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dreamescapeswriting · 2 months

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No Regrets ~ HJS [MATURE WARNING]

CONTINUATION OF THIS PIECE

WORD COUNT: 3.9K

GENRE: Mafia AU, fluffy, first meeting, meet cute, fluffy jisung, soft mafia jisung being soft for reader, always there to protect her, bank heist and shes injured in the process, SMUT MINORS DNI, protected sex, sex in front of the fireplace, oral (female recieving)

PAIRING: Jisung x Fem!Reader

⤜Copyright: © DreamEscapesWriting - February 2024

⤜MASTERLIST

TRIGGER WARNING: Mentions of blood, killing, stealing, heists, reader being held at gun point,

Lightening slashed through the darkened sky making you jump a little and scoot closer to Jisung, the rain pounding against the windows of a cafe. Somewhere that had become your refuge from the storm that was growing worse by the second. Jisung glanced over at you, ever since you'd walked into the cafe he'd barely been able to take his eyes off you but he'd been trying. Not once was he able to though, it was like there was some kind of curse drawing him to you.

Years had passed since he'd ever been with a woman and he'd practically sworn off everyone he met, not wanting to get distracted by them but there was just something about you, something so warm and fresh that drew him in.

"Are you sure you don't need anything else?" Jisung questioned, his gaze solely on you as you shivered a little, you felt frozen to your core but Jisung's men had already given you a shirt, a pair of pants and a blazer you didn't want to take anything else from them. That was, you didn't want to be in debt to the man beside you.

All of the stories you'd heard about the man from the underworld but they'd all failed to mention how kind his eyes were or just how sweet he was...toward you at least. It was a strange contrast between what people said he was like and what he was really like, something you hadn't really been expecting until now.

"No...T-Thanks." Your chattering teeth gave you away before Jisung snapped his fingers at his men, who swiftly sprung into action. Moments later, a steaming cup of hot chocolate was in front of you and a dry blanket was wrapped around your shoulders.

"I can start the fireplace if it gets too much," Jisung offered, his chest tightening as he watched you closely, eyeing you up as if he were waiting for you to shiver and give him the chance to jump in and be the hero of your story. Not that Jisung was the hero in anybody's story, he was always the villain.

There was something about you that made him feel at ease, something that made him feel at peace as you sat beside him but there was also a nagging feeling inside of him, one that wanted him to protect you. It happened the second you'd barged into the cafe, shivering and dripping wet onto the floor. It was the reason he'd demanded his men into action before they could kick you out, there was no way he was going to send you out in the freezing weather.

"I hate the storms too," He finally mentioned, whispering so that none of his men around could hear the admission come from his lips. He'd never been one to tell people what scared him, not when it could possibly be used against him but you seemed in need of someone to talk to.

"You do?" Your voice cracked a little as you swallowed the lump in your throat, the tightness in your body loosening ever so slightly as Jisung put you at ease.

"Yeah, ever since I was a little boy they always scared me." He holds his cup in his hands, letting the warm ceramic warm up his cold hands.

"I would never have expected you to be scared of anything." You admit shyly before he beams at you, he liked that you were feeling comfortable around him more than he cared to admit.

"There's a lot you might not know, but I'd be happy to fill you in." Your cheeks warmed at the kindness coming from him and you nodded.

The storm raged on outside but the cafe was suddenly becoming a warm sanctuary amidst the darkness. It was an unlikely friendship growing between you both, a mafia underworld leader and a frightened girl who'd stumbled into the cafe by accident.

"My favourite colour is pink but if anyone ever asks it's black," Jisung smirked at you, making you giggle a little as you sipped on your drink.

"Mine's blue, but the colour of the sky on a really nice summer's day is blue." You admit to him, smiling while you forget the storm completely as you get to know Jisung just that little bit more.

The night had flown by too quickly for either of you and you hated as you saw the sun coming up through the windows.

"We stayed up all night?" You laughed nervously, trying to remember the last time you'd ever stayed up this late and it must have been years ago. The light burnt your eyes as you and Jisung stepped out onto the streets, you were still dressed in his guard's clothes and he couldn't help the jealous twinge he got thinking about it.

"Must have," He chuckles softly looking around for a car for you but there was none in sight except for his own.

"Vinny," He whispered in a low voice to one of his men nearby.

"Make sure she gets home safely." Vinny nodded understanding the unspoken order from his boss,

"Don't worry boss, I got this," Vinny told him as he got into one of the waiting cars and Jisung turned his attention to you. Searching in his pockets and handing you a small piece of paper with his number scrawled on it.

"In case you need anything. Don't hesitate to call." You gently took the piece of paper, staring down at it with a mix of surprise and gratitude flickering across your face. You never would have expected his number after a night of just talking,

"Thanks." You whispered before carefully tucking into your pocket and making your way to the car with Vinny inside.

"I'll be seeing you," Jisung called out, watching you with one last lingering gaze before you disappeared into the city and Jisung couldn't shake the weight of concern sitting on his chest.

He knew the dangers that lurked in the streets, especially to someone as unsuspecting as you. He was glad Vinny was going to drive you home but something still weighed down on him as he thought about you more and more being alone and he would do anything to ensure your safety. Maybe he could hire someone to watch over you all of the time, or would that be going too far?

"Boss, we have a meeting with Dante Moretti in an hour." A voice informed him snapping him from his daydream and he sighed nodding his head, there was no rest for the wicked.

"Can you make sure Vinny stays close to Yn, I want updates on how she's doing." He grumbled as he got into his car, ensuring your safety felt as though he was protecting a piece of his own humanity in the chaos of the world and he was going to do as much as he could to keep you safe.

Someone had been following you and you knew who, he wasn't as sneaky as he thought he was since he was almost 7 feet high and built like he could knock down a brick house with one flick of his wrist. Sighing a little you turned on your heel making Vinny almost crash into you from how abruptly you'd stopped in place.

"Vinny, I'm fine." You told him plainly, staring up at the man who looked as though he'd barely slept a wink in days. Ever since your rendezvous with Jisung a week ago, Vinny had been outside of your apartment and everywhere you went. Part of you thought it was sweet that Jisung had asked him to watch over you but after no contact with Jisung, it was beginning to get annoying.

Maybe he did this to everyone he met and the reason Vinnny was watching you was because Jisung wasn't sure you could be trusted but you'd had enough. You wanted some space and Vinny following you everywhere was drawing attention to you that you didn't need nor want.

"Boss said to watch you." You scoffed a little, if Jisung was that bothered about you being looked after he should have come to check on you himself rather than sending a babysitting,

"Your boss can come and watch me himself, I don't need an armed guard." You gestured to the gun that was on his belt and he glanced at it, it was something all of Jisung's men were issued with.

"But-"

"Go and take a break, I'm going to the bank...okay? Nothing bad is going to happen to me in there. Go get food or something." You pointed to the cafe across the street and he bit down on his lip, disobeying a direct order from Jisung meant he'd probably lose his life.

"I have to go, I have a meeting and if I'm late I'll never get the loan I need." You mumbled, straightening out your outfit and walking in the direction of the large building while Vinny looked at you. He knew you were right and he needed a break and what was five minutes going to do if he went to grab a muffin?

The glass shattered around you as loud popping sounds began to ring out, you ducked a little as you flinched. The man you had been speaking to you dropped to the floor instantly and frowned,

"LADIES AND GENTLEMAN!" Someone screamed out, your eyes darted in the direction of the voice and your heart began to race. Armed robbers were storming into the bank, their faces covered by clown masks and you cursed yourself for sending Vinny away.

"Everyone be calm and do as we say and no one has to die." The main man called out as he turned to a man reaching for his wife only to shoot him in the head. Panic gripped you as you sank down onto the floor, none of the masked men had been able to see you since you'd been toward the back of the bank. With trembling fingers you began to hit Jisung's number, you'd had him saved ever since your night together and he was the only person you could think of helping you right now.

As you continued the rings Jisung answered and your voice barely came out above a whisper,

"Jisung, please...you have to do something." You held your hand over your mouth trying to calm yourself down, if any of them found you, you'd be dead.

"There are robbers...they're holding us hostage." You whispered frantically. Jisung's blood ran cold as he listened to the desperation in your voice. Without hesitating he sprang into action, issuing orders to his men and racing to the scene.

"I'll be right there baby, just stay hidden," He kept you on the phone as he raced to his car, he needed to make sure you were safe.

"Where's Vinny baby, is he with you?" Your breathing was frantic but you tried your best to focus on Jisung rather than the yelling and shouting that was going on.

"I sent him away, to eat...I-I thought I would be okay," You sniffled a little and Jisung wanted to reach through the phone and comfort you, wipe away the tears he knew that were streaming down your face.

"I'll kick his ass for listening to you," He chuckled trying to make you laugh but your breathing stilled as you heard someone coming toward you. You swallowed the lump in your throat as you held your breath trying to hide further under the table,

"Found you, sweetheart." Someone sneered, his voice dripping with malice as he dragged you out from your hiding spot his grip so tight you knew it was going to leave a bruise.

"Yn?! YN?!" Jisung screamed down the phone, forcing his men to drive faster down the streets toward the bank you were in.

Tears welled up in your eyes as you felt the cold metal of the gun pressed against your temple, you were shoved through the bank toward the front once again.

"Lookey what we have! An example to make of." He smirked as you struggled against his grip, your heart pounding with every beat as you thought about a way to get out of this or a way to drag it out.

"What did we say? Stay calm and no one will get hurt, it seems someone can't listen to rules." The metal of the gun was dragged down your cheek until he placed it underneath your chin, the tears free-falling as you whimpered a little.

Suddenly, amidst the chaos of the other men shuffling money into banks, the sound of sirens pierced through the air, signalling that police were outside. The grip the man had on you faltered for a second, his attention on the threat of the police. Mustering up all your strength and with the surge of adrenaline, you twisted free from his grasp, ducking out of his grasp and making a run for the safety of a desk. The man cursed as he scrambled after you, just as he got close a shadow emerged from nowhere and stared down at him.

"Jisung." You breathed out as he stared down at the man who had grabbed you, his moments were swift as he subdued the robber and put him to the floor aiming a gun at him this time.

"Did he hurt you? Did he touch you?" Jisung stared over at you, your breath catching in your throat as you watched him closely and you shook your head.

"I'm fine, just scared." You admitted as he nodded, turning his attention back to the other robbers who were all on their knees with their hands behind their heads. Everyone knew not to fuck with Jisung if they knew what was good for them and Jisung waited for the cops to come in.

"How are you doing?" Jisung asked as he sat beside you in front of the fireplace, after the robbery Jisung had taken you back to his place deciding that he didn't want you to be alone tonight.

"Fine, just like I was fine the other twenty-two times you asked," You said, teasing him a little for how often he'd been asking you the same question since getting there.

"I just want to make sure," He sighed, wrapping the blanket around your shoulder more and smiling at you. Your heart began to beat faster as you were cuddled so close to him.

"You're the first person I wanted to call when it happened." You admit, after the events of the day you weren't going to hold back telling him how you felt about him since there was no point, you never knew what could happen.

"Why?" He blushed a little as you watched him closely,

"I like you...a lot, and I wanted to hear from you one last time in case...In case I died-"

"I would never let anything happen to you," He whispered, clutching your hand in his and holding it on his lap.

"No?" You giggled a little as he ran his hand over your cheek and gently rubbed his thumb over your skin,

"No. I should kick Vinny's ass for leaving you." He grumbled, he'd wanted to do it after getting you from the bank but you'd begged him to take you home, not wanting to stay there any longer than you had to.

"I told him to." You reminded him but Jisung scoffed at the thought, the only person Vinny should have been listening to was Jisung and Jisung alone.

"He should only take orders from me." He grumbled a little and you inched closer to him,

"You're cute when you're mad." Your voice came out low and seductive as you gently kissed his jawline.

"Y-Yeah?" He stuttered a little as he felt you closer to him, his heart racing as you began to kiss his jaw again.

"Yeah, and hot when you're being the hero for me." You added before kissing his neck a little, his whole body flaming as his cheeks burnt bright red.

"Yn...Y-You went through something traumatic today, we should probably wait,"

"Why?" You stopped still and looked up at him, his eyes staring down at you, he wanted to, more than anything, but he didn't want to rush you into something.

"I don't want you to do something you'll regret." You smiled warmly at him,

"I promise I won't," You whispered before kissing him softly, his arms wrapping around your waist as the blanket you were wearing dropped from your shoulders.

Jisung carefully laid you down on the floor, kissing down your neck as he pulled the shirt you were wearing off your body.

"I've wanted you for so long," He groans, kissing down your bare chest and sucking on your nipples causing your back to arch off the floor.

"So don't waste any more time," You pleaded with him as he smirked, kissing down your chest until he reached your panty line which he quickly tore off you and threw somewhere in the room.

"I don't let anyone order me around but for you, I'll make an exception." He groans before putting your legs on his shoulders before pushing his face into your cunt. His tongue slowly licked through your folds as you let out a strangled moan of his name.

"J-Jisung," You cry out, your hands pushed into his hair and you ground your hips against his face needing more than what he was giving to you. Jisung didn't miss the hint though as he picked up the pace, eating you out like a man starved as he moaned against your clit sending vibrations up and down your spine.

"F-Fuck! R-Right there," You cry out as he continued to suck on your clit, his fingers pushing into you and sending you closer to the edge. Jisung smirked up at you, your eyes were screwed shut and your head rolled back as you gave into him.

"G-Gonna..Fuck I'm so close," You cried out louder, Jisung curled his fingers to your g-spot, moving his fingers at a brutal pace until you screamed his name out as your first orgasm hits you.

"So loud for me, I love it." He groans as you pull him up and kiss him deeply, not caring if you could taste yourself on his lips but just desperate for him.

"Want you," You grumbled as you quickly stripped him of the suit pants he was wearing and rubbed his cock through his boxers earning a grunt from him.

"I've got an IUD," You whisper to him when you see him searching around for something and he relaxes a little, kissing you deeply as you lay back down on the floor, your legs spread on either side of his hips.

"You sure?"

"Jisung, please," You whined out, spreading your legs further apart as Jisung lined himself up, easing into you at a slow and torturous pace.

"M-More," You begged as you rocked your hips up a little until he was pushed to the hilt, a strangled moan leaving both your throats. Jisung smirked at you as he slowly pulled out of you, only to slam back into you as you let out a scream of his name. He began thrusting into you, harder and faster than before as your hands dragged down his back.

"You're so tight, angel, you close?" He groans out as you clench around him again, moaning out his name as he continues his brutal pace. You'd had sex plenty of times but nothing compared to this, Jisung had you on the edge from just a few thrusts.

"You make me insane for you," He growls out as he continues to fuck into you,

"G-Good, you do the same for me," You whine out, rolling your hips in time to meet his thrust as you feel the familiar tension building inside of you.

"S-Shit, Jisung." You moan out as he grips your hips, his thrusts getting more determined,

"C-Cum for me angel," He groans, as if on his command you came around him, screaming his name out as you rocked your hips riding out your orgasm. Jisung wasn't far behind as he panted into your neck, his hips slowly to a still making you giggle a little.

"Let's go and get cleaned up," He whimpered a little, his hips shaking as you nodded and wriggled beneath him.

The morning sun filtered through the blinds in Jisung's room and he cursed himself for not getting blackout ones like he wanted to. The memories of last night began to filter through his mind leaving him smirking as reached out beside him. He frowned, a pang of unease gripping his chest as he stared at the empty space beside him. Had you regretted the night before?

With a heavy sigh, Jisung rose from the bed and rubbed the back of his neck. Your clothes were still in his room along with your bag and phone which meant you were still around somewhere he just had to find you. He padded down the stairs, an overwhelming sense of gratitude filling him when he saw you standing in the kitchen with your hands on your hips yelling at someone.

"I wanted to cook for him, what's the big deal!?" You cried out at the old lady who had swatted your hands away with a spatula when she found you cooking.

"He only lets me cook for him, it's the safest way." You rolled your eyes, about to tell her who you were when someone wrapped their arms around you.

"Come back to bed, let Sophia make our food so I can fuck your brains out," He whispered in your ear, biting down on your ear as you let out a small moan following him without question.

"So no regrets?" He asked, threading his fingers between yours as he led you back to the stairs.

"No regrets," You smirked kissing him on the cheek and rushing off up the stairs to his room again.

"I hate you," Felix's date said as he stood beside her, her arms folded across her chest as she stared at him looking completely pissed off that she had to be there.

"I hate you more, my little firecracker," He smirked down at her and you cuddled closer to Jisung as you watched the exchange.

"It's strange that's how they express their love," You giggled a little as Jisung took your hand in his, gently kissing the top of it before pulling you into his chest.

"Hmm, think we should uninvite them from the wedding?" Jisung smirked as you slapped his chest softly, hushing him. A charity event wasn't the place to announce your upcoming wedding, you wanted to do it properly and at a dinner with all of them together.

"We'll see you later," Seungmin's date whispered before hugging you and running off toward the stairs with Seungmin.

"They're going to fuck," Jisung laughed softly making you roll your eyes at him.

"They could just be wanting a private moment," You elbowed him in the chest as he chuckled to himself he knew what the couple were up to, since he and you had snuck off at parties to do the same thing plenty of times in the past.

"To fuck." He added as you groaned at him, pulling him to go and dance with you.

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epicbuddieficrecs · 2 months

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Weekly Recap | February 26th-March 3rd 2024

8 days!!!!! Only 8 days left!!!! Until then enjoy these fics!!

Complete

doin' something unholy by BekkaChaos/ @bekkachaos (PWP, TikTok, Getting Together | 7K | Explicit): Eddie makes a tiktok account so he can monitor Chris' activity on the app, and he stumbles across Buck’s profile. It’s a lot of silly trends, a couple with Chris (previously Eddie approved), but when he scrolls to the newest video it’s one of those transition thirst traps and oh yeah, Eddie’s been sucked in, hard.

it’s the tapping on the kitchen’s floor by gayedmundodiaz (rose_megan)/ @gayedmundodiaz (Friends to Fiances | 1K | General): Eddie takes a shortcut to 'engaged' thanks to some stress and little bit of pining.

This Is No Hallmark Movie by gayedmundodiaz (rose_megan)/ @gayedmundodiaz (Hurt Buck, Getting Together | 4K | Teen): Buck's impromptu trip to the ICU has Eddie crash-landing into the realization that he's deeply, madly in love with his best friend.

You Are The One by gayedmundodiaz (rose_megan)/ @gayedmundodiaz (Getting Together | 3K | Teen): Eddie finds a drawing of Christopher's from school that sends his feelings careening off a cliff

cause you make life easy by gayedmundodiaz (rose_megan)/ @gayedmundodiaz (PWP, First Time | 2K | Explicit): Eddie and Buck are in love, and it’s so, so easy.

got love-struck, went straight to my head by heartbeatdiaz/ @loserdiaz (Future Fic, Established Buddie, Amnesia | 17K | Teen): The morning of their wedding day, Buck wakes up with amnesia.

too many heartbeats for one ribcage by lamardeuse/ @lamardeuse (Sexuality Crisis, Getting Together | 8K | Mature): Eddie's not queer.

Baby, I'm Never Gonna Leave You by I_still_dont_understand_13 (BTHBingo: Distress Call, Post-S6 | 12K | Mature): "Um... You remember that bracelet I bought Taylor?" Buck asked. Unfortunately, Eddie did. That Christmas was memorable... for all the wrong reasons. "Yeah. Why?" "It's been set off," he said, tilting his head like a confused puppy.

🔥 Ace of Hearts by glorious_spoon/ @glorious-spoon (Post-S6, Getting Together | 9K | Teen): "I've been wondering…" Maddie pauses, watches Buck make a face like he's bracing to be smacked. "What happened with Eddie? You two were dancing around it for so long, and then… what, it just didn't work out? Was the date really that bad?" She's expecting another wince, or even for him to duck out of the conversation entirely, but instead Buck is staring at her like she's grown a second head. "Maddie. I've never been on a date with Eddie." Or: the poker game was a date. It takes Buck a while to catch on, though.

🔥 I'm comin' back, don't let me go by wikiangela/ @wikiangela (Post-S6, Angst | 7K | General): Buck's post-lightning breakdown takes him on a drive through the country, fighting not to give into his dark thoughts - a phone call from Eddie might be all he needs to lead him back home.

We Were Never Meant To Be Someone's Secret by DeadlyChildArtemis / @aroeddiediaz (Madney Wedding, Secret Relationship | 3K | Explicit): Buck and Eddie have been trying to keep their new relationship secret until after Maddie and Chimney's wedding, but strange events keep conspiring to expose them before they're ready. The final straw is when they discover their hotel room at the venue only has one bed...

he speaks the languages of love by glorious_spoon (PWP, Established Buddie, Phone Sex | 4K | Explicit): "Buck. It's been almost two weeks since I've been able to get my hands on you. I'm going out of my mind. Yeah, I want you to tell me how you thought about bending me over the weight bench when I critiqued your gym selfies, or whatever." Or: while Eddie is out of town, he and Buck revisit an old fantasy of Buck's.

you were never meant to carry it on your own by artificalsirens/ @fortheloveofbuddie (Established Buddie, Hurt Buck, Smut | 5K | Explicit): During sex, Buck has a bad chronic pain flare up but wants to continue. Eddie stops him and takes care of him.

🔥 when you know, you know by asteriasera/ @asteriasera (Post-S6, Friends To Fiances | 11K | General): “How did you know you and Karen were ready to get married?” Hen blinks, clearly taken aback by the question. “I didn’t know you and Natalia were so serious.” “We’re not,” he blurts out, face red. “I’m not– I don’t even have a ring, and we haven’t really talked about it, but I was just curious. I mean, you should know since you two got married like, twice, right?” “That’s true.” Hen hums, then huffs out a laugh just the right amount of soft for this sweet pre-dawn moment. “As cheesy as it sounds, I guess that when you know, you know.” OR: After eight months of dating, Natalia begins dropping hints for their future together and Buck begins to question if this is what he really wants. One day later, a proposal is made in a kitchen over tiramisu

i'm thinking we should cross the line by chromatophorica/ @chromatophorica (Canon Divergent, Post-S2, Not Firefighter Buck | 12K | Teen): Following the ladder truck bombing, Buck can't return to firefighting, having to find new passions while maintaining his bonds with the 118. Enter Eddie Diaz, his replacement, and May's scheming takes hold. But that's fine; two can play that game.

i found love where it wasn't supposed to be by chromatophorica/ @chromatophorica (Season 2, Buck&Bobby | 12K | Teen): It’s not until the earthquake that Eddie figures it out. He’d be the same if Chris was there; probably a little more overbearing, but Chris is only seven, so he figures that’d be why. But it makes sense, how focused on Buck that Nash is right then, the similar frantic energy that Buck’s got focusing on the Captain. He’s a little surprised that the LAFD allow a father and son pair to work together OR: Eddie makes some assumptions when he joins the 118, he'd like the record to show he's not entirely wrong.

we can find shelter and peace by chromatophorica / @chromatophorica (Post-S2, 3K | Teen): Following Eddie's graduation from probie to firefighter, the gang talk about their graduations... Until they get to Buck.

like the peel clings to the pomegranate by fallingthorns/ @fallingthorns (Post-S6E10: In A Flash, Getting Together | 3K | Teen): Or, Buck recovers and doesn't quite realize what he means to others.

hey now, hey now by fallingthorns/ @fallingthorns (Canon Divergent, Post-S5E10: Wrapped In Red | 10K | Teen): Or, after returning to the 118, Eddie becomes a full-time paramedic and Ravi becomes Buck's partner. Eddie absolutely doesn't feel anything about that, not at all.

happy at home by fallingthorns/ @fallingthorns (Post-S5, Getting Together | 6K | Teen): Or, the one where Eddie sees Buck with a small kitten, realizes he’s in love, and spontaneously combusts, but not necessarily in that order.

we made it (knew that we would be alright) by honestlydarkprincess/ @honestlydarkprincess (S7 Spec, Buck&Maddie | <1K | General): Maddie asks Buck to walk her down the aisle.

this lovesick thing by fleetinghearts/ @shitouttabuck (Post-S6, Getting Together | 4K | Teen): or, buck is buck: best friend, klutz, star of eddie’s every lovesick daydream. which is to say, things are the same, except maybe what eddie’s willing to ask for

Fractals from the Lightning Bolt by letmetellyouaboutmyfeels/ @letmetellyouaboutmyfeels (One Shots Collection | 52/54 | 95K | Not Rated): A collection of oneshots, some originally posted on tumblr. Each chapter is individually rated.

50. Happy Holidays to the Clown Car (Christmas | Teen) 51. Maybe We're All Sluts Here (PWP | Explicit)

My Worried Mind That You Quiet by giselleslash (Christopher POV, Getting Together | 3K | General): or, Buck and Eddie through Christopher's eyes.

send a flare up in the dark (and i'll come find you) by honestlydarkprincess/ @honestlydarkprincess (Post-S6, Getting Together | 7K | Teen): Buck and Natalia are hanging out at a bar, with Natalia watching in amusement as Buck pines. She gets distracted when Lucy shows up so Buck starts drunk texting Eddie and eventually Eddie comes to get Buck, but not before Buck accidentally confesses his feelings not realizing that Eddie is there. Did Buck just fuck up or do they both get everything they've ever wanted?

you are so gorgeous it makes me so mad by bellabrady (Post-S6, Getting Together | 5K | Not Rated): Or: Eddie is annoyed with Buck for being so very kissable but his drunk self isn't the best at phrasing things.

what to do when evan buckley breaks into your house at 3:17 in the morning by oklahoma/ @sunshinediaz (Getting Together | 3K | Teen): After a night out drinking with Maddie, Buck (kind of) breaks in to Eddie’s house.

Orange Peels & Coffee by bibuckleyforever/ @bibuckleyforever (Post-S6, Getting Together | 2K | General): Eddie finds out about the Orange Peel Theory and it leads to some important realizations.

some of it's just transcendental by fallingthorns/ @fallingthorns (Accidental Kissing, Getting Together | 2K | Teen): Buck smiles as Eddie leans in and presses a soft kiss to his lips, and Buck feels himself grinning further against his mouth and kissing back before Eddie pulls away, too soon and with that same soft smile on his lips. He eases the bags fully out of Buck’s arms and turns to head into the kitchen, and Buck watches him go with such a fond smile that he feels like he’s going to explode. And then he freezes and stares at Eddie’s retreating form, his heart constricting in his chest as his brain struggles to catch up with the events of the last twenty seconds. Because kissing? Is not something they have ever done before.

that green light, i want it by asteriasera / @asteriasera (Post-S6, One Night Stand, Getting Together | 11K | Mature): Buck and Eddie hook up after Maddie and Chim’s wedding, then spend an inordinate amount of time not talking about what it means until the universe decides to intervene.

WIP

i got a bad desire, i'm on fire by diazbegins/ @evanbegins (PWP, Pet Play | 1/2 | 8K | Explicit): Or: Eddie finds that he wants Buck to treat him like a kitty. Buck can make that work.

if i need to rearrange my particles — i will for you. by dylaesthetics (Post-S6, Identity Porn | 6/11 | 22K | Teen): OR Buck joins a support app for first responders and matches with a firefighter who has PTSD and a kid who likes giraffes, apparently.

🔥 Things We're All Too Young to Know by Daisies_and_Briar / @cal-daisies-and-briars (Canon S1-S6, S7 Spec | 120/? | 362K | Mature): This is a love story. Even if it doesn’t always look like it. Even if it doesn’t always feel like it. A look back on Eddie and Buck's lives up to now, and what led them to each other, interpreted from the current 9-1-1 canon.

🔥 Any Other Way by Daisies_and_Briars/ @cal-daisies-and-briars (Canon Divergent, S2 | 4/18 | 25K | Mature): In a switcheroo alternate universe, Buck spends young adulthood in the military, while Eddie, who has no idea Christopher exists, spends his twenties messing around, finally enjoying freedom away from his family’s expectations. When they both end up in Los Angeles, at the 118, some things are different, and others will be the same in any universe.

🔥 because we'll all arrive in heaven alive by callmenewbie/ @puppyboybuckley (Post-S6, Disaster Fic | 7/9 | 51K | Explicit): During a search and rescue, Eddie disappears without a trace, leaving Buck to grapple with the sudden possibility of a life without him.

#buddie #buddie fanfiction #buddie fic rec #buddie fanfic #buddie fic #epic buddie fic rec

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wintfleur · 1 month

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👩🏻‍🎨 ͡ ꒱ STELLAS RELATIONSHIP WITH RUTGER

au masterlist — you can find asks under #💌stellahughes!

°. — asks about stella and rut are under #⋆ ˚｡⋆୨🩷୧˚ stella & rut!

°. — smutty asks about Stella and rut are under #⋆ ˚｡⋆୨💒୧˚ smutty stella & rut!

°. — STELLA AND RUTGER!

°. — BASICS!

When did they meet Stella and Rutger first met in 2022, they were both freshmans and luke introduced them at a party.

When was there first date, and who asked Rutger asked Stella on a date after many months of crushing on her, they had their first date in late February. (2023)

When did they start dating, and who asked They had been going on dates and practically dating since March, they just didn't make it official official until April 1st, when Stella asked him to be her boyfriend (2023)

When did everyone find out Everyone found out on Thanksgiving when stella posted a instagram story with a picture of rutger with the caption being ‘Most thankful for him”

Who said I love you first Rutger was the one who said I love you first.

More backstory of them Even though it took them a while to make it official, they basically were dating since march. They were doing things all couples do, just in secret. Stella was starting to feel insecure that they hadn't made it official and she couldn't wait anymore, she had sent him a text to come to her dorm. He had rushed over, thinking something was wrong by how she texted him. But he was very much happily surprised when as soon as he walked through her door she blurted out ‘be my boyfriend…please’

°. — DETAILS!

Their tropes sunshine x sunshine, brother’s friend x friends little sister, golden retriever bf x orange cat gf

Their love languages stella’s; physical touch, words of affirmation, acts of service. rutger’s; physical touch, gift giving, acts of service.

Their favorite sleep position as long as they are touching their good, they alternate between the little and big spoon positions, rutger likes laying on his back so Stella is pretty much just curled up against him.

Their pet names for each other rutger; pretty girl, baby, my girl, kitten. Stella; lovey, baby, love bug, stud.

Their couple songs The Only Exception by Paramore & I’m yours & eyes don’t lie by Isabel LaRosa

Their contact names for each other rutger; “pretty girl 🩷” Stella; “lovey 🩵”

Their first impressions of each other when rutger first met stella he immediately noticed her smile, she had given him a shy smile as she stood next to her older brother, holding onto his arm so she wouldn't get lost when they walked through the packed house. She was shy, but very friendly and kind. When Stella first met rutger she had noticed his laugh, he was laughing with luca when her and luke walked over to them. She quickly noticed that she liked the sound of his laugh throughout the night as they talked.

°. — FUNFACTS!

𐙚 They kept their relationship a secret for 8 months

𐙚 They both see each other in there future, wanting to marry and grow old together!

𐙚 Rutger is very confident about himself and their relationship, but he can’t help but get jealous and possessive sometimes with how many people flirt and want Stella.

𐙚 They are each other’s good luck charm!

𐙚 Stella has a necklace with the letter R and a necklace with the number 2 on it, both given to her by Rutger.

𐙚 Rutger has a superstition where he can’t play a game without having Stella’s initial somewhere on his stick.

𐙚 Stella loves making playlists for Rutger

𐙚 Rutgers family absolutely love Stella so much, she has a great relationship with them!

𐙚 Stella’s family also love Rutger! Rutger has a great relationship with her parents and brothers!

𐙚 Rutger loves driving Stella around even though she knows how to drive

𐙚 Rutgers loves when Stella draws/paints him! He keeps all of her art work that she gives him

𐙚 Stella loves playing hockey with Rutger at the rink!

𐙚 They love playing video games together! They have their own Minecraft world together, and a ton of pets that Stella calls their children.

𐙚 Rutger rented a cabin for a week and the two of them went away for a vacation.

𐙚 They love hot tubs! Have been caught a few times making out in them . . .

𐙚 They love making silly TikTok’s together!

𐙚 they are so clingy to each other

𐙚 they have a diner that means a lot to them, they went there for the first date and they are now regulars, the owner absolutely love them!

𐙚 Rutger is extremely protective of Stella!

𐙚 they have already planned there wedding . . . and how many kids they want and what they would name them.

𐙚 they have weekly movie nights!

𐙚 Rutger loves how sensitive Stella is!

𐙚 on the off season Rutger is quite the stoner

𐙚 high make out sessions all the time during off season!

𐙚 They will always support each other!

𐙚 Are always being teased by ruts teammates and their friends for being the best couple and how clingy they are!

𐙚 They are the it couple!

𐙚 Rutger always has his eyes on her during party’s, loving to watch Stella dance with her friends(and to make sure she’s safe), and dance with her!

𐙚 most of the time at party’s there up in a room or closet making out

𐙚 they both have a high libido

𐙚 they are so touchy omg

𐙚 could make out for hours!

𐙚 they are always texting whenever one of them is out of state.

𐙚 they both have a great relationship with each others friends!

𐙚 They love going to the drive inn for dates!

°. — THEIR THINGS!

𐙚 making out in elevators

𐙚 feeling safe in each others arms

𐙚 playing footsies under every table they sit at

𐙚 immediately looking at each other whenever they hear or see something outrageous

𐙚 sharing the food they order

𐙚 slapping each others ass

𐙚 rutger helping stella paint her nails

𐙚 pausing the movie/show a billion times so they can talk about what just happened

𐙚 staring into each others eyes

𐙚 sending each other cute pictures/videos of animals

𐙚 shotgunning into each others mouth

𐙚 singing love songs to each other on there late night drives

𐙚 pulling each other closer in crowds

𐙚 building Lego sets together

𐙚 putting there hands into each others back pockets

𐙚 falling asleep in hammocks

𐙚 always finding a way to mention each other

𐙚 binge watching criminal minds, the walking dead, pretty little liars and gossip girl

𐙚 longgg naps

𐙚 making homemade pizzas

𐙚 Study dates !!!!

𐙚 drinking hot chocolate and doing crossword puzzles

°. — THE INTERNETS FAVORITE MOMENTS!

﹕─┈ the internet absolutely loves all the TikTok’s they make together! They always go viral !!

﹕─┈ how Rutger always finds a way to mention Stella!

﹕─┈ when Stella’s brothers mention Stella and Rutger

﹕─┈ when they go to hockey games together and they always get put on the big screen!

﹕─┈ all the pictures that are taken of the couple, especially the ones when they share a big kiss after his games!

﹕─┈ the pictures of Rutger being seen at almost all of her competitions!

﹕─┈ when Luke talked about his summer and mentioned Stella and Rutger and them at the lake house!

﹕─┈ when Rutger was accidentally seen in the back ground of a umich video in the locker room with his shirt off, a few hickeys seen on his v-line

﹕─┈ how giggly and happy Stella gets when she’s asked about her relationship on podcasts

﹕─┈ just how in love they are really!

﹕─┈ when Gavin accidentally spilled on a live he didn’t get much sleep the night before because the people next door at the hotel were being ‘loud’ winky face . . . fans found out he was talking about Stella and rut

°. — LOCKSCREENS!

Rutger’s;

Rutger took this when the two went exploring so she could take some pictures, Rutger took this picture and ever since Stella sent it to him it’s been his lock screen since !

Stella’s;

The person Stella became once these pictures came out, like she drove her friends crazy with how much she talked about them. And poor rutger was so flustered (he loved it) with how much Stella complimented him.

°. — MOODBOARD!

a/n ﹒ I really wanna make an n.sfw version ! I’d just need some ideas. If you have some, please feel free to send them in my inbox, please just clarify that it would be for the n.sfw profile !!!

°. — taglist ( @privatemythss @cixrosie @toasttt11 )

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novalizinpeace · 1 month

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I want to share with ya'll something funny that my lil cousin make me remember when i was talking with her about the cartoon critters ('cause yeah, she's my betatester for the cartoon, nothing better that to have a real kid in the matter)

You know why i had been so invested in the critters?

As i had said before i work with children, and due that i had to find ways to bring their attention while working in ''boring'' things, and what was the idea i got for it?

With pretty characters of course!

I for my work i make some curious characters, wanna see the funny part, this were the design

Take in mind, i made this around february 2023, A LOT before the smiling critters were out, so you can imagine the surprise and shock in my mind when the teaser trailer was out. Yeah, the design aren't the same, and i admit they are kinda generic children design for animals, but the similarities were so shocking for me that i remember looking at my files again and thinking how the fuck did this happens? Did i base them in the smiling critters without know it? Had i see this design before and i couldn't remember? Doesn't matter at the end, casualities happens i guess, so i leave it like that.

Sadly, this little creatures hadn't never used for their purpose. Even when i had make a lot of didactic work, i hadn't have the financial meaning to put it out (copyright, print it, distribute it).

I was so hyped with this that i didn't think on it till it was too late (aka i had made a full mini book and their stories), so even when sad, i accept it and keep moving, so they had been canned in my files since then.

This is probably why i had embrace the cartoon critters with such power, 'cause in a way they're allowing me to work in something similar to this with the internet support, and that make me happy.

Why 'm sharing all this? Well, my cousin also help me design this lil' creatures at it time (the cat, called Alicia, was completly her idea), so she ask me to draw the cat with crafty in the first episode (since is also her fav one in the critters), and well, i did it

So yeah, this lil cat is going to be a background character, and maybe the rest of the lil' creatures too, since my cousin was really happy to see her design in my actual project, and i'm happy to see this design one more time.

Nova Out

#story time #personal project #nova say

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aphroditeslover11 · 4 months

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Christmas Morning Distractions

Tommy Shelby x Reader

This took me longer to get to you than it was meant to, sorry it is so short. It was fun to write though!

No warnings, just fluff!

The Shelby family was a member bigger than it was last year. You and Tommy now had two beautiful children between you, Charlie who was his son from a previous marriage (but had accepted you as his own mother) and now Rosie, your daughter who would be turning one in February. The Christmas season had been full of excitement, Charlie was at the age now where he could understand the concept of Father Christmas and you had managed to bully your husband into playing into all of the traditions surrounding it. No matter how much Tommy complained, there was no way that he didn’t enjoying taking the bite out of the reindeer’s carrot and the mince pies that were left out. It was a bit suspicious though in your opinion that Father Christmas had also been left out at glass whiskey.

The whole family would be coming over later, eating dinner and opening presents together. The children, mainly Charlie, were getting restless that they were having to wait to open all of their presents. Sat in the drawing room, you could see the lines of Tommy’s forehead drawing together in impatience. He was a good father, but not a tolerant one.

“Charlie, we’ve had this conversation. We have to wait for your cousins to get here before you can open anything…” The boy was about to interrupt when you piped in.

“Surely there must be something that you want to do before then? Something else a little festive?”

“Here’s an idea for you Charlie, why don’t we go and see the horses, eh? You like the stables, it’s snowed a bit overnight and the horses could do with a visit, we could take them something for Christmas as well if you like.” The little boy’s face lit up, he was clearly enthused by the idea.

Charlie was sent to the kitchen to find some carrots from Francis whilst you worried about wrapping up the baby. Tommy emerged at the same time as his son, proffering coats to all of you. He had a complex about you getting cold, he seemed to have decided you were particularly fragile ever since the birth. He took Rosie from you, carrying her in one and arm holding your hand with the other as headed out to the stables.

It didn’t matter how many times Charlie saw the horses, he was always just as excited.

“Go on then lad, go and give them the carrots you got from Frances and make sure you wish them a Merry Christmas - horses can sense that it’s a time to celebrate just as much as you can.” The child went bobbing into the stables, going to find his favourite horse, a bay mare that Tommy had flatteringly named after you - it had a particularly skittish temperament. He reached up to it with the carrot, which it gratefully accepted, his little smile even brighter than the pristine white snow which covered the ground. Tommy drew you to him as you was watched, he had arranged Rosie so that she was tucked inside his overcoat, making sure she wasn’t caught in the wind.

“This is a lovely way to spend a morning Tom, a really good idea baby.”

“Well, I do have ‘em occasionally love,” he chuckled.

“You know, I’d like to make this a tradition, do it every year,” you suggested.

“In that case love, that is what we’ll do.”

#cillian murphy #cillian murphy x reader #tommy shelby x reader #tommy shelby #peaky blinders #fanfic #requests

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writingjourney · 4 months

Note

I'm a Primo girl but here lately I've been loving Secondo fics

As a plus size girl with a big chest I humbly ask for soft Secondo cuddles??

Also working on my own first ever Secondo fic where he meets a female retail worker and she gets under his skin. She really wants to live him not just bed him.

Here's a little something for you!!

Secondo x gn!Reader skin to skin under the cut ♡

(content: 400 words of softness, implied plus size reader)

His even breathing softly caresses your skin. With his nose pressed to your sternum you can feel each exhale like a soft breeze as it meets the goosebumps that have already formed. Secondo hums, content to rest on the pillow that is your chest with your scent chasing each slow breath he takes.

You reach out to trace the sharp line of his cheekbone, following the curve all the way down to his jaw that is, for once, relaxed. He holds so much tension in his body but in your arms it dissolves, thawing like icicles in the warmth of a bright February sun. At your touch, he sighs deeply and nuzzles your skin, his fingertips following the line from your hip to your waist and back down. Unhurried, he draws a pattern that resembles an S, consciously or subconsciously marking you as his. Not that there is any doubt, not when your skin is pressed to his, when your heartbeats have long since synced and every breath you take is an echo of his own.

Secondo radiates heat, a body that never seems to cool down even if the man it carries used to shield himself from the warmth of the world around him. But as you uncovered what lay underneath his cool exterior, you found a heart so big that you could pour all of your love into it. You continue to do so every day and he absorbs it like a thirsting plant.

As he notices you shiver, Secondo raises his head and wraps himself firmly around you. His hand squeezes the supple flesh of your hips before he presses underneath your shoulder blade, pulling your upper body against his so that you can feel the rhythm of his chest as it rises and falls against yours. His nose brushes the tip of yours and he steals a lazy kiss before he hooks his leg around the back of your knee to pull you ever closer. It is all softness, curves melting into valleys, two bodies molding to fit each other’s shapes until no air can fit between them.

You close your eyes and revel in that brilliant warmth of his. There is no need to hold on tight, no reason why he would slip away, and yet you bring your own hands to his back and slowly draw the pattern of your initial on his spine. Secondo hums once more, not letting go for a very long time.

Thank you for reading! ♡

Masterlist – my Ao3 – Join my tag list

#papa emeritus ii x reader #secondo x reader #papa emeritus ii fanfiction #secondo fanfiction #the band ghost fanfiction #reader insert #gn reader

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nejis-desk · 2 months

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Jack Jeanne Complete Collection - Interview with Ishida Sui and Towada Shin Translation

This interview is from the Jack Jeanne Complete Collection art book, it’s available on CDJapan and Amazon jp. You can also purchase a digital only version on bookwalker jp. I encourage anyone reading to purchase the game (if you haven't already) or the art book itself to support Ishida and Towada directly. 💕

This is a VERY long interview so I apologise for any typos or errors I may have missed.

~ ~ ~

An interview with Ishida Sui and Towada Shin, who both worked on writing the story of Jack Jeanne. In this interview they reveal what went on behind the scenes during production, rejected story ideas and much more. This interview was conducted remotely on the 9th of February 2021.

Interviewer: Yui Kashima

How did Ishida Sui end up making an otome game?

—How did the production of Jack Jeanne begin?

Ishida: It was sometime around Autumn 2015 I think… On an old personal site that I used to run, I received an email from the company Broccoli to an email address that I no longer use. It was a commission request for character designs.

—In 2015 Tokyo Ghoul was still being serialised wasn’t it?

Ishida: Yes. Usually job offers like that go through Shueisha first, so I contacted my editor asking why this one was sent to my private email… At the time, in addition to working on Tokyo Ghoul, I was also drawing illustrations for a tear-off calendar and very busy with various other things, so when my editorial department heard about the offer they seemed very shocked like "What!?".

—Why did you decide to accept the offer even though you were so busy?

Ishida: I would often receive offers asking for me to draw manga or illustrations, so I figured that this one was a similar case. However, some words in the email caught my eye. Like ‘Gender Swap’, ‘Takarazuka’ and ‘All Boys Opera'. When I saw these concept ideas, a dream began to swell in my chest and I felt like giving it a try.

I think if it had just been a normal character design job, I would have turned it down. However just from reading the short brief in the email my interest was piqued. While in discussions with the Young Jump editorial department, I also casually mentioned the kind of offer I’d received to Towada-san.

Towada: Yeah, Ishida-san asked me for some advice. I was also drawn to the ‘Gender Swap’ and ‘Opera’ concepts. I could easily visualise the setting of the story. Additionally, it seemed like it would be a story that included many different themes such as gender. When I thought about that, I figured that Ishida-san would be a good fit, since I knew he would be able to draw something that went beyond all genders.

Ishida: I’ve been drawing androgynous characters for a long time, so Towada-san and I talked and wondered if that's what they must be looking for. After that, I created my own proposal and submitted it to Broccoli.

—You created your own proposal, Ishida-san?

Ishida: When I looked at the original proposal that Broccoli had sent me, a lot of it differed from my personal tastes. It was a very upbeat and dazzling story. It would’ve been hard for me to match my art style to that, so in my proposal I noted things like ‘if it were me, I’d do something more like this’. I was interested in this unpolished gem of a story, so I thought it would be a waste to turn it down altogether. I wanted to at least try throwing my own ideas into the ring, so I spent a week creating the six main characters and sent them in.

—At that time, I heard that the game wasn’t titled ‘Jack Jeanne’ yet, but was instead called ‘Jiemarie’.

Ishida: At first, I wanted to try creating a word that doesn’t exist. So using French as a base, I came up with ‘Jiemarie’ as the game's provisional title. But then a month later when I was reconsidering the title, I looked at it again and thought, damn this looks lame. So I hurriedly called Towada-san on Skype and we entered a discussion that lasted about ten hours over what the title should be.

That’s when we decided on ‘Jack Jeanne’. The male roles take the name from the knight, or the ‘Jack’ in a deck of playing cards. And the female roles ‘Jeanne’ take from the word parisienne and Jeanne d’Arc. When these two terms are put together, I feel like you can comprehend what the game is about with a bit of nuance. Plus you can shorten it to ‘JJ’… That’s also the title of a magazine though (lol).

—Taking on another job whilst your manga was being serialised sounds like it would be tough on you both physically and mentally.

Ishida: I think I must’ve been a bit unwell (lol). My body was fine, but being able to work on something other than a serialised manga was a lot easier on me mentally. I may have seen it as a way to escape, so I didn’t feel that working on two projects at the same time was difficult. When it comes to game development, I can only create what I’m capable of, and there was no set release date yet. Of course, I would work on and submit things whenever I could though.

—What kind of things would you submit?

Ishida: I would sketch character designs, discuss and create story elements with Towada-san and try to put Univeils history into chronological order. Then I would share the progress with Broccoli and have meetings and such with them. In the beginning, rather than having to draw anything yet, it was mostly just brainstorming and planning. That’s why I think I was able to do it all concurrently with the serialisation of my manga.

~ ~ ~

How Ishida Sui and Towada Shin know each other

—Do you chat with Towada-san often?

Ishida: Well yeah, she is my older sister after all.

Towada: We talk a lot. When we both have the time we chat over Skype.

Ishida: Once we start the conversation can last up to five or six hours. We mostly talk about things that happened throughout our day. When I’m talking to someone I often bring up something that’s happened to me and ask their opinion on it. She became someone that I could chat with whilst working on my manga. Ever since my student days we’d talk until early morning, I usually told her about storyboards I’d drawn.

—At the Ishida Sui exhibition it was revealed that Towada-san had even given you advice on some of your earliest works.

Ishida: Yeah that’s right. It was a work I’d prepared for a 'bring your own work along' induction course in Tokyo that I attended back in my student days. It was a manga about two characters who eventually became the prototypes for Tsukiyama and Hori Chie in Tokyo Ghoul. It was only about 30 pages long, however when I showed it to Towada-san the day before the presentation, she told me that she thought my linework was too thin.

Towada: Yeah, the overall linework of the manga was thinly drawn. Once I told Ishida-san this thought, he began tracing over his linework and making it thicker. And then when he looked at it again, he said “Yep, I need to redraw the whole thing”.

The linework being too thin was only my personal opinion and the presentation was in Tokyo the next day, so in horror, I began hastily telling him, “You won’t make it in time, stop, stop!”

Ishida: All I could think about was that the lines really were too thin, so I wanted to redraw it. All of the screentones had already been affixed to the panels, but I didn’t want to bring something along with me whilst knowing it wasn’t the best that it could be.

Towada: Ishida-san handled the linework and I helped with redoing the screentones. We worked throughout the night and finished redrawing the whole manuscript. Once it was done, it wasn’t even comparable to the previous version, the lines were powerful and the characters' expressions conveyed a lot. I was seriously worried though (lol), I didn’t know if we’d complete it in time.

Ishida: I couldn’t think about anything other than the lines being too thin, so I wasn’t even worried about whether I had enough time or not.

Towada: I fell asleep halfway through, but you continued and boarded that Tokyo bound flight without having slept a wink, didn’t you?

Ishida: Yeah. I let Towada-san sleep and continued applying the screentones myself right up until the very last minute. I was still applying them whilst on the plane and also after my arrival in Tokyo. I used screentone number 10 a lot, so I remember the scenery around me gradually began to look grainy like the screentone. It felt as though I was hallucinating.

—Sounds like it was a tough manuscript to complete. Towada-san was also the author for the Tokyo Ghoul novels, has your relationship always been one akin to work partners?

Ishida: When it was decided that Tokyo Ghoul would be getting a novelisation, I was given other authors' works to look at. However, none of their styles really clicked with me, and they didn’t seem right for the series. I knew that Towada-san wrote, so I tried reaching out to her.

Although back in the days of Tokyo Ghoul’s serialisation, Towada-san and I didn’t talk as much as we do now. If I had any concerns I would just try and sort them out by myself. We’d always gotten along as brother and sister, however we didn’t really start to have a ‘work partners’ kind of relationship until we started working on Jack Jeanne together.

Towada: That’s true. Back then, we only occasionally conversed regarding the novelisation of Tokyo Ghoul. Before :re we only spoke once every few months over Skype. As Ishida-san said, it wasn’t until I started working on Jack Jeanne that we really started properly talking to one another.

—How often would you contact each other?

Towada: Depending on what stage we were at, we would bounce ideas off each other once every three or so days. Ishida-san would make a request like “I’d be happy if this part of the script was done within the next two weeks.” And then I’d present what I’d written and we’d discuss it and then I’d return to writing again. This process was repeated until Jack Jeanne reached its completion.

—Was Ishida-san the one that reached out to Towada-san to write the script of Jack Janne?

Towada: He didn’t ask me specifically to write the script, early in development he’d ask me to help with some research like “I’d like you to look up some information on this, could you help me?”. I’ve always liked ikusei games and within that genre I also enjoy romance and otome games. So I think that’s why it was easy for Ishida-san to consult me about it. We’ve had a common interest in games ever since we were kids.

Ishida: Back then I played games like ‘Pinnochia no Miru Yume’ and ‘Angelique’. I wanted to try and conquer Marcel in Angelique but it was one difficult game, so it was a tough task. Before I could even raise any flags with him, the training aspect of the game was so hard that no matter how many times I played I never got any good at it.

Towada: I’m the type that loves playing games, so after talking with Ishida-san, I went on to play every popular otome game that had been released around 2015, as well as every Broccoli published otoge. I completed every single character route in those games. I began analysing otome game trends and Broccoli’s brand identity and relayed my findings to Ishida-san. After that, I went along with the Jack Jeanne production team and Makasano Chuuji-san from Shueisha, who was the scriptwriter of the Tokyo Ghoul anime. We all visited the city of Takarazuka for research.

Ishida: I was also supposed to be there for the Takarazuka trip but since I had my manga to worry about, I had Towada-san go and take in the atmosphere in my place.

Towada: I did have to gather material but I think I visited Takarazuka a total of five or six times. From morning I would watch the Takarazuka theatre from afar and simply watch the guests move about, soaking in the atmosphere of the city.

Along with the Takarazuka plays, I also watched student plays, in total I probably went and watched one hundred shows. Theatre shows that are performed by professionals are fully realised and flawless. So getting to see the contrast to student plays, where they progress and improve until the show is complete was a very helpful reference.

I’ve always enjoyed watching plays, so everything I had to research overlapped with my own hobbies. I still shared my own input with Ishida-san though.

Ishida: I’d never formally been asked to write a script before… I felt like a fraud (lol). I think it’s because I’m not very good at being considerate of other people. I don’t think I’d be able to work with anyone other than Towada-san on something.

—Why is that?

Ishida: Well, for one I don’t want to talk to anyone for long periods of time (lol). Because Towada-san understands what aspects of a story are important to me, she’s also able to comprehend what I mean when I talk in abstract concepts. We could save time by not needing to have any pointless discussions.

Towada: Back then Ishida-san was still very busy publishing his manga, so bringing in all sorts of new people to work on the project probably would’ve put quite the burden on him. That’s why I wanted to help him out in some way.

After researching all sorts of things, I ended up participating in a production meeting for Jack Jeanne, but I was not expecting that I myself would end up being in charge of writing the script. Rather, I was more just looking forward to getting to play a game made by Ishida-san. As things progressed though, I was asked to try plotting things out, or to write part of the script to be used temporarily. Eventually I came to think, why don’t I just write the scenario myself?

I’d never written the script for a game before though, so that’s what had been holding me back. Unlike novels, it’s commonplace to not have to write descriptively. Novels are made up of dialogue and descriptions, like describing the setting and characters' expressions or emotions. So I had to spend a lot of time working out how to write to properly convey a story through dialogue alone.

When I first started getting the hang of it, I tried writing a script that still included descriptions but I quickly stopped. Jack Jeanne is about theatre, so I figured that it would be easier to convey the presence and narrative of the story through conversation. I usually write novels, so I was uncertain, but since Jack Jeanne has sprites of the characters on screen, I thought that I could do it. I suppose it’s closer to writing for a manga rather than a novel.

~ ~ ~

The rejected character routes

—Before Tokyo Ghoul was completed, what kind of things did you work on?

Ishida: The first two years were mostly spent creating the game’s world and mechanics. Like deciding how many performances there would be, how the plays would be presented. Would it be a dialogue drama? Would there be mini games? Things like that. We also had to decide whether summer break would be included or not, how raising affection would work and how the choices would be presented. Those are the sort of things that were talked about first.

—You got to watch over the entire game’s development then.

Ishida: At first, I got carried away and envisioned a stage play game full of skill mechanics that I personally enjoyed. A busy game full of specs you can raise and improve in mini games, however when I explained these details to a friend of mine, they were like “You’re just imagining a game that you would like, right?”.

They asked me if that’s what the eventual players of Jack Jeanne would be looking for. That same friend said that since it’s a story that deals with the theme of theatre, it would be better if the player could witness the performances themselves. So I took that advice and the prototype of the current Jack Jeanne was created. I told all of this to Towada-san and had her handle the script.

Towada: You can’t write a script without knowing how the game’s system works after all.

Ishida: Now that I think about it, before Tokyo Ghoul was finished, rather than build the game's foundation, all I was really doing was scattering the sand to prepare for said foundation.

When Tokyo Ghoul entered its endgame especially, I really had to concentrate on it, so I took a six month break from Jack Jeanne. Ending a story requires a lot of energy and attention, so I left the practical work of Jack Jeanne to Towada-san and only supervised the music production and attended any important meetings.

—So during serialisation you were making preparations to jump right into it afterwards?

Ishida: Yes exactly. I wasn’t able to do much practical work, so I had Towada-san prepare the script in advance for me. And for the time being, create one character route.

—Which character was it?

Towada: It was Shirota. I wrote about the equivalent length of a short book and it was more or less complete. In the end, we scrapped the entire thing though… Because the atmosphere in the beginning was quite dark.

Ishida: It was dark because I was too used to Tokyo Ghoul. It included issues like a troubled household and severe bullying. Reading something like that wouldn’t put the player in a happy mood.

Despite it being a story about the theatre, my attention drifted to other topics which didn’t fit. And it was me who had asked Towada-san to write something like that… A couple months after the Shirota route had been completed, I read over what Towada-san had written for me once again and realised that it was a bit too gloomy. I’d forgotten what prompt I’d even given to her in the first place (lol).

The first character portraits and CGs that I created were for Shirota too. The reason being that Shirota is the only second year student and he was already a complete individual, so he was easy to create for. As for the third year students, there’s three of them, Fumi, Kai and Neji. Along with Kisa, Suzu and Yonoga are also first years, so continuity and character relationships need to be taken into account in order to create them, so they were a little more complex.

—How did the other characters come to be?

Ishida: At the proposal stage, the first character that I created was Kai. It’s a game where characters will be falling in love and confessing to one another, so first off I wanted a character that was handsome. Then I made Fumi who would be Kai’s partner. After that, I think Shirota was next.

Towada: At first you created the characters by basing them on plays didn’t you?

Ishida: I’m a fan of Yamamoto Shugoro’s work ‘Kikuchiyosho’ so Shirota was created using that as a base. In Shirota's case the genders are swapped, but Kikuchiyosho is a story about a girl who is born into a samurai family and raised as a boy. It has an element of androgyny and portrays the confusion and anger concerning gender quite well.

—How did you select the plays to base the characters on?

Ishida: I chose plays that lots of people are familiar with and would be easy to assign characters to. Kai is ‘The Phantom of the Opera’, Fumi is ‘Salome’, Neji is ‘Faust’ and Yonoga is ‘Shintokumaru’. Kisa and her classmate Ootori are ‘Don Quixote’. Ootori ended up becoming a side character though.

—So Ootori was originally meant to be a main character?

Ishida: Yeah. If I were to compare it to Tokyo Ghoul, Ootori is in the same position as Tsukiyama. I wanted a pompous character like that in Quartz. However I may have made him a little too unique (lol).

I received feedback from Broccoli that they want the main six characters to be an elite group, so a more easy to approach character would be better. So I moved the bright and cheerful character that I had originally made as Onyx’s Jack Ace over. That character was Suzu.

Making the characters personifications of plays started to become difficult to stick with though, so I abandoned the idea entirely halfway through.

—Despite appearing glamorous, the characters are all dealing with their own issues, like certain complexes and family troubles. I think that they’re all conflicts that are easy to sympathise with, how did you decide what the backbone of each character's conflict would be?

Ishida: First I created the character's appearance and then decided what personality would match them. Like with Fumi, when I began to think about making his story about the unique struggles that come with being born into a respected family, if becoming a successor was going to come into question, then he needed to have a brother.

In this way, I worked backwards from the vibe of his appearance and created his home life. I did the same with the other characters too, thinking things like ‘to have a personality like this they must not have parents, or they must struggle with expressing themselves’.

I think that if you let your characters do human-like things, then aspects of them that are easy to sympathise with will be born.

Jealousy, setbacks due to failure, inferiority complexes… Each and every character naturally ended up having some form of theme attached to them.

—I feel as though Kisa had a different sort of personality than that of a typical heroine.

Ishida: To put it simply, I want my protagonists to be fighting something. If they’re not giving it their all, then it’s no good. If they’re just standing around, then you can’t empathise with them.

—There’s times where she draws others towards her or supports those around her. She also has some masculine aspects to her.

Ishida: I think that I’m moved by characters who make me think “This kid’s really admirable”. That’s why I made Kisa a girl who works hard no matter the difficult situation that she’s in. I like Kisa and I’m sure Towada-san feels the same way.

Towada: She’s the result of both of our preferences. While due to the game’s setting, she of course has struggles related to being a girl, but I was careful to write the main thread of her story in a way that transcended gender and instead simply showed her charm as a human being.

—Regarding gender, I was impressed by how neutrally it was portrayed.

Ishida: Yes. Originally, I was going to make Shirota a character with a feminine personality, but I ended up scrapping the idea. In the end, he ended up having more of a masculine mentality. The premise of Jack Jeanne is that boys also play the female roles on stage, but it’s not a metaphor for anything and I didn’t want it to raise any questions. I simply wanted to give it my all creating plays with that setting and create something new and refreshing.

I don’t struggle with any gender related issues myself, so it’s not like I can fully understand what it’s like, but in general I’ve never considered gender to be a very big deal. If someone born male were to tell me “I have the heart of a woman” then I’d just think ‘ok cool’.

To me it feels strange to place so much weight on such an issue. I don't see why others need to be bothered by someone else's gender, I'm not since I myself am not able to speak for such experiences.

Towada: At first, it was possible to take that direction with Shirota but as I continued to write, I came to realise that there was no need to exaggerate any emphasis on his gender identity.

To those looking from an outside perspective, it may seem like a unique identity such as that is a person's defining trait, when in reality it's only just a portion of their whole self. If you consider it to be all they are, then you end up denying the other aspects of that person.

Whilst considering the individually of each character, I kept in mind to write them in a way that seemed natural for them.

—The side character, Tanakamigi Chui of Amber, had a very striking presence. How did you go about creating him?

Ishida: I wanted someone that’s easily understood to be the antagonist, so I went ahead and tried to draw someone who looked like an unstoppable genius. Despite being a second year, it’s as if he controls the school. I wanted an enigmatic and intriguing character like that. Once I named him Tanakamigi Chui I felt as though he was complete and his inclusion in the story was quickly decided on.

—On the flip side, were there any characters that you had a hard time creating?

Ishida: I had to think a little harder about the other members of Amber. They needed to have the aura of the enemy but since they’re only villains in the context of the stage, they’re not actually bad people. So it was hard to find that balance between them.

Visually they’re edgy and have a talented vibe, but they also have their own individual quirks, they’re not all homogeneous. I struggled with Kamiya Utsuri especially, I wanted him to visually look like he could be a Jeanne while also still looking like a boy, so it was difficult to get him right. I didn’t have to do many redesigns though and all the other characters came to be without much trouble.

What I actually had more trouble with, was the fact I made the cast too large. I initially created almost double the amount of first year characters, but when I looked back over the script that Towada-san created, I told her “There’s way too many characters, please cut some of them out.” To which Towada-san replied, “Ishida-san, you’re the one who created them in the first place.” (lol).

Towada: That’s because the cut characters had already appeared in the script (lol).

Ishida: I feel that when there’s too many characters a lot of them get wasted, so just like that I end up creating and scrapping a lot of my characters. I think even Broccoli were surprised by the amount of times I’d suddenly tell them “Oh that character doesn’t exist anymore.”

—Apart from characters, were there any other aspects of the game that were abruptly discarded?

Ishida: The performances I suppose… Originally I had wanted there to be a larger variety of shows, but if you were to put all of them in the script it probably would’ve ended up being three million characters long.

In the beginning of development, I had originally planned for each character's route to have a different final performance. There’s six main characters, and including Kisa’s route, that would total to seven unique shows.

Before that there’s the newcomers, summer, autumn and winter performances, so I arranged to have a script written for each. Basically I wanted to include more shows and increase the amount of sub stories, but that would be confusing to play through and development would never end. The game engine has its limits too, so I decided to keep it simple.

Towada: It would’ve been difficult to play through all that as well (lol). For the final performance, we settled on it being one show and letting the player enjoy it from each character’s perspective instead. And even then, there’s still over 20 different endings to the game, so it still took a long time until everything was fully complete.

—Newcomers, summer, autumn, winter and the final performance, were these five show’s scripts all original?

Towada: Yes. However at first, like the characters, we had planned to base them on famous productions. Like Shakespeare or fairy tales. We figured that players would find it easy to get immersed in plays that they were already familiar with.

Ishida: For the newcomers' performance, I thought we could have a show called ‘House of Biscuits and Candy’ based on Hansel and Gretel. I had also originally planned to use each character's motif to base the plays on.

Towada: Like Shintokumaru, right?

Ishida: Yeah yeah. I even went as far as getting permission to use it, but if the show were to be following a story that already exists, then the script would be bound to it. Once I understood that it would make it difficult to relate the stories to Univeil, we decided to create the plays ourselves.

Since I acquired the permission to adapt Shintokumaru though, maybe I’ll have to make a manga about it someday…

By the way, the one who was saying “Let’s do this” and then changing it to “Nevermind let’s not” was all me. I’ll start on something wholeheartedly thinking that it’s the right choice before realising halfway through that I can’t actually take it anywhere and stop. Jack Jeanne’s development was full of trial and error.

Whenever I’m about to start something, Towada-san will express her concerns with my ideas but I always end up pushing on with them only to ultimately scrap it.

I probably have at least ten books worth of scrapped drafts alone. I had no real knowledge of how to properly craft a story. I hadn’t drawn anything other than Tokyo Ghoul, so even though I had no idea what the fundamentals of storytelling were, I misunderstood that I could write other kinds of stories too. This time around I studied and revised each time… I really learnt a lot.

Towada: You learn things by doing them, so I think I just got used to it (lol). Also, you don’t commonly see stories presented within stories, I thought that it was a rare case for a game especially.

~ ~ ~

The story behind ‘Lyrics: Ishida Sui’

—You also wrote the lyrics for each of the songs used in the performances didn’t you, Ishida-san?

Ishida: Yes, that’s how things ended up. It goes without saying, but no one, including myself, thought that I’d be the one writing the lyrics.

Originally Broccoli brought in several professional lyricists and had me look over what they’d written. However I couldn’t help but feel that they were lyrics I’d heard somewhere before, or they at least didn’t leave a unique impression on me. I did feel the finesse of a professional, and they were beautiful lyrics that fit the story in one way or another… But the words used didn’t touch on the core of the story.

The songs in Jack Jeanne are stage songs that Neji wrote for the members of Quartz. So unless you’re familiar with the setting and understand how the characters are feeling, then you won’t be able to write lyrics that perfectly fit the scenario.

While I knew that my lyric writing technique would be far from that of a professionals, I thought that no one understands and loves these characters more than me, so I approached Broccoli about it. I’d poured my heart into not only the character designs, but also the story and system of the game, so I didn’t want to compromise on the lyrics and have them pale in comparison.

So, to the best of my ability, I wanted to at least try my hand at writing them. I had Broccoli check whether or not what I’d written was viable and asked them “If there are no problems, then please let me write the lyrics.”

—Did you sing the temporary vocals for the songs too?

Ishida: When I submitted the lyrics to Broccoli, I got the normal response of “Thank you, we’ll leave the temporary vocals to you.” Along with this message they also wrote “You can hire a professional vocalist if you’d like, or you could record the temporary vocals yourself.”

Because of this I started thinking that maybe I should record them myself. Similar to how one wouldn’t be able to write lyrics for the songs without a deep understanding of the story, if you weren’t the one who wrote the lyrics, you wouldn’t know how they’re supposed to be sung either.

So, after deciding that I had to be the one to do it, I made preparations to acquire some audio recording equipment and downloaded some editing software. I divided up the parts and harmonised with myself and over the course of three days, I finished recording the temporary vocals. That’s more or less how I did it.

—When recording yourself singing, being self conscious about it can interfere, can’t it?

Ishida: I don’t think I was possessed by him or anything, but… When I tried to go all out, as expected I felt a bit hesitant, so I began recording whilst imagining I was Neji.

In the game, Neji is the one who writes the scripts, so surely he would also write the lyrics and subdivide the song and do everything himself. So I got through it thinking like that. In that pumped up mental state, I sent in the temporarily recorded songs but all Broccoli said back was “Alright, let us know your upcoming schedule”, I got so carried away that I was somewhat bewildered by the cold response (lol).

~ ~ ~

Recruiting via DM, gathering specifically selected creators

—It appears the creators you gathered to handle things such as the concept art and music are all people whose work you enjoy.

Ishida: Yes. Almost everyone was sent a targeted offer. For example, I’ve always loved the concept artist Lownine-san’s work ever since I was a student. I suppose you could say I was jealous of how high quality their artwork is… They’re someone who I thought I'd never be able to beat in my entire life. Lownine-san is an amazing artist who is especially good at blending characters into their backgrounds.

When we were creating Jack Jeanne, I wasn’t sure if I’d be able to pull something like that off, so I definitely wanted to recruit Lownine-san for the job. After getting permission from Broccoli, I reached out to Lownine-san myself through Twitter DM’s. I had only appreciated Lownine-san’s work from afar, and we’d never actually interacted before, but we did both follow each other. I received a reply that Lownine-san was fully on board to accept the job.

Towards the end of Jack Jeanne’s development, I got the chance to speak with Lownine-san, so I asked them “Could you teach me how to draw?” They gladly accepted this request and taught me how to draw whilst screen sharing over Skype. However, in about 10 minutes, they’d already drawn such an amazing piece that I felt I should just put my pen down (lol).

Towada: You were a little down after that, weren’t you?

—Had you been a fan of Kosemura-san, who was in charge of music, since you were a student as well?

Ishida: Yes, I’ve listened to Kosemura-san’s music a lot since I was a student. When I was brainstorming what kind of music would fit Jack Jeanne, Kosemura-san’s ‘Light Dance’ immediately came to mind, since it fit perfectly. Because I didn’t have any personal connections to Kosemura-san however, I didn’t know how to get in contact with him, so I made the request through Broccoli. I only found out about this recently, but apparently Kosemura-san almost turned the offer down*, I was quite shocked to hear that (lol).

*When the initial request was sent, it was under wraps that the game was being made by Ishida Sui, and since Kosemura-san didn’t have much experience in writing game music, he wasn’t optimistic about the offer. However, later, when he learned that it was a game being made by Ishida Sui, he readily accepted the offer.

—How did Seishiro-san, who was in charge of the choreography, get chosen for the job?

Ishida: A very long time ago I saw the group Tokyo Gegegay appear on a program called DANCE @ HERO JAPAN and I remember thinking ‘this group is crazy good’ and I was immediately charmed by them. After that, whilst I was looking through more videos of Tokyo Gegegay on YouTube, I happened upon a studio workshop video and discovered Seishiro-san.

—What about him caught your eye?

Ishida: Whilst first and foremost his dancing was super sexy, it also had a certain strength to it. I remember thinking that he danced in a way that embraced the best elements of both masculinity and femininity. And that had stayed in my memory ever since. When Seishiro-san was recording motion capture for the game, he allowed me to interrupt and even taught me some of the choreography.

(note: you can watch Seishiro dance here, he is also the choreographer behind this RADWIMPS music video!)

—I hear you’ve known Gyudon-san, who was in charge of making the movies, since your Tokyo Ghoul days.

Ishida: Yes. Around the time volume 13 of Tokyo Ghoul was set to be released, we held a still image MAD (Music Anime Douga) contest. The grand prize winner of said contest was Gyudon-san, who at the time was still only a student. The way they made a video by manipulating the manga panels to move so fluidly was really cool and stood out from the rest.

Around when Tokyo Ghoul had ended and :re was about to start, I had Gyudon-san make a minute long video for me. After that, Gyudon-san grew in popularity and became someone whose work is in high demand, so they seemed very busy.

However when Jack Jeanne was announced, we were able to have them create a promotional video for us. Since I’ve known them since Tokyo Ghoul, I figured I couldn’t go wrong entrusting the job to Gyudon-san. They didn’t just deliver their finished work without a word either, Gyudon-san also made a variety of suggestions and worked on the project with a positive attitude. For the videos used in the performances, I was asked to provide materials and became very involved in the process. I think it took about two weeks… Despite the really tight deadline, Gyudon-san allowed me to catch up and was super helpful.

I was also the one who reached out to Touyama Maki-san, who was in charge of creating the in-game chibi characters and the 4koma manga used for promotional purposes. During Tokyo Ghoul’s publication, Touyama-san would draw short comics for the series as a hobby, I thought they were a nice person for doing so. Their art was great too and I was very thankful. So when it was decided that we’d be displaying chibi characters during the game’s lesson segments, I wanted to leave it to Touyama-san and sent them the offer.

(note: this is the MAD that gyudon won the contest with, they now regularly make moving manga CM's for jump titles, they make the Choujin X ones too!)

~ ~ ~

The winter performance moves into Quartz’s ending, and the divergence in the story since the beginning of the year drastically branches off

—The performances, packed full of each of the character’s skills, continue for a year and pass by in the blink of an eye. Once the new year breaks, it feels as though the atmosphere of the game drastically changes. What were your intentions behind this?

Towada: That’s when the character route specific endings begin. So we packed all the needed material to set them up into the winter performance.

Ishida: The winter performance is like an ending for Quartz as a whole, so we packed it full of good lines and scenes without holding back. I may have used up all of my cards but by using them all without compromise, we were able to make the story reach a nice peak. After that, the story switches to focusing on each character's individual ending.

Towada: We used a lot of great material in the winter performance, which meant the final performance would have to be even better still. In a good way, it gave us a higher hurdle that we now needed to overcome.

—So you needed to create even more anticipation heading into March?

Towada: From January to March, each character’s route is completely different. From the new year onwards I needed to create seven different scripts, so it was very challenging. The amount of text for the last three months of the game alone just about eclipses the amount of text from up until the winter performance. There was so much to write that I began to fear I wouldn’t even be able to finish it.

Ishida: Having more choices that drastically change the ending of the game makes the player feel more involved. So, despite it making things tougher on ourselves, around the time we were working on the autumn performance is when we began thinking about how the game’s big branches should work. Along with the main routes, we also planned for there to be the option to deepen your bonds with the side characters.

—How did you go about creating the confession scenes?

Towada: Before the winter performance, to some extent each character has already grown closer to Kisa, so I kept in mind not to disrupt that flow. Since if I didn’t make it a confession that respected both Kisa and her suitor’s feelings, then I felt it would spoil the fun.

—Is that how you approached the ‘realising Kisa’s a girl’ scenes as well?

Towada: Yes, I suppose so. As I was writing the script, I knew that a point was going to come where Kisa would have no choice but to acknowledge the fact that she’s a girl. There’s characters that realise her true gender once their bond deepens and on the flip side, there are some who don’t realise it at all. There’s also the case of Yonaga, who knew Kisa’s situation from the beginning. I guess you could say each reveal followed one of these three patterns. Those who came to realise it, those who didn’t notice anything and those who knew from the start. I think they ended up being nice variations and I put careful consideration into writing them to make sure none of the realisations felt forced.

Also, the beginning half of the story is akin to that of a sports drama about teenagers putting on shows together, so the room for romance to be added is limited. That’s why, when I first started adding romantic elements to the character routes, it felt strange to me, so I discussed it with Ishida-san. I wasn’t able to effortlessly soak the story in romance. I think I had to rewrite Shirota’s ending at least three times…

Ishida: Shirota was who you tried writing an ending for first after all.

Towada: Shirota and Kisa aren’t the sort of people who’d be all flirty, and Shirota’s initial route was already muddy, so it was difficult to pull everything together. However, once I stopped trying to write in a way that forced romance on them and instead wrote them becoming closer as partners, things went more smoothly.

It may not be a stereotypical sort of love, but it was a human love. I thought that the natural way these two would be drawn together wouldn’t be through whispering sweet nothings to one another, but instead by coming to understand one another without having to exchange words at all. Once I’d completed Shirota’s route, to some extent, I continued writing the other routes in a similar way.

Ishida: While it’s true Shirota acts like that, the other characters all act differently. To the point some aren’t even comparable. In contrast to Shirota, Suzu’s route ended up being more of your stereotypical kind of romance. I thought that it would be nice for each character to have their own unique form of love.

Towada-san’s strong suit is writing a love story with your more classic otome guys like Suzu and Kai. I have no idea about that kind of thing, so I left Towada-san to pour her own ideas into their routes. On the flip side, characters like Fumi and Neji were dyed more with my own ideas. Neji’s way of flirting especially were mostly lines that I requested.

Towada: He’d say “Make him say something like ‘Try seduce me!’ Because I want this CG to appear.” (lol).

Neji especially plays with his words a lot, so unless Ishida-san told me what wordplay to write, I wouldn’t have been able to expand on it. Ishida-san has a very unique way of phrasing things, so I asked him for advice a lot to make sure I was making Neji speak in a Neji-like way. I then arranged the lines and created events in order to reach the intended goal. I constructed the route in a way that wouldn’t disrupt the flow of the story. As for Fumi, Ishida-san wrote his route himself.

Ishida: Yes, I wrote it all myself.

—Well isn’t this quite the exciting plot twist?

Ishida: I turned into quite the young maiden myself (lol). Even though I’m clumsy at it… I began wondering why I ended up loving writing it so much. I added some lines that have more of an adult and deeper meaning to them, so when I played the route myself I was like “Woah!”.

Towada: It’s more interesting if at least one character is that way. From the early days of production, I’d quietly wanted Ishida-san to write a character himself, so I was happy. I was unsure how to deal with Fumi too, so it was a big help that Ishida-san took him on. His route ended up being a lot sweeter than I’d been expecting though, it got my heart racing (lol).

Ishida: I was also the main writer for Kisa’s solo route. There’s no romance in it, but it’s an ending where long lasting friendships are born and it ended up being the kind of story you’d see in an uplifting shoujo manga.

Towada: It’s full of Ishida-san’s flair, I loved it.

Ishida: If love is a lie, then how do you face that lie? That’s the sort of thing I thought about. Kisa is lying about her gender and pretending to be a boy, but Neji, Suzu, Fumi, Yonaga and so on, are also hiding lies within themselves.

The fact they’re all hiding their true motives is something that they have in common with Kisa. Whilst hiding, the two grow closer. I think that a confession is a scene where all these lies intersect and burst open. Everyone is lying, and I thought that was like a play, without realising it I think that slowly became the theme of the work.

As people, we meet others whilst lacking something and some people end up becoming a necessary part for someone else. I wanted to see a drama like that. Despite it being a game with confession scenes, I wanted it to be a story that both women and men alike are able to identify with.

~ ~ ~

From thorns to rounded edges, how the style of work transformed

—If there was a small novels worth of rejected material, then how many books worth of words made it into the final game?

Towada: In terms of paperback books, probably about twenty volumes worth.

—Because as well as the main scenario, there’s also the sub scenarios and the stage plays?

Ishida: As much as time allowed, I put my all into creating the game. However there was a deadline for things like the voiceline recordings, so I was working both day and night to get things done in time.

Towada: I was only getting around three hours of sleep. I feel like at one point Ishida-san didn’t sleep for four days.

Ishida: I was in a serious pinch so I don’t remember it well, but when I was writing the script I would hole myself up in a manga cafe for around thirty hours at a time. Multiple times a month. Once I felt as though I’d written to a good point, I’d go home only to return to the manga cafe again. Why? Because I was sleeping in the manga cafe. I mays well have been living there…

Towada: Once Ishida-san had finished writing his part of the script, he’d have me check it. So at the same time, I’d have Ishida-san check what I’d written.

Ishida: For a period of time it seemed like Towada-san was always awake. Whenever I would send a check request she always responded right away regardless of the time, so I figured she must not be sleeping.

So that my productivity wouldn’t be affected, I made sure to sleep at a regular time, however I’d be awake for like 30~40 hours at a time and then sleep for 10 and then be awake again for another 40. My sleeping patterns would repeat in this cycle. During Tokyo Ghoul’s serialisation my sleeping patterns were similar, so to some extent I might’ve gotten used to it.

—That’s just like Neji-senpai, isn’t it?

Ishida: Yeah yeah, I worked in a similar way to him. However in Neji’s case, he can complete a script just one day after coming up with the idea for it, so he works way faster than us. It took us around two months to write parts of the script, so Neji really is a genius isn’t he? I was writing whilst wishing I could be like Neji.

After experiencing writing a script, I’ve come to have a lot of respect for authors. Writing is completely different from drawing. When writing I need to really concentrate on it, I can’t multi-task or think about anything else. Whereas with drawing, there are some things that can be done as long as you can move your hand, so I can talk to someone whilst drawing or watch a movie in the background or work whilst thinking about other things. I can’t do that when I’m writing though, I was starting to wonder if I really had to think so deeply about everything I wrote.

—During the production of Jack Jeanne, as you worked on the script or the lyrics etc, did you notice any changes in how you worked?

Ishida: For Tokyo Ghoul, I was always consciously adding things, meaning I would draw everything that I came up with. I thought that it was fine to only put 20% of my output into the characters and dialogue. However, when I was working on Jack Jeanne, I began to think that my method of just adding things was incorrect and that I should also consciously remove things. It’s ok to just be left with what’s necessary. My way of thinking ended up being the exact opposite to before.

—What brought about this change in thinking?

Ishida: It was early in production, when I had asked Towada-san to write Shirota’s route for me, I got concerned about the ‘sharpness’ of the story. As I mentioned earlier, I ordered Towada-san to add this and that and sent her walking on a long journey. Except, what lay completed at the end of that road was such a painful story that even I myself was shocked by it. When I looked down at the world I had created it was as if I’d received a psychological shock. I think I even smelt the faint scent of blood.

—From thorns to rounded edges. I still remember the comment you made during a press conference saying, “I was careful to not kill off any characters”.

Ishida: Stories where characters die are usually fast paced with high stakes, however, the kids at univeil are living a different kind of story. I had to consider the best way to create drama in that kind of setting. I thought about it a lot and it may have only ended up being possible because of the fact it was a game.

—Why is that?

Ishida: Because of the flow of the dialogue, backed by Kosemura-san’s music while it's being read out by all of the voice actors. It all comes together as one… That’s what I think at least. Writing and illustrating are Towada-san and I’s main domain of expertise, but I think that it was thanks to all of the other various creators involved that we were able to create something new.

—Do you think anything about yourself changed, Towada-san?

Towada: It came down to the fact I wanted to create something for Ishida-san whilst there were also things that I wanted to add myself. This dilemma caused me trouble at times, however when I started to consider what components I should add, or which ones I should remove, I began to discover what elements I liked and what my own skillset was.

The way that Ishida-san and I go about creating stories is different. I came to understand that Ishida-san’s strong point is creating impactful scenes, whilst mine is plotting and world building. Ishida-san being in charge of the pivotal scenes would make things more exciting, so I concentrated on writing everything else whilst keeping the balance in mind. Through working on Jack Jeanne, I’ve become able to say that my strong suit is being able to create a story that flows well.

It may be true that by working with other people, you come to understand more about yourself. Starting with Ishida-san, I also looked at what the other creators were doing and thought ‘so this is how they interpret the story.’ Seeing what they came up with made me notice different approaches that I hadn’t thought of.

I’d write whilst listening to Kosemura-san’s music and decide which way to take a scene. Or I’d watch Seishiro-san dance and think about how I could make the performances more exciting. We were all connected in some way. Novels are usually written alone by one person, so I came to learn the thrill of working on something in a team.

—The way you all came together as gears to create a single work sounds similar to the story of Univeil.

Towada: True. I never thought I’d experience something straight out of my youth again at this age. Being helped by other team members or being supported by them, being motivated by simple phrases like “It was great” or “I like this idea”.

For example, when I was working on the final phases of the story, I was just writing and writing with no end in sight, I couldn’t take it anymore and my pen just stopped moving. During this dire moment so close to the end, my proofreader messaged me saying, “You’re almost done.” And with that simple message alone, it was as if a burst of light appeared before my eyes. Everything had gone pitch black, but they lit everything back up again. Ishida-san also wrote some of the script, so I didn’t feel as alone.

Ishida: At that time I left all my drawings alone and decided to solely focus on the scenario.

Towada: Yeah, because I hit a point where I wasn’t able to write it on my own anymore… When Ishida-san sent me the script he’d written, it was interesting and I let out a breath of relief. I felt the joy of being able to see someone else's work. I was the same as the Univeil students who find joy in performing with others. I definitely wouldn’t have been able to do it if I was alone.

Ishida: You’ve got that right. I think that if anyone was missing from the team, it wouldn’t have worked out. Not to mention that in my case, everyone’s contributions were directed to me, and they were all people that I’d personally gathered.

With manga, even if it comes to the worst case scenario, at the very least it would all just fall on me. However this game isn’t just something I made on my own, I need to contribute as much as I can or the efforts of everyone around me will go to waste as well. There was a moment where I felt afraid of having such a heavy responsibility placed on me. However, if I had tried to do it all on my own, I think I would have given up.

By listening to wonderful music, reading interesting scripts and moving forward together with everyone, I was inspired. Coming together with fellow creators to make one work came with a lot of challenges, but it was fun. It was refreshing being in an environment working alongside other people, and because of it I was able to experience something new.

—Has working alongside other people changed the way you work at all?

Ishida: Right now I’m still in the state immediately after being swept away by the raging waves of a storm, so I’m not sure how I really feel yet. I’m in the phase of just watching what becomes of Jack Jeanne as the waves subside.

Even though the script and illustrations were done, like bonus stages lots and lots of new tasks kept popping up. So I was still busy with work up until the beginning of October last year. When I looked at some of the thoughts people had on the demo version of the game, it felt as though what we’d all been working so hard on had finally taken shape, and I was relieved.

Working on this project I’ve come to learn both the hardships and the fulfilment that comes with creating something with others. So, I suppose I’ve started considering working on something by myself again… I’m not trying to say that it’s in my nature to want to work alone, I think I’m just experiencing some kind of aftershock. I think the waves are returning.

Towada: I’m still working overtime and supervising Jack Jeanne (lol). Like checking content that will be posted on social media, as well as the 4koma manga. Content is still being released and there have been bug reports from some people who played the demo… Meaning that my journey is still not over yet. I think that things should calm down once the game has been released for a while.

Ishida: Yeah, probably after around five months (lol).

—After their final performance, the members of Quartz all threw a party to celebrate. Did you and the rest of the creators do the same upon the game's completion?

Towada: I celebrated with Ishida-san as siblings. And then afterwards we got swamped with work again (lol).

Ishida: Yeah, we didn’t end up meeting with the other developers or the voice cast. Big project after parties aren’t as common these days, but I do want to hear everyone’s stories of any struggles they had.

Towada: There were way too many people involved in total for me to be able to speak with them all, but I’d still love to convey my impressions to them. Like letting them know what I thought was good, or letting them know that a certain thing really helped me out.

Ishida: Ideally I would like to gather everyone and really have it feel that ‘this is the team of people that created Jack Jeanne’ and I’d like to express my gratitude to them all in person. I hope that an opportunity like that will come one day.

~ ~ ~

#jack jeanne #sui ishida #towada shin #translation #jack jeanne translation #jack jeanne interview #sui ishida translation #otome game #jack jeanne art book

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pearlywritings · 1 year

Text

Can we get a...

synopsis: twins’ seventh birthday is almost half a year away, but it seems that they already have a gift in mind. Though you surely did not expect this.

pairing: Diluc x fem!reader, your twin sons Rufus and Lucas

tw: fluff, pregnancy

word count: 3.5k+ words

Family AU Masterlist

What a peaceful February afternoon. The fire flickers and wood cracks in the fireplace, warming up the area around. In this peaceful noise you make out Adelinde's voice quietly discussing something with Elzer in his study, with a door left slightly ajar - a precaution so she can always hear in case you call for her. But you don't think you'll need her help anytime soon, feeling quite cozy at the moment - multiple pillows support your back as you are resting on the sofa, big comforter covers your body from stomach and down, two boys are snuggling under it from both sides of your body, providing additional warmth and contently squinting from your fingers threading through their thick locks and gently massaging their heads. Their teacher has just left not so long ago and you are letting them relax after the whole morning of studying. After all, a break for yourself was around the corner as well, so the trade papers you'd been reviewing were put on a coffee table aside. You'll have enough time to finish this little work Diluc still lets you do in your condition, while he himself is out to check on the tavern in the city and, as you are guessing, buy kids some treats for their good behavior as well.

You feel Rufus shift a little on your right, bringing your mind back to reality - for a moment the serene atmosphere lulled you into a slumber. It makes you aware of what the two redheads have been doing ever since they joined you in the living room to cuddle - silently exchanging glances over your six-(almost seven)-month pregnant stomach. They are up to something it seems, but there is no hint of mischief in the air, so it should be something harmless - you won't pry until they want to share it with you.

Which happens pretty soon, as the boys nod simultaneously and then two sets of ruby-like eyes glance up at your face and you see it as a signal for a conversation, drawing your hands away from their heads and resting around their half-turned to you bodies.

"Mama?" Rufus is the one who starts the conversation after a few more moments of silence. You tenderly smile and rub his back in reassurance.

"Yes, baby, what is it?"

"Remember how it's our birthday in August?" The boy continues as his brother fumbles with his fingers a little, giving out his nervousness. You know your boys, despite their quite creative and energetic nature they rarely ask for something overly crazy or something you and your husband couldn't afford for them, so this one must be really serious, if the younger of the twins fidgets at the prospect of it. Your fingertips slide to his arm and down to his hands, offering to hold them, and Lucas puts them onto your palm almost immediately.

"Of course I do, loves," your smile never disappears, if anything it gets wider - they will be turning seven, hard to believe it's been several years of your babies' lives already. "Oh! You have something in mind for how you want to celebrate it?" They shake their heads, so you try another, "presents?"

This time they confirm your guess with a nod and Lucas, playing with your fingers, hums.

"And what might it be?" You ask curiously, once again witnessing how the boys exchange glances, as if deciding who'll be the one to announce it. To your surprise they both take deep inhale, look back at you and blurt the question out together:

"Canwegetadog!?"

"Wha-" caught off guard you stare at them with wide eyes, though very quickly recovering. "I am sorry, could you repeat that? I don't think I heard it with all this speed."

Twins pout, as if saying it again offends them very much, but eventually Lucas shakes your hand a little, asking for your attention, which you direct at him.

"Yes?"

"Me and Rufus were wondering… Would you and papa let us get a dog?"

Oh. A pet? Wow, this is new and serious indeed.

"A dog?" They nod again, tense like bowstrings awaiting for your reaction, almost not blinking as they stare at you. A little bit caught off guard you keep your silence for a few seconds, thinking over their request. But it looks like the lack of response from you is concerning for the twins, as they become even more fidgety and avert their ruby eyes, thinking they did the wrong thing, after all, that's an almost life-changing matter. They nearly jump when your hands come to rest on their backs, comfortingly rubbing.

"What kind of dog? Do you have something in mind or you just decided you simply want a dog?"

As if by a wave of the magic wand their shoulders relax, gaze back on you and smiles once again plastered on their cute little faces. Rufus immediately starts untangling himself from under the comforter.

"Oh, we can show! I'll go get it, wait a moment, ma!" Finally free, he jumps off the sofa, swiftly turns back to tuck the fabric back at your side and quickly runs to the stairs and to their room. Lucas presses himself into you again, one arm wrapping around your stomach and his face tucked into your ribs.

"You are not mad?" You hear in a muffled question, which makes you chuckle and put your own hand on top of his.

"Of course not, Lu. An animal companion is a sweet idea, I love it. But before I, or your father make any decisions, we need to fully understand what you two want and how to operate it," and for you to know what to use when appealing the idea to your husband, because it happened so that there’s never been a conversation about pets, aside from his falcon, who is more of a companion to him, and the kids are still wary around her.

"Oh, you mean like, the size, the eating and walking habits, how it is with people?" The younger peaks up and you are amazed at how clever he is.

"Yes, that's what I mean…how do you know?"

"We read it in a book brother went to get. Dad let us use the library in his study and Rufus found an encyclopedia about dogs. There are pictures and all kinds of interesting stuff. We asked Addie to help us a little with the words we didn't know."

You hum in acknowledgement, not having time to say anything else, because you can hear your other son reappearing on top of the stairs and soon tapping his way down and back to you and his brother.

"Here!" He proudly presents you a pretty slim volume and this time you don't even need both hands to take it. Lucas patiently waits for his brother to climb back under the warm fabric and get comfortable and only then tells you to open page 56.

Placing the book partly on your belly, you start searching for the page and find it pretty quickly, as it appears to be the first one in the Snezhnayan national breeds section. While many domestic animals were bred and selected in their homelands, it's not strange to see some of them distributed to other regions as well, so, the non-Mondstadt-originated dog doesn't surprise you.

Seeing the name of the breed though makes you snort on the inside, imagining the look on Diluc's face when he hears about it.

"Snezhnayan Borzoi?" You ask, looking at the illustration of a very elegant dog with long slim legs, equally long curved body, long snout, long tail, long beautiful fur… yeah, everything about this dog is long, which in the end gives a very noble-looking complexion.

Boys nod.

"Yes, we really, really want it… Look how pretty it is!"

"And you both agreed on the same dog?" You ask a little bit in disbelief, knowing very well, how different some of their tastes are.

"Well…" Rufus trails off, staring at his brother, who returns the same kind of look to him.

"We wanted different," Lucas admits, "but when we told Addie, she said two dogs are too much."

Even if they don't elaborate, you understand the meaning behind it. Too much in general. And also there is soon going to be a new member of the family, which means your and Diluc's attention would be occupied even more, and if one dog (or a puppy, at first) is still manageable, two is hardly so.

Looks like your boys are growing so well, learning to make some sacrifices and be open to compromising, your heart couldn't be more happy for them.

"This beauty is pretty indeed," you say after their explanation and you can see how ruby eyes light up with hope. "And you came to an agreement, great job, boys!"

Two sets of arms wrap around your neck and both of your cheeks get a loud smooch.

"Thank you, mama! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

You laugh joyfully, turning head side to side to kiss their foreheads.

"Don't thank me just yet, we still have a game to play," ah, yes, the game the three of you practice before laying out some of the ideas to their father. It both helps to convince him faster and for the twins to develop the argumentative skills. And also works vice versa when they go to dad first with the matter where you have the final word in.

"Why don't you prove to me this sweet dog is the one for you and that generally it is a good idea," the smiles get wider, as they understand what you are implying, and by the confident looks on their faces you can guess they’ve already thought beforehand of what to say to you.

"Yes, mom! So," Lucas decides to not beat around the bush and start right away, "we do not ask for two dogs. We know it is a big deal," he says it so proudly, that you can hardly contain a chuckle.

"Secondly," Rufus points into the book and you glance at the numbers presented there, "this dog is big."

"And why is that good?" the older twin furrows his brows for a moment in thought, pursing his lips. You patiently wait, before he comes up with something.

"I think a small dog is hard to notice and if it barks, the sound is too, um…" ruby gaze darts to the side for help.

"Disturbing," his brother offers.

"Yes, disturbing! And you'll soon have a baby…" both boys look at your belly and Rufus gently pats it, which brings a bright glint to your eyes. They are so considerate.

"Besides," Lucas chirps again, "they are quite lazy while inside and won't be too noisy. When outside they love to run a lot and we have a lot of land around for it. I think we can easily go for a walk three times a day with it."

"Hm, but it says here that each walk should take at least an hour. Sure you can handle it?" You point at the paragraph with the descriptions and boys start thinking. "You should understand that this will be your dog and it will listen to you."

"Yeah, we read that borzoi do not really listen, and to the people who are not their owners…" Rufus sighs, and you see the understanding that maids will be of little help sink in. "But we will try very hard! We can walk after breakfast… ah, wait, the classes…" at that you chuckle, and reach to ruffle his hair.

"Don't worry, I am sure your dad won't mind rearranging the beginning of your classes to start a bit later," their faces beam with a smile again.

"And then we can easily walk in the afternoon and evening!"

"That's great, loves," the praise encourages them even more and by the time it's lunch hour, the twins have laid out some more proving points, making you believe Diluc would be easily swayed.

"You really want this dog, aren't you…" you muse, finishing reading the article the book offered. They eagerly nod. From the corner of your eye you notice Adelinde, who has come out to check on you three and the fireplace. Suddenly she chuckles.

"Sorry, My Lady, I happened to overhear your conversation."

"Oh, that's fine," you offer her a reassuring smile, which she returns with a sweet one of her own. "But what made you laugh, Adelinde?"

"Just remembered how animated young masters have been for the last couple of days, when talking about this beautiful dog in my presence."

"Is that so?" The boys sheepishly giggle, starting to make their way out of the comforter's embrace. "Ah, nevermind," shaking your head and passing a book back to Rufus, you move the comforter completely off of you, and, with some assistance from Adelinde, rise to your feet.

"It's time for lunch, isn't it? Let's go have it, and when dad comes home in the evening, you'll talk to him, alright?"

"Mhm!"

"Good. Now go and put the book back into your room, wash your hands and be ready to dig in," your sons disappear as quickly as you finish your speech. The woman next to you offers you her arm and you thankfully lean on it, even if it's just mere meters to the dining table.

An opening door draws your attention from the book and instantly the bookmark is placed between the pages as your eyes connect with your husband's vermillion ones. The jacket has probably been taken away by the maids to clean and dry and he also lacks a cravat and a vest. What he isn't lacking is a small smile brightening up his whole face and reflecting in the burning fire of his soul.

"Good evening, my flame," the greeting is sweet on his tongue and the almost unnoticeable sprint in his steps is an indicator of how much the Master of the Dawn Winery has been craving to be back with you, his wife. The bed dips under his knee and the gloves are swiftly taken off and thrown to the side. Big scarred warm palms cup your cheeks and a kiss is pressed against your lips, sealing his words like a barrel of dandelion wine.

Diluc cradles your face in his hands so delicately, so gingerly, you start thinking he is back to viewing you as a glass piece that can easily break, which was proved wrong many times before. You kiss him back with a little more force to remind him you are not fragile and the man seems to chuckle, drawing his face away to gaze at you lovingly. Only for his eyes to widen a little when you peck his nose and rub yours against it.

A rich laugh is born within the confinement of his chest and a few more fleeting kisses are placed all over your cheeks.

"Missed me this much?" You murmur quietly, afraid to break the atmosphere. Your husband hums, rubbing his thumbs over your cheekbones.

"Yes…missed you so much," then his gaze flits down to your stomach and the next moment the palms are pressed against your rounded belly, with lips following soon after.

"Missed the little one too, love."

Instantly your fingers go into his flaming hair, releasing them from a high ponytail and carefully running digits through the heavy locks. You let him have his moment, lovingly staring at the back of his head, listening to the softest murmurs offered to the baby in your belly, your third child, your soon-to-be-joy. Just two more months.

"Do you feel sore?" His burning gaze is back on your calm one, worrying about you overworking your body - you are carrying a big weight on your midsection all the time, he knows it's hard.

"Luc, love, have you forgotten? You literally increased payment to my maids to take care of me whenever you can't. Soon I'll get addicted to all these nice massages."

"That's not a bad thing."

"Yeah, I am aware, and you could use some too. I can feel your tense back under my fingertips"

"Love," he groans but you know, it's not of annoyance, just him being playful. "Besides you know our staff adore you. Helping you in any way possible, especially now, is no trouble for them."

“Your ability to convince me of anything in the sweetest ways possible scares me,” you laugh, when he gives you an unamused glance, and poke his cheek with a finger.

“Speaking of convincing, have boys already gotten to you with one?”

You bring your hands from his hair to your stomach when your husband draws himself back and off the bed to properly undress and change while having a conversation with you. By the sound of him lightly chuckling you know they have.

“Oh, when I tell you I got worried when they met me at the front door and urgently asked to go to my study - you better believe it,” he grabs the gloves he threw away minutes ago and walks to put them in a drawer.

“So, how went the discussion of their desired birthday present?” You really are curious - after all that’s such a big decision and, by the looks of it, means a lot to your sons, who, as it now becomes clear to you why, have even spent the last week being on their best, borderline perfect behavior.

Diluc grabs a hanger from a wardrobe and puts it on the bed, starting to work on his shirt. A concentrated look on his face doesn’t go unnoticed by you, and the need to know his thoughts stirs impatience inside.

“Tell me. Tell me, tell me, tell me, tell me!”

“Well,” a fond look of his crimson eyes graces your somewhat displeased expression, quickly making you melt, earning a smile from him as well, “it went very well.”

“For you or for them?”

“What if I say both?” he teases and you almost roll your eyes. If the bed wasn’t so big you’d reach out and kick his leg.

“Come oooon, I am intrigued!”

“I know you are,” a chuckle.

“You know and yet you keep it a secret? Unbelievable. Your brother’s antics rub on you it seems. Don’t look at me like that, we both know you were even worse in your teens.”

“One day he won’t see the light of it,” Diluc promises without malice and, finally changed, climbs onto the bed to settle by your side, only to be attacked by your loving kisses and a big hug, which he accepts eagerly, encouraging your affectionate clinginess.

“Tell meeee, did they do well?”

“In their game of conviction? Of course they did, you are their teacher,” at that you giggle.

“So… Does that mean you told them you’d get a dog? The exact one they want?”

“I didn’t say I’d get them a dog, but I promised to think.”

“Only to get it as a surprise?”

“You know me too well, my flame. And though their choice surprised me, I don't have anything against it.”

“Though the land of origin has it against you?” The man sighs at your joke, rubbing the bridge of his nose.

“It’s going to be hard, but I’ll put someone from my people in charge of that. After all, borzoi aren’t popular in Mond, it’s probably been years since the last time some noble adopted a dog like that as an,” he twists his fore and middle fingers, “ ‘exotic pet’.”

“True,” you agree, reaching out to take his hand and put a head on his shoulder. “You think we'll handle it on top of everything?"

"I think we will. I suppose we'll have some time to get adjusted to having the baby here. Then I could help Ru and Lu train the puppy. Borzoi are quite temperamental, after all, they’ll need assistance."

"And once again you are ready to go such lengths to make our babies happy. You are a great father, you know?”

He doesn’t even need to respond, because you both know the answer to this question. Diluc leans to rest the cheek against your head and intertwines your fingers, gently squeezing to tighten the hold. Your words, this exact admittance brought a bigger smile on the man’s face and caused butterflies to dance in his chest, caressing his heart with the soft trembles of their wings. Yes, he’d do many things to assure his family’s safety and happiness, as it became his life purpose after meeting you.

Besides, birthdays happen once a year, right? And getting a dog isn’t all that extraordinary, - knowing his boys and their wild imagination he could’ve expected something mind-blowing (like that time when they saw Klee using her bombs and begged you two to install those instead of the fireworks. Obviously you two declined, letting Albedo take care of that part, so in the end Rufus and Lucas still were entertained and content with the fire show).

So, yeah, Snezhnayan Borzoi it is.

Maybe he could teach it to bark at Kaeya. Just because he can.

#genshin impact #genshin impact x reader #diluc ragnvindr #diluc x reader #diluc x fem!reader #diluc ragnvindr x reader #dadluc #genshin oc #genshin impact fluff #pearly family au

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ravenbronze · 3 months

Text

Food is the Language of Love

Inspired by this post by @applinsandoranges, which, in summary, is basically about how Sebastian really loves to cook. As it happened to be Pancake Day and Valentines Day this week, naturally I thought the Headcanon paired very well with the two!

More under the cut if anyone’s interested:

The first one is the Pancake Day one and Sebastian has dragged everyone down to Feldcroft so he can make pancakes for them (duh).

Even though Anne hates cooking, I like the the idea that she would sit with Sebastian while he cooks and try and wind him up in any way possible (“Are you sure you added enough flour?” “That looks a bit runny to me!” “Hmm, perhaps should have whisked a bit longer.”). Sebastian is just trying to concentrate, do his best not to burn anything and tune his twin out. He knows he’s followed the recipe correctly and everything is going to plan so he’s not going to let his sister plant doubts in his head.

MC is doing what MC does best and is trying to help by setting the table and getting everything else ready so Sebastian can focus on the cooking. And Ominis is fed up of listening to the twins bicker, is getting hungry and is wondering why yet again, he has gone along with one of Sebastian’s ideas, when he could have just stayed in the castle and eaten there.

The second one is the Valentines Day one and, because I’m a big sap for Seb x MC, it’s a romantic candlelit dinner where he’s cooked for her. As per the original post, his food doesn’t always look good but is always tasty, which got me thinking about what he’d make. In the end, I went for cottage/shepherds pie. Basically because it’s hard to make it look nice but it is tasty and warming on a cold February night. Also, I wanted to pick something that would have been around in the 1800s that Sebastian could have easily got ingredients for - pretty much just potatoes, mince and veg.

I figured that even though he cooks all the time and knows he cooks well, he’d still be nervous to cook for MC because obvs the whole point of a date is to try and impress and he doesn’t want to mess anything up. But she would be pleased with anything that he put on a plate for her and is happy just to be spending time with him.

Anyway, I’ve put way too much thought into what is only a couple of drawings but I had a lot of fun using the ideas from the post to come up with how everyone would behave and what would be going on. It’s also the first time I’ve done a proper background (At least since I’ve started drawing again) and I can’t decide whether I enjoyed doing it or absolutely hated it lol

But if anyone’s still here, thanks for reading and I hope you all have a lovely week, whether you’re eating pancakes, celebrating Valentines Day or doing something else entirely!

#hogwarts legacy #hogwarts legacy fanart #hogwarts legacy art #sebastian sallow #hogwarts legacy oc #hogwarts legacy mc #ominis gaunt #anne sallow #sebastian x mc

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just-my-latest-hyperfixation · 3 months

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Sleep with one eye open

Written for the @steddiemicrofic challenge, February 2024 edition

Prompt: egde, 509 words

Rated: M

Tags: Post S4; sleep paralysis; monsters, nightmares; canon character death; monster Eddie Munson; Kas!Eddie Munson; body horror; blood and gore; biting; open ending

It starts as always, on the edge between sleeping and waking.

One moment, Steve drifts on the first tendrils of dreams. The next, he plummets back into his body, eyes wide open in the dark of his bedroom. Every fiber of his being is on alert, every instinct screaming, but he can't move.

Another one, then.

He's had them for as long as he can remember, these waking nightmares. The only thing that keeps changing is the monster.

When he was a kid, it was a gangly shadow with no face and too many limbs. As he learned about the horrors lurking under Hawkins, it became a hulking beast with claws and a flowered maw.

He's understood long ago that it's all in his head. The best thing he can do is keep calm, even as his heart tries to crawl out of his heaving chest. It will keep its distance then, just lurking in the corner of the room.

He's good at it.

And then spring break happened and the monster morphed into something else again.

Ever since the day he stumbled through the portal, dragging a wailing Dustin behind him, his monster has taken a new shape.

He was only a figure at the far end of the room at first. Steve still recognized him, even with the changes.

Dark curls matted with blood haloing a sickly pale face. Clothes torn to shreds. Graying skin hanging from the festering hole in his jaw.

Steve kept calm, drawing and releasing one breath at a time, telling himself that this wasn't real. He wasn't really here, just a figment of his grief and guilt. He fell back asleep to glinting black eyes watching him.

He has been back almost every night since then.

And he's been coming closer.

This time, when Steve's eyes fly open, he is perched directly on top of him. Clawed hands bracketing his face, too-long legs straddling his thighs. The smell of the other place hits him like a bucket of rot and decay.

Breathe.

Relax.

The monster tilts its head, lips peeling back in a bizarre mockery of the smile he knew. Its hair falls around him like a curtain as it leans in.

Relax, it's not real.

One of those hands reaches out to run down his face, along the curve of his jaw. Its touch is cold and clammy and almost tender.

It's not him.

Except, he can pretend, if he wants to … right?

Pretend those eyes are just a shade lighter, dark brown and warm instead of dead, black pits.

Pretend the noise bubbling from that throat is a rumbly chuckle rather than a snarl.

Pretend he doesn't see the fangs in that mouth as it leans down to nuzzle at his pulse.

He's good at pretending.

So good that the growl it lets out as it sinks its fangs into his flesh sounds a bit like words, even.

“Miss me, big boy?”

As Steve's world turns red, he begins to suspect that this may be no dream after all.

Listen, he doesn’t kill him. He just takes him to the UD and keeps him as his personal chew toy or whatever, it's fiiiine!

#steddie #steve x eddie #steve harrington x eddie munson #steddie brainrot #steddie fanfic #fanfiction writer #fanfiction #fanfic #my writing #steddiemicrofic #hype's microfics

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choicesficwriterscreations · 29 days

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April Creator of the Month: Aallotarenunelma

Each month, CFWC highlights one of our talented fanfic writers or artists, and this month’s creator of the month is the lovely @aallotarenunelma! The writer is selected at random. More info can be found on the navigation page. Past COTM's can be found here.

Quick Links:

Tumblr Blog My Masterlist

How do you want to be known on Tumblr?

Aallotar is fine. I am agender. My pronouns are they/them.

More below...

1- When did you start playing Choices? What was the first book you played?

I saw the app being highlighted a lot in Google Play in 2017, but it was only at the end of February-beginning of March 2018 that I downloaded it. It was when Perfect Match 1 started releasing and shortly before Bloodbound 1 began releasing. Time is flying!

There were already a lot of books, and it was a bit overwhelming. I chose the series that was being heavily advertised: The Royal Romance.

2- When and why did you join Choices fandom?

I joined the Choices sub-Reddit in July 2019, then the Tumblr fandom in April 2020.

I first joined the sub because I wanted to discuss the books and the characters, and hopefully befriending other players. It was lonely to read the books, and having no one to share my opinions and theories with. Then, I took a step back from it and after lurking a bit, I joined the Tumblr community.

3- How did you pick your blog name?

When I joined Tumblr, in April 2020, it was initially to be a Writblr. I was writing a story about a heroine named Aallotar. Its title gave my blog’s URL. My blog’s title is its English translation: Aallotar’s dream.

In the end, my blog turned into a bit of everything.

4- Pull up the first post in your archive, and tell us about it!

This is my very first post. This is my original writing, conveniently mentioned right above. :)

5- Do you write fanfiction, create fan art, or are you one of those really gifted people who do both?

I define myself as an artist because I create. This is how I express myself. It doesn’t matter if the pencil I use is to write or to draw as long as I create. Before I started learning how to draw, I was always saying that I was drawing with words. To me, this is what writing is. I draw and paint with my words to depict stories that my characters want me to tell.

I mostly write, but I also create fan art, such as sketches and various kinds of edits: quotes, sprites, moodboards, etc.

6- How long have you been creating for Choices and for any other fandoms?

For the defunct app Lovestruck, from December 2020 to October 2021.

For Choices, since April-May 2020.

7- What is your favorite Choices book, and what is your favorite Choices book to create for?

My all-time favourite Choices book is Veil of Secrets. I adore it!

I heavily create for the It Lives Anthology - the three books - and also for Immortal Desires. I love these books so much that I made a crossover, and most of the characters from the Anthology and from ID have met and even befriended each other.

8- Share your first Choices fanfic or fan art that you posted with us. Do you still like it, or would you change it if you were creating it today?

My first Choices fiction is a Blades one: Of Stardust and Light.

I still love it and I wouldn’t change anything - except the typos and the clumsy grammar/syntax, due to the fact I am not an English-native speaker.

For a long time, I thought it was my masterpiece, that I wouldn’t write something as good or even as better than this. But I proved myself wrong in the end.

The other reason why I wouldn’t rewrite it now is because I have definitively stopped writing for my Blades pairing, Tyril x Soile. I made it official a few months ago, and this decision is final.

9- What is your favorite piece of fiction or art that you created?

It’s really hard to choose only one, but I do have a soft spot for Répondez, S’il Vous Plaît ! #3 because this is where I tell about my OCs’ Ash and Skylar’s meeting. It was a story I wanted to write for a long time and I love it.

Chronicles of a Crimson Summer deserves to be mentioned as well. This is the longest story I have shared here, and it’s a real balance of angst, fluff, and funny moments. Also, because its birth was extremely painful, so for all of these reasons, I am glad I wrote it and shared it.

10- Do you have a fic/art that you didn’t expect to be well received, but it was? What about one you expected to do well but found it could use a little more love?

I never expect anything I share to be well received, whether it’s a fiction or a drawing. I’m only sharing it, hoping that at least someone will find it and enjoy it. Even better if it helps the person in any way.

That said, sharing my art remains a lot more difficult than sharing my writing, so any art reblog is leaving me a bit confused, due to my imposter syndrome.

Most people here who are familiar with my stories have read some of the funny stories I have shared, as well as the fluffiest stories I have ever written - sometimes too fluffy for me.

However, this isn’t only what my writing is about. Darker Than Night has generated so much indifference that it saddens me.

This series really shows what my writing is, minus the layer of humour that you can usually expect. It truly deserves better, just like In Joy and Sorrow, that actually gives a good idea of what my writing really is.

11- (WRITERS) If you could write only angst, fluff, or smut for the rest of your writing life, which would it be and why?

I usually share a lot of fluff here, because the world outside is hard, so I want to uplift people with sweet and funny stories. However, my original writing is usually angsty with some funny and fluffy moments to alleviate all the angst a little. So, I’m choosing angst. Definitely. To me, writing angst is comforting.

11a - (ARTISTS) If you could only draw one style or type of art for the rest of your life, what would it be and why?

I could easily do oil pastels for the rest of my life. It’s an easy technique to learn, it’s very forgiving, it’s calming, and I love how it looks.

12 - Do you ever recognize yourself in any of your MCs or in your writing?

I am agender and aspec, so in any non-binary and/or aspec MC / OC of mine can be found parts of me, regardless of how they define themselves on those large spectrums. Representation is highly important to me, so this is one of the recurring themes in my writing.

Also, the witty/sarcastic and playful characters are easy to write because I know them too well!

13 - What element of writing/art do you struggle with most?

Finding the right word is difficult, either in English or in my native tongue. I always want to capture the emotion, the feeling, the landscape with the perfect word. I’m still learning in my daily life.

Regarding my art, at the level I am right now, that would be shadows. Sometimes, they look great, but they often don’t. Practice makes perfect, so this is what I do whenever I can.

14 - Do you have any neglected work you really want to finish?

I tend to have only one WIP that I see to end. One reason for this is that I usually write my stories in a notebook, before I type them down to share them. The state of the notebook is not always great; I even sometimes struggle to re-read what I corrected!

If it’s about my original work, then, yes, I want to finish that one novel’s second draft.

15 - If someone you know in real life (who isn’t involved in fandoms) asked to see your work, would you let them? If yes, what would you show them first?

It has actually happened with one of my siblings. At that time, I was only writing for Blades and had maybe like five stories posted. I let my sibling read them because we are close. For other people, I think it would be on a case-by-case basis, but most likely not. I'd rather make them read my original writing, if my shyness isn’t getting in the way.

16 - Are there any writers (published authors and/or fanfic writers) who influenced your writing or art? Are there any artists that influence you?

Émile Zola and Arto Paasilinna are my all-time favourite writers.

I am learning from every fanfiction writer I am reading. First, because I read in a foreign language. Second, because I believe you learn from everyone every day.

In terms of art, I don’t think I have a particular influence. I am still exploring my style.

17- (WRITERS) Which one of your stories would you most like to see as a movie/series?

It would be In Joy and Sorrow. I created this It Lives in the Woods AU series to give a life to my first MC, Riikka. The one she couldn’t have. In this series, I talk about close friendships, coming outs, being bilingual/bicultural, how to navigate a romantic relationship as an aspec*, how to deal with bullying/harassment, etc. I talk about timeline collapse and time-travelling as well.

And because there’s the most delightful OC ever, my all-time favourite: Ash. He truly is one of a kind and his friendship with Dan is really something special.

*aspec: a person on the aromantic and asexual spectrums.

18 - (ARTISTS) Which one of your creations would you like to see a fiction written about?

I don’t have any yet that would justify the honor of having a fiction being written about.

19- Do you write original fiction or create non-fandom art?

I started writing when I was 10 years old. It was thanks to an assignment for my native tongue class when we were studying the structure of a fairytale. I really enjoyed writing one, so I kept writing over the summer. Little stories about everything and nothing.

I wrote my first novel when I was 13, but never dared to send it to a publisher. I kept writing novels - and not sending them, I have a nice collection, now! - and branching out in other forms of writing, in hope to develop as a writer: rpg forums, poetry, (fan)fictions, creative writing course, etc. I took a ten year break from writing (fan)fictions before returning to them.

I am working on the second draft of a novel about grief, and I have three other different novels already outlined.

Regarding art, I mostly create non-fandom art.

20- What other hobbies do you have?

Except writing and drawing; I paint murals and do oil pastel; I do theatre; I design and crochet my own clothes.

I enjoy watching old films, Hollywood era and silent ones included, but modern films as well, if they are excellent.

I love learning foreign languages, listening to music and going to gigs.

I am also a true race car enthusiast, preferably Formula races - F1 to F4, Formula Regional included.

I also enjoy going for walks in nature and travelling.

21: Tell us anything you’d like (if you want to).

I want to thank CFWC for highlighting me, and giving me the chance to talk more about my characters, my stories, my writing and my art. This means a lot, especially as this month is also when I’m celebrating my 4 year Tumblr Anniversary.

Thank you for your support throughout these years!

I want to thank so many people, but I’m also scared to miss any of them!

Thank you to my friends, old and new. 💛

Thank you to everyone who has read and reblogged my stories and left kudos and comments on them. It has been helping me so much in believing in myself and my writing.

Thank you to everyone who has reblogged my art and my edits and left comments on them.

Thank you to every talented person who has gifted me a piece of their beautiful art, written or not, anonymously or not.

Thank you to everyone who has asked about my characters and my stories.

Thank you to everyone who has sent me positive and uplifting messages.

Lastly, thank you to every single person who has supported me these past months, in many different ways. Your kindness and your presence have made a difference, and I am grateful for those and for you all.

And a special shoutout to my fellow rainbow creators! 🌈

#choices fic writers creations #cfwc creator of the month #choices stories you play #playchoices #aallotarenunelma #choices #choices fanart #choices fanfic #april creator of the month #playchoices fanfic #playchoices fanart

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