#YAAAAY ITS FINALLY OUT!!!

[antiv3nom]

Shakedown

Summary: Yukimiya Kenyu doesn't normally work the bars at the Blue Lock Casino, but after a conversation with a certain likeminded runner, he's glad he did today.

Pairings: Yukimiya Kenyu/Chigiri Hyouma, Yukimiya Kenyu & Chigiri Hyouma (can be read as just friendly or romantic, up to you!)

Word Count: 2.7k

Note: here's my contribution to the pit lock sin city collab!!! it was so so much fun writing yukki and i had such a good time with this pairing and just working with all the talented writers on the collab :] im glad i could help organize it!

also, this fic is on ao3 as well! it's under the same name, and my username there is antiv3nomarts, if you're more inclined to read it there.

Things were busy in the Blue Lock Casino—but when were they not?

Kenyu was used to it all by now, less out of fondness and more out of necessity. His familiarity with the sounds and sights of the game floor came quickly to him when he started his job at the casino, and it certainly hadn’t gone away now that he was a floor manager. If anything, he was paradoxically out in the crowd more often than any other job he’d had, despite supposedly not needing to leave his cushy office unless a problem were to arise. Because problems always arise.

Kenyu currently found himself walking into said cushy office after clocking in, dropping off his jacket on the unnecessarily fancy coat stand in the corner of the room and leaving his bag beside his desk. But, as he had found over many, many months of working this job, there was really no reason to even sit down anymore. It was better to get the jump on any and all tasks he had for the day.

The first of which, of course, was talking with his co-manager, Nagi Seishirou, the prodigy who’d found himself a manager position after less than a year of working at Blue Lock. The decision had received plenty of backlash—including from Kenyu himself—due to his general laziness and cold demeanor, but Kenyu had to admit: he knew how to get his job done. Get him going, and Nagi could have easily run an entire floor area on his own. The problem was getting him going in the first place.

And so, Kenyu’s first job of the day was reviewing the day’s work with Nagi and trying his very best to get his coworker to actually…work. Because as much as Kenyu would love to take care of everything himself, he recognized that if he wanted a day to go smoothly, he needed to divide and conquer. 

Kenyu didn’t bother knocking on the door as he entered Nagi’s office—a room quite similar to his own dedicated space, but much more chaotic, with papers and forms scattered in random piles and useless objects placed on any available flat space. He knew at this point not to say anything about the mess to Nagi, but it still irked him every time he saw it. 

“Good morning Nagi,” Kenyu said, strolling into the office and up to Nagi’s desk, leaning with his hand pressed onto the one always open spot.

“Mornin’ Yukimiya,” Nagi responded, turning his attention away from his laptop and whatever game he was inevitably messing around on. “Briefing time?”

“You know it,” Kenyu said. Nagi, expectedly, yawned. “We’ve got a few local big shot officials coming in today, so we’ve got to keep an eye on them and update the sections they go to and keep everything above board there. I think we’ve also got some general admin work to do regarding the new digital game spectating spots and the betting there.”

“I think you know exactly what I’m going to ask to deal with,” Nagi deadpanned.

“Hey, it’s always good practice to ask. Not like you couldn’t deal with the guests, or heck, both of those. But I’ll bring you the papers, and I think I already emailed you the online information.”

“Sounds good to me.”

Kenyu moved to leave, but there was a knock at the door, firm and rhythmic. Before either Kenyu or Nagi could respond, it simply opened. Standing on the other side was Mikage Reo, who was undeniably one of the most well off employees at Blue Lock. He was Nagi’s personal lapdog, though he’d always insist it was the other way around, despite his lower position. The two had entered at about the same time, and even as Nagi had climbed the ranks and Reo had lagged behind, Reo was almost always eager to work with Nagi in any way he could.

Reo smiled slightly as he looked at Nagi, but straightened up as his gaze shifted to Kenyu. “Good morning Yukimiya, Nagi.” The former returned the greeting, while the latter simply replied with a hum in Reo’s direction. Reo cleared his throat before focusing back on Kenyu. “Himizu called out of his shift last minute. Do you want me to find someone to cover for him?”

Kenyu thought, just for a moment, before responding. “Don’t worry about it, I’ll take that bar today.” He turned to Nagi, and muttered, “Guess you’ll have to take care of those guests after all. You good with that?”

“Yeah, that should be fine,” Nagi answered.

“Then it’s settled. Let me know if you need anything, I shouldn’t be too busy. Our section is already pretty slow today, so I can’t imagine one of the smaller bars would be any more hectic.”

Once Nagi nodded in confirmation, Kenyu headed for the door, which Reo held open for him. “Don’t keep him too long,” Kenyu instructed him, ignoring the light frown that split Reo’s face for a moment.

The bar in question was indeed slow on customers, but Kenyu wasn’t going to complain. Far from it, in fact—he enjoyed days like these, where he could comfortably focus on a single job instead of his usual routine, constantly bouncing around from problem to problem. Kenyu saw himself as a pacifist, and when it came to most issues, the most peaceful solution tended to be just dealing with it himself. So when he could solve a problem on his own, and just focus on that? He was in his zone.

That, and to be honest, it was a lot of fun bartending. Sure, there were drunk and rude clients, and it was still undeniably a customer service job, but Kenyu had a flair for the dramatics, and working in a fancy casino bar was the perfect place for them. People tended to be a bit more willing to pay the exorbitant prices charged for drinks if they got a bit of a show.

Kenyu didn't find himself paying particularly close attention to the people he served today, happy just to let the faces blend into a crowd and work almost on autopilot. There was just one person he found himself drawn to.

In a particularly busy moment, Kenyu caught a glimpse of someone new walking through the threshold into the bar. They were…out of place there, in a way that only an employee would recognize. They wore a runner's uniform—a simple shirt, vest, tie, and slacks—which meant they worked here. It was uncommon to get workers going anywhere inside the casino during their break, and they certainly didn't belong here, far as Kenyu was informed.

The most remarkable thing about them at a glance, however, was their hair. It wasn't that often that you saw someone with such long, silky, red-pink hair. It was tied back in such a way that it stayed out of their face, but still flowed smoothly behind them, the motion mixed with their posture granting them an almost regal air.

Kenyu forced his gaze to return to his current customer, letting this mystery person be as he continued doing his job. But as more and more of the people inside the bar finished their drinks or took them onto the gaming floor, they never left the edges of Kenyu's vision—or his thoughts.

Before long, the bar was empty, save for Kenyu and this mystery runner, who was now leaning against the counter and looking rather frustrated. Kenyu wasn't really sure why, but he found his feet carrying him over to them.

"Drinking on the job, princess?"

The stranger didn't even shift their gaze to look at Kenyu before spitting out, "I'm a man, thank you very much." He then very pointedly did shift his gaze, right to Kenyu's, and said, "And yes, if I can do anything about it."

"My bad. Tough day?"

"You don't know the half of it."

"You wanna talk?" Kenyu offered. "Half the job in here is listening to people bitch, so I've gotten pretty good at it."

The man barked out a laugh—a good sign. He looked around the room, eyes slipping over the many, many empty chairs, before saying, "Sure, why not? And maybe you can help me out."

Kenyu smiled, leaning an arm onto his side of the counter. "I'd bet I can." 

The man quirked an eyebrow at Kenyu, but shrugged slightly, face shifting from oh really? to might as well in a matter of seconds. He began, "Okay, so—"

"Oh boy," Kenyu chuckled, "off to a great start."

"Hey, you're the one who offered to listen to me bitch," the redhead said with an accusatory point.

"That I did. Please, continue."

"Anyways. As you've probably figured out at this point, I'm a runner here, and…I don't want to say that my job sucks, but I'm…adjusting, right now."

"Understandable," Kenyu said, "any relatively new job is an adjustment."

"Well, that's the thing. I'm not new, not entirely at least. I used to be a runner at another casino that…let's say it ran similarly. I was actually really close to being promoted to a more stable position when one of my idiot coworkers pushed me down the goddamn stairs. The funny part is, I didn't even really fall, I actually managed to stay on my feet. No, I somehow pivoted wrong and hard on my right leg and tore my fucking ACL, so you could imagine I was out of commission for a while."

Kenyu winced, responding with a whistle. "Man, a torn ACL is tough, especially in your position."

"You don't have to tell me twice," the man said, hunching over to lay his head onto his arms.

"And yet you came back to the industry."

"Yeah," he said, gazing into space behind Kenyu, "Guess something pulled me back. Maybe someone. Still not sure." Looking at his eyes, Kenyu never noticed that their color matched his hair. That color was rare enough for hair, but eyes were another story.

Said eyes blinked out of their reverie, flicking over to meet Kenyu's. "Something about you tells me you're gonna get back up quick," he said.

"Pffft, don't flatter me."

"Oh trust me, my flattery is better than that. I mean, there's a reason I called you princess before."

"Sticking with that one, huh? You're starting to sound like my bosses," He scoffed.

"What, would you prefer kitten?” 

“Decidedly not, thank you.”

“I mean, I have to use something until I get your name. And may I ask who said bosses are? I must know who I'm being compared to so I can defend my honor if necessary," Kenyu said.

"Chigiri Hyouma, thank you very much. And I work on floor B, under Karasu and Otoya."

“Ah yes, I know those two…very well. They can be pains but they’re good at their jobs and they mean well,” Kenyu sighed. “But what brings you over to this section of the casino?”

“Well,” started Chigiri, “That’s what I was hoping you might be able to help me with. I’m supposed to look for one of the floor managers of this section, but I haven’t been able to find either one. His name started with yu, it was Yuki…Yuki-something, I can’t remember entirely. Oh, and speaking of names, I never asked yours.”

Kenyu had to use every single ounce of willpower in his body not to burst out laughing immediately, as he said, “My name’s Yukimiya Kenyu, co-manager of floor B, at your service.” He even threw in a bow for extra politeness—and to let his face break into a grin without Chigiri seeing.

As Kenyu returned his eyes forward, he saw that Chigiri looked utterly horrified at the newly recognized reality of his situation. Kenyu couldn’t even help it at this point, covering his mouth to muffle his laughter.

“I’m so sorry, sir,” Chigiri said, voice as panicked as his face.

“Please don’t worry about it, this is literally the weirdest situation you could have found me in. And you don’t have to call me sir, Yukimiya is just fine.”

Some of the fear of Chigiri’s face seemed to melt away, as he reached into one of his pockets and pulled out a small flash drive. “Here you go, s—Yukimiya. Far as I know, there’s some information in here about a shared client between floors B and C. The bosses said to let them know if you have any more so you can plan for them.”

Kenyu sighed, grabbing the flash drive out of Chigiri’s hand. “This could have been an email…” he muttered, sticking it into his own pocket.

“Sorry again about that,” Chigiri said, moving to stand. “I can let them know for the future.”

“No, it’s alright, there’s no need to apologize. They always do this. And you were just doing your job,” Kenyu reassured him. “I get it, trust me. Believe it or not, I started as a runner here too.”

“That…” Chigiri trailed off, looking Kenyu up and down. “I can’t tell whether that fits or not. Maybe it’s the glasses.”

“Ah, yeah. I didn’t always have these,” Kenyu said, taking off his glasses to clean them absentmindedly.

“What, did your vision start getting worse as you got older? That’s not too strange.” The question was innocent for sure, Kenyu could tell from Chigiri’s tone, but it was still interesting that he managed to find the one thing Kenyu couldn’t deal with on his own.

“It’s…not quite that.” Kenyu’s face fell a bit, not quite sad, but solemn. “Optic neuropathy. In simple terms, my optic nerves are kinda fucked up. My vision gets blurry when I strain my eyes too much or overexert myself.”

Despite the serious subject, Kenyu found himself chuckling. “You and I are pretty similar, now that I think about it. Both of us being held back by something wrong with our bodies that could potentially fail catastrophically if we push too hard. Who would have thought?”

“I’m not quite sure it’s equivalent. And what do you mean, fail catastrophically?” Chigiri asked, frowning. “I mean, I get it with my situation, but I’m not quite sure how yours could go so wrong. It’s just a bit of blurry vision.”

“Ah, right. Well, there’s…a non-zero chance that I could go blind.”

“Ah. Okay. Yeah, no, that’s…that sucks man, I’m sorry. But I don’t know, I guess I just don’t see either of us as having something wrong, really. We just have different situations to exist in than others. Gotta treat your body like an ally, even if it isn’t quite the ally other people have. Sure, my leg is a ticking time bomb, but it’s still part of me.”

“I admire your ability to see it that way, but you can’t blame me for hating my situation when at the end of every long day my vision is spotty. My eyes are nothing but my enemy at this point, Chigiri.” Kenyu found his name rolling off his tongue for the first time, pointed and dangerous. “Still though, my point stands. We’re two sides of the same coin, I suppose.”

“Yeah, I guess so,” Chigiri responded. The two stood in silence for a moment, until Chigiri checked his watch. “Ah, shit, I have to head back. Bosses are gonna think I’m slacking off if I’m gone for too much longer.”

“Don’t let me keep you,” Kenyu said, a smile returning to his face. But as Chigiri turned to the exit, he found himself calling out to the man one more time. “Hey. If you ever have to rest that leg of yours, you’re welcome in floor C. And let Karasu and Otoya know that if they really need to bring me something to do it themselves. Have them bring you again, though. It’s always nice to have another pretty face around, kitten,” Kenyu said with a wink, slipping in the pet name again just to be annoying. 

Chigiri let out a laugh. “I see you’re actually trying to flatter me this time. Alright, will do.” He smiled back at Kenyu one more time before turning to go. Kenyu stared as he walked out, once again captivated by that gorgeous hair. He really had to ask how Chigiri managed to get it that silky. Another day.

Things were busy in Blue Lock casino—but Kenyu may have just found a bit of calm within the storm.

#my writing #antiv3nom's writing #sin city collab #blue lock #bllk #blue lock fanfic #yukimiya kenyu #blue lock yukimiya #chigiri hyouma #blue lock chigiri #YAAAAY ITS FINALLY OUT!!! #IVE BEEN WORKING ON THIS ONE FOR A HOT MINUTE

[mushiewrites]

Sleepy Experiments

It is officially lee!George week! :D I'm so excited I finally got to do something like this - I've had this idea since @fluffallamaful did an incredible lee!Dream MONTH last June, and truthfully I've wanted to do this since last August but....better late than never, right? 😇 I also wanna just thank @awkwardtickleetoo for helping me with everything - prompts, ideas, proof reading, etc. Cal is literally there for me always and Im so grateful for him, he truly is my lil knight ):

day 1 - soft tickles / prompts found here!

(lee!George / ler!Dream : 3.8K words)

“Dream! Stohop!” George was met with yet another poke to his side, jerking his body to the left to escape Dream’s finger. He let out a sigh in fake frustration, fully aware that Dream was bound to become bored as they’d been attempting to nap with no success for a little while now. George had almost drifted to sleep multiple times, but every single time he did, he was met with a poke from the restless blonde boy.

“George! I cahan’t!” The elder couldn’t help but giggle at the mocking as Dream leaned his cheek against his right palm, elbow propped onto the bed beside him while he wiggled his free pointer finger in the air in front of George’s face to tease him. The brunette quickly swatted it away, making Dream let out a huff of amused air through his nose before making a move to poke George again. “Just a little!”

“Nohoho! Leave mehehe alone!” 

“Come on, Georgie, please? I promise I’ll be reaaaaally gentle. And maybe it’ll help me sleep!” Dream stuck out his bottom lip as far as it would go as he held out his words, the pout matching the puppy dog eyes he was using to melt the Brit. George let his head fall back onto the pillow beneath him, letting out a groan and bringing his right arm up to cover his eyes to prevent him from seeing how closely Dream was focusing on him. 

“I- I mean- why? Just- …ugh, fine.” George winced when Dream let out a squeal of excitement, dropping his arm back against the blankets and cracking an eye open to see Dream quickly push himself into a kneeling position beside him. “You have to be so gentle though, Dream! I mean it! One wrong move and you’re done.”

“I promise to be so gentle!” The blonde smiled at the warning, tapping George’s thigh twice before continuing. “Do you mind turning over for me, George?” 

George felt his cheeks fill with warmth, nodding his head with a quiet whine as he adjusted himself to lay on his tummy. He felt the familiar weight of the younger boy settling on the back of his thighs, jumping slightly when Dream hooked two fingers under his shirt and began revealing the pale skin beneath it. He felt goosebumps spread across the expanse of his back as the cool air blanketed every inch of it, making him squirm slightly with a shiver and growling at Dream when he giggled at the involuntary movement. 

“Do you really have to lift my shirt up for this?” His voice was more high pitched than he expected it to be and swallowed thickly, looking over his shoulder at Dream and coughing slightly to adjust it back to the normal tone. “I mean, it seems a bit excessive.” 

Dream let out a scoff at the passive protest, tilting his head slightly to the right when he saw the tips of George’s ears turning a light pink. He chuckled as he continued to slowly drag the black T-shirt up until it was sitting just below the bottom of his shoulder blades. George felt the fabric glide lightly across his skin when Dream released his grip, making him squirm briefly at the soft tickly feeling. 

“Oh George, if that bothered you, how are you gonna handle the actual tickles?” Dream cooed, smiling as the smaller boy began to squirm a little more at the thought of the soft tickles that awaited him. Dream swiped a pointer finger just below both his shoulder blades and chuckled when the smaller boy screeched, pushing his face into the pillow and muffling a nervous giggle that he couldn’t keep in any longer.

“Wahatch it! I can stop this right now, you know!” George threatened as he adjusted his arms, folding them underneath the pillow before laying his head back down against the soft fabric. 

“What?! No! Please don’t!” The tone of his voice sent a small dagger into George’s chest, melting him instantly. He knew that Dream was fully joking, but the fake hurt in the younger’s voice made George want to let Dream tickle him forever.

“I…I won’t,” He sighed in defeat. “Just…be careful, okay?” 

George was met with a small chuckle in response, giggling himself when he felt Dream’s fingers touch down just under his shoulder blades and wiggle lightly against the warm skin there. He twisted his fists up into the pillowcase, squeezing the fabric between his fingers in an attempt to keep his arms raised.

Dream continued to softly skitter his fingers over George’s back, spreading his hands further apart to trail up and down the sides of his spine. He arched into the bed as Dream’s right pointer finger traced back up his spine and between his shoulder blades, giggling harder and kicking his feet against the covers a few times to relieve some of the tickly energy that was coursing through his body.

“You’re cute when you’re all squirmy like this.” The blonde stated, no teasing tone to be found in his voice. This only further proved to fluster George as his face grew hotter, making him turn to fully bury his face into the pillow. 

“Shuhut up!” George’s giggles were quickly morphed to cackles as Dream used both pointer fingers to walk under his shirt, scratching lightly at the sides of his armpits and following George whichever way he twisted. 

“It’s the truth! What am I supposed to do, lie to you?” Dream giggled from his spot on George’s thighs, flattening his palms and dragging them slowly down before spidering his fingers along the boy’s lower back. The brunette jumped in surprise at the sudden tickling, giggling harder and visibly struggling more and more the longer Dream focused there.

“Ahaha, please! I- Dreheheam! Gehehentle, plehease!” 

“Thihis is gentle! I’m not sure I could get any more gentle if I tried!” Despite his rebuttal, Dream pressed his palms down again into the pink skin of George’s lower back and began rubbing to help soothe the tingly feeling. 

“Thahahank you!” George’s laughter was slowly calming down, the pitch raised into tiny squeaks but becoming less frequent as the time passed. Dream felt his own cheeks filling with heat at the reply, rarely experiencing that level of politeness from the Brit. He leaned his body slightly to the left  to look at George, feeling his stomach fill with butterflies at how wide his smile was, and how happy he looked with his eyes squeezed and nose scrunched. 

“Anything for you, my little prince.” He was met with a high pitched whine followed by chirpy giggles, making Dream’s tiny grin grow into a full blown toothy grin.

After sitting back on George’s thighs again, adjusting himself to balance comfortably, Dream used his pointer and middle fingers from both hands and slowly walked them up George’s back, pressing in and wiggling slightly as they continued their journey from his lower back to just under his shoulder blades once more.

“I didn’t realize how sensitive your back was, Georgie. And here I am, just thinking I was the only one cursed with this weakness!” He continued to speak as he made little swirls with his fingers on the sides of George’s back, careful to not tickle too much over his back ribs in fear of disturbing the smaller boy’s state of sleepy bliss he was caught in. “I hope you know I’ll remember this.” 

“Whahahatever!” The brunette exclaimed, wiggling slightly as the soft tickling continued under his shirt and around his shoulder blades. He scrunched his shoulders up as high as they would go, shaking his head back and forth as tickly circles were drawn around the sensitive bones of his upper back, hugging the pillow as tightly as he could as a source of comfort.

The younger boy hummed in response, a smile clear in the tone as he removed his hands from under the shirt and made his way back down to the dimples of George’s back, tracing and skittering all ten of his fingers as he went. As much as he loved the sound of George’s cackling, squealing and giggling, he didn’t want to tire the boy out too soon. After another minute of gentle tickles around the sides of his lower back, Dream flattened his palms again and began to rub the entirety of George’s back, helping to calm him and work him through the giggles that continued to pour from him. 

Dream eventually made his way to George’s shoulders, helping relax them back down from being pressed up against his ears. He used his hands to squeeze the muscles there every few seconds, giving George a gentle massage as his giggles slowly dissolved. The blonde noticed how small George looked beneath him, his hands completely engulfing his shoulders and making Dream let out a chuckle at how tiny he actually was. George let out a contented sigh, ignoring the giggle and turning his head to lay his cheek on the blankets comfortably, closing his eyes just moments later. George could feel himself drifting off to sleep when suddenly his eyes shot open, Dream’s hands having moved closer to his neck and sending a horribly tickly sensation to his nerves. 

“Wait, whahat?! Nohoho!” The elder scrunched his shoulders up and attempted to block the sensitive muscle where his shoulders and base of his neck met, clearly surprised at how much it affected him. 

“Awh, what’s wrong, sweetheart, does someone have a sensitive neck?” 

“You knohohow I do!” 

The brunette buried his head into the blankets below him once again as he let out a squeal, feeling Dream’s fingers walking up the sides of his neck until he was directly under his ears on both sides. He began to gently flutter his fingers in the hypersensitive area, giggling to himself when George’s laughter rose in pitch until it was nothing but bright chirps and loud squeaks. 

“Listen to you, George! You’re like a little bird!” The older boy groaned through his giggles at the comment, not knowing whether to take it as a compliment or an insult. He didn’t have much time to dwell on that though as a tiny raspberry was suddenly placed below his right ear, making him screech and attempt to bring up his shoulder again. Unfortunately for George, Dream’s chin blocked it and another small raspberry was placed in the same spot. 

“NAHAHA P-PLEHEASE! G-Gehehentle, Dream!” 

The skitters against his skin turned into gentle rubs, taming George’s giggles almost instantly and allowing him to relax back into the touch.

“I know, I know. I just can’t help myself, George. You’re too cute when you get all scrunchy.” Dream giggled at his own words as he watched George melt into the blankets beneath him. He moved his pointer fingers to swipe at the shell of George’s ear to hear him squeal again before rubbing the ghost tickles out immediately after the action. 

“W-Well, you’re ahahan idiot!” 

“Maybe, but I’m your idiot. So that makes up for it, right?” 

George could hear the smirk in Dream’s voice and refused to answer out of spite, not wanting to give him the satisfaction of knowing the stupid remark had made me smile, too. After a few more minutes of Dream soothingly rubbing over George’s shoulders, he tapped on the smaller boy’s back a few times to get his attention. 

“Is it okay if you turn onto your back for me? I wanna try something else.” The blonde was met with a small whine in response, but lifted himself slightly off of George’s thighs when Dream felt him begin to turn over anyway. Dream’s grin only grew when George flashed him a death glare, watching as he flopped himself down onto his back with an eye roll. 

“There. Happy?” 

Dream raised an eyebrow at the question as he looked George’s torso up and down, shaking his head slightly in disapproval as he lowered himself back onto George’s thighs. His eyes were glued to George’s shirt, which had fallen back down to cover his tummy as the smaller boy maneuvered himself just seconds before.

“I would be, but you messed up your shirt! Now I have to pull it up again.” Dream sighed in feigned annoyance. He made sure to meet George’s gaze as he slowly began to push his shirt up once again, this time stopping at the middle of his ribs and dragging his fingers down his sides once he was satisfied with the amount of tummy exposed. The brunette writhed with a high pitched giggle at the tracing on his sides, bringing his hands up to hide his face out of embarrassment. 

Dream slowly skittered his fingers lightly over George’s lower tummy, feeling the smaller boy squirm a little more than he had been as he kicked his feet pathetically against the bed behind him. The blonde used his pointer fingers to continue to trace up and down the sides of George’s tummy, listening to the many different types of giggles it produced while George continued to squirm. The elder did his best to try and allow the tickling, stopping his hands every time they moved from his face to try and grab Dream’s hands on instinct. 

“Do you know you scrunch your nose sometimes when you laugh?” Dream commented nonchalantly, making the blush from George’s cheeks spread to the tips of his ears and down the front of his neck. 

“I dohohn’t!” 

“And you blush like crazy. Right now you’re like a little rose, your cheeks are so red! It’s the cutest thing I’ve ever seen! My little blushy baby.”

“SHUT UHUHP!” George removed his hands from the safety of his own face and lunged forward, trying his best to clamp them over Dream’s mouth but squealing when his wrists were scooped up into one of the blonde’s big hands instead. 

“Oh, you want me to tickle your palms? You could’ve just asked, gorgeous!” Dream brought his chin down and began to lightly drag his beard over George’s palms, making him break out into bright cackles as he threw his head back. 

“N-Nahaha please! Nohohot there!” 

Dream knew that George had extremely sensitive palms, but also knew they worked incredibly well as melt spots when done correctly. Dream continued to slowly drag his chin back and forth over George’s hands until he felt the small fingers relax against his own cheeks, smiling and letting George press his fingers into them as he giggled along with the elder. 

“Dreheheam!” 

The blonde could tell that George was getting embarrassed, giggling quietly as he watched him squeeze his eyes shut while he attempted to hide his face into one of his shoulders. Dream decided to take pity on him, smile wide as he pulled back slightly to stop the tickling. 

“Okahay, okay. I guess I’m done experimenting....” Dream spoke with fake disappointment as moved his chin from its place hovering over George’s hands, holding them in his own and using both of thumbs to rub against George’s to help calm him. 

“Thahahank God.” He dropped his head back down against the pillow as he closed his eyes with a contented sigh, intending on allowing the rest of the giggles to run their course while he attempted to relax again. Dream raised an eyebrow at that, taking it as a small challenge and smirking when a new plan formed in his head.

“But actually, you know what? Maybe not!” Dream spoke suddenly, fingers releasing George’s hands and allowing both of his own to fall down to rest on the tops of his thighs.

“Wahahait, why?!” George felt a slight panic at the idea of more tickles after everything he’d already been put through, bringing his hands back to himself and crossing both arms over his torso for protection.

“I just realized I never got your poor little feet! How could I forget them, they need just as much attention as the rest of you, don’t they?”

“What?! Nohoho! We- We’re supposed tohoho be nahahapping!” George was quick to protest, launching his hands forward and gripping onto Dream’s wrists as tight as he could to keep him in place. Dream’s grin grew wider at that reaction, getting the desired results and deciding to continue the teasing.

“I could even do that thing you like so much!” Dream flashed him a smile as he ignored George’s words, only interested in continuing the topic he had introduced. George knew by asking he would only get more flustered, but he was too curious and too stubborn to allow Dream to get away with gatekeeping whatever thought he was currently having at his own expense. 

“...What thing…?” He was hesitant, his voice wavering when the question finally spilled out moments later. The blonde giggled brightly at that, pulling at his arms a little to feel that George still had a tight grasp on them.

“Well,” Dream began to explain, shrugging his shoulders as he thought for a moment before continuing. “You know that thing. The shoe thing! The one where I take one off and leave one on?”

“Dre- NMM HMM?!” George opened his mouth to speak, but Dream was quick to break out of the smaller boy’s grip, placing a hand over his mouth to muffle the protests as he continued. 

“To be gentle, of course! Not for any other reason. And then I’d take the one sock off, too. And I’d leave the other foot alone, still protected. Isn’t that nice of me, only focusing on one foot instead of two?”

George let go of the wrist he still was holding and grabbed the hand over his mouth, pulling it off and flinging it away from himself as far as Dream would let it go. He quickly brought his arms up and flung them over his face once again as he felt his cheeks grow hotter by the second. George was shaking his head quickly, not saying anything verbally out of fear his voice would sound small and weak from how flustered he was.

“You can relax, I’m just teasing. That’s a little too intense for you for it to be considered gentle, isn’t it, sweetheart? You’re just too ticklish and too flustered, huh?” 

“What?! Dream, just- whahatever, shut up!” George whined behind his arms, letting out a small hiccup in surprise when Dream gripped his elbows and lowered his arms to reveal his face. He opened his eyes and was met with bright green ones staring back, rolling his own and pushing at Dream’s chest to move him back slightly.

“Alrihight, angel, I’m done tormenting you…for now.” The blonde adjusted himself from straddling George’s thighs to kneeling next to him again, this time pressing his knees against George’s side in an attempt to stay connected. 

“More like forever.” George made a move to sit up as he mumbled under his breath, pushing himself up onto his elbows only to fall back against the bed suddenly when he felt rapid squeezes digging into his inner thighs. He let out a wail and thrashed around frantically, his legs kicking out and arms flailing in every direction. 

“NAHAHAHA! D-DREHEHEHEAM NOHOHO!” One of George’s hands gripped tightly into the comforter below him, pulling at it and trying his best to keep his arms to himself in an attempt to save himself from slapping Dream and making the tickling far worse than it already was.

The pinching stopped as quickly as it had started, allowing George to take in deep gulps of air as he continued to laugh himself silly. He pressed his knees together as he turned to the left side, curling in on himself and bringing a hand down to wedge between his inner thighs in an attempt to tame the ghost tickles that were still flowing throughout his legs. His free hand was covering the side of his face that was visible to Dream, attempting to keep the blonde from seeing George’s rapidly growing blush.

“I’m sorry, but I had to! You were getting cocky with me,” The blonde giggled, stretching his left arm out and placing it on the smaller boy’s arm and rubbing it soothingly to try and help calm his nerves. He let out a bright giggle when George jolted at the sudden touch, clearly anticipating more tickles. Dream moved his hand up George’s arm and into the older boy’s hair, gently ruffling it. “But it was only for a second! I promise I’m done now, baby.”

“Ohohonly a second?! It’s my thighs, Dreheheam! You know how they are!” George rolled his eyes as he moved his hand to reveal his face, barely meeting Dream’s gaze. He felt a chill run down his spine as soon as the words passed his lips, noticing the flame they ignited in Dream’s eyes as he stared down at him with a smirk.

“Oh yeah? Do I know how they are, Georgie?” The brunette squirmed at the words, moving to cover his face once again to hide himself from Dream.

“Yes!” George spat back in annoyance, feeling his face heat up once again at the teasing tone in the younger boy’s voice. George felt the bed dip and suddenly he felt lips against the shell of his ear, barely grazing it and causing him to yelp. He made a move to cover the spot with his hand instead, but Dream had anticipated this and was quick to lightly grip George’s wrist, keeping it where it was against his blushy cheek.

“Hmmm…maybe I do. But don’t worry! We can explore that another day, just to make sure I really know,” Dream purred into his ear, making George let out a high pitched whine from the sudden closeness of the blonde. “Preferably on a day where I’m feeling particularly cruel. Does that sound good, kitten?”

Dream released his grip on the tiny wrist in his hand, chuckling when the brunette scrambled to sit up while the blonde made a move to crawl to the edge of the bed. George could do nothing but watch with wide eyes as the younger boy stood up, making his way towards the door with a mischievous look on his face; like he was immediately planning George’s demise. 

“W-What about our nap?” 

“How could I possibly sleep now when I have, like, ten different ideas on how to absolutely wreck you floating around in my head? I’ll nap later.” Dream turned around one last time to flash him a teasy smile before exiting the bedroom and disappearing down the hallway, leaving George bright faced and breathless, anxiously sitting with the many questions that swirled through his mind of what Dream could possibly do to further tear him into ticklish little shreds.

#lee!george #ler!dream #YAAAAY ITS FINALLY HERE #this took forever to write but......i think im happy with it #this also may have been heavily aimed at a certain talented puppy we all know and love and adore #i waited until cal read this to post it bc i wanted to see his reaction and let me tell u #cutest hecking thing i stg #lets also thank cal for coming up with prompts with me and listening to me whine about this for months on end #and thank u to llama for doing the lee!dream event and giving me this idea in the first place!!! #and my bb mouse for reading this a few times during the writing process to tell me if it flows or not!!!!! #and summer for absolutely hyping the shit out of this #i will cry tbh i love my frens so much im just so excited ): #and thank u literally everyone who participates or interacts or reads or just silently lurks #like.......this is so cool what to hecc #mushie fics #mcyt tickle #my stuff #mushies lee!george week

[skunkes]

2023 has been craaazy u guys i cant believe my hair is wavy

#talkys #the jork being that so much more has happened and is still in the process of happening as we speak but good lird ! my hair is wavy #also mfw i stopped cutting my hair short bc i was tired of getting yelled at for 7 years then i kept getting yelled at for it being messy #and then i finally realized 1. my hair is wavy 2. the reason my mom hates my hair is because its wavy and thick and not #straw thin like my eldest sisters and i have 0 desire to straighten it like my good sister like oh okay <3 yaaaay <3 #further lore is before i cut my hair short my mom wldnt let me leave the house without beating my head in with a brush to brush it out #which nobody told me was Bad for hair that is wavy and i guess no one told her either #so this is the first time ive been allowed to just have it like dis #i cant stop staring now whenever it dries like holy shit. waves

[tillman]

Todays been pretty slow for a sunday morning (inb4 huge rush in an hour but) and grahhh all I can think about is editing the petit scans …. Still have to sit through 5 more hours of work before I can finish it up .. my dearest gg petit will finally be not 30x30 pixel images on the wiki …

#the difference in quality is insane. no clue where the old pics are from but theyre MINISCULE .. so happy to be able to provide these #even if im like. the only guy who cares this bad about gg petit I will happily care if it means more art is preserved …. its good art !!! #txt #I wanna do a comparison cus like. holy shit. #even the official like promo art is so fucking insanely small on the wiki… and the book has all that …!!!!! yaaaay hehehehe #finally the image of sol and ky playing video games together will be big ..!!!!!!!! #that ones cute millia and potemkin are hanging out in it

[corvuscorona]

you rly do have to slowly get to know printers like they're horses...

#secondhand epson my mom's bf didn't need anymore. probably hadnt been used in months or years before we picked it up from her place #n then we had it sit around for another few months bc too busy to go through the whole printer setup Thing #i turn it on and do one (1) maintenance it's fine. before i can do the 2nd maintenance it starts weeping and howling #about how it doesn't know what 2 of its ink cartridges are suddenly. they're not out of ink it just doesnt understand what they are #i mess with that for a bit and then decide 'you know what fuck it' and just buy more. like those were also in there before i got it so sure #i replace them it's like yaaaay ok you can print now. i print it is banded as hell. i do some aligning i do some cleaning #we are now almost in a state where i can in fact print shipping labels finally... or ride at the big Horse Contest i guess

[blixssily]

yaaaay ∑d(°∀°d) will look out for those, can't wait!!! if its okay, can i request for jingyuan fic/hc where he remains in luofu while his s/o is a nameless on the astral express travelling the universe, and finally reunite with jingyuan after ○○○ years when the train stops by luofu again? (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

happy writing, remember to take breaks and drink/eat well ヽ(>∀<☆)ノ

"it's hard to be anywhere these days when all i want is you."

| you leave your lover behind to travel the world, one day you decide to finally come back to him.

| jing yuan x reader

˓ ꒱ notes and disclaimers: bad attempt at somewhat angst, reader is gender neutral, probably ooc.

˓ ꒱ authors notes: thank you so much for this request!! i'm so sorry if this isn't what you were picturing for jing yuan as i'm not too well versed in his character but i'll try my best!!

he tried to be supportive about your decision to stay on the astral express despite his many offerings for you to remain in xianzhou luofu. there's not a day that goes by that he doesn't think about you. the bed that couldn't barely fit the both of you (he insisted that it made it easier to hold you) now seemed like too much space for him. the side of the bed that you claimed as yours is now as cold as the midnight breeze. he shivers as he recalls the way you'd snake your arms around his neck, keeping him warm.

you two had almost gotten into an argument actually. when you announced that you weren't going to stay in xianzhou luofu with him. he just didn't want to be left alone again, he didn't want his afternoons to just be filled with paper work, he didn't want his home to be dead silent whenever he'd creak the door open. he didn't want the bed to be cold when he knew it wasn't meant to be.

he didn't want you gone.

he eventually came around and apologised to you though. "i'm sorry for what i've said before. if this would really make you happy, they by all means go for it. just come back to visit me once in a while okay?" he smiles, you can tell that smile is ridden with sadness, ridden with forced acceptance. "i promise." he feels your soft lips against his. it's at this moment that he realises just how weak you've made him. he'd give the whole world to you if you just asked.

he moment he bids you off on your journey he's so tempted to just leave his entire life in xianzhou luofu behind to be with you. wherever it may be, he just wanted to be surrounded by your warmth.

he stands there for a moment, almost as if the ground below him had shackled his ankles to the ground in a sick twisted way of forcing him to see you leave him. he felt so wrong walking away from the entrance of xianzhou luofu (?)

he's dreading having to open up the door to your once shared house, now devoid of all light. all your stuff is gone, albeit a few shirts and little pendants you bought were still lying around. it made it seem like you had passed on, and god he did not want to think of that.

he can't even focus on his job as the general anymore, he thinks he should be able to finish the bare minimum tasks like before he met you but now it feels like he can't even pick up his pen. the pen being one that you had bought him.

he honestly couldn't function well without you, he thinks it's pathetic how he's reduced to what he is now when the only thing that wasn't there was you. you two still kept in touch through your phones but it just wasn't the same. he'd call you every night, sometimes you wouldn't pick up because you were either already asleep or you were busy with something.

he thinks he's never felt more alone in his life.

it's been months, time seemed to pass by slower when you weren't by his side. the snacks he once bought you to try because he knew you'd be home to enjoy them, now never enter through his front door. it was supposed to be a normal day for him, fill out some paperwork, play chess with yanqing during his break, go home a little earlier than yesterday and just rest.

you didn't tell him this during your call last night but the astral express was visiting xianzhou luofu for awhile, the reason was unclear to you but you didn't care. you wanted to surprise your boyfriend! you still remembered his timings for when he goes home and he mentioned that he'll be back home a little earlier since he's been feeling tired lately so it was perfect!

you decide to go back to your shared home to wait for him, not before buying some ingredients to cook him dinner, which he probably hasn't done for himself in a while.

on the other hand, jing yuan gets a little startled when he realises that he lights in his house are on. he thinks hes being robbed but then again who else would be that stupid to rob the general or xianzhou luofu? when he's at the door he can smell the familiar scent of his favourite dish. his mind flashes to you but you didn't tell him you were coming back?

"welcome back! i wasn't sure what to do while i was waiting for you so i made you this." he honestly can't believe the sight that's in front of him right now. he never thought he'd hear your warm welcome so soon even though it's been months.

you walk up towards him, wrapping your arms around his neck. "i missed you." you whisper into his neck. his arms immediately find purchase on your waist, pulling you closer to him. "i've missed you too my dear." he nuzzles into your hair, taking in the scent that's almost left his, no, your shared home.

"why didn't you tell me you were coming back?" he pulls away slightly to face you, god he's missed you. "i wanted it to be a surprise." you smile, shreds of guilt showing in your eyes for leaving him for so long. "let's eat, i'll tell you all about my adventures." you tug his wrist, the food already being set on the dining table.

moonlight pours through the windows to your bedroom, jing yuan's arms are wrapped tightly around your frame. you're nuzzled into his chest, his chin resting on the top of your head. your hands are tangled in his silver locks, occasionally giving his head a little massage.

"please don't ever leave me." your hands still at the sound of his voice. you're barely able to hear it, voice betraying his role as a general.

"i won't, i promise." you tighten your arms around him, pulling him impossibly closer to you. you look up at him to place a kiss on his lips. "get some sleep, i'll be here when the sun rises." you whisper as you snuggle back into his chest, relaxing your arms.

"i love you."

"i love you too."

notes and reblogs are heavily appreciated !!

#honkai star rail x reader #hsr x reader #jing yuan x reader #hsr jing yuan x reader #jingyuan x reader

[meimi-haneoka]

Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card Chapter 79: Comments + JP-ENG translation differences

Welcome back to our monthly appointment, CCS fans! This chapter comes right after this month's full moon, the Hunter Moon! (lol yes I will feature the name of the relative full moon till the end of the story). And speaking of the end of the story, I will start this analysis and translation post from the end of the chapter, where I found the confirmation to the rumour that had been going on for hours before the official release on Comic Days:

yes, dear readers, this is not a drill, Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card Arc will end with chapter 80, after 7 years of serialization! 🎉✨ When *the last chapter* is announced, there's no turning back! No more sudden announcements of extensions! 🥹 But at the moment of writing this post, no mentions have been given about any "epilogue" or extra chapters that might be serialized in the upcoming months leading to the big release of volume 16 on April 1st!

On the translation side, I have to sigh in relief because no major misunderstandings happened in the ENG version, just some minor inaccuracies! I was kinda scared because this chapter is pretty important and complex in itself.

And let me say that what happened in this chapter 79 definitely marks the end of the climax, so I can totally see it ending in next chapter. The chapter tackled some very important thematics regarding the presence of "evil" in this series, that I will talk about extensively in my analysis.

The announcement today made me already a bit nostalgic and sad, but I want to strive hard to accompany myself and all of you towards the end of this arc with excitement and a smile, therefore I won't let myself be prey of the sadness yet and introduce you immediately to the gif of this month, because there's a lot we need to talk about and analyze and we can't waste time!!

This is entirely dedicated to our protagonist and heroine Sakura-chan, because damn, she really slayed this chapter!!! Under the cut to see what miracles she made happen!

The Color Page

My dear readers, after years of countless pleas on my social media, after being let down month after month, CLAMP FINALLY GRANTED ME A COLOR PAGE SOLELY DEDICATED TO KAITO AND AKIHO TOGETHER ON THE SECOND-TO-LAST CHAPTER!! Yaaaay!! Excuse me while I celebrate this event here in my little corner, especially after having a rough month! 🎉🎉🎉 I hope my followers thought of me when they saw it? Like "finally she'll stop asking for it" (breaking news, I'll keep asking for more even after the series is over) 😂 It took them 79 chapters to do so and honestly I'm laughing because....yes, I admit it, I expected another vibe for such an important color page coming after such an important emotional scene in chapter 78, but honestly the first thing I thought when I saw it was "....they had to wait 79 chapters for this? 😧" 😂because it's very very "regular", I think it would've been ok for this to come out long ago. LOL I'm being brutally honest here, I hope no one gets offended, especially because that pet peeve aside, OF COURSE I love this precious color page to bits, and I know under its "normalcy", its got a very important meaning to the both of them.

Akiho and Kaito are depicted together clearly during one of their travels....but the question is, is this from the past? Or the near future? I'd daresay they look the same age they are now, so this might probably be a foreshadowing for the future...? They'll keep travelling the world? But seeing the content of the chapter, this might also be just a call-back to their memories together and everything that they experienced during those travels, tightening their bond. Travelling the world is, after all, really their thing, their element. I really like Kaito's expression, with his usual smile that almost turns into a smirk, he gives off a vibe of being finally free to express his emotions. He looks carefree, and that's really something for him. Akiho, on the other hand, is always so much more expressive than him and you can literally feel the joy and excitement emanating from her delighted expression. Travelling with him makes her happy, so yes, should this be what awaits them in the finale, it's fine by me as long as they're happy (I'm rooting for the other option though, the "stay in Tomoeda with your newfound support network" route).

But as you know, I always have to analyze the color pages a bit deeper, especially when they're about these two. And since I had to keep myself distracted, I made a bit of research. Other than the "travelling" vibe, this illustration gives off also kind of a "vintage" vibe (which is another strong element to Akiho and Kaito). It seems Akiho is dressed in a sleeveless coat with cape and wearing a bonnet fully inspired by those worn by children in the second half of the 1800s, in the Victorian era.

(pic courtesy of Etsy) This is a model from 1896, for example. When I pinpointed the period, I immediately thought "uh, the Victorian era is also the period when Alice in Wonderland came out", although that was more towards the 1860s. I found it really interesting and a nice touch for this illustration with a retro flavor (the suitcase and purse also look kinda vintage).

But another thing that immediately caught my eyes were those cute birds landing on Kaito's shoulder and Akiho's bonnet. I immediately tried to look what kind of birds they are, and it seems like they could really be eastern bluebirds, typical of North America. Searching further, I found out that in several cultures bluebirds are harbinger of happiness and symbols of hope. I couldn't honestly have thought for a more fitting symbolism, for these two. Especially cause birds often are associated with an imagery of freedom, and this is something else that these two need, after being hunted by evil people for so long. They really do look free, in this color page. Also, the presence of the birds in this color page immediately brought me back to the color page of chapter 62, where we can see baby Kaito in a wintery setting, sitting on a lamppost, extending his little hand to a swallow coming to him. Swallows are a symbol of hope and bring a message of "spring is coming", and continuing from that message of hope, of "spring is coming for you too", we can finally see here in chapter 79 our Kaito with his true happiness, symbolized literally by the birds most associated with happiness. Another thing that caught my eyes is of course the lily depicted on the cover of the book Akiho is holding, a nice callback to Akiho's mother and Kaito's torment, Lilie. She's always going to be with them ❤️

The Japanese editorial text over the picture is an excerpt of what Momo was musing to herself in chapter 39, while imagining to talk to Kaito: "You traveled with her, and spent time together with her". I think CLAMP chose to feature this line to indicate an important thing that will be restored at the end of this chapter.

Everyone Is Doing Their Best

The chapter starts with a panel showing some light coming off Yukito's house, and we find out that even Touya fainted, exhausted by the effort to keep time stopped as much as possible. Ruby Moon is cradling his head on her lap trying to assist him and "recharge" his magical power, in hope to be able to maintain time "stopped" a bit more. In fact, if you notice, the "black covering" that symbolizes the time-stopping spell isn't completely destroyed yet, but only riddled with "holes", an indication that the spell is still somehow active, even if feebly. I imagine this might "slow down" the attacks, which are still coming but probably not at full speed like they would if the spell came undone completely. I have to point out immediately a mild inaccuracy in the ENG version, that I want to specify in order to dispel extreme theories before they're born: no, Ruby Moon didn't give up all of her powers to Touya, the verb used here is simply 補える, "can replenish (your magic)", not "give all".

Touya doesn't lose his sense of humor even in a dire situation like this, and comments sarcastically "What are you, a battery?", a clear recall to the whole "batteries" matter that came out in the un-rewritten world. Touya isn't supposed to remember about that, and he probably doesn't, but this is just a way from CLAMP to show that even in a situation where memories have been rewritten, some things will be unconsciously said again, because they're just meant to happen.

Ruby Moon calls for assistance from her "brother" Spinel Sun (love how even in these true forms, she still calls him "Suppy"), whom rejects the appellative of "battery" but agrees to give her a hand with "recharging" Touya to keep the spell up a bit longer. Everyone looks outside, only one thought in their minds, which is voiced clearly by a serious Tomoyo: "Sakura and everyone else are fighting with all they've got". I have to point out a typo here in the Japanese version (nothing serious, it can happen and will be surely fixed in the tankobon version): Tomoyo calls Sakura "Sakura-san". I loved the "sparkles" around Tomoyo's eyes, as if indicating that her extraordinary intuition is "at work" and just telling her that, even if they can't see them because they're quite far away, Sakura and the others are doing whatever they can to stop these attacks. And the fact they can see the attacks, but not their friends and their condition, must be really hard to witness, for all of them. But no worries, there's Touya nii-chan who's always ready to lighten the mood even in this challenging situation, joking that "If they don't get back before the curfew, they won't be getting their snacks tomorrow!". Here the ENG adds "squirt" to make Touya refer specifically to Sakura, but truth to be told, in the JP there's no subject, so he might be referring to everyone. It's amazing how he's able to keep his spirit up and be sarcastic even in this situation....he really believes in his little sister so much!

I'll Make Them Forget About You

Back where our heroes are, the attacks keep coming relentlessly, countered by Syaoran, Yue and Kero in tandem. Sakura reflects on the fact that the only transparent Cards she's got left are these two she's holding in her hands (Time and Rewind) and Flight. This statement leads me to believe that when Record transformed into that crystal that entered her, that meant that the Card completed its duty and disappeared inside of her. But Sakura isn't worried at all, because she knows that she can create more Cards. Yessss, this development that I've been anticipating since quite some time is finally here! ✨🎉 Sakura seems to finally have a concrete plan, but before proceeding, she needs to ascertain something. She asks directly to Kaito: "The people who are using these spells were trying to hurt you, right?". Kaito, with a pensive face, answers affirmatively.

But it's when Sakura asks again "Were they trying to hurt Akiho too?" that his expression turns really painful, the background after him portraying well his raging emotions and, while Mokona-sensei chose to leave Akiho hidden by Kaito's black wings in the previous panels, now she finally shows how both she and Kaito are holding onto eachother, while our boy answers with a "...Yes" dripping with sorrow. It really squeezed my heart with pain, this scene. Because as long as Sakura was asking about him, his expression was pensive but almost as if it's something he's used to, that didn't shake him too much. But when Sakura mentions Akiho, god, that wrecked him. Any mention, any reminescence of what those bastards did to her and how they were chasing after her to put their filthy hands on her again wrecks him even now, and it's like Mokona with her visual skills is showing how Kaito seems to be holding Akiho a little bit tighter, while he answers Sakura's question. I also have to point out something that I had noticed already from last chapter, but a panel tricked me into believing I was just seeing things: CLAMP here use a dark screentone for Kaito's eyes, that he never had before (actually, no other character in CCS got this effect in their eyes). This effect will be used on him for the entire chapter.

And it seems like it's the very same screentone that was used for the dragon. I think this might be an indication that the wings aren't the only reminescence of his dragon appearance!

Sakura shows once again an incredible empathy that allows her to go right to the heart of the issue without investigating much. If Kaito rewrote an entire world, and if it's true that Akiho in the previous world didn't have all the love and familiar support she's got now, it means that she was probably in danger too. And seeing as these people are attacking them now because they freed Kaito from his "punishment", Sakura doesn't really need much to make 2+2 and understand the situation. Sakura believes in Akiho, therefore she believes in Kaito too, and knows that if he came to this point it's because they were in a desperate and dangerous situation.

Showing an incredible insight, Sakura shocks both Kaito and Akiho by asking:

Sakura, JP: "In that case, can I make those people forget about you both?"

Because our girl needs to make sure that the plan she came up with won't have any undesired consequences. But most importantly, she needs to have their consent. She reiterates this once again, actually she will make sure to ask Kaito and Akiho's consent 3 times in total. She says: JP, lit. "If going back to before the world was rewritten will put you through hardships once again, then, can I just make them forget?" Kaito is even more shocked, because he finally understands Sakura's intent. A generous, selfless intent born from a loving heart. Our girl wants to make sure that these two will be safe and sound once she fixes this situation. She can't take risks, because their happiness is all she's really caring for right now. And in his shocked expression, I can also see some kind of "omg YES, PLEASE" vibe. Because probably, having those terrible people forgetting all about them is everything he ever wished, but couldn't achieve. And I think it's really funny how we berated Kaito so much in the past chapters for making Akiho and the others forget facts that happened before and forgetting about him, but here Sakura just takes "inspiration" from him and actually decides to use that same "trick" in the right way. Because it's not fair that it should be them, the abused people, to forget about their most important person, in order to achieve a happy life for at least one of them. It isn't fair and it isn't right that Kaito was driven into making all the mess that he made, pushed by desperation. The abusers, that clan and Association of magicians, should be the ones forgetting.

But this is Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card's finale, and Sakura definitely hasn't finished with being amazing yet, she actually just started. Her very strong power at this point allows her not only to see things that were difficult before, but also to connect the dots more easily thanks to that renowned instinct that I've always talked to you about, and that she learned to finally listen to.

As if she were seeing through him with X-rays, she confidently affirms that there's a book inside of him, a white book where you can inscribe magic on. And she also knows that that same book was inside Akiho, once. I guess this might be even coming from past memories of the unrewritten world (do you remember when, before the play started, Sakura said that she could feel something inside Akiho?). Akiho of course is shocked to hear that, and from her expression you can almost feel the chill that went down her spine in that moment. Sakura affirms that this book knows both Akiho and Kaito (thanks to the fact that it was inside both of them - something that I've always found painfully heartbreaking but also quite moving, for my ship), and it's got a very strong power inside of it. These will be two crucial things for Sakura's plan. In fact, our heroine is hellbent in attempting something pretty arduous: utilizing that artifact's power to create a new Card. For impartiality, I have to point out that the ENG added (completely on their whim) a "you, her special person" that isn't there in the JP version! Of course it's all the better for me, since they repeat (finally with the right adjective) that Kaito is Akiho's special person, but it's kinda funny that they messed it up so much in the previous chapters, and now they're adding it where there isn't any mention of it!

Sakura will be using a tool that knows the both of them, therefore she is sure that her plan will succeed, because the Card will know what it will need to erase. Sakura asks for Kaito and Akiho's agreement one last time. After hearing how those people wanted to hurt them both and even implanted the same magical artifact inside of her, Akiho is quite resolute and doesn't have any doubt: on with the wiping off! It doesn't matter who those people are, they've tried to harm her most important person and her too, so she doesn't really seem to give a damn about proceeding with this plan. Kaito, on the other hand, seems to be giving a more lackluster affirmative reply, but it's not that he's uncertain: he's just still riddled with guilt for all the mess that he's done, and he's probably realizing that now Sakura will need to put herself on the line in order to fix this and protect both of them, hence his sad face.

Still surfing the confidence wave, Sakura guesses that once those people have forgotten about Akiho and Kaito, then the magic arrows will stop too, and Kaito confirms that: forgetting about the person who had the Seal of D enforced on him will be equal to "undo" both the activation of the Seal itself (when Kaito removed the book from Akiho) and also the rescission of it (what Sakura did when she freed Kaito from the cage). This will therefore stop the arrows too, because the Seal wouldn't have been triggered in the first place. However, Kaito warns her that, although time is still barely "stopped" (because the time-stopping spell is still weakly on), it's necessary an enormous amount of power in order to do what Sakura wants to do. I have to point out another inaccuracy in the ENG translation in this part, which makes Kaito say "before things could get worse" and I have the feeling they misunderstood the word 辛うじて, "barely" or "narrowly", which is also written with the kanji of 辛い, "hard" or "tough". So Kaito isn't saying "before things could get worse" but actually meaning "although time is barely stopped".

Sakura doesn't seem to be scared by Kaito's warning, and activates her wand without a second thought, and immediately we can see that her task wil NOT be easy, as she can feel the strain almost right away.

Here we go with another inaccuracy of the ENG translation:

Sakura, ENG: "Great book, please show yourself! My power alone won't be enough...!" Sakura, JP: "The book....doesn't want to come out. (it's too difficult to pull it out) with just my power..."

Basically, Sakura isn't begging the book to "show itself", she's actually actively trying to pull it out of Kaito, and she's aware that it's opposing a lot of resistance, and her power alone isn't enough to take this damn book out. Sakura refuses to give up, because everyone else is doing their best too. Yes, everyone else.

And that's when CLAMP decided to bring us a big surprise for this finale.

A pair of hands seem to be appearing next to Sakura's, as if a spirit is hugging her from behind. We can see the famous fan that we learned to recognize so well ever since her first appearance in Movie 1. Sakura feels immediately the same magical power of Syaoran surrounding her, and with her instinct she finally recognizes her: it's Syaoran's mother, YELAN!!! We can see her, sweating and all, in her sacred chinese pavilion, lending her power to help in this difficult task.

What a great, welcome surprise for this finale!! You might have heard me saying on Twitter that Clear Card is really a celebration of motherhood, with this constant presence of mothers and mother figures who try to help these kids growing up without removing their right to choose for themselves. And since Yelan is the only mother figure who can concretely help Sakura in this moment, with her immense power, I really loved to see how this woman didn't hesitate to assist her future daugher in law. For any SyaoSaku fan, this scene here is a huge thing. We have seen in the anime how Yelan doted on Sakura ever since she met her in Movie 1, even before her own son realized his feelings for this girl. Yelan and Sakura haven't met in the manga yet (and hello, CLAMP, now this is a good chance for letting that happen, after the madness is over), but the woman didn't hesitate a moment to lend her power. I can really imagine how along these two will get, in the future. ❤️

Sakura thanks her aloud, while her eyes show that she's really really tired. Yelan's assistance is finally effective in summoning the artifact book out of Kaito, and we see again those countless book pages that we saw both when Akiho used to go "berserk", and also in the most heartbreaking scene of chapter 70. Kaito, still holding onto a worried Akiho, seems to suffer physically from this removal, and I can't understand if it's because removing something magical from inside is naturally painful (we've been shown something like that before, Syaoran crouching to the ground in pain while the Sakura Cards were being removed from inside of him) OR if the removal of the artifact also triggered his poor health conditions in which we left him, before he disappeared in chapter 70.

Sakura tries with all she's got and finally manages to turn the artifact into its "true form": a book filled with countless of spells written in strange magic runes.

You have spotted it, right? ☝️ I haven't seen many fandom reactions yet, but I guess this "cameo" made more than one person scream: it's Fay D. Fluorite's tattoo, yes! This page of the "book" is probably describing the procedure to cast that tattoo (which was also a kind of "seal", if I remember correctly). So that spells exists in this CCS world too! 😅 The magic Sakura is weaving starts "working" on the book, literally removing the spells from its pages and turning them back to their original form of magical books (remember that the Squids used to say that they would inscribe "magic books" and their power onto Akiho?).

Then, solemnly, we hear probably for the last time ever the magical incantation that accompanied us in the beginning of the story, used by Sakura to secure the strange manifestations of power into a transparent Card:

ENG: "Force without master, heed the call of my Staff of Dreams and become my power! SECURE!"

The countless of books and all this tremendous amount of power get secured into the birth of a new Card: BLANK!!!

Blank got the human appearance of Akiho, but also the protective wings of Kaito. The girl is holding a book (of course, how perfect for her) which is the representation of the artifact that was inside both Kaito and Akiho. This card is really so meaningful for someone like me who loves Akiho and Kaito. It's representing them united in their suffering (the artifact) but also in the hope for a better future (Akiho is smiling and the Card will be used to grant them safety, away from their abusers). I've always imagined that one of the last Cards Sakura might have produced would have Akiho and Kaito's elements, and here it is.

Also, how AWESOME is that Sakura managed to dispose of that damn artifact and succeeded to use it for Kaito and Akiho's sake, and turned it against the monsters who created it??? HOW. AWESOME. IS. THAT!!!!

Producing the very first consciously created transparent Card sucked almost all of Sakura's power and strength, and she's close to fainting, under the terrified eyes of Akiho, who lets go of Kaito for a moment in a gesture of going towards her "sister". But Sakura isn't done yet, no. She can't give up yet because her job isn't done.

And I Will Make Them Remember About You

Sakura wants for Akiho and the people who care about her (the ENG decided to translate this with "the people SHE holds dear") to remember who Akiho really is. She wants basically to "undo" what the rewriting of the world caused on the people who know Akiho, making them believe that she was born into the Kinomoto family and that she was Sakura and Touya's sister.

After pondering for a while and discussing with my friends over at my Discord server, I decided I'm not gonna go out on a limb and assume things from this decision, because I definitely NEED to read the next chapter to see how much Sakura intends people to remember, with this move. It's really not clear at all, as of now.

Anyway, other translation inaccuracy incoming!

Sakura, ENG: "I'm going to make another new card for that...and I might not have the power to do it alone" Sakura, JP: "It might probably be really difficult to create one more new card with my power, right now..."

As you can see, the nuance is different, because Sakura in the JP addresses how it's almost impossible for her to create another new card in the situation she is in right now, exhausted and all.

That's why, very cleverly, she's going to do something different. (My gosh how proud I am of this girl!!)

Saying "But these two Cards will surely help me", Sakura skillfully manages to merge Time and Rewind to create a new Card, not from scratch (which requires more power) but using what she's already got: and that's how the REMIND Card is born!!! The name of the Card originated by just replacing the "W" of Rewind with the "M" of Time. Ingenious, isn't it???

And as the two Cards merge, they give us lots of flashbacks, like the "effect" used here resembles a lot the one that used to happen when Sakura was changing the Clow Cards into the Sakura Cards back in the old arcs, or how the merging of two Cards seems to also be a callback to how the "card without name" and the "Nothing" merged to create HOPE in the very last minutes of Movie 2! What a nostalgic trip down the memories lane!

And the appearance of this Card is even more touching, because it features Syaoran (with his current age) holding Nadeshiko's pendant watch. I found that so sweet, especially coupled with Yelan's assistance to Sakura in this chapter. Yelan associated with Sakura, and Syaoran associated with Nadeshiko. How sweet. And when you think that even Lilie, Akiho's mother, was associated with Kaito, you really can realize that this is some kind of "theme" that CLAMP seemed to be wanting to portray in this story.

I Can't Be On Everyone's Side

And now, the scene that I think is worth the whole chapter, but probably the whole Clear Card Arc in its entirety. As usual, with important scenes, I'll use the literal translation from Japanese:

Sakura, JP: "It might not be right that there'll be people who will forget things (after this), but....I can't be everyone's friend/ally/can't be on everyone's side. So I won't go back...but actually, along with the people important to me... I WANT TO GO ON"

Wow. Let that sink in.

Sakura, of Cardcaptor Sakura, just came to the realization and spelled out clearly that she cannot be on everyone's side. That she cannot be "everyone's friend", like in a cheesy fairytale.

And I really, really, want to thank CLAMP-sensei for this scene and this line because for a period, long time ago, I was worried that this story would go down the "let's be friends" or "let's show sympathy to them" route. But as the chapters continued and the things CLAMP told us about the Association and the Squids were more and more cruel, and they made me more and more sick, I started to realize that there was simply no way CLAMP could've had Sakura try to justify or compromise with them. Because when cruelty is real, there's no compromise to be made.

This scene also shows how Sakura realizes for the first time ever that in her world, contrary to what we all believed previously, evil exists. It might not touch her or her "entourage" directly (and she's really blessed for that), but it exists out there and it's hurting people, people who can also become really important to her. And she decides to not stand idly by, blessed as she is with the luck of not experiencing that evilness, but actually using whatever it is in her power to bring those suffering people to safety.

Sakura cannot fight those people on equal terms. She's just 13, and although her power is very strong, she's still inexperienced. Moreover, she cannot really bring herself to deny her current nature and use violence on other human beings. That's not Sakura. I want you guys to reflect on this because I know that one of the favorite things expected for this finale was to have a direct magical confrontation with the true villains of this arc, defeating them and restablishing the peace. And I am sincere when I say that I would've wished for the same too, because you know how much I love Kaito and Akiho, and how much I was disgusted to read about what they did to them. I've spread my "burn the squids" gifs all over the fandom. I wanted someone to vindicate them. But not here. Not in this manga. I realized that after the initial satisfaction, I would've probably felt like the series would've been "defiled". And that's exactly what happens when you answer to violence with more violence.

Sakura just could not go hunting those bastards down and defeat them in a magical battle. Because, powerful and corrupted in their greed as they are, the only way to "fix" this situation would've been to exterminate them. I just could not picture this story to cross that boundary, no matter how much the bar had already been raised well over what we initially thought.

So, if someone out there is disappointed by this outcome, I'm sorry for you, but it was just not meant to be and I'm actually really glad that this series kept true to its fundamental values. Of course it would, CLAMP really do care about this series and they know very well how far to push the plot, and when to actually stop.

So what is the role of Akiho's clan and the Magic Association in this story, especially considering that we never saw their faces at all? Talking with lots of fans in these years, especially Japanese, I've come to the conclusion that they are not in this story to fill the "villain that needs to be deafeated" role, but actually they're a representation of abusive families that smother and suffocate their children with expectations, completely disregarding those children's natural inclinations, and abuse them when they do not meet such expectations, but also the society as a whole, that looks at you only basing on how it can take advantage of you. Which is exactly what happened to Akiho and Kaito, driving them to very dark places. The absence of faces for those characters makes it possible for the readers to see the Squids and the Association as the representation of whatever environment they relate the most to. It can be family, society, school, workplace etc... It also helps us focusing on their actions, rather than their faces, and not attribute any prejudice to them (because of religion, race, skin color, or whatever other attribute they could have).

Seeing as the story treats them more like a concept, than an actual entity, it's basically impossible for Sakura to defeat them (and their great power is an indication of that impossibility). Just like in real life, darkness will always exist, along with light. Good and evil will always be side by side. It's bigger than any of us. Then, what can we do, in a situation like this? What Sakura is choosing to do, here, is not to confront directly with violence these people who are way out of her league, and not even to sit back and look, but actually finding a way to make them forget about her friends and keeping her friends safe, granting them the possibility of living a happy life, finally away from the darkness of the past, healing the wounds on their souls together with the people they love and who love them back. Because even if you've been abused in the past, you can still hope for a happy life.

The focus here is all on helping the abused people. And Sakura, in order to do that, is okay with coming to terms with the fact that she can't be on everyone's side, and she needs to choose. In the end, the thing that really matters the most is to GO ON with your most important people. Not going back to what is lost, but going forward. And I know that this is such a CLAMP theme, and I'm glad that they reiterated it in this arc. When I say that Clear Card brought Sakura so much more closer to what's usual for CLAMP, I mean this.

The panel with Sakura raising her staff and shouting she wants to go on is absolutely beautiful, with those wings growing so big and unleashing Sakura's power in a storm of cherry blossom petals.

Sakura is exhausted, she finally reached her limit by using her ultimate magic. As she faints, her eyes just make it in time to catch a glimpse of her prince, the love of her life grabbing tightly his girlfriend's hand, to not let her fall, while the watch of Remind and the book of Blank do their job in the background. And I really loved this spread too, because even if it's not a conventional romantic scene made of physical display of love, this in my opinion is even more powerful. Many were reminded of Tsubasa, but I was also reminded of the long time those two spent unable to touch one another, and this scene here seems like a catharsis for that hardship they went through. Syaoran will always catch Sakura everytime she falls, he will always be there to grab her hand, no matter if he can really touch her or not. Cause his love is stronger than any kind of impediment. He will always be by her side, no matter what. When she's exhausted by her heroine's duties, she knows that she can always count on him to support her.

And speaking of "always be by her side", I just can't avoid mentioning how Akiho and Kaito stayed "glued" to eachother for the entire duration of this chapter, protecting and supporting one another. Kaito, in particular, kept holding Akiho even as Sakura's magic was hurting him like hell, because it was extracting the book from him. Even in excruciating pain, he did not let go of Akiho, intent in protecting her and keeping her safe in his hold. Akiho let go of him just for a moment when she was scared out of her mind for Sakura, but went back to him when she saw that her "sister" was hellbent in completing her task no matter what. Kaito, as the good "moon boy" he is, is someone who shows his feelings through his actions rather than words, just like Syaoran. And his constant grip on Akiho in this chapter, such an opposite act compared to how he used to stop his hand everytime it started reaching out to her, told me all that I needed to know about him: she's his most important person, and he will never let go of her, ever again.

Sakura wakes up in her bed. The scene is a direct parallel with an almost identical scene in chapter 3, as you can see here:

Kero is next to her and is relieved to see her awake, so he goes to shout in the hallway, directed to Touya, that Sakura is finally awake. Sakura seems a bit surprised to see Kero talking so nonchalantly with her brother, and he tells her that he chatted with him back at Yukito's house, together with Suppy, so I guess now he finds it "natural" to talk to her brother too! 😂 I'm kinda glad to know that, I like this "change of relationship", compared to the old series (and it was also kinda long overdue).

Sakura opens the palm of her hands and she finds the Dream Key, still intact and all. She also asks about Remind and Blank, and Kero confirms to her that she was able to use them successfully! Sakura is absolutely delighted to hear that, and says "We were able to go on!"

And thaaaaaaat's how the second-to-last chapter of Cardcaptor Sakura Clear Card ends! Solving a lot of the pending situations, but still leaving some secondary questions that will surely find a (more or less) detailed explanation in the final, next chapter. And well, we also have to prepare to not have ALL the answers to ALL the questions we might have. This is usual for CLAMP, and especially in their Spaces they never made it a secret that they love for their fans to wreck their brains over theories and imagining the characters' future after a series is over. They love for the fans to give their interpretations to things, they encourage that a lot (also because it creates more long-lasting engagement with their series).

Alas, I expect they'll leave something in particular to everyone's interpretation, but we'll see. 😅

Overall, I really loved this chapter and it was really emotional for me. I think it's fitting for a "climax". Sakura was ABSOLUTELY running the show and after this I dare anyone to say that she isn't the main character of her story. She pushed her limits, and even questioned her own morality in doing so. What a wonderful thing. She reminded me so much of Sakura-hime when she shooted all those monsters in order to take the precious egg, back in the Acid Tokyo arc of Tsubasa. She knew she was doing something bad, but her wish to do everything needed in order to "have him back" was stronger than anything else. And she made her own choice. Here, Sakura, on a smaller scale, made her own choice too.

Now, I hope in the last chapter we'll be granted the possibility to delve a bit more into Kaito and his thoughts, I need to see his character development, I need to see that he learned something from this. That he -at least- started to interrogate himself over the nature of his feelings for Akiho. I know it's reasonable to think that with him, things will take looooong time, but as least show me the signs. Because I need to know that Akiho will be truly happy with him (I know she will!), and she can only be if he's learned to be honest with himself. And learned what Lilie meant with the last conversation we saw between them.

Also, WHERE'S MOMO, I NEED TO SEE MOMO BEFORE THIS ENDS!!

Okay, this is probably the longest post I ever did but I think as the second-to-last chapter it deserved to have some big thematics explored in depth, because they're very important. I'm still pondering if I should divide the post of the final chapter in two because, in addition to even more pages, I expect there'll be soooooooooo much to talk about (cross your fingers with me that there won't be any translation mistake).

I also hope there'll be room for an epilogue or a couple of extra chapters, to help us coping with the separation in a more gradual way, cause after 7 years it's quite hard. I was curious to see the end, of course, but also not entirely ready to let this wonderful story go. I really, really enjoyed it and I say this from the bottom of my heart. I don't care what everyone else thinks, I can only be grateful to CLAMP for Clear Card Arc. 🙏

Chapter 80, along with all the tears that will come with it, is expected to be uploaded on November 29th on CLAMP's Youtube channel. Yes, it's less than a month away! I also expect some news about the anime (BLESS THE ANIME!! Something to cling onto when the manga is over 😭).

Well, see you at the end of November (please come to hold my hand cause I cannot do this alone, lol) !!!

#cardcaptor sakura #card captor sakura #ccsakura #clear card arc #ccs spoilers #sakura card captor #chapter 79 #sakura kinomoto #akiho shinomoto #yuna d. kaito #syaoran li #translation differences

[lamemaster]

From One World to Another

Request: Please spin the wheel for Aegnor 🛐🥺

Pairing: Aegnor x Reader

Genre: Hogwarts au (yaaaay)

AN: Thanks for requesting 🥹I am befuddled by how well this fits (What in the Hell is Happening Event) Last day tmr

"The mudbloods are at it again," Celegorm snorted, a sneer twisting his perfect features. Aegnor rolled his eyes and glanced out the window, where you stood under the shade of a towering oak with your friend.

You were lost in one of those strange dances the humans called TikToks, your movements surprisingly graceful despite the odd rhythm.

Aegnor couldn't help but admire it. Unlike the elves, bound by tradition and cautious with their magic, humans like you embraced life with reckless abandon.  He longed to understand that world, a yearning that gnawed at him despite his upbringing.  A world he could only glimpse through stolen glances at the strange glowing device you called a phone.

Elves, with their long memories and deep respect for tradition, found themselves drawn to Slytherin.  Though some outliers existed, like Elrond, a Ravenclaw scholar obsessed with elven lore, Slytherin's green banner often fluttered above elven dwellings.

Humans, with their fleeting lives, burned brighter.  Gryffindor, the house of the brave, housed the vast majority.  But there were exceptions – a cunning Hufflepuff pioneer known for his loyalty to his coven, and a Ravenclaw witch whose fascination with magical flora rivaled any elves. 

This Gryffindor bravery, however, wasn't always viewed favorably by the elves.  Many elven elders often scoffed at their recklessness, a stark contrast to the calculated actions favored by his people.

Dwarves, with their insatiable thirst for knowledge and mastery of craft, naturally gravitated towards Ravenclaw. Their halls echoed with debates on engineering marvels and the secrets hidden within the earth. 

Finally, the Hobbits found a home in Hufflepuff. Their love for community, loyalty to their kin, and dedication to the simple pleasures of life resonated deeply with the house known for its badger sigil.

A pang of longing twisted within Aegnor. He yearned for a glimpse into your world, a world documented on those strange glowing rectangles humans called "phones."  He knew it was a forbidden desire, an act frowned upon by most elves. Only his Uncle Feanor, a surprising and rare elven Gryfindor dared to dabble in such human contraptions.

Sitting in the back row, the only sliver of sunlight stubbornly fighting its way through a cracked window was Snape's nemesis. Aegnor sighed, flipping through his well-worn textbook filled with elven script that seemed to dance before his eyes.

The acrid scent of burnt Bubotuber pus mingled with the sweet aroma of gillyweed, a constant reminder of the strange concoctions brewing around him

Snape's incessant droning about cauldron safety did little to alleviate his growing boredom. Suddenly, a cacophony of crashing metal and sputtering flames erupted from across the room, followed by Snape's scathing pronouncement, "Five points from Gryffindor!"

Aegnor winced, his gaze briefly flickering towards the source of the commotion.  There, you stood, exiled from the Gryffindor table amidst a chorus of giggles.

You were a whirlwind of Gryffindor red and mischief, your hair escaping its usual braid.  Without a moment's hesitation, you marched towards Aegnor, a mischievous glint sparkling in your eyes.

"Mind if I join you guys?" you chirped, settling down on the empty stool beside him before he could even formulate a response. 

Before he could stammer a response, his sister, Galadriel, cut in with a frosty, "How about no."

Aegnor felt the urge to glare at his sister. He stole a glance at you, half-expecting you to wilt under Galadriel's icy stare. 

Instead, you met her gaze with a playful glint in your eyes, a barely suppressed smile tugging at the corner of your lips. "Cool, glad that we agree," you replied shaking his hand. 

A sheepish grin spread across your face as you leaned closer to Aegnor, your voice barely a whisper. "Mind sharing the textbook?" you pleaded, a hint of desperation lacing your tone. 

Your own copy lay abandoned on the desk, its pages marred by a splatter of what could only be some sort of disastrous purple goo. 

For a moment, Aegnor felt a flicker of surprise, a jolt of something akin to shyness as you invaded his personal space. He wasn't used to such casual closeness, especially not with someone from Gryffindor.

He stole a glance at his sister, Galadriel. Her lips were pursed in disapproval, a silent reminder of the boundaries he was teetering on.  

But something, perhaps the endearing lack of inhibition in your eyes, won him over. With a barely audible sigh, he shifted the book closer to you, his voice a low murmur as he mumbled the instructions Snape had droned on about mere moments ago.

And that is how his world collided with yours. Reforming itself for the eternity of his life.

#the silmarillion #silmarillion x reader #aegnor x reader #hogwart's au #aegnor #yearning #what in the hell is happening event

[n-a-gindustries]

i. i um. made a beavis and butt-head playlist.

(reasoning for each song is under the cut bc i have. a lot of thoughts.)

1. "Lullaby to Nightmares" by They Might Be Giants

(BOTH) This song is meant to encapsulate the veerryyy beginning stages of their friendship,,,like when they were gross toddlers/little kids fucking around in the summer heat of their stagnant town. only the faintest implications of them being n e thing more than friends.

2. "Adam" by Alex G

(BUTT-HEAD) Butt-head is a little pissy elementary schooler who doesn't know how to handle his weird new emotions for his friend so he just beats the shit out of him. get it together, man.

3. "Hold Me Down" by The Happy Fits

(BEAVIS) Beavis is a very unstable elementary schooler who values Butt-head's company and role in stabilizing him. he doesn't really understand much of anything at this point he just knows he likes his friend a lot.

4. "I Get A Kick Out Of You" by Frank Sinatra

(BUTT-HEAD) Man Butt-head doesn't really get why but Beav is like his only source of genuine entertainment and human connection. he's a massive loser but he's HIS massive loser and he values the time they spend together. but no he's definitely not gay its not like that.

5. "The Red Means I Love You" by Madds Buckley

(BEAVIS) Beavis loves violence and his favorite violence comes from his interactions with Butt-head. It's not inherently romantic but there's absolutely something weird going on that no one really wants to unpack right now.

6. "You're My Best Friend" by Queen

(BOTH) Quoi??? They're getting over themselves and actually appreciating the genuine friendship they have without hiding behind a thousand insults and beatdowns???? It's a miracle! Let's hope no drastic event occurs to completely throw a wrench into their life and relationsh-

7. "How Am I Supposed to Live Without You" by Michael Bolton

(BOTH) Of course I had to add this song are you kidding? Some kind of wrench has been thrown into their lives (the extent of which is dependent on the timeline) and don't know how to cope with such drastic change and the possibility of losing each other permanently.

8. "The Wheels Fell Off" by The Hoosiers

(BEAVIS) Beavis is pissed off as hell bc he can kind of get over himself emotionally but Butt-head has padlocked himself within the closet and has reverted to being a little bitch. At this point he feels like they're probably broken irreparably and has kind of given up. he's leaving.

9. "Something About Us" by Saint Motel

(BUTT-HEAD) BUT WAIT!! Butt-head realizes he will probably die without Beavis and goes to stop him from leaving and confesses and Beavis confesses back and all that. its all very sweet and gay and im happy they're finally done being incredibly stupid.

10. "I Got You Babe" by Sonny & Cher

(BOTH) YAAAAY THEYRE CORNY N IN LOVE. its cute i imagine theyre just chilling in the honeymoon phase completely unphased by the actual shock and horror the rest of highland is feeling about this new development. they're made for each other.

11. "Boyfriend" by The Hot Freaks

(BOTH) further on into da relationship n they r still going strong!!! theyve been boyfriends 4 a while n they r sickeningly sweet in their own putrid, lovely way. they really just want to be togther for the rest of their lives.

12. "No One Knows" by Stephen Sanchez and Laufey

(BOTH) both a little bit older and waaayyyy out of the honeymoon phase. they have had their fair share of problems and arguments (see: AN INSANE AMOUNT), but at the end of the day they love each other and should not split up bc imma be real no one else wants them.

13. "Love Song" by AC/DC

(BUTT-HEAD) OF COURSE I HAD TO ADD A SONG EACH FROM THEIR T SHIRT BANDS. Butt-head you corny bastard.....he is a middle aged dude in gay love and he knows Beavis is in gay love and he wants to be that way with him forEVA.

14. "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica

(BEAVIS) Beavis's turn!!!! his aging ass is sooo happy to be with the one person as repugnant and gross and mean and interesting and funny and perfect as him and he doesn't give a single shit what other people may think of them. they're happy.

15. "Museum of Idiots" by They Might be Giants

(BOTH) They r old farts and they r still going strong. good for them!!! they've been in highland all of their lives and they have no plans of leaving ever or splitting up ever. they are going to live and die in this town and they are perfectly content with this because they have each other. this is their perfect life.

#beavis and butthead #beavis #butt-head #I AM INSANE I KNOW. DONT LOOK AT ME #DO look at my playlist though i genuinely am very happy with it #i might add songs later but this is da definitive list 4 now

[transparenthologramrebel]

“Hollyleaf watched as Breezepelt flexed his claws digging them into the sandy earth around the moonpool. “You and your brothers should have never been born!” Breezepelt hissed as his eyes flicked to Honeyfern, who was glaring the Windclan warrior down. Even though her eyes were fierce with anger, her body language gave away how scared the golden she cat was, as she crouched with her tail wrapped around herself protectively. “You and you half filth brothers should have been casted out of clan territory or executed the night you revealed the secret along with your fox dung mother! Well, I’ll right Firestar’s wrong. What will your clan mates think when they find a queen’s drowned in the precious moonpool?” Breezepelt sneered. Hollyleaf’s eyes widened in terror as she now realized what the tom was going to do. “Honeyfern run!” She yelled tackling Breezepelt who was already mid-pounce.”

So this is from the Au I might continue this summer. Basically its the moonpool fight with breezepelt, but instead of Jayfeather its hollyleaf and HoneyFern. Honeyfern lives in this au but travels to the moonpool because she worries if Berrynose really loves her because she thinks he has a crush on her sister. Hollyleaf goes to find her because Jayfeather is off in the mountains like in sign of the moon. When Hollyleaf finds Honeyfern she is attacked by Breezepelt and Brokenstar. The two fight and Hollyleaf is quickly overwhelmed by the two warriors. Ashfur who was exiled seasons ago for his crimes of trapping Firestar in the fox trap and nearly letting the three burn to death, returns to the lake to atone for his mistakes and come back to thunderclan. He heads to moonpool to find out if starclan will accept his return to the clans. He comes across the fight and jumps in and saves Hollyleaf then together they drive away Breezepelt and brokenstar. Hollyleaf is badly injured but alive and Honeyfern is unharmed. Ashfur helps them back into camp where the clan reluctantly accepts him back in, but he has to earn his place back in the clan along with his warrior name. 

Yaaaay I finally finished this. I'm really proud of how this came out c:. I really love the background and will post it on its own later

#warriors #warrior au #warriors books #warriors ashfur #hollyleaf #jayfeather #lionblaze #brambleclaw #warriors squirrelflight #squrrielflight #breezepelt #brokenstar #honeyfern #ashfur

[another-day]

hey gang, guess what time it is, for the last time in season 3....

EPISODE IN REVIEW - THE SEASON THREE FINALE!!!!

spoilers for episode 19 of inanimate insanity invitational!!!!!!!!!!!

oh. my. gosh.

this was such a beautiful episode, most things felt resolved and it was just SO GOOD

if you didn't see my previous posts, i was up at 2am to watch this episode due to timezones, and it was so so worth it. let's begin!!!!!

oh the character development is amazing, this versus how lost he was at the beginning of season two is just so interesting and amazing to see. i'm so so proud.

full honesty, i have a lot of trouble emotion-wise, and hearing this kinda caught me off guard because, as much as i'd like to ignore it, springy's never been anything more than a villain to me.

it helped me realise that, yeah, springy is another character like everyone else, and they have feelings, and they have capacity for goodness. it really got me thinking, especially since this line really had me relating to them. but ah well, onwards!!!!

seeing cabby get pissed was really funny, but also she's turning the broken insult walkie talkie presented to mephone in the last episode. it was very very cool, a reclamation of power really.

can you tell i like cabby

also this was such a pivotal moment for her, and as someone who apologises for literally anything people deem wrong, this was incredibly inspirational and soooo cool to see.

the poor guy, he's been nothing but berated this whole episode

the way i literally almost screamed at two in the morning i was shivering and shaking throughout the entire episode and this was like my sould left my body HE'S BACK and oohhhhohohohoo GUYS GUYS GUYS

this was such a beautiful scene; a robot who sacrificed himself for a happy ending for so many others encouraging another robot whom was the living result of his sacrifice to embrace the life he has. THEY DRIVE ME MAD DO YOU SEE?????????

NAME DROP!!!! also i think this is the first time he's acknowledged cobs in reference to his own actions, he's coming to terms with his memories and experiences, and realising he can learn from them GOODNESS do you see what i am saying BOTH THIS AND MEPHONE 4S's SPEECH ARE ENCOURAGING HIM TO LOOK PAST HIS MISTAKES, AND NOT DWELL ON THE PAST

does this mean mephone's finally gonna treat toilet like an actual person, WHO FREAKING KNOWS!!!!! but i really hope he does i really do

guuuuyyyyss stop i'm going to cryyyyy LOOK AT THEIR LITTLE MESSED UP MARRIAGE PLEASEEEEE

i had to squeal so quietly when i saw this BUT YAAAAY MY LOVELY LITTLE CABBY WON!!!!!!! i was so happy she absolutely deserved this and its so symbolic that test tube's vote ended up being the deciding factor and AGH i'm so happy!!!!!

SHE'S SO CUTE SHE'S LITERALLY THE BEST I LOVE HER DEARLY

they're so silly and so supportive of one another, and the fact that even with balloon considering himself a more self assured person and more independent, nickel's still willing to stick by his side to cheer him up!!!

guys them look at them

"Or of..." HER OR OF HER FREAKING OUT GUYS this guy's so silly and i'm so glad they're getting along again <3333

marriage

their sweet little family i love them dearly

communication is key !! this was very cute and i'm so glad they're getting along again

THE TEETH DETAIL they're literally spoiling me dude

GUYS THEY MADE YURI REAL i love them so so so so much

because of course she'd put her prize towards a knowledge bank for everyone, cabby's such a gem you guys i love her so much

i'm so glad they're getting along now, they're such a silly pair!!!

i literally almost cried when i saw this, mephone 4's reconstructing all these things that made him feel like he was useless to push himself forward, and its so beautiful to see, i'm probably gonna print this out and put it on my wall because its so meaningful and just UGH

the heroic pose, the self assured smile, ready for anything

this was a beautiful way to cap off the season because there he goes !! its so exciting!!!!

he's gonna need it girl lets hope the season 2 finalists didn't go insane

WAAAAAAAAAAH they used the the track "don't leave me until i find my way back to you" and the way i almost sobbed my little heart out that was such a beautiful homage and track and GOODNESS!!!!!!

overall this was a great episode. though i feel some dynamics, such as mephone 4 with 4s, and silver spoon with candle weren;t explored nearly as much as i would've liked, they crew really did an amazing job on this episode.

thank you so much for all your hard work inanimate insanity crew, and i'm so excited to see the rest of season two and how it'll play out!!!

till then, i'll see you next time ooooonnn episode in review!!!!

(bada bada duuuuum!!!)

#inanimate insanity #inanimate insanity invitational #iii ep 19 #iii 19 #iii spoilers #iii 19 spoilers

[soup-du-silence]

For the ask game!! 🍓 & 🪐

🍓 ⇢ how did you get into writing fanfiction? 

I tell this story a lot but my very first foray into real, finished, published-on-the-internet fanfiction came when I'd just started a new job at CiCi's Pizza, came down with a very bad cold and couldn't take off work, and was self-medicating on enormous amounts of dayquil to make it through my day. In my delirium, I wondered "What if Wilbur Robinson of Disney's Meet the Robinsons used the time machine to go back in time and make out with himself?" I wrote that fic in a haze, and then a few more, met my current girlfriend in the fandom, then didn't write again until something like 10 years later.

(I finally got the courage to look it up on ff.net but...it's gone. I wonder if it was removed, or if I removed it myself during one of my paranoid content purges. Sad. F to a legend. I owe you so much.)

🪐 ⇢ name three good things going on in your life right now

Im getting a new dryer delivered this week! This comes on the heels of a dryer fire and the death of my last dryer, which was very inconvenient and incredibly stressful, and the mountain of backed up laundry i have to deal with is ghastly, and I'm $700 poorer. But getting a brand new appliance that works reliably is always nice! I'm excited to not have to run my laundry three times to get it dry or have to babysit it when its running because Im (rightfully) afraid its going to burst into flames.

I think I am having a proper media fixation for the first time in three years? I've been between fandoms for a while and its been a kind of a bummer, drifting and not really finding anywhere to settle down. I tried VTuber fandom but the community isn't really for me, it's good to get into some good proper anime boy shit again.

It's tax time! time for some irresponsible spending lol yaaaay retail therapy

[cherryhanji]

i am warning u, i tried to match the color scheme of my concept pictures but i failed, pls dont laugh at me what's important is--

anyways i am finally back with another part of my love language series yaaaay sorry to make u guys wait for oh soooo long but here i am, i hope u guys like it hihi

• Quality time with this man is exhilarating.

• A man with pride, true to his words. if he say you will enjoy, you will, indeed. as he won't make false promises because he never wants to make you down whenever you're together.

• Even if its just him suddenly going inside your room, while you were quietly doing something. "Need something binnie?"

• "I don't actually need something, I just need to see your face. But don't mind me, you can continue what you're doing."

• Even if things eventually got bored, for everyone, but to Changbin, having to spend some time with you even if you were literally counting the sheeps jumping, it'll make him more than happy. Times like this with you, seeing your pretty face that makes him go, everything is just fine.

• But whenever he goes extra, he will really tag you along, especially when he has the free time. Tags you along with his family, as he loves to be with the people he cherish the most, one of them is you.

• Getting all sweet while preparing some food for everyone. Helping you out, even if he's mostly just messing around.

• "Here, let me help you out. I know how much you work your ass off preparing the food."

• Sometimes he will really help you put, but most of the time he was just there to annoy you

• But nevertheless, Changbin just wanted to spend his time by your side, whatever reason, place, time it'll be, having to spend time with you is everything to him.

#i wrote this months ago and i managed to finish this just NOW #yes urgh i hate myself #and this part is inspired from the your eyes mv aaaa u read that right aaaaa #and i cant believe i am almost done with this series that isnt really a series in the place but i really hope u liked it!! #loml #stray kids #skz scenarios #skz imagines #stray kids imagines #stray kids scenarios #chamgbin imagines #changbin x reader #changbin scenarios #changbin fluff #skz fluff #stray kids fluff

[rayshippouuchiha]

Hello gracious Ray/void. I almost got to meet the actual void today and would very much like to vent. I have fully disassociated and even typing this feels like its happening in a dream. Perhaps it is a dream. Maybe I did pass on today. Idk. Im at the beach with my family. They kept pushing me to go swimming in the ocean and, as today is our last day on vacation, I finally agreed. And promptly got pulled way out in a riptide and swallowed a massive amount of sea water. Yaaaay. Im so tired.

I'm fine and some surfers rescued me. Thank you to the lovely surfers. But my whole life legit flashed before my eyes. I have never been that close to meeting my maker and I never imagined it would exhaust me this much.

~~~

Holy fuck babe I'm so glad you're okay. Riptides are no fucking joke and you are very very lucky someone was there to help you.

#RayRambles

[ruewrites]

Something Broken and Something New

AO3

Ships: Diavolo/Lucifer

Word Count: 3085

Warnings: None

A/N:

This has been in the works for a while! But I am finally starting to get through my WIPs! Yaaaay! Anywho I am super stoked to be posting for this au again! I still absolutely adore it, it's so good and @lefthanddraws ( @requiem-for-the-left-hand) is super talented!

Comments are appreciated!

It would have been a day like any other. It could have been a day like any other. He would have started the day off with his coffee and giving the sun a run for its money on his way to work. He would sit down and start to analyze each and every single one of the stacks of papers that stood menacingly before him before picking one to start with. If it was a good day, he wouldn’t have to deal with a single one of his brother’s shenanigans. It would be a somewhat stress free day, not completely, but it would do. If it wasn’t one of those lucky days, Lucifer could only hope that half of Tokyo wasn’t already ablaze by nine. 

Lucifer leaned back into his chair with a sign, flipping through his notes for the day and orienting meetings scheduled long ago in his mind. Most important were his meetings with Diavolo. It couldn’t be any other way.  Diavolo was the number one, the head, whatever he said went without question. Of course this didn’t mean that Lucifer didn’t try to advise him every now and again. However, sometimes he had to wonder if Diavolo even heard him. He wasn’t a stubborn man (although he also wasn’t not a stubborn man) he was simply-

Excitable. 

Determined. 

He set his mind to something and suddenly it was the only thing that existed, a goal that had to come to fruition. Most of the time his plans were part of a bigger plan for a future he could see on the horizon. In short, Lucifer didn’t envy Barbatos in the slightest, especially not when his job entailed wrangling Diavolo most of the time and making sure he didn’t miss his appointments on top of completing his work. Poor, poor Barbatos. Maybe one day some angel above would smile upon him and present him with an opportunity to have even a tiny break. God, wouldn’t they all love a break. But the days never slowed and problems always seemed to pile up. There would always be cogs to turn and work that piled up no matter how quick a pen scrawled across paper. 

What a life, keep going until you break, if you break. And if you break you pray you aren’t broken beyond repair. And in those prayers you beg that a broken person never turns out to be someone you love more than life itself. 

But all of that was a lifetime ago now, even if some days it seemed like only mere minutes had passed.

Lucifer gripped his cup a little tighter, made his eyes focus a little longer. If he became engrossed in his work, that would become his sole focus. If he could only tune out the world a little longer. That was until his world came crashing through his office door.

“Lucifer!”

His world was a whirlwind of a man: strong and chaotic. A mere gust of his breath could blow an entire army away. 

“I have a job for us, a special job.”

And Lucifer tried his hardest to be an unbending wall. 

“I already have plenty of jobs I need to fulfill Diavolo. Jobs that are important for the wellbeing of the family.” Someone had to keep Diavolo grounded, and in reality it took two someones to complete the task. He had to be strong against Diavolo’s whirlwind will. He had to-

Diavolo placed a hand on his shoulder, eyes shining with intent. "I think you can make an exception for this job."

It was that moment that Lucifer finally noticed that Cerberus, his ever so loyal Cerberus, was at attention. His lips were pulled back in the beginnings of a snarl, his hair stood on ends, and a low growl rumbled in the back of his throat.  Cerberus never growled at Diavolo. In fact, he was one of the very few people the dog actually allowed to pet him. With him, Cerberus seemed like an average everyday puppy.

His eyes followed the dog's gaze to behind Diavolo's legs. How he missed this, he had no idea, maybe he really was more sleep deprived than he thought. A young girl, who could have been no older than eight, peaked out from behind Diavolo's legs. Her fist wrinkled his suit pants that Barbatos had no doubt spent hours ironing, and her tears stained his expensive fabrics. Maybe he should get some rest, if she had been some sort of enemy they'd both be dead right now. 

The command for Cerberus to heel left his mouth is a single breath. As the dog relaxed, Lucifer returned to the work at his desk. "I'm not a babysitter Diavolo."

"Lucifer, she was all on her own, lost and afraid."

"Take her to Asmodeus then. He's good with kids." Certainly better than Lucifer would ever be. 

"Asmodeus isn't here." 

Lucifer stopped. Placing his pen on the table he turned once again to meet Diavolo's gaze. His arms were crossed over his broad chest and his smirk was quirked in a way that Lucifer knew he believed he had already won their little debate. 

"Don't you remember?" he continued, "Our little doctor friend took him out to the hot springs for their- oh how long have they been together now?"

"Too long."

Lucifer didn't keep it a secret that he was not fond of a man like that pursuing Asmodeus. Sleeping with him was one thing. Lucifer could care less about their relationship with the doctor as a client. It was when Solomon started getting a little too touchy and when that puppy love in his eyes started to become a bit more evident that Lucifer had started becoming concerned. It was one thing to catch them tangled up together, it was another to find them lost in each other's eyes and for Asmo to take him home.

The last thing Asmodeus needed was a liability.

Lucifer was more than aware Asmodeus could have anyone he wanted, yet he chose a man like that. A man who'd crawled from garbage. The why would probably forever escape him. What did Asmo see in him? What could that man offer him? He doubted he actually had a medical license, and he didn't exactly live a lifestyle that Asmo was accustomed too. But to top it all off he was just so…

Odd.

Lucifer would never understand it. Never.

"Don't say things like that, Lucifer," Diavolo put a firm hand on his shoulder, "I think Solomon adores your little jewel, and from the looks of things Asmodeus, couldn't be happier."

"That's what I'm worried about."

Lucifer went silent, he could feel his mind slipping off to a far, far off place.  He didn't want to go, but he also couldn't find it within him to resist. He was losing his grip, so Diavolo tightened his own on his shoulder. "You know, I think this job would really be good for you."

Diavolo was closer to his ear now. His breath was hot and wet, sending memories dancing across Lucifer's skin. 

But no. He wouldn't give in. He had to stay steadfast. He couldn't bend to Diavolo's will. He had to stick to his guns.

He wouldn't give in.

***

Lucifer couldn't believe he gave in. Damn Diavolo. Damn him straight to hell with his silver tongue. How dare he know Lucifer so well. How dare he know how to pluck his strings. How dare he.

"So, you said you lost your parents in the marketplace, yes? And then you ended up wandering away and down the alleyway?" Diavolo had the little girl on his shoulders. She sniffled and nodded. The quietest of yes's left her lips and she nodded atop Diavolo's head. "I see, well you have no need to fear young lady, we'll make sure you're delivered home safe and sound." 

How Diavolo could make such promises, he would never know. You could never assure the future. Promises were made to be broken by the twisted fingers of fate. It was cruel and cold, but that was simply how life worked. It would try to break you, you just had to resist. 

Cerberus trotted  closely by his heel. His gait never  broke for a second and his claws hit the pavement with exact precision. 

Tip. Tap.

Tip. Tap.

Quick like tiny drum beats.

Tip. Tap. 

Tip. Tap. 

“Lucifer? Are you in there?” 

Lucifer blinked. Was he in there?

“I asked you if you wanted to get ice cream. It’s a nice day and we're out here," Diavolo's smile was more blinding than the sun, "Plus, kids love ice cream."

Lucifer let out a sigh and ran his fingers through his hair. One day, one day, this man would be the death of him. Diavolo's eyes were glued to him. He knew that look, he knew it so well. That was the look Lucifer got when he did something Diavolo liked. He let his hand dropped down the side of his neck, giving himself a moment before he spoke. "It doesn't matter what I actually think, does it?"

"I care what you think!"

"I didn't say you didn't."

The little girl on Diavolo's shoulders piped up, "I want ice cream!"

Well, it seemed like her tears were momentarily forgotten, and Lucifer prefered that to the crying. Why did Asmodeus have to be gone with that sad excuse of a man? If he were here he could care for the child easily. Lucifer wasn't good with little ones. They made him uncomfortable. But the child had seemed to make their decision for them, and Lucifer definitely prefered her happily humming and eating the sweet treat rather than her crying.

"Lucifer! Say 'Ah'," Diavolo was holding an amalgamation of whipped cream, sprinkles, fudge, and Lucifer supposed there was ice cream in there somewhere. It would be disgustingly sugary sweet, much like Diavolo himself. Well, on the inside.  They didn't need rivals knowing who Diavolo was soft on. They didn't need them knowing he was soft at all, and that made this little mission all the more dangerous.

The spoon pressed closer to his lips, cold metal begging for entry into his mouth. Lucifer glanced up, meeting hopeful golden eyes. This really wasn't an appropriate way to hold themselves in public. It was far from appropriate actually. What would something like this do to their credibility? 

Diavolo pressed further.

Lucifer gave in.

The metal spoon was hard and tangy on his tongue, but the ice cream gave away so easily. It was rich and sweet, quickly blending into the warmth of his own mouth. When Diavolo pulled the spoon back the aggression of the metal left quickly, but the sweetness lingered long in its absence.

"Has he never had ice cream before?"

The child's voice was barely above a whisper as she looked back up at Diavolo. 

"I believe he has, he's just a prideful man."

"He doesn't wanna admit he likes ice cream?" 

She turned to look at him now, completely scandalized by the idea that Lucifer could like ice cream, but never admit to enjoying the tasty treat, "You're sad mister!"

What a bold child. If only she had any clue who she was speaking to. Diavolo's booming laughter filled the spaces all around them, not even attempting to hide them. Lucifer would be lying if he said he wasn't fighting back a smile. Part of him wanted to allow himself to smile, but he knew that he couldn't. It wouldn't be as harmless as his mind would have him pretend it was.

"And on that note, I believe it is time for us to continue to search for your parents."

Lucifer couldn't give this child back soon enough.

If only the universe didn't hate him as much as it did. Lucifer didn't think he could be any more anxious than he'd been getting ice cream, but the longer they walked around the districts the more anxious he became. He was almost positive they were going in circles at this point. He was certain they were going in circles at this point. They were taking directions from a child, of course they were going in circles!  What other outcome could they possibly expect? None! There was no other outcome! This was ridiculous. They shouldn't be doing this, someone else should, anyone else would have been better.  Anyone.

"We can't keep doing this," Lucifer growled, rubbing his temples with his fingers. He could feel the beginnings of a migraine palpitating in the back of his skull.

"What do you mean?"

Lucifer didn't need to look at Diavolo to know his brow was furrowed. There was a slight change in his voice, a hesitation. It was if he was trying to work out the answer to his question before words were even spoken. Or maybe Lucifer just knew him well, maybe he was just adding an explanation where there was none.

"We need to return now. We can't keep wandering around like this."

Now he would have to prepare himself. 

"It should just be the next apartment-"

"We've passed by the 'next apartment' five times now Diavolo," Lucifer had to put his foot down. They couldn't be doing this anymore. It was getting ridiculous, "We're going back and doing things my way."

"But Lucifer-"

"Do not 'but Lucifer' me, we are going back now."

"But."

"Now."

***

A comprehensive list of things Lucifer thought could have definitely gone better.

Number one.

Whatever the fuck just happened back there.

The crying had been unbearable. He was practically begging for something, anything to make the child stop crying. What he managed to scrounge together was a notepad, a pen, and something that he assumed was some type of candy.  He didn't know what he'd done per say, but it did work. 

Slowly he typed away on his computer, keeping one eye on the child to make sure she didn't destroy anything in his office or get into trouble. All of this trouble would be over soon enough. Lucifer had managed to narrow their options down to three developments based on information the child had given them and he was pretty confident in his findings. Now all they had to do was take her to each one and hope someone knew who her parents were.

He couldn't do this much longer.

He wasn't good with kids.

He was never good with little ones.

Asmodeus was much better with them than he was, he knew how to make them smile and keep them from making that horrible horrible crying, but he was off with that man doing who knows what. If only he was still like he'd been when he was younger, always looking to Lucifer for advice and hanging on to every word he had to say.

All his brothers had been cute when they were younger (and maybe they still could be now, but he'd never admit it). 

He opened a drawer at his desk and moved some files aside to reveal his secrets below: a little pile of crude drawings done in crayon. Some things could be made out, people, the sun, sometimes animals-

But they all had one thing in common: each one was made by one of his siblings. 

Lucifer took a long look at them. They were memories from a different time, a time that was so far away from now. 

But maybe he had done this once before.

Maybe there was a slim chance-

He put his face in his hands and dragged them down from his hair. He had to be out of his mind. But perhaps he could pull it off one final time. He rose from his desk and wandered over to where the child sat, not paying him any mind as he took a seat behind her.

Perhaps he wasn't broken beyond repair.

"So, what are you drawing?"

***

Diavolo fidgeted with his sleeve. 

Lucifer wasn't pleased with him.

He hadn't seen an emotion like that directed at him in quite a long time. And maybe he deserved it dragging Lucifer around all day, but it had been fun hadn't it? Hadn't they enjoyed themselves? Didn't they have a good time?

Diavolo thought so.

They got to walk around and eat ice cream like a little family! Did they borrow someone's lost child to do it? Yes, but it was necessary! Perhaps if he spoke to Lucifer he could convince him into one more fun outing! They could go to dinner!

No.

No.

He needed to apologize first. Lucifer was not happy, and an unhappy Lucifer would absolutely not want to go to dinner with him.

He straightened his attire before hesitantly knocking on the office door.

"Lucifer? I'd like to speak with you if you're there."

No answer. Was he not speaking to him? Or did he take the child out himself to look for her parents?

"Are you there? Lucifer, I wanted to apologize."

Still no answer.

"Lucifer?"

He wanted only a few seconds longer before opening the door and poking his head inside.  

And oh did the sight before him surprise him.

Lucifer was asleep. Reading spectacles falling down his nose and a book dangling from his hand.  His other arm was wrapped securely around the small child, protecting her as she slept on his chest. Slight snores left him occasionally as his chest rose and fell.

Diavolo was in absolute awe of the sight. It was the most adorable thing he'd ever seen. The only being he’d seemed to disturb was Cerberus, who lifted his head to see who had entered the office space. He held his breath as he walked closer, afraid to break the moment but wanting to make sure it was real. A smile crept onto his face as he dared pull some of Lucifer's hair and press a kiss to his forehead. He then took a picture, for memories sake, and removed Lucifer's gasses from his face. 

A new giddiness filled him as he left the room. He'd have Barbatos prep dinner for all of them, and then they'd reunite the child with her family. After all, they couldn't return her on an empty stomach, it would be nothing short of rude.

And he hadn't seen Lucifer that relaxed in a while.

Perhaps they should find lost children to return more often. 

It would certainly give him an excuse to spend more time with Lucifer.

And Diavolo thought that was a very lovely idea indeed.

#ruewrites #obey me #obey me lucifer #obey me diavolo #dialuci #diavolo x lucifer #yakuza!au #dadifer returns #fluff #humor

[pandapupremade]

good MORNING gamers i finally slept the majority of a night yaaaay...also my mom and i get to take nobi and my brother's cat Emmy to the vet today for checkups. at the same time. nobi who has not ever rly had contact w emmy. and its pouring rain out. oops

#kermit.txt #nobi tag