wake up to a “Good morning, sunshine.” The nickname made your heart flutter slightly, and longed even more for him to hurry up and come back. “These are signs that you may be in love with h-” you cut yourself off immediately, deciding that you would keep procrastinating your own feelings towards Zhongli.

“Are you fucking kidding me.” you said monotonously, blankly staring at the message you just received.  “The flight we were scheduled to take back was cancelled due to foreseen bad weather, so I am afraid my return will be delayed by four or five hours. Faithfully, Zhongli.”

It was already 2 in the afternoon, and you stood stupidly at the entrance of the school awaiting his return. Dejectedly dragging yourself through the halls and back into your  office, you quickly replied to his message by saying “No worries! Take your time :).”  You just hope that the next flight would come sooner than expected.

Maybe this was the only time that the archons above had answered your prayers, as at exactly 5:35pm you heard loud chattering coming from the ground floor. When you looked outside the window, there was a flood of students walking into the school carrying large duffle bags or luggages. Your eyes subconsciously scanned for a certain brown-haired professor, and you spotted him, right at the front of the entrance, already heading in.

Realising that it would be highly unprofessional to run down the stairs and throw your arms around him (and likely give him the impression that you liked him– even though you did), you opted for just waiting for him outside his office. “Welcome back. Did you miss me?” you joked, a small grin on your face. “Very much.” He responded. “I believe we have missed a few of our afternoon chats over tea.” His reply made you feel giddy and your head felt like it was spinning. “Very much.” Kept replaying over and over in your head, and you realised you have to formulate an answer lest you seem rude or awkward. “Let me make it up to you.” his honeyed voice continued, gently placing your hand in his as he led you into his office. Who knew such a simple action could make your face as red as a glass of wine. (I really hope that sentence makes sense.) 

You were sitting beside the window as the evening sun when your train of thought was interrupted by Zhongli asking, “I think we should try a type of herbal tea today. Do you prefer Ginger tea or Hibiscus tea?” 

Pouring you a cup of fragrant hibiscus tea, he started telling you all about his overseas trip. How troublesome some of the students were, how beautiful some of the sceneries were and— “During the trip, I missed you, although we would chat every day. I also apologise if I seemed to dry during our conversations.” Even though he lifted up the teacup to cover his slightly red face, you could see the tips of his ears turn pink. You felt your heartbeat speed up, and heat rising up your face. Then it struck you. That you were in love with this hot mess of a man. That you couldn’t run from these feelings anymore.

Day after day of saying “I’ll leave my feelings for another time.”. This was the moment you realised that you had to acknowledge this fact. It was like the hand of fate grabbed you by the chin and forced you to look at a screen with big, bold words that spelled out, “You are in love with Zhongli.” 

And maybe, just maybe, he would reciprocate this forgien feeling. Mouth running dry, you mustered up the courage to murmur, “i, uh, missed you too. Maybe a bit too much to be considered friendly.” You tighten your grip on the teacup, filled with hope that he would accept this confession of love or at least turn you down kindly. What if you had misinterpreted his subtle pet names? What if you misunderstood the way he blushed and avoided your eyes whenever he caught you staring? You tried a small smile, hoping the rejection wouldn't be too harsh.

However, when you looked up, you found Zhongli staring at you with a gaze filled with adoration and… is that disappointment? Why would he be disappointed? “I must say, I am a bit disappointed in the fact that you confessed to me first.” He laughed, reading your expression. Oh.. oh. Oh. “I.. I like you too. Are you willing to be with me for as long as this lasts?” 

[bright-and-burning]

thank you for the tag @albonoooo <333

star sign: leo (attention whore signs 4 the win)

favourite holiday: my neighborhood does neighbor day every year and that’s a solid percentage of my favorite childhood memories. my neighborhood is very very close (very much so an “it takes a village” mentality) so i grew up with essentially twenty aunts and uncles. and also like ten dogs and thirteen vaguely cousin-esque figures on my block. anyways it’s like a massive potluck barbecue thing, it goes from like noon to whenever the last person heads in (which can be quite late). think like. potluck barbecue to casual day drinking to big bonfire w smores as the day goes by. as a kid i spent the whole day roaming the neighborhood and coming back every so often to grab food from the tables before heading off again. as an adult i got to get drunk on seltzers with a bunch of 50 somethings and it was incredible

last meal: omg it was my last ohio meal… i got it from this really special like local version of sonic’s (like a drive up food place). they make their burgers w a little bit of brown sugar and mashed banana (they’re the best burgers i’ve ever had). so i had a double hamburger w fries and a mint shake w brownie spindled in. if you’re ever driving through ohio PLEASE hit me up to get this place’s name it’s GLORIOUS. 1980s pricing (admittedly 80s portions too lol). neon signs everywhere. what i will miss the most

current favourite musician: i tend to just hit play on my liked songs so whatever i liked most recently gets played wayyyy more. a lot of the backseat lovers rn

last music listened to: mama’s gun by glass animals (BANGER OF A SONG!!!)

last movie watched: the muppet christmas carol i think . yeah according to letterboxd that lmfao

last tv show watched: i just binged monarch: legacy of monsters w my parents (amazing godzilla tv show but godzilla’s only in it for like. 10 minutes total lol. gay people <3) and then we started lockwood & co tonight on a whim

last book/fic finished: the invisible library by genevieve cogman !!! so good. librarian spy thieves…

last book/fic abandoned: oh gosh. i am such a completionist that i don’t think i ever leave books unfinished. technically i won’t be able to finish the masked city (the sequel to the invisible library) bc it belongs to the library and i am moving. but i will be picking it back up as soon as i have a library card in my new area so? does that even count? yeah i don’t really dnf things

currently reading: the masked city by genevieve cogman technically. lol. i’m trying to read at least a page a day in january. some days that means literally reading a page other days it’s reading 300. since i started the masked city like four days ago ive only made it through 30 pages bc moving is a nightmare so.

last thing researched for writing/art/hyperfixation: hm. technically for the last thing i like posted that would be the drug testing guidelines for f1 (tldr fun fact party drugs are fine out of competition). i read like. 60 pages of legalese. and a bunch of medical stuff and then several wikipedia pages and guides for athletes. the last wikipedia article i opened was for NATO and i have no idea why LOL

favourite online fandom memory: i have the memory of a goldfish… i’m also pretty sure f1 is the first time i’ve been involved w a fandom like. as it’s happening. i’m usually a latecomer . i did enjoy whatever the fuck went down w supernatural and putin that was fun second hand (literally thru a groupchat bc i was in my significantly less terminally online era aka i was in college)

favourite old fandom you wish would drag you back in/have a resurgence: newsies (1992) my beloved… i plotted out a fic that would stretch over like. 40 years. i went INSANE on historical accuracy research. and then i got depressed… someday my magnum opus (slice of life polyamory through turn of the century nyc) will come to fruition

favourite thing you enjoy that never had an active or big fandom, but you wish it did: i feel like there’s been a million times i’ve walked out of a movie (or finished a book, or a tv show) and gone to ao3 and then it has like. 4 works. the rivers of london series by ben aaronovitch only has like . 1k fics on ao3. and not a lot of ppl posting on tumblr. so maybe that?

tempting project you're trying to rein in/don't have time for: all of them tbh… runners au really (it’s spawned into like three different fics of plot lines Plus an epistolary type companion…). i literally constantly come up w ideas (usually hyper specific aus) all the time ask dees it’s a PROBLEM for me. bc i have no time for any of them…

no pressure tags if u wld like <3 @userkritaaay @leclercenjoyer @drivestraight @oscarpiastriwdc @eyes-likepilotlights (i have not paid a ton of attention to who has done this/been tagged sorry)

[childe-the-harbinger]

Them around kittens!💕

Characters: Venti, Xiao, Childe, Mona, Ganyu, Yelan

Genre: Fluff Headcanons

A/N -- I'm adopting another cat and I went to the shelter today and spent an hour inside a room full of kittens and I miss them so now I'm writing this</3

•Why would you bring Venti to the kitten room? You knew he was allergic, but it's not deadly, so it's fine.. Right?

•The second he entered, he regretted even taking his human form. He tried backing out, but the door behind him was locked. He was STUCK.

•He kinda just sat in the corner, that was until a kitten walked over to him, so he had to "run" away, which he couldn't since he kept sneezing over and over..

•After a while, he had just accepted his fate.

•He probably ran home crying..

~

•Xiao had only come along thinking it'd be a quick stop, but you spent too long with the little kittens in his opinion.

•Though he was just sitting down on the ground beside you, all of the kittens came to lie on his lap instead of yours

•Eventually, when you were ready to leave, he was the one who wanted to stay longer..

•Let's just say that you ended up adopting 4 kittens that day. Why only 4? They only allowed 4 at a time as a maximum.

~

•It was actually Childe's idea to go looking for a kitten. You had taken him to be a dog person, but he had you fooled.

•He had picked up one of those cat toy sticks and starting waving them around all the kittens.

(One of these)

•He got around 5 hyperactive kittens playing, jumping in the air at any opportunity.

•He eventually had to leave because the store was closing.. (yeah, he stayed there for that long..)

~

•Mona never would've had enough money for a fuzzy little kitten, but luckily, you helped her pay, I mean, how could you not??

•She personally picked the small calm black cat with bright blue eyes. Since she is The Astrologist in town, she had to name her kitten Luna.

•Though that kitten was small and calm at the time, they love playing with Mona's globe. She doesn't have the heart to tell the kitten to stop.

~

•Although Ganyu was a dog person, she definitely wanted to go with you to get a kitten. She needed to try something new every so often, so she decided why not.

•She bonded with mostly the older cats, such as the kittens moms.

•One cat went over to her and laid in her lap and she just froze.. (pun not intended.

•She had chosen a cuddly, affectionate cat after around 40 minutes of being around all the kittens.. She adopted it with you that day.

~

•Yelan had no particular interest in adopting pets, so you really had to convince her.

•"What? Why would you need a pet when you have me? Plus, I may be too busy to help take care of it"

•You took her anyways because you knew how she would immediately change her mind once she spotted the cats, especially the babies.

•"Oh my archons! Look at this one, and this one, too!"

•It was hard to convince her not to apply to adopt them all. Instead, you got two kittens from the same litter.

•She definitely took back what she said before about cats

[fawnandshadows]

Fawn Fest — Love In Every Stitch

Prompt: Hehehe I used knitting for this prompt! But this is a very special addition for fawn fest because it a gift to my friend @thefangirlofhp !! Happy Belated Birthday!! I'm also pretty sure the one year anniversary of our friendship is coming up which is insane to me because I feel like we just started talking the other day. I am so grateful to have you in my life!! Thank you for all the times you've made me laugh, all the help that you have given me on my writing, and all the times you've listened to me ramble about anything and everything. Thank you for gracing the world with beautiful writing. And thank you for just being you <3

Rating: T-ish

Warnings: Language, mentions of a character death

Word Count: 2.9k

AO3

Azriel stretched his scarred hands after setting down the two metallic needles that he had been holding for hours — for the past 40 minutes the tension had been building in his hands from the tedious movements, but he didn’t want to sleep without finishing his work. 

His knuckles sang with relief as he stretched his phalanges and his tightened scar tissue slowly melted into relaxation as he massaged his hands. 

“How does this look?” Azriel asked, nodding to the creation that laid flat on the coffee table.

He could hear the fridge shutting behind him and then the heavy footfalls of Cassian moving across the hardwood floor, and Azriel tensed as his brother approached. Azriel had spent his entire weekend working on the project in front of him, and despite his reputation as being clueless, Azriel knew that his brother understood why he dedicated 48 hours of his life to knitting a cardigan that would be useless in a few months. But that didn’t stop Azriel from dedicating all of his free time to making sure that every single stitch was perfect. 

With a groan Cassian sat down next to him, Azriel could feel the leather of the couch sinking from his brother's weight, and Cassian leaned forward to drop his can of beer on the coffee table next to the small cardigan. 

Azriel looked at him sharply, silently warning his brother not to spill, and Cassian rolled his eyes and scooted the frosty can across the table. 

Cassian picked up the small article of clothing and inspected it, and Azriel had to admit that the sweater looked ridiculous in Cassian’s large hands. The entire garment had alternating pink and purple rows — Azriel did his best to knit small flowers into the design, and he thought that he did a good job, but now that someone else was looking at it he was hit with a sudden wave of anxiety. 

“You actually made this?” Cassian asked, turning the cardigan around to look at the back and running his fingers along the rows of stitches. “Just this weekend?” Azriel nodded his head in response, his eyes trained on the cardigan because he didn’t want to see whatever expression was on Cassian’s face, but he was aware of the way Cassian shook his head and let loose a low whistle. “She’s going to love it, Az. They both are.” 

Cassian set Azriel’s work back on the table and clapped his brother on the shoulder. 

“Are you going tomorrow?” Azriel asked. 

“Yeah, I can give it to her if you want.” Cassian offered, reaching over to grab his beer and opening it. 

Azriel waited until the pop and fizz had subsided before saying, “No, I’ll give it to her myself.” 

A choking sound came from Cassian’s throat, and Azriel finally looked at his brother to see his eyebrows raised to the top of his head and beer dripping down his chin. 

Once Cassian managed to breathe again he said, “I should have known, really, especially since…” His voice drifted off, and his eyes landed on the cardigan that Azriel had knit. 

Azriel simply nodded his head in acknowledgment of what Cassian had left unsaid. 

With a stretch, Azriel stood and said good night to Cassian before turning in for the night. 

___

Azriel didn’t know what to expect at a child’s birthday party, and in reality he should have expected screaming children to be a part of it, but that didn’t stop him from internally cringing as the loud shrieks of laughter filled the air and grated on his nerves. 

And they were all running. 

All of them. Not one single child stood still. And two of them almost knocked Azriel over as they rushed past while playing an intense game of tag — they had almost knocked the gift out of his hand, but Azriel had managed to clutch it to his chest just in time. 

“You made it!” Elain’s voice called out through the noise, and Azriel swiveled in her direction. His body answered before his brain could think. He instantly relaxed as his eyes landed on her smiling form, and the small child that was resting on her hip. 

“Ash! Cash!” The birthday girl beamed as she saw her two uncles, and she slapped her pudgy hands togethers as they approached. 

As they walked closer Azriel could see her golden brown eyes — eyes that were just a hair lighter than her mothers, but just as warm and friendly — gleaming with happiness. She leaned forward, almost toppling out of Elain’s hold, and reached her arms up so that Azriel could grab her. 

Her legs clung to his chest like a spider and her arms wrapped around his neck. 

There was something that absolutely floored Azriel every time he held Sofia in his arms. Maybe it was the fact that she was so small and warm that it set off his protective instinct. Maybe it was because the young girl had immediately taken to Azriel, not once had she ever been frightened of his size or the markings on the backs of his hands, and she always just seemed happy to see him. Maybe it was because Sofia was so damn fragile and innocent that it stunned Azriel every time he saw her. Or maybe it was because there was so much of Elain in her that it caused such a reaction in him, but as he felt the racing of her heart beating in her tiny chest his resolve to protect her from the worst part of life strengthened. 

“Happy Birthday Sofia.” Azriel said and planted a kiss on her forehead, and little brown curls that had escaped from her pigtails tickled his nose. 

“Momma says I’m five!” Sofia said, grinning broadly in a way that caused her cheeks to puff out like a chipmunk. “She also says to thank you for coming,” The little girl placed her hands against Azriel’s chest and toyed with the buttons on his jacket. She looked a little sheepish as she leaned closer to him. “She got mad ‘cause I forgot to thank Fey.” Her voice dropped to a whisper and her brown eyes turned wide and glassy. “But I didn’t mean it.”

“You should probably thank Cassian.” Azriel whispered as he leaned forward, making sure that his face was as serious as hers, and stifled the laughter that bubbled in his chest as she eagerly nodded along — little brown curls flying. 

So, Azriel handed her to her other uncle and looked at Elain and ignored the way his heart strained in his chest. 

“Hi, Lain.” Azriel said as he leaned forward and kissed her cheek, placing one hand on her shoulder while the other gripped the present he had wrapped in newspaper. He had spent so much time on the actual gift that he had forgotten to get the wrappings for it, so he hoped Sofia didn’t mind unwrapping cartoons off an old shoe box. 

“I didn’t think you would be able to make it,” Elain said smiling, and if Azriel was to believe his own eyes, then she was blushing and the pink tint to her cheeks was because of him. “I know how hard it is for doctors to take a day off of work. It really means a lot,” Elain leaned forward and pressed a chaste kiss to his cheek and Azriel felt his breath turn heavy in his lungs. Her lips brushed against his ear as she spoke. “Her father couldn’t make it.” 

His body stilled at the words, and he turned to look at the little girl who was climbing over her uncle and laughing brightly. 

“Graysen’s an asshole.” Azriel said through clenched teeth, his fingers digging into her shoulder. The thick green sweater she was wearing bunched up under his hand.

“At least she has you,” Elain said softly, placing her hand over his. “Her favorite uncle.” 

Azriel nearly fell apart at the seams from the warmth and happiness shimmering in Elain’s eyes. 

“He doesn’t deserve you as a wife, Elain.” 

Azriel could hear her breath hitching in her throat. 

“Pretty soon he won’t have me as a wife.” Elain said in a hesitant voice, and it wasn’t until then that Azriel noticed the absence of a ring on her finger. 

“Elain—”

“We can talk about it later,” Elain cut him off and pressed another kiss to his cheek and Azriel swore that he could feel the Earth spinning on its axis. The leaves on the trees suddenly turned vivid — fiery red and burning oranges. And yet the beauty of the fall day around them was dim in comparison to Elain. She took a step away from him until she was just out of reach and motioned to the gift. “For Sofia?” 

Azriel nodded stiffly and handed it over to her. 

His heart went from freezing to doing somersaults to flatlining to spinning, and Azriel barely remembered to follow Elain and Cassian as they walked towards the gift table. Sofia was smiling over Cassian’s broad shoulder at him, and Azriel forced a smile in return. 

Elain. Elain single. Elain without a husband. 

He tried to calm himself — He was a fucking doctor, he knew how to keep his head cool and his hands steady under pressure, but the thought of Elain finally free from her fucking rat of a husband sent every cell of his being spiraling.

There were so many nights where Azriel held Elain’s crying and shaking form as she wondered where her husband was, and so many times where Azriel had dropped everything when Graysen didn’t show up — like when Elain’s father had died and Graysen couldn’t come home from his damned business trip, so Azriel had traveled with Elain to the funeral and held Sofia’s sad and confused body to his chest, small tears running down her plump cheeks as they lowered her grandfather into the ground. 

Azriel remember every fucking second of that trip, especially as Elain looked at him with watery eyes and said he was more of a father to Sofia than Graysen ever was. He loathed himself because he let himself feel a small tug of hope in his chest during some of the worst days in Elain’s life. And ever since then he was waiting for the day where Elain would finally leave her shitty husband — she deserved so much better. Someone that actually showed up. Someone that actually cared about her and Sofia.

“You good?” 

Cassian’s voice lurched Azriel out of his own head, and Azriel looked up to see Cassian looking at him with concerned eyes. 

“All good.” Azriel said with a tight nod of his head. 

“Ash needs cake!” Sofia said, her back practically breaking from the way she leaned backward to look at Azriel. Her messy pigtails floating next to her face. 

“I’d love some, sweetheart.” Azriel said, catching Sofia as she leaned further back. 

Her sharp giggle rang through the air as she enjoyed her two seconds of freefalling. 

“Shoulders!” Sofia screeched and she climbed over her uncle, and Azriel laid two steadying hands on the child. “Momma!” Sofia shouted as her tiny, pudgy fingers gripped Azriel’s inky hair. “Ash needs cake!” 

Elain looked over her shoulder at them, and Azriel would have given anything to know what she was thinking. 

He watched as she sliced a piece of cake — the corner piece with extra frosting —  and handed it to him. He tried not to read into the way her fingers lingered against his.

“Bite?” Sofia whispered as soon as her mother walked away, her heavy breath next to his cheek. Azriel turned to look at her and immediately noticed how her eyes were trained on the massive slice of cake, and Azriel wondered how long it would be until she started drooling. He quickly sunk the plastic fork into the vanilla cake and stuffed it into her mouth before he found out. 

“Tank you.” Sofia said, crumbs flying out of her mouth. A bit of frosting was smeared on her face and Azriel lifted a thumb to wipe it away. 

The two silently shared the cake and by the time they were done it was time to open presents. 

Azriel easily lifted Sofia off of his shoulders and sat her at the head of a picnic table, on a large wooden chair decorated with pink and purple flowers. 

He dutifully took all of the discarded wrapping paper that Sofia threw around as she unwrapped her presents and placed it into the trash bag that he had taken from Elain’s hands. 

Eventually, Sofia was handed a present decorated with peanuts comics. She ripped the paper away to expose the box beneath, and Elain raised an eyebrow at Azriel and said, “Size 13 converse? They might be a bit big.” 

Azriel rolled his eyes with a smile and urged Sofia to open the box. 

A soft gasp fell from Elain’s lips as she took its contents.

Two chubby hands gripped the cardigan that Azriel had made, and Sofia looked at it in wonder. Her pink mouth fell open and her innocent eyes widened, and Azriel couldn’t remember ever seeing an expression that was so pure and wholesome. 

“Pink,” Sofia whispered almost reverently, “Purple,” Azriel had never seen eyes that wide before. “I want to wear it please,” Sofia turned towards her mother and extended her arms out, showing off her present. “Please Momma.” She shook the small cardigan. 

Elain moved quickly, taking the sweater from her childs hand and tucking it into the crook of her elbow. She undid the zipper on Sofia’s sweatshirt, revealing a matching pink shirt underneath, and maneuvered Sofia’s soft arms into the sleeves of the cardigan and then buttoned the silver plastic buttons on the front of the cardigan. 

Azriel was more than a little relieved to see that the cardigan was a hair too big, so that it had a little more life in it than he had previously expected. 

 “No eating while you’re wearing this, darling, we don’t want it getting dirty,” Elain said as she kissed Sofia on the cheek, the small girl twisted to show off her new sweater. Her little arms stretched out as she looked at the sleeves with a dazed smile. Elain took a step back, leaning into Azriel as she whispered, “She loves it.”

“I thought she might,” Azriel, smiling down at Elain. “I figured pink and purple would be a safe choice.” 

It was well known that Sofia loved anything and everything in those colors, and more often than not her fingernails were painted in differing shades from the palest pink to bright magenta to the deepest purple.

“It’s unique,” Elain commented as she looked at her daughter. “Where did you get it?” 

There was a beat of silence, which caused Elain to turn her face towards Azriel. But Azriel kept his eyes trained on the preening child.

“I made it.” Azriel said in a tone he hoped was casual, but he could feel Elain stiffen at his side. 

“Az,” Elain whispered and placed her palm against the back of his hand, over the scars that mangled his skin. “Thank you — That’s amazing. How did you even find the time? How —” Her fingers pressed closer to his skin, and Azriel finally turned to look at her and the way that she was looking at her, as if he had somehow pulled the stars out of the night sky and handed them to her as if they were diamonds, made his knees quake. “Thank you.” 

Elain leaned on to her tippy toes and pressed a kiss to the corner of his mouth. The soft skin of her lips barely connecting with his, but it was enough to make Azriel dizzy. 

“Pretty?” 

They pulled away at the sound of Sofia’s little voice.

Azriel looked at the little girl who had her hands fisted in the hem of her sweater, and he noticed the nervous way she looked around and the pink blush on her plump cheeks. His heart nearly melted at her bashful expression. 

Sofia looked at them with large doe eyes as she waited for their answer. 

Azriel dropped the trash bag from his hand and let it fall to the grass at his feet, and he placed his hands on his knees as he knelt towards Sofia.

Delicate blonde lashes lined her eyes as she looked at him, as if she was nervous about what he would say. 

“Beautiful,” Azriel said and kissed her forehead, “Just like your mom.” 

Sofia bent a little at the knees and smiled at the words.

“Thank you for my present.” Sofia said, wrapping her arms around herself. 

“I’m glad you like it.”

“He worked all weekend on it, bunny.” Cassian’s booming voice came from across the table, and Azriel turned towards it to see his brother with his arm wrapped around Nesta’s shoulder. 

A loud gasp came from the little girl. 

Azriel looked and saw two brown eyes staring at him in amazement. 

“Ash made it?” Sofia asked as she fingered the fabric. Azriel slowly nodded his head. “How?”

Azriel raised his hands and pantomimed knitting and said, “Well, I use two needles and I wrap the yarn around the needles, and I move the needles like this and it creates a stitch.” The little girl's eyes followed the movements of his hands.

She let go of her sweater and brought two hands out to clasp one of Azriel’s, her small, pale hands gently moving over the gnarly scars on his skin. 

“Beautiful,” Sofia said and pressed a wet kiss on the back of his hand before dropping his hand completely and reaching up to wrap her arms around his neck. “Thank you.”

--

tagging: @thefangirlofhp @sakurakittypeach @impossiblescissorspeachpaper @feyredarlinq @alwayssara @nyxreads @rinadragomir @secretpuppyflower @captainbrucebanner @ultadverb @irisesforelain @shedoessoshedoes @magnolia-blossom87 @sheena-beene @nivem565

[reimoires]

—LATE NIGHT ICE CREAM DATES!!

(sleepy) gf!reader x bf!sunoo

GENRE :: short but a lot of fluff 🫂

[reader has she / her pronouns, pet names, slightly jealous and teaser sunoo | LET ME KNOW IF I MISSED ANYTHING !]

sunoo, now we all know that kim sunoo likes mint chocolate, despite his members not being such a huge huge fan of it , AND I THOUGHT OF ICE CREAM DATES CUZ YES ! ! but make it late at night 🫶🏼

1:30 am.

"jagiyaa ~" a masculine voice whines out in the middle of the night, disturbing the girl beside him. "sun, it's 1:30 am .. why are you still awake?" y/n huffs out a sigh, rubbing her eyes in slight annoyance. "i was thinking of something," turning his body to face his lover as he paused to take in her soft features, "is it possible if we could go out for a walk?"

y/n raises one of her eyebrows at this, wondering why he brought up 'walking outside' in the middle of the night. "i saw another one of those tiktoks the other day . . and a mint chocolate ice cream won't hurt ~ please love, i'll even treat you if you want." he pouts, trying to get her to agree to his silly date idea, knowing that she could barely and rarely say no to him. y/n mumbled something under her breath, staring at her boyfriend, till she finally answered yes to sunoo's idea.

1:40 am.

arms linked, they walked to the nearby ice cream shop, one smiling like an idiot and the other looking extremely sleepy (now you could probably guess who's who). sunoo set his girlfriend down gently on the seat as she couldn't hold herself up despite the walk being 5 minutes away from sunoo's house. "one mint chocolate ice cream and one cookies n' cream please for my sleepy girlfriend," emphazing the word girlfriend, sunoo made it clear he was loud and proud to call l/n y/n his girlfriend, especially towards this cashier who kept glancing at her. the guy put his order in, and got the ice cream for the couple, bitterly saying thank you after taking one last look at the sleepy girl.

1:43 am ♡

fluttering her eyes open, y/n found herself off the ground, the older seemingly had given her a piggyback ride which explains why she's being carried. "aren't you tired?" she mumbled in his ear. sunoo faltered in his steps, getting startled by her suddenly speaking. "i can never be tired of you, i love you too much to say that, hm?" he casually flirts causing the latter to hit his back, cheeks glowing red by the unexpected flirt.

— "just keep walking or i'll fall asleep harder on your back to make it ache the next morning, sun."

"oh cmon y/n! i was just teasing but anything for youu~"

"you've spent too much time with heeseung, haven't you?" sunoo therefore laughs at her commentary, holding her tightly in his soft grasp as they walk through the night together.

oh well, i guess late night walks aren't bad even if you're sleepy, just as long as it's with him.

🎧 ; hihi rei here , sunoo is my ult so ofc i had to write about him first <3 i thought of this recent headcanon that he loves late night ice cream dates, even treating his lover to their fav ice cream because he LOVES LOVESS seeing them smile !!

[toxicanonymity]

My dude, as I get notification after notification about your posts every day, I had to wonder... How do you find the time to write SO much? Only because I can't even keep up with READING it all, let alone having the creativity to write that much 😂 And by that I mean, Kudos to you 👏🏻 Truly an inspiration 🙌🏼 Love the dirty, depraved world you've created 😝

Thank you 😅🖤 This might be rhetorical but I'm gonna give it a real answer. Also, I don't read nearly as much as I write. I feel guilty about all the amazing fics I haven't read. But I get caught up in getting my thots out.

I "write" in my head a lot when I'm not actually writing. Like I'm bound to have a mess of thoughts while I drive, so to make that time more productive and relaxing, as I walk to my car I might decide which story I'm going to think about and what I want to figure out. With that focus and some luck, it might come together enough that once I'm in a position to "actually" write, it pours out of my fingers.

I can type really fast. Full speed is well over 100 wpm, brazenly making typos and nonsense. Of course I rarely type that fast, but the fact that I can when I need to get a thought out helps. I had to take typing in school but really honed my skills on AOL AIM lol. I was able to type and edit "night walks morning after" in < 1hr because the thoughts were there.

For me it replaces other habits like scrolling the news or insta or Twitter or watching Netflix. Also I will write anywhere. I once wrote a whole smut scene standing in line at Burlington for 40 minutes. If I'm standing in line or a waiting room more than a couple minutes, better believe I'm opening google docs or my tumblr.

I multitask to get thoughts out. Like I will write on my phone at the gym while I'm on the recumbant bike.

It's my favorite thing to do these days, so I will dedicate time to it. Over recent weekends, I've spent a good bit of time at the library writing.

I maximize efficiency by writing whatever I feel like at any given moment. This helps me be in a natural flow where I'm not thinking too hard. This is why I can't say whether or when I'll do or finish something. And why a request may sit in my inbox so long then suddenly get done when inspiration strikes,.

[musette22]

Hellooo, it's me, I'm alive! Sorry for disappearing again this weekend, I hope everyone had a great one! 💛 Mine was really really wonderful, so, time to overshare because I'm feeling all mushy and tired but happy. These past few days made me realize once again how lucky I am to have so many incredible people in my life 💕 I love them SO much and I'm so grateful they love me too, which sounds cheesy but it's true 😅

I don't think anyone particularly needs these, but I still want to share some of the stuff my friends and family have said and done this weekend just because they're pretty amazing and I kind of wanted to write it down to remember it (I'll put most of it under the cut though, because it got longer than I anticipated. whoops, who's surprised, not me either)

So my friend's little boy, who is three, got a little confused about pronouns while he was chatting away, and accidentally called me a 'he'. His mom gently corrected him like, "No honey, auntie Minnie is a she." And when he asked why, she said "Because Minnie feels like a she. What do you feel like?" And he gave it some thought and said "I think I feel like a he", so she said, "Well, there you go, we'll call you a he then! But if you feel like a she later on, or auntie Minnie feels like a he, then that's also okay. Does that make sense?" And he looked thoughtful for a second, said "Yep", and carried on playing.

Later that day my other friend picked up her almost one year old, looked at his little face and said "I'm pretty sure he's either going to be a construction worker or a drag queen. Maybe both." And then kissed his nose and told him she'd love him regardless of what he'd become.

I was talking to the husband of one of my friends (who is my friend too, but I knew her first), and out of the blue he asked me, "What kind of music do you like to listen to? I know you like Arctic Monkeys, but what else do you like?" So I told him I listen to a lot of 40s and 50s music, among other things, and then the conversation carried on. And then later that night, Billie Holiday suddenly came on, followed by Chet Baker, and it turned out he'd actually made a whole playlist of 40s music because he realised he'd been playing a lot of recent popular music during the getaway so far, and he wanted me to hear something I liked too

At some point I was talking to the husband of my other friend, and when he asked me whether I'd been seeing anyone lately, I kind of shrugged and told him that it isn't really a priority for me right now, that I'm not excluding the possiblity of dating or starting a family, but I'm not actively looking for it either. He just clinked his beer bottle with mine and said, "Cool, that makes a lot of sense. We don't all have to follow the same path in life to be happy, right?" And I was already grateful that he got it, but then he was quiet for a minute and said, "Shit, I'm sorry, I bet you're fed up with people asking you about dating and kids. It's literally no one's business but yours and I'm sure that if you ever want to talk about it, you'll let us know. I won't ask again."

At some point, my friend suddenly dropped down onto the couch next to me, put her arm around me and said "My god, I feel like we've only talked about kids all weekend, sorry about that." So I assured her I didn't mind at all (I adore those kids, I really do), and she was like, "Still, tell me about what you're reading right now, and while you're at it, please show me the cutest picture of Chris you saw this week," and then she spent a while cooing over my boys with me in return.

I was sitting next to my other friends' three year old little girl in the car on put way back from visiting a nearby castle, and she was super impressed and a little overwhelmed in that way kids have sometimes. She kept wondering aloud whether 'the princess' had been at home, and whether, if she'd ever meet her, the princess would want to be her friend. So I told her that of course the princess would want to be her friend, probably even best friends, and then she laughed and said "No silly, you're my best friend" and hugged me, and I kind of melted into a puddle

During brunch today, I was telling a story about how when I was jogging recently, I thought I was being followed by a guy on a scooter, and that I'd stopped to send my mom my location because I was genuinely a little scared. As it turned out, the guy just wanted directions, so I laughed it off and told the story as a joke, but then my brother frowned and said, "No, but it's not okay that you can't even go on a run without feeling scared just because you're a woman", and then told me he read an article recently about the precautions many women necessarily have to take whenever they go out or go on a date, like location sharing, or faking phonecalls, or bringing pepper spray, because we often fear for our safety in a way that men rarely have to. And then he said he'd never realised that before, apologised to me, his girlfriend and my mom on behalf of men in general, and said he wished we'd never have to deal with any of that

I was talking to my mom while we were on a walk, and she told me about an old friend she'd run into recently. So I asked her how they knew each other, and she proceeded to tell me a story about how in the 80s, they used to do sit-ins together to demonstrate for immigrants' and unemployed people's rights. When I asked her if she'd never been worried about getting arrested or anything like that, she just shrugged and said "Not really, because I knew that we were doing it for the right reasons and that was what mattered most."

Anyway, I know they're all little things and they should all be normal things, but I'm aware that they aren't always, or everywhere, or for everyone. And they just made me stop and marvel at how wonderful these people all are, big and small, how comfortable and at ease I feel around all of them, and how amazing it is that they not only exist and work to make the world a better place, but they also care about me in return. Like, not to sound like a hippie, but whoa, I'm feeling a lot of love and gratitude right now ❤️

[thatonebirdwrites]

19, 39, 40 please! :D

19. Share a snippet from a wip without giving any context for it.

No context, eh? :D

“Flashlights?” Andrea asked. “Mine is busted.” She dug it out of her pack and held it up to the light. A crack down its side and its broken lightbulb made it useless.

Sam dug deeper into her pack. “Oh. Well, that would have been smart to pack, wouldn’t it?” She smiled sheepishly at Andrea.

“Chupame la concha,” Andrea said, probably her favorite curse, which Sam had determined translated to roughly ‘suck my pussy.’ Tempting but unlikely to get them out of this disaster. “Tienés una soga?”

Sam repeated the phrase quietly. “Oh, rope.” She dug through her pack and pulled out nylon rope. “If you’re hoping to lasso your way out, I don’t think that’ll work.”

“Shut up.” Andrea grabbed the rope, stood, and tied the end into a loop. She spent the next ten minutes tossing it upward only for it to catch on a bush or branch or random roots. Each time they broke off and fell into the pit with them.

Sam sighed and gathered up several larger branches that Andrea had pulled in with them. From her pack, she plucked out a cotton shirt and wrapped it around the end as tight as she could. The lighter she used to start their fires would work well for her makeshift torch.

“¿Qué hacés?” Andrea slung the rope over her shoulder and looked pointedly at Sam’s torch. “Do you truly think that will help?”

“It’ll give us light. And I did pack a lot of shirts.” Sam held up her lighter. “Our voices are echoing, so the room likely is larger than it seems. Why not explore? Maybe there’s another way out?”

“Or we're stuck in a pit to die. Qué pelotudo de mierda,” she muttered. “Fine.” She pulled a shirt from her bag and grabbed another branch. It took her two tries to tie it, but it was far too messy. Sam handed her the already made torch and redid it herself. The tighter the cotton shirt was, the better the flames.

Redonning her pack, Sam lit the torches and pocketed the lighter. The light flickered across the ground but the darkness stayed thick. Sam took a few cautious steps out of the circle of sunlight, but her torch still didn’t cast light onto a wall. Instead the ground held odd formations. She bent and ran her fingers over the floor. “Andrea, I think this is cut stone.”

39. Wildest AU scenario you have written?

I started writing a Supercorp version of Lovecraft's A Color Out of Space because of a tumblr post of a bug in a hunter's field cam that made a deer look like it had eight eyes and six legs.

I haven't posted it to AO3 yet, mostly because I'm still writing it and plotting it out, and I don't feel confident in it yet. I had to exorcise Lovecraft's racism and homophobia and well all the -isms from the original story. Basically, I kept the plot: weird meteor lands and strange things happen, and sliced it up to fit the Supercorp world.

The tale is a slow creep horror, where at first things just seem weird. Then you realize things are just the right amount of off that you start to get nervous, until you're in too deep and realize that everything is absolutely horrifying and it's almost too late to stop it.

It's very much a mixture of Jeff Vandermeer's Southern Reach Trilogy (The first book was made into the movie Annihilation) and Hammers on Bone by Cassandra Shaw.

So yes. Supercorp Horror.

40. Write a 9-word fic.

Lena discovered a love of flight in Kara's arms.

or...

Lena's panic ended when Kara flew to her side.

or....

Kara was lost in the green of Lena's eyes.

Gosh doing just nine words is hard but kind of fun. Anyway, thank you for asking! :D