#and some days that's a good strategy. and other days she just can't deal with listening to his problems too

[piastree]

Take a Chance with Me | OP81

oscar piastri x reader (fc: huh yunjin)

— Part 2

Previous Part | Next Part

Summary : They are a couple caught in the chaos of a love filled with randomness and quirks. Their relationship is marked by funny and unpredictable moments, where each day feels like a new adventure. Despite frequently engaging in amusing and spirited bickering, beneath the banter lies a deep and meaningful romance. noted: idk i decided to make the part 2 haha. Enjoyyy!!<3

yourusername

tagged oscarpiastri

liked by charles_leclerc, oscarpiastri, and 15,397 others

yourusername what is life if not to love and be loved

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user just hit a morning, and she's already dropping bangers

oscarpiastri well i can do both

yourusername lucky me!🥰

user aww they're the cutest<3 :( I FEEL SO SINGLE

user i’m mister steal your girl @/oscarpiastri

user you guys are so freakin cute

yourusername cute has four letters, so does meeee

oscarpiastri liked the comments

user OMGGGG I LOVE HER

user cutie patooties button >>>>>>

yourusername

liked by charles_leclerc, oscarpiastri, mclaren, and 20,987 others

yourusername on duty🏁🏎️

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user supportive gf out there

mclaren oscar's serotonin booster💪🧡

user not a good day for oscar, but at least he had you by his side

user sadly the luck was not here with him

yourusername the luck just took a vacation for today :(

oscarpiastri

liked by mclaren, yourusername, landonorris, and 80,987 others

oscarpiastri Gracias México 🇲🇽 Not the Sunday we planned but more points on the board. Onwards to 🇧🇷

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mclaren Let’s go after it again in Brazil! 👊

user you did an amazing job right here!!!! We love you, Oscar!!🇲🇽🧡 hope you enjoyed your time here

user they look so so so cute together😭❤️

yourusername always proud of you❤️

oscarpiastri thankyou, love ❤️

user idk if i want her or to be her

yourusername

liked by landonorris, oscarpiastri, and 20,997 others

yourusername farewell to the my ginger hair era

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user i can fight oscar

user MARRY ME Y/N

user the ginger hair really suited you perfectly, but the new one looks good on you as well<333

oscarpiastri lost in ur beauty

yourusername oh nooo, i'll be there to rescue you :(

landonorris get a room

mclaren we miss you, y/n! comeback sooner🧡

yourusername i will🥺

yourusername added a story

caption: send me the photo right awayyyyy @/landonorris

user my papaya boys<3

landonorris there's a small fee for this exclusive content yourusername you're charging me for a pic of my own boyfriend? landonorris his fame comes at a cost, you know yourusername fine, you'll get your donuts landonorris deal! He's officially part of my portfolio now

oscarpiastri lando must be took a lot of photos yourusername he just charged me for a photo of you oscarpiastri Oh, did he? Well, next time, tell him I charge extra for my fabulous poses yourusername haha, you're not helping :(

twitter

oscarpiastri

liked by maxverstappen1, yourusername, landonorris and 119,992 others

oscarpiastri Rolled the dice and bagged some points 🎲 Vegas, you were fun!

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user and bagged fastest lap🙌🏼🧡

user bad strategy but incredible pace

user A BIG THANKYOU Y/N FOR GIVING MY GIFT TO OSCAR!! YOU ARE TRULY AMAZINGGG<3 @/yourusername

user aww she's the kindest

user you were great, deserved more than p10🧡

user wishing lando a speedy recovery❤️🙏

oscarpiastri liked the comments

yourusername

liked by lilymhe, alexalbon, oscapiastri and 39,152 others

yourusername lv dumps

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lilymhe you are so lovelyyy! can't wait to see you again❤️

yourusername see u in monaco! pstt don't tell albono

alexalbon I AM NOT BLIND

user i guess the exhausting night unexpectedly brought a new friendship!!

yourusername YESS that was kind of random night

oscarpiastri my it girl❤️

yourusername ❤️

I don't know why I wrote part 2 but I enjoyed writing this, I hope you also enjoy reading this

#oscar piastri #oscar piastri imagine #oscar piastri x reader #oscar piastri fanfic #oscar piastri au #f1 fluff #f1 fanfic #oscar piastri x you #oscar piastri fluff #f1 smau #f1 imagine #f1 x reader #oscar piastri smau

[kitscutie]

snow and roses: part III (coriolanus snow x fem!reader)

pairing: coriolanus snow x reader

warnings: none except the nature of the Hunger Games franchise! later on in the series there will be hints to dark!coriolanus snow and lots of angst so be prepared!

summary: you and coriolanus have been dating in secret for months, all it takes is one songbird for everything to come into the light.

a/n: part three is finally hereee! sorry it took so long i've been dealing with some shit and doing a lot of work as life's just gotten very busy but don't worry - nothing will be left undone and trust me when i say i already have the ending for this series planned out :)

im sorry to say guys but i will have to close my taglist as the size has began to affect my posts and tumblr keeps glitching out, sorry!

word count:2k

find parts one and two in my masterlist!

After the incident the previous day between Brandy and Arachne as well as the suggestions from Coriolanus taken on board, the mentors had been allowed one hour with their tributes to discuss tactics.

It was good yet bad all at once. You wanted to give Wovey advice, a fighting chance but yet you knew no matter how hard you tried, no matter how much help you gave her, she stood no chance compared to people like Reaper and even Lucy Gray.

She was small and innocent, young.

"In spite of yesterdays - tragic events, our president has decided that the games must go on. Show everyone the Capitol is unafraid of such acts of terror, to which I and Doctor Gaul wishes you to preview the arena this afternoon - with your tributes. Later this evening, there will be a specialised television presentation of each tribute to our audience to, well get to know them. You will have an hour to discuss strategy. You may begin." Dean Casca Highbottom spoke into the echoey room, so large it was almost comical.

All of the tributes had been chained to the tables like animals and it made you sick to your stomach. You were aware they may harm you but at the same time such treatment would drive anyone to violence, it wasn't simply because they were District.

"Hi Y/N." Wovey smiled, so innocent. So naive.

"Wovey. I was thinking about how you might approach the games and I figured what might be best is to hide. You're small, an advantage that the other tributes don't have. I'm sure we can find some spaces this afternoon that might prove useful?" You suggested, not wishing to make this conversation more painful and personal than it had to be.

"Sure." She murmured, gaze positioned on the chains around her wrists.

"And if you wait until it's dark and everyone is sleeping you could go to the middle - collect whatever weapons they have left, just in case but otherwise I recommend waiting it out. If they can't find you they can't kill you." The sentence left a bitter taste in your mouth, you had never pictured yourself recommending a child to wait her death out in your life. The Capitol Academy was sold to you with visions of wealth and power, and now you has gone from student to mentor.

"I don't want to kill anyone." She frowned. She didn't even care that she could die, only fearing harming others. You felt your heart ache and yet, you could do nothing. No words would be good enough to reassure her, no actions would be able to save her. For once, you were useless.

"Wovey-" You began your sympathetic speech though Casca cut you off.

"Snow, Y/N. Let's go." He said as peacekeepers arrived to escort you to Doctor Gaul.

You rose without another word to Wovey, aware nothing you could say would be of any help at this time.

You knew it was about Coryo's proposal which you had not helped in and yet you weren't too upset about it. You didn't need the Plinth Prize nor did you need Doctor Gauls' approval and so you set out to let her know of your lack of involvement in this task.

"How is your tribute?" Coriolanus asked after minutes of silence.

"Her name is Wovey and she's fine. A little frightened but aren't we all?" You said, you were hesitant to tell him too much of Wovey's weaknesses and you didn't know why. This was Coriolanus. Your best friend of over ten years and your boyfriend of a few months and yet, you had a feeling whatever you said would be used against you.

"I suppose." He answered. You supposed his tone was meant to come off charmingly but all you felt was unease.

"This proposal. I haven't done it." You let him know, it was the least you could do before facing the psychopath known as Head Gamemaker.

"We have. I handed it in this morning." He answered with a hint of pride. Impressed with himself that he had taken initiative, helped you.

"I thought I made it clear the other day that I wanted no part in this plan to profit off of peoples lives, Coriolanus." You muttered, increasingly angry with his dedication to the Games and what they stood for.

"Well if you want to help Wovey, I suggest you don't tell Doctor Gaul that." He smiled, holding the door to her office open for you in a feign attempt at being a gentlemen.

As you walked into her office you couldn't help but feel disgusted. It was littered with mutants, clearly created to kill, all sat in glass jars on shelf upon shelf. Stacked all the way up to the ceiling.

"Mr Snow, Miss L/N. Come and see my new babies." Gaul said as she appeared at the back of the room. Where she had been hidden, you had no clue.

You did as she said, never one to disobey your superiors, climbing the snake tank alongside her.

"Is there a point to their colour?" You asked curiously. The snakes were surprisingly beautiful, chromatic as they shifted around on top of one another.

"There's a point to everything Miss L/N. Or to nothing at all, which brings me neatly to your proposal. Which one of you actually wrote it." She asked, as if to catch you out but you felt no remorse in admitting it wasn't you.

"Coriolanus, Doctor." You answer, sensing Coriolanus' hesitation in baiting you out.

"Well, how shocking. I expected more of a conflict." She replied, as though she were annoyed by your honesty as she reached into the snake tank, pulling Coriolanus' proposal out. "They're good your suggestions. I'm going to recommend my team implement as many as possible for tomorrow. Now run along you have an arena to promote, and Miss L/N I must say - I am most disappointed by your lack of involvement in these brilliant ideas."

"Well thank you, Doctor Gaul for your offer but, I thought Mr Snow had it safely under his control." You smiled politely before you both left to 'promote' but more so survey the new arena. "Wait." You said stopping Coriolanus before you got into the truck. "I don't know what has become of you Coriolanus Snow, but I want the little boy who fought to provide for his family while also caring for others back. You are turning into one of them, and I'm not going to be there to watch the world burn beneath your feet." You spat, leaving him to think as you sat in silence for the rest of the journey.

It seemed Coriolanus felt spiteful towards your words as he too ignored you up until this very moment as you walked into the arena.

You smiled reassuringly down at Wovey who looked just so scared. You were only three years older than her and yet you felt a motherly protection towards her, one you couldn't shake off.

Infront of you was Coryo and Lucy Gray. At first you pitied the girl, coming from twelve must be hard as they were food deprived and worked to the bone and yet now, as she stood holding your boyfriends hand in her beautiful rainbow dress, you loathed everything about her.

Your eyes rolled as far back as they physically could, your disgust clear to anyone looking but only one person was. Sejanus. He looked at you with pity and for once, you appreciated it. You decided he must know about you and Coriolanus and seeing as nobody else did they all whispered about him and Lucy Gray, how sweet they seemed.

You walked around alone before he appeared at your side.

"You deserve better, Y/N." Sejanus said, eyes never meeting your own as you continued to survey the arena, never even noticing his eyes stuck on his watch.

"Debatable." You chuckled, feeling a sense of self responsibility for getting with a man as dangerous as Coriolanus Snow in the first place.

"I wouldn't worry. If there's anything I've learnt about Coryo it's that he likes shiny things, new things - and she's definitely a spectacle." he chuckled to himself, it was safe to say Lucy Gray's ability to impress a crowd hadn't been missed by anyone.

"He'll grow tired eventually. I was his precious rose once." You sighed as the reality of the situation finally settled in.

You soaked in the silence for a few moments before you realised Sejanus' lack of response, turning in annoyance to see his eyes following the hand of his watch clock closely as he mouthed a countdown of the minutes.

"What are you-" You began.

"We've got to go." He said, grabbing your arm and beginning to walk towards the exit cautiously, not catching the attention of any guards.

"What do you mean? Sejanus?" You asked as he would not slow, not for anything. You looked around, seeing everyone else still stood stationary as they calmly conversed.

"Just follow me, Y/N." He said, still attempting to stay calm but you noticed his wide eyes.

You walked in silence, your heartbeat getting louder in your ear with each step until you hearing went completely silent, vision going black as both you and Sejanus were thrown to the floor in a cloud of smoke.

It took a few moments for you to be brought back to reality as you sat up, dazed hearing the yells of people around you. Once again before you could even figure out what was happening Sejanus' grabbed you, pulling you to your feet as you ran out of the door. 'Enjoy the show' now sounding muffled.

"What about Coryo?" You cried out in desperation, no matter what he put you through he was your first love and you had always pictured him to be your last.

"If we go back now, Y/N, we'll die." Sejanus replied as he continued dragging you until you reached the fresh air outside. Your charred lungs welcoming it.

As you looked back through the doorway you saw nothing, no one. Simply black smoke. You felt guilty and yet still - deep down - your heart yearned for the death of Lucy Gray.

It had been five hours now, sat around Coriolanus' bed alongside Sejanus and Tigris.

He hadn't so much as twitched and it had your heart racing with panic, if he died, you knew a part of you died with him.

Tigris comforted you as best she could in her own worry, noting how his chest continued to move up and down steadily and that the doctor only mentioned an injured arm, not that he was at risk of death.

The appearance of bright blue eyes caught everyone's attention as you rushed to be by his bed.

"Coryo." You said, a large smile on your face. You watched as his eyes flickered around in confusion, landing on you for a few moments. You don't know what you expected, a look of love? What you most definitely didn't expect was one of disgust.

"Lucy Gray, is she-" He stated, looking to Tigris for an answer.

"She's alive." Tigris responded through gritted teeth as she looked to you with sympathetic eyes. Her reply was lost to you as the ringing in your ears after the explosion returned. Your heart beating loud in your chest. You placed a hand over it, feeling it pound against your palm.

Your eyes glazed over as you walked away into a secluded corner, waving Sejanus off as he attempted to follow you.

It felt now more than ever so official, so real without a doubt. You had lost Coriolanus Snow. He no longer loved you, cared for you or even worried for you.

The cage that was his heart had opened wide, setting you free and instead capturing something new and desirable. A songbird.

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#coriolanus snow x reader #the hunger games #coriolanus x reader #tom blyth x reader #coriolanus snow #the hunger game fic #the ballad of songbirds and snakes #thg fic #thg fanfiction

[late-draft]

Some thoughts on S2 from a first-time watcher!

It's good that I saw a bunch of spoilers before watching S2 and S3, because after seeing how the plot arrived to some of these points, I feel like what I imagined would have worked better; useful for understanding one's own likes and writing.

I thought Toph would have been in bigger danger while in the metal box. In canon she's technically just being dragged back to her family, right? But the emotional impact of her success of bending metal (something believed to be impossible) would have been stronger if she was in a much bigger danger, in worse circumstances, for longer.

Long Feng was so quickly "taken down" at the start when the Earth King decided to stop following him! Yeah the Dai Li still answer to Long Feng but it felt like him losing outward power happened too quickly and he was actually scared that he had lost all power instantly. He even allowed the kids to try to show the king the truth. So which is it, do Long Feng and Dai Li have huge power, or little power?

I liked the plot twist with plot twist with plot twist with plot twist with plot twist with Azula and her goons in Kyoshi warriors' disguises, and the Dai Li still answering to Long Feng. This uplifted the plot part a bit that had been sunk in my mind just before.

I can't believe I'm saying this, but Jet was actually ok in S2; he succumbed to a weakness of his by getting obsessed with "random" firebenders, but then he truly tried to be of help, he beat the goddamn brainwashing and did everything he could to help Aang and his allies. He was given a "heroic death" offscreen! Perhaps he survived, gravely injured but who knows. The writing portrays him as an ok person at the end.

If he was supposed to be an "evil version" or "irredeemed" version of Zuko, that could have been portrayed only if Jet had demonstrated more, and persistent negative traits that he would refuse to change. Before giving him an on-screen death.

It wasn't very believable to me that Iroh managed to follow Zuko so quietly and so well under lake Laogai; but from spoilers, I was convinced that Zuko had arrived to a moral decision to set Appa free and let go of his need to belong back at the royal family of the Fire Nation, all on his own. That might have been a bigger triumph of character, but... even coming to this decision because Iroh pressured him into thinking about choices (the fact that he had choices), doesn't diminish what he decided by a lot.

Fever was excellent lmao. Iroh gave him some ibuprofen But the subsequent very cheery behaviour feels like big and heavy Copium from Zuko to me!

Damn. Aang literally speedrun all those chakras opening. Guru Pathik seems alright to me and doesn't feel like a huge deus-ex mechanism considering many other elements the show has used. But I feel like the show would have benefitted a LOT more if separate episodes were devoted to unblocking the chakras. Those are supposed to be a big deal, something difficult to overcome for the hero. But also; Aang refusing to let go of Katara right at the moment when he sensed she was in danger, is actually a correct choice (from a narrative standpoint) - we aren't supposed to cheer for him to let her die. Of course we as the audience want him to try to help Katara! However what Guru Pathik had told him about attachment still stands in the writing (maybe it could have been made more clear that this attachment in question means a selfish possessive one). The writing still sets it up so that it seems like Aang WILL have to let go of the attachment in the future to successfully open the last chakra. Just... later, because this is not the right moment! ^^

Oh man. The best the writing could do for Katara was to have her make a dumb joke about Momo knocking over figurines in the war meeting? And the plan was just... "go forth and attack the Fire Nation during a solar eclipse"? This was the best the text could do?? No bits of additional strategy, problem-solving, no Katara being serious about it? And after that she decides to go for tea despite being on a crucial mission? And why would the delicate scroll requiring the Earth King's seal to set the entire army in motion be left to be carried around outside by one girl. Just so that she could run into Zuko and blow his cover, despite having last seen him as broken, crying over his uncle, fighting against his sister the Fire Nation princess. Feels like the plot really got super convoluted here just to get to points it wanted. Sadge.

#atla #avatar the last airbender #aang #zuko #katara #toph #long feng #thoughts #season 2 #brainstorming

[myeagleexpert]

The Silence of Seven

↳Synopsis:

❝ The peaceful atmosphere is shattered when Yuu finds one of her friends in a coma of unknown causes. Determined to uncover the truth, Yuu and her friends begin investigating the case and discover a curious pattern that links the victims. But as the investigation progresses, they find themselves in a tangle with powerful enemies, and this time the danger is out of Twisted Wonderland. Yuu and her friends will have to fight against unknown forces to find answers and unravel the mystery before it's too late.❞

↳Notes:Leona being a simp, Leona and Yuu have a complicated relationship, grim is clingyy, Crowley puts more work for yuu, angst+fluff memories? Yuu likes to flirt with others to pass the time.

「 Chapter 3: Can you feel the love tonight? 」

.  ˚  . 　　.　　　　  　 ✧

It was noon when Crowley summoned the prefect of Ramshackle to his office. What the hopeful Yuu expected would be news from her friend Riddle, she received only a paperwork of documents to take to the leaders and a cynical smile from the crow that everything will be fine.

That's how she ended up in Savanaclaw's dormitory, before she would have been greeted like weak prey entering a predator's lair, but now… students of all species greeted her as she entered the hot corridors, some stepped aside and others waved respectfully. Everyone noticed that its aura had changed, it was not an agitated presence that sought for survival, but a confident presence that said “Fight me if you can”. Leona admired this, the herbivore finally learned to roar.

He still remembered how she looked so weak that a wind could carry her away, how the students would band together to chase her and cowardly attack her. Like most days, the girl without magic appeared to be so ill that she spent a good deal of time in the infirmary. The girl's blood was cowardly spread throughout the dormitory, between fists and claws.

Yuu's entrance was betrayed by her voice, which the young lion was so fond of.

While the prince's voice was like a low growl, the girl's voice was like a melody, varying between high and low pitches and suiting her listener. While for Vil his voice was like an elegantly made melody, for Leona, it was a voice of strength and authority with hints of provocation, which he would never admit but he liked the play on words and boldness that the herbivore dared to speak.

"Your Majesty" “Herbivore”

Incredibly, in fact, Yuu and Leona got along very well, an interesting chemistry, and occasionally met to think of new strategies for the game or a chess match. Occasionally, Leona would let herself be vulnerable and sink into the girl's lap under a large tree in the Botanical Gardens. Occasionally, Yuu would hold his warm hand while he accompanied her to the classroom. Occasionally, her mouths would engage in intense and passionate fights, where surprisingly the two won.

"I can't focus on the document if you keep staring at me like that"- The herbivore felt the intense gaze of a certain carnivore who practically ignored the serious words she was saying and without any shame admired her beautiful eyes.

"Will you say that again? I wasn't listening." As he leaned forward her knees touched and he brushed a stubborn strand of hair behind her ear. There was no denying that a blush crept across both of their faces…

"*cough cough let's focus here*".- Yuu composed herself putting a physical space between the two

"Don't be embarrassed, it's just the two of us here".- The sly smile Leona flashed would make butterflies dance in anyone's stomach, but not Yuu, not now.

"I said, let's focus." The serious, gruff voice made the prince's smile slip. Like a twinge in his belly, he remembered.

"Occasionally" is not a couple. No matter how much their eyes met in the crowd, no matter how delicious the barbecues they had together were, no matter how much Cheka already considered her her aunt, no matter how much they whispered together, no matter how much Leona's eyes couldn't hide how much she adored her. However much time they spent together, the words never left the prince's mouth. As much as he wanted to, they weren't a couple.

“Hey, you lazy lion. Look at me” five days ago Leona was in the botanical gardens, lying on her thighs where she was getting a beauty sleep. Vile thanks you.

“Hmm?” without opening his eyes, he just growled to let her know she was being heard.

“Look at me” the gentle touch of the girl's hands made the green eyes that were so menacing before open up “There you are… what beautiful eyes you have.” the woman's giggles were music to her ears

"I have to go now." little kisses were deposited on the prince's face as she took him discreetly off her lap and oh… he wouldn't allow that

“Stay here a little longer” before she got up Leona grabbed the girl and trapped her in her embrace, getting him on top of her. “Stay” when Yuu returned the hug amid giggles, Leona could hear the elegant and smooth rhythm of the heart that wanted so much and without knowing it, purred in a low tone.

“Okay you spoiled cat, but only because I like you.” feeling so protected and loved in the arms of someone she cares so much for, Yuu relented and upon feeling a blush on her cheeks she realized…. Leona was nibbling her neck, which very happily Yuu returned the bites on his neck.

Ah the young love!

Leona was from a land where actions speak louder than words, while Yuu believed that sincere words were the beginning of everything. As long as Leona didn't take the first step, it wouldn't be Yuu who would. And Yuu was tired of the supposed game of cat and mouse.

What does a handsome prince see in me? What does he hide? Why me?

If they weren't official, Yuu could go out and flirt with any boy she wanted while Leona roared with rage in jealousy and envy. An anguished atmosphere between the two would stay for a while fighting over simple things, and then they would make up and the cycle would repeat itself.

When they finished talking a little more about school affairs and Riddle's secret affairs, Leona opened the door like a gentleman for Yuu, but he wasn't the only one who wanted to impress her. door. Unconsciously the prince stood in front of the girl, protecting her from a supposed bully.

-Dorm leader!-he bowed loudly- Yuu-kun!-he stood up with a smile on his face. -I…ah, I wanted to know if you already finished your meeting.

-We're done. Do you need something?- Yuu replied immediately

-It's just that… the guys in the lounge are calling you to talk to us there- the panther gradually lowered his tone, evading her gaze, passing his hand over the back of his neck

-Look, I don't know… I still have a lot to do.

-Please, it's going to be quick!-The beastman panther threw the best pleading eyes he could manage, as he grabbed Yuu by the hand in an impulsive movement.

"Why can he look at you like that and I can't?"

-Well…I guess I can stay a little while.- A blush crept across the girl's cheeks, but quickly disappeared as she remembered that Leona was still there- So Leona, can I send you the other documents via magiczap? There aren't many in any case .

"Whatever." His nonchalant expression might fool some, but his tail flicked to one side screamed his annoyance.

-So, let's go?- Yuu's charming smile made the panther beastman melt by lowering his ears.

-Y-yes, let's go.

"Stay here"

Unspoken words don't change hearts.

Leona watched the image of the two disappearing from her sight, the panther guided Yuu by the hand until she reached a cluster of beastmen of different species near the pool, all competing for a thousandth of Yuu's attention, this one, told several stories and advice to them , his warm, soft hand stroked the fur of the beastmans now and then and if the prince wasn't so proud he would do the same.

Coming out of a dark corner with a basket of clean clothes, Ruggie looked closely at the situation he saw and sighed heavily in counsel.

“If you just stare, it won’t solve anything, you know?” “Shut up, Ruggie”

The hyena witnessed these and other situations between the two lovebirds, he himself was tired of seeing how Leona was burning with jealousy and gave him more work to do. He couldn't deny that he saw hearts in Yuu's eyes and how Leona became a kitten when she was near. They deserve each other, what are they waiting for? What are the powerful and oh so strong lion be thinking so much? Don't you think he's afraid of-

“Ruggie. Bring that fur ball over here.”

.  ˚  . 　　.　　　　  　 ✧

Grim was reluctantly in Heartstabull's dorm, the feline had been clinging to the supervisor's side recently and due to his big mouth, Yuu decided to leave him with the boys so that she could resolve Savanaclaw's affairs as quickly as possible.

“Let me go minioon. We're a duo, aren't we?”- the cat meowed while grabbing the girl's leg

“No Grim, stay with the boys. I'll be right back"

“What if you get attacked there? Those big ones might be mad at you.”

“It'll be quick, okay? I'll be right back.”- giving a soft kiss on his companion's forehead, Grim stopped for a few seconds and then went back to clinging to her.

"Ah come on Grim, let her go soon" Ace tried to pull the feline from the mayor's leg.

“Trey made his favorite pies.” As lying as the line was, Deuce needed to buy time.

After having eaten the pies - what a spoiler, they weren't made by Trey, he was still in the office, Grim was pouting and meowing about the delay of his dear henchman. This way, it was easy for a hyena to find his target and drag him into the wild beasts' roost.

“Here you go, boss” “Leave us alone Ruggie.”

"What does Leona want?"-Grim watched the place noticing Yuu's familiar scent, but not her presence. The feline had noticed that the two lovebirds had stopped walking together, much to Grim's happiness. This one let out a smug grim at the thought that her friend without magic wouldn't see the lion anymore, would spend more time beside the big grim. Just like old times…

“I want you to send a message to the herbivore, your friend Yuu.” Cut to the chase, Leona circled the cat as if he were just another prey in his territory.

"And why don't you send it yourself? I'm very busy, you know?"

“Because…that herbivore forgot some documents here and you have to give them to her.”- according to the plan, Leona temptingly shows the documents to Grim, who takes the bait by becoming familiar with them. They're the same ones Yuu was carrying! "But we have a few points to discuss before taking it to Crowley"

Crossing his arms Grim asks "And since when do you care and collaborate with Crowley?"

“As long as he gets off my back, I want to get rid of the damn crow.” And who didn't?

“And for your friend to have a lighter weight on her shoulders, you have to collaborate with me.” the lion keeps the alleged documents in bed, hiding them like someone hiding a wild card to use later. With green eyes he stares at the feline and launches his proposal.

“Tell Yuu to meet me at the botanical garden during sunset. No delays."

Upon leaving the dorm Ruggie gave the feline a can of luxury tuna. Your payment for the message, he said. The prince wanted to make sure his message got through, and what better bribe for a greedy cat than delicious food?

Grim walked back down the path on his own, just him and his thoughts. Is Yuu so tired, why do I have to put more work to her? Grim's little paws unconsciously followed Yuu's scent until he found her in the hall of mirrors after she had returned from Octaville, this one, smiled gently when she saw her companion.

“Grim! I was going to go and get it from the boys' dorm now. What are you doing here?"

“The big grim went for a walk.”

“I'm happy for you grim, you must exercise to make your body strong and…” noticing a different can of tuna, Yuu asks curiously “Where did you find that can of tuna?”

Stop asking henchman questions!

Rolling his eyes and momentarily losing his confident posture Grim says the first thing that comes to his mind "Ruggie gave it to me!"

The can isn't even from campus, how was Ruggie going to give it away? It's because...?

“Why did Leona give you that can of tuna? She didn't get into trouble, did she?" Concluding that it was really the prince who has been disturbing their sleep and their romances, with him especially, Yuu fears the worst.

“Oh, I don't know! R-Ruggie gave it to me!” the more the girl squinted her eyes suspiciously the more Grim became agitated

"OK…"

As much as curiosity is one of her strong points, Yuu is really tired and changes the subject as they walk down the haunted, dilapidated path to her dear and cozy: Ramcharckle dorm! The sun was beginning to set, giving Yuu a feeling of peace and vitality.

“What a lovely sunset!”

Leona knew that. Leona knew that the girl from another world loved sunsets, because whenever they went out together she slowed down her steps and spoke less to enjoy the moment so ethereal. In Leona's eyes, Yuu's body lit up with a precious treasure as the warm orange rays covered her skin, the hair that even dark gleamed with vigor, and the eyes… ah the eyes that looked like pools of gold that the prince wanted to drown in them.

It was in these same eyes that the prince learned what hope was. It wasn't a delicate, naive term, as his books said. Hope has dirt on her face, blood on her hands, hair messed up, she spits on the floor and gets up to try again with eyes as dangerous as fire that burn with determination.

Fire can either warm you or burn you.

The magicless human from another dimensions, an alien to this world, managed to burn and warm many during her stay in this strange world, and the thought that she could leave at any moment gave Leona the kick to confess and keep her beside the Prince.

Burning and heating. In the depths of the young prince's heart, true feelings were slowly curling into her words, making him agitated and reviewing his speech over and over again.

Back and forth one… "Look, I wanted to talk about…us…"

From there to here one… " I like what we have now what if…."

From one side to the other a sincere speech was formed… "I want more, I want you to be mine and I want to be yours"

*shift track* bush moving

The small ears pricked up at the sound and this time Leona allowed a gentle smile waiting for Yuu.

"Herbivore, it's about time."

But Yuu was sleeping peacefully at the moment, sleeping between her covers on the couch in the Ramcharchle dorm, her head already heavy from thinking. Grim had never said the message Leona had sent, he had to make sure his Henchamn was rested and at his side.Right?

The sun had already set when Yuu received a call from an agitated hyena.

<<Previous You are here Next>>

#twisted wonderland #twst #disney twisted wonderland #twst yuu #malleus draconia #malleus x reader #twist x reader #leona kingscholar x reader #disney twst #twist #leona x reader #leona kingscholar #leona kingsholar x reader #grim my beloved #yandere grim

[akiyamanemu]

💔.Samuel, Goo, Gun when he found out that his daughter was rejected and humiliated.

Samuel:

Samuel was mad with rage, he had just welcomed his daughter home, his little girl came in crying, he almost couldn't understand what she was saying between crying and sobbing. He held his daughter against him squeezing her.

-Who did what, tell your dad. Seo said through his teeth, he was seething with hatred because apparently his daughter had been humiliated at school in front of everyone, his little girl that he always kept with the biggest treats and best things, he couldn't accept something like that. But he couldn't just hit immature teenagers, as much as he wanted to, he was already an adult and had to act like one, but there would be no harm in giving a scare in which he got his daughter. The next day Seo went to school at the end of the day, the close-fitting suit marked his muscles, the tattoos caught everyone's attention, but soon he spotted his prey, it was enough for Samuel to pass him and whisper that the boy simply froze.

-I think you'd better stay away from my daughter from now on, if you think you're someone who can humiliate her and get away with it, you're wrong, now get out of here before I disappear with you... The insane expression on my face. Seo's face was just like old times, that scared anyone.

Goo:

What a bad experience it is to mess with JoonGoo and make him serious, even worse when they mess with his daughter. Some time ago Goo had noticed that his daughter was eating poorly, didn't want to play with him anymore and was missing classes a lot, so like a worried father he decided to play detective a few minutes after his daughter left for school. school he followed her, attentive to every thing on the way, the girl muttered under her breath as she walked looking at the ground, and soon her father could understand what was going on. When approaching the surroundings of the school a couple approached the girl, the boy said to Goo's daughter that she was pathetic for having declared herself to him, that he thought she was a disgusting girl. Dad owl's nerves were already running high, he was very, very serious, but he held back a little longer until he saw what that boy was capable of, Goo's daughter cringed when the cowardly boy raised his hand to hit in it, almost in a split second Joongoo was there to receive the slap in his daughter's place.

-Hey are you crazy bro? The boy exclaimed angrily, Goo was smiling from corner to corner.

-I ask you, who do you think you are to raise your hand to my daughter? JoonGoo looked the boy in the eye, his hands were in his pockets just waiting for the boy to give the first sign that he was going to attack, and as soon as the boy raised his hand again Goo hit him with a punch, a single punch and the boy was on the ground .

-If you weren't interested in my daughter, just say no to her. Goo said in a good-natured way putting his arm around his daughter's shoulder. -By the way, next time I'll tear you to pieces.

Gun:

JongGun's daughter had spent the whole week rehearsing to ask her father for help, but she was afraid of what he might do when he learned that she had been humiliated by classmates after confessing to a boy, and has since been harassed by other students. JongGun already suspected something, he had noticed that the number of notifications from his daughter's cell phone was increasing but that she didn't smile when reading the messages as usual. He just waited for her to leave her cell phone lying around and picked it up, when he read it he can't believe it, people were making fun of his daughter, there were pictures of her with grotesque edits, name-calling, it was kind of shocking. He didn't quite know how to deal with that other than strategy, threats and violence, and even though he knew his daughter wouldn't like that, these were the weapons he intended to use.

After looking at the account of one of the boys who was making his daughter hell he found out where they used to gather, it wasn't long before the man was there dressed head to toe in a stark white suit, his sunglasses reflecting the moonlight. JongGun's hand landed on the shoulder of the boy who was holding his daughter, Gun knew it was him.

-So you are the boy who is sending those messages to my daughter... Gun took off his glasses putting them in his pocket. The boy felt a chill down his spine, only JongGun's voice was enough to put him in despair, and Gun didn't need much to finish off all those kids, at the end of it all he took the opportunity to leave a message on social media, using the boy's phone he took a picture of the boy and posted it with the caption

"I got my ass hit after messing with the wrong person, I'm dumb".

[Sorry for not doing Jay too but he's hard for me, but I hope you like it]

#lookism #lookism headcanons #x reader #lookism x reader #samuel seo #lookism jonggun #lookism joongoo

[jeon-s-sins]

HEAT | JK

Synopsis : You're in your mating season, but you can't tell Jungkook, your mate, because he's busy with more important things, and you don't want to disturb him. His uncle has just declared war on him, and Jungkook is busy finding allies and developing a reliable strategy to save his skin and his pack. You told him you'll go to your parents, who live in another pack. But what will happen when Jungkook finds out the truth?

Heat : A period during the reproductive cycle when female animals become sexually receptive, signaling they are ready for mating.

Word count : 2.5k

Warning : Smut ahead

n.a : English is not my first language, so it’s possible that there are some mistakes that I missed while proofreading. This is a story I wrote when I was younger. I wrote it in the first person, which has changed over time. But I didn't want to rewrite it out of sheer laziness. So here it is as it is. Enjoy reading it.

YN's point of view

A beautiful sunny spring day after several snowy months. And another day I could not enjoy. The reason? I'm in heat.

I know another person who can't enjoy this beautiful day either: my mate Jeon Jungkook.

It's been three months since his uncle, an Alpha from another pack, challenged us. Jungkook's uncle is his father's younger brother. After his father became the pack's Alpha, his younger brother didn't like the idea and challenged his older brother, Jungkook's father, to a duel.

The goal of the duel was a fight to the death where the winner would become the Alpha. Of course, Jungkook's father won, and because he loved his little brother too much, even after what he had done, he spared his life but punished him by banishing him from the pack.

The uncle then used the opportunity to create his pack with only rogues. Still unable to accept his defeat, he always found a way to provoke his older brother.

After Jungkook took the reins of the pack by becoming Alpha in his turn a few months ago, his uncle offered to unite the two packs and let him take Alpha's place.

Jungkook refused. His uncle continued to insist until one day, he got fed up and finally defied Jungkook.

For three months now, Jungkook has been running around without taking a second to rest. We don't even have time to meet and spend time together as we used to.

He is always traveling, meeting with our allies, dealing with other Alphas, trying to expand our ranks, and signing an alliance.

As the Luna of this pack and his mate, it is my duty to attend every one of his meetings and take control of the pack in his absence, but since two days ago, I have been unable to do so.

My heat prevents me from doing so. A female's heat varies from five to ten days, depending on many things, including her rank and whether she is about to be "taken care of" by her mate.

Today is my third day of heat, and I can say that it is by far the worst of all. On the first day, the heat is uncomfortable but bearable. On the second day, the heat gets stronger and almost unbearable.

On the third day, the heat is unbearable and a little painful. I need him terribly, but I don't ask for him. He is swamped, and I can't afford to bother him with such a small thing. I have to do it myself.

I had to make an excuse on the first day of my heat. I told him I was visiting my parents, who, unfortunately, are from another pack, and that I would stay with them for a few days.

The truth is that I am staying in a second home that belongs to Jungkook's family, which is specially built for the Alpha couple's privacy during the heat, allowing them to have some privacy and not be disturbed by other pack members.

Jungkook doesn't know I'm in heat, which is good. Far be it from me to distract him from his priorities. First, the pack, then the couple.

I can't afford to be selfish and want him to do this for me when the time is critical, and the fate of many wolves is in his hands. One wrong step, and it's the end for all of us.

So here I am for three days, locked up in this big house alone. Feverish with desires, needs, and longing for my man, who knows nothing about my current situation.

Which, on the one hand, is very dangerous, I admit. If ever a wolf who still has no mate comes by and sniffs my scent, his wild side would take over, and he would be able to break into the house and take what does not belong to him.

And I would be unable to defend myself, weakened by my need. The second their hands lands on my skin, I will only want one thing: for them to shorten my suffering. Unfortunately, this is how things work with wolves, which I do not like. 

No one knows about my situation, so I'm in trouble if something like that happens. I've built a barrier between Jungkook and me so he doesn't feel anything.

I don't know if he's tried to contact me since I left - probably - and if he has, I'm definitely in big trouble. For the moment, it didn't matter because I needed to relieve myself before my body exploded like an overheated pressure cooker.

Caressing my body, I stopped at my chest and grabbed my boobs. Brushing my nipples with the tip of my thumb made me lose my mind. My moans clashed with the room's silence, hitting the walls with full force. 

Usually, my moans are immediately followed by grunts from Jungkook. The sounds blend together to form a beautiful symphony forbidden to anyone who is not us. 

Through the delicate, silky material of my red satin nightgown, I take my hard, sensitive nipples between my fingers and squeeze them hard. I arch my back and moan loudly, filling the room.

I writhe on the bed with pleasure. I run a hand through my hair, grab a good handful and pull my head back, imagining it was Jungkook doing it.

Unbearable, I slid my hand from my chest to my stomach and lifted my dress a little towards inside my panties.

As soon as I touched my clit, a scream came out of my mouth, and I bent over entirely on the bed. When I lowered my finger a little further - between my lower lips - I was not surprised to find my juice dripping from my slit.

I stroked a little, spreading my wetness on my crack before lubricating my fingers with my cum, and pushing two fingers right into my pussy.

Jungkook's name leaves my mouth, and I close my eyes tightly, continuing to please myself, thinking very strongly about my man.

Jungkook's point of view.

It's been three days since I haven't heard from YN, and I'm getting worried. It is unlike her to go more than a day without contacting me.

I've tried contacting her several times, but it's the same every time I encounter a barrier.

What the hell is she up to?

I'm very patient, but I don't know how long I can be patient. If I don't hear from her in half an hour, I will see her myself at her parents' place.

Fortunately, the meetings and other things I had to take care of a few days ago are over, finishing earlier than predicted, and I can finally rest and take care of my mate.

I want to make the most of my time and enjoy my YN before the battle with my uncle.

In order not to count the seconds and to give YN the thirty minutes I had given myself to contact me, I decided to shower, hoping to think about other things and not let the worry take over. 

The water was pleasantly warm. My tense muscles relaxed as soon as the first drops touched my skin. 

I was in the shower, soaping my body, overwhelmed by a strong feeling of pleasure. The intensity was so great that my legs could not support my weight, and I collapsed on the floor.

What's happening to me?

My eyes close, and I see a pair of naked legs spread apart with a hand between them.

I frown in incomprehension. I felt myself being pulled by my hair, and a moan escaped my lips.

My body heats up and becomes painful at the same time. Pleasure settles in the pit of my stomach, and I am not far from cumming.

It didn't take me long to ejaculate on the floor. When I caught my breath, I understood what had happened.

She had lied to me and kept me in the dark the whole time. Furious, I left the bathroom and didn't even get dressed.

I ran towards the woods before taking animal form when I left the house. When I was still in the bathroom and had a brief vision of her body lying on the mattress, I immediately recognized where YN was. And that's where I'm going. 

She had better have a good explanation for this. 

YN's point of view

My breathing was jerky, and all my limbs were shaking. Nothing beats Jungkook's touch and care, but the orgasm was still intense. Much stronger than when I enjoyed myself.

It was as if my pleasure wasn't just mine, as if someone else's was added to mine. This is impossible because I put up a barrier between Jungkook and myself.

While lying on the bed, trying to come to my senses despite the thick fog, I jumped when the bedroom door suddenly opened and slammed into the wall.

For a moment, I thought a male of the pack, or worse, a rogue, had entered the house to ease my suffering. But relief washed over me when I saw that it was none other than my man. 

Relief. Well, not really. Because I knew from the dark look Jungkook gave me that I was in trouble.

Shocked, I sat down on the bed and looked at him. The saliva I was about to swallow had difficulty moving down my esophagus, making the borderline process painful.

There he was, in front of me, naked, showing his beautiful, muscular body, steel, and well-defined abs.

Goddess, I want to run my tongue all over him.

Although I was happy and eager to feel him touch me, I could only be surprised to find him here.

How did he find me?

"So, Luna, is there something you're not telling me?" His voice was hoarse, and his look was deep.

His eyes were crimson, and he was angry. His chest lifted erratically and jerkily, and I imagine that was because he had run up here, but not only that, he was also mad about something.

Jungkook approached the bed before climbing up and crawling on top of me. I tried to sit up, but his hand went to my stomach and pinned me to the mattress. 

While one hand supports his weight and prevents him from falling on me, his other hand runs over my body without touching me. Even though he didn't feel me, the heat from his hand made me lose my head.

"Jungkook," I moaned, arching my chest and making our skin touch.

"Answer me!" He uses his alpha voice to get what he wants.

"I... I didn't want you..." I have difficulty expressing myself. Seeing him above me, naked, drove me crazy.

"You didn't want me what, YN?" he pressed me.

"I didn't want to bother you." Oops... I shouldn't have said that. His face hardened, and he stood on the bed on his knees.

Surprisingly, he grabbed my red satin nightgown and tore it, exposing my body. He did the same with my panties, now in a thousand pieces.

"Bullshit! I am your man." He takes my breasts in his big hands and massages them. "Your fucking mate," he pinches my nipples, "and your heat belongs to me!" He takes his member - already hard - lines it up against my crack and inserts it into me.

I screamed his name, clinging to him as if my life depended on it. My eyes closed, surrendering to the pleasure his cock was giving me mixed with the pain his sudden entry had caused. 

Fuck, that's good. 

He withdraws entirely before coming again even harder. He repeats the process again and again. My pleasure is not far away. With one more thrust, I could easily touch the clouds with my fingertips.

But Jungkook disagrees with me. He stops all movement and withdraws from me, leaving me in the most significant misunderstanding.

He was about to leave the bed when I told him to stay in a loud and firm voice.

"JEON JUNGKOOOK, don't you dare leave the damn bed." My strong desire and a great need for him made me do something I'd never dared to do before. I used my Alpha female voice on him.

I was born to alpha parents, which makes me an alpha female. 

Jungkook stops all movement and doesn't move anymore.

A smile appears on my lips, happy and satisfied to see that I have some control over him, the big Alpha.

"Good boy, now you're going to rest your pretty little ass a little higher on the mattress, and we're going to finish what we started." If he thinks he can take me to the edge and then walk away, he's sorely mistaken.

He does what I tell him to do, sitting in the middle of the bed. I sit on his lap, straddling his lap, and cling to his hair.

I pull on it a little to make him turn his head to the side and give me a clear view and access to the space between his neck and shoulder before I plant my canines on his pulpit, where a mark resides. My mark.

Jungkook growls and digs his claws into my ribs. His hard cock erected between us twitches and comes up against our stomachs.

Now it's his turn to want me. I will make him lose his mind and beg him to push me inside.

It's funny how I'm the one in heat and desperate, and he's the one being dominated. 

Teasing and always with my canines in his pulpit, I pump his member.

Occasionally, I stand up a little and tease him by bringing his cock in front of my entrance, teasing the both of us before sometimes sitting down, just pushing the tip of his thick dick inside me, which takes a complaint out of both of us.

Jungkook tries to make me impale myself on him more than once, but I growl at him and forbid him to carry out his idea.

"So now you want to be inside me again, hum?" I whisper into his ear. "If I remember correctly, it was you who ended our mutual pleasure," I lick his earlobe, and he moans, "now bear the consequences, Alpha."

I attack his neck with wet kisses before kissing his full mouth. He surrounds my body with his muscular and veiny arms that, God knows how much, drive me crazy.

Against all odds, he turns us around in the bed and is on top of me again. I try to get us to change positions, to be back on top of him, but I don't have the strength. He is too strong.  

"Don't try to turn the tables, baby. You're the one who should be punished for not telling me. So just be happy I'm here with you and didn't let you go through this alone like you planned."

He jerks his dick into me, and this time he takes me to our orgasms.

As I cum around his cock, he sinks his fangs into my neck and marks me again. My orgasm was triple exquisite. Our pleasure was shared, and we felt each other's pleasure.

This is one of the countless reasons why I love being a she-wolf. I would not have changed it for anything in the world.

n.a : I hope you enjoy this short story as much as I do. To make sure you don't miss the progress of the chapters as well as their release, don't forget to check out the Working on and Updates section, where you'll find not only updates on "HEAT", but also other stories and "One Shots" that you'll probably enjoy as well. Also, don't forget to check out the Masterlist, you'll probably find something for you among my other stories in progress and those to come.

If you enjoyed the story, please consider buying me a coffee.

As with all my other stories, TRANSLATIONS will not be tolerated. Thanks for your consideration.

#Heat | only part #yaya #jeon s sins #bts fanfic #bts smut #jungkook x reader #bts #werewolf #jk werewolf #heat #smut #jk smut

[sapphic-woes]

I have been summoned. What about headcannons for Eivor and a female reader travelling together? Especially when they are still in a friends to crush stage. Thank you and have a good day. ❤

Ok so....uh what if it's: "princess/queen in need of safe passing and Eivor wants to gain an alliance so she escorts you" stage...because it's all I can think abt srry:

Eivor x Royal!Reader

The reasons for why you're on the run don't really matter much, let's just say people either want you dead or kidnapped.

I think at first you guys are at an odds not because you're pretentious or anything, but you're sheltered and never dealt with the outdoors

Like I imagine you don't know how to start a fire, hunt, etc etc. When Eivor met you, however, you could command a room and figure out a war strategy through information alone, so she assumed stuff like this would be the basics for you.

So when she tells you to make a fire while she goes out to hunt, comes back and you're tirelessly trying to do it and so frustrated you can't? It's like a break in character in you to her.

Maybe you come off as cold. Calculating. You make the hard decisions and don't seem to let emotions control you. However, Eivor soon learns that's just how you are to deal with all the aldermen constantly at your throat

In reality, you're pretty open to learning more skills, understanding her culture, and who she is. Eivor teaches you how to start a fire, to hunt, hell even to ride (let's say you had to escape in a rush and left on one horse)

You talk of your shared differences: she grew up on the battlefield, physically hardened by her experiences. You grew up in the heart of your kingdom, mentally hardened by those seeking your power. In ways you two are similar, in others strikingly different.

I imagine one day you speak of a horrible time of political turmoil. Maybe you had to pull some strings behind the scenes, barely getting away with your life and your title.

You speak of it as if its nothing, and make some offhand comment that regardless of how cruel you were back then, you would do it all over, becuase there's no one in that kingdom who would care to protect you as much as yourself

And Eivor breaks at that. She has people she knows would do anything to protect her back in Ravensthorpe, and that's why despite having so much blood on her hands, she's gentle. You on the other hand, have never picked up a sword in your life, and yet your circumstances have forced you to become more heartless than she could ever be.

Eivor would reach for you then, cup your cheeks in a way you'd never experienced before. Softly as if you would break. Firmly as if she feared you would slip through the cracks of her hands.

Looking into your eyes, Eivor speaks slowly, whispering like any louder would make the words grow sharp against your ears:

"Lady...if I had been there, I would have protected you."

You stared up into the frost of her eyes, mind muddled with confusion. You didn't know why she said that to you, or why it was with such conviction. You didn't need her pity. You were a ruler, one who led her people with strength and virtue. Perhaps you were in a predicament now, but that did not mean anything had changed.

"...Thank you. It is a, um, a comfort to know." You treaded lightly with your words. Eivor caught the habit immediately.

"We are not within the walls of your kingdom. There is no one here to hear us." When you tried to look down, she didn't allow you, coarse skin gingerly keeping your head tilted towards her. The care in her eyes was heavy. It settled over your heart and squeezed out an old warmth. You tried to hold it in with a shaky breath.

"I am well aware. Still, I do not understand what you want me to say–" Your cheeks were abruptly squished together, head jerked closer towards Eivor's own. Suddenly, all you could process was blue irises contrasting the night sky, twinkling just as the stars did. Eivor carefully ground out each of her words for your to process

"If it were me. Lady." No. No, no, no–I do not wish to hear it! Frantically, you shook your head while she spoke. You feared it would cause you to come undone, yet Eivor pressed on anyway.

"I would have done everything. No matter the cost, no matter the sacrifice. No task would have proven too much to bear in order to protect you." The tears built up in the corner of your eyes. You held the droplets in until you shut them, running down you face as Eivor quietly whispered.

"Becuase you are precious, lady."

#female eivor x reader #eivor x reader #f!eivor x reader #ac valhalla #DO YK THE REFERENCE– #SHE. IS. PRECIOUS #*cue heaston confusion*

[innerchorus]

Arslan Senki Chapter 121

I was going to say that in that first panel, it looks like Jimsa selected a horse similar to the Turanian 'type' but actually I think his mount just looks small next to Shabrang! (I actually went back to look at Jimsa's horse in earlier chapters and in doing so I caught a minor mistake in Chapter 117, where his horse's mane is erroneously colored black in one panel)

Good horse content this chapter, anyway: I like that it's Jimsa (a Turanian, whose lifeblood is their horses even more so than Parsians) who rides in shouting for water for his horse. And how quick the men are to care for the horses that have been ridden so hard. (Seeing them pour water on Shabrang's legs instantly made me think of how racehorses are cooled down; it's worth remembering that this battle is taking place in sweltering heat and those horses have been worked extremely hard to the point that it's a valid concern to think that they might collapse from overheating. The way Jimsa's horse is breathing is definitely worrying. (If you're interested, there's an article here about preventing post-race collapse in racehorses that goes into more detail and sheds some light on precisely why they're right to be so concerned.)

The dialogue that accompanied wet Daryun is 👌 (when he says "To the ends of the earth, if that be your order" because doesn't that one line just embody Daryun's feelings?)

And GIEVE, holy shit. I admit I have never been his biggest fan, but his involvement in the defeat and death of Bodin hit the right spot.

"Even now, you squirm unknowingly on the palm of my hand like the mediocrity you are!" is going down as one of my favourite lines in the whole series, seriously.

Right on both counts. Also, lol at the face of the soldier in the middle who looks far more worried by Bodin's pursuit than Narsus or Gieve

Something I really liked with how this all turned out is that Arakawa didn't just add Bodin into the mix because it was a convenient place to kill him off, she also integrated his presence on the battlefield and the tactics used to deal with him into what happens to Guiscard.

(I've already shared my thoughts on Guiscard's survival prospects via reblog here, so consider those bullet points a lit candle for his prayer circle! The one counterpoint to the argument that he will survive is the fact that a key reason for allowing him to live is now no longer necessary; Bodin is gone so there's no need to try and pit them against each other.)

It's mentioned quite a few times in the novels that an enemy who has a good grasp of tactics etc is easier to predict that someone who is more of a wildcard. Narsus knows enough of Guiscard to feel confident in what his move will be here, despite never having met him!

On that note, I really cannot wait for Guiscard and Arslan to come face to face.

(Just thinking back to how stressed the Parsian soldiers look when Bodin is on their heels and you know, it makes a lot of sense. Though they know it's part of a plan, they're still relying on the actions of an external force in order to pull it off. Not everyone has Narsus's understanding of strategy, so perhaps they're concerned that Guiscard won't do as expected and instead Bodin's forces will catch them. Plus, although Narsus had time for a quick tactical talk, the situation was still quite fraught and needed a fast response so I doubt there was much time to go into great detail and reassure everyone.)

The moment I realised what was going to happen to Bodin and his army will stick with me for a long time. I knew I would enjoy seeing him meet his end, but I didn't expect the moment to feel so impactful. (That panel where he first looks at the rotting remains of the Parsian cavalry in the pit just keeps coming into my mind, even days after first reading this chapter.)

So thinking ahead to what we might see next chapter... obviously a resolution to whatever's going to happen with Guiscard. I can't see that being the entirety of the chapter, though, so what else might we see? I wonder whether we'll get a panel or two of a Team Zahhak reaction or some sort of... 'status update' I guess (this chapter did have that 'man who hears the voice of god' line to remind us of Team Zahhak's involvement with Bodin). Otherwise, I would dearly love to get a glimpse of what's going on in Ecbatana, where Team Hilmes are beginning to feel the pressure. Yes, it has 100% been too long since I have last seen Zandeh.

#arslan senki #the heroic legend of arslan #daryun #jimsa #guiscard #narsus #gieve #bodin #shabrang #phew this post is long #but it feels good to write out my thoughts on a chapter again!

[eryna]

haha hehe I love when I can't participate in the thing I love without incapacitating panic attacks

tw: dysphoria, depersonalisation, depression

Jesus Christ I hate everything

I love choir. I love singing. I love it, it's so fun and I've had some very good choir directors in the past.

On the other hand, the director for the audition choir this year is actually the worst. I had him last year but like. Jesus.

I've asked him NUMEROUS times to not use 'boys' when referring to tenor/basses or 'girls' when referring to altos/sopranos and guess what? Guess fucking what? His excuse is "oh but it's too hard and I've always done it this way"

But guess what's worse? When a real woman cis girl alto 2 gets dragged down to tenor 1 for a song that's high for everyone, guess fucking what? He goes "boys and [name of girl]". THEN even when they AREN'T there, and we have a sub, I get misgendered by some of the bases. All of this culminates in the same god damn broken strategy my mind has used before: depersonalisation! It's kinda like having your mind be sucked through the air suck thing at the dentist. Usually causes a headache, some disorientation, etc. real big fun hours.

And then my fucking parents

My mom will be explained to how my dysphoria works and how much it hurts when she does x or y and guuueesss what??? She'll eventually end the conversation with "we love you, [deadname]"

Like fucking REALLY? ARE YOU FUCKING SURE? IS THIS WHAT LOVE FEELS LIKE?

and there go my friends, moving away

and there goes every one of my supports

and there goes the only thing that kept me alive

next year, my grade will probably be the worst they've ever been. it feels more and more hopeless, day by day. what can i do? I'm stuck here, at the place called home, and every other place I go hurts me anyways

I'll be alone. I'll be stuck here. I'll be forced into a grinder there is no coming out of. An event horizon. A wall that I am mercilessly forced into. What do I do then? Do I just accept permanent scarring on my mind? Permanent, unfixable injury? Do I just accept that pain, that torture? And if I don't, what can I even do? I've vowed not to kill myself, forced myself into a deal that, if attempted to be broken, would destroy me. Kept it strong since October 30th, 2022. How strong am I? How long can I hold this broken mind together?

I just feel as though I can see when my life ends, and every day rushes past, and I'm running out of time. I can see the day that my life ends, and there is nothing I can do to stop it. I run, I go as fast as I can, but when that day comes, what can I do? I will Die, no matter what. And then I will be in hell. And then I'm supposed to live.

#possibly triggering #trans #venting #exmormon #transgender

[pockavas]

Halsin - trusting you fears, Part 2

Walking back to the camp, her dirty clothes close at hand, Ross never looked back, unwilling to show weakness and pity. Halsin was right about himself and she understood that completely, he had really vital issues to deal with, and he had never said anything outright to her, just veiled sweet words that were used to flirt, but nothing direct.

And just how influential was this druid. There were other attractive men in the camp, Astarion, Gale, Wyll, but their obvious and direct attempts to gain her attention proved unsuccessful. She could have been with any of them, but she didn't want to. The temptation that Halsin represented was as great as himself. Without making too much of an effort, without being vulgar, or obvious, like fog drifting down a river. It's just that at some point you find yourself immersed in it and you can't see anything else.

Preoccupied with her thoughts, she did not realize when she reached the camp, the fire was burning, someone had put meat to roast, and judging by the pleasant smell, it was marinated with herbs. No doubt the handiwork of Gale, who had more than once boasted of his culinary skills.

Ross let out a sharp sigh, determined to put aside the meeting by the river and let events flow.

…

Days have passed, the group was making good progress towards the Shadowlands, but the journey has been incredibly fraught with dangers along the way. They often came across groups of fanatics calling on the name of the Absolute.

One encounter stood out from the rest when the enemy had captured civilians, ordinary people in the wrong place at the wrong time. In such situations, one could not just storm the camp and start the slaughter, but think more about the strategy to get the captives out alive. The battle was fierce as always, bloody, but the mission was accomplished.

There was no way there wouldn't be blood spilled among the group, a few more scratches, cuts here and there.

Ross had also decided not to be distracted, to make no mistakes, to follow Halsin's path. Yet he always sat in the corner of her mind, a nagging but sweet thought of a sweet temptation waiting to be tasted. She wondered if that was the case with him. Their relationship continued normally, with pleasant conversations around the campfire, sometimes light casual banter. At times, she caught him staring at her, and she was sure it happened the rest of the time.

After sending the civilians to safety, they all returned to camp, fussed over their health conditions, nothing fatal, and headed for their tents.

Ross, however, was in no condition to lie down. Adrenaline still held her, and sleep was a very distant mirage. A mischievous idea crossed her mind, one related to Astarion's stock of wine and sweet liquor. Nimble and deft, she stole a bottle of fruit liqueur, with the color of blood and the aroma of sweet raspberries.

Holding the bottle in her hand, she walked away from the camp to a small clearing overlooking the forest, the camp behind her. She uncorked the bottle and sipped from the pint of liquid that burned down her throat and all the way to her stomach.

After a few minutes the effects of the battle began to wear off, her head felt light, her body began to ache, especially a burning sensation around her right ribs. What was wrong?

As she fumbled with her armor to get to the problem, she heard soft and heavy footsteps behind her, familiar, she knew who it was.

"-You finally decided to share a drink with me?" - she asked without turning around. Halsin was already standing beside her, illuminated by the moonlight, his expression a mixture of concern, softness, and warmth.

"-I saw you didn't go back to your tent, I thought I'd check if you're okay. I'm glad I came, you smell too much of blood, something's wrong. Let me check."

Ross grimaced in annoyance, the alcohol must have been taking its toll because there was no way Halsin was going to annoy her in any way.

"-Of course, go ahead, I'm all yours!" she exclaimed, raising her hands to the sides as if surrendering.

Halsin stood in front of her and knelt, their eyes locked. Without asking her permission further, Halsin began to unfasten her armor.

He himself was still covered in spatters of blood that had dried long ago, and yet his characteristic musky scent wafted from him, carrying promises of forest, of strength, of masculinity.

If she indulged in the musk, Ross would be out of control, especially with her head dizzy from the liquor. She was aware of that. Ross took another big gulp, frowning at the burning sensation in her throat. She was standing with her head turned away, right now she couldn't look at him and not be affected.

Halsin had already removed the armor, found the cause of his alarm. A scratch from an arrow, medium deep, tore skin and very little muscle, but looked terrible.

"-You should have stayed at the camp so I could take care of your wound in time. Something smells in here."- saying this Halsin tore the garment further to better reveal the wound, leaning forward trying to smell the tear.

Ross's head spun even more, to be so close to her after this hard day, to touch her, caress her gently with his big hands. Ross drank again, whether for courage or oblivion, she closed her eyes.

Halsin could fully see Ross' agitation, but he was too preoccupied with the appearance of the strange wound. He always enjoyed her presence no matter where they were or what they were doing.

Halsin tried to clean the dried blood around the cut with his fingers. His touch, gentle and caring, made the hairs on Ross's neck stand on end. Apparently the alcohol wasn't enough to intoxicate her completely and to be able to shrug off its influence.

Halsin was lost in his preoccupation, he closed his eyes and muttered a silent prayer, a soft light shining from his palm, directed at the wound. The skin there began to glow, a tickling sensation running up Ross's ribcage up her spine, making her gasp and forget to exhale, eyes wide.

After a few moments the ritual was over, the light was gone, but the tear was not completely gone.

"-Hmm, it should have been completely erased..."- Halsin frowned in surprise and irritation and began to feel the place -"How does it feel? Does it hurt, is it numb? How would you describe the feeling here?"- he continued to touch, gently patting the place with his left hand and placed his right on her shoulder.

How does it feel? Every touch of his was warm, wanted, and not enough, because she knew it purpose, and wanted it to be something else. Her pulse quickened, she could no longer control herself, she was breathing heavily. She turned her head to Halsin, her gaze as thirsty as it was insanely drunk, with a hint of anger.

"- What do I feel, Halsin? "-she took his hand that was on her shoulder and put it between her breasts, on her heart-" I feel that my heart is racing, rushing, beating madly, the veins in my neck will burst, my temples protest against the pressure, my head is spinning. See for yourself, feel for yourself! You are a healer, Halsin, tell me what's wrong with me?"

Of course Halsin sensed all this, he was not blind to the blush on her cheeks, the sparkle in her eyes. He knew it wasn't from the alcohol, because he had seen her get a lot of people drunk in the camp and get up and carry on as if it hadn't happened.

Her whole body was on fire. A flame that Halsin wanted to absorb, to burn him until he was nothing but ashes. With his palm still over her heart, Halsin leaned into Ross, forehead resting against hers, his left hand gripping a strand of hair between his fingers.

Then he pulled from his waist bag the jar of perfumed oil he had retrieved weeks ago from the stream.

"- The other day you forgot it, I took it away, but I was waiting for an opportune moment to return it to you. Even when it was closed, I could smell the scent that reminded me of you during the nights."

"-It's been with you the whole time? I thought I'd lost it." - a small gesture that meant a lot to her, but she suspected he kept it for somewhat selfish reasons, "to remind him of her at night."

"- I don't know whether to be grateful that you are returning it to me, flattered that you like it or angry because I could have been with you instead of it!"- anger rose in her chest, her heart beat even faster, the world again turned around.

"-I know, I should have returned it to you earlier, but you know how much I love honey, and you... You're like honey...I couldn't part with the vessel."- Halsin took a deep breath, his broad strong chest puffed out, and exhaled loudly. His feelings for her had not diminished, on the contrary, they grew stronger every day, the desires too, often Ross was present in his dreams, alongside the nightmares of the Shadow Curse. It was not yet the time to be distracted, to indulge in his dreams.

The gust of warm air from Halsin "hit" Ross on the neck, the heat running through her entire body and her reaction was lightning fast.

Before Halsin could react, Ross grabbed both of his wrists, and using all of her remaining strength, managed to knock him onto the grass onto his back, an effort that took a lot, considering Halsin's size and strength. Still holding him, Ross straddled him, burying her face in his powerful neck, breathing in his masculine scent of forest, of sweat, of strength, of bear.

"-I'm going crazy... You're driving me crazy... I lose control just when you're next to me, and I know I shouldn't. I don't lose control! Not anymore, I learned a long time ago to keep my composure, not to give in, and you.. .. It's just You! With all your presence...."

"-Ross, I told you that now I must think of nothing but the curse, but obviously nature has her plans... Which sooner or later will come to fruition, and until then... It's not easy, I know, to fight against what is thrust into you, I do it every day..."

Ross had let go of his wrists, standing predator-like over her still-living prey, a mouth full of sharp teeth resting against his neck. She was unable to stay still, grunting and slashing, almost sinking her teeth into the muscles of his neck. Her mind and consciousness rebelled and fought with each other, why did it have to be so complicated, good so hard to come by, even though right now "good" was right below her, between her legs and, next to her face.

Halsin could feel how tense she was, every part of her body, like a spring, ready to take a bite out of him. He made a huge effort to remain the more sensible of the two, to resist her voiceless call, placing his hands on her waist. His palms so wide, enough to encircle her almost entirely.

Ross writhed and howled between them, breathing it in, he could see that her years in the wild had made her more animalistic, more primal, like a cat, and how he wanted to go wild with her...

"-Halsin, I...I'll try...I'm trying to be self-aware...I'm going to catch our breakfast...Don't try to follow me!"- saying this, Ross nimbly jumped away from Halsin, ran towards the forest and quickly sank into it. Halsin lay like that in the grass for a moment, then sat up, staring in her direction and wondering what he had unleashed, he hadn't seen her like this. What was she going to do alone in the forest, was she safe? He buried his face in his palms, they smelled of her, he inhaled and exhaled, still could feel her, sitting on top of him, her young tense body. Shivers ran down his spine, a sweet smile on his face that was replaced by concern for Ross and the strange wound that didn't heal right away. He knew there was no point in going after her, not because she had told him so, but because he knew enough of her skills, to disappear without a trace, to sink into the shadows like a predator.

#halsin baldur's gate 3 #halsin bg3 #halsin #halsin romance #baldurs gate 3 #baldur's gate 3

[accidental-spice]

OC Mundane Tag Game

Thanks for the tag @musewrangler !!

Rules: Pick an oc you'd like to talk about and answer the questions for them! Then tag ten people, or as many as you can. 'Underdeveloped character I adopted' is fine, too! Absolutely no pressure to play, though.

Also, if some of it can't apply to your ocs, just answer what would be the answer - like if they're in a historical setting, they likely can't watch movies, but what is a movie they'd like?

(Also, most people have many ocs, so feel free to retag people and answer as many times as you get tagged! Or get really wild and just answer for as many ocs as you'd like! :D)

Questions:

What is their favorite movie? I'm gonna answer this one for my OCs Jay and Leila, for they are a package deal. Jay's favorite movie is The Mummy (1999)! Leila accuses him of having a crush on Evie, which he staunchly denies, like a liar. He also names his ship The Wrong Side of The River, so he can say he's on the wrong side of the river (if ya know, ya know). I think Leila's favorite might be The Princess Diaries, but she has a hard time picking a favorite! Joe reminds her of Jay

What is their favorite season? Jay loves winter. He likes cold weather, and the snow!! Plus, it brings back good memories of snowball fights with his sister and parents. Leila prefers summer, as she has very low cold tolerance. Plus, she loves swimming

What do they find annoying? *snorts* so much. Jay finds a LOT annoying, especially... people. His bottom three, so to speak, are humidity, people who waste his time, and his mom's brother. Leila would immediately answer Jay. But she'd be mostly joking. Mostly

How would they like to spend their Christmas or equivalent holiday? Jay likes to spend the time with his sister and parents, and his cousins. Later in life, Leila joins that circle, too. She, however, will be going to several parties. And probably dragging Jay with to at least one. She LOVES Secret Santa and White Elephant, and likes to go out and admire everyone's Christmas lights!!

Do they play an instrument? If so, what? How good are they at it? Jay does not. He likes music, though! Leila might have rudimentary piano or harmonica skills, though! Emphasis on rudimentary, though

What's their favorite meal to eat? Jay likes mac and cheese! The baked homemade kind, with bacon pieces in it. His dad made it special, and Leila learns how while they work together, and makes it for him! Leila's favorite food probably varies wildly depending on the day/month/season/mood she's in. But she LOVES a good BLT, or any kind of sandwich. She likes to put the most random ingredients together, which Jay thinks is madness, though he reluctantly admits they're usually pretty good. Usually

Do they have a favorite video game or board game? Mmmm, I think Jay would enjoy Splendor. It's big on strategy, which he'd like. And he'd definitely love Mafia/One Night/Resistance/Coup. Spy games like that! Leila would also love the spy type games, but she'd also LOVE Galaga!!

Do they celebrate their birthday? Jay wouldn't make a big deal out of it, but the women in his life will NEVER let him get away with that. His sister, Ro, will ALWAYS bake him something and show up with it, no matter where in the galaxy he's at, and Leila would make him his favorite meal, let him choose what they watch without arguing with him over it for 15 minutes, and get him some small present! She, on the other hand, REFUSES to work on her birthday, and buys herself at least one present. Jay's not the best at gift getting, but he'd make an effort for her

What's their bedtime routine? Jay's just gonna brush his teeth, and get in bed. Then he'll probably read for a few minutes before he goes to sleep, either work stuff or whatever book he's currently reading. Leila will brush her teeth, wash her face, and then probably has some skin care regime I would not know the details of. Then, approximately five minutes after they've both gone to bed, Leila will message Jay some random weird question like, are lobsters mermaids for crabs, and Jay will respond with GO TO SLEEP LEILA. Once they're married, she's finally able to ask them in real time, and he's finally able to throw a pillow at her

What's an OC (or canon character) they like to spend time around? What do they tend to do together? I mean, there's obviously each other! And what DON'T they do together? They're travelling the galaxy on a ship together, fighting the Empire, so they work together a lot, plan for missions. They'll cook together, eat together, and watch shows together when they can. And of course, they do missions together. This usually involves a lot of Leila talking over earpieces and Jay being like, Leila. We are currently incognito, I cannot talk to you right now

Tagging @laughingphoenixleader @jessicas-pi @flickeringflame216 @mrgartist @singswan-springswan @kanerallels @o-lei-o-lai-o-lord @misscrazyfangirl321 @christian-latte-anon @ceterisparibus116

#tag game #my ocs #jay dodge #leila chan #not gonna lie i am ENJOYING these

[soullikethesea]

I dreamt about the First T last night, L. I can't remember the story-line, but it felt real. It felt like how I felt back then - in complete awe of her. She felt like a shining light. She opened the door to a whole new world, in which there were (relatively) competent adults who actually cared. Just like the narrative I had about Bf, it felt like she saved me. She taught me about different emotions people can have. She was strong and funny and thoughtful at the same time.

Sometimes she wasn't, of course. But that's not how I saw her. I really idolized her and fantasized about what her life must be like. Sometimes she let things slip about her other workplaces. She worked in a facility for juvenile delinquents, as a teacher for budding therapists, and used to work in child protective services. She clearly had tons of experience with boundary-pushing, difficult children and teens. Experience with building unlikely alliances. And I'm still impressed by how she helped me, way before I knew how to help myself. It was by no means perfect, but she did have a sense of what I needed and how to approach me. Even when she was maybe scared about it, because she looked like a deer in headlights relatively often (lol). Ending treatment was a different story. She had no idea on what path she put me - budding discovery of parts and trauma stuff that couldn't be ignored anymore. She made lots of mistakes at times.

And she met Bf once. I really wonder what she thought of him. He told me later that he'd wanted to fuck her, that she was good. Such a bizarre thing to say, let alone to a 16 year old. I didn't even notice the weirdness.

Bf got diagnosed with narcissistic personality disorder when we were in a relationship. He received schema therapy and talked a lot about his past, how it was caused, the different sides to him.

Last night I watched a documentary about forensic mental health care and it was like both of these elements came together. There she was, my L. Reflected in the caring and thoughtful staff. In the patients I saw Bf everywhere. Smooth talking, good intentions - sometimes horrible actions. The journalist said that he felt like his inner compass didn't seem to work in the facility.

I have this one colleague that we will have to confront about (likely unintentionally) crossing people's boundaries. I wonder if my inner compass also didn't work with him. How did I not see this?

Sometimes I worry if my strategies for dealing with my dad give me a massive blindspot. I can handle "scary" colleagues and build rapport with them. They usually end up respecting me and there is no problem. But other people feel unsafe and guess what, maybe they are. I may be the outlier that didn't feel that and I'm really sorry I didn't see it.

My dad got suspended and eventually fired from his job for crossing people's boundaries. He said some really fucked up things, but I suspect that it mostly was because he behaved like he did at home at the dinner table - going on and on until people break.

He didn't notice that there was a colleague who really was even more malicious. I'm sure it was someone like Bf. Someone charming and oh so dangerous. I do know he was also diagnosed with NPD. I hope it was someone that L would have sniffed out - maybe. I wonder if she realized about Bf or if he also succeeded at charming her. Either way, I failed to see it with Bf and I really hope that one day I will learn to see it, even with my colleagues.

[mbti-notes]

Anon wrote: INFJ here, I am 14 years old so I am unsure of how to deal with someone who's unhealthy Se dom, can you help me out?

I have an 19 years old ESFP brother who's unhealthy, he tends to shift the blame on everyone else in his life, he is selfish with others sometimes, and if not selfish with me. He lies on me and would always say I am selfish or cold if I don't let him take something or share food with him, I can't handle his problems or behaviors anymore as he keeps making many mistakes and problems in one day, no 24 is passed without 1-4 mistakes in the same day.

He is easily angered and very sensitive, he raises his voice at anyone in the house even if we argue in a normal voice , even tell us we are raising our voice on him. My sister tried to warn him once about something he bought, told him it's gonna affect his health and he started yelling at her and telling her she always wants to point out if he is doing something wrong , when she is very worried for his health. He doesn't think about the consequences of his actions at all , always does what he wants and thinks that things may come to him on a golden plate, I can't handle his actions anymore and I am trying to find a way to deal with him, I know I can't fix someone if they don't collaborate but I want to know how to fix some behaviors and how to deal with it. I want to put him in his place but he is very aggressive and blunt.

He can be sometimes kind but that doesn't mean he will be fully kind or helpful and I can't handle the arguments he makes between everyone in the family and him.

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

Unfortunately, the best way to deal with a toxic person is to distance from them, if not physically, then at least emotionally. Yes, everyone is a mixture of good and bad qualities, and everyone's got some problems dragging them down. However, some people's bad qualities/behaviors are so bad that they mostly just spread negativity, upset, pain, and harm to others. When that's the case, the most urgent thing for you to do is take care of your well-being by removing yourself from their destructiveness in any way possible.

Generally speaking, when faced with a genuine threat to your well-being in relationships, you don't have many options, so weigh the pros/cons based on your capabilities and preferences, for example:

- Option "Fight": You say you want to put him in his place, which is an invitation to fight. If you're gonna fight someone, you'd better be confident of winning. This means you need energy, STAMINA, strength, power, and the ability to continually dominate both physically and psychologically. If you don't have these capabilities or your capabilities do not surpass his, then you won't win the fight. If you can't win, you'll get very hurt, and the relationship problem gets worse. If you can win, there will be a wall between you, but he'll likely leave you alone and go after someone weaker.

If you're not a dominating sort of person, a more intelligent way to fight is to appeal to an impartial authority/power greater than the both of you who can help mediate the conflicts and restore peace as necessary. The natural choice would be the elders of your family like parents, aunts, uncles, or grandparents. This is more of a short-term strategy because elders won't be around forever and you'll eventually have to learn how to handle him yourself. However, if he's so out-of-control that even the elders can't make a difference, then you're out of luck on this front.

Big Picture Result: Fighting isn't likely to change him, his thinking, or his behavior. At best, it just pushes him to hide it better. But what does it do to you? It brings you down to his level, doesn't it? Can you live with yourself being like that? Can you feel good about life when you're constantly in fight mode?

- Option "Fawn": In the context of relationships, fawning is like saying, "if you can't beat'em, join'em". Instead of treating him like an enemy and worsening the conflict, you give in, cave, take it, swallow it, etc. Why do people fawn? The hope is that, if you are nice and always accede to his needs and demands, he will like you, so you will not be the main target of his blame and anger. Unfortunately, the reality is, the more you try to appease a bully, the less they respect you, and the more they feel it's okay to abuse you. Even if he decides to spare you because you worked so hard to save your own butt, it won't be pleasant to watch him target other family members.

Big Picture Result: Fawning basically rewards the bully for their bullying behavior, so there is absolutely no incentive for them to change. If anything, the negative behavior will get worse over time.

- Option "Freeze": In the context of relationships, freeze usually means resignation to the status quo. You try to blend into the background and hope for the best or pray for a miracle. This is not really a strategy but rather what happens when you have no strategy. It's the strategy of the truly powerless.

Big Picture Result: Freezing usually means the cycle of violence just continues indefinitely until someone finally decides to do something different.

- Option "Flight": In relationships you can't easily get out of, flight often means drawing and enforcing boundaries that strictly limit or end contact with the toxic person (see previous posts on the topic). Toxic people are game-players in the sense that they constantly want to draw you into their machinations. Their ego drama makes them seek out "enemies" to fight so that they can feel like the "hero". One way they do this is to keep baiting you until you react the way they want, so that they can prove some stupid point they imagine needs to be made. When you take the bait, you become the supporting character in their play with no real existence of your own, i.e., they control you.

The advantage of boundaries is you no longer play his game, because you are actively setting the rules for how to conduct the relationship in a way that honors everyone's well-being. Boundaries aren't about trying to blame, change, and control others in retaliation. Boundaries are there to protect you from harm by removing you from the relationship equation as necessary. Boundaries help you avoid taking the bait and getting entangled, but only if you are able to abide by the rules you set and carry out the consequences to anyone who breaks your rules.

Yes, being estranged from someone you love is hard and it hurts, but does it hurt more or less than being their victim? Only you can answer that. Keep in mind, when you set strict rules and boundaries or cut someone out of your life, it doesn't have to be forever. You can make it clear that you love him and you'll allow him back into your life on the condition that he changes the negative behavior. Sometimes, the best way to battle a childish person is to be the "adult" and walk away. It's hard to do this in a sibling relationship when you're the much younger sibling, but it's possible. You can look at it as an opportunity to build strength of character. There are lots of bullies in this world, so it's good for you to learn how to stand up for yourself sooner rather than later.

Big Picture Result: Limiting contact may or may not change his behavior depending on how badly he wants to resume the relationship with you. If he chooses not to change, you'll lose the relationship for good. If he decides to change, you can meet him halfway. In any case, you've put a cap on the amount of pain and damage he can inflict.

.

I hope this has given you some ideas about how to approach the situation. It should also help you have a better understanding of the various relationship dynamics he might have with the other people in your family. It's very unfortunate that you have to deal with a toxic family member. Family should be a place of safety, support, and love. You're not alone, though, since many people are forced to grow up in a dysfunctional family. The most important thing is you learn how to make things safe for yourself when others can't/won't.

If the situation with him ever deteriorates to the point where you really feel as though you can't bear it anymore, reach out for help. It's hard to make good decisions when you're in the middle of a very stressful situation. It might be a good idea to have someone in mind you can escape to, someone who can provide a safe space for you to calm down, talk things out, and think things through at your own pace. This person can be any adult you trust such as: aunts, uncles, grandparents, neighbors, your friend's parents, teachers, mentors, spiritual counselors, mental health professionals, etc. If you don't have anyone right now, then maybe get to know more of the adults in your orbit and cultivate a trusting relationship with at least one of them. Or, if you think it's enough to go some place quiet to catch your breath now and then, maybe try a friend's house, a local cafe or mall, or a public library or park, etc.

#infj #infj relationships #boundaries #abuse #ask

[arthropod-concoctions]

Uprooted: chapter 12

(ch 1 - ch 11 - ch 13)

“I really hate these tunnels,” an unexpected voice behind Scott whispered. The group of equal parts Reds and non-Reds had been walking through the darkness for hours, and an error in navigation a while back had caused their initial formation to get mixed up, apparently causing prince Cleo to end up right behind Scott and Jimmy.

“They're your tunnels, aren't they?” he replied, looking backwards. It was too dark to see Cleo's eyes, but he knew they were yellow. He'd seen her in strategy meetings a few times, and although her skin was pale and flaky like Jimmy's, he knew she wasn't Red. The other prince was.

“Yes, but that doesn't mean I have to like them.” the prince responded, and sighed. “Anyway. You're married to a red-lived, aren't you?”

“That's right.”

“My condolences. I've only had to deal with Bdubs being Red for a couple days, and it's already gotten really bothersome.” Apparently, prince Bdubs had gotten fatally injured while the two had made their escape from their castle, the very castle they were now re-infiltrating.

“Jimmy's not bad, honestly,” Scott whispered. “He hasn't really changed at all, in personality at least.”

“Really? That's interesting,” Cleo said. “I have started to think, maybe we've been a little bit hard on Reds in the past. I mean, Bdubs did tell me that all he thinks about is murder now, but it's not as if he can't be reasoned with anymore. And if your Jimmy is just normal...”

“I don't know. I've definitely met some people in the Desert that I would not want to live in a town with.”

“Oh, I don't doubt that for a second,” Cleo said. They were quiet for a while, but then they spoke up again, quietly: “I suppose you and your husband would be allowed, then.”

“Sorry?”

“Well, I've already had to argue with the leader of your little band that the Reds here will not be allowed back in Troren no matter what happens, but... I can make an exception for the civilised people, especially if a Green or Yellow can vouch for them.”

“So that means...”

“If you two survive this operation, and you need someplace new to live, you're welcome to move to Troren. Special permission from the Prince. Seems fair, seeing as you'll be a hero of war after this whole operation.”

“Oh. Well, thank you,” Scott replied.

They walked on in silence, while Scott thought about the offer. Would they want to move to a new land if the reign of Sanguacanis was gone? He was getting tired of rebuilding his home over and over, but maybe the bad memories of their old home would outweigh the good memories by now. And their cows had already been released, so at this point, maybe there wasn't even anything left worth going back to.

He'd have to discuss it with Jimmy anyways. After this operation was over.

Much more walking later, eventually Scott bumped into Jimmy, who'd been walking before him. Their little procession had stopped.

“Looks like we've made it,” Cleo said. “I'd better go find Bdubs. Look alive, people.”

Scott grabbed Jimmy's hand, who took it quickly. He'd been quiet for the entire trip, but had now started humming nervously. Scott squeezed his hand, but let it go when they emerged from a hatch into a long empty hallway. Holding hands wasn't very soldier-like, after all.

And soldiers is what they would have to become, now that they'd entered the castle. Scott fastened the buckles of the stuffy green armor he'd been given, and looked around at everyone else doing the same. He could hear a lot of commotion some distance away; seemed like the rest of the Desert had already initiated their prong of the attack.

Grian found Scar and all but dragged him toward the end of the hallway. Then he turned to the rest of the group and said: “Now, remember the plan; just walk around like you know what you're doing, and if you see the king, shoot him. Good luck, everyone.” With that, he and Scar marched out of view, and other pairs began to follow.

Scott gave Jimmy one more quick hug, and then the two of them turned the corner. Immediately, they were in the midst of chaos. Voices were yelling from all directions; Scott thought he even heard Joel's voice yelling something outside. All around them, pairs of soldiers were walking in the same direction, so they followed the crowd.

Scott slowed his pace slightly, to let Jimmy pass him. “You have to walk ahead of me,” he said.

“Why?”

“Look. The Red is walking in front of the Green in all these pairs,” he said, gesturing at the other soldiers. Jimmy looked around, and nodded, then took the lead.

Ahead of them, a duo turned a corner into a different hallway. A bit of bright orange hair stuck out of the green helmet; that was Cleo.

“Let's follow them,” Jimmy said. “They probably know where they're going.” And they turned the same corner, entering a hallway with significantly less soldiers and significantly more clutter.

Ahead, Cleo cussed, and slowed pace for a moment. A few seconds later, Scott saw why; on the floor, leaning against the wall, was a portrait of the two princes that had recently been taken down. Although their eyes were green and yellow in the portrait, instead of yellow and red, they were clearly recognizable.

“Well, let's hope nobody's paying attention to the paintings,” Cleo said, and she and Bdubs continued marching. Scott and Jimmy followed.

They continued on like this, twisting through various corridors and going up stairs; they were probably heading towards the throne room. They encountered very little resistance-

Until they saw a man with a green uniform and a high collar walking towards them. Commander Martyn.

Scott almost froze in place, but managed to keep walking. Grian had told him that Martyn held grudges for a long time; would he recognize himself and Jimmy?

“Quit faffing about, the four of you, and head to the battlements! We need more bowmen up there!” he shouted at them. Evidently, he did not recognize them; he walked straight past, not even waiting to see whether they followed his orders. Scott breathed a sigh of relief, and continued to follow Jimmy, who was following Cleo. That was the most danger they'd been in up to now, and they'd gotten out of it safely.

At least, for about thirty seconds. Then they heard Martyn running up behind them, and shouting: “STOP RIGHT THERE!”

This time, Scott did freeze, as did Jimmy before him. Slowly, he turned to look at Martyn. He was accompanied by two more Red Army soldiers, and actually wasn't looking in their direction at all; he was looking down the hallway past them. Right at Bdubs and Cleo.

“You two have some serious guts coming back here,” he called out across the hallway. “But I certainly won't say no to free prisoners!”

Cleo and Bdubs broke into a sprint. Martyn jogged after them, and shouted an order: “Detain those two!”

The red-lived soldier immediately sprinted forwards, but their green-lived partner didn't follow; they stayed behind Martyn. Suddenly, they hit him in the back of the head, and yelled: “BLUE MOON!”

Blue moon? The Red Desert hadn't made any code words, and Scott had never seen this soldier before.

But suddenly, all hell broke loose. Scott could hear the phrase being echoed all across the fortress, immediately followed by sounds of violence. The other Red soldier turned around, and immediately attacked their partner; they apparently had not been initiated into whatever 'blue moon' meant. Commander Martyn had fallen to the floor, but was quickly coming to his senses again.

Scott looked at Jimmy. Jimmy looked back. Then they both sprinted away as fast as possible.

They'd lost track of the princes, so they just ran through the hallways haphazardly now. What had previously been a somewhat peaceful procession of soldiers had rapidly become a bloodbath. Everywhere, Greens and Reds were fighting each other. At one point Scott saw someone cutting the limbs off a corpse clad in green, trying to prevent it from waking up. He felt nausea coming up in his throat, and kept running.

Eventually they came across Grian and Scar trying to pass a pile of corpses. “Hey fellas!” Grian called out to them when he looked up.

“There's no need to run at this point, really. None of the soldiers know who they're supposed to fight anymore,” he said. “I don't know what that 'blue moon' thing was all about, but it's definitely worked in our favor.”

Scott and Jimmy paused. Scott tried to catch his breath, which was difficult to do with the smell of viscera permeating the area. He looked at Jimmy, who looked about as nauseous as he felt. On the contrary, the smile on Scar's face was more genuine than Scott had ever seen it as he looked around at the mess. Grian still had the same blank expression as always.

“Scott, you ready to get going again?” Jimmy asked after catching his breath, and Scott nodded. Jimmy turned to Grian, who shook his head and waved his hand.

“It's better to split up. Increases the chance of finding the king.”

Scott didn't agree with that assessment, but he wasn't about to argue with Grian; he was a bit worried about what might come out of his mouth if he opened it. So instead, he and Jimmy continued on their way.

They passed a single red-lived soldier, who knocked on their chestplate with their fist as they passed; a salute of some sort. Scott and Jimmy somewhat clumsily returned the gesture, but it was apparently enough for the soldier, who continued on their way. A little ahead, Scott could hear a voice talking loudly.

“...all this bloodshed! I can't believe there has been such a betrayal within our ranks... and WHERE IS MARTYN?!”

Suddenly, Scott and Jimmy were faced with two pairs of soldiers, marching perfectly in sync, and between them a man with a long cape coloured red, white and black, wearing a golden crown with red details on his head.

King Ren of Sanguacanis.

“Soldiers! Have you seen the Hand of the King today? Tell me so, if you have any loyalty left!”

It was as if time slowed down for Scott. If you see the king, shoot him. Grian had made it sound so easy; and theoretically it would be. He'd hit quicker shots from further away while practicing. But now he couldn't even manage to open his mouth to answer the king's question.

The king's eyes narrowed. “You're traitors as well, aren't you?” Next to him, a soldier with a mask over his mouth raised his bow.

Scott began to match his movement. His throat was dry. You'll be a hero of war after this whole operation, Cleo had said. If even participating in the assault made him a hero, just imagine the glory he'd receive from being the one to fire the killing shot...

But he didn't want to be a hero. He just wanted to go home.

In the corner of his eye, Scott saw Jimmy turn around and run. He followed his example.

Please go towards Scar and Grian, he thought as arrows began to fly around him.

And please leave Jimmy be, he thought as he felt something pierce his back. Then his vision faded.

#arthropod writes #3rd life fic #3rd life smp #trafficblr #scott smajor #jimmy solidarity #zombiecleo #flower husbands #home is being uprooted

[w0lp3rtinger]

Like You Imagined (When You Were Young)

SHADAMY WEEK 2022 IS HERE! The second prompt was Folktales/Fairytales. So far as I can tell, the oldest written version of Beauty and the Beast is a story called Hans the Hedgehog. I combined aspects of it with various different bits of later iterations more closely aligned with the Beauty and the Beast story we know today, as well as some little personal flairs of things I wish I had found more of in stories I read as a child. If you don't want to read this on Tumblr, you can find it on my Deviantart. I'd link it, but then, it wouldn't show up in search so uh... you can get to my Deviant account by following the link in my pinned post. Sorry XD

Once again, I am challenging myself to try and do these prompts within the day. I overthink and over-edit a LOT and it really hampers my ability to just… have fun and make art. So yeah, that’s my little personal challenge for this week💜I did ask @lambpaca to look this over for generic grammar and spelling mistakes, so to them, I give thanks. (I also listened to a LOT of 'When You Were Young' by the Killers, hence the title XD I find it to be a VERY good song for Amy and her love life. Furthermore, if you can't tell, I really love bi/pan Amy, so that is absolutely in this. I wanted to sort of build up and express, as best as possible, what she has been (in my opinion) looking for in a romantic companion. So...yeah XD)

-----

Hans the Hedgehog would always be Amy’s favorite story.

It was an easy plot to follow, one with a steadfast hero and a king for a villain and a fearless princess: a simple fairy tale she could tell herself when she was little. 

And when times became difficult, she clung to it like a lifeline.

“Once upon a time, a wealthy merchant who lived alone desperately wanted a son,” she had whispered to herself, over and over in her dark cell on Little Planet as tears dried upon her face, “and one day, a fairy granted him his wish.” 

She had sat curled into a little ball, knees up to her chin as she stared into the dark. Amy would take a deep breath, holding it until the urge to cry had passed, and then she would continue.

“From a cut sapling sprung a hedgehog boy, fully formed, able to talk and walk and sing and dance. He had quills darker than the bark of the tree he came from and stood no taller than its stump. The farmer, no hedgehog himself but still thrilled at the prospect of a child, took in the boy and named him Hans.”  

After Sonic had saved her, the first time of many, Amy would imagine Hans to look like him. When she started to tell the story to Cream, it would be here that she would pause, sighing as she petted Cream’s hair, imagining a little hedgehog boy with wild eyes and crooked smile running circles around the old merchant. 

“Hans would grow older and wiser through the years, though never taller. He loved to spend his time alone in the woods looking after his plants and animals. There, after all his chores were done, it would be easy to find him running through the trees with his woodland friends, or sitting atop a stump, wreathed in the green of the wilderness.” 

Sonic’s eyes were beautiful, but something about the way Tekno looked up at her through her bangs would make Amy’s heart jump into her throat. There was something perpetually calculating and mischievous in her gaze. They subtly changed the way Hans appeared in Amy’s daydreams as she sat watching guard over a dying fire while the others slept, mumbling to herself to stay awake. 

“Then, one day, a king stumbled into the woods. He was lost and afraid, though loath to admit it, and when he saw Hans in his little clearing tending to his garden, he demanded the hedgehog stop what he was doing and help him get home. However, Hans was a clever hedgehog, and he decided to make a deal.” 

Amy loved to watch Blaze work. There was something in the way she held herself, something in the way she wove diplomatic strategy out of thin air with just a word and a gesture, that was mesmerizing. Cream would giggle, giving her a knowing look, and Amy would feel her face grow hot as she turned away. Still, she would find herself staring at the ceiling of the guest room in Vanilla’s house, tracing patterns in the stucco that curved like Blaze’s hands. 

“Hans made the king put into writing that he would hand over him whatever greeted them in the king’s kingdom upon first entering through the castle gate. Doing this, he thought maybe he could win a bounty that would make his father proud.” 

When she cornered Shadow and begged him to reconsider destroying the planet, a small part of her feared they had already lost. Still, she had to try. When he turned to her in that moment, she didn’t see the fearsome monster everyone said he was. Instead, she found a boy, not much older than she was. She found a boy who was hurt, and angry, and afraid, and doing the best he could to do the right thing. 

When Shadow sacrificed himself, the same part of her that had doubted, the same part of her that she hated, told her it was her fault he had died. She would wake from nightmares where she would see his eyes and weep. 

“The king, thinking Hans stupid, agreed to the promise and shook hands with the hedgehog. Hans then threw a saddle atop his favorite cockerel and rode out of the woods, the king trailing behind. The journey was smooth and swift. Hands knew these woods, after all. Upon reaching the castle gates, the king’s daughter, Rose, ran to greet them. However, the king called out to his guard to defend him, and they rushed the poor hedgehog with weapons drawn.”

Amy remembers staring at the television as the Black Arms invaded, horrified, unable to look away. She remembers the sky opening like a festering blister, the wail of sirens and people as they ran for their lives, the way skyscrapers crumbled as they tumbled down. When the newscaster focused on Shadow emerging from behind an overturned bus, for a moment, she gasped. He was still alive. After everything, after the Ark and even after Metal Overlord, he was still alive. Then a shout had gone out amongst the GUN soldiers, and Amy screamed as they turned their weapons upon him.

“Hans slaughtered every man who charged him. In the end, the only ones who survived were the soldiers who fled the fight and the king, sitting in bloody ruins. The king begged for mercy, offering him riches, offering him anything, so long as Hans didn’t kill him. Hans, horrified at what he had done in order to survive, fled, leaving the king where he sat. That was a mistake. By the time he had arrived back home to his father’s house within the woods, he found his father, his only family, killed by the king as retribution. Hans wept, and vowed never to leave the woods again.” 

It would be a while before anyone saw Shadow again. He had joined GUN after the invasion was thwarted. Maybe it was to atone for his crimes, maybe it was some sort of deal to keep him from being frozen again. Whatever the case was, Amy had been furious. How dare they keep him like a dumb animal on a leash. He wasn’t a threat- he was their friend. Rouge had tried to tell her that sometimes, things don't end up the way you thought they would, but that Shadow was going to be alright. Amy hadn’t believed her. The next time she saw him, Amy knew she had been right. There was a hollowness to Shadow’s voice that hadn’t been there before. He didn’t look anyone in the eye anymore either. Still, one time, when she caught his gaze, she filled with hope at the sight of the fire still in his eyes. Despite everything, he was still himself, Shadow.  

“Upon learning of the promise the king had broken, the princess was horrified. In a rage, Rose fled the castle. No servant, no guard, no wizard could catch her as she ran as fast as her legs would carry her. The princess screeched in fury from the highest hill that she would not return until she had righted the wrongs of her father. With that, she vanished into the woods.” 

Amy did nothing gently. It wasn’t in her nature. She loved with all the might of a swinging hammer and peppered kindness with the same precision as a boxer’s jab. As such, she made sure to become a nuisance to GUN whenever Team Dark needed an extra hand. Amy never exactly stated why she was doing this. When asked, she would just shrug and say she enjoyed their company and considered them good allies. However, on more than one occasion when she met Shadow’s eyes and caught the fire within them, she would remember the ARK and wonder if he did too. 

“After days of running through the woods, Rose found herself exhausted. She blindly stumbled through the woods and found a clearing in which sat a house. With it’s shutters drawn and it’s door firmly shut, she assumed nobody was home. All around it lay an overgrown garden in which she found fruits and vegetables and more flowers than she had ever known existed. Wandering through the little dirt pathways, she found herself drawn to a beautiful rose bush tucked into a mass of raspberries and lilies and lavender. Rose reached out and plucked a bloom from the bush. As she did so however, she heard a battle cry from the house and turned to find Hans charging straight for her.” 

“What did he do?” 

Amy blinked, then huffed, crossing her arms as she turned away from Shadow. “Don’t you know it’s rude to interrupt?” 

“Sorry,” he mumbled, but she could hear the smile in his voice even as he bent back down to tend to his own rose bush, “Go on.” 

Amy chewed her lip. Looking around, she swore she could feel someone’s eyes on her. Probably Rouge, if she had to take a bet. The agent had begun to use her talents to spy on the two of them anytime they hung out, though Amy was at a loss as to why. She let her arms fall to her sides with a grumble. “You threw me off my rhythm. I don’t know if I can get back into the moment.”  

Shadow paused at that, looking up with a furrowed brow. “Oh…”

He seemed to stall in the quiet. Amy could see his jaw working under his cheeks as if he was chewing over what he was going to say next. Suddenly, she felt very silly about just standing there next to him, rambling on about a kids fairytale. Though she couldn’t stop the blush from creeping up her neck, she did look away, waving her hands as she did so. 

“It’s- it’s no big deal. I can still tell you what happened! I just- I might not do the voices. Or the moves. Or, um-.” 

“That’s fine,” Shadow said, burying his face back into his work, “I don’t mind.” 

“But you still want to hear how it ends?” 

He nodded. Amy played with the fingertips of her gloves for a moment, trying to find a way to get the words to come out of her mouth. Funny, she didn’t usually have that problem.

“Well… well Hans didn’t really want to hurt her, he just wanted to scare her off. It almost worked, but then Rose recognized him as the hedgehog that her father had tried to murder. She told him who she was and that she wanted to try and fix the damage that her father had done.” 

Shadow nodded, but then, of course he would. He usually agreed with that sort of logic. Amy couldn’t help but crack a smile. 

“Hans is nervous at first. He doesn’t think he can trust her. Still, he takes her in, lets her get washed up and he feeds her, and they talk. They find they get along well- like, really well- and by the next day, they’ve made a pact. They’re going to take down her father. Then, Rose can have the throne and give Hans a real reward and everyone wins since her evil old dad isn’t in charge anymore.” 

“That’s all it takes for him to trust her?” 

“She is very kind and awesome and-and- why wouldn’t he want to fall in love with her?”

Shadow looked up again, incredulous, “He falls in love with her? In a night?” 

“It’s a kid’s story, okay?” Amy threw her hands into the air, “And I’m leaving out some of the finer details!” 

“But-”

Amy snatched the rose trimmers out of Shadows hands, holding them aloft, “No! You asked me about traditional fairy tales and here I am telling you my favorite one out of all of them and you’re just- you’re just being rude!”  

She can see Shadow’s shoulders shake as he tries to hold back a laugh. He let himself sit back on the grass with a sigh and gestured for Amy to continue. That only made her more irate. 

“No! You don’t get to sit there and just-” she mimicked him, making a silly face as she did so, “- after interrupting me twice! Not once, twice! The mood has been lost! Storytime is over!” 

Shadow did chuckle at that. Getting to his feet, he brushed off his knees. “Fine, let me guess then. They work together, storm the castle, dethrone her father, get married, and live happily every after. Did I get it right?”  

“You-! Ugh!” Amy shoved the clippers towards Shadow and tried to ignore how it felt when his hand wrapped around hers for the moment it took him to take them back. “Honestly, why do I even bother?” 

She watched as Shadow fought a smile.One hand drifted through brilliant blooms until fingers gently closed around one half flowering bud, it’s soft petals still in the act of opening to greet the world. He clipped it free with the trimmers and handed it to her. Amy froze, looking between it and him until he met her gaze out of the corner of his eye. Deep within them, the fire burned bright.

“I don’t know why,” Shadow said, voice soft, “but I appreciate it all the same.” 

Thunderstruck, Amy took the rose without a word. 

They didn’t speak the rest of the time in the garden. They didn’t need to. 

#shadamy #amy rose #shadow the hedgehog #shadamy week 2022 #folktale #library #aaaand just because they make an appearance I'm gonna tag them #blazeamy #sonamy #tekamy

[damienthepious]

i still hate this fucking editor. Also short chapters will be the vibe for this fic i think, until the exact moment that's not true anymore. whateverrrrr.

raised by wolves

[ch 1] [ao3]

Fandom: The Penumbra Podcast

Relationships: Lord Arum/Sir Damien/Rilla

Characters: Rilla, Sir Damien, Lord Arum, The Keep

Additional Tags: Second Citadel, Lizard Kissin' Tuesday, Established Relationship, Alternate Universe - Werewolf, Werewolf!Rilla specifically, Secrets, (look i think rilla deserves to have some angsst explored for once), (uhhhh god there have GOT to be more tags uhh. i don't know i'll add more later), (In later chapters there will be), Implied/Referenced Harm to Children, Implied/Referenced Violence, Mild Injury

Summary: Rilla is keeping secrets.

Chapter Summary: Half-truths and avoidance are the order of the day.

~

Rilla doesn't actually remember a time before the wolf.

Her parents told her that it - contracting the condition - happened when she was very young. She doesn't remember that, either, not really. She maybe-sorta remembers... something about fireflies, being afraid, pain, but that could just as easily be a fabricated memory from the stories that her fathers told her afterward. No guarantee it actually happened that way. Not that it matters. The scar on her wrist and the condition itself are enough.

It's just... something that is. Something she has to deal with.

Something she has to deal with alone.

Which is becoming, annoyingly, more difficult.

~

"-decided that I might accompany you," Rilla tunes in enough to hear, and she almost hurts her neck turning towards the monster as he aggressively prunes back a creeping thorny plant, a monster variant of purple barberry (that, according to Arum, enjoys the "enrichment" of pruning). "Gather some samples of my own, for the greenhouse."

"I can just get them for you," Rilla says, too sharp and too quick, and Arum looks up from his shears. The plant flicks a vine, catching one of Arum's gloves and his attention again. "You don't have to bother."

"It isn't a bother to-" Arum hesitates, wrinkling his snout as he lunges forward, clipping off a substantial barbed arm that had been trying to sweep around to prick him from the side. "It isn't a bother to- to spend- time with you," he finishes, his pauses not really aligning with his motions. She imagines that the words might have been hard to get out for some other reason. "I- when you're gone, it... I..."

"It's just a couple days," Rilla shrugs, trying to decide if leaving the greenhouse entirely might be a viable strategy for ending this line of thinking. Teasing first, she decides. That usually throws the monster off. "Careful, or you're going to start to sound like Damien."

Arum frowns. "Damien misses you."

Well there isn't much of anything Rilla can do about that, is there? She shrugs. "It's only three days. I know he doesn't like it, but- I mean frankly, considering the trips he used to take for his missions, he really can't complain about three days."

The only bad part about Damien taking a sabbatical from knighthood while he figures some stuff out about himself. He barely travels, now, and he's smart, and she has a gnawing worry at the pit of her stomach that it's only a matter of time before he or Arum or the both of them notice that there's a-

"It's an interesting schedule," Arum says, still frowning, flicking his wrist to parry a sullen little lash from the plant with his shears. "Three days every month, yes?"

Pattern. Rilla swallows. "Yeah," she says with another shrug. Was that weird? Two shrugs that close together? "I figured- I do know it bothers Damien when I'm gone, so limiting myself to three days out of a month for my herb collection seemed like a good compromise."

"Hm," Arum says, and then he makes one more maneuver with his hands, clipping a fair chunk from the plant. He makes a noise at the back of his throat, then, his lip curling in obvious satisfaction, and he nods as he steps backward, apparently finished with the chore. The vine reaches after him for a moment, but its motions are more worn out, and it settles pretty quickly. Arum sets his shears on a nearby log, rolls his shoulders, and then tips his head to give Rilla a look. It's- hesitant, maybe? "It... could go faster than three days," he suggests.

Rilla scowls. "I'm not going to rush my methods just-"

"With help," he finishes, and Rilla stops short. "If I helped you. It would go faster. You could come ho-" he inhales oddly, his voice catching on a lingering rattle, and then he tries again. "Come back. Quicker. If I came and helped you."

Rilla stares at him for a moment, watching the way he fidgets as she tries to think-

If she wasn't lying, if these trips had nothing to do with the wolf-

What would she say, right now?

(She can't use her experimental medicine again. She's working on a different batch, but after last time- apparently something in the formulation reduced the sedative effect, and she has uncertain memories of throwing her body against the chains, against the walls, trying to escape, trying to get- somewhere. She can't quite pull reasoning from the memories, but the wolf had been frantic enough that she'd woken up absolutely covered in bruises. Even healing as fast as she does, she was forced to avoid letting Damien or Arum see her without long sleeves for an extra day after she came back.)

(Rilla doesn't need help. Rilla hasn't had help since she was practically an infant. Why should she get help now?)

"That's... sweet of you to offer," she says, her tone coming out odd and flat, though she does feel herself soften when Arum scowls at the accusation of sweetness.

"I am sensing an incoming rejection, regardless," he grumbles, crossing his arms.

"Not-" she sighs. "Not like that. It's just- I'm more used to being alone than Damien is. I need- I need that time?" It comes out sounding like a question. Come on. "I need to spend some time alone once in a while or- or I'm not very pleasant to be around."

Wow. That's one way to tell the truth and a lie in one sentence. She's almost impressed with herself.

Arum's face does something strange, almost wincing, and he looks aside. "I don't... I've never been alone, not truly," he murmurs. "But-"

But the Keep doesn't count the same way, because it's sort of Arum's mom and sort of the second half of Arum's mind, and when Rilla met them they had collectively been the loneliest thing in the whole of the Universe, as far as Rilla knew. Her stomach churns unhelpfully, her ribcage feeling oddly tight.

She takes a few steps closer, reaching to touch Arum's jaw. "I don't want to leave either of you alone," she says, quiet. "I can't tell you how much of a relief it is, knowing that you'll take care of each other while I'm gone."

Arum's mouth twitches, a pained almost-smile. "I am not... as practiced, in caring for our poet. Not as skilled as you are."

Rilla thinks, not for the first time, that her partners are too sweet for her. Too sweet for her to deserve. She shoves the feeling behind herself, letting it loom without looking at it, and instead she leans forward and tickles a kiss onto the tip of Arum's nose.

"Oh, hush," she says as he wrinkles his snout and glares sullenly at her. "You're here for him, you take care of him. You're perfect."

Arum scowls more deeply, clearly embarrassed, but he doesn't argue as she peels the gloves from his hands and starts pulling him towards the kitchen to start on dinner.

That should be the end of that, she thinks.

(She can almost feel the wolf's fur shiver, as if reacting to a change in the wind.)

(She ignores it.)

#elle's fanfic #second citadel #rad bouquet #lizard kissin' tuesday #amaryllis of exile #lord arum #raised by wolves #AUGHH. hrg. arugh.