#y'all could learn a lot by paying attention to the small details as this

[hnychn]

𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐓 𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐄 [𝐈𝐈𝐈]

sypnosis : life with your five lovers has been more than fulfilling, but when you're paired with a student from general studies for a project, your quintet seems a little less full

word count : 4000+

warnings : mutual pining, gender neutral reader, relationship insecurities, bakugo tries but. . .it doesn't go as well as he planned, grammar errors and spelling errors, it's . . . a long one, a bit rushed at the end so uhh pls don't mind that :)

parts : [ 𝐈 ] [ 𝐈𝐈 ] [ 𝐈𝐈𝐈 ]

a/n : so sorry for the long wait LMAO- i know i said my bokuto fic would be coming out today but uhhh ahaha my depression hit me full force this weekend and i didn't even look at the dock because i was too busy sleeping, but uhh enjoy this :D

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- WELCOME TO PART THREE sorry for the log wait 😭 life has been kicking my ass but we're not here to hear me complain, we're here for the tea

- so, it's a couple months after you joined the bakusquad and their relationship. and let me tell you, it has been nothing but amazing. 😩 your days are never quiet and they're always filled with some sort of excitement and love.

- you kaminari and mina often get into trouble for leaving the dorms late at night because you want snacks and there's nothing in the kitchens. you become kirishima's pillow, don't matter about your size or whatever, you are his pillow and you better not argue 🔫 sero always puts on some type of bachata or reggaeton or some spanish song and dances with you in his dorms. and bakugo is your go to person to cook with and just generally annoy or prank since it's so easy to get a reaction out of him.

- and you couldn't have asked for a better relationship. you all are so communicative and talk about your feelings often and how you're doing. every saturday or sunday, you all go to a dorm (usually it's bakugo's cause it's the cleanest) and have a huge cuddle pile and talk about your mental states, how you're doing, what you have problems with, etc etc.

- like damn ok i see you with the mentally and emotionally stable relationship 🤪🤪

- it's so refreshing too because sometimes you'll have a tough week and you jsut need to let it all out, and you can in the comfort of bakugo's dorm and you know none of them will judge you because they're all so open about their love for you (and vise versa)

- anyways, yeah y'all got the best relationship

- you never thought about anyone else in a romantic sense because the squad took up nearly all of the space in your heart. but when you teacher announced one day the general studies kids would be coming in to have a joint project to create gadgets for the hero course students, you had no idea your life would suddenly be turned upsidedown.

- you were paired with a guy named shinsou. he looked friendly enough and returned the wave you sent him with a little surprise as he made his way to the open seat next to you. he seemed surprised when you started a small conversation but he talked to you in a quiet soothing voice. he seemed nice enough and you figured the project would be a breeze since he seemed so nice and offered to meet up over the weekend to start up some ideas for the project.

- you agreed and the two of you met up that lunch period in the library to pre-draft some ideas and get to know each other more.

"i'm surprised you don't mind being seen with me."

his sudden comment took you by surprise as you looked up from your paper with messily drawn gadgets and chicken scratch writing to look up at him, "what do you mean?"

it was true you had never seen him before or even heard of him, but his hesitance to talk to you and open up to you made you feel as though you should.

shinsou rubbed the back of his neck and looked away shyly, "so you really haven't heard anything about me, have you?"

he looked almost guilty to bring it up, his gaze falling to the table in front of him as be played with a strand of his hair.

you shook your head. you never really payed attention to gossip around school, your head always too high up in the clouds to care about rumors and gossip (bakugo often scolded you for being such an airhead and ignorant to your surroundings, but you knew he was just worried about something happening to you). plus, to you, gossip was nearly never right and more often made up and fictitious.

shinsou refused to look up at you, "well. . .i'm known throughout the school as a. . ." he looked hesitant to continue but before you could reassure him he didn't have to talk about it if he didn't want to, he continued, "well, a villain."

he prised his lips as if the words left a bitter taste in his mouth, and all you could do was tilt your head. shinsou didn't seem like a bad person - or a 'villain' as he had said. on the way to the library he held open doors for you and helped you carry some of your books to your locker and even bought you a drink you wanted buy but were a bit short of change on.

"do you think you are?"

"what?" shinsou looked at you for the first time since he brought up the topic.

"do you think you're a villain?" he shuffled slightly in his seat and looked away again from your intense stare. he felt like you were looking straight into his soul from how strongly you were looking into his eyes, he wasn't sure if you had even blinked in the last minute.

shinsou thought back to all the times he's been called a villain or a criminal. it was always unwarranted, a passing comment that seemed like no big deal to others but shattered his heart into smaller and smaller pieces. but never once had he ever thought he was a villain - a monster.

if anything, he used those comments as encouragement to become a hero, to be better than those who always thought he would turn to a life of crime. so, "no... i don't think i'm a villain."

"well, that's that."

shinsou could only stare at you, your smile brighter than any star he'd ever seen, so full of hope and encouragement shinsou felt like he could take on the world. he looked away and rubbed the back of his neck, a shy smile pulling at his lips and a weird feeling blossoming in his chest. how curious. . .

- so yeah, a new friendship 🤪 the two of you started to spend a lot of free time together for the project. you would often meet up during lunches or free time between classes to work some more on the project, all the while getting to know each other in depth. you learned many things about shinsou and spilled many of your own secrets, you laughed together over old childhood stories, and played animal crossing on the rooftop during lunch, your project discarded and forgotten beside you.

- your sudden absence didn't go unnoticed by your lovers, and they grew curious to your whereabouts when you would blow them off for the fifth time that week to "work on your project". now, don't get me wrong, they had conplete trust in you and knew you would never cheat, but they were just curious as to what - or who - was taking up so much of your time.

- so, they did the smartest thing, and followed you. after blowing them off for the sixth time, they decided to follow you to your destination. mina and kaminari tried to be inconspicuous and wear disguises, but the fake mustache, black glasses (indoors, might i add) and hat weren't all too discreet as they thought.

- they followed you through every turn and weave you took and hid behind a corner when you stopped at a vending machine to get your favourite drink. but what surprised them the most was you also bought a coffee. bakugo was most surprised you even thought about even touching the can of caffine because he remembered you telling him you would get terrible caffine rushes that would make you dizzy if you drank coffee.

- but, as you finally reached the rooftop and made your way to a hunched over figure in the corner, it all made sense.

- they all saw how effortlessly you and shinsou acted around each other. they could see the soft looks he would send you when you weren't looking and the way his hand would hover over yours for a split second too long before snapping away as if you were made of lava. but surprisingly, they didn't feel any sort of jealousy or anger, it felt like a piece of them had returned they didn't even know was missing. the sort of feeling that walks through the door unexpectedly but it's wholesomely welcomed.

- the "oh, there you are, welcome back" type of feeling. they were happy you had found someone that made you feel comfortable, arguably more comfortable than you had been with them so far because truthfully, while you had felt welcomed and appreciated in the relationship, it still felt like you were an outsider. the five of them had inside jokes before you came and didn't get them when they came up, the five of them had habits special to each other that inadvertently excluded you. and while they never meant to hurt you (god knows that's the last thing they ever wanted to do), they had. but you knew that wasn't their intention so you held no malitious feelings towards them (not that you think you'd ever could).

- but the way you and shinsou so effortlessly opened up to each other, shared intimate details and secrets with each other - it warmed their hearts. so, bakugo grabbed them all by the back of their shirts and dragged them away, mumbling about giving the two of you space. there was a fond look in his eyes as he looked at the two of you he would be teased about later but would deny.

- it was undeniable bakugo held the softest spot for you. he tried as best as he could to include you in their inside jokes and habits but he was. . well . . . bakugo 🧍🏽‍♀️

- words aren't necessarily his strong suit and he could only hope his smaller actions let you know you were as loved and cherished as any of them there. and you knew, you caught on a little after bakugo had a little "secret talk" with the group (that wasn't really secret at all, he grabbed them all by their shirts and dragged them to a secluded spot while you distracted on your phone) and they all started to explain their jokes and include you in their habits.

- anyways, back to you and shinsou. 🤪 he was aware you were in a ployamorous relationship with the bakusquad and he's heard the way you talk about them and the soft airy tone of your voice and the starry look in your eyes; and he didn't want to get in between that. the last thing he ever wanted was to ruin your relationship for his own selfish reasons.

- so for the time being, he would be okay with watching you from afar, the sweetness of your love so close for him to taste; yet too far for him to savour.

- as more and more times passed, the bakusquad began to notice the lingering looks you would give shinsou when you passed him in the halls and how he would always be waiting for you outside of your class with your favourite drink before leaving you to go to lunch while he went off and . . . well, you weren't sure what he did during his free time, but he never brought it up so you never figured to ask.

- when you fell asleep the next time you all had a cuddle session in bakugo's room, they all talked about it. talked about your obvious feelings for each other and the possibility of including shinsou in their relationship. they spent hours talking about it and still talked about it even when the moon vanished over the horizon and the sun rose. and, in not very smart fashion, bakugo was tasked to confronting shinsou about their conclusion.

- which - almost as if there were an author behind all of this - didn't go as well as any of them planned.

it was perfect, really. almost as if the universe had been listening to their conversation and aligned itself perfectly for this very moment.

you woke up that morning with a terrible stomach ache and chose to stay back in your dorm after bakugo made you a bowl of soup and threatened you to take your medicine. his classes ended a little earlier than usual and, sending his lover's a nod, made his way over to your class, where, lo and behold, shinsou was standing near the door, the familiar brand of your favourite drink in one hand and his own cold coffee in the other.

bakugo wasn't sure what he was going to say when he reached shinsou. he opted to just speak from the heart over rehearsing lines with the others like they had wanted, besides, what kind of lover would be be if he couldn't even do this for you? but, what he didn't take into consideration, was his emotional constipation and tsundere attidute.

"hey, eye bags!" bakugo called out.

shinsou nearly jumped out of his skin at bakugo's sudden loud voice. he looked over with the same eyes of indifference he normally had, but bakugo could see the slight far in them. not at his brash attitude (shinsou could never be afriad of bakugo and confronting him before the sports fesitval was a perfect example of that) but the fear of ruining your relationship with the bakusquad.

shinsou nodded at bakugo when he got close enough. bakugo stood in front of him, his hands still shoved into the pockets of his pants, "they're sick."

it was a simple enough statement but shinsou blinked, "what?"

"y/n." bakugo stated and rolled his eyes as if the answer had been written on his forehead (and it basically had, shinsou was just a bit shocked at his appearance), "they're sick and mina's staying back with them in their dorm."

shinsou rubbed the back of his neck, "oh."

there was an awkward silence as the two boys stood in the vacant hallway. bakugo didn't know what to say and shinsou wasn't sure if he should leave or go visit you for their lunch break.

"i'll go drop this off to them-"

"no." bakugo practically growled, "i'll drop it off. go get eat your lunch or i'll make your face an eye bag."

shinsou flushed a bit in embarrassment. he was overstepping, of course he was. for a minute, having you all to himself for nearly a week straight made him forget about the relationship you were in and this was a smack of reality. you weren't his. you were in a relationship with others, other people who could give you nearly double what he could - everything he couldn't.

handing bakugo the drink, shinsou stalked away to the cafeteria, his cheeks still a light shade of pink. bakugo sighed and knew he most likely made things worse, and he came there originally to make things right.

but fate will work itself out. and what will be, will be.

- so... maybe sending bakugo wasn't the best idea ... 🧍🏽‍♀️

- because now, shinsou started avoiding you. when the two for you worked on your projects together, he would remain mostly silent and only input his opinion when he thought of an idea or needed help putting something together. you had no idea why and you honestly felt a little hurt that he ignored you as easily as breathing.

- you brought this up to your lovers on your weekly cuddle session, knowing they would have brought up your downpour attitude either way. what you didn't notice as your face was burried in denki's sweater were the glares they all were throwing at bakugo.

- "yeah, i wonder what happened..." sero smiled, though obviously strained, as he pet your head and told you shinsou was probably just going through something.

- and it was obvious you were hurt that shinsou had suddenly stopped talking to you because honestly it was kind of hard for you to make friends. a lot of people assumed you thought you were higher than everyone else because you were dating five students from the top hero course, but that obviously is far from the truth.

- anyways, a long time goes by and the two of you still haven't rekindled anything and the squad is getting a bit frustrated because hello??? join our cult lover circle ?????

- so the squad comes up with another solution and this time they don't send bakugo to collect shinsou

- they learned their mistake last time.

- anyways

- so sero goes and gets shinsou and tells him you need him for a little last touch of the project since it was near the due date and you wanted to make sure it was perfect. and shinsou agrees to meet up with you and follows sero.

- sero takes him into an empty classroom and it's pitch black. the windows have been covered with tape and all the lights are off. before he could ask what the hell was going on, the door slams shut and the lights suddenly turn on and shinsou's blinded for a moment.

- and he's met with a very interesting sight.

- mina, kaminari, and kirishima are standing in front of him with sunglasses and hats on, their arms are crossed and they have a blank look on their faces (though he can tell kaminari is about to burst into laughter and nearly does but kirishima jabs him in his side.)

- "uhh..."

- "shut up, eye bags." bakugo calls from behind him. he's leaning against the door with his arms crossed and an obviously pissed off look on his face.

- sero is just standing next to him with a 'sorry pal' kind of smile.

- "what is-"

- "what are your intentions with, y/n?" kaminari shouted suddenly as he slammed his hand on a nearby desk.

- "denki- no." mina pushed him back lightly, "that's not what-"

- "did you not listen last night, sparky?" bakugo rolled his eyes and scoffed lightly.

- kaminari shyly scratched his cheek, "i might have fellen asleep-"

- "he did." sero confirmed, "he drooled on me and everything.

- "I do not drool!!"

- "yes you do, it was like a waterfall, 'ki. "

- "no i don't, right kiri?"

- "well.. only a few drops.."

- "WHAT?! and none of you told me?!"

- "well, y/n kind of made us promise not to tell..."

- "SPEAKING OF Y/N," mina interjected into the conversation, her fingers rubbing at her temples as she wondered when she became the rational one, that was bakugo's job, "why don't we stick to the script, boys."

- kirishima slung an arm over her shoulder and pressed a kiss to her cheek, "sorry, princess."

- "right." sero turned to shinsou and crossed his arms, "you have feelings for them don't you?"

- shinsou tensed. his mind was still trying to comprehend the conversation that happened just a few seconds ago and processing the fact that kaminari drools in his sleep. he wasn't sure how to respond.

- of course he had feelings for you, any rational person who came into contact with you would catch feelings. it was part of your natural charm that seemed to effortlessly draw people in and never let them go. in a matter of minutes, you had simultaneously become his best friend and his closest confidant. often at night he cursed himself for catching feelings for you when things were perfect just the way they were.

- but shinsou couldn't help it. you had treated him like a normal person and weren't apprehensive about his quirk. you gave him a taste of normalcy in his world of anxieties and judgement, and he craved more and more the more time he spent with you.

- so dispte wanting to desparately scream 'yes, i do love her' at the top of his lungs, he looked down at the ground, "no. . . i . . i don't."

- "liar."

- bakugo seethed behind him.

- shoving himself off the wall he was leaning on, bakugo walked closer and closer to shinsou as he spoke, "don't lie. we all see the way you look at them, the way your stupid face lights up with a small smile when they're with you or the airy chuckle you give when they do one of those stupid dances when they make food and-"

- "OK OK I GET IT!" shinsou snapped. mina jumped slightly in kirishima's arms and shinsou sent her a small apologetic look, "you know! I'm in love with them! i've been. . ." he trailed off before collapsing into a chair behind him, his head hanging back and staring into the bright flourescent lights hanging from the ceiling.

- "i've been trying to distance myself from them, to make getting over them easier."

- "they've been hurting, y'know."

- shinsou groaned and hid his face in his hands, "i know. you think i don't see the looks they give me when i avoid them in the halls? it hurts knowing i'm the reason they're in pain."

- "so why are you doing it?"

- "because they have you guys," shinsou sighed as it if we're the most obvious thing in the world, "you all could love them a lot more than i ever could alone. plus, they're so happy with you, i couldn't be the reason to disturb that."

- "you gotta be fucking kidding me." bakugo growled and pinched the bridge of his nose.

- kaminari snorted, "i think i just got deja vu."

- "you could say that again," mina sighed, "i'm heading back to the dorms, this is giving me a headache."

- with his arm still slung over her shoulder, kirishima agreed, "yeah, not sure how we didn't see this from the beginning. i'll walk you back, princess."

- shinsou only stared blankly as mina and kirishima left the room with kaminari in tow, complaining about getting some math work done. never in his life did he feel as confused as he did now

- lost. mans was lost..

- someone get him a map and help him please

- they acted as if they hadn't been the ones to literally kidnap him

- only to nonchalantly walk out the door?????

- sero's voice snapped him back to the remaining two people in the room, "you two really are a match made in heaven." sero smiled at him and shinsou felt head rise in his cheeks, whether it be from embarassment or something else, he didn't know.

- "i'll see you two around" and then he left, leaving shinsou alone with bakugo, who had yet to realease the bridge of his nose from his pinch.

- "you're both a pair of dumbasses."

- "i'm offended-"

- "y/n said the same fucking thing when we confronted them."

- shinsou stayed silent.

- "they felt like their presence would ruin the routine we had set a long time ago when we first started our relationship. . . sound familiar?"

- shinsou rubbed the back of his neck and opened his mouth to speak, but bakugo interrupted.

- "shut up, eye bags, i'm not finished."

- "i dIdNt eVEn sAy aNyTHiNg"

- "sure there were some things we had to adjust to include them in our schedule and a whole new bundle of emotions to incorporate into our lives; but the while point of a relationship is to open up slowly and learn to trust the ones you love. and eventually, we all learned to trust them the same way they learned to trust us; but trust isn't something you can learn over night. it's gradual."

- bakugo sighed, how in the hell did he get stuck in this situation again. at the very least no one got injured this time, "what I'm trying to say is, if y/n makes you happy, then we're all willing to let you in our relationship and put our trust in you.

- "will you put your trust in us?"

- how dramatic ˙ ͜ʟ˙

- so

- :) shinsou decides, fuck it. i deserve the good things in life, and he puts his trust in the squad the same way they all put their trust in him.

- and they decided it was a good time to surprise you too and kill two birds with one stone :)

- so you walk in to bakugo's dorm after a long day of school. you were returning from turning in your project with shinsou, and while the teacher had given you many compliments and basically secured your A, you still felt a bit sad knowing it would be the last time you would see shinsou since your schedules didn't collide and you had ended on a . . . confusing note.

- so you were just looking to cuddle with your lovers on a Friday night and wallow away in your sadness.

- when you walked in the group had been piled in their natural spots on bakugo's bed. mina was giggling with kaminari as they scrolled through tiktok, bakugo was reading a book you had reccomend to him a while a go, sero and kirishima were softly play fighting as they laughed and chuckled.

- everything was as it should be

- until you got to where your spot usually was, cradled between bakugo's warm and firm chest and mina's plush thighs and stomach, and it was occupied by someone else.

- everyone stopped what they were doing, as they watched a smile pull at your lips when you recognised the disheveled pruple hair lazily sprawled in your spot. everyone watched with bated breath as they waited for your reaction and small smiles of their own shining through as they watched your interaction.

- you lifted your hand and smacked shinsou's knee that had been raised up slightly as one of his arms lay behind his head and the other fiddled with a bracelet around mina's wrist, and his lips pulled into a lazy smirk of his own as he watched you.

- "get up, fat head, you're in my spot."

- his smirk only grew.

- "do something about it, hero."

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[jd-loves-fiction]

You brought a dog home and Sakusa is trying to refuse that you keep it but ends up being the one cuddling it the most and naming it?

🌙 i-- doggo AND Omi?? Y'all wanna kill me🥺❤️

You laid on Sakusa's chest, warm, loved and blissfully sated, amongst white sheets smelling of his preferred laundry detergent.

You felt the love, truly, you did. Even though your boyfriend wasn't the best at expressing it, you learned that you just needed to pay attention to the details and you'd be able to witness plainly, how much love he shared just with you.

But as you realized the true amount of love Sakusa held within himself, that he just couldn't share with anyone other than you, you had an idea.

How about an outlet? Something that he could pour all his leftover love into without fear of being hurt or betrayed. And it would give all that love back tenfold, in a more physical way than he was used to, but he'd get comfortable with it, that you were sure.

A dog. That was your solution (and self-indulgent wish).

If only he stopped being so fearful of it.

And with this hesitance in mind and seeing no other choice, you decided to indulge in some light postcoital bribery.

He always did become more more likely to indulge you after sex, less tentative as well.

"Say, Omi..." You started softly, voice low and as sweet as honey as you traced mindless, meaningless shapes on his chest.

He let out a breathy grunt in response, content and pliant while running his fingers through your hair absentmindedly with his eyes closed and breathing evening out.

"We should get a dog." You said softly, hoping the assertiveness of your tone would help to convince him that he wanted to do as you said. His brows furrowed, his hazy mind struggling to catch up and fully understand the meaning of your words, he then hummed, the sound of doubt vibrating against your chest. "It would keep me company while you're away, I'll take care of it all the time if you want, I know how tired you get from practice." You reassured him, touch hoping to soothe his worries.

"I guess that's fine." He said tiredly, already half asleep as he unknowingly agreeing with your request.

You would've felt bad or regretted your actions, were it not for the big, shining eyes staring lovingly up at you.

The softness of the ball of fur that you held in your hands worked as stress relief, calming your nerves if only slightly as you waited for Sakusa to come home after an extended period of time abroad for a game.

Upon hearing about this, you realized that it was the perfect opportunity to take in the puppy from the down the street that you'd been eyeing for weeks now and help him get accustomed to the space, so that it didn't cause much trouble.

It'd be easier for Sakusa to accept your decision this way, if he saw how easy it was to take care of the other cutie now in your lives.

Poor thing seemed to have been recently abandoned, and it wasn't exactly young so you saw why, but there was no excuse for it. You immediately called the closest adoption center, only to be told that they only had space to keep him temporarily, a few weeks at best and if he didn't get adopted until then... You didn't ask what would happen but you knew. And you knew you had to take him in, he warned up to you so easily after all.

You stroked the dog's soft fur as you heard the door open, keeping him calm so that he wouldn't jump towards your boyfriend immediately.

You had given him a small heads up to expect something new, a text along the lines of 'I have a surprise for you' and a 'It's not what you're expecting' once he gave hints that his mind was drifting off to something dirtier.

"Baby? What did you mean by 'surprise'?"

"Just give me a moment and you'll see." You said somewhat nervously, picking the animal up as it nuzzled into the warmth of your chest, walking to your entrance where your boyfriend stood, already out of his mask and coat.

"What is that?" Sakusa asked blank, not yet defensive which you counted as a good thing.

"A dog!" You said cheerfully, holding the pet out towards him so that he could take a good look at its seemingly grinning face. "Listen, I know you're hesitant, but let me speak first, before you start thinking stuff up." You said as you saw your boyfriend's brows furrowing.

"First, he was abandoned, so when I saw him I called the adoption center and turns out they could keep him for a little while but not forever, so I went to get him while you were away and he's clean and well behaved!" You rushed out, hoping to convince him before his overthinking could sway his judgement away from yours.

Sakusa sighed, walking towards you, making you pull the dog closer to you protectively. Once he reached you, he bent down to be at eye level with the animal. It seemed to almost reach towards him, legs moving aimlessly, trying to move forward in the air.

"Fine, but you're taking care of it."

Oh, if only he knew how smitten he would end up becoming.

The day you decided to try and figure what to call your new pet besides 'dog' (or 'cutie', as you preferred) was when you realized that maybe, Sakusa might just care a little more than he let show.

"It should be something simple, easy to remember and say." You said absentmindedly as you stroked the subject in question's soft fur.

"How about, Max?"

"That's cliché." Sakusa said bluntly, continuing to do whatever it was that he was doing on his computer, not sparing the two of you a glance.

"Alright then, how about Cooper?"

"Overused."

"You know, for someone who keeps saying the dog's not their business, you sure have a lot of opinions about it." You teased, watching closely as Sakusa seemed to stiffen at your comment.

"Well, if I'm gonna share a house with it, might as well avoid you giving it an annoying name." He said methodically.

"Sure..." You, knowing him, didn't believe him with those shifting eyes and all the squirming.

In the end, you settled on Logan (because apparently he resembled the character's beard), Sakusa's choice despite all his whining.

But it still took awhile longer for him to open up his heart fully, as you'd expected. It hadn't been easy with you either. But boy was it worth it.

One day, after a long day at work, you returned home to the most heartwarming sight. Sakusa laid on the couch, probably so tired from practice that he couldn't make it to the bedroom before fell asleep, while Logan laid on his chest, protected by your boyfriend's gentle hand around its tiny body.

Your heart swelled with emotion as they slept peacefully, all but dead to the world.

So much for not wanting a pet.

[yanderecandystore]

Happy holidays! how about a hot chocolate competition among the yandere ocs and the best one gets a special cabin date with darling?

Hello @teachillvibes, I'm so glad to see you again- Your requests are always so wonderful boo, thanks for requesting me this one!

Happy holidays everyone!! 🎄

TW/Tags: Sweet times cause I sure love them- // kinda like a city festival going on lol // I took your concept and change it a bit I'm sorry boo ;-; // it took me so freaking looooooooong to do it XD I'm sorry- I was kinda hoping that this could be my Christmas gift to y'all ;-;

🍭꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍰꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖🍭

Hot Chocolate Competition [Yandere!OCS x Reader - Headcanon]:

🍒Bullies🍭

→Alexandra Coldwell:

If I'm being honest, she probably would have reconsidered sharing the prize with her brother before she can consider going out with you instead. Alexandra entered the competition solely because she thought it would be fun, after all she isn't really the type to get herself dirty if it isn't for fun.

She wanted to win of course, but surprisingly she did have a lot of fun learning how to make hot chocolate, especially with her brother's help. Alexandra thought it would only make sense to take her brother as her company into this free wintery vacation, yet for some reason he didn't accept her offer.

Adrien felt satisfied with helping his sister as normally his cooking skills are generally unappreciated or ignored, although he appreciated how his sister wanted to pay back for his help, he was already happy with just being the one that got to teach her something new, since it's normally the other way around.

And besides- Free vacation packages are always so lackluster to him, if it isn't a five star service then why even bother? He could literally pay for better treatment than what the prize guarantees anyway.

Still, she wouldn't have accepted it if she didn't have someone in mind already. Yeah, yeah, she knows you probably won't like the idea of spending time with her, especially all alone in the cold.

But- Hey, I think you should give her a chance, after all, isn't this the time to forgive and forget? Maybe not completely forget, but I'm sure she'll do her best to make this the best trip for you, ever!

→Adrien Coldwell:

Adrien is known as the lazy one of the twins, the antisocial, the "mean one" (let's be honest, they're both evil but in different ways-), yet people tend to not give him enough credit for his accomplishments.

Him coming out as the winner of the competition may seem shocking to many but let us all remember that this isn't just his random luck, Adrien really did work his best to win and since he is already interested in making sweet treats for himself you can only imagine how hard he wanted to be recognized at least once.

The prize that he won was a vacation to a winter resort of some kind for two people, meaning him and anyone he would like to bring. Adrien considered bringing his sister, since he felt like it would be better for her to spend Christmas in a cabin with him than at home with... both of their parents and, may he dare say, ridiculous Christmas songs. Those damn, Christmas songs.

But Alexandra made sure to refuse his offer each time he tried to bring up, saying that the place was probably runned down and filthy and that she would never step inside a place like that- Alexandra also said that it wouldn't be fair to go with him since she didn't help him, and that this was something he won on his on, he deserves to enjoy it fully.

But what a dilemma, who would have the privilege of accompanying him to such a "special event"?

You, of course. Even if he knows you would rather be far away from him and get some rest from his constant torment, it's not like he would leave you alone at all lol-

Hey give him a break, will you? I'm sure you'll have a great time with him, he promises he won't do anything stupid while you two are there.

Just let him repay you for an entire year of entertainment, dearest.

🍎Teachers🥧

→Madeline Allen:

Madeline is normally very uninterested in competing with anyone, even if the prize sounds amazing. What made her stay and see more of the event was when she noticed you in the crowd, maybe you were with your friends, although she didn't really see anyone she recognizes as your friends there-

What made her participate and do her very best to win? It was when she noticed how most of the contestants seemed to have a suspicious interest in you, something felt weird in those stares they were giving you. She is a little suspicious about the intentions behind those stares, yet she has to recognize that whenever there is a shiny diamond radiating light, it's hard to not notice. It's obvious that they recognize how shiny you are, love.

It doesn't really excuse their clingy behavior towards you, but sure, she gets why they're doing this, or why they would enter this competition in the first place. All to get your attention apparently.

Honestly, she wasn't planning on entering this competition at all, but… Hmmn, how can she say this nicely- She doesn't like these people trying so hard to get your attention, specially with the prize being something that would give any of them the privilege of having you all by themselves, no dearest, she can't let them have you like that-

Besides! Wouldn't you prefer being with nsomeone that is actually looking forward to making you happy, instead of being stuck with brats, with troublemakers and… uhn- A cosplayer…?

Anyway, all of them are pretty eccentric with their own weird little charm, she is sure they'll be fine, especially far away from you- Believe me, she is so excited about this vacation! Forget about these guys, think about all of the things you two can do!

She is already thinking about what she'll bring with her, some cozy warm clothes, maybe her favorite fuzzy blanket, maybe some of her favorite movies, some rope, an tranquilizer-

Well, who cares about the details anyway?? She is just so excited, she can't wait to give you the best of her cookies!!

→Matthew Robinson:

Matthew is a really reserved individual. Being part of big events is simply not his thing, but it was because of you and that sweet smile of yours that brought him to this place. And well…. The smile stuck in the other contestant's faces… Not that they were even half as charming as yours, on the contrary, they seemed oddly sinister.

Mischievous by their very nature, all of these people seem to be somewhat interested in you, breathing in your presence like you're oxygen itself. Disgusting. For the first time in his life he feels pissed off enough to say he wants to see them drop dead- Not that he'll actually do anything, he is nothing like that.

All of these people seemed really interested in winning that prize and hopefully taking you with them, which of course he couldn't allow it, as your only protection from these fiends.

When he won, he was too dumbfounded to even notice the hatred looks that the other competitors were giving him. He really did win, didn't he? He couldn't believe he won!

For the first time in his life he didn't feel satisfaction that came from the competition itself being great, no, true satisfaction came when you accepted to go with him! That's the golden prize he never thought he deserved, yet feels so rewarding.

Don't worry dearest, he'll take care of everything that you need while you two are there, you'll be treated like the perfect little princess/prince you are, like the perfect doll.

Now he just needs to be sure on what to bring, this is probably the most excited he has been since he was a child!

🍋Delinquents🐍

→Janette Sartorius:

Janette isn't one for entering in these competitions just because, there needs to be a good reason for it, like helping them raise a good funding for some sort of charity, or ya know, impressing that one really cute person in your class. Yeah, really important-

Look, she has a lot of clown energy, she knows it, but being publicly humiliated is absolutely not her thing! And that means being either the loser or the winner, she doesn't know exactly what to say when she is put into such position-

Still, if it means giving you something nice, then sure! She'll take whatever she can, although she was focusing on gaining something like second/third place so she can get something small like a plushie or a basket of chocolate, anything that would be small yet really charming- Just like you!

When the judges announced her as the winner in first place, she couldn't believe it! No- Seriously, she couldn't believe it!! She tried to make sure her presentation would be nice but mild enough to not be considered a winner!! What the hell???

Even if the universe seemed to have betrayed her by making her be the one in front of so many people as she claimed her prize, she was once again blessed with luck, as her prize was something truly worth looking like a fool in front of so many strangers-

Of course she'll take you first! Why not?? It's not that weird, it's just pals being pals and inviting each other to cool trips, ya know?? Surely she isn't screaming inside at how cliche this all seems.

Look at her, NOT thinking about the huge amount of fanfiction she had ever read where there was only one bed! NOT her reconsidering not going because she can't handle the thought of there only one bed. She is totally fine, ya know? NOT thinking you'll hate her when you learn how much of a weeb she is-

She'll make sure that you have fun with her, but you'll probably catch her trying way too hard to impress you very soon- Please, talk with babe- In her brain there is only one neuron, and it's constantly banging its head in the walls of her brain screaming your name.

→Jackson Macnee:

Jack isn't really interested in these competitions, it isn't his thing, he wouldn't waste time on it unless there was something really, really important at hand.

And it seemed like today was the day to do anything that he could to not only enter such stupid competition, but to win it at all costs. It was when he recognized those familiar faces next to yours that he decided to enter it, but it was when he noticed all of the contestants, who were presumably strangers to one another, get somewhat riddled up about your presence.

Yeah sure, you're cute, you're pretty and yes you're perfect, but seeing half of the contestants being so… Clingy over you it's absolutely ridiculous-

What? You know all of them?? Or are you going to tell him that some of these imbeciles got this lovestruck immediately just by taking one glimpse at you? You would sound absolutely insane to him if you have chosen to tell him none of them, absolutely none of them are interested in you in any way- Especially those dumbass bourgeois blondies.

Jesus fuck, what type of luck is that? Having all these morons be so interested in impressing you by winning a prize for you? Sounds dumb to him, but still, if winning it's what takes to make these fools stop daydreaming about you then so be it. It's not that he really wants to impress you by giving the prize he won, he just wants to see the twins cry after noticing the cruel reality that they don't have you- Or that they can't get everything that they want, that could work too-

Jack is sure to seem calm and unbothered throughout the entire event, trying to sound happy that he won, and trying even harder to not make the laugh in the face of the rest of the competitors. But honestly, he wasn't expecting the prize to be so…. convenient? Really? A place where he can take you to be all alone with him while enjoying such a joyful season?? Yes, he'll gladly take it and make sure to shove in everyone's faces, not literally, but clear enough for everyone to get the message.

Although he is happy for his win, he doesn't really know what to do from there- The fact was starting to settle in when he rethought over and over again about the trip. Somewhere all alone with you, sounds really, well, like a dream, like a fantasy, unrealistic.

Jack will do what he does best, fake that he is calm while hiding the fact he is panicking at the thought of being this close to you. Again, he doesn't want you to know how much he wished for this. Whenever he acts like he doesn't care at all, he at least hopes you know you do mean a lot to him.

🍈A.I (non-binary/gender neutral)👾

→Yuma Soma:

Yuma was focused on winning the moment they entered the competition, however they didn't know what the prize would be until they actually won it. They were more interested in the competition aspect of this event than what they would gain with it, yet when hearing what the prize would be they were, well, confused-

What is so special about this whole "free vacation"? A cabin in the middle of the woods with nothing but snow? Pff- As if snow is even that cool for them to want to see it! Yeah, they know what snow is….. 100%...... yeaaaaaah.

Okay fine, they don't really know what it is. I mean- Sure they know the definition of it, and they have seen a bit of it in their game, although they bet that what they have seen isn't half like the real deal.

It may seem silly, but maybe this trip could be a great opportunity for them to be able to see it and feel it for the first time with you by their side. With you trapped inside the game or not.

Don't be so mean boo, they promise they'll behave this time! The biggest gift you can give them it's the wonderful time you two will share, then again, it's not like you can really do anything against it, right?

🍬Kitsune🦊

→Tatsumi:

To be honest, Tatsumi isn't one for entering these types of competitions unless the price is truly worth it. Money would be the first thing in his list of priorities, yet the idea of going into vacation on the holidays doesn't sound half as bad, ya know?

While walking around the city plaza with you, you two noticed the event happening and decided to take a look.

He wanted to try it out because it sounded fun, yet to actually win?? This feels amazing yet somewhat inappropriate to him, he didn't really consider the possibility of winning, that it almost feels like he would be taking something that he doesn't deserve.

And as he struggles to come out with any excuse as to why he can't take the prize, even though he could take it and give it to any of his friends, you decided to intervene and take the prize for him.

You already knew how Tatsumi felt about himself, you didn't know exactly what led to it but you did know about his constant breakdowns whenever he thought no one was looking. He did tell you about some of his issues but whenever he could he would fake it as being something dumb that you shouldn't worry about, but come on- You already know that is bullshit.

Tatsumi would feel better knowing you're coming with him, but he would still feel awkward knowing it's just the two of you, and it's not like he won't receive thousands of messages from all of his friends calling him out for not inviting any of them. It's not like they had anything against you, they just really liked messing with him over his massive crush over a you-

He may be a little sneaky perv bastard, but come on now- You know he will treat you right while you two are there, honestly he just wants to enjoy some change of scenery with his favorite person.

🍰CEO📏

→Ingrid Bright:

First things first, Ingrid is a serious woman owner of the biggest business empire in the country- Do you really think she has time for things like that? Cause either way, even if she lost, she could have- Built a winter resort just for herself if she wanted to go there so badly.

But who knows, maybe she found something charming about winning the competition and sharing the prize with you, it's… A bit more charming than her just bringing you to a place she paid for. Something about the novelty of winning something for you sounds really appealing, maybe even worth the trial and error, and again she doesn't really need it, so there isn't any harm in trying.

Although let's be honest, there is a slight possibility that the game was rigged to her favour considering her own status against the various competitors. What? It's not like she is aware of it, if anything she is just as clueless as every other person competing.

She probably does need some rest from the same boring office that she has to work in everyday, and bringing you with her may be the best part of it all! What do you say? Want to get some rest far away from the company?

Well, maybe not completely far away, considering she is your boss… But, maybe if Ms. Bright gets to relax for a while, she'll eventually soften up. You won't be in an awkward trip with your boss anymore, you'll be on a surprisingly nice vacation with a person you knew for a while but only got to truly know recently. She really hopes you don't see her as just your boss...

🍭꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍰꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖♡🍮꒰⑅ᵕ༚ᵕ꒱˖🍭

[natural-hazard]

Language games and "why do you care?"

epistemic status: wailing and gnashing of teeth The sexual tension between the terms "pragmatic" and "meaningful". We've leaned towards using pragmatic more, I believe because Spendo and Crispith love them some William James. The thing that underlies both of them is this sense of hooking in to what matters to you. I could do without the word "pragmatic"s association with a particular narrow view of what can matter ("his head was in the clouds, he had all these big ideas but no pragmatic inclinations"). I bemoan "meaningful" and "meaning"s rumored (big if true!) association with, well.... "meaningless shit that doesn't connect to real humans, and is something that people play act at". Pragmatic evokes imagery of my "no-nonsense" grandpa who worked at a glass manufacturing plant his whole life and always focused on providing for his family. Meaningful evokes my artsy-fartsy sister who's desperately trying to escape the capitalist machine by trying to become a shaman in Ecuador. Take David Chapman's post (but give it back when you're done, the internet runs out after a while) Meaningful Perception. From our point of view it could just as easily be called "Pragmatic Perception". The structure of how you perceive is shaped by the structure of how you care. When we talk about pragmatic classification systems, though I defs expect lumber-jacks to be more like my grandpa than my sister, we're tapping into the sense in which classification systems are made by people who care about stuff, and are using the classification systems to get more hooks into interacting with what they care about. As it has been, and as it shall be, talking about care can spawn plenty of strife. Because I'm not referencing the things that your self-concept or your Narrative Self (explanation needed, not forthcoming, life's cruel ain't it?) say that you care about. I don't care about what other people think of me... except, of course for all the ways that I do. Having a self-image defined via negative traits (I'm not this, I'm not that) involves paying just as much attention to how others asses you as for positive ones.

"How can you not care?!"

Sometimes it's shouted in a tone of self-righteous indignation. Sometimes it's blurted out in a confused state of reality-shock. Sometimes it comes out as barely more than a whisper, a quiet spell soaked in sadness trying to magik reality into being other than it is. Hypothetical: you and your friends have a little group where y'all get together and talk about movies. Old and new, low brow and high brow, anything that's been on a screen. You gain a reputation in your broader social network as The Movie Folk, ones who are wise in the ways of film, those of nuanced takes and discerning gaze. One day, you find out your friend Ihsmael (it's always an Ihsmael isn't it?), who by the way is one of the more respected and venerated critics in your group, has never watched any of the films you all talk about. He watched a few movies growing up, but decided he doesn't actually enjoy watching films that much and hasn't seen any since he was 8. I can image one who has righteous indignation. WTF Ishmael? The rest of us have been putting in the work for years, and you've just been reading the plot on wikipedia and mashing up takes you found on the obscure and weirdly high quality forum that no one else happened to know? You've cheated! You're a sham! You don't deserve all the adoration you get for your hot takes, I demand you immediately refund everyone who ever gave you social capital! I can imagine one who's brain momentarily glitches as they try to understand how the fuck this is even possible. Why... have you been hanging out in our explicitly movie centric friend crew for multiple years when you don't watch films? The reality-shock alternates between "this makes so little sense I most be missing something" and the existential horror of realizing another human can look at the art you prize most and only care about a minuscule superficial aspect of it (critiquing with friends). Maybe you don't see them as committing status fraud, but you can't help but think that they live in a small sad world, content with only shadows of the real. ---------------------------- Variation in what people care about is fine. Not everyone needs to love A Serious Man as much as me. What's tragic is when I see systematic forces attempting to destroy ways of caring. In one of my favorite blog posts on the internet, Ben Hoffman talks about such an experience when trying to share with a friend a new technique he learned called Goal Factoring (pick some goal you have, see if it's actually you trying to get a few different things which are actually separable as in you could satisfy each of them better by trying to achieve them in different ways)

Naturally, I wanted to share this with others. When I got back home to DC, I tried to teach goal factoring to the Less Wrong meetup there. One participant told me that they'd had a hard time engaging, because their experience with any exercise around explicitly describing goals pattern-matched to things they'd been forced to do in school. For instance, they described an exercise they'd been forced to do at the beginning of the school year. The first step was to list a goal for the year (usually for that particular class), and the next steps were about figuring out how they'd accomplish that goal. They didn't really have specific goals in mind, so they had to make something up. Usually something that they imagined the teacher might approve of. They had effectively been trained to think of reasoning explicitly about goals as something where you have to follow someone else's rules, and has little to do with getting what you actually want. It should be easy to see how this might poison the whole thing. If someone's had enough experiences like that, where something that sort of looks like explicitly reasoning about goals is forced on them in nonsense ways, they might be ruined for goal factoring – and for many other things.

This breaks my heart. The particular connection to the particular technique that is goal factoring isn't important. But the fact that a person's interaction with the school system has effectively poisoned their ability to apply the entirety of their mind the timeless question "what do I see as the good life, and how shall I pursue it?" Many moons ago, in highschool, I suggested to a group that we get gyros, which I pronounced "j-eye-rows". Some nasally voiced twerp "ummmmm AKTUALLY it's pronounced 'year-ohs'". "Great", I thought to myself, "I will now never in my life ever pronounce it the way this fucko just suggested." Many. Such. ✨Cases✨. Schools at their worst (and also at their medium) act as 12 year programs who's end result is smashing one's ability to genuinely care about huge swathes of reality. ----------------------------- Which takes us back to language games (what, you don't remember us ever being at language games? Pal, we've always been at language games). I need to go to work now, so you figure out the connection. It's something like: language games fight each other. Language games have macro-structure (The Situation you are in and it's logic) and micro-structure (how do words actually combine to mean anything?). When people care about vastly different things, it changes the relationship between macro and micro structure of a language game. Two apsie nerds discussing trains is a language game that has a macro-structure, but it's less salient than the specific details they're conveying to each other via highly systematic micro-structure. Two dudes hurling insults at each other in a bar, The Situation screens off other details. The macro screens off the micro. The point of an insult is that it peforms the Insult Move in A Situation. It doesn't matter to much if I call your dad an ass-hat or your mom a cuck. The meaning of the micro is used to understand the move in the macro, and is then unimportant (except via contributing to a certain aesthetic quality and intensity to the macro move). Some macro-structures want to destroy micro-structures that I care a lot about. I aim to do something about this.

[bellesque]

One Kiss (Tom Hiddleston x Reader)

Also available on my AO3.

Rating: G Word Count: 2.5K Tags: Fluff, Best Friends to Lovers, you’re angey and tom calms you down Summary: Whenever one of you is upset, you and your best friend Tom head to your favorite ice cream parlor to vent and eat your feelings. Usually you feel better afterwards. For some reason, this time, a cone of your favorite flavor and a rant doesn't quite do the trick.

A/N:  Hey y'all. Life's been keeping me busy, but I'm back with another Tom oneshot! This was inspired by a conversation I had with a friend about being calmed down by someone she likes. I hope you enjoy!

YOU’RE SEEING RED.

You grind your teeth, feeling the muscle in your jaw twitch as you stalk away. You knew not to engage, not to start fights with people unless you knew you could finish them, but this time they had crossed a line. The safest and smartest course of action for you right now is to literally walk away from it before you do something you regret.

You’re not sure where you’re going exactly. All you know is that you need to get away from Point A and get to Point B, wherever the hell that is.

Rounding the corner to get to your car, you huff at the memory of the things that were said about you. Of the things that were said to you. It all sends a fresh bout of roiling anger to pulse through your veins.

The car door swings open way too wide and you get into the driver’s seat, slamming the door with more force than necessary. You exhale, your eyes scanning your reflection through the rearview mirror. Your cheeks are flushed, your eyes filled with cold rage, your mouth is pressed into a hard line. It’s only now you realize that you’re actually shaking—and then, without warning, you feel hot tears well up in your eyes.

Angrily you swat at your face, your eyebrows scrunching together in frustration. Damn it, why do you have to be an angry crier?

Taking a few shuddering breaths you manage to get your emotions under control, although the frustration still lingers like a gentle nudging.

You can’t stay like this forever. It’s in your nature to feel things and then let it pass, but it isn’t completely out of your system yet; you need to vent.

You try calling your closest friends (all 3 of them), only they’re all busy. It’s fine. You don’t hold it against them, knowing everyone has their own life to live. Only it bothers you a little to think that some of them simply brushed you off and changed the direction of the conversation.

Which leads you here, in the parking lot of your favorite ice cream place. You came here in the hopes of cooling off by buying yourself your go-to ice cream, except you’re short on cash. Which means no ice cream for you, and your irritation levels are still pretty high.

The interior of the car begins to feel suffocating as your mind stews in dark thoughts. You climb out and lean against your car, observing the vehicles passing by on the highway that stretches before you with your arms crossed and your expression sullen.

And then someone calls out your name tentatively.

“I didn’t order anything,” is somehow the answer that spills from your lips, and you don’t bother turning around to check if the person has left or not.

He comes into your peripheral vision, but you don’t look at him until he says, “I knew it was you!”

“Oh. Tom. Hi.” You hastily shuffle your features into a polite smile, an alien action considering you want to be doing anything but that. You’re still a little (considerably) mad.

Tom is an acquaintance to you, a friend of a friend who you met at a small social dinner. You haven’t communicated with him since you were introduced all those months ago. You’re surprised he even took the time out to say hello to you today, seeing as you’ve barely had any interaction with him. He could have easily just went about his day without sparing a second glance at you.

He shifts on his feet, hesitating, before he pulls you in for a half hug. As all awkward encounters go, you’re not sure what to do. You can sense him wondering if his hug of greeting is crossing any line so you make it a point to pat him on the shoulder, letting him know that it’s not a big deal. You’re even rather touched at the action; Tom has always been the portrait of a perfect gentleman, and though you barely know him, you know the kindness and concern he has for others is genuine. The man’s hugging you, all warm and amiable, for goodness sake.

“It’s nice to see you,” you say when you pull away.

Tom smiles, his chin dipping minutely in acknowledgment. “And you too. Did I hear you correctly earlier, did you really not get any ice cream?”

“Oh, uh…” You let out a sheepish laugh. “It’s… fine. It’s nothing. I just…” You look around the parking lot. “Like coming here for no reason…? Ha, no, actually I, uh, needed to let off some steam.” Your babble makes you cringe. Maybe it would have been better if Tom hadn’t stopped to be polite. It would have saved you from wanting the earth to swallow you whole right now.

There’s a subtle shift in the expression Tom wears as he studies you, so slight that you could miss it entirely—only he stands close enough for you to notice the concern in his eyes and the knitting of his brows.

“I’m so sorry, I had no idea,” he says, and the sincerity in his tone almost kills you. “I should have seen that you wanted to be left alone. I hope things turn out alright.” He lays a comforting squeeze on your shoulder. “It was nice meeting you again. Hopefully I can see you another time under better circumstances.”

And before he can take three steps away from you, you call out to him. “Wait.”

You catch up to him and take a deep breath. “I’m sorry, I was being rude. I actually wouldn’t mind the company?” Your statement comes out like a question: a silent invitation for him to stay with you.

It’s ridiculous, you think at the back of your mind. An overstep, considering you just brushed him off earlier and he likely has other plans. But the way Tom simply beams at you, offering to pay for your ice cream (“You wouldn’t come here to just sit in the parking lot. My treat”) abates your aggravation by the smallest degree. You need a friend. He may not be the one you anticipated, but you’re grateful all the same.

He asks about your day and you find yourself pouring out your frustrations, being vague at the beginning until you’re telling him every little thing that’s happened today that went wrong. And he listens with patient understanding, his attention solely focused on you as he sympathizes and empathizes in all the right moments. It’s cathartic, the way you’re able to release everything through words, and Tom doesn’t interrupt you whatsoever. By the end of it, with your stomach full and your heart light, you realize that the afternoon with him was spent fixated on your woe-is-me ranting.

“You don’t deserve that,” you tell him afterwards. “I’m sorry for dumping all that on you. But I’m also really grateful, so, thank you.”

“Don’t apologize. I know what it’s like to need to let things out.” He gives you a genuine smile as you rise to your feet. “I presume now we’ll be keeping in touch?”

“Not just about this situation, I promise,” you grin. “But really—thank you. You really calmed me down.”

“Always happy to help,” he replies, his kind eyes crinkling, and you hug briefly—this time not awkward at all—before parting ways.

Over the next few weeks, you keep in correspondence with Tom. You learn about his work and he talks about his day and vice versa. You talk about your favorite movies, your favorite books, analyzing and exchanging theories. What once was mere acquaintanceship has blossomed into friendship, and you know it isn’t one-sided when Tom calls you, his voice nettled, and you immediately suggest to meet up at the ice cream parlor.

“But I mean,” you add, in fear of… something, you’re not quite sure, “only if you want to.”

“I’ll see you in twenty minutes.”

And so it begins. The ice cream parlor becomes your unspoken sanctuary for when times get tough and one of you needs to get something off their chest. It’s a good friendship, you think, the fact that you’re there for each other in the hard times as well as in the best and goofy times.

You’re happy and content to have someone like Tom in your life. A constant, nonjudgmental, and low-maintenance friend. He isn’t there for just the times you need to vent, no, your friendship has turned out to be something wholesome. You find yourself seeking him out when you have something you want to share, be it something good or something bad, and almost always your mood lifts when you’re with him.

Which is exactly what you need right now.

It’s been a pretty bad day altogether: from the moment you woke up this morning it seemed as though everything was going downhill. You want to have a good cry, to scream and yell. So much has been building up inside you that you’re tired of fighting and you really just need your best friend.

Wow, he really has become your best friend.

It’s the middle of the night and you’re waiting in the ice cream parlor parking lot, a ball of angry energy. You’re pacing—something you don’t do very often—just to calm down a little.

It doesn’t help.

Tom arrives shortly, but he doesn’t acknowledge you. Good, because he knows you need this time to stew a little. Instead he makes a beeline for the ice cream shop’s interior, and he comes out with two cones in each hand. He hands one to you wordlessly.

“Go,” he says, and at the single encouragement you launch into a long-winded detailing of your day. You’re grateful that the shop’s not particularly busy today—your voice is taking on a pretty loud volume in the parking lot, rushed and strained and emotional. You expect to feel the calmness wash over you as soon as you’re finished with your story and your ice cream.

Only you’re still mad.

“Tom. Tom, I’m still mad,” you say, the urgency in your tone almost comical.

He’s thoughtful and quiet, sitting on the hood of your car. “Well, love, sometimes—”

“I don’t really need a speech right now,” you snap. Shit, this is bad. You’ve never once taken out your frustrations on Tom, but that’s also because usually some ice cream and yelling does the trick for you. You’re in foreign territory, and you don’t like it. “I’m sorry, I’m just super stressed.”

“I can see that,” he comments, his blue eyes fixed on you as you begin to pace again.

“It’s just—” You catch yourself before you can rehash everything you just told him. You round on him. “Tom, calm me down. Don’t talk me down, just…”

He rises to his feet, and you continue pacing. “Fuck, why am I so mad?” you hiss, mostly to yourself.

“What do you want me to do?”

“I don’t know!” You stop, raising your hands up in annoyance. “Distract me, anything to get my mind off it. You should be good at that, you’re supposed to be my best friend.” It’s not his fault you’re still nettled, of course it isn’t. You know that. But your emotions are getting the better of you, and everything is starting to spiral. You’re sure Tom is going to be upset with you after this. He doesn’t deserve this version of you. And so you begin to berate yourself, your anger now directed at you and your stupid tendency to—

Tom grabs you by the shoulders and presses a gentle kiss to your forehead.

All the fight from your body seems to dissipate at that very moment, and you stare up at him, dumbfounded. A warmth begins to spread across your body, and it’s not from the previous frustration you were feeling. Your best friend, Tom Hiddleston, he—

You blink. “Did you just—”

“Did it work?” he asks, his voice just barely above a whisper. His gaze is soft, tentative, scanning every inch of your face for any sign of emotion. You open your mouth to respond, but nothing comes out. Dumbstruck, that’s what you are. You didn’t think something as simple as a forehead kiss would render such an effect on you. “Did it take your mind off things?”

“Y-you caught me off-guard,” you answer, suddenly unable to meet his eyes.

“Then I guess it did.”

Your cheeks are warm. Damn it, you never expected to be quieted in such a way. But he’s right—you’re no longer upset, but now all you can think about and obsess over is the way his lips gentled the roaring tigress in you.

You look back on all the times you spent together: how he’s been there for you, and you for him. Silly moments and silly photos. The fuzzy feelings you tried to quell whenever they’d come up. But now they’re here, at the fore of your consciousness, and you fidget.

What are the odds…?

“I’m still a little upset, though,” you say, your voice a little shaky as you take one step closer towards him. You’ve never felt this bold, your heart slamming against your ribcage. Looking up at him, seeing the wonder and longing in his eyes, you think—shit, you hope you’re not wrong—that you both are feeling the exact same way.

His arms settle around your shoulders. Safe, tentative, unsure. “Oh?” He brushes a lock of hair away from your face. Platonic? Could be, to some outsiders. But it’s the way he’s looking at you that gives you the confirmation you need. Here, in this moment, you’re in your own little bubble, the air that was once thick with frustration now thick with tension.

“Yeah, just a little.”

“Do you need another distra—”

You plant your hands on his shoulders and tiptoe, bringing your face to his and kissing him full on the lips to silence him. His arms snake around your waist, delighting you, and your fingers find themselves entangled in his gorgeous curls. It’s not how you picture first kisses to go, but it’s somehow exactly how you pictured kissing Tom would be like. Soft. Sweet. Like coming home.

You pull away, slightly breathless, and Tom rests his forehead against yours. “You have no idea how long I’ve wanted to do that,” he mutters, his eyes closed.

“Hey now, I kissed you,” you tease, giggling. His eyes open, and his grip around your waist tightens.

“Well, we’ll have to fix that, won’t we?” And he pulls you in for another kiss, just as sweet as the first. You think you will never get enough of this, if this is going to be your new life together. You didn’t realize how many romantic feelings you’ve suppressed, but now that they’re finally out in the open it only feels right. To be here, in his arms, in the parking lot of your favorite ice cream place.

You gently place your hands on his chest and your lips part. “I don’t think the staff would appreciate a makeout session out here,” you grin.

Tom’s hand finds yours, and he brushes his thumb over your knuckles before bringing them to his lips for a kiss. “You’re right. Another round of ice cream?”

“I’m in.”

[jadewritings]

Love Letters To My Professor - The Day We Met

PAIRING: Sam Winchester x Reader, Dean Winchester x reader

WORD COUNT: 2k

WARNINGS: Language, dirty thoughts

AUTHOR'S NOTE: This has been in the works for a while and I'm really proud of what I have so far! But I want you all to head the warnings, things will get dark. The summary and everything may make it seem like it's all happy and innocent but I'm a sucker for angst so I'm letting you know it will be dark and there will be warnings for each chapter. Anyway, I hope you enjoy!!

You sighed. It was the first day of actual college. You'd prepared so much over the break and yet, it seemed as though you weren't prepared at all. Of course, it was a bit easier now that you didn't have to worry about paying tuition fees. Your last year of high school guaranteed that with a full ride scholarship from your athletic team.

For the past 5 years you found a love for soccer. It gave you a way to release your energy and also stay healthy. You weren't a confident person by far but soccer helped with it. Switching from high school soccer to college soccer was definitely new. The game was the same but the people, the coaches, everything else.

You made your way to the first class of the day, finding it easy after a nice girl named Genevieve showed you around. It was her second year in college so she was still fairly new to the feeling of being lost and confused on such a huge campus. You showed her your schedule and she lead you to your classes. First class of the day, mythology. It wasn't a class you had to take but it was one you were interested in so you said why not and chose it as one of your extracurriculars.

The huge whiteboard at the front of the room had the words Mr. Winchester scrawled on it in cursive handwriting. Hm. Not bad. You grabbed your bag and searched for your notebook when the professor finally arrived.

"Good morning students!" His voice was loud and cheerful, like he liked what he did for a living. Even though it was the beginning of the year, all you could hear was a grumble of hello's and "sup"s from the students. Guess you were the only one who may have been excited about learning anything from this class.

"Aw come on y'all can do better than that! I'm here to make this class fun, not as boring as you think it'll be." He smiled, scanning the room, looking at the gloomy faces of his students. Until he caught your face in the crowd. Not too excited but interested enough not to seem like you didn't want to be there.

You noticed his gaze stopped on you and he stopped speaking. Your eyes widened slightly and your face began to burn as it heated up, no doubt, the blood rushing to your head. You cast your gaze down at your notebook when you heard him clear his throat and continue.

"Since it's only the first day I'll give you the syllabus for the class. I'd like you to take a look over it to get familiar with what will be going on  throughout the first semester." As he said this he walked to the left side of his desk, taking out a big stack of yellow paper. He brought it over to one side of the room and let the student take one and pass it on.

You took one when it reached you, passing it on to the next person and scanned over the black letters. The first few weeks would be notes about different creatures and a few assignments to research them.  At the end of the semester, there would be a group project and the groups had to be at least 4 or more people.

It didn't sound too bad. You actually liked taking notes especially on stuff like this. You were one of those who had different colored pens or markers for each section. Organized and easy to follow.

Your gaze returned to the professor, he was reading from the syllabus making sure everyone knew what his rules were and explains in more detail what was expected from this semester.

You weren't listening though. You were too busy scanning his body and features. His brown locks fell to his shoulders. You had a feeling he didn't want to cut his hair any shorter. You imagined what it would feel like to run your hands through it. Soft probably. He looked like he took better care of his hair than most girls you've met.

He didn't dress like most of the teachers here though. Most would be in a suit or something but he wore layers. Button up green flannel on top of a black t-shirt that gripped all the right muscles underneath and a pair of baggy jeans that fell just above his ankles. Too short the long ness of his legs. He was quite tall, he practically would tower over you.

You were mesmerized by the pale pink of his lips as he spoke. His tongue darted out along his bottom lip, giving a renewed moisture to the dryness. It made you subconsciously lick your own lips. Man what he could do with that tongue—

Wait, no Y/N! Stop that, he's your teacher! Teacher and student relationships were probably frowned upon. But who cared? You weren't underage and certainly weren't too innocent to consider it.

The bell, signaling the end of the class, caught you off guard. You scrambled to put away your notebook and shoved the syllabus inside it before you tossed it in your bag.

All of the other students were already out of the door so you were the last person in the room other than him. You were about to exit before you stopped at the sound of your name.

"Miss Y/L/N. Would you come here please? I'd like a moment to speak to you." He said, his voice was low and gruff and it sent shivers to your core.

You turned, slight fear that he would yell at you for not really listening during class. Instead, daydreaming. On the first day no less. You walked over to where he sat at his desk, playing nervously with the strap of your bag that hung on your shoulder.

"Y-Yes, Mr. Winchester?" You stuttered. You cursed yourself for being so shy like this. He was just your teacher. A very gorgeous, hunk of a teacher. But that was besides the point.

"Please, call me Sam. After all, you and I will be spending a lot more time together." He smirked and you blushed.

"W-We are?" You asked, trying to hide your face by looking at your shoes. This was very forward of him. You'd only just met why was he coming on to you so suddenly?

"Of course. You play on the soccer team. I'm the head coach." He smiles and your heart sank, a tad disappointed. But why? You'd only just met the guy. "I'm very impressed. I looked at your transcripts and saw that you got a full ride scholarship because of your work on your high school soccer team."

You looked up into his hazel eyes. There were specks of brown and green scattered around the blue. They lulled you in and you took in a sharp breath at the intensity that they held.

"Oh." You said but it was more of a release of air. "I didn't realize you were the head coach."

"Yeah. I was just about to head out to the field. We can go together since you have that next." He said, gathering his keys he'd set on his desk and stuffed his phone in his pocket.

"How do you know that's what I had next?" You eyed him suspiciously.

He turned to look at you, noticing your expression, he laughed. "I know all of my players schedules. I also keep up with their grades to make sure they are able to stay on the team. Nothing weird, I promise."

You nodded your head, suddenly embarrassed that you had practically accused him of being a stalker. Of course the coach knew his players schedules. It made sense. You'd only have mythology class and history class today but you were supposed to go set up things with the team in between before lunch.

He started out of the door and you rushed to meet up with him. His long legs took larger steps than your short ones could. He noticed your struggle to keep up and slowed his pace.

"So... you're the coach and a teacher. Anything else you might want to add to your resume?" You asked, trying to make small talk on the walk to the field.

He chuckled, "Nope. Just those two. Probably couldn't handle much more between all the practices and games and grading papers."

You nodded silently, not sure what to say next. The conversation had gone stalemate. But luckily the field wasn't too far and you already saw a group of girls crowding around what you assumed was the assistant coach.

He was just as much of a hunk as Sam was. He smiled at each of the girls, his emerald eyes sending flirtatious looks at the ones he deemed a fun time. Weird, he kind of looked like Sam. His dirty blond, almost brown hair stood in short spikes, completely different from Sam's.

His eyes landed on you just as Sam had called out to him. He looked you up and down before licking his lips. Man, what is with this guy?

"Dean, this is Y/N. She's another player on the team. Y/N, this is my brother, Dean. The assistant coach for the team." Sam introduced you.

"Ah. The full ride kid. It's a pleasure." His smile changed to a genuine one, no hint of flirty ness. His hand reached out and you took it, giving it a firm grip. Your father had once said that a firm handshake meant you meant business.

His hand held on for a lingering second. You snatched your hand away but slow enough to not seem like you were uncomfortable. He was cute, you couldn't lie. And if he wasn't your coach then you may have invited him back to your dorm but that wasn't the case. You didn't come to college to get laid, you came to get a degree and make it in the sports world. You weren't about to ruin that with a frowned upon hook up. From either of your coaches.

"Pleasures all mine." You said lowly. You turned to the group of girls. Some of them were staring. You weren't sure if it was out of envy at the attention from both the hot coaches or jealousy. You heard a shriek and then fell to the ground, someone on top of you.

The air rushed out of your lungs and you grunted hitting the ground. You looked up shocked and on edge but then you saw the familiar long brown curly locks of hair and brown eyes. Genevieve.

"Damn girl. I didn't realize you were on the team." You huffed out as she stood and held a hand out to help you up.

She smirked, "You never asked."

You both chuckled, "This just means we get to spend more time together." She stated matter of factly.

A clear of their throat turned your attention back to your two coaches. Shock evident in their expressions but it quickly turned to getting down to business.

You and Gen walked over to the rest of the girls and waiting for them to speak.

Sam spoke first, "Alright ladies. Today we are just going to get to know each other and get uniforms situated, along with lockers and such. This is going to be a wild season and I have a feeling we'll do the best we can."

You didn't know how good the other girls were but one thing was for sure, you were going to work your ass off to be the best.

-Part 2-

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[maaaaarveeeeel]

Undercover

Pairings: Bucky Barnes x Reader, Steve Rogers x Reader, James Montgomery Falsworth x Reader

Summary: Reader works for Bucky Barnes mob and when things go wrong she's sent on a job to spy on Steve. Can she make him fall for her to get information for her boss? What happens when her boss falls for her? And can she keep her secret relationship a secret? Or will it all blow up? And who's Readers dad's that she's so scared of finding out about her life?

Warnings: for this chapter mild cussing, mentions of blood and slight violence, fluff? and smut if you squint

A/N: I have no idea where this came from? If y'all like it let me know and I'll keep posting chapters. Sorry for any and all mistakes!

~~~~

"Sweetheart, do you have those papers done yet? I need them before I head out."

You looked up from where you sat at your desk to see a smiling Montgomery leaning against the doorframe to your little office. Sighing, you leaned back against your chair and ran your hands through your hair. 

"No Mr. Falsworth, I haven't finished them yet. I'm sorry." 

Montgomery smiled and pushed off the doorframe to walk into your office more. He walked to your desk and placed both his hands on it. He leaned down so he was eye level with you. 

"How many times do I have to tell you to call me Montgomery and not Mr. Falsworth?" 

You chuckled, shaking your head. "If you hadn't noticed I call all of you Mister. Now if you'd excuse me, I only have two pages left of your paperwork before it's done."

Montgomery rolled his eyes and stood up at this. He looked around your office for a moment before his eyes settled on what he was looking for. Clicking his tongue he made his way over to your cabinet and opened it, pulling out the scotch you kept in there. Pouring himself a small glass he turned back towards you to watch as you finished typing the paperwork. 

"Monty, what's taking you so long?" Dum Dum suddenly appeared at the door, giving the man an annoyed look. 

"Waiting on (y/n) to finish typing that paperwork for us." Montgomery said with a small smile. "Care for a glass?" 

Dum Dum rolled his eyes before stepping into the room and taking the offered glass. He turned towards you and glared slightly. "You were supposed to have them done by now."

"Mr. Barnes needed me to do something for him." You replied simply. "He said it was more pressing. Besides, a two minute delay isn't going to kill you."

Dum Dum growled at that while Montgomery and you chuckled. You quickly typed the last sentence and sent the papers to the printer. Looking at the two men with a smile you pointed at the printer next to them. Montgomery swallowed the rest of his drink before grabbing the papers and looking them over. 

"As always darling you do a wondrous job." He gave you a kiss on the cheek before turning towards Dum Dum. "Come along then Dum Dum. We've got a job to do."

Dum Dum mumbled something under his breath before swallowing the rest of his drink and putting the glass down. The men left your office quickly after that. You sighed and leaned back in your chair and closed your eyes, glad to be done with the fake documents. It wasn't your favorite part of this job, making fake documents or forging paperwork. If you made even the smallest of mistakes one of the men could be caught, hurt or possibly killed. 

A small smile graced your lips at the thought of your job. It wasn't exactly something you'd run home and brag about, in fact as far as your family knew you just worked at a bar. Truth was you worked as a secretary for one of the most well known mobs in New York. Well, that's what you called yourself anyway. 

When you were first hired three years ago you really did just work at one of the famous mob boss James Buchanan Barnes's bars. You were a simple bartender, and that was it. Little did you know, when you first started, that said bar was Barnes and his close crew's favorite one. The first time you'd ever met Bucky, as everyone called him, was on a slow Tuesday, as your boss, Eddy, called them, and that night changed your life forever. 

Him and his crew came in and everyone had held up their drinks and gave him some sort of welcome, except you. You had your back turned to the men, as you were organizing the liquor. Not paying any attention to the commotion, as it happened a lot, you kept organizing everything so it looked nice. Suddenly a hand grabbed your shoulder and turned you around harshly. That's when you came face-to-face with a very angry tall moustached man. 

"When Bucky Barnes comes in, you greet him." The man growled at you. 

You heard a chuckle come from behind the man. "Dugan calm down. She's clearly new here."

The man, Dugan, let go of you and stepped away, grumbling to himself. Taking a shaky breath you looked up, only to be met by piercing blue eyes and a smirk. You felt your breath leave you instantly as you realized at once who the man that chuckled was. James Buchanan Barnes. One of the most notorious mob leaders. The man that the police didn't dare go after. The man that could make you and your family disappear overnight and no one would ask questions. The man that controlled half of New York. The man you just indirectly insulted. 

"No need to be scared doll. You're new. It's obvious." He reached for something behind your head. "We just stopped by for a few drinks is all." When his hand came back into view he was holding a bottle of scotch. "I like how you organized. Looks a hella lot better than it did before. Might have you go to the other bars and do this. They could use some cleaning up. If you're up for it?"

You blinked a few times, processing his words, before finally nodding your head. 

"Great. How bout you join me and the fellows and we can talk details and a pay raise?" Bucky motioned with his head for you to follow him. "Eddy can run the bar tonight. Right Eddy?" Eddy nodded his head and gave you a big smile. "There's a good boy Eddy! Come on then doll. To the back room."

You followed the man and his crew to the back. Quickly learning who was who and what they did. By the end of the night you not only worked as a bartender at Rowdy Howlies, but now you were the personal organizer for Bucky's favorite other nine bars. When he saw what you did with them you soon moved to run events at them, then at his private homes and businesses. Then you started organizing Bucky's crew's paperwork, then Buck's paperwork. Eventually you were taught how to forge documents and papers or make false documents, then found yourself organizing jobs. Before you knew it three years had passed and you were one of Bucky's personal crew members. While you didn't run jobs directly you oversaw them and helped organize them. You were as much a key part of Bucky's crew as any other member, and they all appreciated you. Especially since you did all the annoying paperwork. 

When you heard a click you looked up to see Gabe closing your door as he entered your office, followed by Jim. The two sat in the chairs across from your desk and stared at you before finally speaking. 

"Dum Dum and Monty leave already?" Jim asked, pulling a pack of cigarettes out. 

"Yes, about five minutes ago." You answered, pulling a drawer open and digging for a lighter. When you finally found it you tossed it to Jim. 

"Think Steve's men will try and stop the shipment or take it for themselves?" Gabe asked, grabbing the pack from Jim. 

"Hopefully neither. Mr. Dernier said that him and his crew have been busy with moving some shipments of their own." 

"Doesn't mean they won't come after ours." Jim said with a frown. 

"Mr. Barnes just sent Mr. Dugan and Mr. Falsworth, so I'm guessing he's not too worried. If he was I'd imagined he would've sent all of you." 

"Ever gonna drop the 'mister' sweetheart?" Gabe asked with a small chuckle. 

"Nope." You simply said leaning back in your chair. 

The two men rolled their eyes at you and began to chat with one another. You pulled your phone out of your purse and noticed a few missed texts. Opening the message app you laughed and rolled your eyes. 

Monty❤: Darling, do tell me WHY Bucky sends me with Dumb Dumb?

You: Oh boohoo. You have to deal with Mr. Gruff and Tuff. 

Monty❤: You could at least pretend to feel bad…

You: 😭😭😭😭

Monty❤: I'll tell Jacques and Gabe you're the one that steals their lunch 

You: You wouldn't 

Monty❤: Try me 

"Hey doll, there a reason you been ignoring me all day?"

You looked up from your phone and saw Bucky sitting on your desk drinking a glass of scotch. 

"Mr. Barnes when did you get here?" You asked, blinking in surprise. 

Bucky chuckled and smirked at you. "So caught up in your phone you didn't even hear me come in and steal a glass of your scotch. Really doll? You ought to be more careful. Never know who's lurking around."

"What do I have to fear?" You asked looking back down at your phone. "Anyone insane enough to break in here would be killed instantly."

Bucky chuckled. "You're not wrong."

You leaned back in your chair and closed your eyes. Your phone vibrated in your lap, but you ignored it. After a few minutes you drifted off to sleep, listening to the three men chatting. 

"JAMES!"

You jolted awake suddenly hearing Jacques's voice. 

"What is it Dernier-"

"The shipment. Steve's crew ambushed James and Timothy!" Jacques said panting. "They were outnumbered. The shipment was-"

"I don't give a shit about the shipment. Where are James and Tim?" Bucky asked standing from where he sat on your desk. 

"On their way to the hospital. I called Strange so he knows they're coming in."

"Good job Jacques." Bucky mumbled, rubbing his forehead. "Gabe you and (y/n) head to the hospital to check on them. Jacques, Jim and I will head to where the shipment came in and see what the hell happened."

"You sure boss?" Jim asked standing. "What if they're still there waiting for us?"

"Then Steve's boys are gonna pay. Let's go." Bucky growled.

-At the hospital-

"We're here to see-"

"I know. Follow me." The nurse you and Gabe stopped to talk to instructed for you and Gabe to follow her down the hall. You stopped at the elevator and got on, watching her press floor 4. When the elevator stopped she hurried out and you both quickly followed her. She led you both to a room at the end of a long hall and motioned for you to enter. "I'll let Dr. Strange know you're here."

After thanking her you both turned towards the beds and rushed forward. When you saw your two friends in them you felt your breath leave and your body go tense.

Dum Dum was laying on his back fast asleep with a blanket over him. From what you could see he had a bandage around his left arm, blood stained already. He also had an IV attached to the same arm and his face looked swelled up. You couldn't see any other wounds, but you were sure there were more. 

Montgomery was sitting up smiling at you both. He had a bandage wrapped around his abdomen, his right eye was swelled and turning black and his lip was split. He also had an IV attached to him.

"Hello friends." He slurred. 

"I see Strange drugged you up." Gabe laughed, pulling a chair between the two beds. 

"Only the best stuffffff." Montgomery chuckled. "Ah, darling, stop standing over there and come here."

You frowned and walked forward. When you were by his bedside you leaned over and placed a hand on the man's cheek, being careful of the swelling. Montgomery looked at you and studied your face for a moment. 

"You truly are a rare beauty sweetheart." Montgomery slurred, reaching up and grabbing your chin. "A true and rare one indeed." He suddenly pulled you forward and crashed his lips against yours. 

Your eyes went wide and you scrambled back. "Monty, what the hell?"

"What? S'not like we haven't done that before."

You looked at Gabe with wide eyes and opened and closed your mouth a few times before finally just closing it. 

"True," Gabe said suddenly, "But other than me, no one else knows. And you both are keeping that a secret. Remember?"

Montgomery made a gurgling noise and rolled his eyes. "Yes, yes. I just wanted a kiss is all. Dum Dum is asleep, he didn't see anything."

You stepped towards Montgomery again, looking at Dum Dum to be sure the man was indeed asleep. Gabe noticed and poked the man's side and when he didn't move he smiled at you then turned his chair towards the man to give you some privacy. 

You leaned over Montgomery once again and placed a hand on his cheek once more. "You can have one kiss, that's it."

He smiled and leaned back into his pillow. "I'll take whatever you'll give me my love." 

Smiling you leaned forward and placed a small kiss to his lips. Montgomery weaved his hand in your hair and pulled you closer, deepening the kiss. You smiled into the kiss and licked his bottom lip. When he opened his mouth you pushed your tongue in and licked the roof of his mouth, earning a low moan from him. He bit your bottom lip then sucked on it before soothing the mark with his tongue. The hand that was in your hair moved down to cup your breast and he started to knead it, he smirked when you moaned into his mouth. His hand moved lower but you pulled away suddenly when you heard the familiar ringtone you set for when Bucky calls. 

"Hello? Yes we're here. Mr. Falsworth is awake but Mr. Dugan is asleep. No, a nurse said she would tell him we're here but he hasn't come up yet. Okay. So what happened? Mm. Tsk, assholes...of course. Ga- mm Mr. Jones and I will let you know if anything changes before you get here. Okay, see you soon Mr. Barnes." You hung the phone up and turned to see three pairs of eyes on you. Gulping at the realization Dum Dum was awake. "Mr. Dugan! When did you wake up?"

"About half way through your conversation." He grunted, pushing the button so his bed would sit him up. "What did Buck say?"

"By the time they got there the police were already there. So Mr. Barnes and the others are on their way here." You explained. "Well, more on their way up."

"Oh goody. I can explain everything to them then."

You jumped and turned at the sudden voice. Standing in the doorway was Dr. Strange. The man was holding two clipboards and studying them. 

"When will they be here?" 

"Mr. Barnes said about 5 minutes." 

Dr. Strange rolled his eyes and stepped into the room more. He walked over to Dum Dum and pulled the blanket down. Dum Dum growled, but let the man look him over. His chest was purple and brown, but didn't look like it had any other damage. Strange then looked at the bandage and sighed, he put the clipboards on a table near the beds and walked to a cabinet and started pulling things out. You watched as he washed his hands, put gloves on and started to pull gauze and wraps out. He began to remove Dum Dum's bandage and clean the wound. You looked away and stared at Montgomery at this point, not being a fan of blood. Montgomery was watching Strange work and laughing at Dum Dum. The men were use to getting roughed up, it was part of the job. You on the other hand never had to deal with it since you had an 'office job.'

"You boys didn't have to go and get this beat up."

Turning you saw Bucky, Jim and Jacques walking in. You smiled as Bucky wrapped an arm around your waist and kissed your cheek before moving to Montgomery's bed. 

"We were ambushed, boss." Dum Dum grunted as Strange finished wrapping his arm. 

"Luckily for them the worst wound is the stab James got to his abdomen." Strange said, as he started to remove the IV from Dum Dum. "Other than that they're fine. I have their discharge papers here, since I know how much you just love being in the hospital James."

"It's Montgomery and Bucky, Doc." Bucky mumbled, taking the clipboards from the table and looking them over. 

"It's actually James, James and Dr. Strange." Strange said with a smirk moving to take the IV from Montgomery. "I go by names, not nicknames. Sign the release on the bottom and you can take your thugs and be gone."

"Thanks Doc." Bucky said grinning at the annoyed man. 

Strange rolled his eyes and turned towards you. "Honestly (y/n), I don't know why you put up with them. If your father's knew this is what you-"

"But they don't and won't." You stated. "I'm safe and fine. I never go out and do anything. I just do paperwork. Please Dr. Strange I'm okay, really. Daddy and Papa don't need to worry." 

Strange frowned then rolled his eyes. "Fine, but if I ever find out you're in trouble I'm calling them." He turned towards Bucky then. "Just leave the release at the nurses station, then you can go." He then stood, removed the gloves, gave you a small hug and left. 

"Have I ever said how cool it is you're friends with him?" Gabe asked. "Because that is really cool."

You rolled your eyes and looked around the room for Dum Dum and Montgomery's shirts. Once you found them you tossed them to the men and smiled as they started to put them on. They had no trouble moving, which was a good sign. Dum Dum easily got off the bed, but when Montgomery went to get up he fell. Jacques and Jim rushed to his side as he laughed. 

"I'm fine chaps!" He said as they stood him up. 

"He's drugged up." Jim chuckled putting an arm around him, so the man could lean on him. 

"He needed it. Was whining when we got here." Dum Dum grunted walking towards the three. "Not use to stab wounds are ya Monty?"

Montgomery stuck his tongue out and chuckled. Dum Dum rolled his eyes and smiled at his friend. 

"Alright men, let's head out." Bucky mumbled walking past all of you and out the room. 

You all followed him out the door and down the hallway. A quick stop at the nurses station to drop off the papers and you were on your way. 

Once you were outside you and Gabe began walking to the car you came in, but stopped at Dum Dum's voice. Turning you saw him walking towards you both while dragging Montgomery. Stopping you waited for the two to catch up. 

"Bucky said to come with you both." Dum Dum said simply. "Where's the car?"

"Right over there." Gabe pointed down the aisle of cars. 

Dum Dum grunted and began walking again. Montgomery laughed and wrapped an arm around Gabe and kissed his cheek. Gabe rolled his eyes and helped drag the man to the car. You just chuckled at the scene and skipped ahead to unlock the car for the men. 

Once at the car the men settled Montgomery in the back while they got in the front. You sat behind the driver's seat and buckled the man next to you in. Montgomery let out a loud sigh and leaned against your shoulder. 

"Ready to go ladies?" Gabe asked, backing the car up. 

Dum Dum laughed at the remark and punched the man's shoulder. You hummed and ran your hands through Montgomery's hair as he dozed off against your shoulder. 

The ride back to the house wasn't as long as the ride there. To be fair, on the way to the hospital neither you or Gabe knew what you'd find at the hospital. During the ride you pulled your phone out to read the texts you missed. 

Monty❤: Just arrived sweetheart. Text you when we're all finished here. 

Monty❤: Something's not right. Dum Dum and I are leaving 

Boss Man🐺: Hey doll you in your office?

Boss Man🐺: Doll you in your office?

Boss Man🐺: Doll are you ignoring me?

Boss Man🐺: Working on that paperwork for Dum Dum and Monty I'm hoping since you're ignoring me

Gabby Baby😊: Hey Morita and I are heading to your office. 

J. Morty😂: I lost my lighter 

Deer🦌: I can't get a hold of Timothy or James. Can you? 

You sighed and leaned back against the seat of the car. If only you hadn't fallen asleep and got Jacques text. Maybe you could've somehow stopped what happened. Or been aware sooner. You felt awful at what happened to your friends.

Once you arrived back Dum Dum and Gabe helped Montgomery out of the car. You sighed and pushed yourself out as well and walked into the house. Jumping when a hand grabbed you and pulled you back. 

"Bucky-"

"In my office. Now." 

Swallowing you nodded and followed the man down the hall to his office. When you walked in he closed the door and motioned for you to sit. Nodding your head you walked to the leather chair facing his desk and sat down. He walked around the desk and sat in his chair. Before he said anything he put his hands together and sighed. 

"I need you to do a job doll." 

"You need me to WHAT?" You practically yelled. How could he ask you to do a job? Especially after what just happened? Especially you! You never did jobs, you ran them or wrote up the paperwork for them. 

"I need you to do a job." He said again, rubbing his head. "It's different from any other one we've run."

"Why me? And now? After what just happened today?" You demanded. "You really think that's a good idea?"

Bucky gritted his teeth and sighed again. "Doll I almost lost two good men today. That's not gonna happen again." 

"So I'm expendable?" 

"No." Bucky looked up at you. He had a strange look in his eyes, one you'd never seen before. "And you're the only one that can do this."

"What is it?" You sighed. 

"I need you to make Steve fall in love with you."

You stared at him for a moment before blinking. "What?"

"I need you to-"

"No, no, I heard you." You held your hand up. "Why would I do that?"

"To get close to him and his crew. So we know what they're up to." Bucky sighed. "I'm not gonna make you do it because it's dangerous, but after today I don't know what to do. He's had the upper hand on us for too long now."

You sighed and bit your lip, Bucky had a point. Steve and his crew had been moving in on Bucky's territory and been making it dangerous for him and his crew. If this was your way to help them then you would do it. They were your odd little family and had your back plenty of times. Now it was your turn to have their backs. 

"I'll do it."

"Are you sure?" Bucky asked looking straight in your eyes. 

You nodded. 

"Okay. So there's a coffee shop down the street from Rowdy Howlies I'm going to buy. You're going to work there. We're gonna learn everything we can about him and his interests before sending you in." Bucky explained. "Then you're going to make him fall for you and you're gonna show interest in his job and learn everything you can and report back to us. Got it?"

You nodded again, determined. 

"Alright. Let's gather the boys and tell 'em." Bucky said standing and leading you out of the room. "Boys, gather up." Bucky yelled walking to the dining room. 

"What's up boss?" Gabe asked walking in. 

"Sit." Bucky said pointing at the chairs as everyone gathered. 

"How are you feeling Montgomery?" Bucky asked. 

"Better." Montgomery replied sitting down rubbing his head. "Had some water."

"Good. So I have a job." Bucky said as everyone sat down. 

"For who now?" Jacques asked, raising an eyebrow a little worried. 

"(Y/n)." Bucky said. "She's gonna go on, let's call it, a spying mission." 

The men looked at him with raised eyebrows then looked at you. 

"Who's she spying on?" Dum Dum asked. 

"Steve." Bucky said flatly. 

"You want to send (y/n) to spy on him?" Dum Dum asked, raising an eyebrow. 

Bucky shook his head. "No and yes. (Y/n), doll, tell 'em what you're gonna be doing."

The group of men turned towards you and you gulped. "I'm going to make him fall in love with me."

"Brilliant," Montgomery mumbled, shaking his head, "and when Steve figures out who she is? Then what?"

"He won't." Bucky said simply.

"How can you be so sure?" Gabe asked leaning back in his chair.

"Forget that! How could you be so comfortable sending her on something like that?" Dum Dum demanded. "She knows as much about this business as we do. If she gets caught she'll-"

"I'll what Mr. Dugan?" You finally spoke up. "Betray the business? Betray you all? Betray Mr. Barnes? Tell all your secrets and dealings, as well as where you keep everything?" You scoffed. "After everything I've done over the past three years I've been here, you still have so little faith in me? I will do this. Steve will fall in love with me. I will not be caught, and I will get the information for you all." You said this with all the confidence you could muster as you looked at each of them, before you finally looked at Bucky. "I will not fail you Mr. Barnes."

Bucky smirked and leaned back in his chair. "Well there you have in gents." He looked at his colleagues before looking back at you. "Your job starts tomorrow (y/n)."

[omgviolette12]

After Hours - Chapter 13

Previous Chapter

Summary: After sex, comes the bliss... right?

Chapters: 13/?

Words: 2800+

Warnings: None

Tags:  @milkymaidme @dangertoozmanykids101@alexakeyloveloki @little-moonbeam-666  @marvel-ous-fics@clovermariear@lynnesm@bitchyikes@moon-child-of-a-poet, @allthecraftandthings@bubblegumspitt @shockwavee @blondekel77 @nerd–nirvana @valdemarismynonbinarylove@nightrose64 @pastelhexmaniac @iistormii

If you’d like to be added, let me know. I’ve also posted this on AO3

A/N:  Sorry for the delay, still in the midst of final projects. Motivation to complete work/writing has been a bit slow, and I’ve been trying to think up new plot points. I’ve been stuck, lol. Anyway, enjoy!

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

Evelyn should’ve expected this, but she had no idea that she would be this sore.

 After the shower, they both became somewhat insatiable. It was as though Loki couldn’t get enough of her, and she of him. The taboo of their relationship spurred on their lust, the need to be connected to each other in every way possible great. So like he had promised, he fucked her into the late hours of the night.

  While she was grateful that her first time was far from terrible...she made a mental note to learn her limits. She thought the idea of getting fucked silly by the man she pined for would be a dream come true - but the effects on her body afterwards was kind of a bitch.

 Evelyn hopped and limped all the way to Loki’s car when they left his house early in the morning, wincing with every step. She attributed the amount of pain she was in due to the fact that she was simply not used to sex, and her professor’s size was considerable. 

 Perhaps the more they did it, the less pain there would be overtime?

Just the thought of a ‘next time’ in Loki’s bed was enough to set off another wave of butterflies inside her stomach. Whatever pain she was in right now, it was worth it.

 Loki, however, had long noticed Evelyn’s plight - in fact, he even had the gall to tease her about it, offering to carry her up the steps to her door like a princess once they reached her apartment.

 He sounded pretty serious about it too, so Evelyn couldn't help but blush even though she knew he was just messing around. It was going to be a challenge getting used to his playful side…

 Evelyn promised him that she'd stop by his office later on in the day, to resume her duties as his TA. Since she wouldn’t be able to attend the Monday lecture to help out this time around for obvious reasons, the least she could do was grade some exams. 

 She dreaded grading, especially since it was math( another reason why she skipped meetings in the beginning…) but now that the dynamic between her and Loki has changed considerably, she was actually looking forward to being productive in his presence.

  They parted with a kiss, and Evelyn made her way to her apartment door slowly. Now, she just had to try to walk inside like there wasn't a stick up her ass.

To Evelyn’s surprise and dismay, Candice was waiting for her on the couch, a cup of hot cocoa in hand as she watched her hop through the front door.

 Evelyn was secretly banking on the fact that she had left for work already, since Candice mentioned offhandedly that she took up more shifts at her hospital.

  But alas, the shit-eating grin that was plastered on Candice’s face meant that she must’ve called in sick to witness Evelyn’s limp of shame, first thing.

 “Well! I’ll be damned,”

 Evelyn stubbornly ignored her in embarrassment as she limped past the couch to head to her room, but Candice set down her mug to follow her, giggling like a fool, “He busted that cherry so hard he got you hoppin’ like a bunny! Sheesh...”

 "Not now, Candice…" Her face felt hot, desperately wishing her sister had some sort of filter.

 "Did y'all use a rubber? Did he hurt you? Because if he hurt you Eve -"

 Candice was going to badger her until all was answered, so Evelyn relented with a grimace, hoping she would leave her alone after she was satisfied,

 “ No! He didn’t hurt me...and yes, we used protection. Each time.”

 “Each ti- each time?! How many times did y’all fu- ”

 Evelyn cut her off before she could finish, “I’ll answer all the juicy deets later, okay!? I didn’t have time to shower before we left, and I wanna do that now. Please?”

 Candice realized she was being a bit overbearing, backing off a bit. Evelyn was extremely fun to tease and make fun off, but she knew her sister had limits,

  “Sorry, sorry. My baby sister never seemed the type to be interested in sex or anything before...so to do it with a professor of all people for your first time! And a kinky one! Don’t blame me for being interested and concerned...”

 Evelyn ignored the kinky comment, limping inside her room as she replied, “I mean, is the professor thing really that big a deal? I’m technically just a former student of his...”

 “Not really, you already know how my hoe phase was. Fucked a few teachers in my college days. But you have to be careful with these older men Eve, since you’re new to this sort of thing. Don't get attached. Especially if his dick game’s good, he will manipulate the hell outta you,”

 "...Speaking from experience?"

 "Yep. Found out this guy was a whole married man and I still went back to fuck. Good dick messes with your morals sis,"

 Evelyn had a hard time taking her words seriously since Candice lacked morals in the first place, but pretended to agree so she could leave her be,

"I'll make sure to be careful, okay? Can I shower now?"

 "Yeah yeah, we'll talk more later. Remember what I said, hmm?"

And with that, Candice left her room with a skip to her step.

 Evelyn didn’t bother processing her sister’s warning, going straight to the shower to relieve her sore muscles.

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

 By the time Evelyn made her way unto the campus, the pain had lessened considerably. She still had to walk a bit carefully, but she didn’t feel as raw as before. While she showered, she also noticed bruises alongside her hip and waist - she even had to use more than a bit of makeup to cover the new ones Loki had ‘affectionately’ placed in plain sight on her neck.

 She was especially hard to bruise, so she was baffled at the amount she currently had.

 Evelyn thought that she should at least feel miffed about it, but somehow the thought of being marked as his, in any way, sent a thrill through her being. Even when he was rough at some points...

  I had sex just once and I’m already a deviant…hehe.

 Evelyn was quite busy daydreaming about the naughty events from last night, that she didn’t see the tall figure standing in her way as she headed towards Loki’s office.

 ‘Oof!’

 As expected, she collided straight into the person’s side, yelping in the process.

 “Oh shit - I’m sorry, I wasn’t paying attention…”

 She looked up apologetically at the woman in front of her - lithe and pale, with narrowed blue eyes that accentuated her intimidating presence. 

 Perhaps because she also had dark hair and sharp facial features, she saw a vague resemblance to Loki.

 “Obviously, you weren’t,” the woman replied curtly, before giving a tight smile,

“But, I’ll forgive you if you were to lend some assistance.”

 Her tone carried a sort of cold arrogance, as Evelyn shrunk underneath her stare. She even had Loki’s accent…

 “Uh...of course! How can I help…?” Although she was in a bit of a rush to get to where she needed to be, she did not want the woman in front of her to be any more pissed off than she already seemed to look.

 She showed Evelyn a map of the campus that was in her hands, pointing at the building she wanted to head to, “This map is much too complicated for me, and I’m trying to look for this building. I need to find someone, and this is where his office is apparently.”

 “Oh, I’m actually heading there!” Evelyn was glad that the woman pointed towards the science department - the campus was fairly large, and she barely knew half of the map. “If you don’t mind me asking, who’re you trying to find? I can show you to them directly…”

 She didn’t have to go the extra mile, merely walk with her to the building. But Evelyn had always been a people pleaser.

 “Ah, I’m looking for my brother. Are you a student of his, perhaps? I do know that he teaches here…Loki Odinson. Or Laufeyson, whatever he wants to go by nowadays.”

 “Brother? You’re Loki’s sister?” Evelyn asked in a surprised tone, voice elevated. He did mention he two had siblings during their date, but he never went into detail about anything.

 The woman looked at her oddly, a small chuckle leaving her lips, “Well, you certainly sound quite familiar with him.”

 Evelyn realized her mistake, hastily rushing to fix it. Loki was fine with Candice knowing everything, but she still wasn’t sure about his side of the family. 

 “Oh, about that...I usually just call all the professors by their names, haha…”

 “My brother really dislikes being referred to in an informal manner, so I find the idea of him allowing that unlikely.”

 “.....”

 Evelyn was momentarily speechless, akin to a deer in headlights. 

 “Uhm, you see, I -“

 “No need to explain,” the woman stepped closer, a bit too close for comfort as she scrutinized Evelyn’s face, “You’re his exact type, you know. Short, timid, pretty. He’s probably quite taken with you...” 

 As she looked her up and down, a spark of realization lit her eyes..

 “Miss...you’re stepping out of line here.”

She was assuming way too much, for just a minor slip up. And who spoke like this to someone they just met? 

 “Oh, It's just harmless teasing,” she stepped back, her smile starting to look a lot more natural. 

 She pulled out her hand for a handshake, “ Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Hela. Hela Odinson. And you?”

 Evelyn gave a momentary look of reluctance before accepting the handshake, “Uhm, Evelyn Monroe. Nice to meet you, I guess?”

 Hela’s smile became broader, “Let’s walk and talk, hmm?”

 Evelyn was very uncomfortable, but started to walk regardless.

 As they made their way towards Loki’s office, Hela, surprisingly, insisted on making small talk. Evelyn pegged her for the cold and silent type like her brother, but she was entirely the opposite. She asked general questions about what Evelyn did, her age, etc. But unfortunately, she also kept asking suggestive questions, hoping for another slip up on her end.

 “I haven’t spoken to my brother in a while, so I’m clueless as to how he’s doing. Does he treat you well, Evelyn?”

 Hela began adopting a familiar and warmer tone, softening Evelyn’s first impression. It succeeded in lulling her into a sense of minor comfort, “Oh, he treats me very well. I mean, he’s pretty nice to all of his students, most times...” 

 “Hm, that’s surprising. His personality is treacherous, so I expected the opposite.”

 Evelyn looked at her quizzically. For his sister, she sure spoke like she disliked him to a large degree.

 “Since I like you, I’ll give you a bit of advice,”

Hela turned to look at her then, meeting her eyes,

“Don’t get too attached to a man like Loki, especially if he thinks you’re a temporary plaything. He gets... annoyed, quite easily. You weren't the only one he happened to fancy so much in the past...so I'd know.”

….?!??

“Excuse me, but what -“ Evelyn started, but then the dark, pissed off voice of her professor sounded from behind them.

 “Hela,”

 His face was pulled into a tight scowl, trained directly at his sister, “ What nonsense are you spewing?”

 Loki appeared behind them suddenly out of thin air, startling the wits out of Evelyn. Before she could ponder the possibility that he had magical powers, she realized they just passed the lecture hall where his class was, on the way to his office.

 “I took time out of my busy schedule to see you, dear brother...one would think you’d sound a bit more affectionate. Hasn't it been a year since we last spoke?”

 “Slither back to whatever hell you came from, woman.”

 “Well, I suppose that’s close enough.”

 Evelyn looked back and forth between the two, the tension thick and uncomfortable. They were in the middle of the hallway and students still wandered about, so she decided to make an exit. She wanted no part in whatever mystery family drama that was unfolding...and she needed time to ponder over Hela’s words.

  I’ll ask just him about this later...

 “So...um. I’m gonna go ahead to the office, okay? Grade those papers...yippee…”

 She added awkwardly, slowly backing away.

 Loki looked at her then. She hoped his face would soften a bit, but it didn’t. 

“I’ll be there shortly. This won’t take long.”

His answers were short and clipped, so she knew he was pissed. 

She didn’t do anything wrong to her knowledge, so she blamed his mood all on his sister. 

 Before Evelyn left, Hela addressed her one last time.

“It was lovely meeting you, sweetheart. I’m sure we’ll see each other again…”

 “Oh. Uhm, yeah. Nice meeting you too…”

Evelyn didn’t waste anymore time, leaving the pair once she saw Loki’s worsening expression.

 ---------------------

Hela’s words from before repeated inside her head, filling her with a sense of paranoia. But, she had no reason to be paranoid, right? Loki said they were exclusive, after all. He said he wanted her to be his woman. No, she was his woman. And he made sure of that last night.

 Evelyn stubbornly pushed her anxieties aside into the far crevice of her mind, reassuring herself with his words. Although Hela was his sister, she and Loki clearly weren’t on good terms. She could’ve said that in order to sabotage their suspected relationship.

  God, this is giving me a damn headache...

 She settled in Loki's office, taking the stack of exams from his desk and got comfortable on the couch. She hoped grading and correcting complicated equations would fry her brain enough to stop the fretting, as she waited for him to come.

 Loki appeared after about fifteen minutes, and Evelyn bolted upright once she heard him enter.

 “Oh, Loki! I went ahead and started…”

She paused mid sentence when she saw his expression.

“...Grading…”

 Why did it feel like she was in some sort of trouble? The heck?

His face didn’t change much from when he spoke to Hela, so it made her nervous.

 Evelyn just opted to stay quiet for now. She’d ask about Hela later once he looked a little less pissed off. She was his girlfriend now, but she still felt his authoritative presence especially when they were on campus.

 Well, she was going to stay quiet, until his deep voice resounded inside the room.

 “I'm curious about something, Evelyn.”

  Uh oh. Why's he using that voice?

 "How did that...woman, know that we were involved with each other?"

 "Uh...woman? I mean, I thought she said she was your sister…?"

 "That isn't the answer to my question."

 Inwardly, Evelyn felt whiplashed. Everything was so dandy this morning and last night...so how did things take such a strange turn so quickly?

 "Look, when she told me she was your sister, I said your first name on impulse. That's literally it! She assumed stuff based on that one thing…"

 Evelyn put the papers on her lap to the side, feeling frustrated, "And…it really isn't that big a deal, right? You said that people outside the school could know. You were fine with Candice knowing, so why not -"

 He cut her off before she could finish,

"Darling, let me say this in a way that you can comprehend," 

  In...in a way that I can comprehendddd? Did he just call me stupid eloquently?

 Evelyn was stunned into silence as Loki spoke, and he moved to stand above her as she sat rigidly on the couch. "Such a simple mistake, regardless of who it was, is monumental. Your words weren't what gave you away, Evelyn. But your body language. You're entirely too expressive for your own good,"

 He sighed a disappointed sigh, moving away to pinch the bridge of his nose, "At any rate, I can live with Hela knowing...but for future reference, avoid her. At all costs."

 Loki looked at her then, eyes stern, "Do you understand what I'm saying? Or should I elaborate further?"

 Evelyn was honestly a bit speechless. She felt extremely put off and mildly hurt… that he spoke to her like she was a child, rather than his lover.

She really hated herself right now. Was she actually about to cry? He would seriously think she was childish, if this was how she was going to react.

 Tears wouldn’t do her any favors, especially once he was in this kind of mood anyway.

Why am I so fucking sensitive?!

She sighed shakily, swallowing the knot in her throat as she replied, "Yeah...I got it."

 "Good, then." 

 He moved casually to sit behind his desk, attempting to soften his tone with his next words, "You can work for maybe half an hour, then I'd like to treat you to dinner. Seeing that woman left an unpleasant taste… but spending more time with you should remedy that."

 She didn't reply, and only stared at the floor.

 "... Evelyn?"

 When she glanced up, he saw that her large, hazel eyes were shimmering with unshed tears.

”I’m... I’m going to use the restroom, okay? I’ll be back,”

 She got up quickly. And before he could properly react, she promptly went to exit the room.

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

A/N:  Your thoughts bring me joy, I greatly appreciate each and every one! Please let me know what you thought :)

[rahimaldemir]

Dying Light 2 - Q&A

In the official Dying Light discord one of the representatives, Uncy, from Techland held a q&a session during E3 2019 and I took the time to copy everything down. There were a lot of questions asked, but I only copied down the ones that were answered.

Uncy said they were going to post a FAQ with all of these questions and I’ll make sure to link it when they do. As of right now, I don’t think it has been released.

A lot of people were typing during the session and unfortunately a lot of questions got repeated. There is also a decent amount of typos in these questions, but it felt important to keep the Q&A session in an honest a form as possible, so I have not corrected any typos or omitted any duplicate questions.

I did add a “Q” and “A” to the beginning of every question and answer for clarity. Uncy used emojis sometimes in their answers, but I did not copy those over if they weren’t text emojis.

I have put my own notes in [italicized brackets].

WARNING: There are huge spoilers for The Following in these questions, they are marked to make them easier to avoid, but please be wary.

@tafferfield I know you got a pretty wicked master list of DL2 stuff, so if any of this helps you feel free to grab it and add it.

Putting under a read more because this is long:

Q: Are all current zombies considered volatiles? A: Not really, there are still regular zombies and volatiles

Q: Zombies only exit the night? A: now that's a hard one, zombies can stay outside for some time during the day but they get weak IN THE SUN

Q: How much diffrent endings are there? A: About endings - more than one, don't want to spoil it

Q: Battle royale mode? A: no BR mode

Q: Are you able to clear the city of zombies? A: Basically human learned how to deal with infection, so the more humans the less zombies

Q: how does Aiden stop from turning? does he use antizin or something else A: antizine is finished but human discovered that strong UV light weakens the infection, that's why you have the biomarker

Q: Is Aiden a foreigner to the land like Crane? A: Aiden doesn't even know Crane exists Q: I meant is Aiden from around there or did he come from somewhere else A: he's not from the city, he's an outsider

Q: What are future plans for multiplayer? A: multiplayer wise - we have some stuff coming apart from co-op, but I can't really share multiplayer details now

Q: Will there be a fallout kind of karma system? A: karma system? nope but your choices and actions will affect how people see you

Q: How long will one playthrough of the game be? A: hard to tell, but i know that dl2 will be a game for a long time

Q: Will dying light 2 feature the same great ragdoll physics as the first. A: upgraded ones

Q: Will the game be translated into Brazilian Portuguese as the first? A: more languages will come, cant really tell for now

Q: Can we expect to see actual time sensitive activities within the game? (IE: Do this now or forever lose the chance) A: Yes, but its more like choice wise, like do one thing and u will never be able to do another

Q: Will you play Dying Light 2 with me on release ;d? A: why not

Q: Will Aiden be customizable (e.g. hair, individual clothing pieces,etc) A: yup there will be customization

Q: Is there a weapon combo system? A: what do you mean by that? Q: Like a combo like last game you could spam attack and hold it for a more powerful attack, I'm asking if you can combo attacks like 2 quick attacks and then a charged attack or stuff like that [This question never actually got fully answered]

Q: Did anything replace the grappling hook. Did it change in anyway? A: there's a grappling hook - and some more options to travel cause the city is huge {you will be able to upgrade them}

[SPOILERS FOR THE FOLLOWING]

Q:if the vial ending from the following is canon (if the following is canon) is crane a Volatile?

A: in some way - both are canon. It's up to the player to choose it Q: will Crane make an appearance or not. If you cant answer then atleast say which ending is canon A: not really

[END SPOILERS]

Q: Will the game launch with any DLC's? A: i dont think it will launch with dlc's but post release support is planned

Q: The last trailer showed working vehicles, will we be able to use some? A: Yes

Q: How many different kinds weapons are there (number) A: too many to mention, we're still adding more weapons

Q: is it sticking with the old crafting system or are y'all switching it up A: crafting system is upgraded a little

Q: are in dying light 2 developer tools having the chance to make custom movements and animations? A: I don't really have info about dev tools right now

Q: Are firearms coming back ? A: No guns, no firearms - but there will be distance weapons like crossbows

Q: do we gain strength or anything when nighs fall? since we are infected A: during the night you need to use UV lights to stop the infection, you wont get stronger

Q: is the choices you make permanant (one save only) or can you save and go back? A: you can save and go back on some difficulties

Q: Czy będzie drzewko umiejetnosci tak jak w 1 ? A: tak

Q: Is the max number in a party still going to be 4 or will more team members be able to join in co-op multiplayer, if there is any. A: 4 player coop

Q: is there a system where our beard can grow out and cut it same with hair like rdr2 asked a few times chat just to fast lol A: hmm, i don't think so

Q: Can you turn into a zombie if you dont pay enough attention to your wristband? A: that's still under discussion, i don't think you will be able to play as a zombier tho

Q: When the game releases, are you able to link your old account from DL1 to get rewards? A: we wont forget about dl1 owners

Q: will you be able to upgrade/modify tools like grappling hook and the UV flashlight? A: yes, tools will be upgradeables

Q: are we going to have trading cards to craft badges on steam with dying light 2? A: Yup

Q: Will the UI be changed completely, both in-game, etc? A: there will be some changes for sure, i dont know how hard tho

Q: How many skill trees are there, and are they any more complex? A: you can upgrade a lot of stuff now

Q: Are ranged weapons going to be as powerful as they were in DL1 or is it a bit more balanced A: there are no guns, so its balanced

Q: I wonder if we will see some more gameplay (apart from the trailer) from E3? A: something will come this month

Q: what are the main factions in dying light 2? A: Peacekeepers and scavengers - those are two main factions, but there are more

Q: Who is the girl in the trailer? A: that's actually one of our employees but for now all I can say that she's singing in one of the bars in the city

Q: Has the infection gone worldwide A: yup

[SPOILERS FOR THE FOLLOWING]

Q: What happened to kyle crane? Will he have anything to do with the game

A: he ded

[END SPOILERS]

Q: will there be an enhanced edition or any other editions or just the normal one? A:there will be different editions - more details coming soon

Q: Will some weapons from Dying Light 2 (before release) be added in Dying Light? A: watch the trailer closely

Q: Are you taking in any alpha testers any time soon? If so I would like to be the first volunteer. A: there are no tests planned for now

Q: Referencing the Trailer, will we have the ability to choose our siding, survivor or what seem to be the "law"? A: its all up to you and your decisions!

Q: during the first game the side quests were some of the most amazing in the whole game, my question is, will those little side quests be present in the second game as well and will they also impact the game A: Yeah! side quests will be there and there wont be just easy fetch quests, but rather a small stories on their own

Q:There's a post. On twitter(?) That mentions something like "as Aiden you can do things no one elese can" Does that mean there will be benefits in having your infected level reach a certain level? A: Aiden is simply well prepared to live in The City - that's all I can tell right now

Q: Will there be new skill trees or the same ones? A: would be weird to put in the same skill trees

Q: can you upgrade parts of the town? and is roger smith coming back for Voice acting A: depends what do you mean, if you help certain people by your actions or choices, they will start to build stuff like bridges, farms etc which will help you, they will also get rid of the zombies from buildings etc

Q: Is it possible, that BTZ will be in Dying Light 2? A: possible but not confirmed

Q: can we get the song from the trailer? its sick A: I think i got the name somewhere, ill add it to faq [Couldn’t find Uncy’s link, but I was able to find two of the three soundtracks featured in trailers on youtube: Help I’m Alive and Crimson Blaze & Battlefields]

Q: Please dont add lootboxes A: Cmon

Q: Why can't we pre-order A: cause we don't have all the editions ready yet

Q: got 2 questions: - Will we have a season pass for a limited time just like in Dying Light so we can get the DLCs for free? - can us console players please get a fov slider A: 1.There will be a season pass 2. I'll let the devs know about fov slider

Q: Will there be a new type of villain like Rais? A: nothing is white or black in The City

Q: Will it be the same loot system or a loot system at all? A: what do you mean by loot system? like those crates etc? Q: I'm referring to weapons and stuff like that. A: then I don't really know, afaik it got changed a little

Q: Can we expect to see a different climbing mechanic, same with the grapple? A: parkour system is upgraded a lot, grapple is coming back ofc

Q: 1. are there gonna be volatiles in dl2? and are the zombies in dl2 more faster, brutal and better in movement to chase u down? A: There are new and old zombies, can't tell more atm

Q:Will some of the old zombie mutations be returning? A: yup

Q: Distance weapons are mentioned, does that mean a weapon smith we can get distanve weapon blueprints from? A: you can created your own weapons

Q: Are there other zombie types than the ones mentioned in the interviews? If so can we know a bit about them? A: there will be more, no info now tho

Q: On the topic of Grapple, is it expected to behave the same as DL1, or will it have a different mechanic, such as a swing? A: grapple is different now and you can upgrade it

Q: an we drop kick zombies and humans from sky scrapers? A: Yup

Q: Will the grappling hook operate the same as in DL1? I think it was overpowered and needed bigger cool down, it took away from parkour element a lot for me. A: as I said later, it's reworked a little - not OP now

Q: Is Brecken alive in Dying Light 2? Or is he maybe related to protagonist? A: no one from DL1 comes back

Q: Does no ranged mean guns or are we also losing the bow/crossbow A: never said no ranged, i said no firearms, ranged weapons will be there

Q: Will the gore be overhauled or different in Dying Light 2? A: it will be upgraded, there are also new finishers coming in

Q: Will quarantine zones come back? A: dark zones will be in the buiuldiings

Q: what happen to the cure A: gone

Q: will there be more weapon upgrades than in the first DL? A: a lot more

Q: can we put miniguns on vehicles or weaponize them like the buggy from The Following? A: I don't think so - nothing for now at least

Q:What happend to the GRE? A: They were there when the infection started - they are the ones that gave away the biomarkers - no sight of them in the city now

Q: If there's a co-op mode, what is the max amount of players in 1 lobby? A: 4 players max

Q: Will there be more end game content then dl1? A: yup, first of all you will have to finish the game multiple times to experience the game fully, end game will also be improved

Q: What do you think will be there an epic crossover mission when we meet kyle but he's turned A: I don't think he will come back

Q: Infected animals? A: animals will be there, you can hunt them, dunno about infected ones tho

Q: Are there children in DL2? If so, can we kill them? A: Brutal

Q: Referencing the ease of combat in DL1, can we expect to see actual struggle when going against enemies? Will we have the feeling of should I fight or run? A: Ups [???] depends on the difficulty for sure, some of the fights will be hard, for example - you fight some guys near to the building and then zombies hear it and come out for few minutes, and you have XvXvX fight to go trough

Q: Kiedy pre order? A: Niedługo

Q: are the voliatile hive quests coming back? A: you will be cleaning some mess for sure, I don't know if those particular quests will go back

Q: Alright. I asked if we'll get skin to customize our weapons as in we keep them forever as blueprints and we can apply them to any weapon? A: customization will be upgraded, that's for sure, I believe we will actually share more details about it in the future

Q: Will there be brutal finishers after stun, like in old Dying Light version where Kyle pulls out smth from the chest? A: yup, we're still adding more and more finishers

Q: Are safezones upgradable in any way? A: you can't upgrade them as in "click a button and its happening" it changes when you do something for the city or you act in some way

Q: is there gonna be a volatile chase mission in the sewer like dl1? "extraction" with more running action? A: that's a really gameplay-detailed question, I don't think i have answer for it now

Q: Will there be weapons rarities? A: some weapons will be stronger than other - don't know about how will we deal with rarities

Q: can we do farming? A: i think that other people are meant for farming, not Aiden

Q: Is dl2 going to have the same docket system like dl1 if not please explain A: dockets are cool, would be good to have them back

Q: Will zombies give a fight for your life feel, or will it be light DL1 where they are primarily just nuisances? A: try going to dark zone during the day, you wont get out of there alive

Q: do we have a different type of vehicles or just one like dl the following we only had the buggy + we are going to have horses and motorbikes or no ? A: there will be some vehicles - more about that coming soon

Q: is there going to be any refrences from dl1??? A: yup, there will be differences [I’m assuming the question was misread]

Q: you said that there wont be any firearms in DL2, but can you maybe tell what's going on in here, as a game dev? It confuses me quite a lot [pic of peacekeeper with what looks like a gun] A: concept arts are not 1:1 gameplay

Q: Is there gonna be something that can make you even stronger if you maxed out all skill trees? (Like the Legend in DL1.) A: that's a really late-game stuff, i believe something like that will come

Q: will the hostile factions attack you if you go into certain areas (i.e if you take a safe zone for a scavenger will the peackeepers attack you in an office building A: yup

Q: how much is pre order and when will it go live A: we are still taking care of different editions and prices

Q: Are the weapons going to become more modern as you level up ? A: nope, weapons are really "hand made" but they all look cool

Q: Will there be any stational turrets, which you can craft/use in some safezones to clear hordes? A: people are dealing with the infected, turrets are too modern

Q: we can pre-order the game soon ? i mean like next month maybe or after a while ? A: yup, preorders will go live when we will figure out the versions etc

Q: Will multiplayer/coop loot be instance based, or client base? (DL1 uses a client base, as each player gets their own drops/items from chests/zombies) Instance based would be there's only 1 item for all players, first to grab gets. A: We still need to figure that out, I believe we will check which one is better

Q: any cool easter eggs coming? A: a lot of them

Q: Will there be any missions that require 4 players, and can more people join you for the final boss? A: 4 people is max

Q: will there be any more presentations or info about DL2 at e3? A: there will be more + new s this month

Q: Will there be boss fights and if there is at the last story mission do we have to be alone? A: don't ask about last mission when the game is not out

Q: we can play with animals like far cry ? i mean like u send animals to attack zombies or something like that, and will there be infected animals too or no ? A: you will be able to hunt animals for resources, i dont think you will be able to tame them

Q: what your prediction about the pc spec? A: i think you will be fine if you can run modern games, We go for FPS over resolution and we aim for 60 at ps4 and xone, its not confirmed tho

Q: so is there going to be some sick loot if we have dl1 and bad blood?? A: there will be something for DL owners

Q: Are there gonna be hunger and thirst bars, and food and drinks you can loot around the world or get from faction cities and safe zones? A: that's still under discussion, its not confirmed

Q: Will we see random wildlife throughout our explorations? (Not those of zombies.) A: yup and you can hunt them

Q: Will we be able to use the dying light companion app in Dying Light 2 A: probably yes

Q: so is there infected animals or no ? A: I dont think so, it's not really confirmed, so we will see

Q: Can we get a confirmation that the dev tools will be available eventually considering it massively increase the longevity of the game and wasnt a total fuckup of a decision like bad blood was? A: about dev tools - im still waiting for confirmation

Q: sorry for the torture but will there be a PVP gamemode or any special gamemode for DL2? A: we will have multiplayer based discussion, for now there are no details to tell about mp

Q: will DL2 get better mod support ? Something like Fallout 4 so we can add more stuff to the game A: i hope so

Q: asking again, will there be seasons? like winter and summer with weather changes? A: I don't think so

Q: Do i have to side with 1 faction completely? Do certain factions control certain safe zones or are safe zones neutral territory? A: nope, you don't have to side with 1 faction

Q: limitation (character inventory)? Like we can no longer have unlimited or 99x items in stacks - including crafting materials. A: I think there wont be limits to crafting materials, like 99x, i need to confirm that with devs tho

Q: Will there be walking zombie hordes, which will try to destroy safe zone's gates? And will it be like event? (is it really possible)? A: people's safe zones are protected with UV lights, zombies wont cross them

Q: Can I sleep in Dying Light 2 to skip night? A: the whole day-night cycle is changed in DL2, more details coming soon

Q1: will there be xray like in the old game A: what x ray Q2: Survivor sense, he meant I think Q3: the critical blue hit, when u hit a zombie, thats what he means A: oh, survivor sense is coming back

Q: Will duplications be patched frequently? As in DL1 there are still many that can occur. A: well i hope there wont be any dupe glitches

Q: Around how long would it take to playthrough the game once? A: quests etc are still coming so i cant really tell how long it will be right now

Q: Btw every pre-order got a bonus content so ofc dl2 got bonus content so when i buy the game after the release i can get this content even if i buy higher edition or its for pre-orders only ? A: i dont think we will have any preorder exclusives, time will tell tho

Q: How many quests Will there be? A: a lot

Q: how many or which of the zombie types from the first game will we see again in DL2? A: everyone from DL1 is coming back (zombie wise) wise some cool additions and upgrades

Q: How many factions are confirmed so far or at least under disussion? A: 2 main ones are confirmed, and there will be more side ones

Q: will there be any sort of vehicles we can drive in DL2? A: yup there will be vehicles

Q: Will there be shields and (fast?) counterattacks after blocking? A: ripostes will be there, im not sure about the shields but u can block without it

Q: The map takes place in a City, is this city based on a real life counterpart? A: it's a fictional city based on european cities

Q: what happened to the firearms i mean why they are removed from the game ? A: they are very rare commodity 15 years after diseaster

Q: can we drive vehicles? A: yes

Q: When does the Q&A end? A: in around 10 minutes

Q: I don't know if this was asked. But Will we be able to explore more then the city? A: the city alone is 4 times bigger than the first DL, there is a lot to explore, dunno about going outside tho

Q: Will there be some type of pvp in the game? A: more info about multiplayer modes will come very soon

Q: Who is the voice actor for aiden A: dunno to be honest xD not the kyle voice actors and that what matters [This has been released. Aiden’s voice actor is Jonah Scott.]

Q: So there is firearms in the game but they are very rare and hard to find ? i mean u can still find them but its hard right ? A: i mean that they are so rare that you wont find one, but as i said, there are still ranged weapons, and some you can craft on your own

Q: Will it be a new Be The Zomby ? Or Human player invading other world like DS3 ? A: as i said, no details for multiplayer this time, sorry! :x

Q: Will the implemented day/night cycle have any special amendments? (Can we expect to see random encounters/anomalies on random nights/days?) A: would be cool, ill ask devs

Q: In the trailer we saw bracelet and how "charges go down". What will happen if it goes down and will we have "antizin"? Can we buy or trade it? A: there is no antizine, strong UV lights weakens the infection, its still under discussion what will happen when it will go to 0, most possible outcome is simply dying and having to restart the game

Q: Hold up. "No guns" or "very rare guns"? I saw both those answers from Uncy A: its pretty much the same, like, they're all pretty much gone

Q: what about invasions? Be the zombie A: no multiplayer details now

Q: Is the game 4 times bigger then just the slums? Or the WHOLE game A: the whole game without the following

Q: Will there be more interactions within the game? (IE: Fishing, skinning the animals we hunt, cooking, etc) A: yup, there will be a lot to do in the city

Q: Will DL2 be on next gen xbox as it just got announced? A: right now we plan ps4 xone and pc release

Q: Will it be possible to take (offline) single-player saved games online, and if so, what proactive measures will Techland take to prevent game-save mods from disrupting the online multiplayer experience? A: as i said, multiplayer details will come in the future, those things are still under discussion

Q: Can we go and roam outside the city? A: Aiden wants to stay in the city

Q: my final question what is the virus called is it still called the harran virus A: well it's not in harran only anymore

Q: Is there some way to calculate just how many final outcomes you can get out of the game? Like in Detroit Become Human for example A: not really, not right now at least

Q: will screamers have more of a purpose then obstacle you have to get around A: they will be different this time

Q: Legend levels made the first game really easy so are they in dl2 or no ? and if they are there so is it balanced now or it will still make the game so easy ? A: legends levels are still under discussion as well

Q: Still another question about that charges... Will there be some visual and sensitive effects (like in Dying Light where the screens goes green and we dont have stamina)? A: yup, i think so at least

Q: Will there be more detailed animations for each thing we do? (If we activate our flashlight, Aiden would reach to his shoulder to turn it on) A: some things are speed up of course to not be annoying, but there will be more animations, like imagine having to reach the uv light for a 10000 time when volatile is at your face

Q: Will this channel remain so we can review all the previously stated questions? A: it will be closed but it will remain (i need to make QA out of it)

Q: Will it be possible to take (offline) single-player saved games online, and if so, what proactive measures will Techland take to prevent game-save mods from disrupting the online multiplayer experience? A: i responded to that with - no multiplayer details for now, I really don't have any info about it

Q: Can we ride horses ? A: nope

Q: Is korek in dl2? A: i dont think so

Q: anything to mention about Night hunters? A: night runners you mean? actually Aiden is the only man capable of reviving hte nightrunners caste

Q: wingsuit? A: maybe this will be one of the things we will be talking about - i mean, new traversal options

Q: Will we have the ability to pursue affections of NPC? Such as a friend meter, or even a lover? A: you will be able to interact with every single npc in the game - how? you will see

Q: Any building destruction in ds2? Like walls collapsing when you use explosives, would be cool A: just the last one - yes environment is destructible in some cases

[fk12b]

Leather & Whiskey

Batman/Bruce Wayne x Mercenary/Reader

Plot: It has been a really stressful day, the only thing you want is to relax without any moron interrupting your day.

Prompts: 59 - “Who is this lovely young thing?” & 64 - “And you’re… well, I’m sure you have a wonderful personality, dear” & 69 - “I just thought I’d sit here quietly”

Warnings: None really

JOKER: *Sitting on a couch drinking whiskey next to the autor* Unless you consider Batman as a warning?

AUTOR: *Reading a magazine* Batman is not a warning.

JOKER: *Looks at autor as if they had grown two heads* Excuse you, Who sais it?

AUTOR: *Keeps reading the magazine* Me

JOKER: *Frowns* Why?

AUTOR: *Flips the page* Because I’m God, and I write what I want.

JOKER: *Pouts and croses his arms over his chest* Whatever.

AUTOR: *Looks at Joker* You’re just grumpy because you don’t apear in this fic.

JOKER: *pouts even more* I could kill you, you know?

AUTOR: *Returns the attention to the magazine* Oh yeah, but you wouldn’t have a fic then *smirks*

JOKER: *Takes a sip from the whiskey* I hate you. *Looks at autor again* Can I have a fic for myself?

AUTOR: I’ll think about it *flips a page*

Word Count: 1588 Words

A/N: This is my very first DC fanfic. I was planning on doing DC fics but didn’t have any ideas until I saw a picture of Christian Bale, and recalled all those feelings I had long ago forgotten about him, I mean he IS Batman, The Batman. So, here you go, hope you enjoy this fic. And special thanks to my good friend @beccollie18 for being supportive and helping me to polish some details about this fic.

Based on this song -> The Rise Of Chaos - Accept

Tonight, it was a rainy night. You have always loved rain. Gotham had a different glow that held spellbound and you worshiped those eventides though they held danger inside. That was the reason you walked out in the night these days. The bills won’t pay themselves.

As the rain kept pouring down dampening your Y/H/C hair, you adjusted your earbuds and slid your hands inside your black leather jacket pockets, walking by the almost empty alley illuminated by a dim light, perfect place for a meeting. You could see how your target walking five steps ahead of you, was starting to feel nervous, fidgeting with the zipper of his jacket, probably feeling someone behind him. Quickly! Find a place to hide. Turning your head to your left you saw a backdoor of some business, perfect to hide a person between its walls. Bingo! At the same time you hid, he turned on his heels as you predicted. Damn it! Hope he didn’t notice me. Without taking the device out of your right pocket, you pressed play to start recording.

“You’re late!” You heard an angry deep male voice shout. Maybe the contact of your target.

“Had to make sure no one was following me!” He replied. Well, not a great job.

“Bulshit, Melvin. You know the boss does not like to be made him wait” The first man explained angrily.

“I know. I’m sorry, sir” Sir? Is there another one? The boss maybe?

“If you know this, why you’re late?” A man with a thick Russian accent spoke, sending shivers down your spine, or was it the cold rain? That must be him, the boss.

Then three shots were heard in the silent night. Shit shit shit, I’m fucked. Gotta run from here. You were caged you placed your hands on both walls and looked up, the rain falling on your eyes.

“That way they will learn manners” The Russian man spoke, “You know it is impolite to spy and eavesdrop?”

28 hours before...

“I still don’t know how you got a reservation, so quickly. I mean, it’s the trendy restaurant” Your friend Ginna cheered excited as you four climbed the stairs heading towards the hotel entrance. Today was a girls night, and nothing was gonna stop you.

“Or hotel for that matter” Jess added.

“Well, I did get a reservation because they were raffling a dinner for four people and I happened to won the ticket” You explained throwing them a bitchface.

“Really nice. You are lucky, girl. And we love you for that” Noah joked earning a laugh from all of you.

“Yeah” You rolled your eyes “But don’t get too excited. Maybe we don’t have a table, as you said it is the trendy restaurant” sighing you approached the maître at the main entrance.

The restaurant was something different, top class, with minimalist decoration and a decorative pool on the left. Suddenly you felt underdressed with a simple long black dress that hugged your curves perfectly, your Y/H/L Y/H/C hair hanging loose and dark red lipstick on.

“Good evening ladies” The well dressed gentle maître greeted “Did you have a reservation for today?”

“Sure, to name Y/N Y/L/N” you answered after greeting him with a smile smoothing down a non-existent crumple of your dress, while he proceeds to search for the name on the reservation book. Next to you gathered another four young men neatly dressed in their suits and ties.

“Who is this lovely young thing?” One of them spoke. You didn’t realize he was talking to you until Jess smacked your arm. You turned to him, a tall blonde blue-eyed man, with squinted eyes.

“And you’re… well, I’m sure you have a wonderful personality, dear” you sassed making another tall man with dark hair laugh. You recognized this handsome man as Bruce Wayne. Who wouldn't recognize him? But quickly your focus turned to the white-haired maître who was still looking for your name.

“Aha!” He cheered crossing a line over a name “Miss Y/L/N, your table is ready” Smiling with a nod he let go of the book “Please follow me. Gentlemen, your table is ready too” He explained and you followed him, Mr. Wayne right behind. The man didn’t say he could follow him but he was Bruce Wayne, he did what he wanted.

When you reached your table, you turned to see if your friends were following, you saw they were all at the entrance talking to the multimillionaire playboy's companion. Jess approached you in a hurry after locking eyes with her.

“We are going to visit a tower from where there’s a beautiful sight of the city at this hour,” The smile on her face said everything.

“Come on we’re not gonna have another opportunity like this” you sighed.

“Exactly” She clasped your arm and with a smile, she left again. You shook your head and turn around.

“Seems like we are left alone,” said him.

“Yeah, seems like” you replied turning around completely and almost bumping into his chest. Taking a small breath from your nose you took a seat in one of the chairs prepared for you and without saying a word Mr. Wayne took the seat across from you.

“I just thought I’d sit here quietly” He spoke after watching you raise a brow at him.

To say he was intrigued by you was an understatement. He clearly wanted to know more about the mysterious girl who didn’t give him more than a side glance and earned from him a natural wholeheartedly laugh. The first one after many years since he was a kid.

The evening went perfectly. The both of you laughed, shared stories from your past, from your present and told some funny embarrassing stories. It felt as if both of you knew each other since ever. It made you forget that your friends left you to Chuck knows where. It almost made you forget that the man in front of you was Bruce Wayne. Almost. Yup, this was another of his charming conquests. So, when the waiter came back to retire the dishes that carried minutes before the delicious dessert, you knew it was over. After thanking the waiter and telling him to thank the chef for this amazing food, you stood up to leave.

“Already leaving?” Mr. Wayne said following your moves. He wanted to know more of you. The mysterious woman who felt drawn to. He never felt like this before. He needed you by his side, he felt weak but powerful at the same time. In less than an hour, you wrecked all his walls.

“Yup, it’s pretty late and tomorrow I have a lot of work to do. I have spent a lovely evening though, Mr. Wayne” you answered as you both exited the restaurant.

“Me too. Please, call me Bruce, it makes me feel very old. Mr. Wayne was my father” we laughed nervously “May I take you home?” He said while you crossed the street and opened his Lamborgini without taking his hands from the pockets.

“I parked my car here, Bruce,” You said with a smile opening the car next to it. A beautiful black shiny 1971 Jensen Interceptor.

“What was your name again?” Although he knew the answer he had to ask.

“Goodnight, Mr. Wayne,” You said as you got into your car and drove back to home.

Bruce followed you and your car with his eyes until you were out of sight.

Current timestamp...

You felt a strong arm around your waist and a hand on your mouth while you heard footsteps coming closer. You tried to kick the one holding you out of instinct but couldn’t feel the ground under your feet. The rooftop? Really? What is going on?!

“If you are going to kill me, do it now” You spoke recovering your breath kneeling on the floor where you landed with a loud thud. Placing your arm in front of your eyes to shield you from the spotlight to your right and the heavy pouring rain did nothing.

“I’m not going to kill you,” A deep raspy voice said while a dark figure grabbed your shoulders and pulled you to him

“Batman,” You said in an almost inaudible whisper knowing full well who it was. You could recognize him anywhere, even in the dark.

Part 2? :3

Feedback is really appreciated and very welcomed. Love Y'all

[attraversiamo19]

Always

Well guys, here’s my first fanfic. I would love feedback if you take the time to read.

Thanks so much to @ereri-writing-prompts​ for the prompt and to @omglevixeren​ for reading through it.  I greatly appreciate it. <3

Read on AO3 or under the cut.

Rating: Teen And Up Audiences

Fandom: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan

Relationships: Levi/Eren Yeager

Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Angst, Fluff, Bittersweet, Older Levi (Shingeki no Kyojin), Older Eren Yeager, Memory Loss, Ereri Writing Prompts, I just want them to grow old together y'all, I promise it's not all sad

Summary:   Despite the trials of old age, Eren will be always be there for Levi. No matter what.

Eren knows that Levi doesn’t care what people think of him, not really.

He’s unapologetically himself and people who can’t tolerate that - or appreciate it, even - aren’t worth his time. But Levi does take pride in his appearance. Never understood teenagers who went into public without even pulling a brush through their hair, or people in the grocery store wearing their pajamas. It’s not vanity by any means, but it’s important to him that he looks put together.

Even after all these years, Levi still irons his pants.

Eren thinks it’s silly and often chastises him gently for it whenever he walks into the bedroom to find Levi setting up the ironing board.

“We’re old now. We get to walk around in wrinkled pants if we want to. It’s a privilege,” he would say with mock exasperation. And Levi would simply roll his eyes and nod and carry on with what he was doing.

They know each other far too well by now for Levi to let Eren’s words bother him. It has been almost 40 years, after all.

Eren drags himself up out of the recliner in the living room where he’s reading and shuffles toward the bathroom. It’s not a joke when they say you’ve gotta pee more often as an old guy. An older guy. Whatever.

Partway down the hallway though, he hesitates due to the smell of something burning. Concerned, he changes direction immediately and heads back to check the kitchen. They had toast that morning for breakfast, perhaps the toaster oven was left on and was burning up some crumbs.

The kitchen looks and smells normal. Eren frowns. “Levi? Do you smell something burning?” He calls down the hallway to their bedroom.

The sudden shrill beeping of the smoke detector from their bedroom confirms what Eren’s nose already knows.

“Shit.” Levi’s curse is quiet but still audible enough for Eren to hear the frustration in his voice. Alarmed, he moves quickly despite the ache in his muscles to the bedroom. Levi stands a few feet from the ironing board, silver hair drooping into his eyes and a horrified expression on his face.

Small flames lick up around the iron, which is laying down on a pair of what Eren assumes was, until about two minutes ago, slacks.

The fire is easy enough to put out, once Eren has snapped Levi into action and grabbed several towels from their bathroom to smother it.

When the flames are extinguished, Eren snags the back-scratcher next to their bed and taps the button on the smoke detector to silence it.

He turns to Levi. “What happened?” Eren asks, bewildered.

Levi sits on the edge of their bed, looking down at his hands wringing nervously in his lap. His brow is furrowed and he won’t meet Eren’s eyes.

“Nothing.” Levi glances up quickly at Eren. “It was nothing. I left the room for a minute to check something on the computer. It’s not a big deal.” Levi looks over to the ironing board to examine the damage and mutters, “Shit. This all needs to be replaced.”

Eren sits down beside him on the bed and places his left hand gently over Levi’s, still wringing in his lap. Levi’s hands stop moving.

“Levi,” Eren says quietly. “Look at me.”

Levi sighs deeply, then turns his face toward Eren.

Eren reaches up and pushes a bit of Levi’s hair out of his eyes. When Eren had first met him all those years ago, he had been struck by Levi’s eyes. A deep steel gray with a hint of blue that reminded Eren of the ocean on a stormy day.

Aside from some extra wrinkles around the edges, they’ve stayed exactly the same.

Eren is intimately acquainted with the intense range of emotion that Levi’s eyes communicate. Emotions that the casual observer would miss entirely. And right now…

Right now they’re haunted. Filled with embarrassment, with frustration.

With fear.

Eren’s heart hurts. Levi is the bravest person he’s ever met. His eyes should never be filled with fear like this. “Talk to me, sweetheart,” he says quietly.

Levi looks away from him, down at the floor, and pulls his hands from Eren’s. He begins to fidget with some piling on his bathrobe.

“This isn’t the first time,” he says, almost inaudible.

Eren stays silent, giving him the time to formulate the words.

“Last week I left water boiling on the stove. Was going to make noodles. Forgot about it. Completely scorched the pan when the water all boiled off.”

“When did this happen?” And how had he missed it?

“You were visiting Mikasa. I took care of it all before you got home,” Levi answers.

Eren just nods at this. They sit silently, Levi continuing to pick at his bathrobe and Eren utterly still, staring at a stain on the carpet that Levi has never been able to banish despite countless tries over the years.

How long has this been going on?

There had been little things, if Eren’s honest with himself.

Things like leaving the cap off the tube of toothpaste. Or forgetting to pick up coffee beans on a grocery run. Or the television being left on overnight when they’d talked repeatedly about saving money on the electricity bill.

Levi had always been so detail-oriented. So vigilant.

But just last week he had left the stove on when they left the house. And just a few nights ago the front door was left open overnight, when Levi had told Eren to go to sleep, he took care of it, don’t worry about it.

It’s true they’re both getting older, and Levi is ten years his senior. Technically no one is immune to aging and the forgetfulness that comes with it. It could happen to anyone.

But this isn’t just anyone.

This is Levi.

His Levi.

Eren finally breaks the silence, needs to reassure himself, reassure them both. “Maybe you’re just tired. You have been sleeping a lot more lately--”

“I’m not stupid Eren. I’ve never been this forgetful.”

“I know,” Eren says.

And Levi’s right. It’s always been Levi reminding Eren to pick up his clothes off the bathroom floor. Levi remembering to pick up a gift for Mikasa and Jean’s anniversary. Levi who would discreetly grab Eren’s wallet from the nightstand when they were on their way out the door, shoving it in his pocket and pulling it out with an amused smile the moment Eren realized he had forgotten it.

“What can I do?” Eren asks.

Levi scoffs at this. “Nothing. I just need to pay more attention to what I’m doing.”

Eren shakes his head, “There has to be some way I can help though…”

“You could just stick me in an old folk’s home and forget about me.”

“That’s never happening. Asshole.” Eren nudges Levi’s shoulder with his own, and Levi chuckles softly.

A few more moments of silence, then, “I don’t want you to have to care for me, Eren.”

Eren looks at him questiongly.

“I can’t…” Levi trails off. Sighs deeply. Then, steadily, “I can’t be a burden to you. I won’t.”

Eren actually smiles at this and laughs a little. Levi looks at him like he’s gone crazy. “What the hell is funny about this?”

“Levi, I have always cared for you. And I always will,” Eren says.

“You know that’s not what I mean.”

“Well it’s what I mean. I don’t care if you’re wandering around naked with your pants on your head. I’d never abandon you. And you’ll never be a burden.”

Levi stares at him.

Eren leans forward and plants a chaste kiss on Levi’s lips. “I love you.”

Levi refuses to see a doctor. Eren doesn’t push it, but he does do a lot of research about memory loss online. He refuses to google words like “dementia” and “Alzheimer’s” because that’s just ridiculous. Levi isn’t losing himself, and Eren sure as hell isn’t losing Levi.

The websites he finds recommend things that do help. Eren insists on being around when Levi is cooking, climbing up on things - still ironing, for god’s sake - anything potentially dangerous if he were to lose his train of thought.

Levi hates it, Eren knows he does, but Levi puts up with it; he’s learned over the years to accept help from someone he trusts.

They make a lot of lists now too: Grocery lists, morning routine lists, evening routine lists. Eren leaves sticky notes throughout the house, reminding Levi to turn off the stove, lock the front door.

Eren buys a white board for the wall in the kitchen so he can record his plans. That way Levi can always reference them if he gets confused.

They write notes to each other on the bathroom mirror with dry-erase markers, Levi in blue and Eren in green. “Don’t forget to move the clothes from the washer to the dryer!” “I won’t, you idiot.” “I love you!” “I love you too.”

Simple things. Because Levi’s not so far gone that he’s forgotten names or faces.

They spend time together each evening playing card games or chess, because the doctors all say that those kinds of activities are good for “flexing your brain muscles.” Levi, however, says that “flexing your brain muscles” is the most asinine thing he’s ever heard. So Eren uses the phrase as often as he can. Just to make Levi roll his eyes and curse under his breath.

Mikasa and Jean come over every Friday night and the four of them make dinner and watch a movie together. Sometimes Eren catches Levi staring off into the distance during the film, so he’ll grab his hand to place a kiss on the back of Levi’s palm and give him a smile. Trying to pull him back into the present.

Sometimes Levi smiles back at him. Sometimes he doesn’t.

“I forgot who Mikasa was tonight,” Levi says to Eren one Friday after Jean and Mikasa have gone home for the evening. They’re sitting side by side on the couch, Levi working on a sudoku puzzle and Eren reading a book.

Eren’s stomach clenches. He marks his page and sets his book down in his lap. Forces his tone to be neutral. “Mikasa is my sister.”

“I know that now,” Levi glances up at him from his puzzle with annoyance, then flicks his eyes back down. “But for a few minutes... I just stared at her and wondered who she was and why she was here in our house.”

He keeps his eyes down on his puzzle, and Eren doesn’t respond right away. His mouth has gone dry.

Levi’s never been good at being vulnerable. At opening himself up, even to Eren. He’s gotten better over the years, but god, it must have taken a lot of courage for Levi to share this with him. Or, maybe courage is the wrong word.

Levi looks back up at him, searching Eren’s face. “I just thought you should know,” he says quietly with a shrug.

Eren doesn’t really know what to say to that. Not out loud, at least.

He meets Levi’s eyes again, and Levi gives him a small sad smile. Then he closes his puzzle book and silently scooches over on the couch until he’s pressed up against Eren and resting his head on Eren’s shoulder.

Eren leans down to kiss the shorter man lightly on the crown of his head and breathes in the scent of him. They’re going to be okay.

It’s not all sad smiles and nervous stomachs though.

“Eren!” Levi hollers from down the hall.

“Yeah?” Eren shouts back, hoisting himself painfully out of his chair and heading toward the sound of Levi’s voice. “Everything okay?”

“Just come back here please,” Levi responds, panic in his voice.

Eren’s expecting another fire, or worse. But as far as Eren knows, Levi was only doing laundry.

Well, he wasn’t wrong.

Levi is indeed standing in the laundry room. The washing machine is spewing out copious amounts of soap bubbles. They’ve pooled around Levi’s ankles, and they’re quickly growing into a mountain that is blocking Levi off from the doorway.

“I must’ve added soap instead of detergent…” Levi trails off, almost in a daze, before finally meeting Eren’s eyes with a horrified expression.

Eren glances down at the expanding onslaught of bubbles, then back at Levi. And he can’t help it. He tries, tries so hard to muffle the laughter that is beginning to spill out from behind the hand clamped over his mouth. But it’s no use.

Levi smiles then, because he knows Eren isn’t laughing at him. The sheer ludicrousness of the situation hits him, and now Levi is suppressing laughter, his eyes crinkling with mirth.

Finally pulling his hand away from his face, Eren allows the laughter to come out full force, and he begins to walk toward Levi, directly through the path of the creeping bubbles.

“Eren,” Levi breathes, laughter breaking apart his sentence, “You’ll make even more of a mess.”

Eren reaches down to pick up a handful of bubbles and unceremoniously deposits them right on top of Levi’s head before leaning down to plant an obnoxiously loud kiss on his cheek.

Levi bats him away and tries his best to remove the suds from his head. “We should probably turn the fucking machine off or it’s just going to get worse.”

“Let it. This is hilarious,” Eren is still laughing, and Levi rolls his eyes when Eren wraps his arms around his waist with a deep sigh.

“Seriously, turn the thing off. Are you gonna clean this up?” Levi huffs, but he’s smiling, and he holds on to Eren tightly.

They stand this way for a few minutes, just the two of them surrounded by soap bubbles. And Eren thinks that, yeah, sometimes things are tough. Sometimes Levi gets frustrated when he can’t remember. Sometimes he gets cross with Eren for repeatedly reminding him of things.

But moments like this makes everything else worth it.

The past six months have been difficult for them both. Levi recognizes faces less often, and he’s been withdrawn and spending a lot more time alone. Last week he had asked Eren to cancel their weekly dinner with Mikasa and Jean because he didn’t want anybody else to see him like this. Didn’t want anyone feeling sorry for him.

Eren had denied the request, saying that spending time with Jean and Mikasa was good for them both. Levi huffed and complained, but had eventually given in. It had actually ended up being a really good night - Levi had been in a great mood and he hadn’t had any issues with forgetting or zoning out.

Their anniversary is coming up next week. Forty-two years. While Levi’s never placed much weight on celebrating birthdays or anniversaries - “It’s just one year closer to dying,” he’s always said - Eren’s a romantic at heart who enjoys celebrating those kinds of milestones. Levi usually relents and plans something.

Eren doesn’t expect anything from Levi this year for their anniversary.

Nowadays, Levi struggles more frequently with basic things like remembering what day it is, or forgetting which drawer the spatulas are in. Sometimes he can’t remember what they did yesterday, or the plans they have for later that night.

Eren has started keeping a journal to record what they’ve done each day and any new important information in their lives. There’s a calendar in there as well where he marks important dates, doctor appointments, things like that. He leaves it on the living room table so Levi can reference it when he’s ‘having a blank’, as they’ve come to call his episodes of forgetting.

Eren leaves the date of their anniversary unmarked.

Levi is under enough stress right now as it is. He doesn’t need the added pressure of trying to plan something for their anniversary. And Eren’s okay with that. He really is.

He loves Levi. And he knows Levi loves him. They don’t need to celebrate their anniversary for that to be true.

Eren sits in his chair by the fireplace with a book, like he does most of the time when he’s home alone now. Except this afternoon he’s not reading. He’s deep in thought, staring blankly at the page in front of him.

The house is quiet, nothing but the ticking of the grandfather clock on the mantle. Mikasa and Jean had come to pick up Levi early that morning so they could go visit Hanji, per Levi’s request. They usually all went together, but Eren had said he hadn’t felt well and had stayed home. He’d needed some time to himself.

He sighs and pulls off his reading glasses, pinching the bridge of his nose.

Today is their anniversary, and Eren hasn’t planned anything to celebrate.

He wants to celebrate, of course he does. But Levi’s already chastising himself for his more frequent blanks and getting increasingly frustrated every time they happen. It’s infuriating for him because he knows it’s happening and he’s powerless to stop it.

Eren would never do anything that could make Levi feel guilty. Like planning something for their anniversary, only to have Levi realize he had forgotten it.

He’d tried not to get his hopes up. No need for that. But despite his efforts, the sliver of hope had been there the past few days. The hope that Levi would remember. That he would say something, anything, to acknowledge their day, even just in passing.

But he hadn’t. Levi had kissed him goodbye this morning as if it was any other day. Which, Eren supposes, to him it probably is.

He hadn’t expected anything, but he’d be lying if he said it doesn’t hurt. The past two years have been hard on Levi, but it’s different for Eren. He’s sitting on the sidelines watching the man he loves slowly slip away from him. Watching Levi beat himself up every day over something he can’t control.

They’re both pretty powerless here, in reality.

Eren shakes the thoughts away and slips his glasses back on so he can attempt to focus on something else other than his thoughts. His book. Right.

He’s just gotten back into his book when his concentration is broken by the creak of the back door. Levi’s home, and Eren smiles. At least they have the rest of the day together, whether or not they’re celebrating.

“How was it?” Eren calls into the kitchen, closing his book and collapsing the recliner before standing up and stretching a bit.

No response.

Eren walks toward the kitchen. “Levi?”

As he rounds the doorway, Levi turns around to face him from where he had been fiddling with something on the counter.

“Everything okay?” Eren asks, eyebrows raised. “How was Hanji?”

“We didn’t go see Hanji.”

Eren’s brow furrows in confusion. “Then where…”

Levi stares at him, eyes searching. Then he sighs. “Did you really forget our anniversary? I’m supposed to be the one with memory loss here, not you.”

Eren doesn’t quite know how to respond to that. “Uh. How did you..?”

“You’re not the only one who keeps a calendar, you idiot.” Levi’s lips quirk up in a smug grin before he turns around to fetch something from the counter behind him.

It’s a small bunch of petite blue flowers tied up in a green ribbon. The same green as Eren’s eyes. Levi thrusts them toward Eren and looks down at the ground. Still so awkward after all these years. Eren loves him all the more for it.

“They’re forget-me-nots.” Levi says. “Seemed… appropriate.”

Eren’s not going to cry. He’s not. But his lip does quiver for a moment before he breaks into a huge grin and closes the space between them. He wraps his arms around the shorter man and envelopes him in a massive bear hug, lifting him up off the ground before Levi can attempt to stop him.

“Eren...” Levi huffs in his ear, a warning in his voice.

Eren laughs heartily and sets him back down. Pulling back from the hug, Eren asks, “So Jean and Mikasa were in on it?”

“I asked them to give me a ride earlier this week, yeah,” Levi confirms. He’s still holding the flowers and he pushes them to Eren’s chest. “Put these in some water, eh?”

Eren takes the flowers but doesn’t move. Levi looks at him now, meeting his eyes, grey on green. Levi’s eyes are glassy, like he’s holding back tears. He takes a deep breath and, a little shakily, says, “Happy Anniversary Eren.”

“I love you, Levi.”

“I love you too,” Levi murmurs.

Eren is certain that his eyes are just as glassy as Levi’s, and there might be a tear slipping down his right cheek, but Levi won’t care. He leans down to touch his forehead to Levi’s and closes his eyes, just appreciating the moment.

When he opens them again, Levi is looking at him. “Thanks for sticking around.”

Eren’s heart clenches and explodes simultaneously.

“Always.”

[mongoosefangs]

Redwall Revisited, Part 2: Pearls of Lutra

In light of all the Redwall fanart I’ve been putting out recently I’m going to be revisiting each of the books and posting my personal thoughts on them. It’s been a lowkey goal of mine for a while to write a sizeable story set in this world- a full novel, more or less, and I’d like it to read as authentically as possible. More specifically I want this story to feel like one of the early Redwall novels. I think most folks will agree that there is a certain quality shift in the series after a point (although this isn’t universal, there have been some underwhelming early books and some good later books IMO) and by taking a close look at every one I hope to pinpoint just what it is that makes a Redwall story feel ‘oldschool’ or not.

I’m not necessarily going to be reading these in any particular order besides 'what I feel like’, although I will probably post the reviews in the original publishing order.

Each book will be judged on its primary protagonist and antagonist, its notable supporting characters, my personal favorite minor character, the overall conflict and resolution, and any other noteworthy features or gimmicks. At the end I’ll give the novel a 1-5 overall rating with 5 being the best. I may also throw in a few fanfiction prompts based on questions left unanswered or characters who could stand to be better explored.

Second on my reading list is Pearls of Lutra (1996):

Two books in one year? Woah there Brian, take it easy, it's not a race. That said it's impressive that both Lutra and Outcast came out in '96 because they're both very solid books and don't feel rushed or half-assed at all! Where Outcast may have fallen a little flat with its titular character this next installment more than makes up for it, giving us one of the most memorable and well-received vermin characters in the entire series... we'll get to her eventually. Y'all know who I'm talking about.

This is one of those novels where most of the action takes place away from Redwall Abbey, and the main villain never even leaves his territory at all. While I do tend to prefer stories where the bad guy has more motivation beyond obtaining some macguffin, there's still plenty at stake here, and the social commentary is unfortunately very relatable in this day and age as so many characters suffer just so this one wealthy asshole can decorate a crown for his stupid vain head. Eat the rich, is what I'm saying. Maybe they do taste like pine after all.

The Primary Protagonist- Grath Longfletch You might argue that Martin takes the lead as the book goes on but Grath should be the main character and she's on the book cover, so there. She's definitely got more reason than anyone to be pissed, as her entire family and clan was slaughtered for their treasure, with Grath herself driven to the brink of death. After she recovers she does what any reasonable person would do. She builds herself a bow, gets herself a boat, and heads out to kick some pirate ass. Along the way she meets up with the Redwallers and it's here where she sadly starts fading into the background. In the end I feel that Grath Longfletch gets shafted (ha ha. arrow pun. get it). Her story doesn't even get a satisfying conclusion as she exits the novel off-camera and the Redwallers handwave her away. It would have been nice to get her thoughts on finally avenging her people, or at the very least a mention in the epilogue about how she's moving forward with her life. As it is Grath Longfletch is like a wave on the ocean, building up huge momentum before dissolving completely, and that's a real shame. She could have easily carried the book on her own without the Abbey Warrior coming along to steal her thunder.

The Primary Antagonist- Emperor Ublaz Mad Eyes Holy crap, it's a pine marten! Why were these guys so insanely rare throughout the series, anyway? Ublaz isn't the most interesting out of them if you ask me, but that's not really a knock against him- he manages to be a pretty decent villain even if he never threatens Redwall personally. I think a rich pompous dick who does nothing but hoard resources on his own private island is someone we can all agree to hate these days. The Emperor's entire motivation, besides clinging on to what he's already got, is acquiring more. This whole drama starts because he wants a set of six pink pearls for his crown! That's literally it! Ublaz couldn't care less about Redwall Abbey or Mossflower Woods. The only reason they're on his radar at all is because the pearls are there. He's shallow, vain, greedy, conniving and arrogant. If he's not the most threatening villain ever then I'll argue that he's at least one of the most loathsome just for being the 1%. Ublaz is notable for having some sort of weird hypnotic power with his eyes, hence the nickname. It's never explained how this works but simply making direct eye contact with him is apparently enough to drive his own minions to suicide. If this sounds cheap it's because it is, but Ublaz isn't much of a fighter otherwise. He's explicitly gotten weak and soft from living like royalty for so long and I appreciate that detail. Mad Eyes's greatest asset is his mind, whether he's literally puppeteering others or attempting to outsmart them as even his followers are sick of his shit. The moment he does get in a swordfight he goes down like a sack of candied chestnuts.

Other Notable Major Characters: Martin- No, no, not THAT Martin, the OTHER Martin, Mattimeo's son who was named after the legendary Abbey Warrior. That is a lot to live up to and probably makes for some awkward introductions. No. Sorry. You’re thinking of someone else. Can we just call him, like, Marty instead? Morton? Bort? I'm getting off track. Anyway, Martwo here fails to live up to his predecessors. He didn't rise from adversity like the original Martin, he didn't come of age like Matthias, he didn't have to learn a hard lesson like Mattimeo, he's just there because you gotta have a token mouse warrior in the abbey, I guess. Bort is as generic a hero as you can possibly get. This makes it all the more disappointing that he comes along to push Grath Longfletch out of the spotlight and steal her kill. Mar2n is just... extraneous. You could take him out of the story entirely and still accomplish the same thing. Rollo and Auma are still around so it's not like you need this guy to establish that Pearls of Lutra is the direct sequel to Mattimeo. Without this Martin, more interesting characters would have the chance to shine.

Tansy- When Redwall is threatened by the Emperor's agents it's up to this young hedgehog to find the coveted pearls in order to pay the ransom. With help along the way from her friends, she displays enough courage and wisdom that she ends up being nominated as Redwall's next Abbess by the end. There isn't a whole lot to say about her beyond that, but she does fulfill an important role and has the good sense to slam dunk those pearls to the bottom of the sea where they belong. She knows what's up.

Rasconza- The biggest thorn in Emperor Ublaz's side throughout the story is one of his own corsairs. This fox isn't even the one who first orchestrates the rebellion, he just swoops in later to run the show and ends up being a persistent threat up til the end. When mutiny happens in the Redwall series it's usually quashed pretty quickly so this is kind of a cool thing to see. It's nice that Rasconza is there so Ublaz can do something other than twiddle his thumbs while he waits for those pearls.

Romsca- Okay, okay, you can all sit down now. Romsca is probably one of the most memorable Redwall characters ever and even if her role in the plot is actually pretty small I would be remiss if I didn't include her here. She's a corsair ferret who is tasked with guiding Ublaz's creepy lizard army to Mossflower and obtaining the pearls. Why is that so notable, you ask? Because out of the precious few 'vermin' throughout the series who have any suggestion of morality to them, Romsca has a complete little character arc and ends up doing something unquestionably good and selfless. Unfortunately because we can't have nice things it comes at the cost of her life. In a perfect world we could see her go on to thrive and have nautical adventures forever, but it does go to show just how determined she was to stick to her guns, and shows us that vermin don't have to be innately bad. Except for when they are. (Lookin' at you, Veil.) I think we can all agree that Romsca is a breath of fresh air and the series would be better with more characters like her in it. They're few and far between to begin with, and those that do exist need to get on this ferret's level.

My Favorite Minor Character: Oh, we already did Romsca? Okay, then, I like Viola for sort of going in the opposite direction, starting out as the abbey's resident crybaby and going on to find a taste for adventure. She's a shallow, fun character and that's all right. They did a similar thing with Cynthia in Mattimeo which makes me wonder if bankvoles are just Like This? Is this a stereotype bankvoles have? What even is a bankvole, really?

Pearls of Lutra is probably one of the better books, I feel like it suffers from too many characters more than anything. Marty could be cut in favor of Grath Longfletch. You could ignore all the rebelling corsairs who came before Rasconza. Even Tansy isn't really as interesting as her buddies Piknim and Craklyn (who are totally a couple if you ask me). The narrative is solid but it starts to get bogged down by the sheer number of players competing for the reader's attention. This is a story about fighting for what's really important: life is more precious than any trinket, and it's worth defending to the bitter end. It's also about eating the rich. Wealth and influence will only get you so far: if you act like a jerk, nobody is going to put up with your crap forever. I feel that this might be, like, the most political of the novels in that regard. You can have your whimsical talking animal story but there's some serious subtext here too. Beyond that, the ninth Redwall installment is also memorable for being the one where they burn down a church (wow) and the one with an absurdly large percentage of reptiles and pinnipeds in it. There's also something I noticed while reading: the naming convention in this book gets really redundant. Like weirdly so. Grath. Grall. Graylunk. Grimjaw. Groojaw. Guja. Kuja. Two of these dudes who don't matter are even named on the same page! It's a minor nitpick but I just find it bizarre. It can't be that hard to think of various names for filler characters, can it? I hear Sampetra is completely sold out of Gort license plates.

Overall Score: 4/5

[venusparker]

lab partner!peter ↬ p.p

thank you to @nedslaptop​ for requesting this i love cate sm and i haven’t updated frustrating, i’m such a fake so here are some hcs to keep y'all busy while i try and finish that imagine :)

• so let’s not lie

• you’d have a little crush on peter • nothing too extreme since you barely know him (because this boy barely talks to anyone he’s not comfortable around) but you know that he’s sweet and cute and seems like an all around good guy

• plus once you overheard him and mj discussing racism and how he wanted to ‘learn more about intersectional feminism and how he can be apart of ‘fighting against all the shit happening in the world’

• and honestly you’ve approved of him ever since

• in science you sneak glances at him from across the room when you really should be paying attention to the lesson

• and you clear your throat when he’s busy looking at stuff on his laptop and not listening

• you guys are DEFINITELY on a first name basis and you’ve had a couple conversations but nothing really serious

• you wish it was serious

• then one day you walk into class late (by like a minute, come on mrs. g, don’t give me a detention) and everyone’s already partnered up and you check the list by the board

and you see your last name next to PETER PARKER on the seating charts for your latest project

• and well, shit

• usually you and peter sometimes pair up for small assignments that take like fifteen minutes out of the eighty minute period

• but nothing as big as this project that takes practically the entire class and requires more follow-up worksheets after

• peter is kinda nervous but he doesn’t know why

• he’s talked to you before and you seem like a great person but you’re also very pretty and he likes your hair and he’s not so great at talking to people for such a long time

• because he rambles

• and three minutes after you sit next to him to start working on your lab project, he’s talking about building a computer out of all car parts

• so basically once i just found this old DVD player in an alleyway which makes me sound like a total dumpster diver—and that’s what tony stark said once which was really offensive and embarrassing—but anyways you can use stuff like maybe some parts from an engine like the wire thingies to make an old school computer and…uh, sorry what were we talking about?

• uhm peter the question was how did we get the solution to react and we haven’t even poured in the acid yet

• you find his rambling ADORABLE

• but it’s not exactly the best because you ramble when you’re nervous too and you both get sidetracked

• somehow you guys finish the lab early (flash rolls his eyes because of course perfect peter penis parker finishes everything on time and gets everything he wants—) and you’re supposed to go back to your seat but you don’t and you and peter are !!!!! still !!!! talking !!!!!

• you don’t hand in the lab reports so your teacher doesn’t make you move and whenever she passes by, you guys pretend you’re struggling and talking about mole ratio

• your crush on him gets worse because he’s really a great guy and oh my god you’re screwed • it’s an ongoing constant conversation and you guys are just switching subjects and he’s pretending to look to up chemical solutions relating to the lab on his laptop whenever your teacher takes a look at what y'all are doing • when he tries to switch the window back to something you guys were talking about, he accidentally switches it to ‘Human Spider Superhero Saves Ferry’

• and he’s a flustered mess because he knows you saw it and he exits the window but misses and makes it bigger and then he’s trying to make excuses because oh my god what kind of conceited person watches videos of himself and his head is in his hands

• oh my god you like spider-man too??

• peter looks up and isn’t surprised that you like him—well, spider-man him because the whole school is crazy about him but he’s relieved that you don’t think spider-man is a vigilante wannabe

• hey y/n could i get your number—for the project! yeah for the project. we’re getting extra worksheets for homework tonight and it would be smart to be in contact with each other

• which isn’t a lie, but it’s not the only reason he wants your number :-)

• you take out your phone discreetly under the table and your fingers brush against his and both of you ignore the blushes rising to both of your cheeks

• he puts his contact as peter parker 🕷 (cause this bitch is totally subtle) and he was originally going to also add a lil red heart but decided against it

• you put yourself as y/n ✨♥️ and he smiles when he sees it

• the bell ringing and both of you are holding back your feelings of disappointment

• when you get home from school you’re simply WAITING for peter to text you. you would want to text first because it’s not a huge decision you just don’t want to come on too strong • but little do you know peter is sitting in his bedroom, figuring out what to text you, and has searched up cool ice breakers on google

• you end up texting first with a lie

• you: hey peter, i’ve been having trouble with the first open-ended question and i was wondering if you could help me out! thanks 💕

• he ends up actually helping you out and both of you finishing the homework over an hour or less

• it would’ve taken less time if you guys just SHUT UP ABOUT EVERYTHING ELSE

• you guys kept talking nonstop

• like your conversation at school never ended

• you follow him on every other social media and he does the same and he lowkey stalks your ig and looks at all your photos

• he’s come to like you a lot—even just as a friend— and he finds you amazing

• texting for longer than intended

• texting for longer than you guys should really

• you’d come to like each other so so much and he makes a great friend AND DAMN IT YOU WISH YOU DIDN’T HAVE A CRUSH ON HIM

• peter keeps this detail from ned because ned would blab away his big mouth about peter finally talking to the person he’s liked for months

• you: peter what’s your favorite movie

• peter parker🕷: i have too many! but i like Star Wars, Harry Potter, and i REALLY like action movies

• you: ok fantastic this friendship is going to work GREAT :) !!

• both of you cannot wait until tomorrow to see each other again

[emptyperspectiv]

Small rant post

I went off on Twitter, so I'd like to make one thing clear to my followers, and as a warning if you don't wanna hear about K-pop then I suggest you move on.

Firstly, I wanna start this off with that iHeart Radio interview. That shit was some of the most cringe and embarrassing ass shit I've seen in an interview in years. Taking this back to NSN and Bryan Stars interview quality, it felt just as bad. Y'all really wanna pry into someone's life who already has very little.to no privacy for starters. You honestly think you all are entitled to that shit? FUCKING NO YOU'RE NOT. You are not entitled to know every fine detail about any K member, you do NOT own them cause you sure as fuck ain't the one who birthed their ass. They share what they want, they are allowed that right and for y'all to come full force like this to ask about dating, about all this other creepy ass fucking shit is just fucking nasty. It's disgusting. They're just fucking people who make music, they make fucking art and are no different than anyone else on the face of the mother fucking planet.

To the fans, all of you. Give them their own space, let them breathe and be whoever they want. They make mistakes, yeah and they're incredibly hard on their selves and you know what, I know how that shit is and it fucking eats at you EVER GOD DAMN SECOND OF THE FUCKING DAY. They don't need you assholes pointing it out to them, they know already and they probably fucking dwell on it. You wanna make a damn difference? SUPPORT THEM AND THEIR MISTAKES, NOT DEGRADE THEM ON AN INTERNATIONAL INTERVIEW ASSHATS.

Oh, no we get on to the interviewers. Y'all fuckers really piss me right the fuck off. You pull shut shit as bad as AltPress does in 2019 with their trashy tacky headlines about the most fucked stupid shit ever. You are the audience that really needs to grow the fuck up, y'all need some damn soft skills and learn what questions are appropriate and ones that are not. Your goal isn't to make them uncomfortable, your goal is to make them feel welcomed and comfortable so they want to come back. Asking questions about dating isn't the way to do it, it's sick and it's tacky and it shows a lot. It's as bad as fucking tabloids.

US radio, y'all are also part of the problem. You know as much as I LOVE and adore BTS, you do realize there are incredibly talented groups like Monsta X, NCT, ITZY, Blackpink, Holland, ATEEZ, Astro, Seventeen, Twice, Red Velvet, TXT, EXO, W24, Day6, Pentagon, GOT7, Momoland Stray Kids, The Boyz, GD, Taeyang, CL, RM, Jennie, Suga/Min Yoongi, Jimin, Jung Hoseok/Jhope, I.M., WayV, CLC, Cherry Bullet, Exid, (G)-Idle, Prinstin V, Oneus, Jay Park, Tiffany Young, Hwa Sa, Lay, Jus2, and so many fucking more talented artist in the Korean Pop genre. Show more love to them, give them more attention and let their audience grow. There's so many talented artist who deserve that much attention as well.

On a personal note, I was a huge fan of the Metal and Post-Hardcore scene and I've seen a lot of toxic fans. K-pop honestly is just as bad and in some cases just as elitest. It's annoying, it's trashy and frankly it makes me fucking angry. Enjoy the fucking music, appreciate the artist, support them and get people to pay attention to their hard work and dedication to their craft. To be honest the US market feels so damn ignorant towards international artist because a majority of the people running shit behind the scenes are crusty must old fucks who are close minded and just find them being asian or foreign an appeal to a sexualized fetish that needs to end. Yeah, they looks great I'll give them that but they invest time into it to take care of themselves while overworking theirsevles past their limits with serious repercussions like passing out from not eating or resting enough, being mentally drained, feeling all the range of emotions and going through such a fucking trial of will power and other soul crushing things. I can relate to a lot of it because of experiences I've had that made me feel the same way because I respect their boundaries to share what they do. To that I have to say I admire their drive to work and to make people happy with what they do, it's takes some really huge balls to do. It's scary as fuck because one day things could be great and the next their a shit show and things aren't where they should be.

On a final note, I wanna say that as a US fan I'm disgusted by a lot of the behavior people exhibit as 'fans' going as far as stalking and stealing and filming shit without consent just to say they came in contact with them. It's not cute, it's creepy and I would know cause I have a stalker or two I'm sure still. It's not funny, it's scary. If you really wanna be there for them, do it appropriately. Encourage them with kind words, tell them ' you are doing your best and that it's all you could ask for', encourage them to take care of their mental well being, tell them that you're proud of who they are and that you hope they continue to be successful people. It's the smallest things to show gratitude as a fan that matters. As a matter of fact I've stopped asking for photos at shows I go to, I stopped asking for a lot of things. If I get the chance I tell people that they did well on stage and how amazing they did with their set cause it motivates them to keep doing what they love.

Do not be toxic, stop being fucking fools and get your shit together. Now, sit ya asses down, mind your mother fucking business and be fucking grateful that they even do what they do and share what they share. Jesus fucking Christ.