#colouring by daily-hundred

[jemmalynette]

Maybe all the things you thought made you you aren’t really…you. Barbie (2023) / Fight Club (1999)

#legit the first thing i thought of when i heard this speech #barbie #fight club #margot robbie #brad pitt #crossover #gifset #parallels #my gifs #my edits #colouring by daily-hundred #barbie 2023

[palioom]

santa claus is comin' (to town)

summary: the children of Jackson aren't the only ones excited about Santa visiting.

pairing: joel miller x f!reader

word count: 2.5k

warnings: 18+ content; no use of y/n; established relationship; santa kink; unprotected p in v; creampie, lap sex

a/n: banners by @/saradika-graphics

follow @palioomfics & turn on notifs for future updates

Christmas in Jackson was a cheerful time. Allowing its residents some rest and peace in between the daily reminders of survival in a world overgrown by fungus.

There was a tree – a beautiful, tall fir – which they had felled in the surrounding woods and placed in the small town square, lit up with bright, colourful lights and hundreds of handmade decorations from the residents. Mostly made by children, as they learned to work with wood, just small figures like hearts and stars.

The houses and shops were decorated with just as much colour, lighting up everything around them.

And, Jackson even had its very own Santa.

Clad in all red, slightly yellowed fur trims on the sleeves of the shirt, the brim of the hat and on the hems of the pants. A nice, gray beard, and even a hint of Santa’s iconic, large belly.

Joel hadn’t really wanted to do it at first, eyeing the costume they had found on one of their runs with slight concern before he eventually relented. But only after Tommy had nagged at him a bit and Joel’s girl had sweet talked him into it.

The kids went wild for him, screaming and laughing when he walked down the streets, waving at them and laughing back. That really was when he had started to like it, seeing their eyes shine, prodding at the heavy sack slung over his shoulder – as well as his tummy.

To be honest, he had missed this a little, and it reminded him of how much Sarah loved to go down to the mall to tell Santa her Christmas wishes. Back when she was younger. He could still see her perched on Santa’s knee, the widest smile on her face as someone took their photo.

Now, it was him who had the kids whispering their wishes into his ear, just to squeal in delight when he pulled the requested toy or book from the brown sack next to him. A genuine smile on his face when one kid hopped off so the next could hop on.

It made her happy, too. Seeing the old man happy and laughing like this after he had grumbled about not really wanting to do it. 

And to be honest, he looked good like this. It had been a fight to keep her hands off of him when he first tried on the costume. The longer beard he had grown out just for this suited him well, too, her mind wandering to how it would feel on the inside of her thighs. 

And that belly.

She had teased him about it, asked if he had grown it just for this as well, something he answered with a grumpy look, the corners of his mouth lifting just slightly.

But she loved it, loved him a little bigger and so soft and warm.

All in all, Joel was just unbelievably hot. Even when dressed as Santa.

Especially when dressed as Santa.

So when she had to leave the event early to get dinner going while he stayed behind, she really couldn’t stop thinking about him. About him and that stupid but hot costume, wanting to sit on his lap and having him give her a very special gift as well.

One that only he could give her.

So when he finally came home over an hour later, she quickly made her way out of the kitchen and to the front door, catching him as he wanted to take off his hat. 

“Leave it on.” She mumbled against his lips as her arms wrapped around his neck. His beard scratched against her skin and she could feel his arms encircle her waist. “There’s someone else who wants to sit on Santa’s lap.”

The low hum he let out quickly turned into a groan, his broad hands squeezing at her sides and hungrily kissing her back. He still found her love for this costume ridiculous, but Joel couldn’t deny that this whole thing was really hot.

“Wanna lay over Santa’s knee instead?” Joel asked, pushing her back into the living room, towards his favourite armchair.

She laughed, shaking her head when she parted from him for a moment.

“Mhmmm, no. I want to tell Santa my wish, too.”

His eyebrows shot up, a wide grin on his face that made the corners of his eyes crinkle. Now that certainly was something.

Sitting down on the chair, he pulled her down onto his leg by her waist, spreading his legs wide. His cock was already pressing uncomfortably against the fabric of these stupid pants, excited about what she wanted to do.

Right back in his role, his gloved hands dipping beneath the hem of her turtleneck and grabbing her waist. All while she looked at him as innocently as she could, biting her bottom lip.

“Now, tell Santa,” Joel said, his voice dropping a few octaves, “have you been a good girl this year?”

She giggled, nodding her head. Oh, this was already better than what she could have imagined.

“Of course, Santa.” Her voice was sugary sweet when she replied. “I’m always a good girl.”

Joel chuckled, his grip tightening on her waist. His head flooded with images of her being anything but a good girl.

How dare she lie to Santa himself?

“Well, somebody told me that that’s a lie, angel.” He replied, his hands skirting higher over her sides, feeling the warmth of her through the gloves. “You’ve been a naughty girl, and naughty girls don’t get presents from Santa.”

Blood was already rushing in her ears, her eyes dropping down to the tent in his pants. She rubbed her thighs together, needing any kind of friction on her throbbing clit. 

One of Joel’s large hands came out from beneath her top and smoothed over her thigh instead, dipping towards the inside before getting dangerously close to where she needed him the most. Hearing her breath hitch at the touch.

“But Santa, please.” She whined, putting on her best puppy eyes in an attempt to sway and convince him that she indee did deserve a present.

“Naughty girls get a very special something from Santa instead.” He whispered, his fingers finally pressing against her clothed pussy, making her moan. “‘Specially ones as naughty as you have been.”

Just rubbing back and forth, unable to feel if he found her clit through the thick gloves, but he was quite sure that he did with how she reacted to it. 

“Do you want to know what that is?” He asked, growing impatient with how she whined and ground back into his fingers.

She nodded, biting her bottom lip. She desperately needed to know and she hoped they both were on the same page here.

“Yes, Santa. Please.” 

A small growl escaped Joel when he made her stand up, with her back to him, then hooked his fingers into the waistband of the sweatpants she wore before pulling them down. Exposing her ass clad in a lacy thong to him.

When he pulled her back into his lap, his dick ground against her ass, her legs spreading over his own. Joel held her by the hips, his own rutting up into her and making him moan, too.

There was no way he could handle this for long, lifting his hips to shimmy down his pants so his cock was free, hard and rubbing through the wetness that seeped through her underwear. Sliding it back and forth, hearing her soft moans whenever he nudged against her clit through the lace.

“You like what Santa got you?”

She hummed with a frenzied nod, her body so hot compared to the icy coldness outside. Her eyes were glued to his cock, watching the head become shinier with every rock of his hips - fat and angry and just waiting to be swallowed up by her greedy pussy.

“I love it, Santa, oh-” Biting her lip, she watched Joel take off his dark gloves, revealing his tanned, broad hands, the veins on the backs of them protruding. They moved to her panties, his fingers hooking into the lace and pulling them to the side.

Allowing his cock to slide against her bare pussy without any barriers.

This was an even better image, the head vanishing and coming back into view, nudging against her clit and making her squirm in his lap.

“All special, only for the naughtiest girls.” Joel chuckled, his breath hitching in his throat. She felt so nice and wet and he wasn’t even inside of that dripping pussy yet. He could come just like this, sliding through her folds, the image of it so lewd. 

But the way she stared at it was almost lewder – wide, dark eyes, looking like she was about to jump off his lap and drop to her knees instead. He swore he could see a trickle of drool on one corner of those pretty lips, glistening in the light.

She couldn’t wait to have it inside of her, to feel the thick length of him spread her pussy open. As much as she liked the view of him like this, she reached for his cock with one hand, raising her hips as much as she could. Prodding against her entrance but not pushing in, she just felt the thick head resting there.

Joel’s chuckle vibrated against her back before she could hear it fall from his mouth, almost sounding like Santa himself – causing a new gush of wetness to release on him.

Fucking Santa on his lap hadn’t been something she thought to turn her on.

“You really are a naughty girl.” He said, close to her ear and shifting his hips. Just lightly feeding her the swollen tip, relishing in the sweet mewls she let out. “Looks like Santa has to punish you, hm?”

She barely listened, so focused on the feeling of him splitting her open as she slowly sank down on his hard cock. Feeling inch by inch enter her, until she was back in his lap again, one of his broad hands holding her hip while the other went to find her nipple beneath her shirt.

“So big, so big, fuck-” Her voice was small, her eyes still focused on where his cock was vanishing inside of her. Feeling impatient as he just kept her there and whining when he pinched her nipple. “Santa, please.”

His hips rocked up into her at the name. It was lewd, naughty, to have her call him Santa. But Joel couldn’t deny that it was fucking hot, too.

“You like Santa’s very special gift for naughty girls?” He asked, thrusting up into her again, his hand on her hip aiding her as she carefully began to move in his lap. Still teasing her nipple, pinching and twisting the little nub in between his thumb and pointer finger.

“Mhmm, yes, I love Santa’s gift.” She moaned, feeling the unbearable need to strip out of her clothes entirely, feeling the heat of his body against hers while her veins were on fire. “‘M gonna be a naughty girl every year, Santa.”

Joel chuckled, the sound strangled by the moan that creeped up his throat when her pussy gripped him tight. Obviously she was enjoying this whole game as much as he did, if not more.

Slowly he rocked up into her faster, watching her face contort in pleasure. But she never took her eyes off of his cock, watching her juices run down the length, frothing with each thrust.

“You already are the naughtiest.” Joel rasped, feeling his balls twitch as her pussy contracted around his cock again. Her moans and mewls became higher in pitch and she seemed to have trouble keeping up the rhythm she had set to match his. “Bouncing on Santa’s lap, creamin’ all over him.”

He accentuated his words with another pinch of her nipple, her back arching deliciously into his touch.

But soon he took away his hand from her breasts to rest on her other hip, helping to lift and slam her down onto his cock over and over as her movements became more erratic.

“Santa has even more gifts for you.” He teased, dancing dangerously close on the edge of his orgasm.

“Yes, yes yes.” She breathed out, whining. The slap of skin on skin echoed through the room, only spurring her on more as she watched him bury himself inside of her aching pussy again and again. “Please, Santa- Give it to me, give it all to me!”

Joel chuckled, his mouth attaching to the skin below her ear and biting down. His hands pushed her down hard just as his hips rocked up – pushing her over the edge she had been dancing on as well. 

“Santa- Fuck!”

She gripped him like a vice, her hands finding his as her orgasm seared through her and Joel fucked her through it, his voice becoming darker.

“Like that, like that-” He mumbled, needing just a few more thrusts with how madly she was still pulsing around him. “Fucking naughty girl, strangling Santa’s cock- Oh, shit-”

Joel kept thrusting up as he spilled himself inside of her greedy pussy, filling her up as she writhed in his grip, her hips still erratic on top of him.

He couldn’t stop his cock from slipping out, a noise of protest leaving her which was quickly replaced with a moan as she watched the last few ropes of cum splash over her mound and the bottom of her shirt, the white in stark contrast to the dark fabric.

The view of his still swollen head gliding through her cum-covered pussy sent shivers through her as she came down from her high, hearing Joel’s heavy pants in her ear.

“Ain’t that better than coals in your stocking, darlin’?” He asked in between breaths, chuckling slightly. Watching the mess in between her legs, he couldn’t stop the small groan that creeped up his throat. “Gonna behave for next year?”

She giggled, finally tearing her gaze away from where his cock still rested in between her pussy lips to look at him instead. 

“Mhm, I don’t know.” She said, a grin spreading on her face. This whole thing was exactly what she’d needed, and she would fight for him to keep that stupid costume. And for him to put it on again. “Is my present gonna be better than this?”

His warm hands smoothed over her thighs, the fingers slipping under the hem of her shirt as he moved up. Her eyes sparkled with mischief and he knew this wouldn’t be the only time this happened. 

“We’ll see.” Joel said before leaning in and kissing her, hearing the soft hum vibrating in her chest. “But before next year… Maybe I have just a little something left in my sack for you.”

A laugh broke out of her, feeling herself clench around nothing as she thought of what else his sack contained for her. 

And she would enjoy every second of it.

#joel miller #joel miller x reader #joel miller smut #joel miller fanfiction #joel miller x you #joel miller fic #tlou fanfiction #the last of us fanfiction #tlou fic #the last of us #tlou #pedro pascal #pedro pascal characters #pedro pascal fanfiction #pedro pascal smut #pedro pascal x reader #pedro pascal fandom #pedrostories #my writing

[inkykeiji]

⋆₊˚⊹♡ alastor + dressing you

character: alastor warnings: 18+ for mature themes (no smut) minors do not interact, fem!reader, pet/master dynamic, toxic relationship (possessiveness; reader is nothing more than a silly little doll for alastor to play dress up with), implied size difference, a hint of blood words: 1.1k

Alastor is a creature of habit, a man of routine. He has his daily rituals, his rigorous schedules, his lists of tasks, all performed to perfection each and every day. 

And Alastor likes to begin his mornings in a very specific way. 

You know the procedure by now inside out, upside down, could recite it backwards, if he so desired you to. 

By the time he wakes you, he’s already laid out your outfit for the day; intimates, dress, socks, accessories, all spread in an immaculate flat lay on his seldom-used bedspread. 

You are always expected to adorn yourself with the garments he’s selected, to pull on each and every piece all on your own, fabrics lovingly caressing your exposed flesh as his gaze slithers after the material, leaving burning smudges on your skin.

But, of course, you can never do it all completely right—not like Master can. 

Because it always ends the same, this little morning sacrament: with Alastor fussing over you—straightening out a bow, smoothing out a wrinkle, tugging up a sock, readjusting a sleeve.

There is always something wrong he has to fix, to make perfect. 

And the finishing touch, the finishing touch is always for Master to add. 

A leather collar, as red as his eyes and adorned with a heart-shaped tag, his name in an elegant scrawl engraved in the platinum. He’s always so tender when he fastens it around your neck, after he has thoroughly approved of your dressing for the day, more tender than you’d ever thought him capable of; more tender than he ever is otherwise. 

It’s all just another way he claims you, degrades you, announces that you are his—his to decorate, his to desecrate, his to do whatever the fuck he wants with you. 

That pretty little silver heart that rests so daintily against your clavicle, that rises and falls and glitters with each of your gentle breaths, will never let you forget that. 

Today, as it is with most days, he has chosen a white colour palette. 

Sitting in his usual armchair with his legs crossed, folded hands resting in his lap, he watches as you undress in front of him, left vulnerable and raw to his gluttonous glare. It stings, his gaze razored and slitting into your skin, prickling as it rakes over your unprotected form, leaving you feeling hypersensitive, overexposed, like he’s stripped away some fundamental layer and left you barer than bare.

Yet to the untrained eye, he would appear only mildly interested, possibly even teetering on indifferent, but you know him better than that.

You are not the untrained eye—not anymore.

You know that the glowing in his gaze is brighter, bolder and more brilliant than normal as he sharply catalogues every action—pretty silk slipped off, dainty lace sliding on. 

You know that his pupils are abnormally large, having gnawed away at his irises in their attempt to consume the scene in front of him—a scene he’s witnessed a hundred times before; a scene he never tires of nonetheless. 

You know that his smile, usually sharp and stretched, is a little bit softer around the edges, a little bit sweeter as it seals hungry teeth behind curled lips.

His chest swells and deflates with calm, even breaths, his unblinking gaze holding yours for a moment—in, out, in, out—and you stand still as a statue, waiting.

Such a good little pet he’s got himself. 

He lets the moment linger for a little, basks in the exquisiteness of your obedience, allows that sweet suffocation of your compliance to grow until it’s nearly unbearable, until you’re struggling to keep stationary under his unrelenting stare, until the weight of it is crushing, compressing your ribs, flattening your lungs as you anticipate his approval.

Finally, he nods, and then, you begin.

First, the intimates; pure snow-white lace encrusted with tiny crystals, dainty material skimming your flesh in a faint caress, clinging to your supple curves as you fasten hooks and adjust waistbands. 

Next, an ivory milkmaid dress, complete with cinched puffy sleeves and a sweetheart neckline, the corset top outlining the natural lines and bends of your torso, skirt flaring slightly at the hips and flowing into loose pleats around your thighs. Little white flowers detail the garment, embroidered in silk across the linen, blooming with each of your graceful inhales. 

Then, a pair of white thigh-high nylons to garnish the outfit, adorned with tiny white polkadots, sleek and sheer as they hug your legs. 

He doesn’t miss the ripple of chills that follow after his eyes as they glide up your body, trailing the curled knuckles hooked in the band of your stockings. Nor does he miss the delicate shiver that dances up your spine, or the tensing of your muscles as you linger in limbo beneath his stare, anticipating his next order.

No, he witnesses it all.

And he smirks, huffing out an airy snort, your frame flinching with the sound.

“Does my gaze make you uncomfortable, dear?”

“No, Sir, of course not,” you respond immediately; well-trained, obedient. 

“No? Then why has your body gone rigid beneath my eyes?” 

“I just—” you begin, faltering a little, a small frown on your face. 

Suddenly, he rises, stalking toward you calmly, both hands clasped behind his back. That infamous collar, held securely in his grasp, jingles with each of his steps, such a delicate sound for something so sinister. 

Stopping an inch or two from your face, your head snaps up, the motion instinctual, eyes wide and subservient—searching for guidance, awaiting your orders like the good little girl you are. 

A palm wreathes around your jaw, points of his claws pressing into your cheeks as he forces your head up further, revelling in the soft pained yelp that hitches in your throat, tangling on a gasp.

“Do you feel like a piece of meat, on display for your owner?”

“Y-Yes, Sir.”

Crimson searches your face, slow and scrutinizing, lids narrowing slightly as his smile sharpens.

“Nothing more than a pretty little prize to be paraded around on my arm, proudly and in public?”

“Yes, Sir.” 

Leaning down, he grinds his forehead into your own, inhibiting your gaze from fleeing his, neck bent at an unnatural angle as he looms over you. He stares at you for a moment, scarlet so bright it hurts to look directly into, so brilliant you’re sure it’ll leave sunspots blotting your vision when you finally look away, but you don’t dare to blink. 

Slim fingers flex around your jaw, tightening, and his claws pierce your cheeks—shallow little pricks that’ll be unnoticeable in a few minutes, dots of blood rushing to fill the tiny dents. His tongue laves over each in a single, slow drag, wide and wet as it cleans the wounds and streaks his tastebuds with copper, sealing them with a thick salve of saliva before pulling away. 

“Good,” he finally murmurs, the word a puff of breath wafting across your face, warm and woodsy. “Because you are. And Master likes for his things to look presentable.” 

#alastor x reader #alastor x you #alastor x y/n #hazbin hotel x reader #hazbin hotel x you #hazbin hotel x y/n #alastor smut #alastor headcanons #inky.alastor #inky.hazbin

[stariikis]

lucky girl | kim sunoo

synopsis ; sure, you're already well known as enhypen member kim sunoo's girlfriend, but that doesn't hinder the thrill of tossing a coin and landing on heads when sunoo chooses you, in the midst of the crowd.

pairing ; idol!kimsunoo x gf!reader genre ; fluff, established rs wc ; 530 notes ; for @lilacnini and @nishions polaroid memories event ੈ♡˳

The hashtag, ‘#ENHYPENSUNOO’ is trending again. 

Or rather, what with all the recent concerts, fancalls and fansigns, all you’re seeing on your for you page are clips of your boyfriend interacting with his fangirls. How many times have you seen the caption, ‘Sunoo noticed me!’, or watched a video of Sunoo briefly interlocking fingers with another girl? You are always coming across concert videos with a shaking camera pointed towards Sunoo, who points their way with a warm smile and hand heart. 

You quickly look up from your phone to cross the road, slowly growing tired of the repetitive posts you’re viewing. 

But you’re pretty much used to it. Some of Sunoo’s fans have asked you whether or not you get jealous often, and you can safely (and honestly) say that you don’t. They look at you disbelievingly, but don’t question you further. They just slink back into the crowd, desperate for a glimpse of their idol. 

You can’t blame them for being curious. 

What you don’t ask them, however, even though you’re sorely tempted to, is, ‘why would I ever feel jealous?’ What’s there to be jealous about when Sunoo gives you morning kisses that only you receive? Why would you be overcome with envy seeing lame high-fives when you’re getting daily welcome-home hugs? 

Don’t you get the best treatment out of all of them? Even though sometimes you do wish you could have the same memory, a moment you'll be able to cherish in your mind forever.

You run towards where the crowd congregates, screams and whistles for all the members arising from the hundreds of fans. A few brightly coloured heads at the edge of the crowd helps you distinguish where the members are. Rushing forward with only one purpose (to greet all the members, not just Sunoo, of course!), you squeeze past all the people. You don’t bother to wave towards all the fans who recognise you. 

“Kim Sunoo!” You scream, probably blending in with all his fangirls when you reach the barricade and lean against it. You whip your phone out to capture this moment, whether he notices you or not, because all you want is to have your very own video to post, to caption with the tag “‘Kim Sunoo noticed me!”

He’s busy on the other side of the street, forming hand-hearts with dazed teenagers and waving cheerily at their general crowd. You’re starting to lose hope in him even seeing you, but when he turns around to check in on your side of the road, his eyes sparkle when they meet yours. He pretends not to act pleasantly surprised when you beckon him over.

“My girl,” he whispers happily, ignoring the collective gasp from everyone around you as he pulls you in and kisses your cheek. Heart starting to race, your cheeks grow warm where he kissed you, and you can’t help but gaze starstruck after him as he walks off, giggling teasingly your way.

And you capture it all on camera – granted, it’s most likely angled awkwardly towards the ground – but at least now you can caption a post with ‘My boyfriend noticed me!’. A beautiful, lasting memory that’s purely yours.

#stariikis #⋆.˚nin-liz event #enhypen #kim sunoo #enhypen x reader #enhypen sunoo #enha sunoo #sunoo #enha #enhypen kim sunoo #kim sunoo x reader #sunoo x reader #sunoo x you #sunoo x y/n #kim sunoo x y/n #enha x reader #enhypen imagines #enhypen au #sunoo au #sunoo x yn #kim sunoo x you #enha imagines

[midnightarcheress]

Simon takes you to the museum.

pairing: bodyguard!ghost x actress!reader cw: implied ptsd. 4 | gold rush masterlist.

the timid yellows creeping up the tree leaves announce the beginning of autumn, crisp air filling their lungs as they walk through the Tuileries Garden. Simon tries his best to act calm, focusing on how you make your way on the footpath around the octagonal lake, but the city’s sounds and the bustling crowd in the park keep him on edge, fingers rhythmically touching the dense fabric of his jeans for a faint sense of safety in the present.

despite his anxiety levels spiking, he still manages to appreciate the view. the remaining flowers from warmer days paint the grass with vivid colours and, on the horizon, he catches a glimpse of the Eiffel Tower on the other side of the river. the sun shines brightly in the sky, almost casting a golden halo over your head, the tender heat warming his brittle heart in a brief moment of peace.

“the museum is that way,” you look back at him, pointing to your left. ever since Daniel complied with your request for time off, you’ve been researching the perfect spot to spend your free afternoon, ultimately landing on the Orangery Museum. at least a museum is supposed to be a quiet place, Simon thinks.

“did you know that this building was actually a greenhouse?” you ask, walking through the entrance, “it was created to store the citrus trees from the garden, that’s why this side has so many windows.” your head tilts to the riverside facade and he silently hums, acknowledging you.

his lips involuntarily curve at your enthusiasm. the two of you don’t talk much on the daily, but it was endearing to see how happy you were for being surrounded by art, and he didn’t mind hearing you babble about the paintings. or about anything, honestly. the sound of your voice was soothing, pacifying the nerves that had been eating his insides since he stepped out of bed. 

“oh, those are my favourite!” you tug on his forearm, pulling him into an oval room with huge panels, the tiny inscriptions on the side reading ‘Claude Monet’, “those are water lilies, y’know, the flower? he did two-hundred-and-something paintings based on a pond in his property, can you imagine that?” 

“they’re pretty,” he mumbles, observing the thin brushstrokes. art is far from his strong suit, but he liked how the paintings captured the fickles of light and how they lacked the usual restrained aspect seen in other pieces – they seemed relaxed, floaty, free. so different from your life. maybe that’s why you loved it so much.

you drag him through the whole exhibit, explaining little details of the museum, the garden, the techniques, and he listens closely, his attention never leaving your mouth, completely entranced by your words. he didn’t feel the weight of the duty nor the need to protect you there, it was a different world. your own little bubble, and you allowed him inside. 

his hand brushes on your shoulder while exiting the building, guiding you through the door. he’s not keen on being outside again, sirens already buzzing in his brain with the idea of potential threats lurking in the shadows.

trying not to let the perpetual concern flood his mind, he clears his throat and sparks up conversation, ignoring the rules pairing over his head. no talking, no touching. “so, how did you learn so much about... all that?” he gestures back to the museum.

“oh, uhm, i used to paint,” you start, hiding the smile sneaking up your lips at his unexpected interest, “took a course in art history too.”

his eyebrows raise. “used to?” 

“yeah, when i had more time to myself,” he notices your sigh, studying the sudden solemn expression that outlines your face. your beautiful face, “but i wasn’t very good at it.” you chuckle, downsizing your abilities, and he snorts, not fully believing you. it’s the first time you’ve seen him showing any sort of emotion besides indifference, and he prides himself on the surprise gracing your features. 

it was nice, walking with you. not behind you. did he enjoy the view? yes, but this – him by your side, arms swinging together, matching steps – was real. genuine. it almost felt like a date, not that he would ever dare to say it out loud. everything was perfect.

until it wasn’t.

it happened so fast. a loud blast on the street made Simon wrap an arm around your waist and pull you to the nearest alley, one hand firmly pressing you against his chest and another holding your head, broad shoulders covering your body as the intense blood pump on his ears muffle the deafening ringing rattle. he stays in the position for a while, blown-out pupils frantically darting around and searching for any indication of danger. 

he takes a deep breath and his head dips down to you. for a minute, the only thing he sees is the gash on your forehead and your bleeding eye. you’re paralysed, partially because you’re brain is still catching up on what’s going on, and partially because his tight grip doesn’t admit any movement. 

“Ghost? what’s wrong?” the scared tone of your whisper readjusts his vision to what really is in front of him – you. safe, without a single scratch, tucked in his arms with a strength he hadn’t used to this extent in a long time. and he feels bad, pathetic even, because nothing happened. the blaring sound was a car crash in the avenue, not a grenade destroying everything in sight.

“it’s nothing” he pulls back, averting your eyes like the plague, “i'm sorry.” stupid. 

you frown, overlooking his avoidance with utter sympathy, “are you alright?” he grunts, unintelligibly, reverting to his cold stance and nodding. you don’t buy his half-answer, but decide that it’s better not to pry.

he knew it was coming, the uneasiness brewing in his gut was only waiting for the right trigger to crawl up his oesophagus and spill all over you. 

the rest of the walk is quiet, with him returning to his position a few steps back. never should’ve left. you sneak glances at him, checking, but his gaze seems too far gone. next thing he knows, you’re both on the jet, Daniel snoring in the front seat, him looking out the window, lost in thought. of course i'd fuck up. 

he barely hears when you approach him, trembling fingers handing him a card. the card. you’re trusting him. he glares at you for a second, hazel irises shifting between your spooked appearance and the paper. ‘don’t like you travelling without me, darling. i’ll be waiting for my souvenir  – your prince.’

i've never been to france lol. and yeah i had a monet phase when I was fifteen.

little fun fact - the painting in the fic masterlist is part of his water lilies series.

#simon ghost riley #simon riley #ghost #ghost cod #simon ghost riley x reader #simon riley x you #f!reader #fem!reader #ghost x reader #ghost x you #ghost imagine #ghost fanfiction #bodyguard!ghost #bodyguard!simon #actress!reader #bodyguard au #cod mw #cod mw2 #cod mw3 #gold rush #bodyguard!ghost ☾ #nyx writes ☾ #midnightarcheress

[lookwhatyoumademedohaha]

The One Where Kaz Brekker Considers His Life Choices

Summary: Kaz Brekker is a deadly Barrel Boss who has the most dangerous task at hand... To deal with the chaotic shenanigans that you pull with the Crows.

Pairing: Kaz Brekker X Reader, Six of Crows X Platonic! Reader.

Warnings: Lots of humour, fluff, chaotic energy of our Crows.

A/N: So I'm down with a terrible cold and fever and in my delirium, I came up with this story inspired by John Oliver and B99. I hope you like it. Let me know your thoughts in the comments. Happy reading!

"Dammit." muttered Kaz under his breath as he searched for your face through the Crow Club because he was a hundred percent certain that you were responsible for his present headache as he controlled himself "No, I love Y/N, she's my friend, she's my friend who is good at her job..."

Kaz was fairly certain he looked like a lunatic but finally he spotted you at the Crows private table laughing with your friends.

He marched up to you with his stony expression as he overheard Jesper announcing his plans "I think I might customize my revolvers."

Wylan immediately interjected "What? How are you going to do that?"

"I was thinking really bright colours like purple,pink and orange to match my outfits and maybe engrave my name." said Jesper thoughtfully while all of them rolled their eyes and laughed "I mean, it's going to be so much fun!"

"Oh yes! So fun! Absolutely fun!" you mocked Jesper in a high pitched tone as you smirked at him "Or when you commit murderer, a grave oversight on your part. Good news Chief, we found Fahey's revolvers at the murder scene."

Jesper stuck out his tongue at you childishly while you replied sarcastically "We do not know what motivated him to go on a killing spree but he had a lot of fun with it."

Kaz stood behind you "Y/L/N"

"Ah Kaz, you're looking very happy today." said Nina brightly as she greeted him infuriatingly "Let us guess what happened based on your facial expression. You got offered a job with a lot of Kruge and high stakes?"

Inej joined in the fun "Pekka Rollins finally died?"

Maththias' smirked "He found a life of charity and prayer."

Everyone nodded in agreement and Wylan grinned "He's about to reveal that he's actually Nikolai Lantsov!"

"Saints! Wylan, he's about to reveal that he's secretly married to me and has secretly raised my baby!" cried Jesper dramatically as Kaz thought of resignation from this life.

"All of these options is probable. But I know the Captain. He's having a meltdown." you announced dramatically exasperating Kaz who hadn't got one word in since this conversation started.

Matthias looked at you pointedly and then at Kaz "What are you talking about? The demjin looks the same as he always does."

"To you perhaps. But I have mastered the art of reading his emotions. His lips are tightly sealed, he's gripping onto his cane as if he's trying to control himself and he's blinking at his three second intervals as opposed to his nine." you observed Kaz closely with a knowing smile surprising Kaz who was tongue tied and speechless that you could easily read him "Therefore, he's having a meltdown!"

Wylan intervened as he shook his head at you fondly "That seems excessive."

You grinned "No, I'm impressive."

Nina knew that you were telling the truth based on Kaz' heartbeat she heard as she queried sweetly "So Waffles, is everything okay?"

Kaz glared at Nina and then at you "No. I'm having a meltdown."

Wylan and Matthias gasped at you as if you were a Saint "Wow."

Kaz decided to speak before anyone could interfere "Who the hell is responsible for the mess?"

"You have to be more specific about which mess given out daily life experience." retorted Nina sassily.

Kaz eyebrows furrowed deeply "Alright. The slogan outside the Crow Club and the Slat? Who did it?"

There was silence as everyone pointed toward you who looked unremorseful as you smirked at Kaz who was fuming in rage as he turned his dangerous gaze upon you "As I suspected. Now you better have a goddamn good reason as to why you would do such a silly, stupid, idiotic act?"

You looked completely calm for a person who was about to feel Kaz Brekker's wrath "Clear communication and marketing to our customers."

Kaz couldn't quite comprehend what you said as he stuttered "Excuse me?"

"Well Kaz, to tell you the truth, people in Ketterdam weren't really clear on where we were coming from... you know our main objective as to why we steal,maim and kill so much." you explained nonchalantly and calmly that made Kaz feel as if he was the idiot in this conversation. "So we put up a slogan to educate everyone in Ketterdam, our objective in pursuing destruction and crime."

"It's rather a genius slogan, Y/N." praised Inej with a kind smile "The ones we came up with were sloppy and funny but Y/N understood the assignment."

Kaz realized that you had come up with the goddamn slogan yourself as he literally let out all his exasperation out "Yes but did the slogan of the Dregs have to be BECAUSE DEATH IS THE UNDENIABLE FUEL OF LIFE!'"

"I think it's very classy, professional and straightforward conveying the necessary message." commented Matthias with honest admiration for your work and grinned at how red the demjin was "People won't like it but at least they'll understand and respect where you come from."

All of them exchanged mischievous glances as they saw Kaz close to spontaneously combusting and had to hand it to you. This was the best prank they played on Kaz and honestly at this point, you should be appointed as the Prank master General of the Dregs.

"I can't believe you would do something so stupid!" burst out Kaz in despair and anger.

You remained completely unfazed while Nina, Matthias, Wylan, Jesper and Inej snickered in unison "Can't you?"

"Shut it! I know you lot encouraged her to do this." snapped Kaz in frustration as he pointed at the rest of his friends who grinned

Kaz looked at you once again as he took a deep breath "And why did you place this slogan in bright and glittering colours as bright as Jesper's irritating fashion sense?"

"Because people are more attracted to bright colours and like glitter. Like if I saw that message in black, I'd be afraid but since it's in pretty bold sparkling colours, everyone kind of digs it." you said smartly while the rest of the Crowd clapped proudly for you "They are not like afraid. They are more like... Oh my god Kaz Brekker is about to murder me. Go right ahead Kazzle Dazzle, just whack me -"

"Alright thank you, that's enough." interrupted Kaz hastily and briskly because he did not want to hear the end of the sentence.

Amidst the Crows loud laughter, Jesper hooted "They're like... I'd die for Kaz Brekker and honestly he'll let me. Brutal!"

"The way I consider murder illegal but if Kaz Brekker is doing it, make me the victim." replied Wylan with a teasing smirk.

"CHOKE ME TO DEATH DADDY BREKKER, HALLELUJAH!" you yelled loudly as you raised your glass while Kaz was completely red in the face, embarrassed by his friends drunk shenanigans and chaotic energies.

"Daddy... It's a kink isn't it? It's like a paternal thing?" explained Nina with a wink to Maththias' who had inquired about it.

"Alright Freud." retorted Kaz rolling his eyes at Nina who laughed as he hoped to shut down this conversation quickly "I don't understand why you chose that particular slogan. It sounds like an excerpt from a letter of a serial killer!"

You looked at Kaz with a deadpanned expression "How many killings does it take for a person to be a serial killer?"

Kaz was slightly taken aback but answered nevertheless "Er... Five?"

"Great. We're all serial killers." sighed Jesper dramatically as he looked pointedly at Kaz who obviously had the highest body count.

"Not me." stated Wylan with an innocent smile.

"Bitch please!" chorused everyone together in disbelief as they glared at Wylan who was hiding a grin and you added "You have the second highest body count and you're relatively new."

Jesper grinned as he placed a kiss on Wylan "Well that's my man! He's spectacular at everything he does!"

Kaz gave up. There was no point talking to you.

"Fine. Those slogans are to be taken down tonight -" began Kaz when Rotty came toward them

"Sorry to interrupt boss but there are more than eighteen people and some other gang members queued outside waiting to be initiated as part of the Dregs."

You smirked into your drink as you heard Kaz retort "What is the meaning of this?"

"Uh... The new slogan is real popular boss. People want to be part of the Dregs because we showed them out vision and they like it." said Rotty vibrating in excitement "Also, the customers are pouring in more boss! I think it's the glitter they like -"

"Thank you Rotty. I'll attend to it. Dismissed." said Kaz as he felt your infuriating and insufferable smirk burn a hole through his skull.

"Oh Captain... I believe it's time to say those very special words." you crooned sweetly as you watched Kaz' lips twitch once.

"Y/L/N... you're a genius." stated Kaz in a deadpanned expression and watched in amusement as you nearly choked on your drink while the rest of the Crows were checking their drinks for toxin trips.

You squealed in delight "OH MY GOD! YOU ACTUALLY SAID IT! IT'S REAL!"

"I heard you practicing it to yourself in your room last night." said Kaz calmly and deadpanned as he smirked at how your enthusiasm slightly faded but you were still grinning.

You nodded "That makes more sense. So are you like now going to give me a raise, or a -"

"You're an idiot, Y/N." said Kaz with a subtle exasperated and amused smile and walked away.

"THANK YOU? YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO SAY THANK YOU CROWFATHER!" you yelled out loud in exasperation and amusement as everyone laughed.

Inej smiled "Honestly, I didn't expect the prank to turn into something profitable."

Jesper frowned slightly "Yeah it kind ruins it all, doesn't it?"

"Never fear my friends. Kaz is a prankster's delight." you replied with a delightful smile, mischief glinting in your eyes.

Before anyone could ask what you meant, Kaz Brekker's mad voice rumbled across the Crow Club "Y/N Y/L/N! WHAT ARE ALL THESE CONGRATULATORY LETTERS I'VE RECEIVED FROM DIGNITARIES ALL OVER THE WORLD ABOUT THE FACT THAT I AM TO BE MARRIED TO THAT STRUTTING PEACOCK ZOYA NAZALENZKY AT THE CHURCH OF BARTER IN KETTERDAM IN TWO DAYS?"

"What?" exclaimed Jesper in amazement

Nina, Wylan, Inej and you exchanged amused stares "Who's going to tell him Zoya is in on this and is actually coming here tonight?"

"You know what, never change, Y/N." said Matthias looking at you affectionately and then looked alarmed because he saw the demjin marching toward you "But you better run or you'll be in trouble with the demjin!"

"Trouble?" you laughed as you winked at your friends "You're only in trouble if you are caught!"

Kaz caught you before you could flee "Gotcha!"

"I'm in trouble." you mumbled and then grinned widely at Kaz Brekker who looked like a bull who had just been kicked as you bit him making him let go of you and you took off running "Congratulations on your nuptials, Captain! You're going to be a lovely bride!"

#six of crows x reader #shadow and bone x reader #grishaverse #kaz brekker x you #kaz brekker x reader #kaz brekker x oc #kaz brekker fic #kaz brekker #jesper fahey #inej gafha #wylan van eck #wylan van sunshine #matthias helvar #nina zenik #zoya nazyalensky #soc #inej ghafa x reader #jesper x reader #wylan x reader #nina x reader #matthias x nina #jesper x wylan #b99 quotes

[akutasoda]

Could I request Gepard with a toymaker s/o who loves making and selling toys to little kids? I can't help but picture them gifting Geppie a plushie of himself.

Also, are you doing well?

made with love

synopsis - the toymaker he adores gift's him a plush with a simple question

includes - gepard

warnings - gn!reader, fluff, slight pining, wc - 1k

a/n: i am doing well! i hope you are aswell :)

taglist - @teddirika

you had first caught his eye when he was returning from the front lines. he had promised to swing by his sister's workshop and on his way he spotted a new stall not too far away from the florists, it had various bright colours and shapes that he could barely make out from this distance and they intrigued him. much like a child to a candy shop, he started moving toward your stall - his sister's workshop could wait.

the first thing he would notice is the large crowd of people near the stall, all children with their respective carers. the second thing he would notice is the owner of the stall. the bright smile you adorned as you crouched beside a child showing off a toy nearly distracted him from beautiful you were. he watched as you handed the toy to the child before another took intrest in another toy and you happily handed it too them.

he watched you work a bit longer than he thought before remembering he still had to see his sister and so he quickly turned heel and left. he spent some time with serval as she rambled on about her latest invention but he wasn't really listening because all he could think about was you. serval easily noticed her brother's lack of engagement and quickly shut down her rambled and asked him what was keeping him so lost in thought.

he asked her if she had seen the new stall near the florists and she explained you showed up a couple of days ago - that made sense to him as he had

been on the frontline for about a week. he then followed up by asking if she had the chance to talk to you which she obviously said no as she had been cooped up in her workshop. now he really was curious and so he quickly bid his sister farewell.

if you were being honest, you saw the captain of silvermane guards watch you earlier and it intimidated you. it made you think you did something wrong and now you could visibly see him walk towrds you again, making you panic even more. you were one hundred percent sure you had all the right paperwork and permits to be operating on the streets of belobog and you were sure you didn't commit any crimes, so why was he heading over?

gepard had noticed your stall had calmed down a bit and decided to find out who you were and why you plagued his thoughts. he approachhed you rather directly after he thanked another parent for their purchase and he could see you were visibly worried. he opened by telling you that you weren't in any trouble and he was just curious about your stall. you calmed yourself a bit before telling him about how you enjoyed making toys for children and it was a hobby that became a source of income.

he listened to you with absolute admiration. he thought it was absolutely adorable that you had such a passion for what you did and it was this that made you consume his thoughts even more. he eventually (and reluctantly) left, mainly because you had more customers and he wished you well.

eventually gepard had made a visit to your stall apart of his daily rounds - if he wasn't on the front line - and it would take you a while not to panic when he walked over. your customers would also have to get used to the captain's presence but the children never seemed to mind, if anything they proudly showed off your work to him.

one day you had an idea. gepard had become a constant in your daily life that you'd never expect but greatly appreciated and so you wanted to gift him something special, something made by you. you greeted him cheerily when he visited you the following day and immediately told him to close his eyes for a moment, he was going to question you but simply went along with whatever you had planned.

when you told him to open his eyes he was greeted by you happily presenting a handmade plush of yours. he immediately recognised it's likeness and his face exploded into red. he reached one hand out to grab it as the other covered his face and coughing out a very flustered thank you. you nagged him about how he wouldn't be able to appreciate it with his head turned away and eventually he let up.

he had to admit it was beautifully sewn and had a noticeable increase in quality compared to your regular works and that made his heart swoon. what he failed to realise at first was that the plush seemed to be holding something. he saw your smile widen as he picked it out the plushs arms and unfolded it. if his face was red before, it was even worse after reading the contents of the note.

you looked at him for a moment before prompting him for an answer. written on your note was a confession. you had to admit the captain of the silvermane guards was rather handsome and his charming but shy nature made him utterly unresistable, so you had developed a small crush. one that seemed to be reciprocated as your answer was a shy and honest yes.

your plush was a constant reminder to him about your confession, mainly because he was glad you made the leap before he did - he was so nervous that he fearred he wouldn't of done it. he kept it in tip top condition and if anything happened to it he brought it straight to you to fix. and with your new found relationship with gepard, your customers would note how he appeared at your stall more often and even helped you sell the toys sometimes.

he adored each and everyone of your works that you crafted or sewed - always complimenting your work. but truly nothing paled in comparison to the plush that he always had near him.

#—stellaronhvnters. #x reader #x gender neutral reader #honkai star rail x gender neutral reader #honkai star rail x reader #honkai star rail x you #hsr x gender neutral reader #hsr x you #hsr x reader #hsr gepard #gepard x reader

[landwriter]

Picnic | Dream/Hob | 1.7K | G light and happy fluff, Hob loves springtime, Matthew hates giving dating advice, and the only pining is Dream pining for an A+ in dating, a thing that is both normal to want and possible to achieve

for Domaystic Drabbles, Day 4: Packed Lunch ty to @softest-punk for twigging me to the sweet @domaystic prompts. It got a little out of hand!

----

Hob had seen several thousand fine spring days. He’d seen keen snowdrops surfacing in February, a hundred congregations of crocuses bursting forth to greet the turning of the seasons, and entire delegations of wild daffodils lancing through leaf-fall and trumpeting their blossoms with an attitude that suggested they knew themselves to be the first and only creatures to master the colour yellow. He’d watched six centuries of human habitation dusted with the same fine pollen as alder and birch unfurled their catkins like festival garlands, and he’d— he’d gotten distracted again.

He blinked at the paper in front of him. He’d forgotten it was there. Or that he was meant to be grading it.

That, too: six centuries of the wild joy of spring distracting him from whatever passed for worthy toil at the time. Six centuries of the whiff of warm breeze setting off some yet-unexplained chemical reaction in his brain that made him want to dash outside and not come back in for weeks. Six centuries of him becoming temporarily mad and cheerfully insufferable to all those around him with the joy of it. He’d never get used to it, and Christ help him if he let anyone around him get used to it either.

“What a gorgeous day,” he remarked, to the untouched stack of student work.

It said nothing back, but he beamed down at it anyway, and then, sighing in the manner of a man happy to be defeated, turned his office chair to face the cracked-open window and watch the house martins build their newest nest.

---

“Matthew.”

“Yeah, boss?”

“I require your counsel. For a human matter.” Dream’s brow was furrowed, his manner grave. Hob, then.

Matthew inclined his head and hopped sideways in what he’d decided was the corvid equivalent of girding his loins.

“Hob keeps commenting on the weather on our outings.” He sounded anguished.

“The weather?” he repeated dumbly. Thank fuck. Two days ago it had been the number of orgasms human males required. Daily. Which, good for the two of them, but c’mon. Matthew had really not needed that knowledge about the kind of refractory period and appetite you acquire after half a millenia of boning. Hob, unfortunately, was Dream’s first human boyfriend, and the boss was setting about his new function with all the usual terrifying intensity and insane demands of perfection. In service of this, Matthew (unilaterally and undemocratically, he might add) had been named Arbiter Of All Things Men, which seemed kind of like a reach considering he was a bird, and one who’d been only, like, a little bisexual in his human life. The Corinthian was always skulking around. He wasn’t human either, but at least he’d fucked dudes. He’d have tips. Or Loosh! Loosh knew everything. She could give Dream books and send him off. Instead of Matthew trying to remember how the fuck dating worked.

“-time we’ve met this week.”

“Right,” said Matthew vaguely.

“What does he mean by it? He knows I cannot change the weather in the Waking. He asks nothing of me, and yet it is incessant.”

“Complaining about it, huh? Humans love to complain, boss.”

“No,” said Dream, looking wretched. “Worse. Earnest, ceaseless praise.”

“Oh. Sure. Of course.” What?

Dream was pacing the throne room like he was auditioning for community theater. “At the National Gallery, he daydreamed of the city park outside while feigning to contemplate a Pesellino. I took him to a production of Macbeth at the Globe, and afterwards, he said that even after centuries, it was never less than marvelous to watch. He was referring to the swifts feeding above us in the third act. Naturally.”

Matthew made a sympathetic noise. If he didn’t know when to keep his mouth - er, beak - shut, he’d say that Dream sounded like an insecure lover. Jealous, as best he could tell, of the change of seasons for stealing away some of Hob’s uncannily boundless affections.

“Well?” Dream stared at him in askance.

“Uh.” He floundered. Spring shit, spring shit. “You could take him on a picnic.” Yeah. Chicks loved picnics.

---

Dream had appeared in his office with a wicker basket that looked stolen from a Beatrix Potter story. A delicate gingham square peeked from the lid. It looked big enough to set up a naughty rabbit for life. He set it on Hob’s desk and then primly folded his hands behind his back.

“Hullo, you.” Hob stood and kissed him on the cheek. “What’s the occasion?” He suspected that there was none. Dream had been taking dating him very seriously. It was delightful.

“Matthew has suggested you require a picnic,” said Dream. Except he said it the way someone else might say The doctor has suggested it’s terminal.

Dream had been taking dating him very seriously. It was also, sometimes, awful.

“Oh, darling. That’s so sweet. But I don’t require anything special, you know. Just you, when you’ve got time to drop in. We could do something else.”

“We shall not. I have packed us lunch.”

“Alright, you stubborn creature. Maybe I do require a picnic.” He offered his arm to Dream. “Come on, I know a place.”

---

Lunch was too piddling a word for the spread Dream had packed. Lunch was a crust of bread and ale, or pottage. Lunch was a Sainsbury’s Egg & Cress Sandwich wolfed down with the last of the morning’s flask of Yorkshire Tea. This was a feast. A temple offering. For Hob. His chest twinged a little with affection. God, he was in love.

“This pleases you,” said Dream, who was looking unfairly elegant for someone sat on a gingham blanket with a bit of clotted cream on the side of his mouth.

Hob kissed it away. “Oh, yes.”

“More than our other...dates.”

“Oh,” said Hob, who was sometimes slow on the uptake, but after several centuries, didn’t miss much at all. “I’ve loved all of them. But this-” he gestured sweepingly around at Primrose Hill, the green ash shading them, the pleasant urban pastoral of joggers and families and dogs and other love-struck couples, all breathing in the same warm afternoon air, “-is exactly where I want to be, today. Outside, among all the life. In the thick of spring. It’s perfect.”

Dream followed Hob’s gaze, and studied the tableau. “There is nothing exceptional about this weather or setting.” He sounded as nonplussed as creature with nearly infinite age and knowledge could sound.

Hob laced his fingers through Dream’s, and tried to see what he saw. No great stories, really. Pedestrian daydreams of food and sun and sex, probably, of pay raises and summer vacations to Mallorca and Ibiza. Humanity being predictable, and life doing the same thing it did every year, to Dream’s uncountable thousands.

“No, I suppose not, but that’s why I love it, too. It’s familiar. Constant. Centuries, and it catches me out each time. It’s always arrived, no matter how bad things were for me. Always been there to celebrate with me when they’re wonderful. Like now.”

Dream looked sidelong at Hob. “Like now,” he echoed. Unsure, and stubbornly unwilling to make a question of it. The ache in Hob’s chest redoubled itself.

“Like now,” he promised. “It reminds me of you, too, you know. We always met in June, Dream. In 1789, watching the first trees budding nearly drove me mad with anticipation. Ninety-nine years and nine months. And you were always heralded by the same signs.” He traced circles on Dream’s pale palm, imagining it sun-kissed. “In 1989, when spring turned all the way into summer and you were still gone, I think my heart broke a little. I’d hoped, until then. That you were just late. With the swifts,” he said, quiet.

“Hob.” Dream had moved across the picnic blanket in his preternaturally fast way, and was now more or less in his lap, gripping Hob’s shoulders.

“Sorry,” he said, grimacing. “I’m being horrifically soppy. Must’ve been the scones. It’s alright. You’re here now. All that matters.”

“Robert Gadling,” said Dream. Hob blinked at that. He’d only ever gotten the full name treatment when Dream was still his Stranger, and only then when he’d disappointed him. “If you dare apologize for such a fine expression of your sentiment, I will be wroth with you.”

“Sorry,” he said again, smiling this time.

“I am honoured you associate me with the season you most adore. I would have it that you never pass another Spring waiting for me. If you wished such a thing.”

It sounded a little like a marriage proposal, which was something his heart really could not cope with the full size of at the minute. Not with so much love already around. Not if Dream didn’t intend to say it like that. He went for levity instead.

“Even though it’s driven me to distraction every time you’ve taken me out this week? Even if all I want to do for weeks is lie around outdoors and hold hands?”

Nearby, a baby started wailing. Dream, to his credit, didn’t even glance away. “Yes,” he said, perfectly solemn, perfectly certain. “Even then.”

“Well, that’s alright then,” said Hob, fighting an urge to start crying a little as well. “I would, as a matter of fact. Wish such a thing.”

They looked at each other, besotted, while the wailing continued.

“Only,” murmured Dream, “must it be in Anthropocene?”

“What?”

“Lie down, lover.” Hob did, a delighted suspicion creeping over him as Dream reached into his jacket pocket. Dream stretched over him, and spoke it low into his ear: “And I will take you to a Spring no man has seen.”

---

Matthew was eating scone crumbs and congratulating himself on his good sense to suggest a picnic. Birds loved picnics too. He hadn’t realized how much until this moment. Jesus. Picnics were a great idea. He was going to tell Dream that human men required them weekly during courtship.

“Thanks for bringing home leftovers, boss,” he said, spraying crumbs all over Dream’s shoulder.

Dream was too preoccupied to mind, or even notice. He waved an imperious hand. “It’s nothing. We absconded from the Waking shortly after we arrived. I have finally given Hob a worthy date. I showed him the virtues of picnicking in a Dreaming Spring.” Oh my god. Dream actually had been jealous of the weather. Because he hadn’t made it for Hob.

“What, no ants?” he offered.

“Hardly so prosaic,” said Dream. He glowed with satisfaction. “The very first.”

#dreamling #domaystic2023 #extremely soft and silly #picnics and ants and trying to make your new boyfriend happy #domestic fluff: early dating edition #the sandman #my writing #fic post #dream of the endless #hob gadling #ants first appeared in the mid-cretaceous 90 million years ago #dream taking hob to a shakespeare play when he could take him to lunch with DINOSAURS (and the first ants ofc) #wouldn’t be a picnic without the threat of ants

[from-izzy]

every day is a lovely day... | tbz lee juyeon

pairing » the boyz lee juyeon x gn!reader (lmk if i missed anything)

trope/au » strangers to lovers, non-idol au!, university au!

genre »​ mostly hurt/comfort(...?), mostly fluff, a pinch of angst (i always say this but i'm kinda confident in this statement this time lmao), deep reflection on life and aspects of the earth, juyeon who basically falls in love with you at first sight, juyeon being kinda confident towards reader, picnic date by the beach after finishing you last exam!, comforting boyfriend chef (not actually his occupation) lee juyeon!

word count, estimated reading time » 2249, ~8 mins

warnings (lmk if i missed anything!) » reader didn't sleep well, reader uses caffeine to battle tiredness, the slightest of academic difficulties (it's just a dash imo), deep thoughts of sea and sky life (not an expert in this field at all), mentions of open water/vast landscapes in the thoughts

navi/masterlist!! 🤍 part of 'especially to you...'

i swear that banner changes colour before my very eyes. because i do understand that it's bright and at first glance, you can barely see the water on the bottom right. but when i change tumblr to a lighter mode, stare at fading wind lines near the top of the image for some time, my eyes adjust and the water becomes very obvious. i think it depends on colour context because on dark mode, it's hard for the 'effects' to kick in. is it just me...? it's messing with me...there has got to be a study about this somewhere...😭 anyway!

(i accidentally released this earlier so for those who saw anything: no you didn't!! 😭)

happy birthday to you @littleroaes !! ngl i was gonna give up on this birthday present but then i was scrolling through and found this little wip and tried to modify it to what you like. i was gonna do f2l like you mentioned you like but my brain stopped making ideas for that as soon as i told myself to write about it 😭 so here's my very first short story on strangers to lovers that thankfully you have appreciation for 🫶 from your profile, i read you like fishes, the colour blue, kimbap, spring rolls and of course, lee juyeon!! 😸 so i tried my best to incorporate these prompts here. i tried something different for the fishes 🐟 topic but i hope this incorporation is fine 💙

here is your boyfriend that will get you through uni! hope you have the happiest birthday!! 🎂🎉 love you!! mwah!!

Everything changed for you when Juyeon walked into your life.

No, literally.

Well, maybe not…literally.

You remember the prominent eyebags you’ve carried for the last month since university started. The new semester has weighed you heavier than the headache that is arising from the lack of sleep and the missed attempt to get your daily caffeine content since you slept through your alarm. At the very least, you’re thankful that everything is now electronic because you are so unprepared to be commuting to campus with a heavy mind, heart, eyelids and straps on your shoulders that would surely give you a very sore back.

That day started horrendously. You really thought that the alarm was the only thing that the universe threw at you for their entertainment but it was the embarrassing fact that you dozed off during class. Your elbows were propped up too comfortably against the desk and the perfect temperature of the lecture room didn't make it any easier for your natural melatonin to kick in. The next thing you knew, your palms cupped your cheek and there was this loud bang that was accompanied by the sharp pain on your cheekbone when you hit the wooden desk.

Everything is going awesome and you just attracted around a hundred students back to you. Thankfully your lecturer didn't take it to offense and shot you an emphatic smile.

You guessed then after that the universe felt bad for the negative attention that you got and they canceled the next class on your filled weekly schedule. Usually, you would be annoyed at the sudden change but this gave you a little hour to bask in the sun, the open green space and your favourite cup of beverage wrapped protectively by your hands.

Only to find out that you left your wallet at home.

“I’m sorry,” you said to the worker who tried her best to reassure you and to take your time as your frantic fingers ran through the items in your bag.

Your knees fell to the ground and sweat started to creep against your forehead and to the side of your head, a silent reminder to be mindful of the long line of students who are mostly probably just as stressed as you are in their university journey. The lighting above you helped with your sight in your receipt-filled bag but suddenly, the long papers with their minuscule printings became hard to read and a deep voice stated his order.

At first, your instinct was to defend yourself, tell the person who cut in line and added an order between you and your caffeine to wait a little bit longer but his choice of words registered into you before you could voice out anytime.

“I'll add an iced Americano with the order, please.” And then the familiar beeping sound of a successful transaction rings.

Your neck cranes up towards the stranger that only made your day easier and you couldn't help but let out a gentle gasp. A sharp pair of eyes yet soft and curious like a cat, his perfectly shaped nose and the slight upturn of the corner of his lips with the smile that beams down on you. 

The chain necklace around his neck dangles above you and you were sure it hypnotised you to say, “It's an angel.” These were your first words to Lee Juyeon.

“Ah,” the recipient of the compliment could only blush first at your words, a hand sneaking up to mindlessly scratch his nape. “We should at least get out of the line.” 

Now it's your turn to have your cheeks heat up at the realisation that you're blocking everyone else’s caffeine intake.

You thought that maybe Juyeon would just walk away and wait for you to join him on the other side of the table with the hanging ‘Pick up orders here' sign hanging from the beige ceiling. Yet, he crouched and helped you sort out your materials, collecting your pencil case and books into one arm, the other swiftly scooping up the straps of your bag along his other forearm.

Your eyes couldn't help but widen at your empty hands, and you were flustered at how he was still holding onto your things even when the customer who stood behind him joined you both after paying. Juyeon’s bangs shook when he refused to give your things back, insisting that you should be the one to carry the coffee instead. 

“Coffee is important.” He convinces you with that warm smile of his. “Don't drop it!”

With the promise to pay him back for another cup, came a few promises to help with common subjects and overlapping knowledge. And with time, came the fluttering feeling in both your hearts that only grew when you comforted each other in the long nights leading to assignments and exam periods that came all too quickly but passed by excruciatingly slow.

Juyeon made it all worth it though. You walked out of the last two-hour prison of the semester to be greeted with your usual reward packed in a paper bag. If it was anyone else but Juyeon, the contents of the bag would be mushed as you hug it close to you but it's the person that you have missed so much that gets your love first.

“You called me last night, bubs,” Hearing his voice not through the help of technology is more refreshing and you couldn't help but tighten your hold around his figure. 

“Every day is missing Juyeon day.” 

“Well for me, every day is a happy day when you're in my life.”

It's a line that he has said to you many times even before he started dating you. Juyeon tried to make the line more interesting each time but one day, mixed with his tiredness and excitedness of finally seeing you, it became the line that revealed his adoration for you.

Hand in hand, Juyeon's thumb caressing the back of your palm, your right arm closely stuck to his left, you both sway and skip to the nearby beach to relish in each other’s company with nature. The light salty breeze scent hits you before you can even see the gigantic natural blue space that seems endless and seamless with the blue sky. As your outfit becomes one with the direction of the wind and the sun is still bright enough for you to know even when your orbs are hidden beneath your eyelids. It’s the little moments like these that the Earth seems to be so rich in beauty and life becomes beautiful although you’ve been studying endlessly for the past three months. 

You couldn’t help but let your mind wander to the body of water that eventually begins to seep into your view as you walk up the small hill. You imagine the school of fish including the friendly dolphins to the misunderstood sharks and all the shapes and sizes of the life forms in there, some dependent on their family whilst some choosing to live alone. 

That’s why you’ve always been so enamoured by the living, along with the sea plants that they harmoniously live with. 

You wonder what kind of thoughts these creatures have as they live in a world much bigger than the land you stand on and if they ever want to explore the whole ocean like most people would love to see the landmarks scattered across the world. If they visit the landmarks of the ocean, would they even remember it? Or would they just swim away, finding it more than satisfactory with the fact that they’re free, especially those who swish through the water with company?

Same with life in the sky, do they ever get tired from flying? Like some people who are scared of a large body of water but are already mid-journey, how do they persevere in their flight and keep going? Do they sometimes look at human transportation and hope that they could bask in that luxury as well? Sleep in the moving vehicle and relax your tense muscles against the cushioned interiors even if it’s just for ten minutes. You want to know the answer to that and maybe, you’ll be able to learn something from the other life form.

You wish sometimes you would be one of them but it’s hard to say so as well because all forms of life experience different hardships and it’s impossible to generalise anything, nor is it truly fair to say one has it better than the other.

That’s when life becomes so complex and beautiful. The fact that you’re so small in the context of the horizon that stretched too far for you to see and comprehend, leaves you appreciating the small things in life.

For you, the arms encircling your middle remind you that no matter what hardships you face, you’ll be able to safely fall back onto someone. That you can freely cry without judgement and that life is lovely whenever he’s in it. Juyeon steals a kiss from your lips before placing another one on your cheek. Your eyelashes flutter open and you swear that Juyeon’s smile is brighter than the sun that smiles down on you both and louder than the crashing waves against the eroding rocks.

And whenever he asks you, “Feeling better?” You know that Lee Juyeon is the one person that you can answer the question truthfully and genuinely.

You both settled with a picnic blanket underneath a substantial amount of coverage from the sun by the park near the beach, the crashing ocean waves still in sight. You observe the tree above you dancing freely in the winds while the birds seem to sing for both of your accomplishments. 

When you look back down by the cue of a single, proud hand clap, you're greeted with numerous small glass containers clinking next to each other. The colours from the neatly presented food only lifted your energy further and your boyfriend’s orbs glimmered more with the help of the sun that still peaks through from the leaves above.

Juyeon complied when you asked him for a bite of his homemade kimbap and spring rolls. The flavours instantly make you nod. “I refuse to believe that your mum didn't make this.” 

Your boyfriend’s smile flattened, dipping further into a frown, “She helped but I did all the cooking and rolling!” 

“Okay, you cute clingy baby.” Leaning in to press a quick kiss against his pouting lips. “I’m just joking around with you.” 

To Juyeon, the peck is way more than just unsatisfactory and his thoughts about it are clearly reflected first from his eyes. Then, his hand landed next to the food box on his far left and made a sweeping motion on the cotton blanket to the right, pushing all of the obstacles between you and him. His knees slide his body closer to you that was once on the other side, and now with your boyfriend only looking at you with the softest, loving gaze between his overgrown bangs, you couldn’t help but purse your lips momentarily. You couldn’t let out a question or comment but that changed in the blink of an eye when leaned in Juyeon, replacing your growing confusion with a muffled chuckle instead.

A soft groan vibrates to your lips, Juyeon complaining about how there was nothing to laugh about—not when his soft lips are between yours. A palm made its way around the back of your neck, pulling your still extensive smile against his more serious ones. Eventually, with the way that Juyeon poured his love into you, you’re determined to do the same to the only person who would only let you claim his lips. A part of his blue and white sweater is now captured in your fist but it did nothing to your heartbeat which starts to pick up whenever Juyeon pulls away to adjust his lip’s position on yours. 

The subtle nose nudges only served your fingers to trail up his arm that held you close, tracing along the vein that started near his elbows and ran his wrist near your pulse on the side of your neck. Now, with the way that your thumb brushes softly on his soft skin, Juyeon could melt further into you, leaning in further to deepen his presence to you. Whenever he pulled back, you would be the one chasing after him pulling on his sweater, wanting to indulge in his loving space even more.

“Who’s the clingy one now?” That lands him a shy hit to his chest that only made him let out a weightless chuckle in the air. “The love of my life and the only one for me,” he whispers sweet nothings as your foreheads kiss each other, a sweet gaze grazing upon your facial features. “I love you, bubs.”

So maybe you weren't hypnotised at all that day. Maybe, the universe didn't hate you after all. Maybe, this was all meant to happen even though you did go through some stress when the sequential events happened.

“I love you more.”

But at least, the universe gave you a free coffee.

Two, you really did meet an angel named Lee Juyeon.

And three, just like how he holds the day when you confess to him that you love him back, you repeat the words that he said to you at the start of all your lovely days, “Every day is a lovely day when you're in my life.”

navi/masterlist!! 🤍 'especially to you...'

tags (send a dm/ask if you would like to be here or removed!): @deoboyznet 📢❤️ @k-labels 💙🤍 @k-films 🤎🎞️ @kflixnet 📺🍿 @sanaxo-o

#deoboyznet #k-labels #k-films #lee juyeon x reader #lee juyeon fluff #juyeon imagines #lee juyeon imagines #juyeon scenarios #juyeon timestamps #the boyz #tbz #tbz x reader #tbz imagines #the boyz x reader #juyeon x you #juyeon fluff #juyeon fanfic #juyeon the boyz #lee juyeon #juyeon angst #juyeon #the boyz juyeon #tbz juyeon #juyeon x reader #tbz scenarios #lee juyeon angst #🗓️ izzy's scheduled posts!

[klausysworld]

you can do a one-shot for yandere klaus mikaelson, where Hope is already a teenager and all her life she adored her parents and family and always wished that someone would love her like her father loves her mother *y/n*, but one day he was reading cases of people who had been missing for years and a case in particular of a girl who seems quite familiar to him, and he discovers that this girl is his mother years ago and he starts to investigate and discovers his father's obsession with his mother and that he kidnapped her and kept her with him until she fell in love with him, he also discovered the secret rooms of the mansion that have her mother's stolen belongings and her portraits. Obviously Hope feels cheated and disillusioned and wants to confront her father.

Confusion, Fear, Horror.

Hope knew she was cherished by her family.

Her aunts and uncles fawned over her and brought her the best possible gifts at special occasions.

Her father always called her ‘his hope’ and made sure she knew she could always have whatever she desired.

And her mother…her mother looked at her like she was the only thing in the world that mattered. She calmed her father whenever he got mad that she was going out with friends. When Hope got home late, her mother would sort everything out. She was like a guardian angel.

So finding an image of her on a ‘missing person’s’ website was a shock. At first she thought maybe it wasn’t her, maybe a doppelgänger of sorts?

So she began to dig.

She certainly wasn’t expecting to find a secret passage way.

To find hundreds of portraits of her mother, stacks of pictures of her doing things as simple as walking down the street to standing in a towel in the window.

Clothes in boxes labelled by the year and dozens of love notes written to y/n from Klaus.

And then a note book…

Mondays ~ 2:30pm she has afternoon tea with male co-worker. Needs to stop.

Tuesdays ~ works until 5pm. Walks home alone. Possible opening.

Wednesdays ~ gets a lift home from work,, varies between three coworkers. Kill all?

Thursdays ~ tight schedule at work-forgets her lunch. Will come in handy when courting.

Fridays ~ half day. Possible date night?

Saturdays ~ often sees friends and/or family. Need to tear her away from this.

Sundays ~ lazy days. Great days to watch her.

She blinked in confusion and slight fear before turning over the page

Favourite colour=y/f/c

Favourite food=y/f/f

Favourite song=y/f/s

Dream job=y/d/j

Favourite things to do=f/s/t

Aspirations=y/a

And so on.

There were pages and pages of information on her.

Hope wanted to believe that he was just an amazing boyfriend. He just loved her so much he made sure write down everything she told him. But then she found the notes

At 2:36pm I watched her go into a mans house.

4:08 I eliminated the problem.

6:29 she had a shower. Left her curtains open.

7:45 she had her dinner. Alone this time-good.

9:13 she put her favourite show on

01:53 she fell asleep on her couch-it’s okay, I moved her to her bed.

She didn’t know what to think. With the amount of times he had written in these books, it’s safe to assume he watched her daily, nightly for months, years on end.

Even after he seemed to ‘get her’, court her, he still watched her. He suspected she would cheat on him, leave him. He was more paranoid than she had ever known him to be.

And the entry he made about ‘taking’ her mother completely through her off course.

She looked through security footage of the dungeons only to watch her own mother scream and fight against her father. They were both hysterical and Hope watched in horror as her father threatened and raged at her mother.

Over the weeks she watched her mother slowly become more obedient and affectionate towards Klaus.

She watched as her mother clung to him in fear that he would leave her alone for days upon end, she noticed her fathers manipulative behaviour from the “how do I know this isn’t some ploy to make me let you go?” To “I just don’t think you truly mean it” Watching her mother beg for him to stay, pleading for him to show her some sort of affection.

She saw how her mother became reliant on him, how she began to love him because he was all she had.

She saw the photos of her mother pregnant, Elijah, Rebekah, Kol and Freya all in the background as Klaus tended to her mothers needs.

Pictures of her as a baby and how her mother sobbed as she held her, the look she had in her eyes when Klaus took Hope from her arms, the fear they held.

Hope didn’t understand.

She saw her parents in whole other light.

Every time Klaus would take something from y/n’s hands and give her a look, the way she would lower her head and apologise and he would remind her to ask before she does.

The certain looks he would give her, almost warning like when she ‘stepped out of line’

It frightened Hope.

She tried to say something to her mother but as soon as Y/n realised she knew, the utter horror on her face was enough to stop Hope.

“Hope- please, you need to be quiet, please my heart, please I promise I’ll keep you safe”

The way y/n would hold her and cry until it was Hope holding her mother and convincing her it was okay

“We can run away”

“I know it’s difficult to understand but…I do…I do love him Hope…I just…do”

Y/n feared for both of them what would happen if Hope spoke out of term. Y/n would never let anything happen to her baby but her baby was strong enough now go protect her mother too.

#klaus mikaelson #the originals #the vampire diaries #klaus and hope #hope mikaelson #daughter hope #klaus mikaelson x reader #klaus mikaelson one shot #klaus mikaleson imagine #klaus mikealson fanfiction #niklaus imagines #klaus m #klaus michaelson #klaus mikaelson x y/n #the vampire diares imagine #rebekah mikaelson #kol mikaelson #tvd klaus #elijah mikaelson #niklaus mikaelson #tvd universe #klaus mikaelson headcanon #klaus mikaelson fluff #klaus mikaelson yandere #klaus mikealson smut #klaus mikaelson x yn #klaus mikealson x reader #tvdu imagines #yandere klaus mikaelson #yandere!klaus

[thetrollock]

Amaranth

Dark!fem vampire x fem reader

synopsis: you're unaware of how obsessed Alvara is with you until it's far too late...

word count: 15.1k

content warnings: dark ish content, yandere, unhealthy relationship, brief violence

LIFE HADN’T ALWAYS been this way. You hadn’t always been running from Alvara, the wretched woman who had been pursuing you for centuries. You were a normal girl once but that was hundreds and hundreds of years ago and life had drastically changed since then becoming something that was nothing like the life you’d lived before. Life was so much easier back then, joyful even, it felt like you had a purpose, it used to be about living but now it was just surviving, and you weren’t sure how much more of this could you take. You got up from her chair and trudged towards your window sitting upon the ledge staring at the moon and the sparkles in the sky wishing you were amongst them because maybe, just maybe, you wouldn't be so lonely. You began to think about how simple life used to be and how on earth did you get into this mess in the first place.

❥ ❥ ❥

In a time long ago, you were a simple middle class woman working at a flower shop arranging and caring for flowers, you enjoyed your job and all the beautiful flowers you were able to care for and make into arrangements daily besides, it did help that you had some lovely loyal customers. Over the years, you had become quite popular within not only your area, but also further field due to the exposure from the royal family who often commissioned you for flowers with every event they held, big or small. But that might've been due to your friendship with the First Prince, Leonidas. A friendship like this was fairly uncommon as people of your social status and his own didn’t tend to mix. You had both become friends a few years ago when Leonidas had been running away from his duties and, as any upstanding citizen would, you hid him in your shop whilst everything blew over, treating him like a normal human being rather than someone to be worshipped. Since then, your friendship had blossomed and bloomed with the prince coming to your humble little shop at least once a week under the guise of buying flowers.

Humming mindlessly, you arranged and prepared flowers and bouquets for customers in a monotonous fashion, completely lost in the abyss of your mind, as you were making up the bouquet, you wondered what your beloved customer would prefer, “Miss Belmont, do you want the pink roses or the pink camellias with your bouquet?”

The older women didn't even get the chance to reply as a powerful honeyed voice interrupted, announcing herself, “Good morning, I want a bouquet of wolf’s bane flowers with whatever else you believe fits.”

You jumped slightly from her position, not expecting the interruption, you twisted around to look at the woman who had just entered your shop, you blinked owlishly before reminding yourself to smile. The woman herself was rather tall and stood proudly, her lips were plush, and pink formed in a stiff polite smile that felt odd and honestly quite disturbing. You swore her eyes were staring into your soul and you couldn’t help but stare back, her eyes were just... mesmerizing. They were such an icy blue that they reminded you of pure molten silver contrasting against darkness of the outer rings of her pupils. Her gaze was sharp and intimidating and you found yourself thinking that you never wanted to look away. Although this woman was absolutely stunning, breathtakingly so, you wondered if she ever caught the sun considering how pale her skin was, it was almost as if she’d never seen a lick of sunlight in her entire life. The only colour in her face where her lips and the pink colour decorating her eyelids, the darker colours contrasting against her pale skin tone making all of her features that much more pronounced.

The woman’s perfectly shaped eyebrow arched upwards as if asking why you hadn’t answered her yet, your shook your head slightly before plastering a blinding smile on your face.

“I am terribly sorry, my lady, I apologize for staring, I will get to you in a minute but as you can see, I am currently serving another customer so if you could give me a few minutes, I will get right to you.” She apologized trying to be as respectful as possible, she hoped this woman would be understanding enough and not like some of the other stuck-up nobles she had to deal with on a daily basis.

The tall woman chuckled coldly before looking down at you with a carefully restrained smile that screamed impatience and slight annoyance, “I do not think you understand who I am, I expect you to serve me right now, it is quite clear that I am much more important than this woman.” She sneered gesturing rudely to the poor old woman standing next to her.

“Excuse me, my lady, but I do not appreciate you using that tone whilst talking about my customers, this is my shop and so we will follow my rules. I will decide who I serve when I serve, so I suggest you either wait a few minutes or you find a new place to buy some flowers.” Although you were thoroughly intimidated by this clearly powerful woman, you kept your voice firm and steady, you'd learnt years ago that being a pushover never got you anywhere. Respect is everything. Besides, you weren't all that worried about this woman trying to sabotage your career, after all you had the royal family on your side.

The woman tilted her head slightly in surprise her lips pursed in an ‘O’ shape and her icy eyes showed amusement, it was quite clear that she was taken aback by your statement, she’d probably never really had someone below her in the social chain stand up to her before. But there was a first time for everything you supposed suppressing your proud smile.

“As I was saying Miss Belmont, would you rather the pink roses or the pink camellias?” The older woman smiled gratefully and told you her preference thanking you for your kindness.

“It is no problem at all, you are a loyal customer after all.” You replied with a sweet smile saved only for your favourite customers.

With that, you turned around and walked into the back room to retrieve the flowers before arranging them and cutting the stems until everything fit together perfectly. You wrapped up the flowers with brown paper, as requested, and tied it up with Miss Belmont’s preferred colour of ribbon which you had, of course, memorized more than a few bouquets ago. You handed the flowers to the older woman with a bright smile after receiving the cash and a hefty tip.

“I hope they are up to your standards; I will see you next week!” You waved after Miss Belmont; she was one of your favourite customers after all. You then turned to the pale woman who had indeed decided to wait those few minutes. “Now, my lady, you said you wanted wolf’s bane, right?”

“Yes, I did, I expect you to also choose some others to go along with it.” She replied stiffly, her arms crossed against her chest defensively unconsciously pushing her chest up making you look away awkwardly; you hadn’t meant to look but it’s kind of hard when they’re right in your direct line of sight.

Humming your favourite tune, you made your way into the backroom where you kept a wide array of flowers, you picked up flowers as you walked past them knowing they go well with wolf’s bane. Thinking as you went along you began to reflect on many of you noble customers and how they believed that money solves all problems in such a stuck-up manner. But you knew not everyone was like that Leonidas was a prime example of a good person who had a fair amount of wealth. It was hard to come across those kinds of people, all you wanted was basic respect from people that’s all, it shouldn’t matter your place in society. You huffed as you made your way back into the front room where the woman was standing who was now staring at you again with that deep, intense stare. The stupid stare that felt like she was looking deep into your soul. It made you uncomfortable and if you were honest with yourself, you really didn’t like it even if this woman was one of the most beautiful people you had ever had the pleasure of laying your eyes on. You hoped this would be a onetime thing and that this woman wouldn’t come back again because not only was she unnerving but she was also extremely rude.

As you were arranging wrapping up the flowers, you decided to make this encounter a lot less awkward, “did you know that that wolf’s bane is scientifically known as Aconite, quite different isn’t it?” You didn’t even look up to observe the woman’s facial expression in favour of avoiding the icy stare she held.

“I did not know that, but I suppose you learn new things every day. What is your name, woman?” She asked, her voice almost emotionless but within your line of work you had become pretty good at sensing others’ emotions and could tell that she was amused by your attempt of conversation.

“I am Name.” You replied shortly not all that interested in this woman’s name especially as she has rudely referred to you as woman.

The woman continued to stare at you as if she were expecting the question back, “you know, Name, it is common courtesy to ask someone their name after they so kindly asked for yours first. My name is Alvara if you were wondering, Lady Alvara of the house Fox.”

“My apologies, Lady Fox, I simply forgot to ask you back, I hope you can forgive me.” However, despite your apology you were not sorry, you just wanted to be over with this transaction and say what you knew the woman wanted to hear. “I hope you like your bouquet, wolf's bane is fairly odd choice, but it is a rather beautiful flower. I must advise you to be careful with it though, if you come across any dogs or wolves as it can be extremely poisonous to them, and I really do not wish for any of them to die.”

“I know they are poisonous, but I must admit you have done a good job arranging them they look beautiful, thank you.” Her tone was rather blunt, but you appreciated the compliment none the less.

“Thank you, I am glad you like them!” Although you weren't overly fond of the woman, you didn’t think there was any harm in being nice to her, especially as it looked like Alvara planned on coming back, something you weren't particularly pleased with but maybe she would warm up to you the more you interacted…? Well, you sure hoped you would.

Alvara placed the money on the counter with a smile that seemed less forced, “Expect to see me back, Name.”

And with that she was gone.

❥ ❥ ❥

AFTER THAT DAY Alvara had stayed true to her words coming into your humble shop a couple of times a week, a lot of more often than you were expecting to be honest. Alvara had become a lot more comfortable with you, her stiffness disappearing and icy look her eyes melting to a look of joy and amusement when she came to get flowers. Although your first impressions of the tall women were not very pleasant, you found that you could tolerate and be kind to her and despite Alvara’s cold exterior she warmed up to you fairly quickly often entering your flower shop with a flourish and a genuine smile.

Brushing the hair from your eyes you began to sweep the leaves and flower stems to the side of your shop planning to pick it all up at the end of the day and with a reputation like your own, you had to keep the place looking at least half decent. People expected it of you considering the royal family often bought arrangements from you for their balls and important events, courtesy of Leonidas.

You walked back behind the counter cleaning up your workspace putting the ribbons back where they belonged and tidying up the brown paper you often used to wrap the bouquets up in. It began to creep closer to the end of day when you would finally close your shop and get some much needed rest. You stretched hearing your body crack in ways it probably shouldn’t, but you were broken from your momentary worry when the telltale sound of a bell resounded.

“Hello my dear Florist!” It was Alvara. You should’ve known, the pale almost sickly looking woman liked coming in at times when she knew you were quiet because she was impatient and didn’t like sharing you attention.

“Good evening Lady Fox, what are you here for today?” You replied without the usual pep in your tone trying to not let your fatigue show, you really didn’t want to deal with Alvara’s flirting tonight, actually you just didn’t want to deal with Alvara. Despite the fact that you had kind of gotten used to her, her presence was draining and there was still that lingering feeling of discomfort when you were around her.

Alvara frowned softly noticing the change in her favourite florist’s behaviour, “are you okay, Name? You better not have been working yourself too hard, you silly girl, I told you to take care of yourself.”

“Of course, I am okay, seriously my lady, I am fine. So please, do not worry about me.” You sighed forcing a sweet smile. “Now, what do you want?”

Nothing was said between them for a while with Alvara staring at you intently her frown deepening, she was not pleased by your response she could tell something was up and although she knew she should respect your boundaries she couldn’t find it within herself to care, the tall woman knew that she knew better, she’d been alive longer than her for starters. Alvara felt an intense need to protect you and she wanted to help you with your ailment, no matter how big or small, she didn’t even care if you wanted her help or not because she would find out either way. Alvara didn’t mind using force to get her way, she was a forceful woman after all, you had to be to get into the position she was in without any man by her side and still having all of the respect from the men around her. She was a powerful woman, and she knew it.

“I do not believe you, Name, you better tell me right now, or I will make you.” Her friendly disposition from earlier disappearing to reveal a hard unwavering stubborn expression, you sighed you knew Alvara wasn’t going to budge on her stance.

“Do you really want to know?” You did not want to talk to the noble woman about your true feelings but if it meant she would leave you alone then you supposed you could tell her.

She nodded staring at you with those firm icy eyes, you felt a shiver go down your spine not being able to bear looking into her uncomfortable gaze for another second.

“Please do not be angry with me for I am simply being honest with you." You took a deep breath preparing yourself for the worst, "I am confused by you, you are so hot and cold, one moment I cannot look you in the eyes because it feels as if you are looking straight through me with such a cold stare that I physically feel shivers run down my spine. Then the next moment you are sweet and, dare I say, happy and I am somewhat free to keep eye contact with you. You are so kind with me but with everyone else you treat them as if they are dirt below your shoes!” You exclaimed eyebrows furrowed and your face pinched in an expression of distress and confusion.

“I do not understand why you have decided to treat me any different. You have changed so drastically since that first day we met, you were so cold then, rude even! I just don’t understand the sudden attitude change.” You were quieter now no longer throwing your hands around violently to get your point across. You stared at your hands fiddling with the rings adorning them, you couldn't bare to look Alvara in the face after spilling all of your feelings to her.

Alvara continued to stare at the smaller woman before her running a hand through her long hair, “I see, you are confused by me, correct?”

You looked up with a bashful expression nodding softly, an expression that made Alvara’s heart do somersaults, she knew that if her heart could still beat it would be threatening to jump out of her chest.

“Well let me clear things up for you then, I like you a lot, Name, more than I should and I think you are an incredibly interesting and beautiful person, you have interested me, and my interest is no easy feat. My respect and kindness are not something I give out freely, you have to earn it and random people I come across do not deserve it simply because they have not proven to me that they do. I would also like to apologize for my stare I do not mean to be so cold, it must be a habit, I have to keep my reputation after all and as a woman as powerful as myself being kind doesn’t always help gain you respect from men. I like to scare them into submission.” She giggled explaining the reason for her cold stare, trying to lighten the rather gloomy mood.

You laughed hesitantly, “thank you for clearing that up for me, my lady.”

“I wish you would lighten up Name, I want for us to be friends, maybe even more in the future.” She smirked moving closer towards you , eyes flicking down to your lips.

Your face began to grow hot as your eyes widened, you were not expecting such a confession from Alvara, “Anyway! What kind of flowers do you want? That is the reason you are here, right?”

“Indeed, it is, dear, you can choose whatever you want, something that is easy for you to arrange.” She requested resting her cheek on her hand staring at you with eyes dripping in adoration.

You smiled turning around to the back room shutting the door behind you and pushing your back against the closed door, what the hell had just happened in there? You decided to take a breather closing your eyes for a few seconds before pushing yourself off of the door and towards were you kept your hyacinths, deciding on gathering a bunch of the purple ones, you loved hyacinths they were such beautiful flowers and looked just as pretty by themselves as they did with other flowers.

You had just about fit the bunch of flowers under one arm as you opened the door to the front room taking a deep breath and making your way over to the wrapping paper where you arranged them and tried to ignore Alvara’s piercing gaze blazing holes into your busied form. You hummed lightly trying to distract yourself as you wrapped up the flowers.

“Here you go, Lady Fox, I hope you like them, they are hyacinths in case you did not know.” You smiled softly hoping to shoo the woman out of your shop and get some much needed rest away from everyone.

“I love it Name, especially since you arranged it for me, they are beautiful.” She stated staring straight at you, it almost felt as if Alvara was complimenting you instead of the flowers she held in her arms.

You rounded the front desk until you were standing next to the pale woman, “I am glad, now I need to close up shop, so I will see you next time you come in to get some flowers.” Speaking to Alvara made you realize how short you were compared to the taller woman, your cheeks flushed again, goddamn your stupid brain, even though you found her unnerving you couldn’t look past how attracted to her you were. It was undeniable that Alvara was beautiful it was just a shame that she made you feel so uncomfortable, the kind of uncomfortable where you felt like Alvara was watching your every move. Like a predator stalking prey, it put you on edge.

You smiled at her trying shoo the woman towards the exit but Alvara was having none of simply standing in the doorway before looking down at you, her little florist, “I hope you know that I was completely honest with you earlier, I like you a lot, more than I should. I would also like you to know that I intend for us to become friends, you do not mind that, do you?”

The way Alvara spoke to you sent a shiver down your spine, the tone of voice she used was sickly sweet and even the way she asked to be friends with you felt predatory, it felt wrong and your gut instinct told you to shove her out of your shop and never speak to her again. Your brain screamed, RUN, RUN, RUN. But you couldn’t find it in yourself to do anything but nod and agree, it felt as if something awful would happen if you didn’t just go along with it and if you were honest, the fatigue was really getting to you and you just wanted to be rid of Alvara’s heavy presence.

“Good, I am glad we are on the same page. I will see you soon, Name. Make sure you take care of yourself.” She rested her hand on your cheek in an affectionate way that you had not really experienced before, it was when you started leaning into the touch that you realised how touch starved you must be to be comforted by the touch of someone who did the complete opposite.

You pulled away ushering her towards the outside world, “have a good evening, my lady.”

“You too, Name, call me by name next time, alright?” Alvara looked over shoulder and made her way out of your humble shop not even giving you a chance to reply.

Pushing down the urge to slam to door in relief, you took a deep breath to collect yourself before sweeping things up quickly and half arseing your usual cleaning routine.

By the time you got home you were practically dragging yourself to bed resisting the tantalizing temptation of sleeping on the floor, eventually you made your way to bed where you fell in a heap.

Finally, peace.

❥ ❥ ❥

ALTHOUGH YOU HAD to wake up early pretty much every morning, you would never get used to the blinding sun from your windows waking you up; it was something that you truly hated, often times wishing you could stay in bed but alas your shop couldn’t open itself. Pulling yourself from bed you began to get ready for the day, you slid on her dress and stretched yawning as you did so feeling the bones in her back crack as it always did, you mulled over the strange sounds your back made until there was a loud rap at the door of your cottage. You rushed over and opened your door with a sweet smile that you usually only pulled out at work.

“Hello Ma'am, I have an important announcement from the Royal Family regarding the Spring Equinox, would you like me to read it out to you?” He asked politely standing stiffly, he seemed slightly awkward as if it was his first time bringing letters to people especially ones from the Royal Family.

“No, it is quite alright, I can read it myself, thank you though!” You smiled softly bringing your hand out to retrieve the letter, he handed it to you with a smile clearly comforted by your simple kindness.

Closing your door you opened the letter carefully sliding out the fancy parchment paper reading the beautiful cursive writing:

To Name Lastname,

The Royal Family requests that you make the flower arrangements for the upcoming ball…

You skimmed over the rest of the letter, reading the requirements of what you were expected to prepare, thinking of the number of flowers you would need to order if you were to do this on time, placing the letter in your leather satchel you made quick work of your journey to your shop.

After opening up shop you busied yourself with orders and customers, wrapping up bouquets and arrangements until the door slammed open rather aggressively and there stood Leonidas in all his glory. He grinned at you with his signature smile looking as jovial as ever taking long strides towards where you were currently putting out pre-arranged flowers.   

“Good morning my dear Name!” He greeted, you always wondered how he was always such a pleasant person with a personality like sunshine incarnate and whilst you knew him as being an extremely bubbly and excitable man others knew him as the picture perfect prince of the Iridesiah. He was loved by everyone, nobles and working class people alike, he treated everyone with the same level of respect and that in return earned them his respect.

“Good morning to you too Leonidas, anything you were looking for in particular?” You asked politely continuing with putting out the pre-arranged bouquets.

“Oh, nothing much really,” he replied nonchalantly, “do you want some help with that?” Although he’d asked Leonidas had already started picking up the arrangements casually walking over to the right places.

You sighed shaking your head, “you really should not be helping, you are a prince you should not be doing work like this.”

The dark haired prince laughed looking back at you, “this is not even hard labour, it is literally nothing and besides it is not like you are forcing me to do anything, I enjoy helping you out.” The bright coloured bouquets were put onto display carefully as to not mess up the arrangement, you were quite the perfectionist after all.

Leonidas stared at you for a moment as you were focused on making everything perfect, he knew how hard you had worked to keep the reputation of the shop as high as it was and by just looking at your concentrated face, he remembered what he came to tell you.

“Name, I remembered what I wanted to tell you.” He blurted out, cursing himself for it he was a prince for Christ’s sake he should be used to talking by now.

Looking over at him with a relaxed expression, you smiled as if asking him to continue what he was going to say, it was a soft smile that seemed so genuine and free quite unlike the fake smiles he was surrounded with on a day to day basis. It was a nice change, a welcomed change.

“Ah yes well, you probably received the letter this morning if I am correct, but I wanted to personally invite you to the Equinox Ball. I just feel that since you are making the arrangements you should come and you are my friend after all, so I would very much appreciate it if you were there.” He rambled, words just kept tumbling from his tongue and he wasn’t quite sure why, maybe he was nervous? That’s what he assumed it was, but he found it rather strange that a human was making him feel this way, but he brushed it off simply choosing to smile bashfully at you instead.

Your mouth fell open into a soft ‘o’ shape, you would’ve dropped the flowers if it weren’t for Leonidas who caught them quickly before they hit the ground, you took a second to compose yourself blinking blankly for a few seconds.

“Oh dear! I am ever so sorry about this!” You exclaimed, a flustered look on your face avoiding eye contact with the prince in front you, “I was just very shocked that you invited me, I did not realize commoners were allowed to attend.”

He chuckled at your flustered countenance, “well there is an exception for you.”

“Me?” He laughed at your response and the incredulous expression that indicated how very confused by his actions you were, which greatly amused the young prince.

“Yes, you, and before you start worrying about what you are going to wear and such, I have already arranged it for you, I want you to enjoy yourself whilst you are there and not worry what you look like.” He reassured sending you that famous smile that brought men and women alike to their knees.

“You may even find a partner.” He teased subtly his smile changing to a stupid goofy grin, one that never failed to make you laugh. You tilted your head at him trying to scold him quietly with an unimpressed expression but failed miserably after falling into a fit of giggles.

Still laughing you grinned at him with an equally goofy smile, “you know I’m not interested in finding a partner just yet, my shop is my priority.”

His smile grew softer, he knew that your answer to the question of finding a partner has always been that your shop was your priority but at least he knew you would be attending the ball. Leonidas was just glad you had agreed and whilst you may not believe it, he treasured your friendship greatly.

“It seems my time is up Name, if I do not go back soon, they will send a search party out for me and I am not sure if I want to deal with that today. I also wanted to mention that when you bring the flowers to the place on the morning of the Equinox, I will meet you at the front and personally take you to the room you will be staying in. So, make sure to pack a bag of things you think you will need, is that okay?” He asked, he knew you would panic if he didn’t tell you what was going to happen, you liked being able to plan.

You nodded excitedly a huge grin stuck to your pretty face, “thank you so much! I cannot wait!”

With that he gave a parting smile and made his way out of your shop with a ding.

❥ ❥ ❥

IT WAS FINALLY the day; the day of the Spring Equinox Ball and you weren't quite sure if you were terrified or excited perhaps it was a bit of both. You had packaged up all of the arrangements the day before ready to be loaded onto a cart you’d borrowed from your kind neighbour; you liked to be prepared in situations like this so you'd already sent some of the larger pieces off since they were a bit trickier to transport.

As you readied to leave you picked up your trust leather satchel filled with everything you might possibly need. You began to think of what kind of dress Leonidas had decided on and yet you weren't worried, you knew you would love it especially because he’d picked it out. He had pretty good style he was a prince after all, so she trusted him on that front especially considering the fact she knew that he often helped his sister pick dresses for ball's quite like this. You had learned a lot about him that day, you smiled thinking back on it seeing how far your friendship had come since the day you first met when you hid him in your shop away from prying eyes.

It didn’t take long for you to reach your shop where your neighbour was already waiting outside sitting atop his cart accompanied by his two horses, “Good morning, young lady!”

“Good morning Henry! Thank you for agreeing to help me transport this all to the palace, I know it is quite a big job, so I apologize in advance.” You said bashfully turning towards the shop where you unlocked the multiple locks on the door.

“It is no problem at all! In fact, I would say it is an honour, it is not every day a man gets to say he went to the royal palace!” He exclaimed ruffling his hair as if it were nervous reaction before putting his cap back on.

You smiled in response as he jumped off the cart seat and walked towards you as you both began loading the boxes carefully onto the back of the cart until there was nothing left, securing the cart safely as you did so. Before you departed you made sure to add a quick sign to the window stating that the shop would not be open for the next two days, you hopped back onto the cart and went on your merry way through town chatting pleasantly with Henry.

It was safe to say that the palace was a particularly splendid sight one that never failed to amaze you no matter how many times you saw it, you especially liked the woods that surrounded it, to you, it only added to its mystical charm.

Once you had arrived the footmen began unloading the boxes, “please be careful with them, they are rather fragile!” You warned.

They simply smiled at you, “we know, my lady.”

You felt yourself stiffen in embarrassment, you weren't used to being referred as ‘my lady’, you could hear Leonidas laughing at. He walked down the stairs with the air of elegance and regality, “thank you, Henry for helping Name get here, it is greatly appreciated.”

Henry blushed a bright red and avoided the gaze of the prince, “why thank you, your highness! I- I will be on my way!” He spluttered, still reeling from shock at the fact that the Prince of Iridesiah knew his name.

Leonidas turned his gaze back to you, throwing a teasing smile your way, “you are early, my lady.”

You glared at your friend trying to mask the fact that you were embarrassed and yet failing miserably, “a lady must always be prepared.” You countered with a sarcastic smile.

He laughed jovially at your quick quip, “come on now I am sure you are wondering where your room is and what you will be wearing, I can assure you that you will be the bell of the ball. My younger sister even helped me pick out your dress, I believe she has come by your shop a few times in disguise, she’s dramatic like that.”

“She has come to my shop before??” You asked in disbelief, how had you not recognized her, one of the most beautiful and intelligent women in all of Iridesiah.

“How on earth did I not notice?”

Leonidas turned to you with an amused smile, “did you forget, my sister is as smart as she is beautiful.”

And with that the Prince turned on his heel beckoning you to follow him up the grand marble staircase of the palace, you’d never actually been this far inside of the palace, and you found yourself awestruck at the beauty and artistry of its architecture. The paintings depicting scenes from famous battles and monumental moments in history, it was stunning, and knowing you had the luxury to be in the vicinity of artwork that would surely be known throughout history was truly a delight. It shocked you how stunning the artwork was on the ceiling, on the ceiling of all places! You supposed it was to showcase their riches being able to put something in such a place as the ceiling, a strange thing to do you thought. The candelabras holding the soft yellowy light only helped add to the mystical, expensive atmosphere, you didn't think you would ever get used to being in such an expensive place.

“Are you coming, Name? we don’t have all day.” You were broken form your stupor by the unmistaken teasing voice of Leonidas.

“Ah, terribly sorry!” You apologized picking up your skirt and running up the stairs to catch up to your friend.

The two of you walked side by side down the hallways with the soft light of the candelabras to guide the way until you finally made it to your destination.

Leonidas opened the door and gestured for you to walk in, “so this is room where you will be staying the night and this lovely lady right here is Tiana, she will be helping with your hair and makeup to get ready for the ball. One of the footmen who you have met before, his name is Tom if I remember correctly, will be escorting you and showing you the way to the ball. I look forward to seeing you in that dress, try to enjoy yourself tonight.”

“Thank you, Leo, I really appreciate you doing this for me.” You thanked sending him a sincere smile.

With his hand on the door, he turned to look at your smaller form, “you need not thank me, it is what friends are for, is it not?” You did not even get the chance to reply for he had already left the room and disappeared into the confusing corridors.

With a huff you turned to Tiana with a smile, “I suppose we should get to know each other, I am Name, but you probably already knew that.” You ended with a light frown realizing your mistake in introducing yourself.

Tiana chuckled lightly, “yes, I did already know that my lady, but it is nice for you to introduce yourself regardless. Anyway, it is probably smart if we start getting you ready, I have prepared you a bath. Do you need any assistance?”

“No thank you, it is quite alright, I will be quick!” You smiled before being ushered into the bathroom where you closed the door and began to strip off your garments and dipped into the warm water of the bath letting out a sigh as you felt your tense muscles relax. Although the feeling of the warm water cascading down your back and hair was soothing, you knew you couldn’t enjoy it for any longer than necessary; you had to get ready after all and lord knows how long that would take.

You wrapped yourself in a fluffy towel and started to rummage around in your bag to find your undergarments before making your way out of the large bathroom and into the main room to find Tiana setting up hair products and makeup on the vanity.

The small woman’s head popped up as she heard the door open with a smile, “perfect, you came out just in time! Take a seat, let us get started on your hair, is there anything you want in particular?”

“No, do whatever you want, I am sure it will look amazing.” A huge smile grew on Tiana’s face as she clapped her hands excitedly and went to find the products, she needed to make this transformation possible. She began by adding many different products to her hair that you had never even head of and styled and dried your hair into a style she thought appropriate.

Tiana smiled as she looked at her handywork before starting on your makeup, she gathered her brushes as she brushed some kind of skin coloured liquid underneath your eyes and atop other imperfections you may or may not have had, blending it in until it looked like flawless skin. She picked up various other tools ranging in sizes colours and shape and began to paint with you as her blank canvas. Tiana added the finished touches and took a step back to admire her hard work.

“You look absolutely stunning my lady, you actually look like a fairy with this ethereal look you have going on.” She praised holding her cheeks as she stared at her handywork.

You stared at the person staring back at you in the mirror, gingerly touching your face noticing your skin glowing and eyelashes longer and darker, your eyebrows more tamed and shaped, and the glossy colour on your lips.

“Thank you so much Tiana! I look like a new woman, a beautiful one at that!” You exclaimed, smiling brightly at the blushing maid.

“Oh, I haven’t done much my lady, I just enhanced the beauty that was already there.” She stated smiling back, staring into the captivating eyes of the woman before her, Tiana quickly turned on her feet to open the closet door across the room. “Ah let us not dilly dally any longer and get you into this beautiful dress, I am sure you are just itching to see it!”

The closet doors swung open to reveal a gorgeous flowy peach coloured dress, Tiana gathered the fabric in her arms as she made her way over the vanity where you stood, “shall we get you into this dress then? I must admit I cannot wait to see you in it.”

You looked away in embarrassment at such an honest compliment and allowed her to help you put on the garment. When you were all fitted into the dress you looked into the mirror in awe as you saw how the fabric draped and fell perfectly over your body, it was elegant and beautiful something fit for a princess or at least someone with too much money to spare. It fit like a glove, and you weren't sure if you’d ever felt so beautiful in your entire life. You looked like an ethereal being with the way the tulle like fabric fell from the bodice and sleeves of her arms to meet at her wrists. Her hands smoothed over the bodice enjoying the feeling of the fabric beneath her fingertips and the texture of the flower embroidery spanning the bodice.

The two of you stood in awe until Tiana broke the silence, “oh my goodness me! You look absolutely stunning; dare I say like a goddess! You are surely going to steal the show tonight, my lady, there is no doubt you will be the bell of the ball. The royal siblings did a great job in picking out this dress.”

There was a pause before Tiana realised that she had been rambling as a blush rose to her cheeks, “a-anyway! We have to add the finishing touches before Tom gets here, you cannot be late!”

She hurried around the room picking up miscellaneous items and presenting them to you and asking you whether you liked them or not until you ended up deciding on a simple pearl choker necklace with matching earrings and some simple heeled shoes.

There was a knock at the door to reveal the tall footman, Tom, “good evening my lady, my name is Tom, and I am to be escorting you to the ball.”

Just as you were about to leave Tiana shouted at you to stop as she ran over to you with a beautiful flower crown with soft coloured carnations and hydrangeas to match the dress and a ribbon keeping it all attached.

“This will look beautiful on you my lady, may I put it on for you?” She asked with a sheepish smile.

“Of course, Tiana, I just wanted to say thank you for making me look so beautiful I really appreciate it.” You thanked with grateful smile to which the smaller woman placed the crown atop your head, careful not mess up her previous handy work before standing back with a pleased smile.

“Perfect! Listen to the Prince's words, try to enjoy yourself.” You thanked Tiana again as you turned away to follow her escort.

He offered his arm and off they went down the corridor towards the music and loud chatter, you just hoped you were prepared enough for the onslaught of rich nobles and royal families.

❥ ❥ ❥

YOU HAD NEVER been this nervous in your life, you felt like a baby deer on ice trying not to lose your footing not to mention the fact that you weren't used to walking in shoes like the ones you had been given. Your fists clenched into the fabric of Tom’s jacket in a way of grounding yourself; you’d never been to any ball as extravagant as this one, it was expensive, it was fancy, and it was full of important people. Important people that could ruin your life if you even so much as spoke to them wrong. You had no idea how you were supposed to act, you'd never had any sort of etiquette lessons, and you’d never needed them either! All you had going for you was that you might look the part and that hopefully you could just get away with just standing in a corner by yourself, preferably a corner where the food was, without having to interact with anyone whom you might offend.

“My Lady, are you feeling alright? You look quite nervous, is there anything I can do to help?” Came the comforting voice of the man accompanying you.

“Ah, thank you for asking but I am just nervous, I worry about offending people and not being fancy enough for everyone around here, they all have so much money and I am just a florist. I do not know how I am supposed to act, and it just makes me a bit nervous is all, I am not even quite sure why I agreed to come here anyway, it is not really my kind of thing. But I am here, and I might as well get on with it.” She rambled clenching and unclenching her fist in Tom’s jacket, gesturing wildly with her free arm ending with a sigh.

He stopped in front of the massive door leading to the ballroom and turned you to face him, “I understand you are nervous, my lady but, you must not worry so much, not all of the nobles and the rich who are attending this ball are crazy and obsessed with etiquette, some of them are rather humble people. You should just be yourself; you are a beautiful woman with an excellent personality to match, they will like you I can assure you of that, just flash them that smile of yours and you should be fine.”

You looked up at him with a big smile, his impromptu speech had comforted you immensely, you threw your arms around him and hugged him, “thank you so much Tom! You are ever so kind, thank you again for making me feel better I really do appreciate it, hopefully after tonight I will see you some time soon. You could come to my flower shop, bouquets and plants would be on the house.”

He laughed at your sudden change of energy, “I will take you up on your offer, my lady, now let us get going as I am sure you do not want to be late.”

With that the massive mahogany doors were pushed open to reveal the ballroom packed with people wither dancing or chattering away. Name was blown away everyone looked amazing, the women wearing dresses of beautiful bright colours and that fit them in a way that showed of all of their assets; the men looking smart and sophisticated in their suits and formal wear. Everyone was dressed differently, and they all looked absolutely stunning, Name couldn’t help but feel slightly self-conscious but reminded herself, fake it till you make it.

Tom’s breath was warm on your ear as he whispered his parting words, “this is where we part ways, my lady, I will around if you need me. Enjoy yourself.”

It wasn’t long before you were alone again, trying not to look too out of place as you stood rather awkwardly in the corner of the room, so much for being sociable. You leaned against the wall and observed everyone around her, they were all clearly having fun and wore expensive clothes but what did you expect they were all nobles. You shook your head, you needed to stop being so judgmental, besides you were also wearing expensive clothes, you might even be able to fit in considering the garment you were wearing. However, there was one thing you noticed, nobody was really wearing any light pale colours like yourself, the room was filled with brightly coloured fabrics and fabrics so dark they rivalled even the darkest of nights. Nothing like anything you were wearing, you cursed Leonidas for making you stand out, you supposed it must be so he could easily spot you.

At that point you were in a world of her own and although you were looking at your surroundings, you weren't at all focused on it until you were broken from your panicked thoughts by a honeyed voice you knew all too well, Alvara.

“What a surprise seeing you here my dear, I did not realise they invited people who are not of noble stature.” You did not mean to stare but in that moment Alvara radiated power and beauty in fact she was the epitome of it, and you were completely and utterly mesmerised. Her dress was jet black and contrasted against her pale almost white looking skin, the dress was floor length and fit her body like a glove, the deep V of the dress was bold maybe even scandalous, but she was Alvara Fox, and she could do whatever she wanted. Decorating her neck was an intricate gold choker with smaller chains attached to it falling from her neck and across her shoulder and collarbone to attach to the gold shoulder pads giving her a more structed look. She looked powerful, strong, confident and although you hated to admit it, you found her extremely attractive in that moment.

“What is with all of this staring my love? Do you like what you see?” She teased hoping to see that face you always made when you got flustered.

“I- uh, I deeply apologise my lady! I did not mean to star you just look... really nice tonight.” You hoped you did not sound as bashful as you felt and avoided eye contact with the stunning woman stood before you.

Alvara let out a loud laugh, a brilliant smile gracing her perfect face, “you are simply adorable! I am glad you think I look nice; I happen to think you look ravishing.”

You felt your face grow hot as you tried not to let your flustered expression show, “uh, I think I just heard somebody say my name, I will- I will speak to you later.”

You quickly turned on your heel and sped away trying to avoid any more conversations with your beautiful but pesky customer, all you wanted to do was eat and be ignored the entire time, but Alvara had different plans as she gripped your wrist in a tight grip pulling you back, so you fell into her cold embrace.  

“Whoever is calling your name can wait. I am much more important than they are besides, I thought I told you to refer to me as Alvara, especially if we are to be lovers one day.” At this declaration your mouth fell open into an ‘o’ shape not expecting such a bold statement even if you probably should have seen it coming considering the last conversation you had with the infamous Alvara Fox.

“Lovers? “You spluttered, “but I have never agreed to such a thing-!”

A slender finger was placed upon your lips silencing her, “you do not have to agree to anything, my love, we will be lovers one day. Mark my words. Why should we wait, I am a rather impatient woman and you of all people should know, be mine?”

You looked up at the taller woman and saw the twisted adoration in her eyes, those beautiful soulless eyes holding only an iciness that sent shivers down your spine, everything was telling you to say no, to reject this woman. Despite the love, or some sick version of it, that her eyes displayed you knew something was not right, something was very inhuman about Alvara and quite frankly, it scared you. You had come to the conclusion that realised that although you found her attractive you knew a relationship with her would never work because you would always feel like the prey and her the predator.  

Name diverted her eyes hating the eye contact she had just been subjected to before taking a deep breath and pushing herself out of the strangely cold woman’s embrace, “I am terribly sorry My Lady, but I cannot except your offer. I am not looking for any sort of relationship in that sense, I want to focus on my shop and my career, hopefully you will understand.” As she turned away from Alvara she grabbed her wrist once again eyes swirling with determination and annoyance holding an expression which struck fear into Name’s heart.

“I thought I told you to call me Alvara.”

“I apologise, but no I will not. You are my customer, and we will have a professional relationship, now if you don’t mind, I’m going to eat some cake.” You smiled politely shaking your wrist out of Alvara’s firm grasp and walking away confidently feeling very proud for finally standing up for yourself.

Holding a fancy plate of cake and a fork in your other hand, you escaped to the massive windows overlooking a beautiful landscape that you knew was there but couldn’t see because of the darkness that had prevailed. Yet despite not being able to see much you continued to stare out the window eating your cake imagining what could be there completely lost in thought, you placed the now empty plate on a nearby table and went back to your previous station situated at the windows. You were playing with the sleeve of your dress staring out into the dark abyss when a horrible feeling washed over you, like something absolutely awful was going to happen, you suddenly regretted eating all that cake as found yourself unable to pull yourself away from the window until you saw something, something awfully similar to a pair of red eyes…

And, in that moment, all chaos broke loose.

A piercing scream escaped your throat as the massive windows shattered by the brute force of something crashing through it, the glass left cuts all over your exposed skin as you lay in a heap.

People were screaming, shouting, doing anything they could to get out of the room safely. You lay there in a daze as you wondered if those really were red eyes you saw until you felt a crushing weight atop of you, your eyes lazily blinked open to see a man… or what you thought was a man grinning down at her with a sleazy look on his face.

“You smell reaaaal nice, I could just eat you up!” You stared at him in horror as he laughed like he’d made a hilarious joke, and it was in that moment that you realised his eyes were red and not a figment of her imagination.

“What- what are you?”

“Your worst nightmare, sweetheart.” He continued to laugh as you began to struggle in his unmoving grip, panic tightening like a noose around your throat, “no use in struggling, you are going to die anyway, angelface.” He continued to laugh maniacally as he leaned down to nose around your neck as if he were looking for something.

Tears began to fill your eyes as you continued to fruitlessly struggle until there was a blinding pain in your neck, you screamed once again this time filled with pure agonising pain. It felt like he was tearing at your neck and draining all the blood and energy from your body. You writhed in pain it was the kind of pain that was searing hot and although it was in one spot, you could feel it in your entire body, it was unbearable. You screamed as much as your voice would allow, fighting back as much as you could, trying to rid the burning sensation, scratching and clawing at anything you could. You could feel yourself growing weak, and you knew you didn’t have much time left. But if one thing was for sure, it was that you were not a quitter, and you weren't going to go down without a fight.

Just when you thought your time had come the crushing weight of the man on top of you was lifted off. You cracked open your eyes to see Alvara, she looked positively feral snarling at the man.

Everything was fuzzy and you couldn’t comprehend what was happening with everything sounding like it was underwater, the pain in your neck had become a dull ache at this point. You were trying so hard to keep your eyes open, but everything hurt, everything was just too much.

“Name!” a familiar voice shouted, “Name do not dare close your eyes, okay? Eyes on me.” He sounded desperate and you opened your eyes again to see Leonidas to which you smiled to the best of your abilities, but it probably looked more like a grimace.

You moved a shaky hand to touch the wound at your neck but was stopped by your friend, “don’t touch it, you’ll make it worse.” You knew he said something afterwards, but you couldn’t hear it. Your eyes began to close as the cold grasping at your mind whispered for you to welcome the darkness as you heard distant shouts for you to open your eyes.

Leonidas swore as he saw the damage done to you, blood was everywhere, it still wet all over your neck and shoulders. It took all of his strength to not to lap up the blood on your neck, but he has self-control unlike those other vampires who didn’t even deserve the title of vampire. He breathed in heavily trying to keep his composure as he gathered your limp body in his strong arms not even bothering to check on anyone else as he ran out of the room taking you to safety, he just hoped he had gotten there in time.

Meanwhile, Alvara was torturing the man who had dared lay a finger on her future wife, she was straddling the man punching at his face again and again blood painting her fist a beautiful shade of red, leaving the man a bloody mess and yet he continued to laugh.

“You sure are a feral one.” He continued to laugh coughing up blood as he did so.

“If you think this is feral you haven’t seen anything yet, you may think I am going to kill you but no, I will keep you alive and bring to you to the cusp of death just to do it all over again." she laughed humorously not breaking eye contact with the man below her.

"I am going to remove your teeth one by one, cut every inch of body. I'm going to burn your fucking flesh off I might even cut your tongue off. And that is not even beginning to scrape the surface of what I am going to do you.” She snarled; her eyes wild showing the true meaning of feral. He stared at her his laughter stopping as he truly understood what kind of situation he was in, he messed with the wrong vampire, and he would pay for it with his life.

❥ ❥ ❥

PAIN. BLINDING PAIN. Why did everything hurt so much, why was everything so overwhelming? Opening your eyes hurt, everything was so bright, it was as if your eyesight had miraculously improved to a scary degree. There was a strong flowery scent wafting through the air, it made you cough and your eyes water, why was it so strong and why was it affecting you so much? Something was very, very wrong and you could hardly remember what had happened the previous night not to mention the fact that you were in a bed that you had never seen before.

What the hell happened last night?

With all these questions and the fogginess in your brain, you pushed your weak body up into a sitting position instantly feeling a pain in your shoulder and neck. You hadn’t realised how weak you felt until your hand was shakily reaching for the junction between your shoulder and neck, there was a thick gauzy bandage over the area and just ghosting your fingers over it hurt like hell.

“Name?”

Your head shot up at the sound of your name, it was Leonidas, you instantly relaxed and a soft smile found its way to your face.

The prince rushed towards you checking over your entire body in a frantic frenzy, “you should not be sitting up, Name, you lost a lot of blood last night.” He pushed you back gently, so she rested against the mass of pillows behind her, a soft frown marring his usual smiley exterior.

“Yes… what happened last night Leon? I can hardly remember a thing; my brain is just so foggy.” You rubbed at your head hoping it would help you remember something, anything, but all it did was trigger a shock of pain through your shoulder.

He looked sad, terribly, terribly sad.

“I am not sure if you are ready to hear it.” He said solemnly.

“I want to know, Leon, please just tell me. I will only worry more if I have no idea what happened to me.”

He avoided eye contact looking at everything in the room but you as if he was mentally preparing himself for what he was about to explain, it made you worry even more seeing your usually composed friend look so anxious making your mind wander to the worst possible case scenario.

Leonidas took a deep breath and finally looked at you, “Okay, what I am about to tell you is going to sound absolutely insane, but you have to hear me out, do you understand?” You looked at him intently and nodded.

“Well starting off with what happened last night, you were attacked which I am sure is quite obvious, but you were attacked by a group of individuals who…” he paused for a moment as if trying to think of what to say next, “disagree with the crown and my family. Which I suppose does not explain much but I promise I will get there.”

He adjusted himself and sat closer to you and it was in that moment that you knew he was going to get to the crazy part of the situation in which he feared the kind of reaction you might have.

“I am sure you have heard of vampires before and how they are nothing but stories to keep children from going out late at night. But to put it bluntly, vampires are not just a myth or a story, they are real beings that live among us in society.”

“Are you serious? You have got to be joking, how would I not know about this if it is even true that is, I mean surely you are just messing with me, right… right?” Your words coming out of your mouth in a rapid pace, voice trembling as you looked at your friend with wide eyes full of even more questions at this massive revelation that you didn’t even entirely believe.

Leonidas took a deep breath looking at you with pity for he knew this was hard to believe,

“Sadly, I am not joking, I wish I was but, Vampires have been around for a very long time well before you and me. They helped create the system we live in today and to keep the humans who live in and around the towns safe from other creatures that wish them harm. The Royal family are the oldest vampire family in all of Iridesiah and we were tasked with taking care of our fellow vampire and human counterparts thousands and thousands of years ago. What I am saying is that I am a vampire, my entire family are, as well as pretty much the entire court. Which I know must sound crazy and a lot to take in and I sincerely apologize that this has happened to you Name, all I wanted was for you to live your life in peace without knowing.”

You gaped at your friend processing all of the information you had just been given, it was almost too much for your scrambled brain, “so you are a vampire? What- what about the people that attacked me, are they humans, vampires or whatever else they possibly could be?”

“Yes, I am a vampire and the man from that group who attacked you was also a vampire, we call his specific type a rogue as they don’t believe in protecting humans and think that the monarchy should be abolished so they can take over in our place.” He explained.

“I was bitten by that- that rogue...? Does that- does that mean I am going to become a vampire?” Tears welled up in your eyes threatening to fall down your face, what did this mean for you and your flower shop?

Leonidas put his hand atop your own and directed a soft look your way, “you were bitten by the rogue, yes, but we are not sure whether you will turn yet or not, your case is different to anything we have ever seen before and even our best doctors are not quite sure what is happening. I know must be horrible to hear but you are in good hands I can assure you and I will be here every step of the way; I promise.”

At his words the dam holding your tears back finally broke as your body shook with soul wrenching sobs, to which Leonidas immediately got up from his position beside your bed and pulled you into his embrace letting you cry it out.

❥ ❥ ❥

THEY STILL DIDN’T know what actually happened to you, just that you weren’t a vampire, but that you weren’t a human either. They ended up deciding that you were a hybrid of vampire and human where whilst you did need blood to survive, you didn’t have to rely on it and could eat normal food and gain nutrients from it unlike actual vampires.

Lost in your own thoughts arranging flowers and unpacking supplies you hadn’t even noticed a new presence in the shop.

“Hello there, darling Name.”

You nearly jumped out of your skin at the sensual voice you knew all too well, “Alvara! Oh, my goodness, you scared the life out of me.” You placed your hand on your chest hoping to calm your racing heart, you huffed trying to fix your frazzled composure.

“So, what exactly brings you here? Flowers or just companionship?” You teased, hand on hip as you sent a smile Alvara’s way.

She looked a bit thrown by the teasing of your usually flustered self, but she quickly caught her composure and smirked back, “since when did you get so flirtatious, my darling? I like it.” The sensual tone and intense gaze made you immediately melt, you turned away quickly pressing your cool hands against your face hoping to cool it down.

Alvara let out a melodious giggle at her darling’s reaction, “but to answer your previous question, I am here for a bit of both, I require some colourful flowers, I trust you to pick out something nice. Besides I have missed our little conversations and more importantly, I have missed you.”

“Oh, that is rather sweet of you to say, uh yes…” You lost your train of thought as you got lost in Alvara’s icy blue eyes and although they unnerved you to an alarming extent, you couldn’t deny how beautiful they were or how there was such an intense pull to her like a moth to a flame.

You snapped back into your thoughts with a shake of your head “anyway! I suppose I should get those flowers for you then.”

Although you tried not to act awkward and flustered Alvara just seemed bring it out of you whenever she opened her pretty pink lips. Why did this woman have such a hold over you, but why did she also scare you? You wondered what it was about Alvara that made you feel this way. You took a deep breath and tried to focus on choosing the perfect set of flowers humming as you walked about the back of the store picking and choosing things as you did, creating an image of how you were going to arrange them in your head.

You came back into the front room trying to avoid eye contact with Alvara for the time being, giving yourself a mental pep talk as you arranged and tied them all up. You huffed proudly looking at your handywork before picking it up and finally looking up to see the amused smirk of Alvara.

“I hope it’s colourful enough for you, I added all of my favourites, so I do hope you like it.” You rambled out with a bashful smile painted across your face.

Alvara leaned forward, so that her hands were pressed up upon the bench that separated them not breaking eye contact for a second. “You really are the cutest little thing I have ever had the pleasure of setting eyes on, my dear Name.” You stood there stiffly, not being able to break your gaze from that intense stare of the vampire in front of you, trying to stutter out a curt and hopefully not awkward thank you.

Alvara finally broke the eye contact with an amused shake of her head, stepping away from the counter and finally allowing you to breathe again.

“I have a proposal; one I have made before but that is beside the point. I do hope that you agree to it, for your sake and mine.” The underlying threat sent a shiver down your spine the kind of shiver that reminded you of the time you first met, goosebumps rose upon your skin as Alvara made slow purposeful steps towards you. “I am sure that you have noticed my fondness for you, my darling, I believe I have made it quite obvious and although I do realize that you have rejected me before I am not the kind of woman who takes no for an answer especially when it concerns something that I want. So, I would like to propose the idea of you being mine. Which I know is quite blunt, but you see, I have been alone for a very long time, most of my existence in fact and whilst I have chosen the life of solitude I long for a partner whom I can spend the rest of my life with.”

You wanted to move, to get away, but your limbs would not comply, it was as if Alvara’s icy cold stare had you frozen, the anticipation of the woman approaching you had the hair on the back of your neck rising. It wasn’t long before you were face to face, closer than you would’ve liked. Alvara smiled as she laid her cold hand atop your face stroking it in such a loving way it startled you.

“I know that you are aware of my power within the kingdom and that I am a ruthless woman but do not let that scare you, my darling, because I can assure you that I would be the most generous lover, a lover who would protect and treasure you, treat you exactly how deserve to be treated. So, I ask you again, be mine?” Her voice held such a sense of power and conviction that it made you want to agree, but you were hesitant, something was telling you that something was not quite right here, as it always had. There was a danger, a warning, in her words. It was possessive and quite frankly terrifying, a feeling that you often felt around the ice-cold woman, nothing of a warmth and security that you associated with love.

The fear snapped you out of your frozen stupor as you pulled Alvara’s hand off of your cheek and took a step back, creating a much-needed distance between them. “I am terribly sorry, Alvara, but I just cannot accept your invitation. You are a lovely woman, and anyone would be lucky to have you as a partner, but I am not your person, I am not your future lover. I have told you before that I am not interested and, sadly, that has not changed. I am simply just not interested in any kind of relationship; my flower shop means too much to me and I would much rather focus on that. I hope you understand, but I think you need to leave now.”

A dark shadow fell across the woman’s face, your blood went cold as you saw the change of expression and suddenly you felt that you were in great danger.

“You really are a funny one, Name, you really think that you can say no to me, I told you I do not take no for an answer. You will accept me because if I can’t have you no one can.” Her voice was level and calm, but it did not hide the cold anger it held as she closed the distance between you.  “That little speech of yours will not deter me, my love, I always get what I want.” Alvara tugged you closer to her as a strong arm curled around your waist and a hand gripping the back of your neck as she pulled her darling into an aggressive yet passionate kiss. You tried in vain to pull away from the bruising kiss, but Alvara would not budge instead deepening the kiss much to your dismay biting the lips of your aggressor in hopes of pulling the leech off of you.

Alvara pulled away, blood smeared on her bottom lip as she laughed cruelly, “you really are full of surprises, oh god I love it when you squirm in my arms.” She giggled intensely as she licked away the blood on her lips keeping that dreaded eye contact with the object of her twisted affections.

“Get out of my fucking shop.” You heaved, huffing with unrestrained anger.

She put her hands up in mock surrender, “now, now, darling, I think you should take a deep breath.”

“Shut up, just shut up.”

“Mm, I like this feisty side of you, Name.” She purred, starting to take a step closer to but you decided enough was enough and armed yourself with a sturdy wooden bat.

“I will not say it again, get out of my fucking shop.” Your voice was hard and red hot with anger.

Alvara hung her head and chuckled quietly, “I will leave but only because you asked me so nicely.”

You did not reply instead choosing to stare the vampire down, not putting your weapon down until Alvara had left and that you were sure you were safe. The wooden bat fell to the ground with loud clutter as the dams broke and loud sobs fell from your lips, you covered your mouth and cried and cried. Emotions of anger, fear and disgust clouding your mind. You found yourself curled on the floor hugging your body close in a way to comfort your broken psyche, you really should’ve listened to yourself when you thought that Alvara was bad news, but it was too late now.

❥ ❥ ❥

THAT DAY WAS only the start of your personal hell. After what felt like years of torment from a particularly icy woman you had decided to move away from Iridesiah and although Leonidas had told you he could protect you, you both knew that Alvara was a powerful woman, she had said so herself, and that she would not go down so easily.

You had taken to moving around every 10 years or so which in grand scheme of how long a vampire lives for, is a very short of time. All you wanted was a simple peaceful life where you could have a flower shop quite like the one, you had before all of this madness, and so the cycle of running and hiding began.

It was starting to become tiring this whole running thing, you had no place to call home, no constant in your life because of that god forsaken woman. Yet despite this you always managed to get away, again and again, you slipped through the cracks. Although you were constantly being hunted, long ago you had decided that you wouldn’t let that stop you from doing what you wanted and going where you wanted. You were your own person, and you wouldn’t let Alvara dictate her life, not now and hopefully not ever.

Looking out the window, you observed the miles and miles of lush green that surrounded your temporary abode, it was most certainly your favourite place you’d ever lived, surrounded by nature and flowers was where you belonged. Sure, you missed the company of others, but you couldn’t have any sort of partner, platonic or not, for you did not want to subject them to this life, a life where their every waking moment could be their last. You’d learnt that the hard way, when Alvara said if she couldn’t have you no one could, she sure as hell meant it.

You sipped from your mug of piping hot tea curling up into a ball as you thought about the past, about the woman who claimed to love you.

It had been a long time since you’d been around so many people, it was a slightly odd feeling but one that you found that you’d missed. The loud chatter of people all around you was comforting, you were truly enjoying yourself, listening to the street music and dancing around with the locals, it had been a long time since you’d felt peace like this. If only every day you could be surrounded by people who held such warmth and kindness to them, the rich scent of food only added to your sense of peace and comfort.

Walking around the market stalls and trying new food, talking to new people, and looking at all they had to offer felt like a dream, it was truly the best day you’d had in a long time, if only it could last forever. But alas, that was not the way things were planned, they never stayed peaceful for long, not when a certain someone was watching your every move.  

“That necklace would look so pretty around your throat, my dear.”

Your whole body went stiff. Every fibre of your being screamed for help, screamed for you to run, for you to get away from the very person whose body was wrapped around your own, pulling you away from the crowd and into an isolated alleyway.

Alvara placed a kissed upon your neck hugging your smaller body to her own, “you have no idea how much I’ve missed you, your body, your scent, everything about you.” Her face was buried into your neck, placing kisses all upon your neck and shoulder, laving her tongue over the supple skin.

That very action caused you to break out of her terrified stupor, you jerked your elbow back into Alvara, catching her off guard so that her tight grip around your waist loosened, and you were free to escape.

You gasped for air as you felt life being breathed back into your veins, you felt the need to run, to escape, it was the only thing on your mind, a one-track thought.

You raced through the streets, stumbling, and pushing past people left, right and centre, you didn’t have time to feel sorry for the people you were pushing past, for you could not be caught by Alvara. A woman so determined, so ruthless, that if you were ever truly caught, you would never have the chance to escape again. You knew Alvara was hot on your tail, she was a general for a reason.

You came to set of stone steps, you didn’t know where they led but you didn't have the luxury of time to think or plan or anything for that matter all you could do was run and hope for an escape route to appear. The adrenaline was starting to wear off and you didn’t know how much longer you could run for, you hoped that these stairs would lead to an escape one where Alvara could not follow.

Vines and trees pulled at your clothes tearing your skirt and shirt in the process, drawing your precious blood, you heard a snarl behind you that was unmistakably Alvara’s, you forced your tired limbs to move faster with the mantra of don’t look back, don’t look back, running through your head. Escape was the only option, you could do it, you’d done it before, this time wasn’t any different. Yet the cold grip of fear had set it’s sights on you and you couldn’t help but wonder if this time would be different, what if Alvara managed to catch you this time because surely she wouldn’t let you go, she’d been chasing you for this long why would she stop now.

You tried not to let these thoughts take control you had to focus on getting away, on getting home, or rather the place you’d fortified to keep yourself safe from Alvara. Until you came to a stumbling holt, beholding the cliff face with such a drop you felt her stomach churning at the sight alone. A dead end, the only way you could get away would be to jump, a terrifying feat but one you would make to escape the woman coming up behind you.

“There’s nowhere left to go Name. Give up won’t you, I’m beginning to tire of our little game.” Her voice was raised and slightly breathless from the earlier pursuit.

You laughed but there was nothing humourless about this situation, “you think this is a game, this is my life, Alvara, and you won’t let me live it because of your sick fucking fantasies. Accept that I will never be yours, just accept it.” Your voice trembling with barely restrained anger, tears began to well up in your eyes, emotions you didn’t like to feel taking over your body.

“Just- just let me go, Alvara, for the love of God please. Just let me have peace.” Tears fell from your eyes, you were just so tired, voice wobbling with defeat.

“You know I can’t do that Name, dear, you were mine the moment I set eyes on you and my belongings, my possessions, I never let them go. I would never let you go; you mean so much to me-” She moved closer, hoping to catch you off guard.

“That’s fucking bullshit! You don’t love me, you don’t care about me, you just want to own me, and I won’t let you.” You let herself fall backwards, down the side of the cliff and into the deep blue abyss.  

You heard Alvara scream your Name but all you could do was smile, you were successful, you were free, but there was that lingering thought at the back of your mind asking yourself how long you had left? How long could you really keep running?

Today would be a risky day, that much was clear, but you hadn’t seen Leonidas in hundreds of years, and you missed your friend dearly, it had been hard to see each other due to Leonidas’ kingship and your own predicament with Alvara.

You hummed a tune as you dolled yourself up for the event ahead, you arranged your hair and such, pulling on a beautiful silky dress to match. You smoothed the beautiful fabric enjoying the feeling beneath your fingertips, you didn’t know what would happen tonight but all you could hope for was peace, it was the only thing you had ever wanted. You slipped some shoes on and grabbed your bag before making your way out of your beloved home and into the unknown.

❥ ❥ ❥

YOU GRINNED, ENJOYING the company of the people around, enjoying the company of others, a feat you didn’t have the opportunity to enjoy often. The music, the chatter, the noise, it was beautiful, and you felt herself bask in it, you had missed this.

“Name!”

You turned at the warm voice, a voice you had dearly missed, “Leo!” You threw yourself into his welcoming embrace not caring about others who would surely judge you for such a careless action especially one regarding the King of Iridesiah.

“Name, I have truly missed your company, it's wonderful to see you again. How has life been treating you?” He asked pulling away from their tight embrace, hands resting on your arms.

You smiled softly, yet despite its softness it held an overwhelming sadness to it, “you know it’s the same old, same old, running and hiding. But don’t worry about me I can handle it; I’ve handled it for the last few hundred years.”   

His eyes mirrored the sadness in her smile, “I wish I could do more for you Name, I really do, but it really isn’t so simple. If I were to try and protect you, she would overthrow me and that would have disastrous consequences.”

“Oh Leo, of course, I know this, I know you cannot do anything to help. I’m sorry for bringing it up, we should be happy, we should treasure our limited time together.” You wiped the brewing tears from your eyes not letting a single drop fall, this was supposed to be a happy reunion, you should be enjoying yourself.

Leonidas smiled at you placing a comforting hand on your cheek, allowing you to nuzzle into his palm enjoying the moment of affection. “I know something that will cheer you up, how about we get you some cake?” You smiled a beaming smile at the offer, as the two of you talked for hours over cake and other delicacies that were on offer, but soon he would have to leave your side and be the King again, he promised to return later on the evening and left you with a parting hug.

You ended up venturing on towards the ballroom deciding on dancing to the beautiful jazz being played, moving your body to the rhythm letting it take over, relinquishing control to the beautiful symphony.

That was until your peace, your enjoyment was cut short. You felt the cold presence of a woman you knew all too well, her muscled arms snaked their way around your waist, constricting your movement.

“Fancy seeing you here, my dear. Rather bold of you to turn up to an event like this, knowing that I would be here.” She giggled, tracing soft circles onto your exposed flesh, the very flesh she dreamed of biting into.

“I didn’t come here for you, Alvara.” Your voice barely above a whisper.

Alvara spun her darling around, keeping her arm firmly wrapped around your waist, faces mere millimetres from each other, “god I love the way you say my name.” Her voice was desperate and breathy, it was so strange to hear her sound so vulnerable.

She moved her lips towards to your ear, “I would give anything to hear you moan it.”

Your eyes widened by the bold statement, ears burning with embarrassment, you were used to Alvara’s cold nature not this desire-stricken woman before her. It almost seemed as if a dam had broken, as if Alvara had finally had enough, enough of their so-called game.

“Let me go Alvara.” You felt so defeated, so useless, so hopeless. You didn’t know how much longer you could handle these feelings.

She placed her hand upon your face, “you know I cannot do that my darling; you are mine; you will always be mine. I have loved you for hundreds of years and that love has never wavered, in fact, how does the saying go? Absence makes the heart grow fonder.”

Tears dripped down your face, revealing a scared darling doe behind, “you don’t love me, you wouldn’t be hurting me if you truly loved me.”

Alvara gripped your face harshly bringing your faces closer together with a snarl, “don’t you dare question my love for you.” Your eyes locked eyes for a few intense seconds before she loosened her grip and wiped the fallen tears away from your face.

“Aren’t you tired? Why must you keep running my dear, when you can just give in. I can give you the love that you desire, I can show you the world's greatest pleasures, I am a generous lover my darling Name. You would want for nothing under my care, you would have a home, a lover, a partner. You would no longer be alone. You don’t have to run anymore, Name. Please, be mine?” She caressed her darling’s face trying to convince you to finally give up and fall into her awaiting grasp.

“Just say yes, that’s all you have to do, Name.”

You stared up into her eyes, lips trembling as you fought to keep your composure. It had been so long since you went on the run, what even was the reason why she couldn’t even learn to love Alvara? You could hardly even put your finger on the exact reason, did you even have a reason? Was it even worth all this pain fighting against a woman who would never quit, a woman who would never stop chasing you even if it was to the ends of the earth? Would it be so bad to give into Alvara? Would it really be that bad? You would finally have peace, a home, a constant in your life.

“Okay.” Your voice was soft, defeated and broken down.

A huge grin grew upon Alvara’s face, “Oh Name, I’m so glad you’ve finally come around. I have been waiting for this moment for too long, you have made the right choice that I can assure you. Let’s go home, I shall take great care of you, I promise.”

With her arm still around your waist she guided you toward the exit, you looked back hesitating for a moment as your met eyes with Leonidas, his own eyes widened filled with shock, fear, worry, but he could do nothing. Even though he was the king, holding all that power still wasn't enough, he couldn’t even save his best friend from the greatest monster of all.

“Come, my dear, we must make up for lost time.”

And with that your fate was sealed, you just hoped it would be peaceful.

#dark content #yandere x reader #yandere vampire #yandere monster #dark fic #yandere x female reader #yandere fic #original character #dark imagines #monster x reader #horror #teratophillia #yandere imagines

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MY THOUGHTS ON SIDE ORDER

If you see this, you don't have #side order or #side order spoilers blocked. .

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So. Side order's gameplay is fantastic to me, I've completed it with all 12 palettes now. I love splatoon and I love roguelikes so this was sort of a match made in heaven for me.

Creating the OP builds, the final boss, the general colours and music and vibe of the game is amazing! Everything to do with Pearl and Marina are *amazing* and they're so hella gay it's adorable :D And I love that they're not even hiding the queer representation now. Marina having a sprawled out Pearl as her desktop background is so cute, even seeing an elevator scene where they gush about eachother, and another one where Marina worries that Acht is hitting on Pearl.

And... cannon They/Them Acht! I remember all the people on Reddit being like "it's just the marketing team mistranslating their pronouns in a tweet!" NOPE, it's in game too!

Hell yeah :D Smollusk is adorable and I love him, and maybe we finally have a splatoon villain tumblr won't turn into a tumblr sexyman since he's a literal infant xD

And Pearl Drone is so hecking cute, I love her so much!! If you spin around in the lobby she spins too, and if you stay still she falls asleep :D

I did my first run with Brella cause it's my fav and it has my beloved inkstorm kit from S2! It took me three tries before I beat the tower for the first time, but then every run afterwards with different weapons I've always cleared it (I was got bounced off the tower for that first death and the second I was caught offguard by how fast the reefslider spam is)! Brella was definitely my favourite run, but I also really enjoyed the roller and brush runs. My roughest run was with the Splatling. I had dreaded doing charger after that, but charger turned into my fastest run!

I could see myself unwinding in this mode hundreds more times. I am saying this all to demonstrate that I really love this DLC, it might be my favourite of all the single player modes so far, either that or S2 hero mode. So my following criticisms are out of love for it because it's close to perfect. So the big one is... "the dlc is too short!" I hear that a lot on both tumblr and reddit and someone inevitably chimes in with "You don't play a lot of roguelikes, do you?" I mean... do YOU? I've done over 100 runs in Wizard of Legend, and thousands of hours on Pokemon Mystery Dungeon and Etrian Mystery Dungeon. Yes it's made to be run multiple times, but when a run is only 20-30 minutes it's still only about 6 hours of content if you do all the palettes. And these could be fixed with the assets they already have! Like imagine an Endless mode where the difficulty (enemy speed and hp values and number of spawns) kept ramping up higher and higher each floor, with the leader board being kept track of on the app. Or a daily tower run to save a random cephalopod from being grayscaled - the daily inkling/octoling's palette giving you a random weapon/sub/special for that day that followed the rules of 8's Octoshot (more hacks = less chip slots). Or like a super hard difficulty mode - imagine a mode where every floor had a danger modifier, and maybe a Parallel Cannon spawns into the stage to try to hunt you down (maybe it's even invincible so you have to run away from it while doing the stage objective?) I know the Octoshot is kind of the "hard mode" (it's still not too bad though since it's basically just like starting from the beginning without hacks), but it's not fun being limited to just the one weapon type. Especially for it for people who find the regular shooters boring. I don't feel like this is an unreasonable request either, Wizard of Legend - a roguelike made by *two* people - for instance has a few options for post game challenge runs (a randomized mode, a mode where the enemies start from the highest difficulty from floor 1, an extra long run that touches on all the bosses, a BOSS RUSH mode, Curses - basically one thing gets massively buffed while a second thing gets massively debuffed). The Mystery Dungeon games tend to have unlockable MASSIVE dungeons that start you off from having nothing. (like imagine a 99 floor floor tower where you started with no hacks, and a basic shooter with no sub/special and you had to earn new weapons/subs/specials/hacks as you go). Could do the Curse style idea with extra special Marina hacks. "Hey 8, I just figured out a hack that turns everyone's Max HP to 1 - both yours and your opponents!" "This hack will make you much faster but the floors will always be dark!" Or those Bonus challenges, imagine if there was an option to do conditional runs with them. Like "Beat the Tower without using your special, unlock a specific splat tag banner" Again, I am only criticizing because I love it. It's just also the easiest and shortest of all the single player campaigns we've gotten I feel, and if they were going to lean into the roguelike genre, I wish they looked into how other roguelikes reuse assets to lengthen the gameplay and provide extra challenges to keep players interested for a long time.

AND I AM STILL MAD YOU CAN'T PLAY AS A SQUID AND THEY REMOVED THE PLAYABLE SQUIDBEATZ (half joking. Not really upset, but I do find it odd now that there's more campaigns you can play as an octoling than an inking on the switch now despite inklings being the mascots...... rotm/oe/so vs just s2hero/rotm. And I don't see why we can't just have minigames back, they remove more minigames each entry and paying to listen to music now is frustrating...) Haha... But yes, overall, I loved it. It's a 9/10 from me. Adding squidbeatz and some post game longevity / challenge modes would have made it a 10/10. I can't wait to play more, I can't wait to visit Inkopolis Square again next splatfest :')

Now, onto random observations!

The lobby has jump ramps on the back corner pillars. I don't know why!

You can turn Color Lock on in the main game and it *does* affect Side Order. It gives you permanently Blue+yellow or Blue+green ink, even in the hub area.

So with this boss, it uses the hairstyle from your S2 hero mode data to get their appearance... But I swear mine is using the feminine voice here and when being splat, despite that hairstyle being locked to masculine inkling voices in Splatoon 2? I do use it with the feminine voice in Splatoon 3. Or maybe the voices are just mixed into one here, I can't quite tell? Well it made enby me happy to see. I do kinda wish we got a challenging superboss fight with 4, these felt a bit weak.. but it seems to imply they aren't specifically 4 but Order made them based on their data... So...where is the real 4?!!! Did she never show up to work? Speaking of that boss....

Around the room are these white pipe like structures...

That will be instantly recognizable to anyone who dabbles in japanese model kits - they're sprue trees, like the kind used in Gunpla.

The robotic boss has robot model kit building pieces in the background :D

I still don't quite get the intro scene where everything goes digital on the train.... So it's implying either A) your character got Grayscaled.... But your character is fine when you go back to town... you don't even see any characters standing around suffering it's effects, they could have had some npcs spacing out or acting weird ala Persona 3... or B) you're getting pulled into the memverse too, but there's no sign of your S3 character *at all*... (though this would have been a good way to let us play as an inkling too nintendo >:l *angry woomy noises*)

Honestly I felt kinda like Acht's inclusion was sort of superfluous at first... mostly their role felt like "Pearl & Marina: *does something gay* Acht: wow these two sure are hella gay right 8? i feel like we're third wheels". I kept waiting for some kind of...reveal? Their memories are pretty much fully restored instantly rather than rolled out gradually like I was expecting...I was thinking maybe they'd, like, link them to Paul, or follow up on the recognizing Pearl somehow or being linked to the engineers that created Order or...SOMETHING, but it never came. Other than maybe dropping a hint about the person who instructed them and Marina when they were in school? Their role was really just "I'll hold the elevator and jump in for a song"... But maybe that's okay, eight and Acht are trauma victims and this was meant to be a place to heal them. Maybe it's okay that we take it slow getting to know them.

Okay that's all that's brainworming away at me for now, I'm sure I'll think of more later. Again, I really love it, definitely a 9/10 for me. I hope yall enjoyed it too :)

#side order #side order spoilers #splatoon 3 #splatoon

[bluecapsicum]

Cold winter skies illustrations for my daily meteorological fiction project, Reports From Unknown Places About Undescribable Events (Twitter, Instagram, Mastodon).

Keep reading for captions.

December 24th - We report: once again, we find ourselves under a murmuration as we walk past a field. We can hear trills and whistles coming from this massive bird cloud waltzing in the winter sky. We think there might be a few hundred of them, all moving together. We stay there for a long time.

January 10th - We report: the sky so dark and low this way, and the horizon so far, the trees bare and tiny in the distance; we wonder whether there might be space enough between the sky and the earth for us to walk. As it is, our face is up in the sky and our feet are down in the frozen earth.

January 13th - We report about this time, late in the afternoon when the humidity starts to saturate the atmosphere. Even through the dense clouds, there are faint hints of sunset colours amidst the grey. Blackbirds and sparrows are getting busy while we wait for the rain.

January 18th - We report Jupiter and Saturn at nightfall today; we expect Venus to follow shortly after, although the sky might be overcast by then. It is still too bright for us to be able to see stars, but we know that the Aquarius constellation is right there, rising over the horizon.

January 21st - We report: a morning removed from the world, fog and frost making even time move sluggishly. Every blade of grass looks brittle, and we wonder if they would snap off immediately, should we touch them. We cannot locate the sun, though we know where it should be.

January 25th - We report: the frothing winter sea during high tides; any colder and it would freeze solid, it would seem. There is an icy blue in the waves that unrelentingly crash against the rocky shore. The day stretches under an opaque sky that remains the same throughout.

January 30th - We report that we lost a glove on this snowy path, and we tried to walk back in our earlier steps. It was easy at first, but the snow and the night kept falling steadily; the footsteps disappeared. When we finally came home, though, our expert told us that they had picked it up.

February 13th - We report a very rare and complex halo display: a 20° halo, a parhelic circle with parhelia, a sun pillar leading up to an upper tangent arc and a parry arc, a 46° halo, and a circumzenithal arc. Very complex indeed, many arcs for a single sun. It is absolutely freezing outside.

February 22nd - We report: in the car, on a parking lot, facing the ocean. The rain is hitting the windscreen hard, in waves. It is an old car; the wind shakes it and whistles through the small cracks where the doors do not close very well. We watch raindrops run down the windows at an angle.

March 14th - We report: it has not stopped being cold here. We walk in the footsteps of someone who was here earlier this morning. It has snowed a little bit again since, and some of the tracks have been filled in. We are following a line of pollarded trees that creak in the cool wind.

#thursday was the 3rd anniversary of the reports project!! #very cool!! #never thought i'd ever reach that. never thought i'd make it to 30 days really #thank you so much if you follow the reports i appreciate it so much #drawing #digital #digital art #illustration #reports #artists on tumblr #weather #meteorology #snow #sky #clouds #birds #halo #circumzenithal arc #<- rare tag #frost #winter #night #long post #blue hour #clever reports #image description in alt text #sea #ocean #so many of these are from january

[imyourbratzdoll]

i have a very fluff request for our very beefy ari<33

very much domestic!ari & domestic!reader, doing home chores together, cleaning, organizing, daily grocery shopping, ordering some new clothes, etc, planning meals, planning child friendly abroad holidays, both looking after your new born, looking after dodger, taking dodger on a walk with ari wearing the buckle baby carrier on his bare chest (skin to skin touch) going on a picnic afterwards, playing with your new born & obvs dodger, watching new movies/series together, SELFCARE TOGETHER<3, starting the fire place, both of you doing your baby’s night routine preparing him or her to sleep, cuddling in each other arms, with blankets wrapped around your both talking very lovingly to each other in the moonlight :D

sorry if this is too much🤍

𝐡𝐢! 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐤 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧! 𝐈 𝐝𝐨𝐧'𝐭 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐟 𝐢𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐬 𝐠𝐨𝐨𝐝, 𝐬𝐨 𝐬𝐨𝐫𝐫𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐝𝐯𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐟 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬𝐧'𝐭! 𝐈 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐟 𝐧𝐨𝐭, 𝐈 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐢𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐬𝐦 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤!

summary - just the inside of ari's life with his wife.

gif I use isn’t mine and divider is by @newlips

𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑳𝑰𝑭𝑬 𝑶𝑭 𝑫𝑶𝑴𝑬𝑺𝑻𝑰𝑪 𝑨𝑹𝑰 𝑨𝑵𝑫 𝑯𝑰𝑺 𝑮𝑰𝑹𝑳.

-𝐂𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆-

The sound of music fills the room as the couple move around each other, scrubbing the dishes, mopping and sweeping the floors, and dusting. Ari watches as Y/n is trying to vacuum in areas that are too tight or are blocked by something. Walking over, he lifts the couch, receiving a smile from her as she can reach the dirt underneath. 

They go around cleaning the whole house until it is completely spotless.

-𝐆𝐑𝐎𝐂𝐄𝐑𝐘 𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐏𝐏𝐈𝐍𝐆-

Their food shopping is the best. Ari is always piling food and drinks into the trolley. Making sure your favourites are in there and everything you need for the baby is fully stocked. Half of the time, you tend to lose him, heading down the aisles looking for your tall beefy husband only to find him bounding towards you with a massive grin on his face and his arms stocked full. Ari will always insist on paying, not taking no for an answer. 

You both end up at home with too much food that lasts a long time.

-𝐎𝐑𝐃𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐂𝐋𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐒-

Well… Let’s just say you and Ari had to get a new house with an extremely huge closet. When Ari finds something he thinks would look gorgeous in or wants to see her in, he buys many pieces of clothing in every colour. His favourite is seeing her in sundresses or pretty flowing skirts, always ensuring there are over a hundred of the same item. And when you order new clothes, it’s mostly clothing for your cute baby and the one on the way. Sometimes buying Ari some new clothes as he seems to only buy you things and spending your days bare as you both have kids now wouldn’t be a good idea, and you can never buy yourself clothes, seeing as Ari already bought it for you.

-𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐌𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐒-

You like to be organised, and you have a little list of what meals to have for breakfast, lunch and dinner. Ari finds it adorable, but he’s also grateful when he has to rush off to work, and the food is already prepared and ready to eat. And he notices how less stressed you are when it comes to dinnertime.

-𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐋𝐃-𝐅𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐋𝐘 𝐀𝐁𝐑𝐎𝐀𝐃 𝐇𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐃𝐀𝐘𝐒-

You and Ari, make sure to sit down and sort out where you can go. It was a struggle at first from years of not having kids and not planning everything, but you’ve learnt to make a list. Making it easier when it comes to these types of things, Ari still insists on paying for everything, saying that he wants to spoil his family and won’t take no for an answer.

-𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐍𝐄𝐖𝐁𝐎𝐑𝐍-

It’s fun but stressful the first time doing it. You both ended up a mess. Tears and laughter were shared. You swore to Ari that you wouldn’t have more kids. But watching Ari hold the child you both created, the love he bears, and how he gently but protectively holds the baby. You’d give him a hundred if it meant you’d get to see this picture again and again.

The crying, dirty diapers and the loss of sleep wasn’t exactly fun, but they both wanted a family, and that’s what they got.

-𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐃𝐎𝐃𝐆𝐄𝐑-

You both love him. You and Ari went looking for a dog before you even got pregnant, and you chose to rescue one, and when you both walked in. Dodger instantly connected with Ari and fits well with your little family. While you were pregnant, he was protective, and once you had the child, Dodger was your baby's best friend.

Looking after Dodger isn’t that hard. You guys mostly just play with him, feed him, run around with him and cuddle while watching movies as a family.

-𝐓𝐀𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐃𝐎𝐃𝐆𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐍 𝐀 𝐖𝐀𝐋𝐊 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐀𝐑𝐈 𝐖𝐄𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀 𝐁𝐔𝐂𝐊𝐋𝐄 𝐁𝐀𝐁𝐘 𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐑 𝐎𝐍 𝐇𝐈𝐒 𝐁𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐂𝐇𝐄𝐒𝐓-

It’s a warm day, and Ari decides to take Dodger for a walk while wearing a buckle baby carrier against his bare chest as he hears skin-to-skin is good for his newborn. Many women tend to stare, and some try to start a conversation by either trying to pat his dog or touch his baby while smiling. Usually, before they can, he snaps and tells them to fuck off as he doesn’t like strangers touching or being near his family.

-𝐆𝐎𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐎 𝐏𝐈𝐂𝐍𝐈𝐂 𝐀𝐅𝐓𝐄𝐑𝐖𝐀𝐑𝐃𝐒- 

After the long walk with Dodger and getting enough time with his child, he makes his way to the agreed spot for the weekly picnic. He loves to have them as they make you extremely happy, and it’s one of those times he can appreciate you in one of the sundresses he spoils you with. You all have a feast while enjoying nature, photos are taken with a polaroid camera, and many memories are made there.

-𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐘𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐍𝐄𝐖𝐁𝐎𝐑𝐍 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐃𝐎𝐃𝐆𝐄𝐑-

On days off, you all go to the playroom, outside or the lounge room and sometimes your baby is in the mood to play, and they love it when you all get down and pretend with them, especially when Dodger comes and licks their face, coming around and playing all the games you are.

-𝐖𝐀𝐓𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐍𝐄𝐖 𝐌𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐄𝐒/𝐒𝐄𝐑𝐈𝐄𝐒 𝐓𝐎𝐆𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑-

You and Ari set a movie night, mainly so you don’t watch something without the other. You grab the snacks and set up a table, grabbing all the blankets and pillows. Snuggling up on the couch, wearing your pyjamas and ensuring you and everyone are comfortable. Sometimes Ari builds a fort, and it makes your kids happy, they invite you guys in but not without your fake money, and you all watch the newest Disney.

-𝐒𝐄𝐋𝐅𝐂𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐓𝐎𝐆𝐄𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑-

Well, Ari was the one who got you into self-care. You only used to do a small amount, sometimes too lazy to do anything, but Ari decided he wanted to do what he saw others doing, saying it looked cute and made you both closer. He enjoys applying everything on you, you repay him by doing the same with him, and he’s even bought baby/child safe self-care products, even something for Dodger, so he doesn’t feel left out. 

You both do all the other self-care things he’s seen, and it’s become one of your favourite things to do together.

-𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐅𝐈𝐑𝐄𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐄-

This is Ari’s task, and he enjoys doing it. The warmth entering his body when he does and watching his family also feel that warmth. He likes to go out and cut for the wood, come back and light it, and it’s become a sort of enjoyment.

-𝐁𝐎𝐓𝐇 𝐃𝐎��𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐀𝐁𝐘𝐒 𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐓𝐈𝐍𝐄, 𝐏𝐑𝐄𝐏𝐀𝐑𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐌 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐁𝐄𝐃-

You and Ari take turns reading your kids a bedtime story and making funny impressions and voices for the characters. You both make sure their nightlight is plugged in and on. You’ll check under the bed and in the closet for the pretend monsters they see, but always tell them that while mummy and daddy are around, no monster could get them. You’ll help them take a bath, wash their hair with the best-smelling shampoo and conditioner, helping them brush their teeth and warm some milk for them as it helps them sleep. 

You and Ari came up with an idea of placing nightlight footprints on the floor if they need to use the potty and want to feel like a big kid for once. 

-𝐂𝐔𝐃𝐃𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐈𝐍 𝐄𝐀𝐂𝐇 𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑'𝐒 𝐀𝐑𝐌𝐒 𝐖𝐈𝐓𝐇 𝐁𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐊𝐄𝐓𝐒 𝐖𝐑𝐀𝐏𝐏𝐄𝐃 𝐀𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐁𝐎𝐓𝐇 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐓𝐀𝐋𝐊𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐕𝐄𝐑𝐘 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐋𝐘 𝐓𝐎 𝐄𝐀𝐂𝐇 𝐎𝐓𝐇𝐄𝐑 𝐈𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐎𝐍𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓-

This one is big, and sometimes when the kids have gone to bed, and you and Ari haven’t had your weekly date night, you make this your date night. You pack a small basket full of savoury and sweet foods and some wine that you save for these exact nights. 

When the moon is full, you and Ari head outside, your backyard big enough to feel like you aren’t home. Ari finds the perfect spot before setting down blankets and pillows, a small light in the middle of you, chatting away, sharing laughs and eating while looking up at the stars. When the food is gone and your stomachs are full, you both wrap yourselves in each other's arms and whisper sweet nothings. You would look into each other’s eyes and just tell each other how much you love them.

Being so thankful and happy that they chose you and gave you such a wonderful life and the most adorable kids anyone could ask for, and the best dog in the world. 

thank you for reading!

feedback and reblogs are greatly appreciated.

#imyourbratzdollasks #anons welcome #chris evans #anon reply #chris evans fanfiction #thanks anon! #chris evans x reader #imyourbratzdollwork #chris evans x female reader #ari levinson imagine #chris evans imagine #chris evans imagines #wndawtchask #ari levinson fic #ari levinson #ari levinson fanfiction #ari levinson fluff #ari levinson x female reader #ari levinson x reader #ari levinson x y/n #ari levinson x you #chris evans characters #chris evans drabble #chris evans fan fiction #chris evans fanfic #chris evans fic #chris evans fluff #chris evans one shot #chris evans oneshot #chris evans x reader fluff

[simpforsix]

stim toy recommendations so you don't have to spend hundreds trying to find stuff that works (by an audhd person who is very picky)

tangles! quiet and discreet, you can use them one-handed, and you don't have to think about them at all while you use them so they're great for focusing. they are easy to manipulate and come in two different sizes (plus the therapy tangle). i recommend trying both sizes, and they have lots of colours and textures to choose from! find them here.

needoh stress balls! i find them more satisfying than other stress balls due to the dough inside, they're very squishy and come in loads of colours and types. they also aren't as sticky as some stress balls i've tried, and don't firm up or break after use. you can find them in most toy or novelty shops, or online by searching needoh or going here, and they're pretty cheap.

fidget rings! these are very discreet and look like regular rings, so they're perfect if you don't want to be seen using stim toys or aren't allowed. they have an outer ring that spins, can be used one-handed, and can be smooth or textured. they're also easy to clean and maintain. you can find these at most online stim toy shops, like here.

chewelry! i don't use this much, but many people find it very helpful. these are usually pendants made for chewing on, which are much better for you than other objects you may be chewing on or grinding your teeth. they come in different thickness for different types of chewers, so you can find the one that works best for you. they also have many different designs, textures, and colours, and are easy to clean. many stim toy shops have them, such as here and here.

infinity cubes! these are easy to manipulate and can be used one-handed, and come in lots of different designs. they aren't as quiet as the others here since the plastic hitting itself makes some noise, but they're not too disruptive especially in louder environments. you can find them in most toy stores both online and in person, or here.

finally, fidget spinners! you've definitely heard of these, and they're worth checking out. they can be used one-handed and also provide a visual stim, coming in lots of colours, shapes, and textures. they can be distracting and many schools don't like them due to the issues neurotypicals caused a few years ago, but they're still helpful. you can find these in most toy stores both online and in person, and here has some cool designs and types to check out.

these are all the stim toys i use pretty much daily and are worth checking out. feel free to add more, or ask me any questions you have about stimming. also, if you have no idea where to start with stim toys, i recommend trying a mystery box from a stim toy store. they are cheaper than ordering a bunch individually, and helped me figure out what i liked.

happy stimming!

#autism #actually autistic #autistic #audhd #actually audhd #adhd #actually adhd #neurodivergent #stim toys #stimming #fidget toys

[maitaitiu]

home, together

wordcount: 1617 botw zelink, post calamity. pre totk for @jimmyjims as part of @zelinkcommunity 's loftwing letters! thank you so much for letting me join! this was a lot of fun :) happy valentines day everyone :D i hope you like this jimmyjims, i do love writing botw hurt/comfort ^_^ read on ao3

synopsis:

It had been a nice day, until a storm rolled in. Zelda and Link are both struggling with memories of a storm from long ago, and reminders of all that they’ve lost. Friends, family, and their own childhoods. They find comfort in each other, and a multi-coloured plush toy.

Truth be told, while Zelda hadn’t been especially conscious during the last hundred years, she’d been at least lucid enough to miss things. Rain, for example.

And she had enjoyed it earlier today- two weeks after finally being freed from the Calamity- when a small shower had passed over Hateno Village. She’d spun around and splashed through puddles, carefree in a way she couldn’t remember ever being. But the rain had continued on, and only gotten heavier, and eventually she’d had to retreat back into Link’s home, lest she catch a chill.

It had been a few hours since then, and the storm had only progressed further. And now, Zelda was hunched over the desk upstairs, with a plush toy in her lap, trying too hard to focus on writing her daily journal entry (a habit she was trying to keep as a way of keeping her still-frazzled brain in check), and therefore was unable to focus on it at all.

Gnawing on the inside of her cheek did little to stop her from flinching every time a clap of thunder rolled through the air, but she did it anyway, needing anything to distract her, even the tiniest bit, from the anxiety that the thunder drummed into her heart.

Even worse, she was cold, too.

She’d grab a quilt off the bed and wrap it around herself- or better yet, just climb into the bed and curl up under the covers, until the storm was over- but Link was currently splayed out underneath the blankets, apparently sound asleep.

It was his bed, but he’d been pretty insistent that Zelda use it since he first invited her to stay with him. And though she’d tried to argue with him- it was his house; his bed! He should use it! – he continued to persist until she eventually gave in to the heavy tiredness she’d felt that first night. And somehow every night since then, Link had managed to convince her to keep sleeping there.

Not today, though. Today, Zelda had really put her foot down about him using his own bed. While she’d been frolicking about and enjoying the rainshower in the morning, Link had been off clearing out monsters in the nearby woodland. He’d sustained a gash on his upper arm, which was such an unusual occurrence that it was evidence enough for Zelda to convince him that he needed to rest properly for once, instead of just settling on the floor with a rolled-up pile of clothes for a pillow.

As glad as she was that he was resting now, it did little to calm her nerves about the storm, and how she longed to curl up in the bed next to Link. Wait, no. Just in the bed. That belonged to Link. Not… Next to him.

The strange thought caused warmth to bloom across her face and she stared even more intently at the mostly blank journal page in a futile attempt to clear her mind.

Instead, her thoughts drifted over to the thing on her lap- a custom made sand-seal plush. Made in every colour imaginable, bought by Link specifically for Zelda. He said he asked for every colour since he couldn’t remember her favourite, and also because rainbow was more fun. And when she’d pried further into why he’d got it at all, he’d eventually quietly admitted that he just wanted her to have something of her own to come home to.

She hadn’t really known what to say to that. So touched that she was stunned into silence.

She didn’t remember ever having any plush toys as a child. And now she had one that had been made especially for her. Not because she was the Princess, not made by the Finest Artisan Craftsman In All The Land or whatever, but made by a kind merchant because Link had wanted her- her. Zelda- to have something nice.

At home, the plush rarely left her side.

Zelda squeezed it to her stomach as a particularly loud clap of thunder seemed to shake the house. She closed her eyes tightly and decided that perhaps the strange thoughts about Link were far preferable to the visions and memories that the thunderstorm burned into her mind.

She felt silly for being so upset. It was just thunder!

She shouldn’t be almost crying over a bit of a storm!

But the way it rumbled, the flashes of light that lit up the world for a split-second, and how the earth almost seemed to shake. It was just… just… like…

Zelda hugged the plush tighter, and curled in on herself, huddled over the desk. She ran her fingers over the mismatched fabrics, the stitching, the wooden eyes, feeling the way the sturdy canvas fabric was still soft to the touch. Tried to focus on the fact that it was hers and it had been made at the request of Link, who was alive, who was well, and both of them were okay and safe.

Anxieties still not quelled, Zelda summoned all her courage to open her eyes and glance behind her. The window was there, but so was the bed.

She flinched as a bolt of lightning flashed somewhere in the far distance, but soon was more concerned with the fact that Link was definitely not asleep.

Unsure of how exactly she could tell, but certain anyway, Zelda sat up straighter and turned in her chair, to view him properly.

There was just something. Strange.

The rise and fall of the quilts covering him was just a little bit too quick for him to be asleep.

“Link?” she spoke in a soft voice, trying to hide that she was shaking.

A face appeared out of the blankets. Pale in the grey evening light. His eyes were glassy.

He ducked down, avoiding Zelda’s gaze, his eyes squinted shut as the thunder rumbled on by.

Zelda’s grip on the plush tightened momentarily, too. But she stood; crossed the room, and after a second of hesitation, perched on the edge of the bed.

She sank into the mattress, being always so pleasantly surprised about how comfortable it was; even the simplest luxuries were delightful after a hundred years of hell, and the smallness of the bed meant her shoulder was pressed against Link’s. She didn’t really mind, being far more concerned with him being upset.

Because of the thunder.

Like her.

Plush in hand, Zelda stayed silent as she tried to think of what she wanted to say, if anything at all. She turned the thing over and over in her hands as she did, and tried to ignore the warmth in her face when Link laid his head on her shoulder. Though, the contact with him- alive, breathing, and well- did help her feel just a little bit better.

“You can talk to me,” she eventually said, voice quiet, “If you want.”

She turned to look at him, and he looked up at her, still leaning on her shoulder, and then he looked out across the room.

Zelda followed his gaze to the portrait of the two of them alongside all the Champions.

While Link had been notably chattier and more expressive since the fall of the Calamity, Zelda had noticed he also tended to become much more guarded when he was worried over something. Still, though, she had plenty of experience in reading his subtler expressions, and she was fairly certain she knew what was troubling him so much.

“I miss them, too,” she murmured, and put the plush into Link’s lap instead, “It’s still so horrible to think about. But… I’m glad I still have you, Link.”

Still staring at the picture on the wall, Zelda missed the soft blush that faded into Link’s cheeks, as he mumbled his own shy agreement.

After a moment of simply holding the plush in his hands, Zelda watched as Link set it back on her lap, and, without much hesitation he then wrapped his arms around her torso in a tight, but gentle, hug.

Initially, she tensed up. She was hardly used to being held. But the warmth of the embrace was just so nice, and calming, and overwhelmed with the fear of the thunder and what it meant, and overwhelmed with just how dearly she cared for Link and how she felt he thought the same way about her, Zelda found her breath hitching and tears pooling in her eyes.

She threw her arms around Link, too, who seemed surprised by the amount of force behind the returned hug, but he didn’t falter.

Was this what it felt like to be loved despite all your mistakes? Was this what it felt like to be safe despite the harshness of the world?

If so, Zelda finally understood why people were so obsessed with love.

She had loved Link before now; had felt loved by him, too. But that had been the same way she dearly loved her friends; the Champions, Impa, Purah, and all the others who had touched her life. But this felt different somehow. Warm in a new way, in a way that bloomed the sensation of a campfire under a cloudless, starlit sky, through her whole body.

Outside, the rain lashed down upon the ground, the wind howled, and thunder shook the earth. It was frightening, it was loud, and it brought up memories of the worst thing either of them had ever lived through. But, they had lived.

They had lived. And they were here. Together.

And tangled up in quilts and pillows, wrapped safely in Link’s embrace, while she held him just as tenderly, with a plush sand seal squashed between them, Zelda finally felt at home.

#zelink #botw #words #loftwing letters 2024 #i really hope i tagged the right blogs.. sorry if i didnt >_>