#it should have been cypher

[beebrainedstudios]

Cypher Survives AU:

Because let’s be honest, it’d be kinda fun.

(Bloodline spoilers for the last two sections!)

- Wing still shoots Cypher in Rogue, but instead of going for the chest like he did in canon, he shoots his leg, distracting him long enough for the pair to wrestle and for Wing to get the gun away from him. Otto still wakes up possessed by Overlord, but between the two of them they are able to hold him off until Laura gets the neural-blaster-amulet device to work, and Overlord is knocked out of Otto. Everyone regroups in the wreckage, and Raven goes right for Cypher’s throat, but Wing gets in the way and demands everyone leave him alone until he and Wing get the chance to talk. 

Later, Nero discusses killing him with Wing and finds that, while Wing understands why that might be a good idea, he is also deeply upset by the idea of being completely orphaned by G.L.O.V.E. and still working for it, alongside the fact that he would be losing his last connection to his mother. There’s also the fact that Cypher was still technically right that Overlord would have taken possession of Otto anyway. Nero also talks with Cypher and comes to the conclusion that, while largely remorseless for any of his actions, he was only doing it in the interest of protecting Wing and has no specific intent to harm the school besides the man’s self-admitted hatred for Nero. He is strictly focused on Wing’s protection; nothing else. Nero decides that there’s an alternative and forcefully enrolls Cypher into H.I.V.E.’s staff, specifically the Technology Department, which both Wing and Cypher are uncomfortable with but are willing to try.

Chaos ensues.

- Cypher largely works in the cybersecurity area of things at first, specifically in regard to A.I. programming and defense, but he also spends some time as a general technician who’s responsible for helping with repairs. He has a significantly higher level of oversight than anyone else since Nero is worried that Cypher will try to pull some sort of hacker stunt. Over time, however, everyone comes to the conclusion that Cypher has no plans to cause any large scale problems on account of the fact that it would inevitably hurt Wing one way or another, including if he gets himself killed. Cypher is also incredibly nervous around H.I.V.E.mind and is unwilling to interact with him much outside of what’s needed, including trying to mess with his servers.

- Cypher essentially spends some time as a distant and mildly-uncomfortable presence in the school that most of the students are somewhat scared by, and Cypher (who also goes by Wu at this point; he’s let the Mao Fanchu name die out since Wing is still unsure how much he still sees him as a father, which Cypher is trying to respect) is also cool with this since both the students and the staff aggravate him with what he considers to be stupid questions and ideas, and he’d rather be left alone. As far as he’s concerned, it’s very similar to his time working on the Overlord Project, except Nero is breathing harder down his neck about everything and is somehow even more smug. He puts up with it though for Wing’s sake (and also to avoid getting locked back up in his very-boring prison).

- Familiarity eventually breeds a bit more comfort though, and at the Professor’s request since he’s struggling a bit with his own workload, Cypher is allowed to teach a few courses on A.I. programming and robotics to the Technical stream. Cypher does it begrudgingly and- irritated to find that rumors of Nero’s unintentional stream favoritism are true and ever eager to insult Nero’s leadership- immediately demands better funding, deadlines, and general organization for the Technical stream and Technology Department. Though he does it without any particular care for the students/staff at all (he’s neutral to them), his willingness to stand up to Nero for them + his overwhelming tech knowledge earn him some popularity, and he starts to be seen as more of a regular staffer. 

- Meanwhile, Cypher is still trying to work on his relationship with Wing. Wing is extremely upset with him and refuses to forgive him for his actions, which Cypher’s perfectly content with; he’s okay with Wing not seeing him as less of his dad, though he’s honest in maintaining that he still sees Wing as his son. Cypher has also given up on trying to knock Wing off of the supervillain path, instead resolving to make sure that Wing doesn’t end up getting killed on the way. While it takes a long time, the two do open up to each other a bit more and start to relax a bit, as Cypher is trying to make up for hurting people and Wing knows that pretty much everyone else in the school, Nero and Raven especially, have also killed people. 

- Eventually, Wing leaves the island for a mission and gets put in danger once it goes awry. Upon hearing this, Cypher pulls the exact same stunt that he pulled in Rogue. Grab some students, steal a Shroud, go get Wing. Then, it happens again, and Cypher manages to escape once more. He’s incredibly competent, both in terms of getting out of H.I.V.E. and running a one-man-plus-a-few-students rescue mission, and Nero finds to his frustration that Cypher, once out there, usually ends up helping on the missions rather than making them worse, including saving other students in the process of trying to protect Wing. Again, he’s not trying to help them, but the problems are usually mission-wide and rescuing Wing often saves others by proxy. As this keeps happening, Wing even picks up on this and will purposely put others in the way so Cypher has to help them too, weaponizing his father’s protective overdrive to improve the missions’ success. It becomes an expected pattern; Wing’s in trouble, Cypher goes after him, and due the fact Shelby, Otto, or Laura are often eager to do the same, if they aren’t on the same mission Cypher will usually “kidnap” them first and they’ll tag along willingly, as he can at least ensure that they are halfway-competent and will help out if needed. They, in turn, try to keep the casualty numbers and recklessness down, and Nero gradually puts less and less effort into stopping the rescues because it never works, Cypher usually only escapes when the mission goes wrong, and he always comes back with everyone else. 

- Cypher also forms a budding friendship with Professor Pike, as both of them are intellectuals who enjoy technology and are unafraid to call others out on their foolishness. Pike enjoys having someone who takes him seriously despite his age and eccentricity, and Cypher likes having someone he can talk to that can keep up with him and doesn’t treat him like he’s completely insane. Outside of Wing, the Professor is the only one who gets a genuine apology from Cypher on account of getting choked unconscious, which Pike agrees was terrible but he also admits to being slightly happy to have been included in a bit of the action for once, though he still wished he hadn’t been knocked out so rudely.

- H.I.V.E.mind takes a little longer for him to warm up to, but the AI is quickly able to pick up on Cypher’s discomfort with him, and he does his best to give Cypher outlets for his fear and slowly acclimate him to Big Blue so that he can do his job better. Through said process, a lot of other psychological trauma gets rooted out (PTSD over the Overlord Incident, especially paranoia, nightmares, etc.) and addressed, which makes Cypher a lot healthier and helps in getting him to thaw out towards the rest of H.I.V.E.

- Pretty much the rest of the AU is just canon. The series events still happen, but things are slightly easier for the H.I.V.E. crew most of the time since Cypher is there to- usually- help out. He’s combat-proficient, technologically skilled, way less timid about morals and consequences (sometimes helpful, sometimes not), and immune to the Sinistre Voice, so he’s an extremely useful ally to have around, and while he still complains relentlessly about helping Nero, he eventually gets to the point where he develops a bit of a protective streak for the school itself too; it’s the home of his son and his son’s friends, and if taking down threats to H.I.V.E. is what it takes to keep Wing happy and keep his own life then he’ll happily demolish anything that stands in the way of the school. H.I.V.E.mind would probably end up surviving in this AU too; Cypher has some sort of secret backed-up seed copy of him stored away somewhere- when asked why, he just explains that he never wants to help make a new AI in his life, so it seemed more convenient to have a backup H.I.V.E.mind in case they needed an AI for a new school.

- Post-Bloodline, Cypher would continue to work at the new school as before, helping Pike get H.I.V.E.mind back up and running and streamlining the new Technology Department. He’d probably also start a production line for a few of his robots to help with construction since they’re waterproof and can work far more efficiently than humans in the sea trench. At some point, Nero- at H.I.V.E.mind and the Professor’s insistence- would officially recognize Cypher as a full teacher at H.I.V.E. and suggest getting a new villain name to start over with; I’m not entirely set on what I think that would be, but it would probably be something like Golem or Automaton, since those imply the ability to function on one’s own which the definition of Cipher (an insignificant person who does other’s bidding- a nobody or zero if you will; it’s got more layers than just code stuff apparently) does not. Regardless of the name, Cypher’s basically the “combat-oriented” Technical head; he gets a dramatic new outfit and is usually escorted by some of his assassin droids, which he can use alongside his students’ creations in the school’s defense to great effect. 

So yeah, that’s what I’ve got so far! I just thought it’d be neat if one of H.I.V.E.’s best and most emotionally complex antagonists was given the chance for a longer arc. Enjoy!

#look i had at least four different concepts for an AU like this when i was younger #if anyone was gonna get some sort of 'not-redemption-but-sort-of' arc #it should have been cypher #just saying #h.i.v.e. #h.i.v.e #higher institute of villainous education #mark walden #cypher #wu zhang #mao fanchu #h.i.v.e cypher #dr. nero #maximilian nero #wing fanchu #H.I.V.E.mind #professor pike #otto malpense #shelby trinity #laura brand #h.i.v.e raven #hive au #cypher survives au #the overlord protocol #rogue #bloodline spoilers

[adozenmirrors]

I need more Fade lore so I can actually write the fic of Fade and Cypher being best friends

#valorant #cypher #valorant cypher #fade #valorant fade #but like #without the whole #replacing cypher thing #cause that last bit of fade stuff #felt a lot like it should have been Cyphers

[m0e-ru]

Of course I have to ask for Mim on the card bingo, please opinions on Mimzie!

two bingoes !!! yeah whoo yeah iznmi purse owner four my detested <3 /giggling/ /clasping hands together/ . yes i have opinions on canon. who do you take me for. i eat canon everyday for breakfast and die

B1 i am Correct. i1 they have no character arc unless you squeeze together every single time theyve been part of plot which is like. the whole game. they're lore itself and im so mad about it. N1 things happened then ummmmmm idk what happened to them halfway through 2021 and i dont want to look 💔 G1 altus is evil also. theyre not allowed to touch iznmi ever again. soejima did ONCE and that was it. he didnt finalize their human portraits though not sure if i should be glad about it too. O1 wasted potential is SO BAD they literally MADE GOLDEN but NEVER MADE THINGS BETTER FOR IZNMI LORE THEY JUST MADE IT MORE CONFUSING WITH MARIE (i love you babygirl they also did you really bad).

ummm i2. im sure my niche should be clear after one look at my blog . graphic design is my passion 🤩🤩🤩. B3, no i dont have a blorbo playlist if i did i think it'd be full of bill wurtz and yyxy actually . i3, i put them under a magnifying glass and sometimes i concentrate the light on them because i get mad of something i learned. G3 O3 "what's wrong with them" in both contexts because literally what is their damage. what did humanity do to you 'give birth to them and tore them apart away from their heart leaving to think "realistically" throwing all sense of idealism and human morals aside and think they're fit to govern the same group of people that made them this way whilst executing their power upon helpless people who've thought wrong as a majority' oh.

B4. should i say anything else. O4 umm i like to think im being blocked by anyone who thinks im even slightly annoying <3 so all my opinions matter and Don't Matter at the same time, you get my flow 'literally what are you saying.' G5 they make me so mad i eat glass when i think about lore for the 1000000th time 💔💔💔 O5 i'd bury them in the ground if i could

#assk #cyphere #ask game #persona 4 spoilers #⛽️🌫 #izanami persona #// separated it by section does that make sense. x axis bingo letters y axis numbers. it doesnt? oh im sory.. #// their lore is everywhere theyre literally the entire game theyve BEEN WITH YOU the ENTIRE game as a stupid vampire gas station attendant #// but NOBODY CARES about the missable 3rd final boss with 15 mins of screen time in defineable character #// THATS WHY despite being SO IMPORTANT no one gave a second shit to their character design and character in general (soejima) #// LITERALLY IN THE ART BOOK HE ADMITS 'we decided not to relate her [final boss] design with the rest of the game because this is a #// 'character you dont have to meet just to finish the game' misogyny #// you couldve had it all altus. but noo a stageplay did better than you while you were distracted by making another love interest for more #// merch and money completely forgetting your original agenda to 'look deeper into iznmi's story for gits and shiggles' i hate you #// hey speaking of i should fix my translation documents of all the books i have. im a disgrace for not being able to cite anything

[peachesofteal]

soap x cypher masterlist / 18+ mdni / dark and twisty themes overall but this is very soft / inspired by and written for @eilidh-eternal

Johnny is fuming.

You've skipped his lab. Not only have you skipped his lab, but you didn't even let him know. Where are you? He hasn’t even see you in days, getting in late from an op last night, collapsing into bed exhausted. All he wanted was to see your face this morning, peering at him from between the sea of students.

"Sir?"

"What?" He snaps, temper flaring, irritation running hot. The student, a transfer bomb tech from another unit, gulps. Get yerself together, he seethes. Ye're acting like a bloody fool. The tech voices a question, a complicated technical one, but easy to answer, and he rattles off a response before excusing everyone for the day.

He has more important things that need his attention.

He goes back and forth on punishment as he stalks over to the tech building. Overstimulation? Should he tie you to his bed and strap the head of a vibrator to your clit until you're crying? Denial? Humiliation? Should he shave your cunt, and then eat you out for hours, not letting you come once? Should he spank you until your ass is raw and you can't sit for a week?

Anger turns to worry when he steps onto your floor, and doesn't find you. You're not at your console. You're not in the bathrooms, or the break room. You're not anywhere.

He marches to Laswell's office, knocking twice before pushing the door wide, to her surprise.

"Soap?"

"Cypher not in today?" He skips the pleasantries, and she gives him a knowing look.

'She's out sick." Sick? You're sick? His mind is already scrambling, and he barely hears her parting words as he makes for the door, anger draining from his body and being replaced with worry, fear. Why didn't you tell him?

He gets his answer easily enough when you answer his incessant knocking with both wrists in braces, KT tape stretched from the back of your hands to your knuckles. Your face is twisted up, brow furrowed, and he immediately steps forward, hesitant to touch you, but yearning to provide you comfort, to help. To fix.

“Oh, Cy.” He murmurs and you look down to your feet.

“‘m sorry I missed class, I couldn’t… I can’t type, or pick anything up, so-“

“It’s okay. Let’s not worry about that now.” He herds you gently, turning you back into your room, relaxing as he feels you lean into him, one of his hands cradling yours carefully. “Carpal tunnel?” He knows all about it, of course. He has your medical file memorized. Knows about the flare ups that are really bad, knows you’re a perfect candidate for surgery, even though from the looks of it, you’re avoiding that option. He always thought he’d cross that bridge when he came to it, getting you to have the procedures scheduled, but it seems like that bridge is coming up now.

“It’s bad.” You croak. You can’t even work the door handle, trying in vain to flex your fingers, his heart sinking at the agony on your face, when you start to crumple, tears starting in the corners of your eyes.

“Shhh, I’m here, I’m here, wee sweet.” His arms wrap around you, holding you there for a second, rubbing your back, your shoulders, trying to reassure you. “I’ll take care of ye.” He promises, shutting the door with a firm click, and leading you over to your bed, encouraging you to sit, keeping his touch as gentle as he can, as to not jostle you or your hands. “What do ye need?” He smooths a hand over your hair, and you sigh.

“Something to eat.” Oh, sweet Cy. How long have ye felt like this? This is his fault. He should have been here last night. “And some ice, maybe?”

“Have ye taken anything?” He’s already pulling out his phone, shooting a text out to cash in on a favor owed to him by another Sergeant, essentially using them as a delivery service for your needs. “What sounds good to eat?”

“I don’t know, I can’t pick up-“

“I’ll take care of that.” He’s unmoored by your suffering, but a select piece of him is secretly delighted he’ll get to feed you, wash your hair, help you with your clothes, take care of all your needs. His mouth practically waters. You chew on your lip, wincing as you shift and he moves with you, encouraging you to lay down your back, tired eyes blinking up at the ceiling. Poor baby, probably hasnae sleep a wink. “I’ll pick for ye, Cy.”

“Okay.” You whisper, eyes slipping closed. He leans, lips dotting across your forehead.

“I’ve got ye. Want the lights off?” You nod, and he gets up to flick them off, clicking on the little bedside lamp that has the yellow shade, the dim one that you like “Whit feels good for yer hands? Ice? Elevation?”

“Both.” He tacks ice onto the ‘to be delivered list’ and then grabs a pillow, tucking it into your side to place your one wrist on top, arranging your giant quilt on the other to do the same.

He fusses over you, making sure you’re comfortable, making sure you’re content, propping you up on more pillows when everything is dropped at your door, and he stashes the ice in the freezer for after he feeds you.

“Got some soup.” He tells you sweetly, and you brighten a little.

“What kind?”

“Yer favorite. The cream of mushroom.” You smile at him and he holds you there, indulging in your sweet expression, until it starts to fade, drooping with realization. Confusion.

“Wait… how do you know it’s my favorite?”

#peaches writes #soap x cypher #soap x reader #john soap mactavish x reader #johnny soap mactavish #john soap mactavish

[thydungeongal]

Not asking that one blog because it's more of a idle wandering than actual ask, but what are currently the most popular setting-neutral games? Like the ones that I see invoked most often are Savage Worlds and FATE, with GURPS being the classic, but am I missing something?

Like absolutely neutral games, not families of related games like PbtA or hacks of Into the Odd or 5E for everything

I do think it's probably Fate but I think that's more to do with the fact that Evil Hat produces a steady stream of new Worlds of Adventure supplements which give people something to play around with. I think Genesys and Cypher also count and are pretty big. In fact, given the fact that Monte Cook's name carries a lot of weight, I might go as far as to say that it's probably Cypher at the moment. Like, obviously Genesys and Cypher both started as systems built for specific games, but they have since been made into generic toolkit systems. And yeah, Savage Worlds, absolutely.

There's also Lumen and Caltrop Core but they're more known within the indie side and I think those might be more on the side of "frameworks for building games" rather than "setting neutral games," but I will admit that I am not intimately familiar with them. Actually I should give them a more in-depth look, like I've read a bunch of games that use them but I should actually delve deeper into the bones of those games.

And yeah I think it's good to distinguish between actual setting neutral games (even though the systems themselves bring some assumptions but that's besides the point) which are like here are the rules to run it, some assembly required, and games that are frameworks for building your own games, as you outlined in your ask. :) Like, PbtA is not a setting neutral game, it's a framework for building games. Same with FitD and d20. (Although there are arguably some setting neutral applications of the d20 system, like True20, which would absolutely count for this question, but I think True20 is somewhat past its prime.)

This was a nice ask, it got me thinking of how there are lots of cool games :)

#thydungeongal answers

[l0serloki]

Birthday

Your birthday with Val Men!

(Cypher, Sova, Yoru, Chamber)

A/N : AM I REALLY BACK?? ARE U SEEING A POST FROM THE LOSERLOKI?? the world may never know.

masterlist

Cypher : 

Cypher knows your birthday. You hadn’t even mentioned it to anyone and yet the moment you woke up he greeted you with a gift.

The gift itself was something you had been looking at on amazon.. How did he know this? The world may never know.

“Happy Birthday little bug. I hope today is well for you.” 

He doesn’t let anyone else know of your birthday but he does spoil you throughout the day with your favorite snacks and drinks. Other agents start to think he’s slowly losing his mind.

As you opened your bedroom door you let out a squeal. The last thing you were expecting to see was Cypher standing in front waiting for you. 

“Good morning and happy birthday.” He shuffles a gift into your hands and your eyes widen.

“I didn’t tell you it was my birthday today? Also were you waiting here all morning?” You’re not disappointed with the gift, far from it, but you still were a bit shocked.

“Don’t worry about that. I am sure you will like your gift. And I went to buy your favorites. Everything should be to your liking.” You could hear the grin in Cypher’s voice as you stared down at the item you had been wanting for a while. You shouldn’t be surprised, you knew he had quite the web of information on people. While it should probably perturb you at the least, you were just happy to not have to spend your birthday in silence.

“Thank you Cypher.”  You give him a hug which he returns quickly, his fingers tapping at your back. 

“Anytime.”

Sova : 

Sova tries to make something really thoughtful. Like a sweater or a plush. He asks Omen to help him knit something.

He will try to get everyone together with some food and drinks. He wants you to have a memorable day!

If they’re too much though he will automatically notice and whisk you away. As long as you’re happy he is too!

“Happy Birthday!” The agents cheered as Sova led you into the dining hall. There was decorations around and an array of gifts set out to the side. Sova gave you a soft smile as his hand rubbed at your back.

“You guys..!” Your eyes widened as everyone shuffled you towards the table. You could feel tears prick at your eyes at the amount of effort everyone put in just for you.

“Sova did a lot of work to get this altogether! Don’t thank us, we just showed up.” Phoenix shoots Sova a wink as everyone begins to settle down for food. You look next to you as Sova puts his hands up in a ‘it’s nothing’ motion and blushes. You can’t help but laugh at the adorable face and give his hand a quick squeeze.

“Thank you Sova. You’re too kind.”

“It’s really nothing. I hope to make your day the best. You deserve it.”

Yoru : 

Expect teasing. Even if he does care, he will not show it easily.

“You definitely look old. I’m sure you’ll be able to use your wrinkles as a purse next year.” 

He will get you something that’s more suited towards his hobbies but he means well! 

“Since you always bother me about the motorcycle rides being cold.” He shrugs as he gives you a new motorcycle jacket. He even added matching patches to twin with him. (Not that he would admit).

He will buy you dinner as well but don’t mention it or he will get grumpy.

“What is this Yoru?” You raised an eyebrow with a grin as he handed you a thick leather jacket. His cheeks tinged with red as he rolled his eyes.

“Don’t go getting a big head. Just because I got you one thing for your birthday does not mean you are special. I am just tired of hearing you complain about how cold it is on the motorcycle.” Yoru pushes the garment into your hands and you notice the matching patches on the side. Your heart swells at the sentiment. You knew he wasn’t great with wording his emotions but he definitely put thought into this.

“You’re too kind ‘Ru. We should use it tonight to get dinner.” You add with hope and he just sighs.

“Yeah yeah.. I guess it would only be smart. Be outside by eight or I will leave you.” He grunts as he moves to leave.

“And Ru?” You add and the man turns around. “Thank you.” 

Yoru’s face goes even more red than you thought was humanly possible as he tries to adjust his hair to keep cool.

“Whatever.”

Chamber : 

Chamber likes to be coordinated. He’s set up lots for you both to do throughout the day. Unless you specifically tell him not to weeks before.

He will give you a few gifts throughout the day, just small things. Trinkets that reminded him of you or stuff he thought you would like. 

He will take you both out to a nice lunch and let you shop, saying it’s on him if you see anything you like. (It takes stress off of him to make sure you get the best gift.)

“Happy Birthday, my dear. I hope today is up to your standards. If there is anything I can do to make it better.. Don’t hesitate.”

“Is your food good? Do you want more to drink?” Chamber says quickly as he watches you eat. You can’t help but chuckle at his anxious attitude, reaching for his hand.

“It’s perfect, just calm down and enjoy your meal. If something was wrong I would tell you.”

Chamber seems to relax a bit more as he leans back in his chair and squeezes your hand.

“I only want the best for you. It’s not every day that it is your birthday after all.” He hums and you can’t help but smile. He’s always so thoughtful and kind. Despite what the many agents back at base thought. Not that their opinion on him had ever mattered.

“Thank you honey. Today has been great.” 

Great was an understatement. He let you run around to your favorite stores, smiling and nodding along to anything you found of interest. He spoiled you with small gifts and snacks, and now such a fine dinner. 

“Anything for you.” He gave you a soft smile as his lips brushed your knuckles. You felt your heart jump at the small action and you let out a small laugh.

“Eat your damn food.” You wave off the affection and he only chuckles.

“So defensive. But whatever you want.” He shrugs as he digs back into the food. It was safe to say your birthday was a success.

#cypher x you #cypher valorant #cypher x reader #cypher #sova x reader fluff #sova x reader #sova valorant #sova #valorant sova #yoru valorant #valorant yoru #yoru x reader #yoru x you #yoru #valorant chamber #chamber imagines #chamber fluff #chamber #chamber x reader #valorant #valorant headcanons #valorant imagines

[bobawitch]

Halloweekend | M.S.

summary: Matt and reader have matching costumes which gains the question of could you two be more than friends?

cw: little bit of fluff, y/n used, not proofread </3

wc: 1469

pairing: matt x fem!reader

Halloweekend was potentially your most anticipated weekend of this year. Why, you ask? Well because you were doing matching costumes with your friend Matt. Now why was a friendly Halloween costume so important to you? Well that’s because you had a not very secret crush on that friend. You had known Matt for years now and were well acquainted with the fanbase as well. You and Matt had decided to dress from his favorite show, Gravity Falls. Since Dipper was Matt’s favorite character he was going as him and you decided to do a human version of Bill Cypher. You were sitting on Matt’s floor, all of your makeup strewn about in front of a little mirror. You had already slicked your hair back, some fly aways resting down so that your hair looked a little disheveled. You had a smokey eye with some golden shimmers on your eyelids, your lips were painted black and you had made a little brick design as contour. You were nearly ready and just waiting for Matt to finish his shower. As you hummed along to the Halloween music you put on you noticed the shower faucet sound had stopped. You turned your head to see Matt walk out in most of his costume. His white shirt hugged his torso, just barely being off of the rim of his cargo shorts. Thankfully you both lived in LA which meant that it wasn’t freezing during Halloween. “Hey.” “Hey” He smiled down at you, pushing his wet hair away from his face. “Have a good shower?” Matt nodded, moving to his bed where his blue vest sat with his little blue hat. “Your makeup looks good.” You smiled, “Thanks Matt.” “Yeah of course.” The two of you stared at each other for a minute, your eyes never leaving his. You opened your mouth to say something, to say anything, but you closed your mouth again. You didn’t know what you wanted to say, maybe you should tell him how you felt. Anytime you were with him he treated you so gently, it made your heart flutter at any word. 

Suddenly a hard knock came onto Matt’s door, Chris’s voice ringing from the other side. “Are y’all almost ready? We’re ready and people are going to start showing up soon.” You giggled at Matt, who jumped at the sudden knocking. He glared over at you before pulling the vest on himself. “Yeah yeah, we’re almost ready, just give us a minute.” You laughed again before standing up, dusting your mini skirt off before buttoning your big yellow tail coat. When you looked up you saw Matt, his hand was on the door knob but his eyes were glued to you. He blinked a few times before noticing you saw him. “Sorry uh, you just look amazing.” Your cheeks warmed and you tucked some of your gelled hair behind your ear. “Thanks Matt, you look cute.” You must have been seeing things because for a moment it looked like Matt blushed. But how could that be? He’s just your friend, nothing more. Matt was quick to open the door, his hat in his hand. He held it open for you to walk through which prompted you to jog your way to the door, smiling at Matt as you walked through the door and to where Chris stood. Chris looked you up and down before nodding. “Nice costume.” You smiled, doing a little pose. “Thanks Chris. I like your costume too.” Chris was dressed as Billy Loomis with Nick matching him as Stu. Matt soon joined the two of you in the hall, his hand grazing your lower back as he stood next to you. Your body tensed at his contact before you melted into his touch, leaning against him before remembering Chris was there. You stood up and smiled between the two, “Well I’m gonna go see everyone.” Matt nodded. “Ok, sounds good.” Chris nodded before giving Matt a look and walking away. 

When you walked into the kitchen you saw Madi sitting at the island scrolling on her phone. You moved to sit by her and smiled when she looked up. She met you with the same smile before turning off her phone. “You look cute.” You smiled and shrugged, “Thanks, you do too!” She giggled as Nick walked in. He dramatically gasped as Matt and Chris entered the room as well. He walked over to you and motioned at your outfit. “You look amazing Y/N!!” You gushed, not being able to control your smile at the boy. From the corner of your eye you saw Matt smiling at you as well. 

After some small talking between the 5 of you some of your other friends began to arrive. You dabbed up various people and began to party the way most 20 year olds would. Though you weren’t the drinking type, you’d have a few sips of something but nothing to get you hammered. As you mingled with Madi and some of y’alls friends you noticed Matt staring at you more and more. It made your heart flutter knowing that he was looking at you when other people were around. You mingled around the party earning a few confused looks at your costume and many compliments before finding Matt again. He was sitting on the couch looking around before his beautiful blue eyes fell upon you for what felt like the millionth time tonight. You smiled to yourself before walking over to him and sitting down. Without a word you curled yourself next to Matt, resting your head on his chest. You felt him tense under you before relaxing, laying his arm around your shoulder. You smiled and cuddled into your friend before looking up at him. “Enjoying the party?” You spoke to him, loud enough to be heard over the general bustle of people yet still quiet. Almost as if you two were in your own little world on that couch. Matt nodded, “Yeah, it’s better now though.” You felt your cheeks warm at that before sitting up, looking him directly in the face. “That was cheesy as fuck.” You stated, smiling at him with a teasing look in your eye. Matt laughed though it was almost as if it were a flustered laugh, causing him to look away from your face. After the two of you giggled he became oddly serious, grabbing your hand. “Can I talk to you?” He nearly whispered. “Of course, what’s wrong?” You whispered back. “Let’s go to my room..” He stood then, pulling you with him by the hand. He held your hand tight as the two of you walked past all of your friends and to the back hall where his room was. He opened the door for you and you walked in, immediately going to the mirror to make sure your costume was still in one piece. After you were certain you still looked like Bill Cypher you turned to Matt who was fidgeting nervously. You smiled sympathetically before walking over to him and grabbing his hands. “Hey look at me.” His eyes shot up, locking in with yours. “Talk to me Matt.” You whispered to him. Though it didn’t strike you as strange in the moment you were nearly an inch away from Matt’s face. It was an intense stare but the kind that felt so friendly and kind and full of love. Matt smiled for a moment before looking into your eyes, he sighed and looked back down at your hands. “Promise you won’t be mad at me.” Upon his words you furrowed your brows, now worried for what he may say. “I promise Matt, I could never be mad at you. Not really.” You moved to tilt his face up so that he was looking into your eyes once more. “Y/N I like you, like a lot.” You paused, your mind not letting you accept what he just said. “What do you mean..” Matt sighed before dropping your hands and grabbing the sides of your face. Suddenly your lips collided with something soft and warm. You blinked a few times as Matt kissed you, your heart exploding into fireworks. Quickly you began to kiss back, holding onto his hand that cupped your cheek. Your hands moved to his white undershirt, clutching it in your fists as you deepened the kiss. 

Finally pulling away you looked at Matt, a smile lingering on your lips. “I like you a lot. I wanted to do this costume with you because I like you. Like more than a friend.” He admitted, looking away a bit. You giggled, wrapping your arms around his neck as his hands snaked to your hips. You pulled him closer to you, kissing him once more. “I like you too Matthew Sturniolo.”

#sturniolo triplets #nick sturniolo #chris sturniolo #matt sturniolo #sturniolo #christopher sturniolo #nicolas sturniolo #matt sturniolo imagine #bobawitch writes #matt sturniolo x you #matt sturniolo x reader #matthew sturniolo #matthew sturniolo x reader #matthew sturniolo x you

[dailyadventureprompts]

Villain: The Cult of the Wyrm Eternal

Any adventurer, alchemist, or awestruck child can tell you that there is power in the body of a dragon, and like all sources of power it's only a mater of time before someone comes along to try to capitalize on it.

Enter the Cult of the Wyrm Eternal, which emerges from long buried vaults to dissect the bodies of dragonkind like flesh eating beetles. The cult originated from a time beyond remembering following the teachings of a profane text known as the Har'Khon Libram, which survives into the modern day as a sort of how-to manual for those seeking forbidden knowledge allowing them to revive the cult's practices and discover its caches of lost power.

It's in this manner that the cult has survived millennia and numerous purges at the hands of heroes, holy orders, and oligarchs: With each iteration caching away knowledge and resources for acolytes they will never meet.

Hooks:

A prominent dragonborn hero and ally of the party disappears, leaving behind few clues and a mystery to solve. Lacking a true dragon to carve up for ingredients the cult abducted the dragonborn and plans on sacrificing them after a gauntlet of strange rituals intended to suffuse their flesh with power.  Its a race against the clock for the party to find their friend before there’s nothing left of them but a grisly scattering of magical items bound for the cult’s armoury. 

The local warlord has a new pet, a young dragon provided to him by the cult in exchange for his protection and material support. Tales of him riding out to wreak destruction from its back send shivers of terror through the populace. What a surprise then when the party encounter it in the wild, rampaging aimlessly after  slipping her bonds.  Brainwashed by cult doctrine the parry find themselves  negotiating with a creature with the drives of a caged tiger, the volatility of an abused teenager,  and the destructive potential of an artillery battery.  Talking her down will be as difficult as diffusing a bomb, but they might just come away with important information or even a new ally should they help her evade recapture.

Using knowledge purloined from the mysteries of the mother hydra herself a cell of the Wyrm Eternal has been working on a ritual to create a true dragon, experimenting with drakes, basilisks and other reptilian monsters, filling the wilderness with bounty worthy monsters that will inevitably bring the party crashing into their lair.

Background: The knowledge contained within the Har'Khon Libram is cursed, part of a scheme by the book's original author in an attempt to evade both death and those who hunt unlawful immortality. Reading the book not only imparts the authors knowledge upon the prospective cultist, but also a vestige of their cosiouness, which steers them towards the same course of action that has kept the cult alive for so long: constructing more vaults, hoarding draconic power, and propogating the Libram's knowledge so that the infection can spread through time.

Hidden in the depths of each vault are tablets of further tainted lore, which causes the seed of malign presence within the Wyrm cultist's mind to blossom, opening their mind to the space between life and death and allowing their patron's thoughts to swirl into their own. In this way the party can end up fighting the same villain through many proxies, the unseen master of the Wyrm eternal studying them as they cut down vessel after vessel before formulating a counteroffence.

Dungeon Dressing:

Wyrm Eternal vaults vary by the culture that originally constructed them, but are always in remote, sheltered areas that could endure largescale devastation. Their entrances are hidden and warded against intrusion, protected by magical cyphers that can usually only be broken with aid from the Har'Khon Libram. Vaults can also contain these doors within, locking away the greatest treasures until the acolytes have further tainted their thoughts with the Libram's curse.

Undead are ubiquitous within dungeons claimed by the Wyrm Eternal, ranging from simple servitors to looming guardians to dragonbone infused war machines just waiting to be unleashed on the cult's enemies all with green corpsefire flickering in their heads. Access to these undead armouries and the arsenal of magical items that come with them are one of the primary drivers for individuals to become cultists in the first place.

Each vault will likewise contain preserved pieces of dragongore, ranging from single skulls placed on altars to whole cellars filled with blood magically preserved in clay or glass vessels. If a cult cell reached full operation, it's likely to have atleast one mummified corpse preserved in an onsite tomb, it's vital organs ( and perhaps a few spares) preserved in canopic jars waiting nearby.

Art 1 Art 2

#cultists #villain #villain cult #mid level #rescue mission #undead #dragon #occult #cursed item #curse #dungeon tomb #Necromancer #warfare

[art-missy]

Overwhelmed (Gekko x Reader)

Part. 1 Part. 3

Part. 2

Sorry in advance for my terrible English. I'm actually more of an English reader and listener than an actual speaker or writer. I also apologize for the dull writing style that could seem quite childish. I just wanted to test something by posting this.

If a few months ago somebody had told you that you would be spotted by a secret organization whose job is to protect your world against the threat of agents from another dimension, you would have laughed so hard that your guts would have spitted out. If that ‘somebody’ had continued with the fact that this organization would contact you in some way to recruit you just because you maybe took down a K-SEC facility by yourself and also because your skills interested them, you would have told them to sell their idea to a filmmaker. If that ‘somebody’ had then insisted that you would spend one of your days off with a few other agents of that organization by watching Disney movies and hearing them sing their guts out, you would have told them to stop.

Well, look at you now, exchanging astounded glances with Iso as Neon reached a note so terrifying that you were pretty sure she could have won the Oscar of the best scream in a horror movie. You were slightly worried about the state of her vocal cords. 

“And she’s not even drunk.” Muttered Yoru when he saw your dumbfounded expression as he finished his can of soda. Phoenix let out a booming laugh and nudged your and Iso’s arms playfully.

What the hell were you doing here ? You were so at peace in your hideout. How did Valorant find you ? Oh yeah. Cypher. No one can hide from the Moroccan sentinel and you understood it quite quickly when he appeared in each of your hideouts everytime you tried to run away. Hard to hide from someone whose eyes are literally everywhere. It has been quite hard for him too to convince you that the intentions of Valorant were noble when he appeared each time in the middle of the night like a sleep paralysis demon. The process of convincing you had been long and hard but Cypher was patient and quite stubborn. Especially when it came to visiting each of your hideouts (even the one under the Mediterranean Sea) and finishing all your different packs of tea. Well, at least you had now Big Brother as a mentor.

You jolted a little, startled when Raze and Killjoy suddenly stood up to start a duet while waltzing around the room. The level of love and affection in their eyes made you wonder if they weren't from a Disney movie themselves. You could literally see their eyes changing form to turn into hearts as their souls were screaming ‘I love you’ in their respective languages. And you found it adorable despite your exhaustion.

Jett playfully threw some popcorn at the couple, telling them to get a room. You’re pretty sure she didn't notice the few candy and crumbs of snacks in her ponytail. 

Clove were jumping on the different bean bag chairs, singing as if their life depended on it while Wingman cheered at their antics.

And you, you let out a small sigh as you took a sip of your bubbletea. All this chaos because of Frozen.

You swore that if you heard the songs ‘Love is an open door’ or ‘Let it go’ again, you would go apeshit.

You maybe should have join Deadlock for a reading session in her quarters instead of accepting Gekko’s invitation. Or just listening to music in your room. Or maybe drawing. You were certain that it would have been more peaceful and less mentally draining than this Disney night. And when you shared another glance with Iso, you knew he thought the same thing. It was visibly way too much for your introverted asses.

“Hey,” Gekko put a gentle hand on your shoulder. “Are you okay ?”

You shot him a tired look. 

You sometimes miss your old life. You missed your different hideouts where you could see the sunset over the mountains, the sea creatures under the Mediterranean Sea, the snow in the Siberian desert or the rain falling on the trees of a random forest. Where you didn't have to interact with people every single day of the week.

You loved the Valorant protocol and you got along with the people you met there. But sometimes it was too much. You took down this K-SEC facility because you knew how shady the experimentations they were running were, not because you wanted to attract the attention of a secret organization. You sometimes resented Cypher for finding you, for stealing you from these calm moments, even though you knew that you accepted to be an agent of Valorant of your own free will and for a good cause. 

“Hey,” Repeated Gekko. “Are you okay ?”

You gently pushed his hand off your shoulder and stood up from your bean bag chair.

“Sorry.” You muttered.

And you rushed out of the room as Gekko called for you, his tone full of worry. You speed-walked towards the garden of the base, putting your headphones on your ears and slightly relaxing when the music reached your brain. You took a deep breath and the wind caressed your skin as you finally walked into the gardens. You took off your shoes and let the grass tickle your bare feet. The night sky watched over you as you finally took a seat on a bench.

Better.

You felt better. You breathed better. You lived better. The music in your ears relaxed your muscles, and the wind murmured on your skin, bringing the fragrance of the different flowers of the garden. You definitely had to compliment Sky and Sage. 

Your phone suddenly vibrated and you noticed that Iso sent you a link to a playlist. 

⟨Here. To relax your nerves.⟩

You internally smiled and sent a text message to the Chinese duelist to thank him. You started the playlist and relaxed even more when the first note of the first song reached your ears. Iso really did have good taste in music.

You were about to close your eyes when you suddenly felt a finger patting your shoulder. You jolted a little and turned your head to the side to see Cypher’s blue lenses staring back at you. You pulled your headphones down and raised an eyebrow at him.

“Big Brother is watching me ?” 

The sentinel let out a small chuckle and sat down beside you, a trap wire traveling on his knuckles.

“Overwhelmed ?”

“No shit, Sherlock.”

“I thought I was Big Brother.”

You rolled your eyes but a small smile tugged the corners of your lips. You leaned on the backrest of the bench and let out a deep sigh.

“I’m not in the mood for a game of chess, Cypher.” 

The masked man nodded and hummed softly.

“I suspected it.”

“Then why are you here, Optimus Prime ?” You groaned, stretching your arms over your head.

Cypher’s head tilted slightly and by his body language you suspected a smirk to be present under his mask.

“To check on you, dear.”

You raised a skeptical eyebrow and your eyes squinted slightly.

“Right. And may I ask why, dear ?” You scoffed as you rolled your eyes again. “Wait. Let me guess. You saw me walking away from the common room through these cute little cameras of yours, got curious when you couldn't see me then came here.” You interrupted yourself then shook your head. “Nope. There are also cameras in the garden. Then why did you come here ?”

Cypher let out another small chuckle and patted your head with an odd but paternal affection. 

“Look who’s playing Sherlock, now.” 

You let out an annoyed groan as you tried to push his hand away from your head but Cypher’s mood stayed playful.

“What kind of mentor would I be if I didn't worry about my protégé ?”

You snorted but nodded with a sarcastic smile.“More of a stalker than a mentor.” 

“A stalker who is worried about you, then.”

You couldn't see it but you heard the soft smile in his voice. He leaned a bit more towards you, the brim of his long hat hid you from the night sky and the usual faint glow of his blue lenses looked like two little will-o’-the-wisps in the obscurity of the garden. It reminded you of the first time you met each other, a few days after you took down this K-SEC facility. It was in a dark alleyway and the first thing you saw was these blue lenses before you could make out his long and slender figure. But because of his long hat and the darkness of the alleyway, you had almost taken him for a mutated palm tree. Even today you facepalmed yourself when you remembered those thoughts as your eyes stared into his lenses.

“Who eats alone, chokes alone.” He finally whispered with a conspiratorial tone. Something was telling you that he winked under his mask.

“What ?” You facepalmed.

“It’s an Arabic proverb.” He leaned back and his head tilted again. “Loneliness is neither your ally, nor your enemy. It is impartial. In your case, you use it to recharge yourself, but it can also drain you without you noticing, making you depend on it. Use your loneliness but don’t be alone.” His voice dropped a few octaves lower and you felt his eyes sinking deeply into yours. “Use your balance.”

Something was telling you that he was speaking from experience. A slight twitch in his body language maybe. Or a tiny heaviness in his already thick accent, indication of the unusual emotions in his voice. And you realized just now how little you knew about your mentor.

Cypher nodded, as if satisfied by your visible confusion, stood up from the bench and started to walk away.

“Wait a minute, Darth Vader !” You exclaimed, pointing a frustrated finger at him. “I don't speak proverbial shit and neither does google translate. Come back here or I’ll tell Sky you put cameras in the garden !”

Cypher kept walking away, humming a soft tune.

“Speaking of balance…”

“I don’t understand the proverbial shit, you cheap Cyberpunk shit !”

“Have a good night, dear.” He turned towards you briefly. “Oh, and your strawberry teas are delicious.”

This fucker.

He kept walking away until going back inside and you suddenly heard hurried footsteps. You turned your head and saw Gekko and Wingman running in your direction before stopping in front of you. 

How did you know it was Gekko with the lack of light ? First of all, Wingman. Second of all, his hair.

Gekko was catching his breath with his hands on his knees while Wingman jumped on your lap, making a few garbling sounds. You raised an eyebrow and looked at them, confused.

“Are you dying ?” You asked Gekko and your eyes widened slightly when he started to wheeze. “Gekko ?”

“Dios !” He exclaimed as he finally caught his breath. “I looked for you throughout the whole base !”

“Did you have to run a marathon for that ?” 

Despite your dry tone, your eyes only showed concern for him. You patted the space beside you on the bench and he gladly sat down. He then looked at you and despite the obscurity, you were certain his brows furrowed in worry.

“Are you okay ?”

You shot him a deadpanned look.

“You put your legs through a nocturnal torture by running like a possessed fool throughout the whole base, found me here relaxing in the garden while the soft fragrance of flowers and the night sky kept me company, and ended up wheezing like a dying man about to spew his lungs out and you are asking me if I’m okay ?” 

You looked at his figure from head to toe as he chuckled at your small outburst. He was still a bit out of breath from his little run but he seemed quite fine.

“Damn ! Your descriptions are always so…special. Clove would definitely love you to be the Dungeon Master of their next DnD game.” His laugh calmed down and he nervously cleared his throat. “Anyway. I wanted to check on you. You didn't seem fine in the common room. Are you feeling a bit better now ?”

You shot him a bored look and let a deep sigh out of your lungs. Wingman made a few high chirped noises indicating his worry.

“You really love wasting your time, don’t you ?” Your eyes wandered on the night sky. “Aren't you missing the end of the movie ? Shouldn't you be inside with your friends ?”

Gekko frowned and looked at you funny.

“You’re my friend too.”

You let out a small snort that only deepened his frown.

“I’m serious.” He insisted. “We’re maybe not as close as you are with Cypher or Deadlock or… Iso, but I see you as my friend and I will always have your back.”

You looked back at him and even though you couldn't see him clearly because of the obscurity, you felt his eyes looking at you with a fierce determination.

“Plus,” he continued, “you always have my back on the field, fighting like a total badass against the enemies. Remember our last mission in Lotus ? I would have been dead meat if you weren't there.”

Wingman (who had gotten comfy on your lap) nodded with vehemence, agreeing with Gekko’s words.

“I’m not quite sure if you can be ‘dead meat’ when someone like Sage is around.” You said, raising a skeptical eyebrow.

Gekko made a noise between an amused chuckle and a sigh of frustration. You couldn't figure out what was on his mind, which is quite surprising since he was usually so expressive. He then suddenly got closer to you on the bench, grabbed your shoulders and leaned a bit more towards you.

“My point is : you got my back and I got yours. You're my friend and I won’t leave you alone.” His fingers gently squeezed your shoulders. “And I’m sorry.”

It was now your turn to frown as you did not understand why he was apologizing for.

“I invited you to this movie night so I could have an occasion to get to know you better, so we could get to know each other and bond on something that is not mission related.” He explained. “But you clearly weren't at ease. I thought you were about to have a panic attack, back there.”

You felt his thumbs caressing your shoulders as his hands squeezed you a bit more tightly.

“I’m sorry.”

You shook your head and let out another sigh. “Don’t apologize. Your intentions were innocent and sweet.”

You couldn't see the blush on his cheeks but you noticed the slight twitch in his body language.

“Everything's fine.” You insisted. “I’m perfectly fine. Plus, with the new playlist Iso sent me, I can just relax and enjoy the quietude of the garden.”

“Oh.” He said simply.

His voice showed disappointment, sadness even. You vaguely felt his grip on your shoulder faltering a little while Wingman made a few sad garbling sounds.

“Gekko ?”

You couldn't see his face, but his body language showed a slight dispiritedness that didn't match his usual playful and confident personality.

“You and Iso are really close, huh.” He said with an uncharacteristically neutral tone.

His shoulders were now slightly slumped.

“Well, we had heard about each other before we joined Valorant. It was funny to finally meet the infamous ‘Dead Lilac’ in this secret organization.” You chuckled a little, finding the circumstances of your first meeting with the Chinese duelist quite embarrassing. You remembered knocking your head so hard against his chest that it spinned a little.

“That’s…uhm…kinda cute, I guess.”

You wondered what was on the mind of the piece of sweet-woman-heartthrob-trope that Gekko was.

“Well I don't know if it’s cute, but we’ve been exchanging playlists and book recommendations since.” You shrugged and Gekko’s hands slided down your arms at your action. “He’s cool. He has a sweet ‘older sibling’ vibe that put me at ease.”

The young initiator seemed to perk at your words and so was his radivore critter.

“‘Older sibling’ vibe ?” He repeated. “What do you mean ?”

“Well, you see how siblings sometimes banter with each other but always have each other's back ?” You started to explain and you saw his figure tilting his head. “Well that's our relationship with Iso. You probably know what I’m talking about. I noticed that you had quite the same thing with Neon.” You shrugged again.

His whole demeanor seemed to relax when he let out a laugh filled with relief. You frowned a little, not understanding this sudden outburst of joy.

“You alright ?” You raised a worried eyebrow and squinted your eyes a little. “Maybe you should get some sleep.”

It was at this moment that the moon finally decided to come out of behind the clouds, illuminating both of your faces. You both looked at each other, admiring your features. Your eyes wandered on his freckles without noticing his lovestruck gaze on you. 

“Maybe I'm a bit tired.” He whispered with a lost tone, as if he didn't understand what he just said.

“Hm.” You looked down on your lap to notice Wingman shrinking and hopping towards Gekko’s shoulder. “Wanna go back inside ?”

“You’re going back inside ?” Gekko asked.

“No.”

“Then I’ll stay with you.” He got more comfortable on the bench and you felt him lean a bit more towards you. “Unless my presence is overwhelming.”

You shook your head and leaned against the backrest of the bench. 

“No. You’re fine.”

“Cool.” He nodded and let out a small sigh of relief.

A comfortable silence settled between you, slightly disturbed by the faint music from your headphones. Your eyes wandered on the night sky, unaware of Gekko’s longing glances in your direction. You were completely oblivious to his poor heart beating so fast and so loud that he feared you could hear it. You did not notice. You never did. Ever since you set your foot into the base for the first time, his eyes were always on you. At first it was curiosity. Curious about the agent recommended by the mysterious man that was Cypher. Then it was admiration for the fierce fighter that you turned into once on the field. And finally, it bloomed to be a small crush that never ceased to grow. Your charisma hypnotized him. His feelings for you were so obvious that his friends never stopped to tease him. Even Reyna said that he looked like a lost puppy everytime you were around and Harbor often asked him to focus when you were in his field of view. And of course, he was jealous of how close Iso was with you. The duelist could talk to you without any problem, he could receive your smiles, your laughs, your friendly fist-bumps while the only times Gekko could have a proper interaction with you was during missions or briefings. Even during training you stayed in your corner, avoiding interactions.

But right now, he felt so happy. This was the longest interaction you’ve ever had with each other and he couldn't help but smile.

He turned his head in your direction and softly called you.

“Yeah ?”

“I heard that you love to draw.” He nervously rubbed his neck but kept his eyes on yours. “We could someday, you know, draw together while chilling in my room. If it’s okay with you of course.”

You shot him an indescribable glance and he suddenly felt so stupid for not using drawing as a way to bond with you sooner instead of the movie night. But he relaxed a little when you ended up shrugging.

“Why not.”

It was a start. He will not confess his feelings for now. It was way too soon. But he will certainly enjoy these moments with you. He will enjoy bonding with you and get to know you better.

Anecdote : the Arabic proverb mentioned by Cypher is something the father of a friend once told me when I was a kid. It's stuck in my mind, ever since.

I'm not proud of the ending ಥ⁠‿⁠ಥ But it's fine. It is just a test, after all.

I don't know if I'll post the part. 2. I'll most probably keep it in my drafts.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. I wish you a lovely day/night.

#gekko x reader #valorant x reader #gekko x you #valorant imagines

[cosmichoneibeee]

Hi ^^

Could I request some headcanons with Omen, Yoru, Cypher [separate] that comfort crying reader?

Thanks <3

Omen, Yoru, Cypher comforting a crying reader

Warnings: short mentions of injuries and violence | Reader is GN

ㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤ ㅤ˙·٠•●♥ Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ ♥●•٠

❝Omen:

At first you didn't even know he was there, in the shadows, watching you cry

It was when you felt a heavy blanket being gently placed around your shoulders that you realized you weren't alone.

He doesn't say much, but you know he's worried. The way his form shakes more than usual, he is very worried about you

Omen won't pressure you to tell what happened, but he would be happy to know.

If someone said something mean to you, he'll pretend he forgot for a while and one day, that person just disappears without leaving any trace of what happened.

If you accidentally hurt yourself, he will constantly remind you to pay more attention after that.

For now, he'll stay by your side if you want company. Literally by your side or hugging you if you prefer.

His cat will also join the two of you as well, just enjoying each other's presence.

He won't force you to be happy and go around doing things like nothing happened, sometimes people just want to be quiet and reflect a bit; but if you want to go somewhere, like go shopping, he'll make the effort to accompany you

It's a little funny to see this faceless figure, almost 2 meters tall, following you around the stores in a mall like a puppy, people are horrified

When you finally smiles again, you can hear a gentle "Hmmm.."

❝Yoru:

When he walked into the room and saw you crying, he froze

Fuck

What happened? You better tell him

He just doesn't know what to do to help you feel better.

Don't get me wrong, he cares about your feelings and loves you so much, but it's hard to translate that into words and actions.

Awkward pats on your head and rubbing his hands on your back, hoping it will comfort you in some way.

If someone said something mean to you..they’re going to regret that very badly later. Yoru it’s going to take care of that

If you hurt yourself, like bumping into the furniture or cutting your finger, please, be more careful, he gets worried

If you’re stressed about life n stuff, he can’t do a lot, but he will be there for you.

He might not be the best expressing his love and admiration, but he's amazing at listening, paying attention to every detail you talk about, and more often than not, being a strong pillar to help you stay confident

“Don't listen to that バカ*, you are amazing just the way you are.”

That’s the best you can get of him verbally, but he’s so sweet though

He takes you for a ride on his motorcycle all over the city. This helps him clear his mind when he's stressed, it should help you too.

He will not give up until your mood is better

*バカ - idiot

❝Cypher:

“Oh no, sweetheart! What happened?”

So sweet and soft with you

He is by your side in a second, already drying your tears with a tissue

Cypher loves you, that's why he subtly convinces you to tell him what happened, without lies or excuses.

If someone said something that made you sad. Oh..they're going to have ALL their information leaked for everyone to see and use.

If you end up accidentally hurting yourself, he'll give you a pretty big lecture about how you should take care of yourself and pay more attention to the things around you.

Anyway, his whole schedule is off for the rest of the day just to be with you.

Will make two cups of his most expensive tea just for you to share

Want to watch a movie? Say the name, in a few minutes he will have a copy on his computer.

Want to go online shopping? How convenient! The stores you love are suddenly on sale.

If you just want to be close without doing too much, yeah, he can do that too, anything that makes you happy.

Amir is an experienced man, he has been through a lot in his life, if you need any advice, about anything, he will try to help you as best he can.

when I said a lot, it's a lot. He's been through some pretty dark times in his life, he'll do everything he can to not see you the same way he did

ㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤㅤㅤㅤ ㅤ ㅤ˙·٠•●♥ Ƹ̵̡Ӝ̵̨̄Ʒ ♥●•٠

@ Do not copy any of my works, translate and/or post it on others websites.

#valorant #valorant x reader #valorant x you #valorant fanfic #valorant headcanons #omen #valorant omen #omen x reader #valorant omen x reader #omen x you #yoru #valorant yoru #yoru x reader #valorant yoru x reader #yoru x you #ryo kiritani #cypher #valorant cypher #cypher x reader #valorant cypher x reader #cypher x you #amir el amari

[sugarpasteltmnt]

You write unhinged Leo so well, and I really like how you write him. I was wondering if you had tips on unhinged characters 😂, or do you just get inspro from existing characters 👀

aksdakjsdh thank you so much ;w;

And honestly???? I’m not totally sure how to give tips— but I love, love, love unhinged characters in media, so I’ll use them as examples

(long rant below lol)

I’ve always been a big fan of silly, ‘crazy’ characters in animated movies and cartoons. I grew up on Batman the Animated Series and the original Teen Titans, which were full of silly, fun tragic characters.

Don’t get me wrong, i love a good edge-lord— but as a tot i thought the colorful, theatrical, insane bad guys were more fun to watch than the big scary serious ones (ESPECIALLY if they had a good villain song. A+ good shit)

(From left to right: Ratigan from Great Mouse Detective, Joker from Batman the Animated Series, Mumbo Jumbo from Teen Titans, Martin from Secret of Nimh 2, Bill Cypher from Gravity Falls, and Spinel from the Steven Universe movie)

And not just bad guys!! There are a ton of unhinged good/neutral characters that i absolutely adore.

(From left to right: King Bumi from ATLA, Clara from Welcome to Demon School Iruma-kun, and, of course, our silly 2018 turtle boys)

((There are many more characters in both categories, but I’ll slide these examples in here for now))

My personal brand of “Unhinged” or “Crazy” characters definitely leans on comedy. That’s what i enjoy seeing and reading! I personally like it because it can help keep a story fresh and interesting. There’s an element of surprise and unpredictability with what a character might do, and i love that!!

I also really enjoy a touch of feral behavior in my unhinged characters. The lack of clarity and the danger that imposes can be a very fun tool to use, no matter the character’s moral compass. (I’m feral for feral behavior lol)

And impulses. Whether a character has a few screws loose or is generally a goober, they like to act on impulses. This often goes hand-in-hand with comedy, and that’s something I enjoy!! We get a lot of moments like that in Rise, and that was one of my favorite parts of that TMNT iteration.

But as far as writing goes, it’s been tricky for me. All of the characters I grew up or love have been visual— trying to find a good balance for reading has been a puzzle I’ve been figuring out as I go.

I read a lot manga (lol nerd) and comics, and I love how thoughts/dialog are depicted. Especially the really dramatic or impactful moments. (I’d add examples but I’m already at the Tumblr image limit LAME)

As strange as it sounds, I try to capture that “impactful visual” style in my writing. If I had ANY advice on writing unhinged characters, pay attention to pacing—

Short. Fast. A calculating thought. Perhaps a run on sentence that lacks punctuation to represent the rushing and disorganized thought process. A question? An answer with little thought. Is this moment amusing; describe how. Is it upsetting; describe how. Are the thoughts starting to scatter? M aybe s o…

Big moment statement.

Action or plan of next big move. Flow should never seem too uniform. Even in normal writing. Don’t be afraid of accentuating— but don’t overdo it. Remember, unhinged characters are impulsive. Have fun with that.

Just as a quick and dirty summary— when it comes to unhinged characters, I like to use comedy, feral behavior, and acting on impulses. I also like to keep it as visually appealing as possible for characters to give the eyes a little treat after reading walls of text. I like to use fun text formatting to help with the fun too (But don’t overdo it! Don’t make it feel like a chore to read) (<- says the girl who goes into way too much details sometimes lmao whoops)

But ultimately— have FUN!!! Unhinged characters are fun, so make sure you have fun writing/drawing/creating them!!

#BIG CRY THANKS #thanks for coming to my ted talk lol #hopefully this was somewhat helpful ;w; #or at the very least fun to read #I’m so glad people seem to enjoy how I’m writing Leo #because this is the first time I’m writing ANYTHING like this #pastel prattling #I’m sure as soon as i post this I’ll think of more obvious characters #but take this for now lol

[thornybubbles]

JJBA Yandere Scenario: Jealousy (The Joe-Foes) Doppio/Diavolo

**Note: This is another story that I’m just not satisfied with. I thought about scrapping what I had and rewriting the whole thing but changed my mind and just went in and added some changes instead. I figured if I spent time rewriting it, I’d never get around to all the other projects I want to work on. I’m sorry if it’s trash. I’ll try to do something better for Doppio and Diavolo later.**

You were in way over your head. 

You were in way, WAY over your head.

You joined Passione as the lowest of the low, just a messenger and nothing more. Slowly over time, you found yourself climbing higher and higher in the ranks receiving more responsibilities and more rewards in turn. Before you knew it, you were as high as you could go. You had somehow become your own unit within the organization.You had no subordinates but you answered only to someone named Doppio. When you first met the man you were certain someone was playing a prank on you. This guy, who looked and acted like a kid, was actually the underboss? This was the guy who took orders directly from the Boss himself? It had to be a joke… but it wasn’t. Doppio absolutely was the undisputed second in command… somehow… and you were taking your orders from him. The strange part was that only you knew who Doppio was and who he had ties to, and you were sworn to secrecy on penalty of death. But when you found out who Doppio really was, that’s when you knew that maybe a life of crime wasn’t the career choice for you. Though, it was far too late to drop out of the game now.

Doppio and you were often paired on missions together. Usually you would receive your orders through cypher messages stating that you were to “Make sure the plan goes smoothly, eliminate any interference, and keep dear Doppio out of trouble.” You had suspicions that Doppio must be related to the Boss somehow. Nepotism wasn’t unusual in the business, but it always irked you whenever you came across it. Doppio’s naivety, clumsiness, and habit of finding trouble no matter how hard you tried to avoid it made you wonder why he was allowed to have such a high ranking with all the responsibilities that came with it. You began to resent the pink-haired twerp, feeling that if anyone should be the Boss’s number Two, it should be you. You actually worked to get where you were. You didn’t just have it handed to you! You didn’t fight your way to the top just to end up as a glorified babysitter! 

What made it worse was that Doppio seemed to have developed an annoying little crush on you. It didn’t help that whenever you and Doppio were on a mission together, the Boss expected you to be in disguise and pretend to be Doppio’s lover. This gave Doppio the perfect excuse to always be holding your hand or clinging to your side in some way. He was always begging for kisses, hugs, or just your attention in general. You were not happy, but what could you do? Orders were orders. What’s worse is that you were beginning to suspect that these “missions” were actually dates. Now every time Doppio snuggled into your side you seethed on the inside and sent mental curses to the Boss. You were one of the best that Passione had to offer and now you’ve been reduced to being a forced date for the Boss’s nephew or something! You were deeply insulted, but due to the situation, you wouldn’t be allowed to voice any complaints. 

Of course at the time, you had not yet put two and two together about Doppio’s real identity. That day would be one you never forgot. It started when Doppio decided to take you on a shopping trip around the city. You sighed and reluctantly allowed yourself to be dragged along. Realizing that this “mission” wasn't going to be anything important, you decided to just let Doppio treat you. You weren’t about to say “no” to free stuff. The problem arose when you made the mistake of not only letting the guy at the jewelry store flirt with you, but flirting back at him. It wasn’t that the guy was especially attractive or anything, you were just relishing the fact that you were finally getting attention from someone other than Doppio. The man-child was so busy looking at all the shiny things in the store that you hadn’t thought he’d notice if you fluttered an eyelash or two. Besides, what would he even do about it? 

Well, you fucked around and found out. 

At some point during your conversation, you turned to see Doppio staring at you with a stunned, horrified expression on his face. For a moment, he looked like he would burst into tears. Then he did something weird. He started imitating the sound of a ringing cell phone. You and the jeweler exchanged confused glances and you began to feel embarrassed by Doppio’s antics. You watched as he started looking around as if he was searching for a phone. He looked behind jewelry cases, rifled through a stand holding some designer purses, and then made his way back over to you. All the while he was making that stupid sound. Finally you’d had enough. 

“Doppio, what the hell--?” You didn’t get to finish the question as you found yourself suddenly off balance. 

Doppio had, for some reason, snatched one of your shoes right off of your foot and was holding it to the side of his head and talking into it as if it were a phone. The action nearly caused you to fall over and nearly lose the wig that you wore as part of your disguise. You turned to glare at Doppio and chew him out for acting like a loon, but when you caught the look in his eyes, anything you were going to say got stuck in your throat. 

Those were not Doppio’s eyes looking back at you. His normally hazel colored eyes were now green and glared back at you with an intense madness. The very shape of his irises had changed. What was wrong with him? Was he possessed? Was an enemy Stand attacking him? Why did it look like he’d grown taller? Shocked, you took a few steps back from him. 

“Boss?” he spoke into your shoe. “Yes, we’re at a jewelry store…. I’m sure it’s just a misunderstanding… “ 

Doppio continued talking into your shoe as if he was having an actual conversation with the Boss. You could only stare at him in shock. What on earth was happening? The jeweler chose that moment to make a snide comment at his expense and Doppio… effectively lost his shit. The meek, timid, wimp of a man you knew as Vinegar Doppio turned his green-eyed glare on the jeweler. He pressed your shoe closer to his ear to secure it while he used his other hand to grab the poor man by the hair. He then slammed the man’s face into the jewelry case repeatedly until the glass was cracked and splattered with blood. 

“CAN’T YOU SEE I’M ON THE PHONE?!! SHUT YOUR FILTHY, COCKSUCKING MOUTH AND MIND YOUR OWN BUSINESS!!!” he bellowed, using a voice and language you’d never thought you’d hear from someone like Doppio. 

Now he not only looked taller, but his arms and legs seemed more fleshed out and muscular. The sleeves of his sweater were pushed up slightly and you could make out what you thought to be elaborate tattoos on his arms. Since when was Doppio the type to get tattoos? You thought about calling your Stand, but you didn’t even know what you would have it do. If you used it to attack Doppio, the Boss would be furious, but you couldn’t exactly just let him give you the same treatment as the jeweler. You had to get out of there. 

The jeweler’s unconscious body slumped to the floor and you moved even further away from Doppio before turning and breaking into a full run. You didn’t care about your other shoe, you just needed to get away from Doppio while he was acting like a psychopath. You didn’t get far. You only took about three steps when you suddenly ran right into Doppio’s arms. You had no idea how he got ahead of you like that. You didn’t even see him move. He practically crushed you in his grip, but his embrace didn’t have its usual clingy, loving feel to it. He was holding you with a strength you’d never felt him display before. It was as if his arms were pythons and they were trying to squeeze the life out of you. 

He was looking up at you with the saddest expression you’d ever seen him use. His watery eyes were now back to their normal color and looking at you like you just knocked his teddy bear out of his hand. 

“Why are you trying to run from me?” he asked with a whimper. 

Was he serious? After that display of his, did he even have to ask? 

“D-Doppio… you… w-what happened to you? Your eyes changed and you-you…” 

Doppio wiped his eyes and let you go. He placed your shoe into your hand. You took it from him and put it back on, not taking your eyes off of him. 

“Boss called us back. We need to go.” he said with a sad sigh.

He never addressed your concerns and seemed to actively ignore it when you mentioned what just happened. He grabbed you by the hand and all but dragged you out of the store. Where was this strength coming from? You just couldn’t understand what was happening. It was like Doppio was becoming a different person! The next thing you knew, you and Doppio were getting into a taxi and being taken to God knows where. 

“He wants to talk to you.” Doppio said, still giving you that sad look. 

“Who?” you asked. 

“Boss. He sounds really mad.” 

A thrill of terror shot through your system. The Boss wanted to talk to you? And he was angry? That’s extremely concerning. On top of everything that was going on with Doppio, you really didn’t need this right now. Also, the Boss never had heart to hearts with anyone directly. Just what was going on? What rule did you break that was bad enough for the Boss to speak to you in person about it? 

“What is he mad about?” you asked Doppio, gulping down your fear.

“Why were you flirting with that guy at the jewelry store?” Doppio said, completely ignoring your question. 

“Uh… I… It didn’t mean anything, Doppio!” you stammered, not wanting to set him off again. “I was just messing around! That’s all!” 

You added the last part with a nervous smile. You never felt so on the spot in your life. It was apparent that your flirting had been what set Doppio off, but you never expected such violence from someone like him. Now you were beginning to understand why the Boss kept him around. He was a force to be reckoned with when he was angry and no one would ever suspect someone like him to have psychotic meltdowns that ended with brutal violence. But what was with the eye color change and the increase in height and muscle mass? Surely you hadn’t imagined that. 

Doppio huffed and folded his arms, going into a full pout. 

“You never look at me like that…” he muttered. 

His kicked puppy expression was slowly turning into one of annoyance and disgust. For a moment you feared he was about to have another outburst. For the rest of the ride, you sat in fearful silence while Doppio fumed and pouted next to you. After about 20 minutes, you realized that the taxi was taking you to an area of the city that you’d never been to before. Judging by all the sprawling villas and expensive looking stores, you were going into a very well-to-do neighborhood. The taxi pulled alongside an alley next to a huge hotel. 

“This is our stop.” Doppio said. 

He climbed out of the taxi and you followed after him. The taxi driver made no attempt to get any money out of either of you and he drove away as if he couldn’t get away from the area fast enough. Doppio grabbed your hand and dragged you down the alley. The alley was nothing like the ones in other parts of the city. The street was free of any garbage and there weren’t any shady guys in trench coats or scantily clad women leaning against the walls, waiting for their next customers. Other than a few trash cans lining up against the building wall, the alley was completely empty. 

Doppio took you all the way to the end of the alley and you realized that he’d taken you to a dead end. Out of instinct you jerked your head to look behind you, expecting to see rival gang members closing in to corner you, but there was no one there. Doppio stopped at the door and finally let go of your hand. The door looked weirdly high tech. It lacked a knob or handle of any kind and on the wall to the right of it was a keypad. Over the top of the door frame was an ominous looking security camera that seemed to focus in on you as you stared up at it. Doppio punched a code and the door slide open, making an unsettling “ssshhhh” sound. The room beyond the door was pitch black and you couldn’t make out a single thing inside it. Doppio grabbed your hand again, but instead of dragging you along behind him, he suddenly pulled you forward, flinging you into the yawning darkness. You yelped as you felt your body collide with the hard floor. You heard the door clang shut behind you, sounding far too similar to a prison door for your liking. You weren’t sure if Doppio came into the room behind you or threw you into the room alone. 

“Doppio?” you called nervously into the darkness. 

No one answered. You stood up, rubbing your sore shoulder from where you were tossed onto the floor. That would definitely be a bruise later. You never thought Doppio could be so vicious. You had always seen him as a klutzy, slow-witted pest with a childish streak, but you were really starting to think that it was time to reevaluate the way you thought about him. You were startled by the sound of footsteps walking around you. 

“D-Doppio? Is that you?” you called, your voice shaking slightly. 

No response. 

You listened as the footsteps moved away from you. You weren’t sure but it seemed that the further they got away from you, the heavier they sounded. It got to the point that they started to sound like a different set of footsteps. Just how many people were in the room with you? 

“Doppio, if that’s you please answer me!” you said, hating how your growing fear could be heard in your voice. 

The footsteps stopped a few feet ahead of you. There was a clicking sound, and you were suddenly blinded by a bright light shining directly in your face. 

“Doppio isn’t here right now. It’s just you… and me.” 

That was certainly not Doppio’s voice. It was much deeper, richer, and older sounding. You squinted your eyes, trying to see past the blinding light and oppressive darkness. You couldn’t see much, just the outline of a tall man with long hair. He was standing in front of the light, blocking it from blinding you, but also making it impossible to see his appearance in detail. There was one detail that you could make out though, and that was his glaring green eyes. The same green eyes that Doppio had when he flipped out on the jeweler. 

“Do you know who I am?” he asked you. His voice gave you chills, and not in a good way. 

You didn’t answer. You couldn’t answer. You were too afraid to. 

The man walked up to you, staring down at you with menacing green eyes. He reached out and grabbed you by the face, squeezing your jaw just enough for it to be uncomfortable but not quite painful. 

“I’m the man that you signed your life over to when you joined Passione.” he said, tightening his hold on your face just slightly for a moment. 

“I am the only reason you have the power and position that you have today! I am the one that gave you everything! With a snap of my fingers I could have you back to being a lowly messenger, or tossed into the streets! If I so chose, I could end your life in the blink of an eye. Your very existence continues because I allow it!” 

As he ranted, you could feel your blood began to freeze. The mysterious man that stood before you was the Boss himself! You were alone with the leader of Passione and he was royally pissed at you! The trouble was that you still didn’t know what you had done to earn his ire. 

“When you joined up with Passione, you became my subject, my property! I partnered you with Doppio for a reason. You answer to Doppio. You belong to Doppio. Anything that belongs to Doppio belongs to me! Do you understand that?!” 

He shoved you away from him, causing you to fall backwards onto your rear. You stared up at him in fear, afraid that he was going to inflict more abuse on you. He sounded unhinged and still, he hadn’t explained what your crime was. 

“Do you understand the concept of loyalty?” he asked you all of a sudden. 

You nodded your head. 

“Tell me, what do you think loyalty is.” he commanded. 

You took a moment to get your thoughts together while he stared at you in expectation. 

“Loyalty is showing support, devotion, or allegiance.” You answered, hoping that was what he wanted to hear. 

“Do you think you’ve been loyal?” he asked you, his voice taking on a slightly irritated tone. 

“I have been nothing but loyal to you and the organization!” you answered without hesitation. What was this talk of loyalty? When had you ever made the Boss doubt your loyalty? 

He reached down and grabbed your arm, then he yanked you up to your feet. You found yourself pressed up against his chest and staring directly into his green eyes. He studied you for a moment before saying, 

“You were on a date with Doppio, yet you dared to throw yourself at that lowlife at the jewelry store!” 

You didn’t know how to respond. 

He clenched your arm tightly, causing you to gasp in pain, but you didn’t dare try to break free. 

“Let me make it clear to you once more. You belong to Doppio, to ME!! If you are not loyal to me then you are a liability! You do know what happens to those that I deem to be a liability, don’t you?” he practically spat in your face. 

“Y-yes! I’m sorry! I’ll never-- I’ll never do it again!” you said, squirming in discomfort due to the grip on your arm. 

The Boss released you and you sagged to the floor, doing everything in your power not to burst into tears in front of him. After this, the last thing you needed was for the Boss to view you as an emotional fool. 

“I will hold you to that.” he said and you could hear the contempt in his voice. “Now get out.” 

You had no idea where the door was but that didn’t stop you from picking yourself up and charging into the darkness to find where you hoped the exit would be. Luckily, the door slid open as you approached and you wasted no time practically jumping out of the room. The door slammed closed behind you with a foreboding clang. To your surprise, Doppio was waiting there for you, looking both worried and downcast. When he saw you he threw his arms around you in an embrace. You returned it, though shakily. 

You knew the truth about the Boss now. It was something else that no one else knew. Vinegar Doppio and the Boss of Passione were the same person. They occupied the same body somehow. But this wasn’t some rare disorder or anything so… human. No,  this was something straight out of Robert Louis Stevenson! Pure Jekyll and Hyde shit! You weren’t sure how something like that was actually possible, unless it had something to do with his Stand (which you were certain he must have, even though you hadn’t seen it yet).

You looked down at Doppio, who was brazenly snuggling his face into your chest, and took a few slow breaths to calm your jangled nerves. 

“I’m sorry, Doppio.” you said, hoping to smooth things out between yourself and this “current incarnation” of the Boss. 

The man in question looked up at you and cheered, smiling sweetly as if the events of the day had only been a waking nightmare. 

“I forgive you…” he cooed, but suddenly his whole body seemed to tremble and twitch. His head jerked back and it seemed as if a whole separate set of eyeballs rolled around to replace his own. Now you were, once again, staring into the Boss’s wild green eyes. 

“...but…” he said, in a deep threatening voice that was most certainly NOT Doppio’s, “If your lovely eyes ever begin to rove again, I will cut them from their sockets!”

Doppio’s body convulsed once and he was back to normal. 

“I still want to buy you something nice, if that’s okay?” he said, grinning and giving your waist a little squeeze. 

You grinned at him nervously. 

“Okay, sweetheart.” you said with a gulp. “We can do whatever you want to do.” 

You just barely caught the triumphant grin on his face, before Doppio started dragging you out of the alley to finish your date. 

You should have stayed as a messenger.

#once again i forgot to tag #yandere doppio #yandere vinegar doppio #yandere diavolo #yandere jojo #yandere fanfiction #yandere #yandere jjba #yandere doppio x reader #yandere diavolo x reader #reader insert #jjba #yandere jojo x reader #yandere x reader #yandere jojo's bizarre adventure #jojo's bizarre adventure #jojos bizarre adventure #jojos bizzare adventure x reader #vinegar doppio #diavolo #doppio x reader #diavolo x you #diavolo x reader #canon typical violence #possessive behavior #yandere behavior

[eretzyisrael]

by Joel B. Pollak

Pro-Israel activists in Farmington Hills, Michigan, succeeded in pushing off an anti-Israel proclamation — for now — that came before their city council on Monday evening.

The resolution was one of dozens that pro-Palestinian activists are demanding in towns nationwide, as campus “encampments” are removed and the movement looks for new targets.

Local resident Sue Burstein-Kahn, speaking on Sunday evening to Breitbart News Sunday on SiriusXM Patriot 125, had described the proclamation as a cypher — a document that few had seen and that was introduced with no notice.

On Tuesday, she circulated an email to fellow pro-Israel residents (which she also provided to Breitbart News):

I am extending a HUGE THANK YOU to all who wrote emails, letters, and attended last night’s Farmington Hills City Council meeting. Your efforts truly made a difference and the Proclamation was soundly defeated. An amendment was offered to remove the Proclamation from the agenda, and (from what I could hear) only Mayor Theresa Rich wanted it to remain, and voted NO on its removal. Thank you to our council members who recognized that this proclamation would have been a serious detriment to our community. I am so proud of the strength you exhibited. If this topic was to be brought up, it should be as a resolution so that it could be discussed, debated, and voted on … One Council member noted that they received approximately 200 emails, and 95% were against the proclamation. Unfortunately, the pro Palestinian contingent was there in full force chanting and stomping their feet in the hallway right outside council chambers making it difficult to conduct business. They also hung Palestinian/Hamas flags from the stairways of our City Hall. I will give props to the mayor for being firm on decorum inside the council chambers.

The effort continues, regardless, nationwide. On Tuesday, pro-Palestinian activists descended on City Hall in Santa Monica, California, to back a resolution calling for a ceasefire in the war between Israel and Hamas. At a rally outside beforehand, the activists decried what they called Israel’s “genocide” in Gaza.

There was little mention of the Israeli hostages being held by Hamas in Gaza, or the initial terror attack by Hamas on October 7 that led to the ongoing war.

#farmington hills michigan #sue burstein-khan

[zaewriteshere]

Confused Hatred

AO3 Link

Gekko didn’t understand why you hated his little homies.

Most importantly, he couldn’t understand why his little friends wanted so desperately to be liked by you.

He just couldn’t understand you.

And he hated it.

He hated you by extension, too.

---

When Gekko woke up, he felt refreshed and in an amazing mood.

Today was going to be a good day.

He gently woke up and greeted his little homies, sensing that they, too, were in a positive vibe.

He felt like hardly anything could ruin his day.

He exited his room, immediately going for the kitchen to fix himself a latte, happily greeting Cypher while passing by.

“Well, you seem to be in a good mood,” He observed, a smile in his voice.

“Yeah ! I just woke up, too, so the vibes are just perfect right now,” He answered, nodding enthusiastically as he poured his beverage in his cup.

“Glad to hear it, young friend,” The sentinel said, nodding as well.

His critters noticed something, and suddenly grew more agitated. Wingman almost fell off the counter he was sitting on out of pure excitement.

The initiator caught him just in time, however. 

Turning to see the source of the ruckus, he immediately saw you.

Just like that, his bright smile faded away.

You were looking at him and his friends with such disdain and disgust… 

It made his blood boil.

Dizzy slowly flew over to you, trying to appear friendly.

Noticing her, your disgust visibly grew and you took a step back.

She wasn't going to abandon just like that, however, continuing to make her way towards your face.

“If you don't stop that thing right now Gekko, I will swat it away,” You warned, glaring at the poor little homie. 

At least you were nice enough to warn him… 

Gently taking her into his hands, it was his turn to glare at you.

Silently, you held his gaze, as if challenging him, daring him to say anything. 

“What the fuck is your problem ?” He questioned, frowning. 

He felt rage building inside his chest, hot and almost painful.

“I could ask you the same question. Deadlock has already said that those… Things were better off in a cage. Letting them roam free is a safety hazard for everyone,” You replied coolly, your eyes sharp. 

Staring through him and into his soul.

It both freaked him out and made him even angrier. 

“They haven't hurt anyone !” He almost shouted, bringing Dizzy – who he was still holding – closer to his chest protectively. 

“Yet,” You continued, as if you were an oracle and could tell the future. 

Hell, hardly anyone was aware what you were capable of, for all he knew…

He shook his head.

Gekko was giving you way too much credit.

And he wasn't about to ruin his amazing day talking to you. 

Grabbing his now finished drink, he turned away from you to face his little friends.

He could sense their curiosity and pure want to befriend you.

It almost overwhelmed him.

If he wasn't already used to it, he would've been, if he were honest.

“C'mon little homies, let's go somewhere peaceful,” He announced, and he felt their disappointment.

You chuckled, dry and hollow. 

He felt his cheeks grow hotter due to how much anger he was feeling.

“You do know that nowhere will be “peaceful” with them around, right ?” You questioned, nonchalantly. 

He decided for his own good to ignore you, already walking away.

How the initiator allowed you to have that much influence on him was beyond his comprehension. 

Slowly sipping his drink, he watched over Iso and Jett playing with his little friends in the lounge fondly. 

Why couldn't you just…

He sighed, frustrated, while shaking his head. 

He should seriously stop thinking about you.

Maybe he should go for a walk, perhaps that'll clear his mind. 

He waited a bit, not wanting to ruin his homies’ fun. 

But they all knew him too well, and slowly left the two Asian agents to be by his side. 

Mosh was the last one to hop over. 

“Let's go for a walk !” He offered happily. 

They all cheered.

After all, it wasn't often they could explore the garden and by extension the forest, Gekko being too afraid of them getting lost or eating something they shouldn't have.

He didn't know them as much as he'd like, and he hated that.

What if one fell sick ?

… Or worse ?

He shook those thoughts away.

They had two healers that loved his little friends very much and would do anything for them.

They weren't the only ones feeling that way, too.

Now in a better headspace once again, he went outside, his friends following him close by. 

He looked around, admiring the scenery and the peacefulness of nature, following the path towards the garden, which was being taken care of by both Skye and Omen.

He didn’t expect to see anybody there other than those two.

Instead of literally anybody else, he saw you. 

He almost groaned in discontent, but then he saw the expression you were wearing.

You didn’t even have your eyes open as you simply listened to the world around you, content.

He noticed a bunny hopping next to you, and some birds curiously observing you very closely.

Even if he hated your guts, he admitted that this scene was…

Peaceful.

Pretty.

When you opened your eyes, he fully expected you to shoo away the animals around you, but instead…

You gently smiled at them, offering them a tiny bit of your food.

He truly couldn’t understand you.

What was so different between his critters and regular animals ?

He could argue that his little homies were more likeable than any animal, since he could at least communicate with them.

Sighing softly, he was turning around when he accidentally stepped on a dry twig that snapped rather loudly…

… Spooking every animal nearby in the process.

He winced, not uttering a single word.

He started making a step away from the whole scene, away from you, but your voice made him stop dead in his tracks. 

“Hey,” You spoke up, coldly. “You could at least apologise…” You continued, your tone dry. 

Right.

“Sorry about that,” He apologised, not turning to you. 

“So on top of being a freak lover, you’re a freak yourself ? Just watching people silently while they’re having a nice time outside ?” You spat, clearly unhappy. 

“My homies aren’t freaks !” He exclaimed, whipping his body around to face you. 

“So you aren’t denying the other claims ?” You retorted without missing a beat.

“Insult me all you want, but do not come for my friends,” He hissed, using his body to block your view of his little homies. 

It was Thrash’s turn to try to get close to you, and she floated her way happily and curiously.

Gekko realised that she was attempting to mimic the movements of a bunny.

He would’ve cooed if this action weren’t to have your good graces, out of everybody’s. 

“Get that thing away from me while you’re at it,” You ordered, shifting away from her path.

“I don’t get why you don’t like them and yet like animals,” He muttered, kneeling to get Thrash’s attention.

“Those aren’t animals, that’s why,” You replied as if it was obviously why. 

The initiator only scoffed in answer.

He received a notification from his phone.

It was from Brimstone, telling him he was on the mission in the evening.

He smiled, that would mean that he would get away from you for a bit-

“Huh, it seems like I’m on mission duty for tonight…” You mumbled, thoughtful.

He groaned.

The mission brief was simple ; get to Icebox, prevent the Valorant Legion from planting to spike – or diffuse it if they do get it down – and go home.

As to why they needed both him and you on the same mission…

Well, even if it was explained to him multiple times, he still didn’t get it.

… But he also knew that what you were capable of was unknown to him, and since it was the best team composition for this plan…

He sighed.

He felt his critters being agitated, since he was forced to sit right next to you.

He didn’t like being close to you.

It always made him feel… Weird.

He knew why, though.

He still didn’t like the reason at all.

But he remained silent about it.

He didn’t want to let you of all people know how much you influenced his mood.

Or even how he truly felt about you.

He already knew the answer to his question, after all.

Before he realised it, they arrived at Icebox.

Being one of the first to step out of the Falcon, he turned to Sage, the assigned team leader for this mission.

“So… Game plan ? What are you feeling, Sage ?” He asked, trying to sound as jovial as normal.

He wasn’t really feeling it, but at least he could try, right ?

She immediately turned to you.

“Can you hold B site with Gekko ?” She gently questioned, and you met eyes with him.

After holding gazes for a moment, you had a small sigh.

“Sure,” You caved, tearing your gaze away from him.

Stepping out of the aircraft, your cheeks and nose immediately turning a light pink.

He looked away.

He wasn’t looking forward to this mission.

It has now been a few hours since they arrived, the sun long gone and temperatures dropping way below zero.

He had to admit, he was freezing. He thought he’d be fine with just a couple of layers, but the cold was really biting, and he was struggling to hold both his weapon and keep his face warm. 

He glanced at you.

You didn’t seem to be having any problems at all. 

Steadily holding your angle by Yellow, you didn’t even seem phased by the freezing cold air.

“Hold your angle instead of looking at me,” You said, not tearing your eyes away from Main.

Right, he needed to hold Mid and Tube.

Looking away, he readjusted his grip on his Bulldog. 

He was losing the feeling of the tip of his fingers.

“Hey, any updates ?” He questioned into the quiet comm link.

He hated how shaky his voice sounded

“Not yet, however they should be attacking soon,” Answered Sage, her tone even.

He sighed.

“How soon is soon, anywa-” He was cut off by gunshots. “Nevermind,” He continued, immediately running towards you.

“Stay in your position, I got it,” You immediately said when you realised what he was doing.

You managed to put one down, but not without receiving a bullet or two yourself.

He heard footsteps behind him. 

Pulling out Dizzy, he threw her out to blind his attackers while getting to cover.

He counted two blinds.

“Someone’s here, too !” He semi-shouted into the comms.

“We are on our way,” Said Neon as he could hear the familiar noise of her running. 

She should be here within a couple seconds, then.

As if on cue, Gekko heard her electrified footsteps by Snowman. 

Looking over to where you were at, he was surprised to see that you were struggling.

“I’m going to try to get out of this position, cover me if you can,” You announced between two shots.

Wingman immediately went out of his bag and ran towards the enemy he saw, making them look at him instead of you, giving you enough time to run away towards Gekko.

“Can you cover me while I get Dizzy ?” He asked in the heat of the moment.

He didn’t know what he expected from his request.

A refusal, an insult, anything but…

“Sure,” You said, not looking at him.

He was too distracted by the fact that you accepted to realise that you were already shooting to cover him.

It wasn’t until you shouted at him to get his ass moving that he went back to earth, running towards Dizzy’s bubble and picking her up. 

He dashed back into cover, only sustaining a couple of light injuries. 

Soon enough, Thrash felt ready to be thrown onto the field.

He barely registered what happened next, everything going so fast.

One minute, he was holding Thrash in his palm, the next, she was diving in front of you to take a swarm of bullets that would’ve definitely killed you and turned into her bubble form.

Somehow too stunned to move and to kill the enemy in front of you, the initiator decided to take him down in your stead.

There was no way he would let Thrash’s sacrifice go in vain. 

The rest of the gunfight went by. 

Bit by bit, the enemy numbers went down, until the last body hit the ground as you shot the mirror agent in the head. 

Everybody relaxed and let their guard down as Gekko went around the site to pick up his little homies.

He was exhausted, and he could tell it was the case for the others, too.

When his eyes landed on you, you had an unreadable look on your face as you stared at the body of the Omega Earth agent that almost killed you if Thrash didn’t act that fast. 

He wondered what was going through your mind. 

Your eyes met. 

He held your gaze, unwavering, as he sat up from his kneeling position.

He shivered. 

He really should’ve brought an extra coat…

The initiator looked away, already starting to walk towards the Falcon, when he heard another pair of footsteps behind him.

Knowing it was you, he paid it no mind.

He froze when he felt a soft and warm extra layer on his shoulder.

Turning to you, bewildered, he saw how close your two faces were.

Your breaths were merging into one.

You looked away, taking a step back, looking almost… Embarrassed ?

“If you go hypothermic now, Sage will spend too much time with you and neglect everybody else,” You simply justified, walking away as your cheeks got visibly redder. 

He decided to blame it on the cold, feeling his own face growing hotter, too.

A few days had passed since that mission, and Gekko could tell you wanted to say something to him.

Every time he was alone, you were looking at him expectantly, sometimes even daring to take a few steps towards him before… 

Turning away once your eyes locked in with each other.

He sighed.

You were starting to bug him, if he was honest.

He didn’t mind the distance you took from him, by all means.

… Was it weird that he sorta, just maybe missed the banter ?

…

Probably.

He sighed, frustrated.

He was just chilling on his bed in his room, staring at the ceiling while the little critters were either sleeping or quietly chilling.

What was he going to do with you ?

Should he continue this cycle of hatred that has been going on for months now, or should he attempt for what felt like the umpteenth time to be the bigger person ?

A soft, gentle – almost shy – knock brought him back to earth as well as catching the attention of Wingman and Mosh, the only two still awake.

He didn’t recognise the pattern.

“Come in,” He invited, expecting someone like Sage to enter.

He froze when he saw you, however.

You were wearing one of your gigantic oversized hoodies, definitely too big for your form, hands deep in your pockets. 

Wingman immediately ran to greet you, and you tensed, your expression – previously timid and almost apologetic – quickly changing to surprise and wariness. 

“Wingman, c’mere. We talked about this,” He recalled the little guy, who for once, listened to him. 

You visibly relaxed once he was back at an acceptable distance.

You closed the door behind you.

He guessed you were finally going to commit to what you were attempting to say for the last few days.

Your eyes landed on Thrash.

“How is it ?” You asked almost too quietly for him to hear. 

“She’s doing fine, no thanks to you,” He answered coolly, studying you. 

Your expression didn’t change as you slowly shifted your eyes from Thrash’s sleeping form to Dizzy’s, then to Wingman and finally… Mosh.

It was as if you were trying to see something.

Whatever you were attempting to find, you didn’t manage to, and you frowned. 

“What’s up ?” He questioned, squinting.

He almost got up from his bed to shield them away from your sight.

There was always something with your eyes.

As if you were able to stare into someone’s….

He didn’t know.

But you could see something, and not knowing what made him uneasy.

He heard rumours about your touch, too.

Always brief, always accidental.

But for a short moment, they felt more aware, almost opening a third eye into the future.

“Did I ever tell you why I didn’t like you and your things ?” Your voice brought him back from his thoughts.

He took some time to attempt to remember the reason why, but…

You both started off rather well, but as soon as you met the homies, you had immediately shutted down and started the hating cycle. 

“Nah, you never told anybody, or I would know,” He said confidently.

You chuckled.

“A handful of people know, but I asked them to not tell you,” You replied, shifting your weight.

“... Why ?” He questioned, visibly and audibly confused. 

“I’m going to tell you now,” You reassured, then sighed. “Don’t freak out, but when I lock eyes with people… I become more aware of them. It’s hard to explain, but I can understand them on a deeper level, know their fears and hopes, hell, even their past sometimes for example,” You explained, refusing to meet his eyes. 

Why… 

Why were you telling him this ?

“It’s universal for every living thing, radiant or not. But…” You locked eyes with Wingman. “When I look into your things, I don’t see anything. I can’t sense anything, it’s just… Void,” You finally said, rubbing your elbow. 

“And that’s why you don’t like them ?” He asked, still confused but… He started to understand.

“Basically,” You sighed. “It just, it freaks me out, man. I don’t wanna find out what happens when I touch them, so I always try to avoid it if I can. So far, I’ve succeeded,” You continued, looking at the floor. 

“That explains for the little homies but… Why don’t you like me ?” He enquired, fearing the answer.

“That’s ‘cause I can’t figure you out. I genuinely can’t tell if you wanna gut me or fuck me or even if you hate or love me… Hurts my head, sometimes,” You replied honestly, still not looking at him.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” He denied, feeling his face and ears grow hot.

“Totally not why you’re blushing, too, huh ?” You replied, amused.

He looked at you, and your eyes met.

He remembered what you said earlier, but he knew it was too late.

If you didn’t know before, you certainly knew now. 

“You actually love me,” You announced out loud, surprise clear on your face.

He didn’t say anything, bracing for the impact of rejection. 

“Here I thought I was alone in this,” You muttered, loud enough for him to hear.

“Huh ?” He intelligently said.

“I love you too, dumbass,” You announced, louder this time.

That was…

“Wild,” He instinctively said, which made you chuckle.

“Indeed,” You confirmed, relaxing.

Sure, everything wasn’t perfect yet, but now that the air was cleared up…

Gekko finally felt like he had a chance with you.

What was he saying, of course he had one.

He was just glad that it wasn’t going to be toxic.

That you were actually trying in this relationship, too.

#ao3 fanfic #fanfic #valorant #x reader #gender neutral reader #gekko valorant #gekko x reader #gekko x you #one shot

[altraviolet]

Ch 47 sneak peek 👀

Hello and happy winter* festivities** all!

*summer for southern hemisphere **normal day for those without festivities right now

I'm hoping to finish Ch 47 before 2024, but wanted to share a lil sneak peek! Everything below is subject to change, of course, but as of now Ch 47 will be told from Rodimus's point of view.

In case I don't see you again til 2024, wishing you all a very happy seasonally appropriate greeting! All the very best! Excerpt beneath the cut >D

Rodimus awoke in a tangle of tentacles. He stretched, careful to avoid scratching Soundwave's visor. “Mmmm.” He wiggled and settled down against the smooth protoform of Soundwave's body. Soundwave didn't stir.

The low hums and cyclical pumping of the Lost Light's utilities were louder here than in Rodimus's room, courtesy of the torn walls. The sheeny curtain had pulled back, revealing little crystals glowing faintly in their nooks and crannies. With soft metallic ssshhhks, Soundwave's tentacles repositioned themselves around Rodimus. They always moved so their cool sides coiled against him. Rodimus wasn't sure if they got too hot when touching him, or if they liked being warm and moved to distribute his heat evenly.

Rodimus traced a burned section of tentacle with a fingertip. Its metal was darkened and marred by tiny ripples. The segments were offset, preventing the tentacle from coiling properly. It bent into a soft corner. A rounded corner.

Rodimus snerked to himself.

It wasn't really a laughing matter. Rodimus gently pet the darkened metal. Its tiny ripples caught in the mechanisms of his palm. He'd dealt this damage. He felt bad about it. But... not guilty. Soundwave didn't deserve to be burned. But Rodimus wouldn't fault himself for his body's defenses.

Besides, Ratchet had a plan to fix it. They were gonna fix it, just like they'd fixed the holes in his chest, and they'd both be good as new.

"A virus.”

“Compassion.”

“I only want yours.”

Rodimus grinned to himself. No one had believed him when he'd said Soundwave would find his place. Hell, there were times when he barely believed it. But he'd done it. He, Rodimus, proud co-captain of the Lost Light, had shown this emotionally-starved, devastatingly loyal Decepticon there was another way. A better way. And now Soundwave was flourishing. He had friends, and a really weird but wonderful hobby, and tendrils that could leave a mech gasping in pleasure. And holy hell, Rodimus never would have thought that last thing was a thing, let alone it could be true, let alone he'd be the mech gasping.

“Preferred: Rodimus, happy.”

The grin faltered. Of course Rodimus was- well, he was happier. That was good. And of course his new bedmate would want him happy. That made total sense. That's what a good friend would want. What a lover would want.

What a lover would-

Rodimus wrenched himself from that train of thought. He scanned the room, desperate to distract himself. The desk was cluttered, projecting a dim data cascade in Soundwave's native cyphers. The makeshift shelves were crammed full of random tools and crystals. Bare wiring poked through in places, backdropped by shadowy pipes and conduits.

It was barely recognizable as Drift's room.

Maybe it never had been.

…

Oh, it had been. It definitely had been. And he'd been on this bed before, tangled up in limbs, feeling serene. Feeling at peace. Feeling like the mech beside him was a beacon, and for the first time since their initial jump, he could see where he wanted to go.

That bright and gentle feeling tightened in his chest.

No! Shut up! It's not happening again!

Rodimus knew he should get up for his own good. But his frame would not obey. He found himself burrowing harder into Soundwave, willing that cool body to shield him from those memories. Beat them away. Bury them. Better still, forge new ones. He wanted – he hated that he wanted – Soundwave woven into the fabric of his reality. Heavy in his arms and weighty against his plating. Too weird and wonderful to be washed away by the tides that pushed and pulled at Rodimus.

Soundwave stirred. His visor onlined with a flash. It displayed a rapid pulse. “Rodimus: agitation?”

Rodimus's field perked up out of habit, ready to push the concern aside. Dammit. Soundwave always knew when he was lying through his field. He didn't like it.

“False field express-”

“It was automatic. I didn't mean it.” Rodimus shoved the false cheer away. His true feelings seeped out. He couldn't hide them, but that didn't mean he had to explain them, either.

Soundwave's tentacles snapped up, tendrils sampling the air. “Rodimus: afraid? Danger in vicinity?”

“No,” said Rodimus. He parted the sheeny curtain and pushed himself off the bed. “Old thoughts. Don't worry about it.”

A tentacle wound around his arm. “Rodimus: needs...?”

“Breakfast.” Rodimus pulled away. The tentacle's biolights slid under his fingers, one by one. Blue light peeked between the bevels of his joints. “Why don't you sit with Nautica and Blaster today? We don't want people getting suspicious.”

The tentacle retreated. “Affirmative.”

Rodimus returned to his room via their secret door. He gave himself a big smile in the washroom mirror. A big, huge, totally happy smile accompanied by a forceful spoiler raise. Rodimus scrubbed faint, dark paint marks from his plating and polished his biolights. The glass of his body dulled when pressed against Soundwave's for hours. Rodimus didn't bother to wonder why. The explanation was always dimension stuff.

#echo garden related #preview #chapter preview #Ch 47 #Rodimus POV #if anyone's curious I am what tumblr likes to call 'culturally christian' #immediate family does a secular xmas-looking thing #but we're all agnostic or atheist #I am atheist but don't mind holiday wishes so if you send me some I will return them in kind :)

[ahummingbirdwitch]

Desperate Measures (Cypher x F!Reader)

Summary: On a mission with Cypher, an encounter with a strange plant threatens to get you both into trouble. (In short: Cypher sex pollen fic)

Pairing: Cypher x F!Reader

Rating: Explicit

Word Count: 5,944

Warnings: sex pollen, vaginal fingering, p in v sex, unsafe sex, creampie

Notes: Reader is technically the same one from my “Fantasize” series, but you can still enjoy this one without having read those!

“You two, stick together,” Viper ordered, addressing you and Cypher. “Hang back and scout for traps. Phoenix and I will go on ahead.”

“Understood,” Cypher replied before exchanging a glance with you. You gave him a quick little smile, and his heart skipped a beat.

“Report your findings,” Viper added, then turned promptly and headed down the hall, Phoenix at her side.

Once they were out of sight, you turned to Cypher. “I wonder why she didn’t split us up,” you said.

“You’re still pretty new,” he conceded. “Viper doesn’t tolerate failure. It seems she’d prefer you partnered with someone.”

“Partnered, huh?” You giggled. “You think she knows about us?”

Cypher blushed, grateful you couldn’t see under his mask. “She definitely doesn’t,” he answered. “If she did, she would never leave us alone together.”

It had been a couple weeks since the night you’d both confessed to one another; the night that had changed everything. He’d finally let you into his heart, become one with you physically, and the two of you had tentatively agreed to a relationship. It was a relationship not yet fully defined, but a relationship nonetheless. 

He wasn’t quite dating you—not exactly—but you’d been talking about it with him. If not for the constant missions and training, you two would have had more in-depth discussions on the subject. Such was the life of an agent; always needing more time.

Cypher wished he had more time for everything.

He had visited you privately twice since that night, and both times, he had given into his desires. Of course he wanted to talk, figure out what all of this meant for the both of you—what it meant for him—but once you batted those pretty eyelashes and put your soft hands on him, all he wanted to do was take you. And even after he did, it was never enough.

He’d never been like this. Sure, he’d been a teenager once, with a dirty mind and crushes on cute girls, but he was well into his thirties now, and so much had happened in his life, he hadn’t thought he even had it left in him. It’d been so long since he’d been physical with anyone; once he’d gotten that first taste of you, he hadn’t been able to get it off his mind. It kept him awake late at night, stroking his aching cock to thoughts of your sweet moans, your flushed skin and body wrapped around him. He wasn’t used to this. It was flustering. It was consuming.

But right now, it was okay. You didn’t seem unhappy; in fact, you seemed lighter than air most days. And, strange and new as this all was, he had been feeling that way, too. For the first time in years, he felt almost… excited about working, about missions. Before he’d told you his feelings, he’d been afraid it would make everything worse. But it seemed it had actually made everything better, even if it was just a little bit.

There was so much more you both still needed to figure out, but there was time. And as long as you two focused on your work, you’d be fine.

Cypher led the way down the dark hall, scanning the walls for cameras. “None out here,” he noted, keeping his voice low. There weren’t supposed to be any enemy operatives here, at least not on this level, but he could never be too safe. “Stay close.”

You nodded, keeping to his heels. “Do you think they’ll find any Radianite?” you asked quietly.

“They should,” he said. “If they find any, they’ll let us know.”

Once the first half of the hallway was thoroughly searched, the two of you ventured further. You stopped all of a sudden, pointing out one of the rooms. “Hold on, it’s a lab,” you said.

“A lab?” Cypher approached the door, which read: LAB A2. He peered through the hole at the top, finding it pitch-black inside. He checked his sensors. “No Radianite. No traps, either, it seems.”

You turned away, noting the other doors all down the hallway. “Looks like they’re all labs,” you murmured.

Cypher followed your gaze. Shining a light, he realized you were right; every door was marked with a different letter and number each: A1, A3, A4, A5. “This is supposed to be a research facility, but they didn’t say what kind it was,” he remarked. “They were researching something here, no doubt.”

“Why didn’t they tell us?” you asked, brows furrowed.

“I don’t know,” he answered. “But stay close to me. There could be anything in these labs.” A bomb. An alarm. A radivore.

He’d done research before the mission, looking into the facility, but much of it had been fruitless. This particular location had been designated a dead zone for some time now, until out of the blue, Radianite had been located in the lower levels of the facility. The mission had been last minute, with very little information given prior to the dispatch. Unusual.

If the retrieval had not been assigned by the people of Valorant themselves, he would have most certainly thought of it as a trap.

“Wait,” you said abruptly. “Do you… smell that?”

Cypher sniffed. Now that you’d mentioned it, there was a peculiar scent coming from nearby. Faint, but sharp, almost like an exotic flower. “Yes.”

“Is it poison?” you asked, voice hushed.

“No.” Cypher moved closer to the origin of the scent—the A5 lab. “I don’t think it is, but we must check. It could still be some kind of security measure for the facility.”

You nodded and followed.

As he approached the door, he noticed it had been left open ever so slightly. “Wait here,” he instructed. “Something’s not right. I’m going to look inside.”

“Are you sure?” You gave him a concerned look.

“Yes,” he assured you. “I’ll be fine. Just wait here, and don’t check the other rooms.”

“Okay,” you responded.

Gun in hand, Cypher slipped through the crack in the door, shining a light inside the dark room. It was indeed a lab, but not a deserted one; the equipment looked fresh and new, meticulously arranged alongside books and what looked to be small specimens inside jars.

He strained his eyes. What were those things? They were too tiny to be radivores, weren’t they? Even Gekko’s companions weren’t small enough to squeeze into those jars.

He moved the light slowly to the left, spotting the shape of something atop a table. It took him a second to register what it was.

A… plant?

A rather large one, too, like an overgrown venus flytrap, seated inside a pot that was unenclosed. Just as he prepared to take a step closer, determined to identify it, the plant reacted before he could. It opened its “mouth,” angling itself towards him, then released a burst of particles from its maw.

Cypher threw one arm over his face, letting out a stunned yelp as he fell back. A chair tipped over as he did so, and a moment later, he heard your hurried footsteps across the floor as you entered the room.

He turned to see you standing there, and his heart dropped. “Cover your mouth! Now!”

You covered your mouth, coughing as the pollen surrounded you in a cloud, then dissipated. “Shit,” you muttered. “What happened?”

Cypher didn’t answer, grabbing you by the arm and pulling you out of the room before shutting the door behind him. Out in the hall, he let out a cough, testing his lungs. The smell of the plant was overpowering around him, but there was nothing wrong with him; as far as he could tell, he hadn’t ingested anything. His mask’s defensive features had done their job after all.

He was quick to turn his attention back to you. “Are you okay? Did you breathe in any of that?”

You coughed again, hitting your chest. “I-I think so,” you said, rubbing your eye with one hand. “Shit, I’m so sorry, I just—I thought something had gotten you—”

“There was something,” he said. “A—a plant of some kind, but—but that doesn’t matter. Can you breathe? How do you feel?”

“I…” You went silent for a heartbeat, feeling yourself all over. You took in a deep breath, then released it. “I—I can breathe okay. I feel… I feel kind of—of warm…”

“Warm?” he echoed. That couldn’t be a good sign. If the plant was indeed there for security, no doubt it was meant to infect intruders, but perhaps the effects didn’t take place immediately. Perhaps the symptoms revealed themselves slowly, taking the form of some kind of fever as the infection spread.

He touched your forehead. Oh no—you were warm. Warmer than you were supposed to be.

You blinked, suddenly looking unsteady on your feet. Eyes unfocused, you reached out to him, putting your hands on his chest just as you started to fall. Cypher caught you, holding you upright. You looked up at him, your face much more flushed than before.

“Cypher,” you breathed.

Your tone of voice caught him off guard. Strangely, you didn’t sound like you were in any kind of pain. You sounded desperate, but… not in the way he’d been expecting. Maybe he was just imagining it, but it was unusually close to that voice you used when you needed him.

Needed him like that.

You leaned closer to him all of a sudden, lips parting as you gazed up at him. You ran your hands up the front of his coat, grasping at it. “Cypher,” you uttered, nearly moaning, “I-I need you. Right now.”

Cypher went stiff as a board. Oh shit. Maybe he hadn’t been imagining it. “W-What? What is it?”

“Please, I—” You pressed your body into him, rubbing yourself against him like a cat. “I’m so—s-so warm, I need you—”

What was going on? What had that plant done to you? “I-I don’t understand,” he sputtered. “Are you overheating?”

“Yes.” Your response this time was most certainly a moan, and it made his cock twitch in his pants. Your hands traveled further up, tugging on the collar of his coat. “I don’t know w-what’s—what’s happening to me, I just—n-need you—”

He stared at you, flabbergasted. He’d never seen or heard you like this. It was like you were on the verge of tears, like you would fall apart completely any moment. What was wrong? How was he supposed to help?

“What do you need?” he asked you, touching your face with one hand. Warm. So warm.

The softest of gasps left you when it made contact, your eyes widening. You leaned into his touch, rubbing your face into his palm. “You,” you moaned. “Need you to—to fuck me r-right now.”

Cypher stilled, arousal flooding through him. For a second, he didn’t question you, focusing only on the need in your voice and your warm cheek in his hand, but he snapped back to reality. “Wait, no—no, no, sweetheart,” he said hurriedly. “We—we can’t. Not here. What are you talking about?”

“It won’t stop,” you whimpered, pressing harder into his palm. “I’m sorry, I can’t—it’s so hot. Fuck me, just please fuck me.” You kissed his thumb, whining softly before taking his pointer finger into your mouth and sucking.

Oh, fuck. He cursed himself for being so hard, willing his blood to keep fueling his brain. This didn’t make any sense. The plant had done this to you? Why? Had the researchers bred it specifically to affect intruders this way?

Breaking free of his trance, he pulled his finger from your mouth. “No, please, dear, don’t do that,” he scolded gently. “Sit down, please. We need to cool you down.”

You grabbed hold of his coat with surprising ferocity. “No, please, just fuck me,” you begged. “I need to cum. I’m s-so wet, it won’t stop.”

Somehow, his cock got even harder at those words, but he forced himself to focus. “Sweetheart, I can’t right now,” he told you, more firmly this time. “It’s—it’s not safe here. We have a mission; we can’t—”

“Then just touch me,” you pleaded, cutting him off. “Just make me cum. Make it stop, please.”

Cypher hesitated. There was no time for this. If he stopped right now to take care of you, anything could happen. An alarm could be set off. An enemy could show up, alerted by the plant or a separate security system. This was the worst, worst time for something like this.

But he had to help you. You both had to finish this mission together, then regroup with Viper and Phoenix. Neither of you could do that if you were stuck here, unable to do anything until your needs were met.

He made his decision just as you started tugging at his belt, trying to unbuckle it. He pushed your hand away carefully, holding it in place by your wrist. “I’ll touch you,” he murmured. “Quickly. Then we have to keep moving.”

He could see the overwhelming relief in your eyes. You opened your mouth to say something, but he was already pulling you to one side of the hallway, bringing you into a little nook between the wall and the door to one of the labs. Not completely hidden, but it would have to do.

Cypher couldn’t help but be surprised by how quickly you yanked your pants down to your knees, taking your panties along with them. He could see your exposed pussy now, and the sight stunned him. You were unbearably swollen, your red-pink lips glistening and dripping, heavy slick trickling down your thighs. There was nothing normal about this, and he had to do something about it now.

He leaned you back, standing over you, then removed his glove on one hand and brought his finger to your opening, slipping it inside. The moment it entered, you let out a truly pitiful moan, and his blood shot straight to his cock once more. You were so soaked, there was no resistance in the slightest, his finger burrowing all the way down deep inside your searing heat.

“More,” you gasped, bucking your hips. “More, please, more.”

Cypher obliged you without question, adding a second finger and drawing another euphoric cry from you. You were so hot, your flesh practically burning his fingers, but he didn’t dare stop.

Louder moans poured from your mouth, mingling with the sloppy sounds from your cunt, and he hated how much it turned him on. He wasn’t supposed to like this. You weren’t acting like this of your own accord; it was the pollen making you act this way. He was only doing this to help you. “Hush, please, dear,” he coaxed. “Relax for me.”

“C-Can’t,” you responded feebly, body jerking wildly. “Feels—feels so good, fuck—”

He bit his lip, desperate to keep his head clear. This wasn’t normal; he was worried about you, but fuck, seeing you like this was dangerously arousing. If the mission were not such a priority right now, he’d crush you against the wall and fuck you until you saw stars.

But he couldn’t. This was all he could do with the time you two had.

“Cum for me, sokar,” Cypher cooed, massaging your clit with his thumb. He added a third finger, amazed at how easily it joined the others. “Cum for me, please.”

“Cypher,” you wailed, clawing at his shoulders. Oh, how badly he wanted to kiss those plump, wet lips.

He kept working you with his fingers. “Yes. Cum now. Cum now.”

You cried out one last time, long and loud, and he felt you clamp down on all three of his fingers suddenly, your flesh strangling them as you came. Slick oozed down his knuckles, hot and thick like syrup, and when your grip on him finally relaxed, he withdrew his fingers to find them coated. It was like he’d stuck them into a pot of clear honey. They even smelled sweet; flowery like that plant, enough to make his head spin.

Your legs wobbled, then you crumpled to your knees, panting. Wiping his hand on his pants, Cypher dropped low to clutch your face. You were flushed, but not nearly as much as before, and your temperature had lowered. “Are you okay?” he murmured. “How do you feel?”

It took you a second to come to, as if you’d just woken up from a dream, but when your vision cleared, the first expression you made was one of horror. “Oh God,” you uttered. “Oh fuck, I don’t—I don’t know what just happened. I’m so sorry.”

“The plant,” he said quickly. “It was all the plant, dear. It wasn’t your fault.”

“But—but the mission,” you stammered. “Oh fuck, I—I’m so sorry—”

“Never mind that,” he interrupted gently. “Are you okay? Are you back to normal?”

“I—” You touched your forehead, then patted down your upper body. “I—I think so. Just—wobbly.” You laughed weakly.

“Alright.” Cypher took your hand in his, helping you to your feet. “I’m sorry—I would check you more thoroughly, but we must keep moving.”

“I-It’s okay,” you said, pulling your pants back up. “Let’s go.”

The two of you moved onto the next hall, circling the entire floor and checking the rest of the rooms. No traps, and no more plants, as far as either of you could tell. Throughout the search, Cypher kept his eye on you, and to his relief, you no longer seemed afflicted by the pollen. Once the floor had been swept top to bottom, Cypher sent a comm to Viper. “No traps on this floor,” he reported. “Heading down now.”

A moment later: “Good. Keep your eyes out.”

“I always do,” he said simply.

He turned to find you looking at him. “You didn’t… tell her about the plant?” you asked softly.

“It’s not a priority right now,” he replied. “If they had encountered something similar down there, they would have told us. I may tell her later, if I must.”

You held your arms close to yourself. “Please don’t tell her about—about what happened to me.”

He shook his head. “I won’t,” he promised, meaning it. If this truly was resolved, Viper didn’t need to know. “But we must go now. I don’t trust this elevator; we’re taking the stairs.”

You gave him a quick nod of understanding, following him as he opened the door to the stairwell and began to descend.

Cypher was alert as you two made your way down, scanning the walls and ceiling for anything hidden. “Stay close,” he said. “Are you sure you can—”

He didn’t finish, turning around when he heard you stop abruptly. You were standing on one of the steps, holding onto the rail for support as you swayed from side to side. That glossy look had returned to your eyes, and your face had once again gone red and feverish. “Fuck,” you said, breathless. “I think—I-I think it’s—it’s back.”

His stomach twisted. No, no, please. Not again. Not now.

He went to you. “Sokar, I’m sorry, but we have to keep moving,” he urged. “Can you walk?”

You whimpered, tripping over yourself and grabbing onto him. “No,” you gasped out. “C-Can’t. Fuck me. Please fuck me.”

There his cock was again, hardening at the absolute worst time. He tried pushing you back gingerly, but you had an iron grip on his collar, and wouldn’t budge. “No, sweetheart. We can’t. There’s no time.”

“Please,” you begged, reaching for his mask. You felt around the edges of it, as if searching for a way to remove it. “Kiss me. Please, kiss me, kiss me. Need you.”

This boldness was so different from the usual you. It entranced him, nearly making him forget you were trying to take off his mask, but he managed to break free. “No,” he insisted, shaking your hands away. “No—I’m sorry, dear. We have to go. I’ll carry you if you can’t walk.”

“No!” you squealed, and the sharpness of it took him aback. “No. Fuck me right now, please! I need it.”

Cypher was utterly lost. He couldn’t be angry at you for this; you weren’t yourself. None of this was your fault, but right now, you were jeopardizing the mission. He wanted you, but he couldn’t help you—not right now. He had to go on. “Stay here,” he said firmly. “Relieve yourself. I’ll come back for you.”

“No, no!” you cried out, refusing to let go of him. There were tears in your eyes. “Don’t go. Please just make me cum. Cypher.”

You looked so desperate, so fucking helpless, and it ignited a fire in him. Before he could change his mind, he grabbed you by the waist and spun you around, forcing you up against the wall. Your squeal of surprise turned quickly into a moan when he ripped your pants down, exposing your pussy once again. Pale juices gushed down your thighs, and he’d never felt so hungry.

One hand keeping you in place, he tore his glove off the other, then shoved two fingers inside you, his thumb working your clit. You cried out like an animal in heat, and he pushed you harder into the wall, trying to muffle your noises. “Keep it down, sokar,” he warned, keeping his voice soft. “Just let me do this, please.”

You were hardly listening, filling the cramped stairwell with your fervid wails and moans. You were jerking so much, trying to impale yourself as hard as you could onto his fingers, it was almost impossible to keep you still. “Please,” you babbled. “Yes, please, please.”

Cypher had faced many challenges in his life. He’d fought all kinds of powerful threats. He’d gone up against his alternate selves more times than he could count. He’d braved death-sentencing traps and obstacle courses. But this—this was something else. No amount of training could have prepared him for this kind of situation. You were the one that needed help, and yet he felt completely, totally weak.

Maybe he wasn’t as strong as he’d thought.

Gritting his teeth, he wrenched his fingers from your cunt. You howled in protest, but he was already fumbling one-handed with the front of his pants, freeing his cock a second later.

He couldn’t take this anymore. He had to fuck you, enemies be damned. Maybe this time, he could fuck the pollen out of you for good.

He took you by the hips, gathering your slick around the head of his cock, then he drove himself into you.

The sound you let out when he entered was like nothing he’d ever heard. A series of high, keening moans poured from your lips, echoing inside the stairwell. Cypher gripped your waist, gasping at the scalding heat of your flesh around his cock. “Quiet, sweetheart,” he pleaded, half-choked. “Be quiet, please, be quiet.”

This was a terrible idea in every way. There could be enemies close by. Anyone could walk in. There was no time. He wasn’t wearing a condom.

But it felt so good, he couldn’t bring himself to care about any of those things.

Cypher held onto you for dear life, all his senses on fire as he pumped in and out of you. He’d never felt so close to you before; he could feel every inch of you, your silky, scorching walls pulsing and tightening around him. The sound of his skin slapping yours rang deliciously in his ears, and your writhing, rolling body was hot in his hands. This was madness. If he wasn’t careful, he was going to cum before you did—and it would take almost nothing.

Taking one hand, he reached down between your legs and found your clit, rubbing insistent circles into it. “Cum for me, zouina,” he breathed into your ear. “Come on.”

You threw your head back, drooling at the mouth. “Amir.”

Oh, fuck. If you said that again, he was definitely going to cum. “Call me Cypher, lovely,” he panted. “Just Cypher.”

“Cypher,” you moaned out. “Cypher, Cypher.”

Hearing his name like that still did things to him, but at least he could hold off a little longer. “Yes,” he whispered. “Good girl.”

His comm suddenly clicked. “Cypher, I need both of you down here. We’ve got company.”

Cypher’s heart jumped straight into his throat. Oh no. No no no no no.

Pulling you flush against him, he slapped his free hand over your mouth, his other hand still touching you fiercely. “O-Okay,” he answered, fighting to keep his voice steady. “Be there i-in one moment, Viper.”

“What’s going on? You sound out of breath.”

You started licking his palm, still moaning with abandon, but he did not remove his hand. Why, oh why was Viper calling now? “I-I’m fine,” he insisted. “We’re both fine. We’ll be right down.”

He heard gunshots on the other end. “Hurry up. We’re outnumbered.”

Relief flooded him when he heard the click. Cypher focused on you again, uncovering your mouth as he pushed you back against the wall. “We have to hurry,” he mumbled, quickening his pace. “They need us.”

You cried out, keeping your hands on the wall to support yourself. “Cypher,” you whined. “I’m close, please.”

“Good.” Giving into temptation, he smacked the side of your ass with one hand, marveling at the way your flesh moved. “Come on, now. Cum for me.”

“Love you,” you moaned with each thrust. “Love you, love you.”

He was getting dangerously close himself. “Come on, come on,” he pleaded. “I need you to cum, sweetheart. Please, for me.”

You arched your back into him. “Cum in me.”

“No, no,” he rasped, rubbing furiously at your clit. “Can’t. Sokar.”

“Please,” you begged. Your voice pitched higher. “Please, oh—I’m gonna—gonna cum—”

“That’s it,” he crooned. “Yes, now, now.”

You came around him violently, spilling cries into the air. “Amir,” you wailed, tightening on him with everything you had. “I love you—I love you, please, please—”

Cypher was a goner. He couldn’t even think about pulling out, grabbing your hips with both hands and shoving himself as deep as he could go. He shuddered, his groans turning to strangled whimpers as he filled you with ropes of hot cum. Something in the back of his mind was screaming for him to stop, but all he could think was how much he needed to feel you, fill you, make you his.

Fuck, he couldn’t remember the last time he’d done this. So good, so good, so fucking good.

He dug his nails into your skin, not letting go until every drop of seed had been pumped deep within you. He stumbled back when he released you, legs shaking. As blood came rushing back to his brain, he saw you bent over, white fluid dripping down your thighs, and realized what he’d done.

He’d just cum inside you.

“Oh, sweetheart,” Cypher uttered, guilt tearing at him like thousands of claws. He hurried to inspect you, touching your hip lightly. “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry—are you alright?”

You’d been hanging your head, breathing in and out raggedly as you collected yourself, but you were rising now, standing up to your full height and turning to face him. “I-I’m okay,” you answered. You sounded hoarse; no doubt it was from all the noise you’d been making. You looked flushed still, but from exertion now, not from the pollen. You blinked, then your eyes went huge with realization. “Shit. We have to go. Now.”

“I-I know. I know.” Cypher wiped his cock as best as he could, forcing it back into his pants as you rushed to clean yourself. He glanced between your legs, wincing at the mess he’d made. “Here,” he said, handing you a scrap of fabric from his pocket. “I-I’m sorry, I know it’s not much, but—”

“It’s fine.” You took it from him, giving him a brief smile before getting to work. “Thank you.”

“Sokar, I—” His throat was so dry. He knew how badly Viper needed you both, but he couldn’t think about that right now. He couldn’t go anywhere until his fears were put to rest. “I—I finished—inside you. Are you—are you sure—”

“Yes.” Your response came faster than expected. You wiped up the last of the fluids, fixing your clothes and tossing the fabric away. “I have an IUD. I’m safe.”

“Oh.” His heart sang with relief. Granted, it didn’t mean you were one-hundred percent protected, and it didn’t absolve him of any responsibility, but it was enough for now. “G-Good. Good.”

“There’s a lot we need to talk about, but let’s do it later, okay?” You grabbed your gun. “We’ve gotta go. Now.”

“R-Right. Right.” Cypher grabbed his own. “Let’s go.”

^ ^ ^

Some time later, Cypher found you in a secluded spot on the ship, sitting with your headphones in.

He waved to you as he approached, and you took your headphones off. “Hey,” you greeted him, smiling.

“Hi,” he returned, a little bashfully. He took a seat beside you. “How… are you feeling?”

“Better,” you replied. “Hasn’t… happened again. Thank God it didn’t happen back there, right?” You laughed.

He managed a chuckle, though he still wasn’t quite feeling humorous yet. The mission, while not having yielded any Radianite, had finished smoothly after all. “Right.” He waited a few moments, looking down at his hands in his lap, then murmured, “I… am sorry. For all of that.”

“For the plant?” you asked. “That wasn’t your fault. You didn’t know it was in there, and I shouldn’t’ve gone in like that.”

“Still, I—should have protected you better,” he insisted. “Done something.”

“You don’t have to protect me,” you said with a slight smile. “And you did do something. You… helped me when I needed it.”

Cypher blushed. “I—I am glad I was able to,” he mumbled. “But still, you—you don’t—deserve that.”

You touched his arm. “Cypher, I’m okay, really.”

He hesitated. He hadn’t said all he needed to say yet. “I… I know. I’m glad you are,” he said. “But I—I just want you to know that—you are more to me than that.”

Your eyes were distractingly pretty. “I know I am,” you reassured him, sounding confused that he had even said that. “There was nothing normal about this, okay? This was a one-time thing.”

Cypher nodded. He swallowed, working up his confidence. “Sokar,” he said softly, “I would—like to do something for you.”

You tilted your head curiously.

“Would you…” Why was this so hard? “Would you like to… have dinner with me? Sometime?”

The look on your face made his heart melt. “Yes!” you exclaimed, beaming. “Yes, yes, of—of course. I’d love that.”

His spirit soared. “G-Good,” he said, relieved and overjoyed at once. “I—I don’t know what our schedule is yet, but—I can let you know.”

“Yeah.” You were nodding, smiling from ear to ear. “Just tell me. When you find out.”

“Okay.” Cypher reached for your hand, taking it in his and squeezing. He wished he could take off his mask and kiss you right now. “May I… see you later?”

“Sure,” you answered, giving him a smile that was almost coy. “I… might need your help again. Who knows.”

His heart fluttered at that. “I—I see,” he said, clearing his throat. He let go of your hand, getting to his feet. “Well, I should—er—check in with the others. Let you get some rest.”

“Okay,” you said, still looking happy as a clam as he began to walk away. You put your headphones back on. “See you later, sokar.”

The nickname stopped him dead in his tracks. “Hm?” He turned to look at you, surprised. “S-Sokar? Is that what you called me?”

“Mhm,” was all you said, looking pleased with yourself.

“But—but that’s—that’s what I call you,” he stammered, realizing very quickly how silly he sounded. “I call you that.”

“Should I… call you something else, then?” you asked, grinning. “Zouin? Hobi?”

Lord, he hadn’t heard those words in so long, hearing you say them made his heart nearly give out. You’d learned them, somehow, and he guessed you’d been saving them to use them at the right time. He desperately tried to think of something to say; anything that would make him sound cool or suave and not at all flustered beyond belief. “You…” He wiggled his finger at you warningly. “You are a—bad girl.”

You laughed. “Talk to you later,” you said, blowing him a kiss.

He shook his head, half-grateful, half-disappointed that you couldn’t see his smile under his mask. As he made his way through the ship towards the cockpit, he ran into Phoenix.

“Cypher!” the young man greeted him with a grin. “Was lookin’ for you just now.”

“You were?” he asked. “Is something wrong?”

“No, no, nothing’s wrong.” Phoenix waved his hand. “Was just gonna ask you about earlier. Y’know.” He waggled his eyebrows.

Cypher crossed his arms. “Earlier?”

“Yeah.” Phoenix snickered. “When Viper called, you two were shaggin’, weren’t ya?”

Cypher stiffened, mortified. He knew enough about British slang to know what that meant. “I—I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Come on, you can tell me!” Phoenix leaned in, fascinated. “We’re mates, aren’t we? Everybody knows about you two.”

Cypher stared at him. “W-What?” Was that true? Everyone knew? “What—do you mean? What about us?”

“That you’ve got a secret little relationship,” Phoenix responded, poking Cypher’s shoulder. “It’s super cute, actually. It was pretty obvious she fancied you, so it seems like you both hit it off.”

Cypher sputtered, searching for a way to gain control of the situation. “Everyone knows?” he asked quietly.

“Well, not everyone,” Phoenix admitted. “Just the people who notice. Viper doesn’t know. But she might soon.”

Cypher looked around. Viper wasn’t nearby; fortunately, she was likely in the cockpit. He sighed heavily. “Fine, yes, we have been—seeing each other,” he finally confessed, keeping his voice down. “It’s—it’s very casual.”

“So you were shaggin’ back there!” Phoenix said, eyes gleaming.

“Lower your voice!” Cypher hissed. “It’s not like that. There was—something wrong with her, and I had to help. It was not ideal, and I would not have done it if it wasn’t absolutely necessary.”

Phoenix chortled. “Couldn’t wait ‘til you got back to the base, could you, mate?”

Cypher snarled under his mask. “It’s the truth, believe it or not,” he growled. “Don’t tell anyone about this. Especially Viper.”

“I wasn’t gonna, I promise!” Phoenix insisted. “I was just curious, that’s all. You know me. I won’t tell anybody.”

Phoenix wasn’t exactly known for his ability to keep secrets, but Cypher relaxed nonetheless. “Good,” he said. “You know what I can do if you don’t keep your word.”

Phoenix threw his hands up. “I know, mate, I know. Lips are sealed.”

Cypher gave him one last nod, then moved past him. “I’ll see you when we land.”

So it seemed many agents did know about you both. As uneasy as it made him—knowing people knew anything about him at all—it was something he could deal with. He had to learn to live with it if he was going to be anything real with you. And he wanted to be.

But this—what happened during the mission—would have to be another closely-guarded secret. For his sake, but especially yours.

Secrets, secrets, secrets. What was one more for him to keep?

#cypher #cypher valorant #cypher x reader #valorant #ao3 #ao3 writer