#you have no idea how often i thought about this episode when i was like 13

[unrelatedwaffle]

I'm still thinking about hbomberguy's Plagiarism video and I think there's still going to be a lot of student plagiarism because...writing based on synthesizing info from multiple sources is tough, and rephrasing someone's entire sentence structure FEELS like "writing in your own words" enough that it's not obvious to beginners how blatant it is.

if you struggle with writing research papers, often procrastinate and then scramble to assemble a paper from a single source, you are setting yourself up for likely plagiarism. here are some real tips for avoiding this and getting better at academic writing. these are a short version of sonke ahrens's great book on the Zettelkasten method, How to Take Smart Notes (which i recommend reading, but it is one of those Books That Could Have Been a Blog Post, as If Books Could Kill would say, and the full Zettelkasten method is probably overkill for most people).

1. Take notes on what the texts make you think while you read, with a pen and paper, in your own words. These are not summary notes, but "this section reminds me of that one episode of the simpsons" or "i don't think it's true that willpower is finite..." these are your own thoughts and feelings

2. When you're completely done with an article or book chapter, start a note file on the computer with the proper citation at the top and write a 1-2 sentence summary of the content of what you just read. Without looking at the text. Yes, this is hard!!

3. Go through your personal notes from step 1 and see if anything there is a Big General Idea or theme. It may take reading a few articles or stepping away/thinking in the shower before these emerge. "Hmm I'm noticing that a lot of societies have similar rituals about food and gratefulness, I wonder if it's a superstitious way to ensure future abundance?" Elaborate on that in a separate note.

4. You can weave the notes from Step 3 into a thesis statement with supporting arguments properly summarized and supported with info from Step 1.

[eureka-its-zico]

Chaos in Their Bones Ch. 2

Ongoing Series

Synopsis: All your life you’d listened to your friend, Usopp spin wild tales about pirates and adventure. Pirates weren’t a thing that came often to Syrup Village, but one straw hat pirate and his crew changed all that the day they arrived. Now, you aren’t so sure if your sleepy little village was always pirate-free or if no one had been paying attention. 

Pairing: Roronoa Zoro x Reader

Genre: friends to lovers, frenemies to lovers, slow burn (I hope y’all like aching) eventual smut

Words: 6k+

A/N: For this chapter, I played with the idea of having Zoro’s POV. It felt necessary for the story progression that I had in mind. This chapter was a tad fun to write, and I hope that translated well into the story. Originally it was going to be longer, but I realized I wanted to save the dinner to go with all the action to end the Episode 3-4 story arc. Thank you guys so much for the love you’ve given this little story. I hope it continues to be one you enjoy 🖤 Much Love, Jenn

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This place is a maze. 

That thought rang true with every hallway you entered and the endless number of rooms within. With every step you took inside Kaya’s large estate, those words kept echoing through your head. How many guest suites could one house possibly hold? But also, why would you ever need so many?

You’d been wandering the halls for what felt like an eternity. Your head poked into each room after a brief knock. Yes, a brief knock before plunging head-first into someone’s private space wasn’t much of a warning but at least you were knocking. 

And all of this just to find Zoro who may or may not help you expose whatever metaphorical skeletons this butler had stuffed in his metaphorical closet. Or an actual closet. The possibilities felt endless. 

You weren’t even sure how you were going to explain to him exactly why you were searching for him without sounding like a creep. You would just have to cross that bridge when you came to it. 

You were about to give up trying to locate him because you were pretty sure you’d just passed that same exact clock for the second time in a row. You let out a raspberry as you placed your hands on your hips. Was it plausible you were lost? Inside a ginormous house like this? Yes, it sure as shit was. Maybe you should’ve been dropping breadcrumbs to find your way back to your own room when this was over. 

Rolling your tongue around your mouth, you looked down to your right and realized there were only two more doors left. What could it hurt just to look? You were already down here anyway. 

With a shrug, you moved towards the second to last door near the end of the hall. You weren’t in a rush to check what was behind either one, but you were also not leaving any stone unturned and all that. If your earlier dozen room checks were any indication of what to expect, you were willing to bet that you were going to find absolutely nothing waiting for you. The joy of joys. 

You were just a few feet from the door when you heard the lock click. The sound caused you to stop dead center, facing the door like an absolutely terrified rabbit caught in the headlights. What were the chances that whoever opened that door was going to be Zoro? And what were the chances that he would be willing to listen to what you had to say? 

The possibility of your questions being answered ebbed the panic in your chest down just a tad. Enough that when the door finally opened and Zoro was, in fact, standing before you, you silently thanked the universe for your suddenly award-winning luck. 

That was until you realized he was just standing there. In a robe. A silk robe with his swords slung over his shoulder and because of his current hold on his swords, said robe in question was flashing a peak of his chest. You immediately wanted to take back your previous thank you letter to the universe. 

This should be illegal. 

The worst part? You were pretty positive from the way Zoro was staring at you - his eyes taking you in from top to bottom lord HELP you - he did not seem as impressed with you as you were of him. Why in the hell couldn’t you say a word? Yes, he was attractive - stupidly so - but he was also just another guy. 

A guy in a thin silk robe and hair still damp from a bath. 

You watched as Zoro’s body began to relax, or relax as much as someone like him could. It was when he let out a sigh as if your very presence was keeping him from something important, that you felt your feet remove themselves from their spot in the carpet and spring you forward. 

There was a split second when Zoro’s eyes registered your movement. His eyebrows raised up in surprise as the almond shape of his eyes widened just a tad before he braced for whatever you were about to do. Zoro was planning on an attack and his body was primed to force you back. Instead of violence, he was met with your hands shoving him back inside his room with your foot kicking the door swiftly closed behind you. 

Once you knew you were both securely back inside the room, you stopped shoving him. You waited for your eyes to adjust to the dim lighting of the room before you looked around. It would be embarrassing if you’d done this and someone else - Nami or Luffy or anyone else really - had been inside with him. The only thing you noticed, however, was his previous clothes strewn across the room. 

When your eyes ventured back to Zoro you found his earlier shock replaced by what you could only guess was his usual stonewall expression. 

“Look,” he began the timber of his voice causing you to jump. “You seem nice and all, if not a little disturbed, but I’m not interested.” 

You looked up at him with your confusion knitting your brow together. 

“Not interested?”

You weren’t sure why it took you that long to realize what he meant, but it was dawning on you at warp speed and your confusion was quickly replaced with horror. 

“Oh my god! No, no! I was not trying to like, do anything to you like that.”

The disbelief in his eyes told you plainly he didn’t believe you, and by the tick in his jaw something was bothering him about your statement. 

Shit! He thinks I’m a perv 

You wanted to crawl under the nearest rock and die there. You followed his eyes as they trailed down his chest to find your hands were very much still attached to him, practically groping him. 

“Then why are your hands still on my chest?”

A small squeak of surprise left you as you dropped your hands down to your sides and shook them like it would be enough to get rid of the feeling of cupping his very pronounced…chest. You took a step back from him in hopes that giving him space would save the entire interaction. 

“Sorry about all the ugh…touching,” you mumbled. “But I did come here to speak to you about something.” 

“This is going to be good. Is it to convince me you weren’t trying to grope me?”

“God, you aren’t going to let it go, are you?” 

Closing your eyes you took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. When you finished, you opened your eyes again and gave him the best smile you could muster. 

“Okay, let’s start this again. I,” you motioned towards yourself, “have come to ask you if you noticed anything weird.” 

Zoro cocked an eyebrow at you. His arms moved to lock his arms across his chest somehow exposing the peek of flesh from the robe even more. 

“You mean weirder than right now?”

You purse your lips together tightly as you try to exhale all the annoyance from gathering in your body. 

“Let’s just move on from this moment, ok,” you began. “I came to talk to you about the butler.”

Without warning, Zoro rolled his eyes and dropped his arms from his chest. His swords clanging against his leg reminding you that he wasn’t making any move to set them down anytime soon. 

“Here we go again about the butler,” he groaned, and the very sound shouldn’t have sounded as enticing as it did.

Focus! 

“Oh, save it!” You snapped. “I saw you, okay? The way you looked at Klahadore before you followed your friends inside. You looked at him like you recognized him. Like you’d seen him before somewhere.” 

Zoro regarded you coolly. The hardness that had disappeared while he’d teased you earlier slid back into place until he was as unreadable as stone. 

“I’ve never seen that butler before in my entire life.” 

“Why are you lying?” 

You couldn’t keep the exasperation from your voice or how your desperation was starting to creep back in. Could you have been wrong about Zoro this whole time? Did you just see what you wanted to see?

No. You know what you saw and you were not going to be called crazy. You took a step towards him and weren’t surprised when he didn’t move back. Instead, he tilted his chin, his full pouty lips still very much pouting, as his eyes carefully watched you. 

“You know, that I know, that you looked at that guy and went, ‘hmph, something’s not right there’.” 

Yeah, that felt like a solid argument. 

You waited under Zoro’s cool gaze for him to reply. For him to show any sign of anything, really. He was literally the most unmoving person you’d ever meet, and you were starting to wonder if he was even real. The shitty part about waiting in silence, besides the uneasy commentary your brain was beginning to make, was the smell of the vanilla and sandalwood that wafted off him in mini waves that assaulted your senses. 

You were so intently transfixed by trying to match his unblinking gaze that when he finally moved his head down to be eye level with you, you’d almost jumped out of your skin. 

“Is everything okay with you? Do you suffer from any brain damage?” 

You wish you could say you handled the next few seconds with grace and poise. Things that all upstanding future doctors did when faced with adversity. However, that was most definitely not you, and you weren’t able to keep an exacerbated yell of frustration from cairning past your lips. 

“Oh! You are literally the most infuriating man I have ever met!”

“And you are the most perverted woman I have ever met,” Zoro shot back, this time taking a step towards you. 

If he was trying to intimidate you, he should’ve tried back when you weren’t ready to tear him limb from limb. 

“I beg your pardon?!”

“Who just pushes a semi-naked man into a room so they can grope him?”

“I wasn’t trying to grope you! I was trying to interrogate you for information!”

God, that sounded so much worse. 

“That sounds a lot worse, actually.”

Of course, Zoro would state the obvious, and was he - was he smirking? Your eyes rapidly blinked as you tried to make sense of what you were seeing because as fast as you’d noticed it, that devilish smirk had disappeared. Now Zoro once again looked as serious as before. You began to move back towards the door with your hands up in mock surrender. 

“You know what - fine! If you don’t want to help me, that’s your choice, but you know I’m right. And I’m going to prove that something is wrong here with or without your help.”

You shot one last look in his direction before turning on your heel and giving him your back. You were at the door, your hand on the doorknob when Zoro surprised you with a question of his own. 

“Why ask me to help you?”

Glancing over your shoulder, you expected to see that smug smirk on his face or to get the cold shoulder. What you found instead were eyes so intent on you - waiting for your response - that it caused your lungs to collapse. A million replies played over through your mind, but only one of them mattered. 

“Because out of everyone here, I thought you would believe me the most.” 

It didn’t matter if it was the answer he’d been looking for or the one you thought would win him over. You meant what you said and you hoped he’d felt your admission genuinely. If Usopp didn’t want to believe you, and if Zoro, who you still believed knew or at least felt something was off here, wasn’t going to be able to help you, you would just have to do it yourself. 

Did you know what that entailed? Hell no, but Naan didn’t raise a quitter, and you weren’t going to roll over and just give up just because it was hard. Not when someone’s very life depended on you. 

——————

After your incredible failure of finding a co-conspirator to help you on your quest for answers failed with flying colors, you weren’t exactly sure what to do with yourself. Usopp no doubt must have snuck in by now to see Kaya - sans your “gift” - and the others were probably in the ridiculous closet looking for dinner attire. While you could’ve gone just to socialize with everyone else, Kaya had sent a dress to your room. 

Sham had looked absolutely miserable dropping it off and that was a joy all on its own. 

You considered heading to the closet just to see Luffy again. Luffy radiated optimism like sunshine; at the moment, that sort of unyielding optimism was the mood booster you needed. 

Unfortunately, you knew Zoro must have made his way there by now and you weren’t necessarily ready to face him again. The disappointment was clinging to you and that’s what you hated the most. You didn’t understand why you’d seemingly put all your eggs inside the Zoro basket. Just because he’d looked at Klahadore weird didn't mean he’d sensed something off. 

Shit, Klahadore was weird and deserved every side-eye glance he got. 

All it meant for you was going back to the drawing board for a new plan. One that was going to be able to get you next to Kaya. At least long enough so you could perform some kind of assessment. 

You rounded the corner to what you hoped was the hallway your room was down. The earlier thought you’d had about getting lost turned into an accurate one. You’d spent just as much time trying to get back to your room to get ready for dinner as you had searching for Zoro. 

Zoro.

Even just thinking about him made your jaw clench with fresh irritation. What was more infuriating than your most recent conversation was the fact you could still feel the strength of him in the hollows of your palms. The sharpness of his jaw and the high sculpt of his cheeks- 

No! Absolutely not, you chastised yourself. 

It was maddening how little he believed you - mocked you - and yet, here you were acting like some lovestruck teenager. He wasn’t that handsome. 

You were lost in your thoughts to the point you weren’t aware of your body's attempt to warn you. The hairs on the back of your neck stood on end and a sickening feeling began to rot in your gut and made sure all the imaginary - very imaginary - butterflies disappeared. 

The goosebumps that rose along your exposed skin informed you that the grand hallway, filled with all its riches and fine cherry woods was as ice cold as the dead. Has it always been this cold and you just never noticed? Or the eerie silence that made the manor feel more haunted than alive. 

Your feet involuntarily came to a halt in the middle of the hall. You couldn’t explain the panic that was building in your chest, but it felt like you were being watched. Your heart rate sped up until you could practically feel it thundering against your ribs. 

“You are being silly,” you whispered to yourself. “It’s just an old house.” 

“Old houses do have their quirks, don’t they?”

You wish you could say that when Klahadore spoke from behind you, you’d reacted with grace. With dignity. What actually happened was you screamed sharp enough it could raise the dead. 

The whiplash you gave yourself as you turned to face him was dizzying. You wanted to kill the fear that widened your eyes and pressed your brow into your hairline. Your mouth was painfully dry as you took in his presence and the absolute shit-eating grin he wore. 

He enjoyed seeing you afraid. 

“Oh dear, Doc, did I give you a fright?”

Klahadore gently tipped the frame of his glasses with the edge of his palm. You wanted to smack them off his smug face. 

“What do you want, Klahadore?”

You struggled to regain your composure. You refused to give him the satisfaction of seeing you afraid. It was what he wanted after all and didn’t take much to notice. He was already trying to close the few inches your retreat had given you. 

“I was simply wondering why you were wandering around the manor. You’ve been showing highly suspicious behavior ever since you and your friends arrived.” 

Your eyes narrowed in on him and as you held your head high. 

“Have you been following me?”

“Oh, come now, don't be silly. To have someone followed means you’re worried about what they’ll find, and you? You are the last thing I would be worried about.” 

Klahadore dropped his head down until he was eye level with you, but somehow used his size to remain imposing. A thinly veiled threat to remind you exactly what he thought of you; nothing. 

The first time you’d ever received an insult from Klahadore had been just like this. Alone and away from anywhere Kaya could hear him. He’d made sure that Usopp and you were together just so he wouldn’t have to repeat the insult twice. 

“I know you two must feel exceedingly special having Miss Kaya ask for you to come keep her company, but I’m afraid this will be the last time you ever come over unannounced or not. We can’t allow her image to be tarnished from being seen with unwanted children.” “Unwanted?” Usopp had been so confused - he knew he was wanted; wanted by Kaya and you. Klahadore saw in that confusion an opportunity to place doubt in his mind and completely tear him apart.  “Yes - unwanted. So unwanted that your father never returned, and your mother chose death as a final way to be rid of you.” “You son of a bitch!” You’d snarled and snapped. You were only kids.  The world had taught you early on about hardships and fairness; how the world and the people in it could lack kindness. But Naan always made you look for the good in the world, and in the people who sometimes allowed the ugliness of others to warp them into someone they weren’t.  It was a concept child you never understood. Teenage you were barely beginning to grasp it, but when Klahadore spoke those words so full of hate and venom at your best friend: there weren’t enough flames left in hell to cover up your rage.

The memory of that day left a black mark on your soul and you find it replaying at the most inconvenient of times. A harsh reminder of the first time you’d ever considered murder as a means of healing. The world would have to be a better place if someone like Klahadore wasn’t in it. Right? 

Naan, as always, talked you down from doing something rash. From allowing someone like Klahadore to have the last laugh and ruin all the plans you had for your life. 

But Naan wasn’t here to talk you off that ledge or to remind you who she knew you were. Your rage shouldn’t define you. Looking at Klahadore’s retreating back, you weren’t all too sure if it wasn’t you because if he ever showed up needing any form of medical attention, you weren’t so sure if he’d leave on his own two feet. 

A body bag would suit him nicely. 

You watched him until he completely disappeared leaving you alone once more inside the hallway. It felt weird to take those first steps back towards your room. To go inside and see the dress Kaya had sent to your room and know you were going to put it on and share dinner with that man standing in the same room. 

There had to be a way to show everyone here exactly who Klahadore was, and you would spend the whole dinner trying to do just that. 

———————

He’d been searching for a drink since his interaction with you back in his room. Zoro wanted to call you crazy - hell you acted crazy enough, but you’d done something he hadn’t expected. 

You’d surprised him.

He didn’t want to admit it then but he did get a weird vibe from the butler. The minute his eyes landed on Klahadore it had sparked a nagging feeling of a memory he just couldn’t quite place. 

And you’d noticed. 

After you’d left his room, he couldn’t shake the conversation you’d forced him to be a part of. Teasing you had been easy. He’d expected you to be a bleeding heart, but as you’d turned to leave, stomping your feet and spitting back words that stung for just a second, it had been Zoro’s turn to notice something about you. 

It was the fire of your determination that piqued his interest.  

While Zoro wasn’t sure why you held such a stick up your ass exactly about the butler, he was positive you had a reason. Besides the fact he couldn’t seem to pull up a clear memory of why the same butler piqued his own interest, and that was beginning to piss him off. 

What was even more annoying was the fact you’d brought it up enough that he’d asked Nami and Luffy if the butler seemed familiar. He didn’t know why he’d asked. If it had been more for him or for you. 

That pissed him off more. 

You seemed to be good at that. Pissing him off and getting under his skin. 

When he came downstairs, Zoro expected you to be there already. A quick glance around the room informed him you weren’t there, but a row of flutes filled with what he hoped was alcohol most certainly was. 

He carefully set down his strap of swords and moved closer to the drinks. No one else made a move towards them and, for a split second, Zoro was worried maybe the flutes were nonalcoholic. He reached out and wrapped his fingers around the delicate crystal and quickly brought it to his lips. 

The smell of the liquor hit him first and his muscles relaxed instantaneously. 

God. This was exactly what he needed. 

“Zoro! You gotta try this!”

Zoro didn’t bother looking because he’d seen the appetizers being served when he came down the stairs. He wasn’t impressed. Plus, if he was going to make it through this evening, he was going to need way more booze than what was inside these little Crystal flutes. 

“I got all I need right here,” he replied and brought the glass up to his lips. 

The first sip erased all the tension that had been binding up his muscles. The next pull from the glass relaxed him completely, and he downed what was left in one giant gulp. He placed the now-empty flute back down on the tray and swiftly grabbed another. 

Zoro was vaguely aware of all the chatting going on around him. The sound of Usopp and Luffy sharing stories and Nami doing whatever it was Nami did during fancy dinner parties. He meant what he said - he did have everything he needed to make it through this dinner inside these glasses. At least, that’s what he thought until the sound of a heel echoing off the step brought his attention to the top of the stairs. 

He was sure the new flute with his latest drink was at his lips. Zoro inhaled the sharp scent of liqueur with every breath he took. He just couldn’t seem to make his elbow bend enough to drop it from his face. 

You were making your way down the staircase, oblivious to the world around you as you came down with a hand carefully placed on the railing. 

The dress you wore was covered in article flowers; all of their small bold colors were bright against the backdrop of black chiffon. The top of the dress left your shoulders exposed, and the style you’d chosen to wear your hair, with beads of pearls intricately placed within each strand, made you seem ethereal. 

You looked like moonlight inside a garden; soft and wild and for the first time Zoro forgot that breathing was important. 

Once you reached the last step, your eyes finally moved up from the safety of your feet. Zoro was vaguely aware the rim of the glass was still resting on his bottom lip, and that he’d yet to take a drink. He felt frozen - helpless - until your eyes found his rooted frame - helplessly waiting - and the smile that curved your lips brightened up the room. 

It was in this second that he realized he was fucked, and the annoyance of that realization was enough for him to finally upend the glass in one large gulp. 

——————

Zoro had looked at you for less than a millisecond before he’d upended the contents of his glass in one large gulp. His disinterest was evident enough throughout his entire body. With one last glance in your direction, he turned back to the waiting tray of glasses. 

Well, that wasn’t the reaction you’d expected. 

The disappointment scraped raw across your chest as you watched Zoro take up another glass. His gaze was steadfast at the wall as he downed whatever was inside. What felt more disappointing was the fact you’d cared. 

For all intents and purposes, Zoro was an asshole. So, it begged the ever-present question: Why did it bother you so much? 

Yes, you’d painstakingly gotten ready around the dress Kaya left inside your suite. Was it your usual taste? You weren’t all that sure, to be honest. It’s not like you’d ever been invited to any fancy dinner parties before. You weren’t sure if this was the proper form of dress or if you’d gone overboard with your hair. 

At least Nami had a feather inside her hair and it looked as if she’d given her blood-orange hair some curls. She looked absolutely gorgeous and you made it your mission to tell her.

“Wow, Doc you look-“ Usopp began. 

You turned beaming towards your friend as you waited for him to acknowledge your hard work. Maybe at least Usopp, of all people, would say something nice. 

“Different.”

You could practically feel your smile deflate at the edges. 

“What did you put in your hair?” Luffy asked around a mouthful of meat. 

“Oh yeah, I was wondering what looked different. It’s the hair,” Usopp confirmed with Luffy. 

The both of them smiled and nodded at one another as if they just solved world hunger. Your tongue rolled around your cheek as you debated on what to say. Maybe you’d expected to much out of a bunch of men. 

“They’re pearls,” you huffed. 

“That’s silly,” Luffy chuckled. “Why would you ever put pearls in your hair?”

“It’s to look nice.”

“I never knew hair needed accessories,” Usopp offered before taking a bit of his appetizer.

“Nami put a feather in her hair,” Luffy offered before taking another bite. “Maybe you guys can talk about putting random stuff in your hair.” 

There was no way this conversation could be real, and yet…

Luffy was still wearing his genuine smile while he and Usopp continued to enjoy the appetizers Sham passed around. This evening was turning out to be the last time you’d ever consider wearing anything like this again. What was even worse was that out of the three of them, Zoro was the only one properly dressed. 

While Usopp went with his usual no shirt underneath his jacket, Luffy was wearing just a petty coat and miraculously found dress slacks that didn’t even reach his ankle. They looked like their usual selves, just dressed in black. 

But Zoro…

No! Absolutely not.

“I’ll go look for Nami so we can discuss…putting things in our hair.”

“That’s great! I’m sure it will make her happy. She seemed frustrated earlier when she asked for help.”

“I can’t imagine why,” you mumbled, as you turned to find Nami speaking to Merry. 

Well, it looked like that was going to be a bust too. Man, she really did look very pretty, though. You were considering what your options were. You weren’t comfortable just injecting yourself into whatever conversation Nami and Merry were having, especially not when she was rubbing his arm like that. 

Luckily for you, the sound of Klahadore announcing Kaya’s entrance kept you from having to go with your final option, which was to get a drink. Next to Zoro. 

You all collectively turned to watch as Klahadore helped Kaya make her way down the stairs. You couldn’t help but smile up at her and her current choice of attire. While she’d made you look like a garden, you could only assume she was the sunshine that hovered above it. The only problem you had with the golden silk material was that it somehow made her sickly pale skin appear paler. 

She must have picked the color in hopes it wouldn’t do that, but all it did was raise the alarm bells in the back of your mind. You’d allowed a pretty dress and a fancy meal to cloud the real reason you’d come in the first place. Instead of being a doctor, you were playing dress-up. 

You were still scolding yourself when Kaya finally made it to the end of the staircase. Her smile was bright and happier than it had been in a long time, as she regarded Nami and the dress she’d chosen. It hadn’t even registered that any of the clothes you currently were wearing belonged to her deceased parents. You made a mental note to make sure to take extra special care not to ruin the dress with any droplets of food. 

“Oh, Doc, I’m so glad I picked this,” Kaya breathed. “You look absolutely magical.” 

You couldn’t help but look down at the dress again. It was an incredibly delicate dress. A work of art to be worn on the body. Maybe that was why you felt like such an imposter wearing it. 

When you looked back at her, you tried to give Kaya a convincing smile. One you could even make yourself believe you felt worthy to have it on. 

“Oh, Kaya you are too nice,” you replied, only for her to shoot you down with a wave of her hand. 

“Nonsense. Usopp is always telling me about all the good you do for everyone. It’s time you let yourself be appreciated.”

Your earlier response to Kaya’s welcoming smile was one of your own, but at the mention of your supposed good deeds, you felt it tighten into a grimace. 

It means nothing if I can’t even help you.

Up close, her color wasn’t pale - it was ashen. The whites of her eyes were devoured with a yellowish tint and - 

Like the parasite he was, Klahadore was there pulling Kaya gently by her elbow to lead her back to the conversation between herself and Merry. Your eyes followed him as he made sure to plant her a few feet in front of you; her back excluding you from following to join. 

Once he made sure she was safely away from you, Klahadore stationed himself a few feet away next to the penguin pillar at the base of the stairs. He thought he was sneaky and that he had stopped your trained eyes from being able to do a quick evaluation.

Unlucky for Klahadore you were quicker than he thought. 

You were getting ready to head over to him when you caught Zoro walking back over to the tray. He was doing his usual of placing down an empty glass only to grab a fresh one, except this time he was talking. To Klahadore. 

What a fucking liar!

You couldn’t think straight as you watched the exchange. The way Klahadore overplayed the flabbergasted victim. You didn’t have to be close to them to know what Zoro was asking him, because just like you’d suspected, he did seem familiar to Zoro. 

It felt like you could breathe fire, you were so pissed. 

At some point, Klahadore ended the conversation by interjecting himself into someone else’s conversation. You didn’t care what it was. They could’ve been discussing flying pigs for all you cared. Your eyes were still honed in on Zoro who regarded you for a split second before he sat back down in the parlor’s middle seat. 

You started making your way towards him when Klahadore called out it was time to eat. You suddenly weren’t hungry. 

Zoro must have sensed you coming for him because in one swift move, he was out of the seat and standing. The strap that held his katana’s back over his shoulder as he followed Sham behind the double doors.

“You son of a-“

“Doc!” Usopp whisper-shouted as he nervously took your hand in his. “Sit next to me. Please.” 

You were still seeing metaphorical red. Your brain firing rapidly on only one main thought and that was to get a hold of Zoro and throttle him. 

It wasn’t Usopp’s fault that Zoro was a dick, and he looked genuinely terrified. Stuffing your current bad mood as far down as you could muster (you were about to see said moss-haired reason for your fowl mood in t-minus two seconds), you planted on a smile and gently took Usopp’s hand. 

“What kind of wingman would I be if I didn’t?”

“Oh, thank god,” he laughed. 

The both of you followed closely behind Merry and the others as you were all escorted inside the dining room. Merry quickly took his seat at the end of the table, and you noticed rather quickly Zoro had claimed the seat closest to the door. 

Without thinking, you took the seat beside him and motioned for Usopp to take the last one. The one directly beside Kaya. For a moment, Usopp looked at you wide-eyed and uncertain. You did your best to make him comfortable. 

“You got this, Usopp,” you whispered. “Don’t overthink it.”

His response came in a small nod that did little to erase the terror that shined in his eyes. You gave his arm a light squeeze for reassurance before you straightened up in the chair. Glancing over, you watched as Zoro poured what looked like a freshly opened bottle of wine into a glass. 

You waited patiently for him to finish and when he went to set the bottle down you made your move. With a slight lean to your right, you swiped your hand out to grab a hold of the glass. Zoro caught the movement too late, but you now had his full attention. His nostrils flaring the only indication that he was irritated by your sudden drink stealing. 

Good. 

“What do you think you’re doing?” He questioned. 

His dark eyes never left your face as he waited for you to answer. 

“Being petty.”

To bring the point home, you tilted the glass in his direction in a silent salute. You made sure he watched as you brought it to your lips and took a sip of the blood-red wine within. 

Zoro’s jaw ticked in irritation as you gave him a devious smirk, and when Sham came by Zoro waved her over. 

“I need a new glass.”

Now the smile that graced your lips was genuine and you made sure Zoro was aware of it. It was time to have a little fun of your own and that included hogging as much of his alcohol as humanly possible. 

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As always, thank you for reading. Reblogs and comments are always welcome.

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[transmascutena]

some thoughts on photography and memory in utena:

on the wall in nemuro memorial hall, there are pictures of real people. i'm not sure who they are, but i assume they're of people involved in making the show. either way, they're obviously not real; in the close-up shots of them, they change into pictures of the black rose duelists and other imagery from the show. i imagine it's there as a fun detail by the creators, but also to show how weird and inconsistent reality itself is in the black rose arc.

as for the black rose duel images themselves, it's possible that they are literal as i've talked about in a previous post, but what i think is more likely, is that utena noticing them is a visual representation of her connecting the dots of what's really been going on in this arc.

when mikage brings up the idea of memories and eternity, we see the picture on the wall behind utena, of her at her parents funeral. and behind mikage we see one of his own defining memories.

a pretty clear line is being drawn between memory and photographs. in fact, memories are so important to mikage that photographs are his black rose duel symbol. it's the one he keeps of mamiya and tokiko, altered to look like anthy's disguise, just like his memories are. through mikage we see both how memories of the past can keep you trapped in it, as well as the malleability of these memories. let's look at everybody else:

saionji has a framed photograph of him and touga as kids on his desk. he values their friendship, or at least the memory of how it used to be. he idealizes the time touga was less cruel (or maybe just the time saionji wasn't aware of his cruelty.)

miki doesn't have any literal photographs of kozue or the sunlit garden, though his memories of them are often framed as such. he also keeps a picture of anthy amidst his sheet music. she is his idealized memory now.

juri has the locket of course, inside of which is a cutout of shiori from a picture captured in the moment that ends up defining their entire relationship. is this the version of shiori that juri idealizes? not really, but she is fixated on her resentment of shiori's percieved cruelty, just not the cruelty of taking the boy away. juri keeps this photograph closer than anybody else does with theirs, but she also keeps it hidden. this could mean she treasures her memories the most out of everyone, and is also the least open about it, although i'm not sure i believe the first part.

nanami has the photo-album of her and touga; she idealizes her relationship with him, as well as their childhood. when she makes the connection that touga is adopted, the photos are scattered all over her bed, probably to represent her emotional state.

touga doesn't keep any photographs from what we see, which makes sense with everything we know about him. unlike the rest of the council, he doesn't have any idealized memories of his childhood. but he does use akio's camera, so let's talk about that.

the camera is, much like the car, a tool that only akio is shown to own (although, wakaba does mention a photography club in episode 34.) like the car, it is used to facilitate his grooming (specifically of touga and saionji when he takes those shirtless pictures with them.) and, also like the car, he offers to lend it to touga, to make him feel more like an equal part of the whole thing. unlike the car though, touga accepts the camera.

the photoshoot scene in episode 37 has a transition where the camera shutter sound effect is played over the previous scene. over the shot of utena and anthy holding hands after confiding in each other about akio. i think it's to show that he's always watching, and that they can never truly be free of him as long as they're in ohtori.

i think it also shows the idea of akio framing the narrative of the show as a whole. he plays a sort of director role in it, in that he directs the events happening, as well as how they're portrayed. it's no coincidence that he is quite literally behind the "camera" in episode 33. like the car, a symbol of akio's power and sexual abuse (which is not-coincidentally also present in all of the photoshoot scenes,) his camera (his narrative, his biased framing of events) is ever-present.

and then there's the most important photograph in the show, the frame it all ends on. the picture utena and anthy took together is, unlike every other photograph, used as a look into their future. the reason they take it in the first place is because utena realizes she has no photos of anthy, which distresses her, presumably because she worries that their friendship might not last forever, and she wants something to remember anthy by. this obviously comes with the risk of making anthy an idealized memory, like every other person put in a photograph in this show, but instead it ends up as a symbol for their love. akio may have set up the camera, but anthy (with the help of chu-chu) manipulated their positions so her and utena could hold hands. she also cuts akio out of the frame, much like she cuts him out of her life in the last episode. she doesn't want his presence to tarnish her and utena's memory anymore (although he isn't completely gone from the photograph either, as he will never truly be forgotten.)

[annabelle--cane]

I guess the thing that makes me not so fond of Jon's addiction allegory is that it's only coherent to a certain extent? Like I think people sometimes forget that he's actively violating these people

anon, through no fault of your own you have accidentally hit upon my sleeper agent trigger phrase. I have layers of answers to this.

so first off, yeah, it's not a 1:1 direct metaphor, it's a soupy dream logic fantasy plot device with flavors of a lot of different things. there's quite a lot of addiction in there, there's some abuse of power, there's some cyclical nature of trauma, there's a dash of disability, there's a few notes of gendered violence, there's a good bit of just. violence violence and being kind of a motherfucker because goddammit it feels good to be an active agent about something in your life, even if it's just choosing to be a worse version of yourself than you strictly need to be. a lot of tma's worldbuilding is very allegorical, but apart from aspects of individual statements nothing really matches up quite 1:1 with a real world counterpart, and if more things did then it probably wouldn't be a fantasy show anymore.

secondly. okay to contextualize this answer a little bit I have a kind of hypothetical video essay project about vampirism and addiction that I like to spend a few hours thinking about every so often but am almost certainly never going to make because the full research burden required is a lot higher than I actually have the time to properly do. but because of that I've spent a lot of time sorting through why framing vampires as addicts really works for me in a way that it doesn't seem to for everyone, and I think a lot of my thoughts on that also apply to jon. there's going to be a bit of a detour here before we get back to talking about tma, but we'll get there, I prommy.

I've seen a lot of people take issue with various paranormal addiction allegories because, a lot of the time, the act that is meant to metaphorically represent the act of use itself is something that is directly and inherently harmful to others, e.g. drinking human blood, handing over power to your hedonistic Evil alter ego, holding the cursed amulet and going crazy going stupid, slurping trauma out of the head of some guy you ran into on a boat to norway, etc., and yeah, I do get that. substance use is not inherently harmful like that to anyone except sometimes the user themself, and addicts are not inherently fucked up and destructive people; those are dangerous stereotypes that often lead to the demonizing of a whole group of sick people.

here's the thing for me, though: those are definitely truths I want explored and represented when it comes to portrayals of non-allegorical actual addicts, but fantasy fiction isn't for showing the world as it is, it's for showing a subjective fun house mirror version of reality where certain aspects are minimized and magnified depending on how it feels to live through it. and yes, absolutely in real life drug use is not an inherently evil act and it does not make you an inherently evil person, but... doesn't it kind of feel like that? sort of? absolutely no one is living their best life nor on their best behavior while experiencing any kind of major mental illness episode, and when it comes to addiction you've got a very clear tangible symbol of when The Episode is happening that it feels like you have much more control over than when it comes to other illnesses. it's also a thing where people are a lot more likely to be openly angry and distrustful of you if they find out it's happening. so you mix together the ideas of "I know I get worse as a result of doing this one specific thing" + "I act less like myself when I'm using, it rearranges my priorities and I care less about hurting people because that's what happens when you're experiencing The Horrors" + "society at large/people directly around me are pretty quick to say that doing this is evil," and you get the subjective emotional result of "I hurt people by using and it makes me monstrous." I tend to respond to those kinds of paranormal allegories like they're just cutting out the middle man of those subjective fears. "using makes me monstrous" -> "using is monstrous."

anyway. jon archivist.

don't get me wrong, I totally understand if this aspect of metaphor doesn't gel for some people and they only like taking it exactly as far as the text explicitly makes them, but I really get a lot out of reading jon's connection to the fears as addiction precisely because he does genuinely awful things to people as a result of it. he's a person in a very bad physical and mental place with little to no support who is constantly being told by both allies and enemies that he's already a monster just by being alive, and he copes with that by secretly falling further and further into an compulsive act of consumption that skews his priorities and makes him care less about hurting people because at least sometimes getting to be the cause of pain makes him feel a little bit less powerless when he has to be the subject of pain the rest of the time. then he's found out and is made to stop, and he has to grapple not just with the physical toll of withdrawal but with knowing there is a not insignificant part of him that will excuse any act of malice if he knows he'll feel better afterwards.

the end of tma is very explicit in the fact that the rules of its world are shaped by the subjective worst fears of those who live in it, it's "an exercise in unreliably reality" as jonny sims put it once, and I think that principle extends backwards in some ways to apply to the rest of the show. I don't think the fact that there are only entities of fear and not hope or love is meant to be a full commentary on the total nature of the real world, it's a reflection of what fear and suffering can make the world feel like. eric and melanie both go to really harsh extremes to extricate themselves from the fears and live peaceful lives, and in both cases something happens that foils their plans (getting murdered + the apocalypse, respectively), but I don't think the intended message is to say that is definitively how real life works, they are metaphors for the limits of individual agency in larger systems and represent two types of worst-case-scenarios. similarly, I don't think reading jon as an addict implies that addiction inherently involves violence or that the reactions of those around him were completely unjustified, it's just a subjective exploration of the kinds of fears that can come with addiction dialed up to 100.

[demieyesore]

U WRITE SO GOOD?!? I HAD TO HIDE MY PHONE IN PUBLIC 💀😭 more dark Anakin PLS. I loved the dom side but now I wanna see sub side and the differences. I personally think he’s a switch tbh. It would be too boring to be dom or sun all the time BUT ANYWAYS sun dark ani.

If you need ideas: he tries to convince reader to do something (you choose), reader is his master, paranoid toxic reader and he makes it worse IDK man I just love these types of fics 🤭 I eat them up. It’s even better when the reader acts innocent but is worse 😭 honestly you could just combine shit atp and I’ll eat it up anyways

Pretty When You Cry - Anakin Skywalker

Summary - Anakin tries to manipulate you by crying after overhearing Obi-Wan convince you to leave him.

Warnings / Mentions - Kenobi!Reader, GN!Reader, AFAB!Reader, Dom!Reader, Sub!Anakin, Padawan!Anakin, Master!Reader, Toxic!Reader, Paranoid!Reader, BPD coded reader, basically just BPD x BPD couple, Reader has an innocent façade, Reader actually believes their innocent so victim complex reader, Anakin triggers reader to have an episode, def angsty fic but ends with smut, literally so much manipulation...breeding kink, crying kink, biting kink, mentions of babytrapping

A/N - The Dom part of me aches when I see men crying, I both want to care for them and make them worse, also I want to make it known that I was diagnosed with Bipolar and I'm pretty sure I have BPD as well, so I'm hoping that anyone who reads this that has BPD relates to it and that it isn't just my bipolar lol, ALSO THANK YOUUUUU❤️❤️❤️

Requested - Yes

Word Count - 2556 words

Taglist - @vixxensvoid @maevesversion @sockiess @stylesslytherinskywalker @myheadhurtscutely @yourenogoodforme @xzaddyzanakinx (just bc I thought you might like this one, let me know if you don’t want to be tagged in the future)

It was really no surprise when you were yet again talking to your older brother about your problems with Anakin. He was already well aware the both of you were breaking the code, but he never said anything to anyone since you were his beloved sibling. Obi-Wan always assumed that he could get you to stop the relationship with Anakin but he never anticipated just how abusive you were to each other. 

He often remembers the time when he saw tears streaming down your face, you were sobbing, begging Anakin not to leave you, even at some parts yelling at him. Obi was quite shocked when he heard you yelling at Anakin about how much you hated the Padawan. It was like you were so full of love for young Skywalker, most days you would do anything to make him smile. But there were times, periods where you would do nothing but scream about how much you hated life. Episodes where you were so paranoid about people leaving you, that it was like a flip switched. 

One where the light pink aura of love would turn to a fire of red hot flames. It was such a black and white way of thinking. Obi-Wan knows that it's not your fault you act this way. The abusive household you were in wired you to be this way. And it was clear that Anakin had a similar experience. 

You and Anakin were so complicated. You both were so devoted to each other. Always making sure to have the other's back on missions. But at the same time, you made each other worse. 

Anakin was originally Obi-Wan's Padawan before getting transferred to you. You had just become a Master Jedi, when Obi requested the switch. He truly believed at the time that you would help Anakin become the best Jedi he could be. He saw how you interacted before Anakin became your Padawan. He had no idea about the little crush you both had on each other, only seeing how motivated Anakin would get around you to be better. A passion that Anakin didn't have when working with Obi-Wan. 

This time, you were wrapped in your brother's arms. He was whispering reassuring things to you, trying to get you to calm down. The three of you were on a mission, body guarding and sworn to protect Padme. Anakin was currently watching over her as she slept. But as soon as you saw how Anakin looked at Padme, that little flip switched.

The one where you felt so much hate for him. The one that kept teeter tottering between the love for him and the feeling that he was about to abandon you. 

"Obi- I...I don't know what I'm doing wrong. I thought he loved me but the way he was looking at her. He was openly flirting with her. Right in front of me, like I wasn't even there. He can't leave me, I won't let him Obi. I swear to the maker that he won't." Your brother felt...distraught for you. It was a hard emotion to explain. He was worried for you, and for Anakin. But he felt that this whole situation was his fault. If Obi-Wan hadn't asked the council to let Anakin train under you, you wouldn't be in such despair. You wouldn't feel physical pain in your chest just from your emotions.

"I fear I've made a mistake." Obi-Wan admitted as his hand caressed your hair in a soothing manner. "I believe that it would be best if Anakin were to be my Padawan again." He tried to tread lightly on the subject, not wanting to make your episode worse.

"No, no, no, Obi please, it's fine, I'll be fine. I know that he's- that I'm...I know that Anakin and I aren't..great for each other but please. I can't be without him." You desperately gripped onto his shirt, trying to make your point clear to him. Anakin was just outside, eavesdropping on the conversation. Padme was sleeping soundly in the next room, he didn't need to be in the room with her to know if something was happening. But he did need to hear this conversation. He needed to make sure that you wouldn't leave him. He wanted to make sure that Obi-Wan wouldn't...influence you into making any bad decisions.

"He's hurting you, don't be blind to that. You're hurting him too. You don't want that, do you?" Obi-Wan asked, his face showing sincere concern.

Regularly, if Obi were to have said that, you would have flipped at him for trying to take Anakin away from you. But in the confusion and pain of your mind. The images flooding into your brain of Anakin and Padme. You only heard the first part of your brother's sentence.

"He's hurting you..." Kept repeating in your head, like someone recorded a hologram of his voice and played it on loop. It just kept getting louder, the button being pressed again, putting you into a fit of rage.

"You're right." You couldn't bare to say anything else. The silence afterwards was so deafening that Anakin had to hold back his tears in fear of you hearing his breath through the door. It was like an emptiness was injected into your veins. A thick silver liquid that would taste like you were choking on mercury. Your mind was so...blank. There were no longer multiple voices in your head yelling. This one was quiet. So eerily quiet.

Anakin wiped his tears, going back towards the room where Padme lays asleep. He felt betrayed, but he couldn't blame you. All his anger was pushed onto Obi-Wan. Anakin was delusional, he fully believed that Obi was the problem. Not him and definitely not you. He knew that he had to persuade you into changing your mind. And what better way than for you to see him crying? Your heart was always so...malleable whenever he was crying. You would always comfort him, your left hand running through his hair while your right would rest on the nape of his neck, playing with the baby hairs. 

You'd have your eyebrows furrowed in concern for him but he could always see the part of you that enjoyed it. The way that when he'd wipe his tears or the way that his lower lip would quiver always sent a small smile to your face. Even while crying, you thought he was pretty. You'd look at him with such...adoration, admiration and even a little lust. When he'd look into your eyes and ask for help, when he'd beg for you to save him, he'd notice how your pupils expanded, dilated with desire. The way that your thighs would clench shut.

Once Obi-Wan calmed you down enough, you collected yourself, thanking your brother for once again helping you to see straight. You pushed open the door, Obi following behind you into the hallway only to see Anakin sitting against Padme's door. Tears dripping down from his eyes. His hands were hanging loosely over his knees as he stared harshly at the ground. 

Obi-Wan held up his hand, signaling to you that he would watch over Padme as you talked to Anakin.

Anakin moved, leaning forward to let Obi into the Previous queen's chambers. His tearful eyes glanced up into yours, already taking note of how you stared back at him like he was nothing. He would have to play more into it just to get you to come back to him. He'd be lying if he said that your empty eyes didn't scare him.

You grabbed his wrist, pulling him into one of the spare bedrooms far away from Padme's. Not wanting to disturb her sleep. 

You said nothing at first, not even looking at him as he sat on the edge of the bed. Your back face him as you zoned out, still staring at the now closed door. You had nothing in your mind, absolutely nothing. But you were still so wrapped up in your mind. You felt like you weren't present in your body. 

The only thing that brought you back to the present moment was the sound of Anakin beginning to whimper. He sounded like he was in pain. And even though you were so upset and mad with him, you'd rather slit your own throat than to hear him in agony. You quickly turned around to see Anakin sinking in on himself, his eyes screwed shut as he tried to not let more tears fall. Your heart ached, your body reacting before you even thought.

Your knees hit the floor in front of the bed, your hands resting on his knees as you looked up into his eyes. Wet droplets falling onto his shirt, the material soaking it up.

"What's wrong Babyboy?" You were slightly shocked to hear your own voice, your body still responding out of impulse. Anakin immediately knew that he had you, you were back in his grasp and it was time for him to mold you into what he wanted, what he needed you to be. 

"He turned you against me." Anakin said sharply, making eye contact. You could see the anger and betrayal in his soul. "Ani, what are you talking about?" The sweetness ripples out of your mouth, despite the fact that you knew exactly what he was talking about. You knew that he must have been listening if he was crying.

"Obi-Wan. He made you hate me. You're gonna leave me. How could you?" His voice shook, cracking at the end from pain. Your hand shot up to his cheek, wiping a stray as you caressed his face. 

"I could never hate you. Not entirely..." You breathe out in a sigh. You were so worried about him but then you saw the little tremble of his bottom lip, the way he leaned into your touch, making you feel so loved, so appreciated, so important.

"You know that I hate seeing you cry..." You lied through your teeth, trying to keep up the mask of only worry. of course you were worried about him, but you never wanted him to know the deeper feelings you feel when he cries.

"Liar." Ani let out a choked laugh, a cute grin spreading across his face albeit tears were adorning it. "You love seeing me cry." He whispers, like he was reminding you of your own secret.

"It's not my fault." You defended as a joke, your face full of devotion for him.

"That's just what you do, because I'm pretty when I cry." Anakin rolled his eyes, the redness and puffiness from crying becoming more evident on his face. His lips were swollen, bitten raw.

"The prettiest." You said, leaning up to peck at his lips, just giving him a quick little kiss, but Anakin wanted more. He whined when you broke the contact, inviting you to kiss him more, kiss him with passion and fire. So you did just that, reconnecting your lips, practically devouring him in the kiss. 

He moaned into the kiss, the sensation reverberating throughout your bones before settling in your core.

"I don't care how bad we are for each other, you're mine and always will be." You muttered against his mouth, feeling when he smiled into the kiss. You stood up from your spot on the floor in front of him and quickly discarded your clothes, leaving yourself in just your bra and underwear. You straddled his lap, kissing him once more as you tugged at his shirt.

He aided you in the removal of his shirt, groaning against your lips when he felt you grind against his boner.

"Stop..." He mumbled in a whimper at your teasing.

You held onto his shoulders, feeling the muscles just beneath the skin. Trailing your hands down to his pants, swiftly undoing them. You pulled them as far down as you could while straddling his lap. Your hand slipped past his briefs and gently grasped his length. Anakin shifted uncomfortably at the touch, his back straightening as his breathing stopped momentarily. 

Your touch always was the death of him but your breath, your kiss, always brought him back.

"Master, please-" He whimpered, his mouth wavering into a quick frown. You bit at his lip, shutting him up. You pulled away from the kiss, looking down as you pumped his cock in your hand a couple of times, collecting the shared saliva from the kiss and spitting onto his tip. 

His Adams apple bobbed, his hands gripping the side of the bed sharply. His head fell back, eyes fluttering shut as your hand worked up and down his length. He clenched his jaw, trying his hardest to keep his mouth shut but it was nearly impossible to stay quiet. The pleasure he felt from your voice alone would make him cum almost instantly, your hand just added more shockwaves.

"You don't have to be silent..." You remind him, mocking the way he's trying so hard to not make any noise.

He moans, whimpering and squirming under your touch when he leans forward, his forehead resting against your shoulder.

"Please just..." He stutters out, biting his tongue as he lifts his hips, sliding his cock up into your hand more.

"So needy..." You teased, stopped all your movement. Anakin's head flew up, looking into your eyes with desperation. He was about to complain when you lifted yourself, pulling your underwear to the side and swiping his tip through your folds. The feeling made him groan in pleasure, sucking in a deep breath of air.

You teased him for a little bit longer, his pre-cum pressing against your clit when you finally put all your weight onto him. His cock sinking into your entrance. He choked out a sob of pleasure, feeling how tight you were around him. He wrapped his arms around you, his mouth latching onto your shoulder, biting down as he thrusted up into you. Your own moans just fueled him to do better, reach deeper. His tears stained your skin, his whimpers vibrating against your shoulder. 

"Please, I want-" His question is cut off when he feels you pulsate around him, his eyes widening with need. "Please, baby just let me- need to cum so bad...Master please, I need to cum- cum inside you-" He begged, his desperation dripping off him in the form of sweat. 

"You want to cum inside?" You ask, mocking his need. Anakin swallowed thickly, "You can't- you can't leave me if you're pregnant." He whimpers as he kisses the side of your neck, sucking the skin and leaving purplish red bruises.

You grind down, meeting him when he thrusts. "Such a pretty boy, I'd be so mean to say no...only because you're crying all pretty for me." You mumble, kissing the spot of skin closest to where your head rests against him. 

Anakin holds you tightly, almost as if he's afraid you'll whither away, a bead of sweat drops from his forehead as he comes undone with one last thrust. His white hot cum leaking out from his tip and filling you. He thrusts up into you twice more, his grip on you possessive.

"I won't let you ever leave me." Ani mutters as he comes down from his climax, while you're still catching your breath, your cunt fluttering around him.

[shoot-the-oneshot]

What a joke

Travis Kelce x Reader

prompt 88 “you? beat me? What a joke” requested by @sorryidonttreatulikeagoddess hope you like it!

“Oh come on!” Travis shouted, throwing his hands in the air while you smiled in victory.

It was date night every week you would both turn off the phones and spend time together and this week it was pizza a chess, while it doesn’t happen often this is when you’re reminded how sore of a loser he is, and you loved it.

“It was one game don't get cocky.” He grumbled seeing your facial expression

“It was five games actually baby, but dont worry you’re still the checkers master.” You giggled picking up the plates to take them to the kitchen Travis following not far behind.

“Listen sweetie I’ll let you have this win but just remember I’ll win any other game.” You could feel his smug smile even before you turned around. Matching his position you leaned back against the counter and folded your arms.

“Any game you say?” You prodded, knowing it would draw him in, doing exactly that he stepped forward pinning you with his arms caging you against the counter, leaning in to whisper in your ear. “Any game.”

“Even football?” His laugh echoed through the kitchen. “You? Beat me, at football? What a joke”

You waited for him to sober up before continuing with the idea in your head. Travis straightened little laughs escaping his lips. “I’m serious put your team together and I’ll pick mine, we can make a whole thing of it and donate to a charity of the winning teams choosing.”

You had his full attention as you spoke of course you would turn a competition into a good thing and he loved you a little more for it. He thought it over but you knew by the smile on his face he was in.

“Better get your team together because it’s on.” He held his and out to shake but the second your palm touched his, he pulled you into his chest. “May the best team win.” He whispered against you lips before pulling away and immediately going for his phone no doubt calling Pat, good thing you had your own phone calls to make.

You waited until you heard the shower turn on before your struck. Running as quietly as possible into Travis’s office, grabbing his headphones Jasons face popped back up on screen.

“Heyyy Y/N hows it going.” He boasted you’re glad you were wearing headphones or Travis definitely would’ve heard.

“Hi it’s good soooo I’m assuming you’ve heard about the game between Travis and i?” You asked pleading tone seeing him shake his head “Sorry i already told Trav i would play for him.”

“Oh come on.” You begged before a lighbulb went off. “What do you like more, supporting your brother or beating him?”

You watched as it sunk in your fingers tapping anxiously on the desk as you waited.

“So I have some ideas for our jerseys.” And just like that you had a center.

After months of planing the day has come you were decked out in the shiny gold Jersey Jason wanted standing across from Travis and Patrick on the field.

“The time has come baby you can back out now” Travis sang, ever for the dramatic he announced every member of his team as if it was a UFC match. Which to no surprise to you included most of the chiefs players.

“I think you’ll change your tune after you meet my team.” You smiled, taking the microphone from the announcer.

Thank you for everyone coming out to support a good cause and to watch Travis lose against my team today,” you paused looking to the stands as people cheered.

For our center may i introduce… Jason Kelce!!” He ran out of the tunnel to stand next to you while Travis dropped his jaw. “You said you had an interview with ESPN today!” Travis yelled pointing.

Jason shrugged “I probably will after this.”

“My own brother that’s cold” you smirked at his words moving on to the next players

“And next up on defense we have all the way from Miami, Jaelan Phillips! And the cheetah!” (Go watch hard knocks episode 2 trust me)

“And the man who broke the internet with his skims campaign…NICK BOSA!!” Travis rolled his eyes knowing the small crush you had on Bosa before you got together.

“Now for the quarterback. I know we needed something big and might i say i think we delivered.” You paused for dramatic effect, you saw Travis glance at Pat to make sure he wasn’t pulling a switch like his brother.

“The only man to have beaten Patrick Mahomes in the playoffs..Joe Burrow!!” The Crowd erupted as he came running out coming to stand on your other side. you met eyes with Travis “You can back out now baby” pulling his words back on him handing the mic back to the announcer to do his thing while you left your team to run to the sidelines with Kylie. “Now this will be a good game.” She spoke actually wearing the golden jersey which surprised you since she only wears eagles gear but as she said it wasn’t a real team so it doesn’t count.

“Let’s just hope they win.”

(I do not know enough about football to write the game but I’m learning)

Later that night you and Travis found yourselves back on the couch large trophy sitting on the coffee table. “You, beat me at football what a joke.” You repeated in a comically deep voice while giggling.

“Yeah yeah next week we’re playing checkers.” He pouted with his arms crossed gearing at your trophy. “If you promise not to throw a chair this time sure” You joke ending with a yelp as he lunges at you.

Hey guys my first time writing NFL hope yall liked it check out my other works here

[chloe-skywalker]

Give Them A Chance - Robb Stark

Robb x fem!reader Baratheon/Lannister

Warnings: GOT

Word count: 1,362

Summary: Robb and Y/n don’t know that their fathers plan to betroth them. But Ned has a reason for not telling. Will his reason work?

Authors Note: Takes place in like the first episode of season 1 Game Of Thrones. Like right after the whole “You got fat” lines.

Masterlist

Game Of Thrones Masterlist

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Y/n watched the exchange between her father and his friend Ned Stark Warden of the North. It was very odd but she thought it was nice that they were such good friends that they still joked around with each other. She didn’t see her father act so freely like this often. It was a rare welcome sight.

“So I take it this is your oldest.” King Robert sighed looking at the eldest of Ned’s children with a scrutinizing gaze before breaking out into a smile.

“Yes, this is Robb.” Ned introduced his oldest son to his friend.

Robert slapped a hand on the young man’s shoulder, smiling widely. “You're a handsome young lad.”

Robb tried to contain his blushing that he was sure he was doing. “Thank you, your Grace.”

“You should meet my oldest. Y/n!” Robert called over his oldest daughter, but not before sparing a knowing glance to Ned. As Y/n came to stand next to her father, smiling politely at the Stark family before her. “This is my oldest. A year younger than you I believe.”

“Princess.” Robb bowed, before looking at the princess. She had caught his eye when she first entered Winterfell on horse back alongside her uncle. He could not deny she was gorgeous, and he couldn’t believe how fast he had started to fall for her.

“Mi’ Lord.” Y/n curtised, biting her cheek. Thus Robb Stark was by far one of the most handsome men she had ever seen. And she had seen a lot of people growing up in KingsLanding. She wondered if his personality was as nice as his looks.

“Would you like a tour of  Winterfell?” Robb asked, offering a way for them to talk and get to know each other a bit. He also was one of the most qualified people to show her around.

“I would love one.” She smiled. Looping her arm through his and the two young adults that in some ways are still kids went off exploring.

While the two went off getting to know each other and everyone else did God knows what, King Robert and Net Stark headed down to the crypts.

“Have you told your son?” Robert asked once they were done talking about Ned’s sister. The King was curious if his friend's son had offered to show his daughter around on his own or out of duty.

“Not yet.” Nod squinted, he didn’t like the idea of taking this choice from his son. But the other part, this was a good alliance, and you don’t deny a king.

“And why not?” Robert had told Ned of the idea to marry their oldest months ago. But to be fair he didn’t tell his daughter either.

“Because I wanted to give them a chance to fall in love before knowing they might be betrothed.” Ned explained his reasonsings, and even though Robert would never admit it he admired Ned’s heart and how he was trying to make this a better situation for their children. It was better than just throwing them together.

“Very well. I didn’t tell my daughter either. She would’ve fought me on coming.” He chuckled. Y/n would’ve tried to fight him or talk him out of it, and it might’ve worked even the slightest. Out of all his children she was the only one that had a somewhat relationship with him.

“They’d be more reluctant if they knew about what we had planned. The two of them being in the dark might lead to them actually gaining feelings for the other.” Ned just hoped that the two would get close and at least see they could make a marriage work. But he was truly hoping that maybe they could fall in love on their own and there wouldn’t be any hard feelings or reluctantness.

^     ^     ^

It had been a few weeks and things seemed to be working out for Y/n and Robb like Ned had hopped. Y/n seemed to fit right into the Stark family. She got along with all his children and they all act as if she’s one of them. Things between Robb and Y/n had taken some people by surprise. The two had been spending almost all their time together. They only separated to sleep it seemed like.

Ned was happy to see they had a lot in common. The two went horseback riding constantly and Y/n seemed to know how to use a bow and a sword no doubt thanks to her uncle. They didn’t even eat apart at meals.

Today Robb and Y/n had gone out riding, once they were far enough away from Winterfell the two dismounted their respective horses walking along next to each other.

“Are you having a good time in Winterfell Princess Y/n?” Robb asked, hoping that the time they’d spent together had been as enjoyable for her as it was for him.

Y/n smiled, nudging him teasingly shoulder to shoulder. “Yes, I am as matter of fact. My favorite part is the company.”

Robb blushed looking down before looking back to her. Robb had no idea why she could so easily make him react like that, but she could and he didn’t mind it. “You flatter me y/n.”

“You’ve been flattering me the whole time I’ve been here. It’s only fair.” Y/n smiled. As they came to the set of trees that they had made their spot over the time she had been in the North.

Robb just stood there watching her for a moment. He never expected to fall in love with her when he first found out the King, Queen, and their children were coming to visit. But he had and he didn’t regret it. “If I may be bold and speak my mind, Princess?”

Y/n nodded, smiling back at him as she turned to face him. She noticed how he wasn’t right next to her and Y/n wondered what had made him stop and if it had to do with what was on his mind. “Go ahead. I won’t stop you.”

“During your time here in Winterfell I have become quite taken with you.” Robb stated walking over to her. He looked in her eye’s trying to notice how his works were being taken.

“And I you.” Y/n blushed, biting her lip at her response back to him admitting his feelings for her. Which she reciprocates.

“I have a proposal for you Princess Y/n Baratheon.” Robb felt an air of convenience hit him at Y/n admitting she feels the same.

Y/n furrowed her brow, it confused her on why he was using her title and first and last name. “Go on Lord Stark.”

Robb took a deep breath, he knew what he wanted he just hoped she wanted it to. “We may not have known each other for very long or very well for the most part. But I would like for us to get to know each other better over time. If you’d like that of course.”

“I would.” Y/n nodded liking where he was going with this so far.

“Would you  also like it if we could become husband and wife, Lord and Lady.” Robb stepped right up to her, reaching out to intertwine their hands. Looking into her eye’s Robb reached up with one hand leaving the other one still in hers, he cupped the side of her face, “Would you do me the great honor and become my wife? For all my days till the end of my days?”

Y/n reached up with her free hand and cupped the back of his neck, while squeezing his hand holding hers. Looking up into his eyes with what could only be happiness and adoration Y/n answered. “I would love to.”

In her short time visiting the North Y/n had really connected with the Starks and of course Robb the most. Yes, she’d miss her siblings (minus Joffrey) and she'd miss her uncles but this felt like the better place for her. And as long as she has Robb, Y/n will always be happy.

Taglist; @gruffle1 @padawancat97 @misspendragonsworld

@starkleila

[thebestofoneshots]

Gilded Constellations | (wolfstar x reader)

Series Masterlist | Previous episode

Pairing: Wolfstar x Reader Word Count: 7.9 K Warnings: None Prompt: Slug Party goes awry... This IS a Wolfstar x reader fic, but it's incredibly slow burn. They won't start all dating each other until we're very deep into the story, but I promise the long wait will be worth it. Proofread by lovely: @aremuslupinsimp

Chapter 36: Good Old-Fashioned Lover Boy

December, 21st, 1976

Remus wasn’t sure what he should wear to the party. He had sent a letter to his parents telling them about the invitation. He had omitted it had been you who invited him rather than Slughorn, and his father seemed pretty thrilled about his son being a member of the Slug club. 

Lyall wasn’t the kind of parent to be strict with his child’s grades, not in a literal sense at least, regardless he would very often tell Remus how important it was that he was among the best, and that being able to study magic at Hogwarts had been a privilege to him. That it only happened because of how lucky he’d gotten, and that he should be thankful to Dumbledore for giving him the opportunity and that the best way of proving his gratitude would be to be exceptionally good at his studies. 

Especially because, when he eventually joined the Registry of Magical Creatures, the only thing he’d have to prove his worth as a wizard would be his academic achievements. If Remus did badly in his studies, his father wouldn’t be angry, rather he’d be disappointed, and Remus hated disappointing people. So while there wasn’t actually a pressure put on his shoulder by his father, there was a pressure set by himself, one to make sure he’d keep his father content and proud. 

In the end, his father had only cornered Remus into pressuring himself. Of course, Lyall didn’t know this, nor did Hope, they thought their child was perfect just because he was, while Remus sometimes felt the need to put an extra effort to fulfil their expectations. Everyone’s expectations. Sometimes he wished he could be more like Sirius, careless and loud but he couldn’t give himself such a luxury, perhaps that’s why he was so attracted to him.

At least it wasn’t that hard, Remus was already clever and being friends with the other Marauders and Lily had helped him to strengthen his abilities from the very beginning, making him a better wizard than he ever would have been without them. And recently, you as well, you were making him a better wizard too, even if he always felt awfully selfish for wanting you, and your godric-damned gorgeous boyfriend.

Remus was still rummaging through his trunk trying to find something nice. His father had told him that he had to wear something elegant, preferably his suit, but Remus had no idea where the hell he had placed it. Hope, on the other hand, had written to tell him that he should pay his father no mind and that those silly elitist wizard parties –which she had concluded was what they were (accurately) after Lyall told her about them– shouldn’t be worrying him too much. She did ask him who he’d be inviting, and he had responded he’d be going with you. 

Lyall and Hope already knew about you, they knew you had arrived at school and Remus had mentioned that you had become close. Hope had mentioned at some point that he should ask you on a date, but Remus responded to her letter by telling her you were going out with Sirius, which Hope didn’t seem to understand. Especially when some of the things Remus had described in his letters were the kinds of things a girl who was very much in love with her son would do. Of course, Hope knew nothing more than the few things that Remus had said in his letters, about how kind you were, how funny you were, and how you were an incredibly talented witch. And yet, somehow she clearly knew better than all of you combined. 

Now, Hope knew how close Remus was to Sirius and she was not about to tell him to pursue you, but she definitely expected to have a small chat with him once they met again in New Year. Remus had chosen to stay at Hogwarts during Christmas, to recover after the moon. She wasn’t too happy about that, she’d much prefer having her son with her during the moon, but Lyall insisted that Remus wasn’t the small wolf she had taken care of in the past, though still incredibly dangerous, the wolf had been a lot easier to control. 

Besides, Remus much preferred staying at Hogwarts now, the Shrieking Shack, even if still a cage, was much bigger than the small silver-coated cage they had at home, which while absolutely safe, was also incredibly painful for Moony, and caused much more desperate clawing from the wolf which in turn, left Remus a lot worse off. 

“What’s with the sour face?” James asked when he spotted Remus kneeling on the floor looking defeated. 

The boy huffed in response, “I can’t find the fucking suit.” 

“You’re going with a suit?” 

“You’re not?!” 

“Should I?” 

“Of course! It’s a Christmas Party, James!” 

“You think Lily will wear an elegant dress?” He asked, “Oh I should ask what colour it is so I can match with her.” 

Remus almost rolled his eyes as he leaned down and started looking through his trunk again, “Vixen might not be here, but even I can tell you how much of a terrible idea that is…” 

“It’s a grand gesture, mate! You don’t understand romance.” 

“I’ve had more dates than you ever have,” Remus defended. 

“And yet… you’ve never had a girlfriend. Because you don’t do grand gestures.” 

Remus huffed again, sure next time he’ll match Sirius’s fucking outfit and hope he does not get punched in the face. He wasn’t sure if Sirius or you would be the one to throw fists first thought. He kept moving things around on his trunk before sitting back with an annoyed sigh. “No fucking suit.” 

“I can lend you something,” James said with a shrug and pulled out a dark blue pair of pants, waistcoat and matching long gown. “Just find a shirt and tie that matches,” the boy said with a shrug. 

“You think these will fit?” Remus asked as he gave them a weary look. 

“You can charm them to fit better if you want,” James said with a shrug. Remus kept looking at them wearily but nodded and placed them on his bed. 

Sirius, who had been off somewhere, appeared shortly after Remus stepped out of the showers, and James got in.

“You ready?” he asked, even if he could clearly see Remus still had a towel slung across his waist. 

“Yeah, I was planning to go like this and moon everyone when it was time to dance,” Remus replied sarcastically, he was a little touchy. Probably because of how close the moon was and because of how much time he had wasted trying to find something to wear. 

“Ugh Pissy Moony,” Sirus said with a grimace as he sat on Remus’ bed and took a look at James’ suit. He easily figured James had borrowed it and felt a pang of jealousy over the fact that Remus would ask James for help instead of him. Or perhaps it was because Moony would wear James’ clothes instead of something from him. Then again, it was a dumb thing to be jealous about, Sirius’ tailored clothes wouldn’t fit Remus at all. Sirius was shorter and skinnier. Still, he wasn’t too happy about it, he realised as he passed his hand over the soft blue fabric. “What will you be wearing with this?”

Remus shrugged in response, “White shirt, some tie that matches I guess.” 

Sirius didn’t seem convinced, “I’ll find you something,” he said as he kneeled down next to the boy’s dresser and started looking through his drawers. 

“Sirius,” Remus called, but he was too focused on the dresser to realise. “Sirius!” He repeated, a little louder this time. 

Sirius just hummed in response, turning his head to look at the other boy as he leaned back a little, a casual thing Sirius would do rather often that made Remus gulp, he looked beautiful, as fucking always. Remus had been about to tell the boy that he should mind his own fucking business, but there was no way to tell him that now. 

“Just… pass me my briefs, will you?” 

Sirius, without even turning, pulled the top left drawer, grabbed a pair and threw it back to Remus “There you go,” he said simply and went back to looking through Remus’ stuff. Remus sighed and continued getting dressed, passing the briefs under the towel before taking it off. “What do you think Starshine will wear?” 

The other boy shrugged, “A dress or something I suppose, she knows a good deal of magic etiquette.” 

“Bet she’ll look hot.” 

Remus didn’t respond to that, it wasn’t like he could just agree with Sirius out loud, “She’ll dress nicely I assume.” 

“Oh, this is great!” Sirius said as he pulled out a dark navy shirt, just slightly lighter than the suit James had borrowed. 

“So dark?” Remus asked as he leaned over, he was already wearing the pants James had borrowed, they were a little tight but they fit him well, Sirius noticed. 

“Yeah! This shirt looks dashing on you mate! It’s the one you wore to the Christmas Party last year.” 

Remus did not remember that fact out of the bat, so he had to think back and try to remember exactly what he had worn that day at the Potters. They had sneaked out some alcohol from Monty’s collection –Monty knew, but pretended not to notice– and then they had all sneaked into James’ room and drank until they were too pissed to remember much of the rest of the night.

Sirius, on the other hand, remembered the exact outfit Remus had worn, first because he thought Remus looked incredible with that shirt and wondered why he didn't wear it more often, and second, because when Peter had dared Remus to take off his shirt, he had complied, and Sirius had found it at some point and used it as his pillow for the rest of the night. He thought it also smelled nice. 

“I guess you’re right,” Remus said with a small frown, still trying to remember the shirt as Sirius stood and placed it on the bed, passing his wand over it with a quick straightening spell to make it look as neat as he remembered it had looked on Remus. It was then that Sirius started thinking of the fact that, while he clearly remembered what Remus had worn perfectly, he couldn’t quite recall what either Peter or James had been wearing. 

“Done,” Sirius said once he placed his wand back in his pocket and gently passed the unbuttoned shirt to Remus, stepping back when he realised he was about to help him button it. 

“Thanks, mate,” Remus said and grabbed the shirt to put it on. Sirius sat back down on Remus’ bed as his friend finished getting his shirt on. And then passed him the waistcoat. Sirius realised, almost a little too late, that he was most definitely checking Remus out while he did. “Does it look bad?” 

“What? No, why?” Sirius said, a little caught off guard. 

“You’ve been staring?” 

Have I? Fuck I have. “Just thinking of what tie you can wear with it,” Sirius said, hoping it was convincing enough.

“Oh,” Remus replied simply as he pulled the coat on, while it was on the tighter side, it wasn’t uncomfortably so, and the colour did nicely suit him. He was about to ask Sirius if he thought you’d like it and realised what a terrible idea that was, so he just shut his mouth. “Which tie?” 

Sirius seemed to be taken aback by the question but then nodded and went to his trunk. He was sure to have some ties somewhere, he did not remember taking them out before the whole chaos at home and his trunk had ended up being delivered to the Potters along with a note that said that he was a bIood traitor and that he was no longer welcomed at home. It was a house though, that had never been his home. 

Sirius kept looking until he found a thick tie that shifted in colour as he took it from his trunk. First, it was blue, then it was brown, and then it was something between burgundy and purple. Remus raised one of his eyebrows “A magic tie?” 

Sirius shrugged, “It’ll match your outfit… or Starshine’s, sometimes she’s whimsical like that?” 

“Your girlfriend?” 

“The tie,” Sirius clarified. 

Remus groaned, “James is so gonna tease me about it,” he said as he placed his hand over his head. Sirius approached him and slid the tie across his friend’s neck, carefully raising the collar and letting his fingers brush over Remus’ neck only for a second before going back to his thing. He tried not to think of the shiver he felt from how warm Remus was. Had touching him always felt like that? “I know how to tie a tie,” Remus said as he observed Sirius. The shorter boy was deeply focused on his task. 

“Yeah, but you don’t have a clue how to do an Eldredge Knot, do you?” 

Remus scoffed, while he had no idea what an Eldredge Knot looked like, let alone how to do it, he was also a little offended that Sirius would just assume he didn’t.  “Well maybe I do,” he said as he grabbed onto the tie, his hands over Sirius’ as he tried to shake him away, but the boy didn’t budge. The way Remus’ hands wrapped around his made him think of yours, and then compare, his were larger, they felt nice around his own. 

But Sirius was really trying not to focus on said things. “Come on Moons, let me help,” he said simply, looking up at Remus’ eyes. He could see Sirius’ thick black lashes and he fought hard not to gulp from how close they were. 

“Whatever,” Remus said as he took his hands from Sirius and let them fall on his side, placing them on his pockets right after since he had no idea what to do with them. Sirius continued his task, while Remus tried to look anywhere but at him, at his slightly furrowed brows, and his cute little mouth with his lips pressed in a thin line as he breathed slowly. Why did he have to go and be so ridiculously pretty? Remus wondered as he gave him a short glance and then looked away again. Sirius was taking a hell of a lot of time with his damned tie. “You done?” 

“Chist,” Sirius shushed him as he continued trying to focus, it was way easier when you did it to yourself than when you did it backwards. Remus started to slowly tap his foot, yet another way to distract him from how close Sirius stood. Close enough to feel his warm breath fan against his neck. 

“Hey Sirius…” The other boy hummed in response. “Thanks…”  

“’S what friends are for,” Sirius said simply, hands tightening the knot as he pulled back just a little to look at Moony. His gaze quickly forgetting the tie and focusing on his friend’s face. On his chocolaty brown eyes that looked a lot more golden today than normal. The moon was close, after all. Regardless, it was a good look on Remus. Sirius smiled, “You look handsome,” he said honestly, it rolled so naturally off his tongue, he was almost surprised he hadn’t said it to Remus more often. 

A blush started to creep up Remus’ neck when the door of their room opened, his head snapped to it and you stood there, looking at the two boys with a small smile. The two of them looking back at you. You had your hair down and wore a white, iridescent dress with lace on top, a turtle neck and a long-sleeved top that flared down at the bottom into a puffy skirt and fell down just before your ankles. You had a matching pair of shoes. The lace was delicate and had a star on the left shoulder and some other wind and sky motifs all around.

You looked like… the moon. Except Remus had never thought of the moon as pretty before. 

Sirius looked at you with a smile “Claire de Lune,” Sirius said affectionately. Remus didn’t even feel jealous at the way the other boy was looking at you, in fact, he was rather thankful Sirius was so focused on you and wasn’t paying attention to him or the way he was looking at you. 

You smiled at Sirius praising, “Thought I was Starshine,” you teased with a smile, twirling around and letting the dress flow, the iridescence being a lot more evident. “Comet helped me charm it,” you explained, “kind of like her dress at the Halloween party.” 

Remus’ tie had already become the same shade of iridescent white. “You look delightful, I’m almost jealous it’ll be Moony the one to parade you around instead of me,” Sirius said as he walked closer to you, placing his hand on yours and twirling you around once more. You laughed but let him have his fun, especially since he wasn’t going to go to the party. Remus stared at the two of you dancing around to no music and smiled, James came out of the bathroom all dressed up shortly after. 

“Looking great Moony,” he said when he spotted Remus, “you too Vix.” 

“Thanks,” you said while Sirius stopped the dancing to look at James reproachfully. 

“Way to leave your handsomest friend out.” 

“You’re not dressed up,” James said simply, “You look exactly the same as every day… maybe a little scruffy,” James added with a smirk, he knew he’d piss Sirius off. “Hair’s a little messy,” he added as he pointed at his head. 

Sirius gasped and was about to respond when you took his face in your hands and dragged him to look at you, pulling one stray hair and placing it back on its spot “Well, I think you look handsome.” 

“She’s lying to make you feel better,” James insisted. 

“I’ll get Lily to hex you, James,” you warned, the messy-haired boy took a step back, as if genuinely scared of your friendly threat.

Sirius gave you a small satisfied smile before leaning in to steal a short kiss from your lips. 

“Ugh, get a room!” James complained. 

“Find a different place to change,” Sirius retorted as he leaned again to kiss you again, partly because he could never get enough of you, partly because your lips helped him forget the weird feeling he was getting whenever he was around Remus alone and partly to spite James. “Moony doesn’t mind, right Moons?” 

Remus really tried not to choke at that, “Not at all,” he managed to say. 

“See, it only is a you problem,” Sirius said with a shrug. “I won’t be telling you to get a room whenever you bring Lily over to snog.” 

“We’ve never snogged here though,” you clarified. Sirius gave James an exaggerated wink and you elbowed him when you realised. Remus couldn’t help but laugh at your dynamic. 

“Ready, Little Witch?” he asked politely. 

You turned to him with a smile, same smile you had when you were looking at Sirius, only now being less entertained by your boyfriend and noticing how handsome your friend looked. “When you are,” you said simply.  Remus walked closer to you and tilted his head, an invitation for you to follow behind him. 

“I want her back before 12,” Sirius joked pointing at Remus.

You laughed before Remus had the chance to say anything “Sure thing, and I want you to stay out of trouble for a whole week, but neither of us will get what we wish, will we?” 

“I could stay out of trouble for a week!” Sirius scoffed, slightly offended. 

You raised your eyebrows at that statement and eyed Remus. “Has he ever?” 

Remus shook his head , lips pressed tightly before he added, “Nope.” 

“Remus!” Sirius whined. 

“Just stating the facts,” Remus replied with a shrug, a diverted shine in his eyes as he stared at his beautiful best friend.  

“Ugh! Stop flirting, you’re all making me feel lonelier,” James said as he threw a pillow at the three of you. 

“Oi!” you said as you straightened your clothes. “You’ll ruin my dress…” you added with a frown. 

“Yeah James, stop messing with her. How would you feel if I go around throwing pillows at Evans,” Sirius defended. 

“She’d hex you,” James responded with a shrug. 

“Perhaps I should hex you,” you said under your breath while Remus laughed. “You’re lucky we’re friends.”

James threw a wink your way and you grumbled something about throwing him off his broom. Sirius took the fact that you were busy still straightening your clothes to pick a piece of pillow fluff that had fallen on Remus’ coat. The boy straightened slightly at the way Sirius closed the gap between the two of them. “What?” he asked, looking at Sirius almost warily, he didn’t want to admit the way his heart would race at Sirius so much as stepping into his personal space like that. 

The shorter boy just grabbed the fluff and showed it to Remus, moving his hand from side to side before blowing it away. You finally lifted your head, almost curiously looking at the way Remus was staring at Sirius, and then at the way Sirius was staring back. You tilted your head, it was oddly familiar, but you just couldn’t quite pinpoint why. You narrowed your eyes at the two, the connections in your brain happening at lightning speed only to be interrupted by an urgent knock on the door, everyone turned their heads towards it and then at each other as if wondering if they had invited anyone over. 

“James! We’re gonna be late,” Lily’s voice said from the other side of the door. You walked over and opened the door, letting her in. 

“Oh, hey luv, I’ve actually brought this over for you, thought it would go with your dress,” She said as she handed over the moon and star ring your mom had given you a while ago, Remus took a step back, looking at Lily almost offended. She was wearing a green dress that looked delightful with her hair, James pretty much gaped at her as she was putting on a pair of jade earrings that matched the dress, not even noticing the way he was staring.

“Shut your mouth mate, you’ll get lacewing flies,” Sirius teased. Lily, who had not noticed James staring turned almost as red as her hair as she turned to look at James and their eyes locked for a second. 

“I’ve seen you gape at Vixen way more times than I can count…” James started to complain.

You weren’t listening anymore, their bickering fading into the background when you took the ring from your palm and placed it on your finger, only then realising that Remus was looking to the side rather dejected, “You’re…” he fucking hated having to ask, “you’re not actually gonna wear that, right?” 

You turned to him slightly confused at first and then smiled, something akin to a smirk, and extended your hand towards him “Give me your hand.” Remus tilted his head to the side reproachfully, trying to tell you that of course he fucking couldn’t, even if he wanted to, without having to say “I’m a werewolf, I can’t” out loud. 

Even then you kept your hand up, “Trust me,” you added confidently. Remus seemed hesitant but did as told, tentatively placing his fingers over yours, avoiding touching the ring entirely. It was merely a brush of his fingers over your hand, and he was about ready to pull away when you pushed your hand forwards and yanked his, grabbing firmly onto it. He tried to pull back, wincing, as if ready to feel the stinging of the metal, eyes closed and a deep frown etched on his face. And then, it cleared, slowly as he eyed you, then both of your hands, his brows furrowing again, this time it was softer, his eyes were searching, turning both of your hands around as if to make sure it was the same ring. 

When he was sure it was, he dug his fingers closer to yours, feeling the ring from the back and then bringing in his other hand, brushing over your knuckles before letting them fall over the ring. “We transfigured it,” you said proudly. “I asked Lily and Pete to help me, since both Sirius and I had hurt you with it, I thought it was the right thing to do. Took us weeks to get it right.” 

“Weeks…” Remus repeated, still fascinated over the fact that he could touch the ring, or perhaps he was fascinated more by the way your small hand looked next to his. Of course, he had held your hand before, but it had always been in situations in which it was either dark, you were running, or you had something else to pay attention to, never had Remus actually seen it. So much smaller in comparison to his, so much softer and smoother. There was a bit of hardened skin near your thumb from how hard you gripped your quill sometimes and there were also fading broom marks in the top part of your palm, whatever potion Sirius had given you was erasing them quickly. 

You nodded, also paying attention to the way your hands looked next to each other. Sirius’ hands were large, perhaps as large as Remus’, but there was something about the way Remus held your hands, almost venerating, that made you just as curious as it seemed to make him, of course, you assumed he was just fascinated by the fact that he could touch the ring now. “It’s stainless steel,” you explained, “absolutely harmless, like the charm on the necklace Peter made,” you added with another prideful smile. 

He smiled almost shyly and felt silly at the fact that he had been worried before, of course, you’d never do anything that could hurt him (at least consciously), in fact, he now noticed that he hadn’t seen you wear the ring since that time at the infirmary when you had discovered he was a werewolf, he’d just assumed Sirius hadn’t given it back yet. 

“Oh, he’s seen the ring?” Sirius asked, only now finishing his bickering with James and leaning his chin on your shoulder as he stared at Remus’ hands holding yours, he thought it looked right. “I take it, it worked?” 

You nodded and hummed in reply, beaming proudly at your achievement, “He knew?” breaking his sight away from your hands and looking straight at Sirius. He looked unfairly adorable, the two of you did. Remus still didn’t remove his hands from yours, perhaps he was pushing it, but he didn’t care much if he was, he didn’t want to stop holding you. If Sirius could have his hands on your waist and his head perched on your shoulder, he could at least have your hand. He would be your date tonight either way. 

Only because Sirius didn’t want to go, a pesky little voice reminded him. 

But then again, Sirius would never pass up the opportunity to rub it on people’s faces that he was with you, let alone with the sight you were in that dress. Why was it he didn’t want to go again? He’d have to ask you later. 

“Sirius helped me swipe the metal transfiguration book from the restricted section,” you said with a smile, “he thought it was a brilliant idea when I told him about it, and that it could also help me practise transfiguration, it was the same Peter had used. Lily helped me confirm it wasn’t silver anymore with muggle science. Something about dension or something.”

“Density luv, we used Archimedes' principle,” she said before going back to her chat with James. 

“Muggle magic,” you said with a shrug, “Lily taught me the formulas to make the equations, but she always checked to make sure I was doing it correctly.” 

“So many muggle words in one sentence,” Sirius said as he shook his head and huffed. 

“You learned algebra and physics for this?” Remus asked, almost laughing as he pulled your hand up to show your ring. 

Sirius huffed, “Of course, Moony would know exactly what you were talking about.” 

“Mum taught me a lot of muggle stuff, they didn’t think I’d be allowed in Hogwarts,” Remus said, almost as a throw-off comment. “You bunch of purebloods would obviously have no idea what they are. Especially physics, since what we do here destroys most of their principles.” 

“Prove A, I changed the material of the ring,” you said with a smile. “Still, it was useful, we should be taught more muggle stuff…. Although, I do think that muggle ironsmith from your story could have used a good transfiguration spell.”

“You told her the story?” Remus asked with a frown, still holding your hand, though he was letting it hang a little more. 

“Of course, I told her the story! Last time I said eureka she was looking at me like I had just made up a word.” 

“Sounds like a spell,” Sirius said with a simple shrug and took his wand out, “do you think–” 

“NO!” Remus, Lily and you, all said at the same time. Remus had finally let go of your hand, raising both of his as a warning. 

Sirius seemed taken aback. “I tried it,” you explained, turning your face to him slightly. “Almost blew up our dorm.” The way his hair tickled your cheek felt oddly nice. 

“It’s Ancient Greek, it could mean anything,” Remus said with a shrug, “Not a great idea to infuse it with magic if you don’t know what you’re doing.” 

“You never told me about almost blowing up your room,” Sirius said with a raised eyebrow.

“We had it under control,” you responded with a shrug, “thought it’d be a funny story for another time.” 

“Pads, are you done hogging your girlfriend? We’ve got a party to attend to…” Prongs teased. 

“Go snog Lily and leave us alone,” Sirius said with a pout as he tightened his grip on your waist, fuck he looked adorable, the two of you did, Remus thought it really wasn’t fucking fair. 

“No one is snogging anyone here,” Lily said, almost scandalised. James pouted at her and she swatted him lightly. 

“Speak for yourself,” Sirius said as he pursed his lips your way in a rather exaggerated manner. You were laughing as you playfully tried to push him away. Remus sighed as he looked at the two, first wishing he was you, to be the one that Sirius tried to kiss, and then wishing he was Sirius, the one who had permission to hold you so tight and place kisses all over your face. 

Eventually, he tore his eyes from the two of you and eyed his watch, “We’ll be late. I may not know much about pure bIood and customs or whatever, but I’m sure being on time is important.” 

“Unless you’re fashionably late,” Sirius said, pressing one last kiss to your cheek and taking a step back, still keeping his hands on your shoulders. 

“There is no such thing,” you said, turning to Sirius. 

“Oh, there isn’t?” He asked with a smirk, almost innocently as he took a few steps back, “must have heard Walburga wrong when she was talking about it.” After he spoke, he allowed himself to fall on Remus’ bed again. It was the closest bed, but that wasn’t the reason. Sirius didn’t know why he would let himself lie on his friend’s bed instead of his, but sometimes it just felt warmer, and a lot more welcoming. Besides, it smelled rather nice.

Remus shook his head with a small smile, looking at Sirius diverted before turning his head back to you. You smiled at him and nodded towards the door, “Let’s get going.” 

As you walked to the door, Sirius raised his head a little to give you one last look “Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do!” He said as he pointed at Sirius. 

You laughed “There isn’t much you wouldn’t do.” 

Lily, James, Remus and you arrived at the party shortly after, you hadn’t rushed much, since really it wasn’t that late, and even if you were happy to attend the party, you did not want to be the first people to arrive. 

They had used a room of the castle that you weren’t sure you’d ever visited. There were curtains draped all over the place, making the room look like the luxurious tent of an Arabian prince and you peeked your head inside before crossing the door, Remus followed behind. Lily and James walked next to each other and one of the waiters who you identified as Johnny Ackley stopped them in their tracks.

“You must kiss,” he said looking at your friends as he extended a silver tray your way. You leaned in and hovered your hand over one of the treats as Lily looked at him puzzled. “You stepped under the mistletoe,” he said simply, “It’s tradition.” 

“What?” Lily asked, a little shocked.

You eyed Remus, a devilish smile drawing on your lips as you pulled your hand slightly back from the treats and looked at your friends, “Oh yes, very important wizarding tradition, isn’t it Rem?” 

Remus held back his amused look as best as he could and nodded, “Definitely,” he agreed. 

Lily looked at you with pleading eyes and you gave her a wink. You knew she had enjoyed kissing James, she had told you how she’d done it on their date and also how she had “almost snogged” James a few nights ago. Now you weren’t sure what exactly Lily meant by “almost”, but you knew she had kissed James several times. And you also knew James would probably love the opportunity to kiss her in front of everyone. Were you being a better friend to James than you were to Lily at that moment? Maybe, but that didn’t stop you from adding a simple, “I’m sorry Lils, it’s part of the party traditions.” 

She narrowed her eyes at you and you just nodded with the same devilish smile as earlier. She huffed, defeated by the three of you, and placed her hand on James’ shoulder, who seemed just slightly surprised she’d actually go through with it. James had never kissed Lily in public, in fact, he wasn’t even sure people knew they were going out, outside of your very close friend group. Still, he leaned down at Lily’s command. And he calls Sirius a lap dog, Remus thought with a smile. Seeing James finally happy with Lily was oddly satisfying, probably what he should feel when he saw Sirius with you, but just couldn’t.

Eventually, they both kissed, a small peck at first but James leaned closer and placed his hand on Lily’s waist, while she took his head in her hands. You gave Rem a rather impressed look, and grabbed onto one of the treats. “I wouldn’t take that one,” Ackley said, “gives bad breath.” 

You narrowed your eyes and hovered over your hand on top of a different one, he shook his head, as if he knew something of that one in particular that you didn’t. You hovered your hand to a different-looking one and he nodded. You smiled and winked at him as you grabbed it, “What does this one do?” you asked as you leaned closer to him.

“It’s one of three that don’t have prank potions, and it’s actually tasty.” 

“Oh, so you’re here only to cause trouble?” you asked with a smile.

“I’m always around to cause trouble,” he responded, gave you a courteous look, and went somewhere else. 

You noticed Remus lean over, as if he too wanted one of the treats, but Ackley had already left, so you leaned closer to him. “Want some?” you asked as you raised your hand. 

“Well- I…” 

You gently leaned your hand towards his mouth, “It’s good, no potions or tricks,” you said, “At least according to Johnny.” 

He raised a questioning eyebrow at that but opened his mouth either way. You were halfway feeding him when you heard someone clear their throat rather loudly from behind Lily and James. You gave Remus a look and the two of you turned to look that way, the little treat still in your hand. 

“Would you mind snogging at a different place?” You heard Severus say in his infuriatingly slow voice as he pretty much pushed his way past James, who stumbled forward into Lily. Severus scoffed, and you stared daggers his way. 

“Mind your own damn business and leave the young couple alone,” you said stepping in front of him, “there was mistletoe.”

He merely raised an eyebrow all toffee-nosed and snobbish, and then moved his gaze behind you, noticing Remus holding his stance just a couple of steps back “Oh, so you left the wayward boyfriend at home and brought in the dangerous one instead.” 

You clenched your teeth at that, not because he implied Remus was your boyfriend, which had definitely done something to the boy, but rather because he called him dangerous. “Snape, if you continue insulting my friends like that, you’ll learn who is actually dangerous between us,” you said as you took a few steps towards him. The slimy-headed boy was taller than you, even taller than Sirius, but you didn’t let that deter you. 

He held his stance “Is that a threat?” he asked as he coed his head. 

“It’s a fucking promise, Severus.” 

“I’m not scared of you.” 

“Well, you should be…” you added as you pulled back. 

“Go mind your own business, and leave us alone Snape,” Remus interceded in a rather conciliatory tone. 

“As if I wanted to hang out with mudbloods,” he looked at Lily, then nodded towards James and you, “BIood traitors and mixed-raced abominations,” he added the last bit looking straight at Moony. 

You missed the hurtful look in Lily’s eyes due to the shock after his first and second insult were used so casually, but it was the last bit that had your bIood boiling, instantly giving you the urge to hex him, hand itching to get to your wand, but you somehow managed to hold back and use your tongue instead of your magic to fight back; after all fae were known for their sharp as knife words. 

“The only thing that’s abominating here is your disgusting greasy hair, Severus. Do you even know what shampoo is?” He gave you a hateful look. And that’s when you threw the real jab– you scoffed with a despicable sneer and added, “To think you wanted Lily to like you back. Bet she wouldn’t go out with you even if you were the last person on earth.” 

Severus seemed to be taken aback by that, and Lily, who had been watching the whole scene with James after they managed to sort themselves out reacted, turning to you with a gasp, “(Y/N)!”. James tightened his grip on her shoulder reassuringly. 

“Am I lying?” you said simply as you turned to her. 

She gave you a pleading look, still trying to deal with the fact that Severus had called her a Mudblood again and the fact that her noble heart couldn’t quite let go of the friendship she had once shared with him, Lily didn’t want to hurt him either,  “I– well I…” 

You nodded, “There’s your answer,” you added turning your head back at Severus with a satisfied expression, he was looking at you coldly. “Go apparate somewhere where they actually want you.” And that last bit might have been overkill, “If such a place really exists.” 

“(Y/N)!” Lily said again. Severus took his wand out and pointed it at your face, completely riled up by your poisonous words. And she looked at him shocked “Severus!” she chided, trying to appease him.

You didn’t back up at all, and you didn’t motion to grab your wand either, just gave Severus the same look he’d given you earlier. Your head leaned back slightly, a daring look plastered all over your features. You heard Remus shift behind you, the boy was ready to push you out of the way if it was necessary. But then, something none of you would have ever expected happened. Evan Rosier walked over and placed his hand on Severus’ shoulder. 

You narrowed your eyes at him, but Rosier only pulled the other Slytherin and started to drag him away, “Come on Severus, Barty was looking for you,” he said as he took him away. 

You were about to respond to that when you felt Remus’ hand wrap around your arm, you turned your gaze to him and he gave you a simple warning look. 

“Yeah, listen to your perilous boyfriend little trollop,” Snape muttered loud enough for you to hear as he left, you snapped your head his way, jaw clenching, but Remus tightened his grip around your arm, his thumb rubbing soothing circles as he shook his head. You huffed, threw another hateful look his way but didn’t say more. 

Lily approached you with a rather hurt look “What the hell was that?” 

You were completely taken aback by that, “Pardon?” 

“You knew what you said would hurt him. And you used your words like weapons, he could have hexed you.” 

“I should have hexed him first,” you said and Lily gave you another reproachful look, “Lils he was being an asshole! Calling all of us those nasty things, you included!” 

Her face had that hurt look again, but she shook her head and focused her gaze on you again. “Maybe, but that doesn’t mean you have to stump to his level.” You let those words sink in, your eyes moving rapidly as you tried to process what she said, “it’s the most Slytherin thing I’ve ever seen you do. Did you even think how it might make me feel?” 

“I– I wasn’t… Lily, I would never–” 

“But you did,” she said, now looking more upset than angry, she shook her head with a huff and bit her tongue as if she knew she had probably used her own words like knives and had started to regret it after they came out of her mouth. “I’m going for some punch,” she added and walked towards the furthest wall. 

James looked at you, an apologetic expression on his face, “You okay Vix?” Remus placed his hand on your shoulder. 

“Yeah I’m–” you cut yourself off, “you should go check on Lily.”

“But–” 

“She’s upset James, you heard what he called her. I can’t go after her but you should.” 

He leaned his head to the side, as if contemplating his options and then looked at Remus who nodded, James mirrored his actions and ran behind Lily. As you saw his messy hair disappear in between the curtains you let out a long sigh. 

Remus was looking at you and saw you shake your head as if you were contemplating whether to say something or not and then, you turned to him, “You still want some?” you said as you offered the treat still in your hands. He gave you a look, eyebrows raised. “What?” 

“You’re just going to pretend all that didn’t happen?” 

You swallowed, “I don’t want to talk about it…” you said as you avoided his gaze, he gave you some time, still looking at you and you sighed again, “Was I really that much of a Slytherin?” 

Remus sighed himself, “You’ve always had bite, I don’t think that makes you any less of a Gryffindor.” 

“But I upset her…” you said with a huff, “and the hat did consider me putting me in Slytherin, and you all say I’m cunning and–”

“Hey,” he said calmly, easily getting your attention, “Lily was upset–” 

“Because I upset her!” 

Remus gave you a look, “Lily was upset because Severus was being a prick. And then you said something that upset her even further. And while I do think you would have been brilliant Slytherin,“ your gaze fell, “that’s because I think you would have been brilliant in whichever house the hat put you in. You’re smart and loyal and cunning,” he said calmly, shaking your shoulder just enough for you to look at him “but you know what?” he leaned down to catch your gaze, “I’ve never met someone as stupidly brave as you.” You smiled, finally looking at him. “Well, perhaps James, but… we all know he’s a bit more stupid than he is brave,” he said the last bit in a whisper, sure that it would make you laugh. 

You smiled, “Oh Remus…” you added, dragging the e from his name, “I’ll keep those words stored in my brain to blackmail you one day,” you joked. 

“See, you would have thrived with the snakes,” he joked again and you punched him lightly, which just got him to laugh. Remus’ laugh was awfully contagious and you laughed alongside him.

“Still want some?” you asked as you raised the treat again. Remus huffed a laugh and nodded, opening his mouth again as you leaned the small snack to his face. He leaned forward just a little and gave it a bite, eating about half of it. 

“Mmm, it’s actually really good,” he said as he covered his mouth to speak. 

You shrugged and brought it to your own face, taking what he’d left and plopping it all in your mouth. You took a bit more time savouring it like he did, and then nodded, completely agreeing with him. Once you swallowed, you spoke again. “Delightful,” you said, “thought we should be careful with Ackley’s tray, he’s charmed a good deal of them.” And then you got an idea, “Actually…” 

Remus shook his head with a small, worried frown. “That’s your ‘I’ve got an idea’ face.” 

“Is it?” you asked with an innocent tone. 

“We’ll never get invited again if you cause havoc,” he whispered. 

“Oh Remus, we are not going to be the ones causing the havoc,” you said with a smirk. 

While Remus tried to be the reasonable one, he could not resist the way your lips curled up into a sly, very fox-like smile, nor could he resist the temptation that your eyes shone with. He had never been the biggest fan of religious tales, of temptation or whatnot. But if you were Eve, and you had been persuaded by the snake to take the forbidden fruit, and then you’d turned to him with that same look, he sure would have also forgotten all the rules any sort of god imposed on him and given the fruit a bite, not because of how tasty the forbidden fruit looked, but because of the way he might have expected to be looked at by you afterwards. He wouldn’t have just given it a bite, he would have gobbled it and then many more if that made you happy. Perhaps it was Moony more than Remus, but he thrived in the excitement of pleasing you, even if it was just this once. 

Yes, Remus always wanted approval and respect from Lyall, he wanted to make him proud, but he had never wanted to make anyone as proud as he wanted to make you feel at that particular moment. He had never felt that craving to satisfy someone else’s desires. Except perhaps, for every time Sirius gave him a similar look.

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A/N: Some people were asking for a snow day chapter, and this felt about the perfect time for it. Love playing in the snow with the boys <3 Upon some requests, we have a DISCORD server now and you can all join in and chat about marauders and/or GC with other lovely people. If you wanna discuss a new oneshot or even the new chapters of GC this is your place to go. The announcement for it is here and I'll leave links to it on a reblog of this post ad in the comments.

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[iicarused]

oh! it's so cool that other people are also using the pink! mine was the one for asmo, cause well, I'm in love with asmodeus.

anyway, my brain is doing a thing. This isn't a request, just thoughts. I feel like Alastor would be really into a sweet and innocent s/o. someone who it doesn't at all make sense for them to be in hell at first glance, but then you get to know them, and they're actually vicious.

just the idea of him going to the hotel with this sweet little thing next to him. wide-eyes and a genuinely kind, toothy grin. Charlie and Vaggie absolutely cannot understand why you're with Alastor, but it's fine. You'll be easily redeemed after all.

Husk, on the other hand, acts differently because he's met you. he knows you. unfortunately.

And we get to the mimzy episode, where she brings these loansharks to the hotel's door. Alastor, having been gone so long, does his thing and tears them to shreds. Which, expected.

But then Charlie notices you, already in front of the hotel, absolutely wild. Everything about you is just sharper.

the little fight ends, you're covered head-to-toe in sinner-red blood. And that happy little grin is back on you're face as your at Alastor's side, dismissing little mimzy from the hotel grounds.

oop- alright. that was long. sorry, I was bored :D

- 🍰 anon

i love ozzie!! such a great character especially in later episodes(,: i adore him!! i’m honestly excited to write him up when i got your request

no because i’ve been thinking about this!! you literally just read my brain rot for the passed WEEK because i love the idea of that

in no way shape or form are you considered an overlord. just a singer at ozzie’s from time to time, (imagine working under his name ong) with alastor coming by so often to just hear you!! you’re a sweet face and kind smile, everyone cannot fathom how you ended up in hell.

alastor brought you to the hotel as entertainment for future “guests” and to show sinners that someone like you wants to join a hotel like that. it certainly brought interest and people talk about the hotel more often.

but everyone in the hotel does not understand why you’re even dating alastor, out of all people! hell, husk seems to be a better option considering the late night conversations shared. while he isn’t fond of you, you always brought a nice conversation to his counter.

the day everything clicked is when mimzy showed up. you don’t have a demonic form like alastor, but you do know how to shoot a gun. imagine coming into the hotel with your hands over alastors arm, apologizing for getting blood on him but he’s like “we’ll get you cleaned up, sweetheart.” and you just look at angel dust before offering a wave.

husk is like “yeah, they’re like that as a couple. you don’t even want to know how many souls are chained to her hand” implying that you do have demons selling their souls to you — husk just won’t say why

[mazeinthemiroh]

inspired by the dwaekki gym skz code episode ;-; can i request a skz reaction to their crush complimenting their muscles/how much they’ve been working out?? i want them so bad :(

stray kids reactions to their crush complimenting their muscles

genre: general, romance, slight crack, suggestive?

warnings: none

please like and reblog if you enjoy! feel free to request anything <3

bangchan

he's a very humble boy and denies any compliments you give him. "it's nothing really" he would say as he accidentally flexes his arm gosh i can't stand him. he gets all shy about it because he doesn't really know how to accept compliments, but boy does it feel good to receive them regardless. his confidence seems to grow after he knows you are impressed with his muscles.

lee know

minho is quite confident in his body anyway; he knows he's in good shape and likes the way his body looks AS HE SHOULD. but because you're his crush, there is a newness to the way he feels about his body after you compliment his muscles. he would feel proud of the progress he has made enough for you to notice. he would give you a cute little wink and a small thank you.

changbin

this man is on cloud nine when you start complimenting his muscles. it makes him incredibly happy that you're impressed with his physique because he works so hard on his body. i guess working out every day has paid off! he will definitely invite you to join him at the gym so you guys can spend more time together, although you might be a bit distracted...

hyunjin

he's so caught off guard when you compliment his muscles. genuinely has no idea how to react because how do you react when your crush gushes over your muscles???? he's lowkey awkward about it but highkey flattered. gives you his crescent moon eyes and laughs to brush off the overwhelming feeling of joy you've just given him <3

han

he will totally show his arm muscles off for you. if he's wearing one of those sleeveless gym tops and his arms are already showing, he will pull the top back even more for you to have a look. hey, there's nothing wrong with being confident! he will grin at you and thank you for the compliment. even though he's acting like a show-off he's got full butterflies in his stomach.

felix

"hey, felix. you been working out recently?" he would literally die if you asked him that because he would not expect anyone to notice the muscles in his arms grow, let alone you notice. he laughs and gets doesn't know what to say, but nods to your question. his heart is warmed by your observance and he can't help but want to try harder to impress you.

seungmin

when seungmin gets into working out, he does it begrudgingly. he just hopes more than anything else that it will actually make some sort of a difference to his health and body. with your compliments basically telling him that, yes, his efforts have paid off and you can definitely see a difference, he has a new-found confidence in himself. he loves you even more for noticing.

jeongin

he would be HONOURED of such a compliment. he can feel his ears heat up at you noticing how much he's been working out recently. his mind goes haywire after this. does this mean you think of him often? does this mean you look at his body often enough for you to notice a change in muscle? he would grin to himself at the thought, hoping that his assumptions be true. they must be true!

[meowufff]

This is my first actual post on Tumblr ever so pls bear with me. Also, English is not my first language so pls excuse any mistakes I make :)

So, this whole thing here started just as a joke bc I was curious if anyone else was feeling constantly tired all day no matter how long I sleep. But it all somehow escalated a bit and I may have started hyperfixating on it so well, now it actually became a little survey.

I also wanted to mention that I only asked the artist in my little Tumblr bubble, which is mostly tmnt content, so my results are mostly referring to tmnt artists.

In total, I asked 143 people if they could remember the last time they woke up and just felt actually rested for more than half of the day.

I probably could have been more specific with my question but again, I did not actually planned to let it become so big. Personally, for me being rested means, having a clear head, no headache or foggy mind without consuming any caffeine.

So out of 143 people, 100 answered me and I tried my best to sort all of the answers after the criteria “good-sleep-schedule” and “bad-sleep-schedule” and also noted when exactly they last felt actually rested into either the last days, weeks, months, years or “???” when they couldn’t remember or didn’t mention anything specific.

And let’s just say… it does not really look good. Out of 100 people, only 18 have an actual good sleep schedule. Out of these 18 people, 13 felt really rested in the last days, 2 in the last weeks, only one person in the last months and 2 in the last years.

Out of the 82 of people who have a bad sleep schedule, 10% lastly felt rested in the last days, 11% in the last weeks, 11% in the last months, 30% in the last years, and 38% couldn’t remember or didn’t specify it.

While reading all your answers I came to realize being sleep deprived is not just bc any of them thought “Oh it would be really neat to stay up till 4 am!” or smth like that.

A lot of the artists who answered me mentioned that they have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep due to stuff like insomnia, chronic pain, other issues, or children (yeah, ok, there was just one who had a child but still).

While analyzing I mostly referred the situations to my own experience with going to sleep or rather not going to sleep...

I usually don’t have problems falling asleep but trouble actually putting my stuff away and going to bed bc I don’t want to end the day or just don’t want to go to sleep (don’t ask why, I have no idea why I am like this). While having these “episodes” I often doodle smth, binge reading some fanfics, or watch whatever I can find on the internet until I’m just falling asleep or can convince myself that it is 3 am and I really should go to bed now.

So, my personal theory about why sleep deprivation is so common among Tumblr artists is not bc they do art all night. My theory is that a lot of people who have trouble falling asleep due to insomnia, pain, or other issues are filling the time until they hopefully fall asleep with their art, doodles, writings, or whatever their creative minds can bring up, to help the time pass.

In total that would mean that not all artists are sleep deprived but more that a lot of people who have trouble falling asleep do a lot of art or creative stuff in general.

Something I could also imagine is, that if they start doing art while waiting for sleep, they start to concentrate a lot on creating more and start procrastinating sleep even if they actually get tired bc they wanna do art and fuck up their non-existing sleep schedule even more but that could also just be me projecting here.

I know that is probably no kind of big revelation but for me it was kind of surprising to see how many people here are as sleep deprived as me and due to what reasons.

I’m not going to preach to any of you to get that problem solved or smth, I have no right to tell you what to do and would be a major hypocrite so instead I really which everyone to get some kind of good sleep schedule one day and the joy of waking up and feeling completely rested at least thrice per week.

I absolutely love all your art and thank you a thousand times for helping me with this spontaneous survey!

I would love to hear your opinions on my theory and conclusion so pls don’t be shy and feel free to point out any mistakes I may have made or tell me your own theories :D

Also, if my question is still sitting in your inbox, feel free to answer! I’m gonna keep ma big ass excel table so I can edit all the results anytime. And maybe, one day, I'm gonna continue this survey and go into more detail but for now I need to leave it like this.

Ok, that's all I got

BYE!

Thanks to all participants

@abbeyofcyn @angelpuns @beannary @bulbabutt @camilieroart @cementgeek @cheesyescapade @cokowiii @easterartist @frosteaart @gemini-forest @happyfoxx-art @heckitall @hellishgayliath @holy-sweetsour-milk @icepopcider @idiot-mushroom @iscreamkitty @kovalitics @laseralligator @lieutenantbiscute @matchstique @mightyanxiety @miiukkaa @mr-doodles @pezhead @probably-not-a-rutabaga @pumpkster @sad-leon @sassatello @sewercrocodileart @sheep-turtles-and-pizza @signanothername @spectra-bear @stephuart @tangledinink @tapakah0 @tasenwiththerobots @tblsomedoodles @thegunnsara @triona-tribblescore @turrondeluxe @valen-timez @vangh17a @wraenata @zinovi768 @debb987 @dianagj-art @goatedgreen @indieyuugure

[zoe-oneesama]

On a serious note, why do you not like Derision? I mean, I can guess why, but I’m genuinely curious to hear your thoughts (if you want to).

What have they done to my boy?!

I guess we'll start with the whole "trauma" thing since that's how the episode starts - with Marinette going on a date with Adrien at the pool but constantly getting heart palpitations at the very idea of it. And not good lovey-dovey crush ones like Sabine thinks. The Actual Panic Attack kind.

This just feels unnecessary AND too late. Unnecessary because there are plenty of pre-established reasons why Marinette could be hesitant to go all in with Adrien (Being Ladybug, the 354th other times going for Adrien has failed or left her humiliated, Being Ladybug). So I don't know why they invented a trauma for her in the final hour and didn't think it was worth talking about before now?

They really came up with this whole scheme to explain why Marinette does Marinette things, like learning Adrien's schedule, planning out everything before she tries to make a move, needing to know everything about him, as if the show hasn't been mocking her for these exact traits and allowing them to blow up in her face over and over again. But NOW it's due to her TRAUMA. So...retroactively when her friends laughed at her or slapped their foreheads in frustration or the show framed her failures as a joke...we know it's actually from a tragic place and can't laugh anymore.

I mean, I was never laughing, but you get what I mean. They framed it like it was part of the comedy and now they're pulling the rug out from under themselves. How are you supposed to laugh when Adrien brings Marinette constipation medicine, or when her pictures of him are blasted all over Paris Television, or the *ugh* Statue Scene plays out and now you know that this is just adding to her pre-existing trauma? They have shot the show's rewatch value.

I never thought Marinette needed a "reason" act the way she was because those were always just kinda The Things Teenage Girls Do when they have a crush. I've admitted in the past to learning my crush's class schedule just to orchestrate running into each other in the hallways more often, and if their crush had public interviews and magazine pictures, I'm pretty sure most kids would also cut out their pictures to keep and would read and remember the interviews. I never really saw her behavior as that weird for a girl her age with a crush and recognize some cartoon exaggeration.

...Stealing his phone was a little weird, though, I'll give them that though Alya is the one who suggested it first...

SO, we enter a long flashback to One Year Ago (with Marinette now on her third Almost-Akumatization, good lord) and learn what life was like for Marinette pre-Origins, and oh boy. It's hell. She's making up illnesses to avoid school, avoiding all contact with anyone in the courtyard, having cockroaches put in her locker, having the Principal catch her "late" for class (after she had to clean herself up from a water prank), gets yelled at by the teacher for being late, sits in paint, mocked in class and then yelled at again by the teacher for pointing out the person mocking her probably planted it, and gets Saturday detention. All in one day. And when anyone tries to talk to her or even glares at the person responsible, they get threatened too.

The main reason this is hell is because Marinette is being let down by every single adult in her life. Sabine just laughs and tells Marinette that she only has a few weeks left with Chloe and it's not like she'll be in the same class as her next year.🙃 Well, why don't you make SURE she doesn't?! Maybe this is just an American vs French school thing, but where I come from, it's totally within your rights to request that your child not be put in the same class as someone else, they could at least put in a throw away line about her parents TRYING to move her, but Chloe's not allowing it JUST to keep Marinette close to her. And maybe take this a little more seriously, Sabine- your daughter is faking illness to avoid One. Girl. That should be concerning, not "lol my daughter is so silly for trying to get out of class."

Damocles finds Marinette and yells at her for being "constantly late" and praising the "anonymous notes" (signed by Chloe -_-) for always alerting him when she's behind, and then later gives her Saturday detention for...someone clearly planting paint on her desk chair? He sees a victim of bullying and punishes her for it. At the end of the episode he even suspends Socqueline for something that happened outside of school, yet in "Jubilation" she's pumping him up as The Best Principal?! Does this show thinks we're stupid or something?!

Mendeleiev also yells at Marinette for being late. She allows Chloe to make fun of Marinette for looking depressed when she comes in and allows Chloe to mock Marinette for sitting in paint, but when Marinette doesn't even stand up for herself but just accuses Chloe of putting the paint there, THEN Mendeleiev has something to say, and it's to Marinette? For "groundlessly" accusing the only person in the room laughing at Marinette, the one who was just making fun of her, the one who kept her eyes on Marinette so she could watch her sit in the paint?

Marinette tells Socqueline that all the adults are scared of Chloe, but that's not what I saw. Sure, at the end of the episode Damocles is afraid when Chloe pulls a "Lady Wifi" to force him to punish Socqueline for smashing Sabrina's phone, but the sequence of events played out more like the adults participating in the bullying. It wasn't like Damocles was sympathetic to Marinette and then Chloe cleared her throat, so he straightened up nervously and started berating Marinette. It wasn't like Marinette accused Chloe and then Chloe glared at Mendeleiev, forcing her to finally intervene. All the adults see what's going on and are either completely oblivious or don't care.

Also, Chloe totally unprompted says this:

GET A LIFE, what is your PROBLEM?! Like, why have a flashback episode and not have it explain what Chloe's fixation on Marinette even is?! It doesn't have to be big or anything! Like, have Marinette trip and spill something on Chloe in art class! Just do something!

And like, I totally get that irl bullies just choose their targets for no real reason and this is just another example of that, but to this level?! Just...get a hobby!

And then there's the big thing they did in this stupid episode. The unforgivable. The reprehensible.

This fucking guy.

It's been so long since we've seen Bully Kim that I was pretty sure he was left behind entirely on the draft floor. Sure, Kim is still capable of being insensitive or not thinking long-term, but he was a good kid. He roots for his friends and wants everyone to have a good time.

Hell, I could even buy that Kim was dumb enough to believe Chloe when she claims what he did was a funny practical joke that they'd all laugh about later...until Socqueline came up and yelled at him that he should be ashamed of himself.

And Ondine yelled at him in the present that he should be ashamed of himself.

And it's a year later and he should have realized by now that he should be ashamed of himself.

Kim is dumb, that's just a fact, but the way he doubles down and is so sure of himself that NO it's everyone ELSE who has a problem because they can't take a JOKE? Like...why?! Why did they co-sign on this character assassination?!

Just make him become akumatized because he's A S H A M E D of what he did now that he's finally sitting down and thinking about it a year later! He can keep the same look and motif, just have Monarch stroke the part of him that doesn't want him to be the jerk, the old Kim! It's totally normal, especially for a kid, to want to believe that they're not the bad guy even with all the evidence pointing to it, so I could even see the akuma being exactly the same.

But naur, it's KIM who talks like a right-wing podcast douche bag, complaining that you can't just speak your mind these days and everyone needs to get a sense of humor, they just don't GET it man, this is just how he IS brah, take it or leave it! His akuma's even named "Dark Humor", like edgy losers on reddit who make racist/sexist jokes and then get mad when he's downvoted and boo'd out of a forum. God, we just CAN'T TAKE A JOKE I guess.

I'm glad this is resolved by Ladybug gluing a toilet to his head.

I just...I feel like this could've worked in Season 1, or Season 2. Like...put it before Dark Cupid or before Syren or something. That way, Kim being a total douche is the starting point of his character arc, not the Season 5 Post-Hero Run point, ugh.

It'd also make this stupid line make more sense:

I'm sorry, the girl who got you akumatized after she humiliated you in nearly the same way you humiliated Marinette? I guess that was "just a prank bro" too, right?

Establish Marinette's problems with romance early, so she can overcome them or at least give them the proper context. It'd at least make the show look better if they hadn't made fun of her for 4 Seasons only to drop this bombshell on us at the end. You know...the thing that they just did.

This episode just isn't fun. I hated "Illusion" because all you get to see is the bad guys winning and outsmarting the heroes, but "Derision" is a marathon of seeing the absolute misery Marinette was put through, just to jump forward to the present to destroy a character that I really liked.

Would a kid even like this episode?

[delululand]

hii could you please do enha love languages? ty! <33

hii! this question has been in my inbox for a couple of months so thanks so much to this anon for the question and patience, i finally finished it!!

heeseung world of affirmation & physical touch

perhaps this is just my subjective perception, but i wouldn’t say that heeseung has a very noticeable love language that would immediately catch the eye, however, the words of affirmation seem to me to be his most noticeable love language. he really looks so happy and embarrassed when members or fans compliment him on his gaming skills or ask him to sing and admire his vocals. and this seems to be not only the language in which he chooses to receive love, but also the way he gives love. he always tries to praise and support the members and i’m sure that he would really be for his partner that person who constantly reminds you of what a wonderful person you are, really appreciates any of your skills and abilities, expressing his proud of you, never criticizes your ideas and always ready to listen and support. and physical touching seems a little less obvious, but he often casually touches participants by patting them on the back/head, patting them on the shoulder, and many other manifestations

jay act of service & physical touch (actually it’s seems like he has all 5, but i choose the biggest one)

the most visible language of love that immediately catches the eye is acts of service. he's literally the guy you don't need your brain with at all. you don't have to worry about ANYTHING. if you are going to go somewhere or even go on a trip, he will collect all the information, take into account everything you like to eat, drink, what you would like to see and experience, and based on this he will create an ideal route, all you need is your presence. if you are together, he will do absolutely everything for you, such as prepare food for you, set the table himself, serve you whatever you want, serve utensils, complete all-inclusive, i swear this guy is one step away from starting to feed you himself. cooking, cleaning, fixing anything, he is a wonderful housekeeper and knowing that you are tired, he will gladly free you from any household chores by doing everything himself. in any everyday matters, he is literally the most reliable person i have ever seen. at the same time, i cannot remain silent about how gentle he is in physical touch, he always treats members with such tenderness and is very responsive (?) to the desire to touch him from others. idk It sounds a little strange, but for example, i’m talking about that video where Jongwon was nervous and started to grab jay’s finger and jay immediately took his hand and allowed him to pull his arms, fingers, poke his knees and whatever he wanted as much as he wanted. there's nothing special with it, but it makes my heart melt. and as i mentioned above, he literally has all 5 love languages. we see how much he tries to spend time with the members the way they love, going bowling with niki, shopping with sunghoon and jungwon, playing with heeseung and so on, he really values ​​quality time together. and he also often mentions the importance of spending time together, as he talked about how nice it would be to go on a trip with his family or how he imagined relaxing by the fireplace with a jungwon during the winter holidays. we see him constantly paying for the maknae, taking his mom shopping and always trying to buy her whatever she wants (+ quality time). and speaking about words of affirmations, i think it’s important to emphasize not only that he’s really very responsive and loves not only to talk but also to listen, which is very important, but also how attentively he treats his words. for example, when they were cooking something in one of the episodes of en o’clock, he wanted to joke that they weren’t doing very well and jungwon replied that he had crooked hands, jay thought it was because of his joke and was afraid that jungwon wouldn’t accept this is at his own expense, so he immediately said that his hands are crooked and jungwon does a good job. how much more confirmation do we need that he is literally husband material? (+some additional)

jake physical touch & world of affirmation

okay i think physical touch is more obvious. we see how he loves to hug members from behind, stroke their backs, smell their hair, and even inanimate things he always treats with some tenderness (like how he strokes pillows and all that). but he also has another side that is not talked about as often. he is really very good with words of affirmations!! members often mention that jake is the person they are most likely to want to talk to when they are feeling down or worried about something. they mentioned many times that he listens very well and knows how to choose the right words of support, and can not only provide moral support, but also gives good advice. and the way he supports the participants is always so touching and funny at the same time, like when jay teased sunoo that he wasn’t funny, jake immediately told sunoo “don’t listen, tell him let’s see how funny you are”. he is the person who will not only console and support you in private, but will not remain silent in public

sunghoon quality time & gift giving

i would like to say that his love language is teasing but i really feel like this guy is often underestimated behind the mask of a cold, frightening, unemotional person and he may seem like that, but only at first glance. he cares so much about his members and it often looks like his love language adapts to the other person. jake loves physical touch and sunghoon often touches him by patting him on the back, high-fiving him, or patting him on the back. jay likes to talk a lot and sunghoon listens to him (even if he teases him after...). heeseung loves to hear praise and sunghoon tries to praise him in all sorts of games and stuff. sunoo loves to giggle and sunghoon makes him laugh. engine want to speak to him in different languages ​​and he tries every time even if he’s embarrassed by his english pronunciation. he always tries to take care of the people around him even if he does it unnoticed. and if we talk about his personal love language i would rather highlight quality time and gift giving, we all see that he is not very good at expressing feelings with words, so he would try to make up for it with actions. like just being together, even if you are not talking right now and everyone is busy with their own affairs, he would feel peace from the very fact that you are doing this next to each other in the same room. and speaking of giving gifts, he just constantly sponsors you with anything, but unlike jay, it wouldn’t be something expensive or something like that, just random things that he gives you with the words “nothing special, just went home, saw it and decided to buy”. i really hope that one day more people will see how much feeling and warmth really lies behind his cool exterior

[luvadosar]

Hey, I saw that your requests are open, I wanted to ask for headcannons of the hazbin crew to maybe react to the personification of death (like maybe the wolf from Puss in boots or the Kindred from league of legends) visiting the hotel, and Angel and Husk are having bad flashbacks of their death but slowly realize that death!reader is really friendly and Al is like "we already know eachother", and they are really good acquainted, bc Al being a killer he and Death!reader met quite often. Something like that, I hope I'm not bothering and hope this is possible...

Stay healthy and please don't overwork yourself.

-Anonymous 💐

Thank you! This is a really peculiar and unique ask. I must say 💐 Anon, I love how your mind works 🤞🏽!

Warnings: Mention of drug$, alcohol, & panic attacks

Words: 458

Hazbin Hotel x Death!Reader Headcannons

- Death!Reader became intrigued by the idea of a “redemption”

- I imagine Death!Reader is just a hell version of Azrael…a powerful being in charge of punishing those who belong in hell.

- The employees of The Hazbin Hotel is a little skeptical towards Reader, staying far away from them as possible. Like Vaggie, she does not want charlie getting all close with Reader.

- Except for Alastor. I feel like theyve met in the real world before, because Alastor has this thing with black magic or something like that. It’s complicated.

- The others are surprised that Alastor literally knows the embodiment of death? But somewhat not surprised at the same time lmao.

- This further worsens the suspicions that reader is a bad entity, because why in the world does reader know *The Radio Demon?*

- But they do prove themselves to be rather useful in a way. Helping nifty clean the rooms, lending a hand to Husker in cleaning the cups. Just overall being helpful.

- Husker became used to Death!Reader helping him tend the bar, but he’s a little confused on why such a powerful being such as yourself is helping him?

- Same for Angel to the point where he’s like ‘Are ya’ really some sorta’ grim reaper?’ all the damn time.

- As for panic attacks and memories from their final moments:

- Angel would sometimes avoid using drug$ because he feels the intense pain of overdosing and then out of nowhere abuses the fuck outta them like a huge relapsing episode. After months of you working at the hazbin hotel, Angel has grown to trust you, but at first he was really avoiding you. The thought and embarrassment of him breaking down in front of you made him sob even more.

- You were gentle with him, holding him close and letting him cry on your shoulder.

- As for Husker, we do not know the reason why he died but I headcannon he died from a stroke via a lethal dose of alcohol intake.

- When he was drunk outta his mind he was spewing nonsense about how he died, how he’s fucking scared he’ll never get out of the never ending cycle of drinking til’ he goes numb.

- Reader takes care of his babbling self all night, from helping him to his room to completing his chores.

- If reader ever told him what they had to do, he would be embarrassed out of his mind.

💐, You are just the sweetest Anon! I hope I didn’t disappoint and I hope to hear from you soon 🫶🏽

[drrav3nb]

Carmy reacting to Claire's message/giving her a fake number vs Carmy reacting to Sydney's message and her having his real number

There's so much I could say about this. The first thing I want to point out is that Carmy gives Claire a fake number, not by accident but knowingly. She must've known this as throughout the season she asks him why and even asks him if it's even okay that she has his number.

Meanwhile, with Sydney it's established in season one that they already exchanged numbers as they're texting each other in the final episode. Now, they do work together and colleagues, especially business partners are going to need each other's contact information in order to discuss things.

But Carmy doesn't seem bothered by Sydney having his number, in fact in E5, he asks Sydney why she didn't call him about a problem that happened at the restaurant. And you can see a chain of text messages in E3 where they jest about Fak not having the proper tools. So then that begs the question as to why Claire having his number was such a big deal and why Carmy was so against it?

Like I mentioned before Claire brings this up a lot and Carmy either ignores it or answers her by not really addressing the question. He obviously didn't want her to have his number, as he's very surprised when she ends up calling his real number. This means that if she didn't chase his real number down by asking Fak, then they would've never reconnected or had a relationship this season, something Carmy might not have wanted. And honestly, it really did feel like Claire pushed the idea of a relationship on to him.

Then there's the differences in Carmy's reactions to Sydney's messages vs Claire's. I was genuinely surprised that when Claire gave him encouragement for passing the fire suppression test he looked at it like it was nothing, not a smile, not even a reply, just a blank expression. This is his 'girlfriend' and her encouragement means very little to him apparently.

Then there's Sydney. Though we didn't get to see them text often this season, or his reaction to her messages. Last season, we saw him smiling like a teenager when she told him to shove his idea up his ass. Now, the fact that Carmy texted Sydney before opening Mikey's letter shows just how important their relationship is to him, he couldn't fathom reading what his brother wrote him without first mending their own broken partnership. In a way, them mending their relationship was the encouragement he needed to open the letter and HE is the one that reaches out for that, HE is the one that texts Sydney first.

So yeah, that's all I have really. I noticed it and I thought I'd share my thoughts on here. I'd love to hear what everyone else thinks!

[ladyluscinia]

There are obviously some people not taking Edward's S2 arc very well. Or - more often - twisting it to fit into absolutely wild takes and then pretending they are taking it well while everyone else is wrong and problematic for beliefs like "S2 clearly establishes Edward was harming his entire crew in his depressive spiral and he's still in the process of making that right." One of them wrote this section from a post that I found absolutely fascinating (if also wildly off base) in the way it buys into Edward's clearly faulty POV without hesitation...

...and I really want to talk about Knife Parade now.

Because I don't think that's what's going on here, obviously.

Edward has internalized some very fucked up shit in his piracy career, a lot of it probably going back to his time with Calico Jack (and others? Fang was with him for 20 years, and Izzy "all his fucking life"?) under Captain Hornigold, aka the man who killed Felix the cabin boy by feeding him a live crab. Edward didn't really emulate Hornigold until Kraken Era because he hated the man, but we can see from how he and Jack act in 1x08 that he still developed a very skewed understanding of violence and social bonding.

And, as unpleasant as it makes him, the Edward of the past was absolutely the kind of guy to "fuck with his crew like that for shits and giggles."

Like - hold the defensiveness because this is not a one-to-one comparison - Edward describing chasing Fang around screaming and terrified as just a fun game sounds like how someone's childhood bullies would describe tormenting them. Bullies often feel like they were just joking around or just playing a game, even when the other party was clearly not having a good time. The show even invokes this with Nigel and Stede in the first episode.

And the reason bullies typically feel this way is because the social environment that they are in treats their behavior as acceptable (or fails to treat it as unacceptable because adults/other children are consciously or subconsciously designating the bullied kids as fair targets).

Edward thought chasing after Fang with a knife and shouting "come here you little fucker" was okay because he grew into adulthood in a culture where that and way worse was normal. Maybe he even got the idea watching an adult do it to someone (for likely non-playful reasons). He was probably older and/or higher ranked than Fang, in a culture where rank entirely out-ranks obligations to give a shit about someone else's feelings.

Just think about how he describes being Captain:

"Oh fuck no. Apologizing? Nah. Didn't apologize for jack shit."

The idea Edward didn't want to hurt Fang is not even on the table, because he didn't pay enough mind to the people below him to register hurting them was even a thing his "fun" actions could do. He's entirely rewritten the events in his mind.

And, again, this is a funny joke and a very understandable mindset to develop that literally no one has ever pushed back on until this moment, so good for Edward thinking back and going "oh fuck I guess Knife Parade was less Yardies and more Torturing Felix" and then immediately acknowledging that Fang has justifiable basis for beef with him. That's pretty big of him. Growth.

But "didn't care about Fang being terrified to the point he legit forgot because peer-accepted behavior" is still not quite the same thing as "genuinely didn't realize Fang was terrified" lol