#you really capture that sweet and endearing energy i always picture her with

[ddarker-dreams]

i drew a bigger cluster of sr stuff

another interpretation of passione’s prima-ballerina !!

enjoy :o)

[jinkicake]

You Call Him Daddy?!

You accidentally call them daddy in front of the team.

Akaashi Keiji x Reader

Kozume Kenma x Reader

Anon, this might be a tad bit ooc in some parts.... Sometimes I picture the different ways these characters act when they aren’t seen and I like to write it like that LOL You know experiment and shit,,, Also I feel like I’m the only bitch who likes Nohebi HAHAH 

SMUT // NSFW 

WC- 2,213

~~~

Akaashi Keiji

First let me say, wow Akaashi is so pretty and done.

I feel like if you accidentally call him daddy in front of the team it’ll be such a big mess 

All the third years, except Bokuto, are going to be silent, while their captain is like ‘yo toss for me’ like the whole ‘daddy’ thing would go over Bokuto’s head. Sweet Bokuto does not kink shame, okay. The managers would be squealing and gasping in shock, sending you suggestive looks before dragging you off somewhere to beg for details HAHAH

“Keiji! I’m so happy to see you!” You exclaim softly before wrapping your arms around him, you’re at the representative playoffs and you finally get to see your boyfriend once again after the few weeks of separation

Despite living relatively close to one another, you and Akaashi were both very busy preparing for these games. While he was practicing with his own team, you were managing for yours (which always proved to be a challenge, even now)

“Oh, how is your girlfriend doing by the way?” Kuroo sneers behind you and you glance to see your own captain squaring up with the pesky cat 

“Ah, excuse me Keiji,” You pout and apologize, Akaashi gently smiles and kisses the pout off your lips before unwrapping his arms to let you go control your petty team

“Daishou!” You scold and wrap your hand around said boy’s bicep, pulling him behind you to get in front of Kuroo, you give the Nekoma captain a fake smile before turning around to face your friend “I’m trying to see my boyfriend and I can’t do that if you keep starting shit!” You whisper-yell and Daishou rolls his eyes

“I didn’t start anything-“ He lies and you narrow your eyes up at him

“Daishou stay away from them and they’ll stay away from you, okay? Save your energy for the court.” You pat his chest and gently let go of the grip you have on him,

You’re about halfway back to Akaashi before you hear the damn snake speak up again

“I broke up with her!” Your eye twitches because you know damn well Yamaka broke up with him, you send Akaashi another sympathetic smile before walking back to your teammate

The grip you have on Daishou’s collar makes him choke and you practically toss him into the wall and get in-between him and Kuroo once more, glaring at anyone who looks at you

“I am trying to talk to my boyfriend who I have not seen in a few weeks so if you both could kindly stay away from each other I would appreciate it,” You smile sweetly and Daishou scrunches his nose before opening his mouth once more 

“See you in the finals” He sneers and you quite literally pick him up by his hair

“Daishou if you don’t shut the fuck up, you’re not going to see the finals. All I want is to have a peaceful day and then go home and give my boyfriend that gawk gawk 3000 and call him daddy so if you could please help me just this once and be quiet.” You growl and drag him away from Nekoma, smiling softly at Akaashi when you pass him, you bring your captain all the way to where your team is in the bleachers and sit him down on the bench “okay, now then-“

“You call him daddy?” Daishou snickers and you narrow your eyes at him

“What the hell are you talking about?” You ask and Daishou laughs so loudly it sounds like a cackle 

“You said, and I quote,” Daishou clears his throat before speaking again, purposely altering the pitch of his tone to reference yours “give my boyfriend that gawk gawk 3000 and call him daddy so if you could please-“ 

Daishou shuts up when you sit down next to him dejectedly

“I said that in front of you and the entire Nekoma team and Fukuroudani?” You whisper and the captain throws his arm around your shoulder

“Don’t worry (Y/N)! At least you didn’t say it in front of our team…. Oh wait,” He snickers and you awkwardly face the rest of your players and coach

“Ah, Daishou, I’m going to quit” You cry and he immediately tries to calm you down 

“Wait, (Y/N), no you can’t!” 

“So, you like being called daddy?” Kuroo asks after he bumps into Akaashi. Your boyfriend can only sigh in shame and shake his head, “I-is that a yes or a no?”

“That’s a shut the fuck up Kuroo” Kenma bites and defends his other friend, trying to drag the middle blocker away from the setter

Konohana, Komi, and Sarukui simply blink before walking away, dragging Bokuto along with them so their setter can face the shame in peace 

“Oh, Keiji!” You squeak and tightly grip the bed sheets on either side of you, you want to so badly grip his silky hair but, Akaashi has rules. The dark-haired boy flicks your thigh as a warning and you can’t help the pout that appears on your face. Akaashi not allowing you to touch him is a big punishment and, needless to say, you aren’t happy about it. Akaashi continues to stare up at you from in-between your thighs, his lips have captured your clit as he sucks dutifully on the swollen bud. 

“Daddy,” The pitiful whimper slips past your lips and Akaashi smirks against your soaking cunt, his tongue flicks your clit. His warm mouth is welcoming as he continues the harassment on the delicate pearl. “I-I love you.” The endearing phrase flies past your lips and Akaashi feels his resolve soften, he can never stay harsh with you for long. 

Though, he will try.

Akaashi removes his mouth and slaps your clit with four fingers, watching as you squirm and cry at the impact. He can tell how badly you want to grip his hair and he mentally reminds himself to reward you for staying so still, well as still as you can be. He continues to tap the sensitive bundle of nerves, ranging from light taps to slaps that sound throughout the room. 

“Daddy, please,” You cry and Akaashi takes pity on you, he leans forward and licks soothing strips up against your clit. He wants to kiss the sting away because he truly cares too much about his baby and wants you to feel nothing but pleasure.

“Daddy loves you too sweet girl, I love you so much.” Akaashi coos as he kisses along your thigh, he glances up and sees you staring at him with a deep pout on your face. He just wants to kiss it off. “Don’t look at me like that.” He tries to scold but his words come out weak, your pitiful eyes play numbers on him that he will never understand. “Patience, you’ll get what you want, hold out for Daddy."

Kozume Kenma

I 99.9% believe that Kenma getting called daddy in front of the team is Kuroo’s fault ,,, LOL 

Like Kuroo knows shit and it accidentally slips and everyone is like … ‘kuroo wtf’ because nobody believes him much to Kenma’s relief HAHAH

It isn’t often that you can convince Kenma to stay after at a joint practice but when you do, you nearly regret it every time

“And then she wanted to call me daddy,” Kuroo gasps loudly like the gossiper he is and you have to refrain from rolling your eyes at the way Bokuto is hanging onto his every word “shit honestly though, it was pretty hot”

The one time…. One time you convince Kenma to stay after practice to spend time with his friends and these are the conversations you get 

“Oh, I totally believe you Kuroo” You click your tongue mockingly and the tall captain gently pushes the side of your head 

“It’s true, don’t be jealous you weren’t her (Y/N)” Kuroo throws back and you flick him off, internally smiling at the way Kenma pulls you closer to his chest and tightens his arms around your shoulders 

“Kuroo you’re literally the biggest nerd on the planet, you really expect me to believe you get pussy, much less get someone to call you daddy?” At your words Bokuto gasps and Akaashi covers the ace’s gaping mouth with his own hand

“Ask Kenma he was there!” Kuroo flicks your forehead and you turn around to your boyfriend with your hand already bunched up in his dyed hair 

“I was not there,” Kenma confirms and had it not been for his arms wrapped around your waist, you would have lunged at Kuroo

“I don’t know why it’s so hard to believe, it’s not like you don’t call Kenma ‘daddy’” Kuroo spills, stating it so simply like he’s talking about the weather. You start to mentally plan his death as Akaashi shakes his head and Bokuto begins laughs loudly

You know Kenma hates being put in the spotlight but you simply could not help yourself

“You’re telling me if you had this mf fucking you every night, you wouldn’t call him daddy?” You snap at Kuroo and Kenma tenses behind you before squeezing your hips so hard you nearly yelp, Kuroo leans back on his forearms and looks around proudly like what did I say? 

“Yeah, okay,” Bokuto wheezes and falls back on the gym floor 

“What?” You and Kuroo both snap and Bokuto laughs even harder, clutching his sides and trying to cover his loud voice with Akaashi’s jacket

“Those two virgins? Yeah right-AH” Bokuto points at you and Kenma before Akaashi shuts him up by covering his mouth once again

“How would you even know that Kuroo?” Akaashi asks while placing his other hand on Boktuo’s shoulder to keep him pinned to the floor 

“Best friends don’t overshare their sex lives?” Kuroo asks and Akaashi shakes his head quietly, Kuroo does not miss a beat with his follow-up response “Oh, I forgot you two do each other so there isn’t much to share” 

Now it’s your turn to gasp and Kenma tries to hide the audible hitch in your breath with his hand. The gym is now silent and you eagerly glance between Kuroo, Akaashi, and Bokuto while waiting for someone to confirm or deny the statement

“Come on Kuroo it was one time!” Bokuto finally gets out of Akaashi’s grasp and Kuroo gives him a pointed look, “Fine. Five times” Another moment of silence passes before “Okay, it has become a regularly occurring thing” 

“Wow,” You simply nod in amazement before sending Akaashi a proud thumbs-up, one that Kenma swats down quickly 

“So we all probably have daddy kinks…” You trail off and look around the gym suspiciously, taking in the small noticeable nods you receive while trying to subtly hide the shocked look on your face

“Well, wasn't this fun, we all learned something new about each other!” Kuroo claps amusedly and Kenma buries his head into your shoulder 

“Yeah, too much,” He mutters before nudging your nose with his ear “can we leave now?”

Of course, Kuroo happened to overhear that

“KENMA I HEARD THAT!” 

Kenma kneels behind you and he oozes disinterest as his eyes run all over your bent figure. The way he has you tied up has your face shoved into the mattress while your ass is high in the air. Kenma leans forward, hovering over you as he playfully snaps your blindfold between his fingers. 

“You’re so irritating,” He sighs and tugs on your hair roughly, forcing you to arch your back even more. It doesn’t matter how much shit he talks because you can still feel the hard heat digging into the back of your thighs. “you really wanted everyone to know your little secret.” 

Kenma trails one of his hands between your thighs, running his fingers along your slit and the gag in your mouth muffles your moans. 

“Kuroo acts like he knows everything we do behind closed doors but truthfully, he doesn’t even know the half of it.” Kenma softly rubs his palm against your ass, smoothing it over to the bottom of your spine. “Isn’t that right?” He asks and you can’t help the way you push your ass harder up against him. 

A harsh slap resonates around the room, the entire impact of it all makes your body lunge forward. Had it not been for the restraints, you would have bucked your head into the wooden headboard. Kenma quietly laughs before doing it again, letting his slim hand smack your ass once more. He watches with an amused expression at how your thighs have slightly spread for him so that he can see your drenched cunt perfectly.

“You’re enjoying this,” Kenma voices his thoughts and you nod your head, Kenma has to hold back from rolling his eyes and he leans over to release the gag from your mouth.

“Yes Daddy, I want more. Please,” You softly moan, your voice coming out hoarse due to the strain in your jaw and the dryness of your throat. Your boyfriend almost regrets taking the gag off your loudmouth. Regardless, he finds himself playing right into your game and the tightness in his pants increases tenfold. He does this all for you, Kenma lies to himself. It isn’t all entirely just for you.

“How many more do you want? How many more can you take from me?”

~ Taglist.

@yams046 @why-am-i-sad-and-sleepy @xhanjisungiex @xxashshs @chaosamu @angelkogane @augustdearly @kunimwuah  @lovellucy @osamuonigiri @pearzuko @darksxder

[yanderedbh-moved]

The Yanderes + Fluff Scenarios

The third installment of this little series, I guess I have now of the yanderes in typical fanfiction tropes. 

Smut

H/C

Connor

While it may be tricky for him to grasp the concept of personal hobbies (as in performing tasks with no real tangible pay off or goal in mind.) He experiences a very wholesome and heartwarming sense of pride from watching you doing what you love. In your element and feeling so free.

Connor experiencing the charming sense of alarm one typically feels when fostering a crush for another. Worrying if you secretly knew but weren’t telling him, would you lead him on, were you personally seeing someone else right now, etc.

Though it might seem small, Connor enjoys leaving the house every now and then to just get a pleasant walk in to see his home city while not on the clock. It’s a considerably understated freedom the android only learned to appreciate once he was granted the choice to do so himself.

Markus

It’s pretty commonly accepted at this point Markus loves reading, for so many reasons. For one thing, it reminds him of his home and of his father figure who possessed a vast array of different books of great diversity. As well as the pure pleasure of enjoying a little alone time away from the noise of the outside world.

In a relationship, Markus would be an excellent partner when it comes to empowerment! He would absolutely want to teach you different ways to defend yourself and would want to ensure you had the skills and know-how to keep yourself safe out there.

Also isn’t above using the fact he’s the leader of Jericho to his advantage. As in, if he knows you’re having issues with someone in your life, and it’s causing you to feel unsafe and on edge, he would ensure this person knew just who they were messing with, along with sending the message to back off.

Kara

Once the two of you finally manage to find a stable life for yourselves, and Alice Kara would finally receive the chance for fun, inconsequential domestic life, she never had the opportunity to live out before.

Kara really enjoys having a human partner far more than she ever expected to! For so many reasons, but a personal favorite of hers is keeping you company in the final few moments before you fall asleep. It’s just the two of you, and you’re mind’s practically shut off, and she really enjoys the way you so completely relax into her.

Alice is shown to enjoy drawing and art, so you can imagine once she actually lives in a comfortable, stable environment, she feels much more comfortable expressing herself. Kara loves to keep her child’s drawing as keepsakes and is something of a hoarder when it comes to pictures Alice draws of the three of you.

Hank

It’s tricky at the start, but you do your best to get Hank out of the house more. To try and urge him to move on, to fall back in love with life, promising him you’ll be by his side every step of the way.

Furthermore, when you actually do get around to moving in with Hank, there’s a kind of an inexpressible breath of life he feels. Like for the first time in so long, this place actually feels like a home again, and not just where he lives.

Mushy, ultra-sweet romance isn’t precisely Hank’s style, but he would still find other little ways to make you feel loved. He’s more the one to use endearing sarcasm or an affectionate nickname to express his real emotions.

Luther

Imagine having to try and lift yourself all the way up to your tiptoes to get a kiss on the cheek from him. While he could always just lean down and help you out, he thinks it’s kind of cute to watch you try so hard.

He likes to be in bed with you, to make you feel close and held while you’re getting your rest. While physically, he may not need the sleep, keeping you close, wishing this moment won’t ever end is profoundly therapeutic for Luther.

North

Small acts of kindness and taking care of North in little ways may not feel like much to the outside observer, however, considering she’s never received treatment so gentle and sweet from anyone else in her life? Yeah, it’s more than enough to leave her feeling beyond blessed.

Imagine an intense moment with North. The two of you are working in a group, and the stress of it all is rising. She’s doing her best to keep composure, but she slips up and accidentally refers to you by a silly nickname she gave you, and you can’t help but crack up a little bit, despite the situation.

When it comes to dating North, it’s essential to have a bit of a thick skin. When she first begins to develop feelings for you, she might feel overwhelmed and confused by her own emotions and say something hurtful to try and keep you at a distance. Later on though, when she feels more comfortable opening up to you, North would definitely apologize for this and regret this mistake severely.

Simon

So much long-distance pining! About a fifty-fifty split between Simon being an absolute mess of emotions, along with him wondering how in the world he’s ever going to muster up the courage to confess to you.

It’s pretty critical not to rush him or anything here. At the best of times, Simon can be a bit stressed out, and maybe a little high strung. Even though he genuinely cares about you, it’s important to respect his space and understand that he needs a little patience on your end.

(This is debatable, but I think it adds up.) Simon is the android with maybe the most extended history with humans, and because of that has gathered a great deal of information via observation. He knows how to treat humans gently and is a much better kisser than he would let on.

Josh

In his darker, more pessimistic moments, there are times when Josh wonders if there’s really any hope for a future in which humans and androids live together in peace. In times like this, he really needs you as the little positive voice he can relly on to assure him there’s still hope and time to find peace and love between androids and humans.

Now that androids are granted far more space to exist freely of their own volition Josh rather enjoys taking you out on a quiet little one on one date. It’s nice to see the city how it was meant to be seen, and there’s no one he would rather share this with than you.

Much like his leader, when Josh has the free time to spend, Josh is something of a bookworm. However, for him, it’s much more a chance to explore a new hobby he’s no experience with, rather than to re-capture memories of the past. (Also he has a soft spot for romance novels, fight me.)

Kamski

(This one is up for debate, but...) Kamski gives off the vibes of someone who could kill at chess. It could be a fun little game between the two of you, to see if one day you could beat him, but he’s been playing since he was a child, so chances are slim, to say the least.

He’s productive and innovative to a fault, and he would really relly on you to look out for him and his health. Or, in other words, to drag him to bed and keep him from completely wrecking his sleep schedule in the name of progress.

Even though it’s rather common for him to leave the house in the name of giving an interview, a speech or a lecture hall, or something of the sort, Kamski would understand if you were the kind of person to prefer to stay home, or otherwise out of the spotlight.

Chloe

One thing which never fails to make Chloe feel better is playing with your hair, on the condition you do the same with her later. Also, bonus points if you agree to take pictures with her afterward.

She’s beyond sensitive to others' emotions, especially to yours, and there’s just something about your smile and your laugh, which sticks with her. It’s infectious to her, and she can’t get enough.

If she finds you’ve fallen asleep somewhere, Chloe really loves to just curl up and sleep next to you like a cat.

Gavin

He’s really the one to pretend to fall asleep if the two of you were cuddling either in bed or on the couch because he loves whenever you tuck him in and kiss his head goodnight. It’s something he likely never received growing up, and it means a lot to him to get that now.

The first time you ever see him all cleaned up and in beautiful clothes is more than a little shocking to you, and it’s difficult not to stare upon seeing him actually putting forth and effort.

Ralph

It doesn’t matter if you’ve only been gone for a couple hours, or for the entire day, when you come back, Ralph is always there to greet you at the door, ready to welcome you back, with the ecstatic energy of a puppy.

A quiet, but deeply profound moment Ralph has when he realizes he doesn’t actually want to live all alone, and that he genuinely finds happiness sharing his space with a human. There’s more to life than hiding.

You assure him that you think he looks exactly perfect just the way he is. There’s no need for him to try and “fix” the way he looks, and in your eyes, there’s no reason for him to feel lesser, or inadequate in any way.

Daniel

Embracing shamelessly “childish” activities with him. Things like decorating the house for holidays, cleaning games, arts and crafts, that sort of thing. It might appear silly on the surface, but to Daniel, it’s some of the few happy memories he has of his old life.

When Daniel decides to commit to a serious, loving relationship with you, Daniel is making a legitimate commitment here. He is actively choosing to embrace his emotions, and not to try and run away from them,

At his worst, Daniel can be very high strung and impulsive, so you must know plenty of de-stress activities to keep him under control.

Nines

Nines absolutely struggle with the initial symptoms of lovesickness. He grapples with worrying if you’ll ever love him back, or worse, that you wouldn’t even consider loving something which was designed to serve a strictly utilitarian purpose.

To his surprise, there’s a little bit of satisfaction Nines feels upon experiencing things like longing and tenderness. There is something to be said for experiencing these abstract emotions in any regard, considering how contrary to his programming they are.

Nines possesses a very strong memory and is one of the best you’ll ever meet. Those two factors together result in an android who knows basically everyone’s business, and who is very difficult to keep secrets from.

Buy Me a Ko-Fi // Requests are Open

[sinunamor]

@nerdy-flower Hi! So this started off as a headcanon but then I just didn’t know where to stop, which is why it starts off weird and it ends up pretending its a full fic lmao. But consider this a hc submission, which I am planning to expand to a full story I’m sorry but not really :”v

As much as a VegaMarch merge elicited a “well, it’s about damn time” reaction from the entirety of the cul de sac (and perhaps the whole town), the merge itself wasn’t so easy. Apart from figuring out what stays and what goes (as they are both book hoarders and collectors of their own right), there was the Duchess and Lucien Predicament. Should Hugo and Damien decide to live together, there is no obvious and more difficult decision than to let the Duchess Cordelia go.

Ernest was devastated as much as he was angry, and the preteen fought for his beloved dog’s right to stay with him (even going so much as showing his outrage by over-watering Damien’s petunias and burying a wrestler figurine upside down in the fresh mud).

Hugo tried his best, contacting his ex-husband to see if the dog could stay with him instead. Unfortunately, the man lives in an apartment and isn’t keen on taking care of a slobbering (very loving) beast full-time. Ernest actually cried, his last pitiful attempt to convince his fathers (his own and newfound alike) to let her stay.

But Damien saw an opportunity. Duchess Cordelia wasn’t going back to the shelter to be re-adopted (as slim of a chance that was), she was going back as a permanent resident. “But who’d take care of her then?” Ernest cleverly argued, still unsure of the offered arrangement over dinner one school evening. “If you’re gonna be busy with the other dogs, she won’t get the attention she needs.”

“Perhaps you might know someone who can,” Damien smirked behind interlaced fingers. “Someone who is familiar with her habits and tricks and who has her best interests in mind.”

Ernest cleverly answered that the position belonged to no one but himself, much to the complete surprise of both Hugo and Lucien.

So it was done. Ernest was to volunteer at the shelter 3 times a week, with one of those days spent full on a Saturday if studies permits. Ernest and the Duchess reunited as if the two hadn’t seen each other in months, the mastiff knocking her owner down and greeting him with wet, sloppy kisses to Ernest’s sheer delight. Ernest’s job was simple. He was to feed her, water her, clean her dog igloo, burn off her excess energy and rake up poop in the shelter’s yard. Yet before he set out to do anything, Damien stopped him and handed him a polo so similarly colored to the one he was wearing already. Ernest rose a proud brow and scrunched his nose. “The hell?” he answered, taking the polo and stretching it out in all its dweebish, purplish glory. “Why do I have t’wear this?”

“You forget that Lucien is severely allergic to dogs,” Damien answered, his brow furrowed lightly. “Why, just a bit of their saliva can trigger hives and—”

“Yea, yea, baby boy needs to breathe easy,” Ernest muttered, slipping out of his trademark hoodie while Mary, who was sitting behind the front desk, poorly stifled a snort. Damien shook his head in soft paternal fondness and took Ernest’s hoodie to hang on his arm. “Thank you for understanding Ernest,” he said, watching the familiar mop of tussled dark waves disappear under the purple polo and reappear around the collar.

“Well, yea, you don’t get to share the same room with him,” Ernest continued, grunting softly as he tried tugging the shirt on, to Damien’s and Mary’s amusement. “The guy already farts in his sleep I don’t wanna deal with him wheezing and—argh! The stupid thing is too small for me dammit!”

Damien tucked in his lips to further contain his erupting giggles, Mary’s own chortles weren’t helping. “E-Ernest dear, you did not unbutton the shirt,” he said, reaching towards him to loosen the collar and finally free his admittedly larger head. He tugged the shirt on and Ernest sighed in relief. Damien began to redo the buttons.

“I got this,” Ernest frowned, lightly swatting him away.

“Alright,” Damien immediately took a step back and scrutinized the feisty preteen with a hand on his chin and a thoughtful cock of his head. He smirked. “I must say purple looks quite good on you. You ought to wear it often.”

Ernest scrunched his nose at him, a light flustered blush covering his brown cheeks. A helplessly adorable and defiant look Damien was sure Hugo wore when he was Ernest’s age. “That shit might work on my dad, but it ain’t gonna do it for me,” Ernest grumbled.

Damien finally let out the long-suppressed laugh, his shoulders moving jovially. “I am being honest,” he said, wishing he could take out his phone to take a selfie with him and send it to Hugo. It was endearing enough to see him wear it, he would take the chance to capture it forever if he could. Damien soon noted manner in which Ernest was looking at the purple polo and smoothing it over, once, twice again which gave Damien the impression that his fun was going to be cut short.

“Are you sure I gotta wear this?” Ernest asked, with uncertainty in his tone. “Like, can’t I bring my own extra shirt?”

“It is shelter uniform,” Damien replied, matter-of-factly.

Ernest looked at Mary who was already minding her own and looking over paperwork. “Then how come Mary’s not wearing one?” he said, pointing at her accusingly.

“Mary is the secretary,” Damien explained. “And she does not have children who are allergic to dogs.”

Ernest looked at the purple polo again. Something was whirring inside his mind, Damien could tell. Any other kid his age would look at the shirt, point out a missing logo and call bullshit, but not Ernest. Not sweet, gullible Ernest who perhaps was taking Lucien’s allergies into consideration if the softening of his brow was of any indication of sympathy. The boy tsked loudly. “Fine, whatever,” he relented. “Can I go see the Duchess now?”

Damien casually adjusted his glasses and nodded his head. The boy took it as a blessing to race down the hallway towards the kennels. The excited barks and howls from the other dogs indicated that he was there.

Mary began to laugh.

“What?” Damien smiled, resting his hands on his waist.

“I’m surprised,” Mary snorted. “I never thought that you’d be this cruel.”

Damien waved her off. “Nothing that he’d be traumatized over,” he answered, glancing at his watch. “Purple does suit him nicely.”

“We’re ignoring the fact that you did the same to Lucien when he was younger,” she crossed her arms. “Every new pair of boots you bought you had to get an identical pair for him and so on.”

“And do you know how difficult it was to find a polo shirt the same shade as mine?” Damien exclaimed, gesturing at said polo.

“You dork,” Mary muttered fondly. “Hey, tell him after that we have to take a group picture to officially welcome him in. I’ll zoom in on you two.”

“That is a wickedly marvelous idea,” Damien chuckled. “Yet I’m the cruel one.”

“The kid will think twice before trying to drown your petunias again,” Mary pointed out.

“Fair point,” Damien answered, his excitement of the prospect of their first photo together visible by a single, small bounce on his heels before he set off. “I’m going to take the first group out for a walk, perhaps Ernest would join me.”

“I’ll wouldn’t hold my breath,” Mary waved him off.

Ernest did join him for a walk, and he and Damien were soon engrossed in a discussion about dogs. Damien was was absolutely content, this was what he always wanted to do after all. Walking down the streets with dogs and a son in matching polos.