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duckieflix · 10 months

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♡ ୨`kusuo saiki`୧

☆ ⸝⸝ "i thought you coming here was a one time thing", she raised an eyebrow. "just make my coffee."

kusuo saiki x reader

warnings: swearing, toritsuka.

monthly allowance. something saiki had very little trouble obtaining but had almost too much trouble trying to spend. usually he would buy a cup or two of coffee jelly but unfortunately the store had sold out. they said they would receive their next shipment in a week, but he don't feel like waiting that long.

saiki searched online for cafes that sold affordable coffee jelly and stumbled across a store that looked appealing. joyous day cafe. it had just opened up a few weeks ago and had already become a hit, they sold cutesy deserts and of course, coffee. now, he doesn't usually approach populated areas such as this one, however their coffee jelly had amazing reviews and was even sold for an even better price.

the place was, surprisingly, not as busy as saiki initially thought. the exterior was made of brick, painted an off white colour. there was pink and white striped shades above the windows and the sign was small and hung on the wall. saiki debated on whether to enter not, it was still pretty early in the day which meant it could still get busy over time. he would have turned away then and there but as he turned on his heel a familiar face peered down at him.

"oh hey buddy!", nendo grinned down at the pink haired boy who internally grimaced at his presence. he should’ve just waited for the next shipment to get to the stores. “you goin’ in? let’s go together!”

saiki was about to shake his head but was stopped by another voice that added to his demise, “saiki? you’re here?” teruhashi. great.

all he wanted to do was taste this coffee jelly and go home. but of course, fate had different plans. soon he was joined by kaido, hairo, yumehara and toritsuka. this coffee jelly better be worth it.

once they finally entered the cafe, they sat at a large booth that had soft pink seats. saiki was stationed between nendo and hairo, he was thankful the seats were large enough for at least a small amount of space to be between each person.

a waitress walked up to them, a small smile on her face. she adorned a white button up shirt, black mini skirt with a frilly apron over it and black mary janes with frilly socks. her h/c hair was in a messy low bun and she held a pen and notepad in her hands. everyone immediately recognised her, it was y/n l/n from their class.

“oh! hey guys, fancy seeing you here!”, she smiled her eyes scanned the table and beamed at the familiar faces.

now surprisingly, saiki didn’t mind y/n’s existence as much as the others. only because y/n didn’t put in too much effort into being around him. she was very casual and didn’t smother him with unwanted attention like everyone else, for that he was thankful. their interactions were short, nothing more than a quick hello or a quick conversation about whatever was going on in class but it only lasted a few words.

“what can i get you guys?” y/n clicked her pen.

everyone began ordering, they all ordered the most popular or random dishes. bear shaped tarts, paw print waffles, galaxy tea? it was all so bizarre.

of course, saiki ordered his simple serving of coffee jelly. however, another item on the menu caught his eye. it was called the psychic special. obviously it was just a fun name but he couldn’t help but feel intrigued by the name. the small description stated it was a latte that had a random choice of latte art, if you guessed what the latte art was, you’d get your order half off.

y/n simply nodded and said she’d be back with their orders. toritska’s eyes wandered a little too far down for saiki’s liking, his gaze grazing against the back of y/n’s thighs. "who knew l/n was such a hottie? with legs like that she should be model!". these thoughts irritated saiki so, with enough force to inflict pain, yet not too much as to cause a scene, saiki kicked the purple headed male’s shin. when he yelped in pain, saiki smirked.

"perv"

the group began to babble about the cafe’s interior and admired the many cutesy decorations splattered everywhere. meanwhile, saiki had taken notice of a glass case that had a variety of hot steaming treats aligned neatly next to each other. it was right next to the register and also next to the machine that made the coffee, which happened to be where y/n was.

“hey saiki,” she smiled, “i saved you a small booth over by the corner, thought you’d want some peace and quiet away from that bunch” she pointed over to the group of teens that had suddenly started an arm wrestling match. currently, nendo was on a winning streak.

“you’re an angel in disguise, l/n” saiki nodded at her with his usual stoic expression.

“just doing my job!” y/n gave him a thumbs up before her expression turned quizzical, “what’s up with you coming here? not that i mind, just doesn’t seem like a saiki kinda place”

saiki continued to look at the treats through the shiny glass, “me being here is a one time thing, don’t get used to seeing my face.”

y/n just wordlessly nodded with a smile as he hobbled over to the booth that she saved. it was in a plant covered corner, there was a bookshelf to the left and a window to the right. it only had two chairs, one was occupied by saiki and the other was vacant. in between was a brown circle table. perfect.

a few minutes passed before y/n approached saiki with his order on a circular tray. a glass with a small white ribbon looped around the stem sat neatly in front saiki, the brown gelatin dish smiled up at him, a swirl of whipped cream sat atop the dessert. y/n placed a mug with a small umbrella like cover over the top that saiki assumed contained his 'psychic special'.

"now as you probably guessed, if you guess the latte art, you get your entire order for half of the original price" she slid the tray underneath her arm as she awaited saiki's response.

now obviously this was just a fun game that some people would play, a game of chance. except, this little game was nothing to saiki, being psychic and all, this was just way too easy.

"its a heart" he bluntly stated.

y/n lifted the cover to reveal indeed, it was a heart. she smiled at him warmly, "you're one of the first customers to get that right, good job saiki" she left his table after explaining she would be back with his bill. at this point, the cafe might as well be a restaurant.

when she left, saiki couldn't help but look at her longingly as she walked away. she was definitely one of the more tolerable ones, he couldn't believe he actually enjoyed her presence.

scooping up a chunk of the coffee jelly, he plopped the serving into his mouth and nearly melted at the taste. it was just the right amount of sweet and bitter, the cream made the jelly smoother than regular jelly. it was like heaven!

"holy shit"

after saiki had paid for his order, he waved goodbye to y/n.

"see you at school saiki! thanks for stopping by!" she saved at him, it was a miracle she didn't see the obvious flush of his cheeks. then again, saiki probably cooled himself down before anything could make an appearance.

"buddy! where were you?! we were so worried!" oh.

saiki had been so caught up in enjoying his meal that he forgot about the problems that awaited him. they seemed to have been standing outside waiting for his arrival, how dedicated. they all expressed their worry for his sudden disappearance which made his once amazing mood slightly falter.

they all started down the bricked path, saiki taking one final glance at the cafe. he looked at the building longingly, a strange warm feeling pooling inside of him. he had never felt something like this before, best to not do anything about it.

the bell that hung on the door frame rung throughout the mostly empty cafe, alerting the h/c haired girl behind the counter.

“welcome to joyous day, how may i-“ she stopped herself “saiki?”

our pink protagonist smiled fondly at y/n, something that was never seen. he adorned a pale blue polo shirt and black jeans. something casual yet classy for his visit.

“i’ll get what i ordered last time please” saiki pointed at his usual order on the small menu board, earning a skeptical look from the girl opposite him. she simply nodded.

she started to prepare the hot drink, although her eyes never left the psychic. her cheeks glowed at him, her heart rate picking up slightly. she never took him for the kind of person to become a regular at this establishment, she took him for a simplistic guy. not that she was complaining, if he was here a lot more she’d actually look forward to coming to work. unbeknownst to her, kusuo was feeling something similar.

“i thought you coming here was a one time thing?” she raised a brow.

“just make my coffee”

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dirtyvulture · 2 months

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Dear Diary

*Set in the Darkest Knight AU*

Natasha Romanoff x Fem!Mutant!Reader

18+ only, read at your own risk

Word count: 4459

Summary: Natasha embraces her new life as an X-Men.

AN: I'm back with a little one shot. :) Enjoy!

December 6, 2023

Dear Diary,

Is that an appropriate way to start one of these? I’ve never kept a diary or a journal before. But Marie gave me this cute little notebook and said writing stuff down helps clear her mind, so I don’t think there’s any harm in giving it a shot. They would never let us have something like this in the Red Room. Too much evidence lying around for someone to stumble upon. Should I put a lock on this? Y/N wouldn’t snoop around to read this, would she? Well, I guess if she is–leave my diary alone, you big dummy!

The professor said the Red Room soldiers and Widows are coming tomorrow. This is all my fault. I’ve put these good people and innocent children in danger. Earlier, we went to help the kids pack their bags and board the buses. I’m not sure if Y/N has any kids of her own (or ever did at all), but I can tell she really cares about them. Although she was not happy with some of the excessive luggage some of them were bringing. No one would tell me where they’re sending the kids, but I overheard Ororo mention something about a private resort they had to buy out.

I still don’t quite understand why these people are willing to sacrifice so much for me. I’m basically a stranger to them. I have nothing to give them in return if they ask. Maybe they’ll finally throw me out when they realize how worthless I am. That’s what I really deserve. Not these warm clothes, the home-cooked meals, and this roof over my head. And I definitely don’t deserve the kindness and care Y/N has shown me. I really like her, but I’m afraid she’ll leave me when she realizes how boring and inexperienced I am.

Oh, I think she’s coming out of the shower now. I’ll continue this later.

Love,

Nat

***********************************************************************

December 15, 2023

Dear Diary,

It’s weird how life goes back to normal so fast here. The Red Room soldiers and Widows were here not even a week ago, tearing down doors and blasting out windows, and everything is already repaired and the students are back at it like nothing happened.

A lot of them are excited to go back to their homes and families for the holiday. But a lot of them will also be staying at the mansion, because their families won’t accept them or they just don’t have any home to go back to. The professor asked Y/N to help plan some holiday games so the kids staying don’t get too bored or lonely. She’s acting like it’s the dumbest assignment he’s ever given her, but I’ve seen her spending all her free time ordering presents and decorations (with the professor’s credit card, of course), so I know she takes it very seriously and the kids are going to love whatever she comes up with.

I’m really glad I get to spend Christmas here. It’s been a long time since I’ve actually been able to celebrate it with people I love. I feel so welcomed here and no one looks at me like I’m any different, when I come from a past where there’s red all over my ledger. Sometimes I’m surprised anyone even lets me be around these kids alone, but some of them have powers that even make Y/N nervous, and I think they know they can trust me.

It’ll take some more time before I can be fully comfortable here, but it’s really starting to grow on me and I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.

Love,

Nat

***********************************************************************

December 25, 2023

Natasha wakes up alone. She looks around the bedroom, in case you might be on the floor doing push-ups or in the bathroom showering, but the room is completely empty. Her heartbeat picks up as she jumps out of bed, afraid that you’ve left her, when she notices a note on the desk.

Downstairs making breakfast. Come join when you’re up - Y/N

She relaxes immediately, touched how you made sure to let her know in advance where you would be. She quickly washes up and puts on a robe, then hurries downstairs to a chaotic mess of torn gift wrapping, screaming children, and flashing new toys. She steps into the kitchen, where you are wearing a flowered apron and are threatening Marie with a spatula.

“Stop, those aren’t ready–Marie!” You swat at her hands as she swipes for a pancake.

“Merry Christmas, Miss Nat!” Marie says, moving your attention away from her as your girlfriend appears.

“Merry Christmas, Marie.” Natasha gives the girl a hug, not missing the folded pancake in her hand.

“Merry Christmas, darling,” you say next, waiting for her to come over. “I made a special plate for you. It’s over here so the kids don’t get into it.” You point to a foil-covered plate off to the side of the stove. Natasha goes to investigate, peeling back the foil to find the plate fully-loaded with two different types of pancakes, one next to a little container of jam and honey, and the other still steaming and garnished with flecks of green onion. There’s even a bowl of grainy buckwheat porridge. Her heart soars at the sight of her favorite native breakfast. With a delighted squeal, she throws herself into your arms.

“Thankyou thankyou thankyou,” she choruses, squeezing you tightly as you rub her back.

“You’re welcome, darling.”

At this point, you shoo everyone out of the kitchen to finish the preparations. Natasha joins Marie in the dining hall, helping set up the plates and silverware. She watches with great curiosity as Kitty tries getting Peter to step under the mistletoe she hung above the doorway, and then is distracted when Jean and Scott come down for breakfast.

“Y/N cooks Christmas breakfast for us every year,” Jean explains to Natasha. “The kids always look forward to it.”

“Hey, Y/N!” Scott yells into the kitchen. “Keep the walnuts away from my food, okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Natasha hears you dismissively respond.

“Scott’s allergic,” Jean whispers to her. “Now there’s no proof how, but he ended up with a plateful of them last year and I almost had to take him to the hospital. Needless to say, it was an eventful Christmas.”

Natasha giggles to herself, already having a feeling she knows exactly how those walnuts got on Scott’s plate.

Everyone finds a seat at the table, the empty one next to Natasha reserved for you. You finally emerge from the kitchen, no longer in the flowered apron but one of your classic checkerboard flannels. You’re carrying an impressive tower of pancakes in one hand and a pan filled half and half with bacon and sausage in the other. The students break out in appreciation and applause as Bobby scoots aside some dishes to make room for the last trays.

“Don’t take more than you can finish,” you remind the kids, going around the table to sit next to Natasha and presenting her with her special plate. “And uh, Merry Christmas, happy holidays, and all that other stuff.” You raise your apple cider in a toast and everyone follows your lead.

“Thanks for breakfast, Y/N,” Ororo says, clinking her glass to yours. The students erupt with more thanks before they start reaching for the food, passing around the mountainous plate of pancakes, scooping whole fried eggs onto each other’s plates.

“Thanks again, babe,” Natasha says, putting her hand on your thigh as she leans over to kiss you on the cheek.

“You should try it first before thanking me,” you tease, still not used to all the praise. You were just trying to be a good partner, and it was somewhat of a Christmas tradition for you to cook breakfast for all the students who stayed at the mansion over break. You didn’t mind it at all, in fact you really did enjoy spending time in the kitchen and it made you feel good to take care of others.

Natasha leaves her hand on your knee as she eats, and eventually you put your hand on top of hers comfortingly. Neither of you engage much in conversation as you eat and listen, happy with the company. Once all of the food has been finished, Ororo rounds up the students to help clean everything before they can continue opening presents.

Kitty gets you a Johnny Cash vinyl record. Marie and Bobby got you a variety pack of exotic flavors of jerky, including alligator, ostrich, and buffalo. Storm gives you and Natasha tickets to a weekend getaway at a Canadian resort. Jean and Scott also throw in a joint gift of a new set of winter bedsheets. You are very thankful for the presents and pile them neatly by your feet, when Natasha pulls out a box and puts it on your lap. Inside is a familiar-looking flannel shirt.

“It’s a brand new one,” Natasha says. “To replace all the ones I steal from your closet,” Natasha says.

“Thanks,” you say, putting your arm around her to pull her closer so you can kiss her cheek. “This one is from me.” You hand her a very small box.

Natasha opens it delicately and gasps when she sees what you’ve given her. It’s a wooden ring, carved a little roughly around the edges with little turquoise-colored gems pressed into the outside.

“Did you make this?” Natasha asks, running her finger over the gems.

“Uh, yeah.” You’re suddenly nervous that she doesn’t like it. Woodworking was not your finest hobby, despite your decades to fine-tune the skill, but you preferred to build vast structures and furniture. Tiny little pieces of jewelry were extremely difficult to handle, but hopefully it was worth the numerous cuts and splinters you gave yourself.

Natasha slips it on her right ring finger–a perfect fit. Maybe you needed to give yourself more credit for your handiwork.

“It’s beautiful,” she says, holding her hand up to admire the ring. “I love it. Thank you.”

“You’re very welcome.”

Natasha snuggles closer to you and rests her head on your shoulder while you sit back and watch everyone else finish opening their gifts.

***********************************************************************

The rest of the day is busy but productive. Natasha has never felt happier watching the students competitively decorate gingerbread houses, then go outside and play in the snow. You don’t join in anymore, preferring to watch from the side. You’re already wearing the flannel Natasha got for you and Natasha gazes at you adoringly from afar. Despite the differences the two of you had from time to time, she hasn’t loved another person the way she loves you. But sometimes she worries that you don’t feel the same way.

You still don’t talk very much, hardly opening up about your past the way Natasha has spilled about hers. Although you seem mostly content at the mansion, Natasha can tell you’re still adjusting to being around so many people. The life of solitude in the cabin in the woods had clearly been more your style, and she feels guilty for dragging you away from that. But as much as she would love to spend all day with you cozied up in a cabin you built with your own hands, it wasn’t a realistic option. Not with all the threats and dangers that could come her way.

Which is why it was so important to Natasha that the Red Room be dealt with, as soon as possible.

She didn’t like how dismissive you got every time she brought it up, but she understood why. You had found your domestic bliss and didn’t want to let it go anytime soon. She wasn’t going to blame you. But she wished you would actually listen to her instead of shutting her down all the time. She would figure out how to broach the topic with you eventually, but today was not that day.

After a quiet dinner, which is basically just warmed up leftovers from breakfast, Natasha finds you sitting by yourself on the couch in front of a dying fire. Most of the students had retired to their rooms, exhausted by the day’s festivities. Natasha sits next to you, leaning her shoulder against yours.

“Hey,” she whispers.

“Hi.” You offer her your hand and she clasps onto it, threading her fingers with yours. You smile when you see the wooden ring on her finger. It looks perfect on her. “Did you have fun today?” you ask.

“It was the best Christmas I ever had,” she replies. “Thank you for inviting me.”

“Of course.”

Natasha is tired, but there’s still one more thing she wants to do with you. She rests her hand on your thigh, subtly at first, then she slowly starts to stroke your leg, her fingers barely perceptible through your jeans. You ignore her and her movements become bolder, creeping towards the inside of your thigh now and squeezing it lightly.

“Can I help you with something?” you finally ask. Natasha has always been a little more shy when it comes to asking for intimacy with you. But you were patient with her and never pressured her, and that encouraged her to have the confidence to ask if you were in the mood–even if she didn’t always do it with words.

“Do you want to go upstairs?” she says, leaning forward until her lips almost touch yours. “I still have one more present to give you.”

“Oh, do you now?” you ask, trying to kiss her but she pulls away.

“You have to come upstairs,” she repeats, offering you her hand as she stands up.

“All right, all right.” Your knees creak as you push off the couch, taking Natasha’s hand and following her upstairs. You can hear her heartbeat pounding with excitement or maybe that’s…yours? You hope everyone else has gone to sleep by now, otherwise they wouldn’t be falling asleep anytime soon.

Back in the privacy of the bedroom, you let Natasha lead you to the bed and you sit down on the edge with her climbing onto your lap.

“Is this okay?” she asks, her hands locking around the back of your neck.

“Of course,” you whisper, leaning in until your foreheads touch. Your arms circle her waist to hold her securely in place. Her breath fans over your face and her heartbeat pumps at an almost alarmingly quick rate.

“I want you,” she says, rocking her hips against your thighs. “I want you to take me.”

“How do you want me?” you ask, before she presses her lips roughly to yours, her fingers digging into your neck. Her arousal spikes and so does yours. You open your mouth when she licks your lips to deepen the kiss. She tastes like vanilla and cookies and you instinctively pull her closer to you, wanting to devour her until the morning.

Natasha grabs the collar of your flannel, pulling apart the top buttons and running her hands down your chest and abs. Your skin burns where she touches you and you nip lightly on her bottom lip when she rests her hands on the buckle of your belt.

“I want to taste you,” you pant, hoping your request doesn’t come across as too greedy. Natasha has to fight down her thrill of excitement at your suggestion, wondering how you knew exactly what she wanted. She doesn’t even take the time to agree with you, instead hurriedly stripping off her clothes to show you how eager she is. You take off the flannel, setting it aside with reverence, then removing your undershirt and jeans. Natasha tackles you back on the bed, your thigh fitting between her legs and you feel the heat from her center rubbing against you.

“You’re so wet for me,” you say, holding her hips again and guiding her up until she’s hovering over your chest. “My good girl.”

“Your good girl,” Natasha reiterates, grabbing onto the headboard for support before she positions herself over your face. The scent of her arousal is almost overwhelming to you, and you waste no time bringing your arms over her thighs to pull her down. Natasha whines when your mouth makes contact with her slick center, your tongue slipping into her and coating with her juices.

Natasha moans, grinding down so you can enter her deeper. Your arms tighten to prevent her from moving too much; you want to do things at your own pace. Her taste is so intoxicating and addictive, you could lie here forever eating her out. Natasha grips the headboard tighter, struggling to rock against your face for more friction, but you won’t let her. She whines in desperation, the noises music to your ears. Your tongue dips into her again before tracing up to her clit, flicking against it and Natasha grinds down harder on your chin, gasping and moaning.

“Y/N,” she begs. “Y/N, please.”

You stop, pulling away from her far enough to say, “What do you want, baby?”

“I want you,” she repeats, her voice breaking. “I need you.”

“I know, baby. I got you.” As much as you love teasing her, this is not the time. You knew Natasha could sometimes be insecure about your relationship with her. But you had no regrets in choosing to be with her and loved her so much. You would never miss an opportunity to show her, either.

You loosen your arms around her so she has some freedom to move and Natasha quickly adjusts herself until she’s comfortable. When she settles back down on your face again, you find her clit and wrap your lips around it, rewarded with a long, drawn-out moan. Natasha rolls her hips to help you find a good rhythm. You feel her thighs tremble and more of her slick spills onto your tongue.

“Oh, god. Oh fuck, Y/N,” she whimpers, the headboard flexing dangerously from how hard she’s holding onto it.

Your stomach practically burns from how aroused you are with Natasha riding your face, and you’re hoping she’ll help you relieve some of the tension once you make her finish. You’ve held out as long as you could, and you can tell Natasha is ready to fall over the edge. Your tongue rests on her clit again, swiping upwards in a straight line, then dragging down at a diagonal angle, then going back up.

Your tongue moves in an inverted V next, drawing an imaginary bar between them.

You lick down her clit once more, then swipe perpendicular.

Natasha is panting and shaking, completely unaware that you’re trying to spell her name on her with your tongue. One of her hands has left the headboard and is holding tightly onto your hair in an attempt to guide you, but your own plan is already in action.

She doesn’t make it the next A, her back arching and thighs clamping around your head as she finally cums. You don’t let a drop of it go to waste, lapping at her sensitive folds until she’s whimpering and trying to pull your head away. Natasha lifts herself off your face with a contented sigh, turning herself away from the headboard now, but you’re not quite done with her yet.

You pull her back down on your face and she falls forward with her hands on your chest.

“Did I say you could go anywhere?” you grumble playfully.

“Y/N,” Natasha giggles.

“Can I have one more, darling?” you ask, and she responds by sitting back on your face. But now Natasha is the one with other ideas, as she eyes the veins on your flexing abdomen that disappear behind the band of your underwear. You feel her hands run across your stomach and your breath hitches when she tugs down your underwear.

“Nat, what are you–oh, shit.” Now it’s your turn to gasp and moan when Natasha leans over and places her mouth on your dripping center. You completely lose focus of what you were doing, instinctively spreading your legs open further to give her better access. “Fuck baby, oh fuck,” you whine, your head dropping back on the pillow.

“Did I say you could stop?” Natasha teases, turning your own words back against you. It takes a monumental effort, but you calm yourself enough to put your mouth to work again. Natasha almost soaks herself when she realizes how turned on you’ve gotten just from eating her out. Now she has only one mission in mind: make you cum before she does a second time. But you’re refusing to make it easy for her, and Natasha is already dangerously close despite having finished mere minutes ago. She knows she has to hurry, but judging from the tremble in your thighs, you’re closer than you’re letting on.

Natasha’s tongue circles your clit and she can feel you panting against her, your own efforts faltering in their rhythm. She pushes back against your face to remind you of what you promised her. Your fingers dig into the curve of her ass and you feel her breasts rubbing against your abs. Her mouth is so hot and wet and perfect on you, making you lose your breath every time her tongue touches you.

“Fuck, Nat,” you whimper, feeling like you’re losing control of yourself. You’re not even sure if what you’re doing to her anymore is working because all you can think about is the throbbing in your lower stomach that begs to be released. Your back arches off the bed when her tongue lashes at your clit and she struggles and fails to push down on your thighs to keep you grounded. “Nat, I can’t,” you warn, a little embarrassed at how fast you’re ready to release.

“It’s okay,” you hear Natasha say, “Cum for me, baby.”

White floods your vision and all the muscles in your body tighten as you spill into her mouth, a moan catching in your throat. Your head spins in a rush of endorphins and you’re practically convulsing underneath Natasha when you finally come down from your high. She purrs in delight at her success, gently squeezing at your thighs. And as much as you want to flip her around and press her head against your chest, you still do owe her.

Natasha’s second orgasm is a little more subdued but just as pleasurable. She bites the inside of your thigh to quiet the noise of her moan and you almost cum again. But once she finds the strength to move, Natasha crawls back up to you, nuzzling the side of your head and kissing you. Normally, you could go several rounds without even stopping for a break, but you’re unusually exhausted today. Maybe it was from waking up at four o’clock to work on breakfast for everyone or making sure that the Christmas activities throughout the day ran smoothly.

Natasha rests her head on your chest, listening to your steady heartbeat and you rub her shoulder, tilting your head down to breathe in the faded scent of her shampoo.

“Merry Christmas, Y/N,” she whispers.

“Merry Christmas, darling.”

***********************************************************************

January 2, 2024

Dear Diary,

Professor Xavier called me personally to his office today. I was really nervous that I was in trouble for something. I’m still not sure how I feel about his mind-reading thing. I try to keep my thoughts in check when he’s around, but I think that makes it seem like I’m hiding something. But other than that, he’s only ever been polite and respectful to me, and I can tell Y/N really looks up to him as a mentor and father figure.

He told me he has a lead on where the Red Room could be and asked if I still want to pursue them. Of course I do, but I know Y/N isn’t happy about it. I thought she would understand more. I know she’s got her own past that she hasn’t told me the entirety of yet (not that she’s required to), but she’s told a few stories so I know her situation is similar enough to mine. I wish she was more supportive instead of trying to talk me out of it, but I know she’s worried too. She doesn’t want me rushing back into danger and I totally get that. But I just…I can’t stay here and be cared for and protected and loved when there are so many of my sisters still being held against their will and forced into doing horrible things.

Luckily, the professor seems more understanding of things. But I don’t want him or anyone else here risking their lives for me. If I have to go alone, I will. I don’t know if I can do it alone, though. I’m sure Y/N will insist on tagging along no matter what. I just hope she doesn’t get too grumpy about the whole thing.

Love,

Nat

***********************************************************************

January 4, 2024

Dear Diary,

I still haven’t told Y/N what the professor told me 2 days ago (assuming she hasn’t already gone through my diary and read about it here). I tried to mention it after dinner, but I could tell as soon as I let the “R” word slip she was not paying attention to the conversation anymore. I don’t want my frustration to build up, so I’ll probably have to be straightforward about it, which isn’t easy.

I know the professor can hear all of my thoughts, so I wonder if he’s going to get tired of them and just talk to Y/N himself. But probably not. This is my problem to handle. I’ll find the courage somehow to deal with it.

I just hope it doesn’t cause Y/N to look down on me for this. I’m already nervous that I’m constantly annoying her, and if she gets fed up enough and kicks me out I will literally have nowhere to go and at that point, I’d welcome back the Red Room with open arms. That probably seems a little dramatic, but I really don’t want to risk losing the best person that ever came into my life. I have Y/N to thank for everything I have here, and I think most people in my position would call me crazy for trying to make any changes to my situation.

But I’m not like most people. And I have to do what I think is right, even if others try to stop me.

I’ll bring it up to Y/N later again. Maybe if I catch her in a good mood she’ll be more receptive to the idea. Wishing luck to my future self.

Love,

Nat

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AN: Please leave likes, comments, and reblog! Follow for more content. 🥰

Multipart sequel in the works!

#natasha romanoff #black widow #natasha romanoff smut #natasha romanoff imagine #natasha romanoff x reader #natasha romanoff x female reader

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princessconsuela120 · 3 months

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✯EVERYWHERE, PT3✯

—✯

Summary: Sirius has found hatred for the new girl at Hogwarts, or in other words…you.

Warnings: cursing, not many, just annoying sirius as always.

Author’s Note: I already love this series so much. I have at least 5 chapters planned as of now, so it’ll be quick and sweet. For now, enjoy you guys!

—✯

Now, a week ago Sirius never would have imagined finding himself following y/n sallow around Hogwarts, not a clue where he was going. Ever since he had gotten to Hogwarts, Sirius had an unnerving opinion on every wizard he would meet. Considering he had grown up in such a troubling environment, his only opinion on wizards was bad. He didn’t want to live around people like his family all his life. So when he met James Remus and Peter, he assumed they must have been three in a million. He clung to them, never letting anyone else in their little circle because it was already perfect. That is until Remus found friendship in Lily and Marlene. Then came Dorcas, then Mary, and then Sirius started to feel a little more comfortable in his skin.

But when y/n joined in their 5th year, Sirius didn’t like the change in his comfortable life. He hated the change that it brought. Wether she was a Hufflepuff or a Slytherin didn’t matter, she was something new. Sirius didn’t like new. That why he wasn’t sure why, but he was astounded to be following her around Hogwarts. His obsession with change somehow managed to bring him even closer to it. Which of course meant that he wouldn’t shut up the entire walk.

“Where are we going?” He grumbled, following y/n with a brisk clip as he grunted, trying to keep up with her.

“You’ll see.” She whispered, her wand illuminating the only source of light for them to see through the hallway. Now Sirius was all for break ruled, but he usually didn’t sneak out after curfew without James cloak. This was new, he hated it.

“I don’t like this…how do I know you aren’t leaving me to my death?” He teased, making y/n scoff.

“What if I am?”

“You’re being awfully cryptic..” he hissed, making y/n smirk.

“Good.” She nudged him before heading forward, waving her wand around, seeming to follow a certain trail left on the ground. “You don’t need to know anymore than I’m willing to tell you.”

She stopped walking, stopping in front of a tapestry of two trolls, one which looked familiar to Sirius. He stepped back, his jaw slightly agape as he watched the brick wall across from the tapestry reveal a door. It’s not that he hadn’t seen magic like this before, just that he and James had been trying to access the Room of Requirements for years now and she just did it in two seconds.

“The room of requirements.” He muttered, causing y/n to nod.

“You’ve heard of it?” She asked softly, leading him into the room.

“Yeah, I just never knew where it was. Every professor refused to tell me.”

He rolled his eyes, causing y/n to chuckle softly.

“Yeah well, joining in my 5th year does have some perks.”

The two finally were into the room after walking through the small archway at the entrance. Sirius couldn’t help but Woden his eyes when they walked in.

He would be even more astounded in a week from now, when he finds y/n’s house elf, Bucky, who takes the time to take care of the room while she’s gone. But Bucky was on a trip to visit a few Jobberknoll’s in the highlands at the moment, directed to do so by y/n, so when he does return with seven jobberknoll’s in a small pocket sized bag, Sirius decided he would never not be amazed by y/n and her secrets.

“Wow, it’s huge in here! It seemed so much smaller from the outside.” Sirius exclaimed, standing in the center of the room as he looked around. The walls and ceilings were adorned with a yellowish gold shade, accompanied by many hanging plants and potting stations. It had a certain herbology flair too it, not surprising Sirius considering y/n was top of their herbology class.

“It’s magic, what can I say.” She shrugged, as Sirius pointed at one of the large archways in the room.

“Is that, a unicorn poster on that window?” He asked, confused by the appearance of said poster, which was glowing white, a unicorn coming in and out of view the more he looked at it.

“Actually it’s a real unicorn.” Y/n said, reaching her hand through the doorway to gently pet the unicorn’s main, conjuring a brush before pulling her hand back and letting the unicorn be groomed. “That’s one of my great grandmother's vivariums. I use it to contain magical beasts to protect them from poachers. A way of continuing her legacy, sort of say.” She stepped inside, pulling Sirius with her, his hand lighting up at the feeling of her touch. “Besides, it’s wonderful to see which beasts she brings in.”

She stepped off to the side, quickly refilling the beast feeding station, causing a few magical creatures to hurry over to eat before the two left through the doorway.

“Oh, great, you guys are in here too.” Sirius snarled, gesturing to the painting of Sebastian and Constance that hung in the center of the room, being the centerpiece to one of the main archways.

“We’re all around the building actually.” Sebastian said with pride, causing Sirius to roll his eyes.

“What a joy.”

“Come on, it’s over here.” Y/n said, grabbing Sirius’ arm once again as she playfully rolled her eyes.

“Over here? You mean this room is bigger?” He asked, once realizing one of the four archways contained a staircase, which lead down to another large room. “It’s like a freaking garden in here?!” He said with amazement, gawking at the thousands of potting tables bursting with plants. There were cauldrons bubbling with colorful potions, and potting tables with venomous tentaclulas, which shook slightly when harvested. Sirius couldn’t believe his eyes, it was beautiful.

“It is, it works great for planting and potions.” Y/n explained, gathering a bit of wiggenwield potion in a small bottle before handing it Sirius.

“No wonder you’re so ahead of everyone.” He teased, rolling his eyes as she scoffed.

“It’s in here.”

“What is?” Sirius asked cautiously, causing y/n to sigh once again.

“The answers to your questions.”

She lead him to another white archway, which when pulled in revealed a small chamber. The chamber was full of chests, which held different outfits and accessories which looked to be from the 1800s. But maybe the most impressive thing about the room, was the bundle of Nifflers swimming in the gold. Their were purple one, blue ones, brown ones; every color niffler you could imagine were all running around together in the same chamber.

“Are those, Nifflers?” Sirius asked, trying to shake one off his leg as it attempted to pull his chain off his trousers.

“Yes, they’re mine actually.” She explained, picking up one of the blue ones and scratching its head, causing the niffler to happily snuggle into her arm.

“Holy shit…”

If Sirius thought he was speechless before, he was kidding himself. Y/n pulled him into the locked door behind where all the nifflers had been hanging up, revealing a large costal like vivarium. From the distance, Sirius could see a large figure standing, but he didn’t notice what is was. He was distracted by the hippogriffs flying around in the sky above his head, before he finally looked back down, and came face to face with a trap horn. It was sitting up, gently bowing its head to let y/n pet him as she rubbed its nose.

“Be respectful. This graphorn has been around for Merlin knows how long. He’s a symbol of my grandmothers power. The guardian of the Pensive.” She explained, Sirius watching as the Graphorn moved to the side. Y/n stepped forward as a small birdbath looking statue that had been hidden behind the graphorn. “That’s where we’ll find your answers.” She said, gesturing for the two of them to carefully put their faces in the water. Sirius knew what a pensive was, but he had never experienced one before.

It was like he was there, watching Constance and Sebastian fight the goblins. The defeat, the journey, the grief. The story played all of her memories, all up until the repository was drained, before Sirius and Y/n pulled away with a deep breath.

“Woah. So that’s, that’s what you have?” He asked, causing y/n to nod.

“Yes, the ancient magic.”

The two made their way out of the vivarium, locking the chamber doors as they returned to the seats in front of the painting.

“How though… I thought the final repository was destroyed during the battle?” Sirius said, causing Constance to speak up as she sighed from the painting.

“That’s what we’re trying to figure out.” Sebastian said, drawing their attention back to the painting.

“For the last two generations, ancient magic has been lost from our family. That is, until y/n.” Constance explained, causing Sirius to shake his head, trying to understand the information he was being told.

“Which must mean there’s a repository somewhere left.” Y/n spoke up, causing Sirius to furrow his eyebrows at her.

“We think that when I had passed, my magic manifested itself into a repository, somewhere around Hogwarts.” Constance explained, making Sirius bite his lip as he thought of the memories he just witnessed.

“Could it be under the school, like it was before.”

“We aren’t sure.” Sebastian said with a sigh. “The only way to be sure is for me to go find it.”

“Go find it? Isn’t that dangerous?” Sirius said, turned to y/n with a look of concern.

“Could be. It’s not like I have much of a choice.” She said with a shrug, causing Sirius to look at her strangely, not understanding her idea to jump into the danger he had just seen.

“Why not?”

“The death eaters… word travels fast in Hogwarts.”

Now he knew that was true. Growing up in a family of death eaters, he had his own experience with the kind.

“Lucky for us, there weren’t many dark wizards to worry about, just the three. You guys have many different to worry about.” Sebastian explained. Y/n grabbed Sirius’ arm, causing him to turn to her.

“If the death eaters get word of this repository, they can do just as Ranrok did. If they learn how to harvest the power, it’s only a matter of time before their power takes over.” She explained, making Sirius nod with understanding.

“So this is bad.” He stated, causing her to nod.

“Very bad.”

“When are you planning on finding this repository! I mean, you can’t go alone, you’ll die.” Sirius stressed, pacing back and forth as he ran his fingers through his hair. Y/n was confused at his outburst, only having seen him stress this much when accusing her of dark magic to his friends. And yes, she did hear when he did that.

“I have to.” She said, clenching her jaw and she rolled her eyes at him. “What, are you gonna follow me?”

“What? No.” He crossed his arms, avoiding y/n’s eye contact as he grew with sass. “I don’t know, I mean, Hogwarts is in danger, the whole world could be. It’s not just something you can do alone.” He explained, making her raise an eyebrow at him.

“And why not? Cause I’m a woman?” She teased, adjusting her stance angrily, making Sirius begin to sweat with nerves.

“Be careful son.” Sebastian whispered, earning a shove from Constance.

“No. Not at all. I have the right mind to know you could blast me into next week, but that doesn’t mean that you’re strong enough to contain that magic.” He sighed, looking down at his hands before meeting her eyes. “I don’t think anyone could be alone at least.”

For the first time, maybe in his entirety at Hogwarts, Sirius looked into her eyes. He looked at her eyes, into her face, and he really dive into them to try and see what she was thinking. He felt his heart clench slightly, nit being used to looking at her that way. It was odd, yet nice, and he wished it had lasted longer than it did.

“Well, I don’t have a choice.” She hissed, quickly ignoring his longing stare before turning swiftly on her heel. She didn’t mind that she was leaving Sirius alone to his own devices in her Room, but she assumed he wouldn’t do anything stupid with Sebastian and Constance in there. And besides, she didn’t mind if it meant she could leave.

“So, how’d you stumble upon the Undercroft?” Sebastian asked, causing Sirius to turn to face the painting. He was watching Y/n leave, turning to the painting with a gloomy look on his face.

“Oh um, I just happened upon it.” He stuttered, making Sebastian scoff.

“You know you suck at lying.” He teased, making Sirius roll his eyes.

“I’m not lying.”

“I know you followed her.” Sebastian responded quickly, making Sirius open his mouth to speak, before closing it and huffing.

“How do you…”

“Paintings talk, Black.” Sebastian said with a smirk. “Speaking of, your great grandfather was a horrid school headmaster.”

“Oh I know. I don’t associate with my family much.” Sirius said, quickly looking down at the floor to avoid the topic of his family.

“Neither did my friend Ominis.”

“Ominis Gaunt?” Sirius asked, Sebastian’s eyes lighting up at the name.

“You know him?” He asked, which surprised him. Usually only the Slytherins knew about him. Ominis’s portrait was hung up by the fireplace in the common room, where he would convince the 1st years of the mermaids outside the window.

“No, but we’ve learned about his family in history of magic.” Sirius said, making Sebastian sigh.

“Yes well, I doubt they tell you everything. He like you, didn’t find his family well. You know what else he did? He helped us, with the repository, with containing the magic.” Sirius perked up, having wondered himself how one could even help with the repository. “It’s true, containing it alone is impossible. Y/n doesn’t see that, but she does need help.”

“Well, I mean I can’t help her. We’re rivals, we don’t get along.” Sebastian snorted.

“Again, the lying thing. You know you really gotta leave that to the Slytherinss…” he teased, earning a shove from his counterpart.

“Oh shush Sebastian. You know, Sirius. Just the fact that you followed her here means you’re already ready to help.” Constance explained. Sirius stuttered, shaking his head.

“But I, I can’t..” he mumbled, making Sebastian and Constance share a glance.

“Sleep on it, yeah? When you change your mind, come see me in the slytherin common room. I can guide you.” Sebastian explained, referring to his single portrait that hung up in the Slytherin common room.

“But I’m a Gryffindor, I’m not allowed in the Slytherin common room.”

“Then find a way.” Sebastian explained, making Sirius roll his eyes.

“That seems like a lot of work considering I don't want to help her.”

“Yes, well, when you change your mind you’ll find a way.”

Sirius scoffed, turning to stare at the door where y/n had left. He wasn’t gonna help her, he didn’t like her. He wasn’t, he couldn’t.

It took him two class periods before he clipped a strand of his brother's hair to make a poly juice potion.

#sirius black fluff #sirius black imagine #sirius black x reader #sirius black headcanons #sirius black #marauders x reader #marauders imagine #marauders

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vyragosa · 1 month

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"i shot that bitch when i got the chance"

should amelie strand from death stranding be regarded exclusively with hatred?

or was it the very goal on kojima's part to make a human being bear the unthinkable load of functioning as a system ending a natural cycle dictated by the arbritrary cosmos while retaining human sentimentality and sentience? life is made to perservere and survive and even the extinction bringer would rail against the inevitable a little longer.

"to make sense of everything you need time, you need perspective, and i'm not a line, i'm a single dot."

a very popular sentiment even on the official reddit of death stranding, you would see it fairly enough to assume it the general reaction toward amelie as a character, very little space if offered for discussion and understanding of the character's purpose

cumulate it with the fact that her dialogues comes off as "haughty" when kojima intended the original text to merely give her the "unattainable princess" archetype which is how she comes across in japanese more naturally, she is embodying the sun queen burdened with visions, a role with a deeper meaning that does not translate either to the worldwide audience but is ultimately the key to the story

her sins are not accepted by sam nor anyone else from the cast, she is shot at just as bridget, the body without a soul (important) was the one to order cliff to be shot, the absence of being able to transmit feelings in the manner of a human being made of flesh and warmth is what amelie represents, bridget's inability to act as a mother and connect with sam is also reminiscent of this fact, the sheer inability to feel and connect as a human being when you are not only unable to touch anything but ultimately only "living" like the dead, in a different reality than anyone else

the feeling strikes a very particular chord with anyone who has felt this type of alienation, which is why the character of higgs was so willing to be by her side and his inclination to follow her plans and be tricked by her as well due to his own need for control (which is another topic)

the novel also introduces the fact that she saw herself as a child already plagued by visions of the world ending in painful vivid details in a painting of mary holding jesus weeping, knowing she would never be able to avert the death of jesus, only to be here, to witness, amelie had not gave into madness and instead, attempt to prepare the world to fight against it as bridget

the root of hatred lies in the fact that bridget "has a body, but no soul"

her heart is stuck on the beach in the form of amelie, which made her actions to be devoid of any "heart", in shooting cliff, in the BB experiments, in raising sam at all, in not connecting with him after his wife's death, she is not capable of it by virtue of being, she inevitably becomes a ruthless politician and people like john admired her for her capacity to act upon those goals, the goal of making humanity survive. the person who wants humanity to survive, is the part of amelie that has no heart

which is where amelie enters the scene, as the warmth that sam remembers, and the bringer of extinction, "the hunter's merciful kill"

the interplay of personalities between higgs and amelie is beyond blatant, even more so with a second game, but it also introduces the quiet implication that amelie might have wanted sam to join her side and watch the world end in a "mercy" that if sam was to be by her side, which instead she focused on higgs for this role which directly pit one another in the final waltz (fight)

ultimately, she obtained sam's understanding and had no use for the masquerade to continue by enabling higgs' destructive tendencies any longer, in the end, she shut herself out to preserve the world because it has sam in it willing to go against her, instead of joining her into the void

as long as humanity would not accept "mercy killing" which the homo demens represent, the total loss of belief in the future

amelie was willing deny her own humanity that remains in the possibility of "connecting" by shutting the world out of closing her beach, she essentially "killed" herself so that the world could fight against a natural cycle for a little longer

she made the choice to be crucified as mary, she made the choice to take her son's place, so that he could know love from others instead of her.

the ultimate sacrifice one could do, to leave with love

stranded with love.

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thekimspoblog · 2 months

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Sweetness

Jimmy is around in "Slippin Kimmy", but there's no suspense or tension about his relationship to Kim. He's always loved her, he always will, even as he fights her it's almost inevitable that he will do what she asks. There's nothing "will they or won't they?" about this relationship.

The real whirlwind romance in this story is between Kim and a pistol.

We see her practicing at a shooting range with this handgun at the tail end of Episode 1. Then, in an extended flashback in Episode 2, we see where she got it: during the crisis at the Florida clinic, it was knocked out of the active shooter's hands and Kim grabbed it. She didn't use it on anyone; she just wanted to take the gun away from the bad guy, but she also chose to flee the scene before the police showed up. At first, Kim wanted to get rid of the gun, but after being attacked by the crooked cop she decides to keep it and learn to use it.

The gun continues to make appearances in Episodes 3, 4, 5, and 6, mainly as Kim attempts to do business with Dawson, and I want to spend a lot of time on the duality of Kim's feelings towards this object. In her mind, the pistol represents acquiescence to an extremist worldview, where everything comes down to a matter of life or death. And even as someone who's become disillusioned with the government, Kim is still warry that true justice cannot be carried out without an appreciation for nuance. On the other hand, the gun also represents responsibility: There's a recurring theme this season about Dawson and his meat industry, how everyone wants to eat steak but few people want to kill the cows, and how the money Dawson has made from doing the dirty work for the public is what has made him rich enough to perpetrate all this political corruption. The implication being that perhaps the "Law" is something similar; we put our faith in a higher institution to maintain social order for us, but this doesn't eliminate the ethical problem of vigilantism; it just outsources the power to make difficult choices to an untrustworthy third party. It doesn't matter how you order society; as long as you entrust one person to hand down punishments for everyone else, that person is going to be exempt from punishment themselves. The way Dawson sees it, the only alternative - the only mature choice - is chaos. He wants to return to the anarchy of the wild west, where if you're a MAN you don't come crying to Big Brother about your problems, you deal with your enemies with your own two hands.

This all comes to a head in Episode 7, when Kim finds Mary in the church playhouse. Mary gives Kim an ultimatum: if Kim endorses (or at least condones) Mary's crimes as justified, then she must give her food and shelter in the Church. If she condemns her actions, the moral thing for Kim to do would be to end Mary here and now. Mary has no remorse for the people she's killed, she even tells Kim she plans to kill more people, but she also realizes that without support she will probably be dead in a few weeks anyway. She just doesn't care anymore, she's too hurt confused and angry. She dares Kim to put her out of her misery, because that way at least Kim would stop Mary from taking other people down with her.

In spite of everything that has happened, Kim makes the choice to call the police and turn Mary in. Even though she knows getting the law involved means Jimmy will be going back to prison, and likely this time she'll be joining him. But emergency services don't answer the call: the rioting in Cheyanne means that the police won't arrive for hours if at all. Outsourcing this ethical quandary to the justice system has officially been taken off the table, so Kim must choose between helping Mary or killing her. And still, Kim does neither, opting instead to tie Mary up until police arrive or she can think of a better plan.

She keeps the gun trained on Mary just to keep her in check, all the while Mary egging her on to just pull the trigger already. But then, a distraction! Kim turns her back on Mary for two minutes because she thinks she heard Jimmy scream, and that is enough for Mary to wriggle free of her bindings and tackle Kim. She wrestles the pistol away from Kim and escapes out the Church's front door. Kim never sees the handgun again.

So everything comes down to a matter of perspective, and more specifically a question of whether Mary's victims deserved to die. Episode 7 put Kim in a position where she was going to break the 6th commandment no matter what, where her choice was between murdering a murderer or sparing that murderer's life so she can continue to kill other murderers. Was it cowardly, that Kim refused to do either option, and in doing so she ended up letting someone else make the choice for her? Or was it brave, that in spite of everyone around her trying to push her to her extremes, Kim refused to approach the dilemma as a binary? Maybe what's important is that Kim found a line she wasn't willing to cross, even if part of her knows that line is arbitrary.

In any case, this was the second time Kim's held a gun but it won't be the last.

#kim wexler #slippin kimmy #bcs sequel #I just need Rhea Seehorn and Victoria Pedretti to reenact that scene from “Under the Red Hood” why is that so weird?

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mlobsters · 3 months

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supernatural s13e20 unfinished business (w. meredith glynn)

taking a second to reflect i'm just about a year into this spn first time watch. first screenshot i took was in s1e2 and that was feb 1, 2023. inching closer to the end but damn.

wtf is happening with gabriel fighting a werewolf-esque whatever with a singlestick type thing. and this music? so cheesy 70s whatever. i see you jay g (christopher is also guilty of it when there's A Theme though so)

aww he's got a list like arya. ok so, like kill bill. which i tried to finally watch here not long ago and i couldn't get past the first fight scene in the house. feel like i might have enjoyed it when it came out when i was 23, but my appetite for tarantino tanked somewhere along the line. also, we already did a reservoir dogs homage episode, did we need another one?

these massive motel rooms, what even

haven't made a dean loves the magic fingers reference in a long ass time. reunion tour of references too

so this is a directed by speight episode too. ok

the apocalypse is good for mary's hair apparently

GABRIEL I call that art. But yes, without me, you two chuckleheads never would've known how to throw Lucifer back in the Cage. DEAN But instead of giving us a hand, you ran. And you just did it again when you ditched us in the bunker. GABRIEL All right, Dean-- I have more important things to do than to join your little band of merry men. DEAN Hey, what you're doing? This? This is not important. GABRIEL Every day, Asmodeus tortured me. Every… day! He fed off my grace for years! He used me, he debased me until I was… What I went through… you don't forgive. Everyone who had a hand in it will die. Get me?

a) this weird explanation/retcon of loki actually being someone else and that's why gabriel was pretending to be him is... weird. b) i get the impassioned speech but talking to two dudes with many more years or torture under their belts, i think they get it

DEAN Not like I care about killing gods, okay? But this whole revenge kick? It's a waste of time. SAM What if it's not? DEAN You've seen it, Sam-- with me, with Dad. Revenge only ends one way-- ugly. SAM Well, maybe it doesn't have to. DEAN Okay, I think I know what this is. SAM Okay, what is this? DEAN You. You're you're so hopped up on this “Kill Bill” fantasy of his. SAM No, no, no. This has nothing to do with me. DEAN If you had a shot at Lucifer, you wouldn't take it? SAM Of course I would. But this is about Gabriel. He needs our help. [Dean rolls his eyes, but agrees to hear out Sam’s plan back in the room] SAM Gabriel, you agree to help us, we'll agree to help you.

and a throwback to revenge never pays. but like, why doesn't sam just go for the obvious, we need his help and maybe he'll do it if we help him quid pro quo. jay bringing the eye rolling music juice, wouldn't expect anything else

GABRIEL Well, Sleipnir's a lot of things, but mainly, he is a coward. I will bet all the personal lubricant in the S.F.V… that after we killed Narfi, he ran straight back to papa's skirts.

and throwback to references i don't understand, that used to be a regular occurrence in kripke-era seasons. per the wiki:

S.F.V. refers to the San Fernando Valley in California, the center of the adult entertainment industry.

wonder how many people caught that, seems awfully obscure

MARY I know you've been winning all these fights, and you want to take him on so bad. I was just like you, with hunting. But I learned the hard way-- thinking you can win all the time, running in blind into every fight? That's how you make mistakes. And the people here, they-- JACK I'm doing this for them. MARY You can't help them if you're dead. And I can't lose another boy.

i'm sorry mary but i snorted. we just haven't had enough time to really establish this, and it's been backburner at best when it's around. #boymom 🤪🤪🤪

LOKI Yes, you do. Little bit. Our treatment of your friend is payback for a slight of a more personal nature. The death of my father, Odin. DEAN Oh, that wasn't him. Lucifer did that. LOKI Ah. But why was my father there in the first place? To parlay, to deal with Gabriel's brothers. When we first made terms, I had only one condition-- I would give him my face, teach him to be me, the trickster, if he agreed to abandon the more… volatile affairs of his family. Forever. When he hit that hotel, he broke that promise, and it cost my father his life.

hokay. never gonna retain any of this. i thought odin died another way but i think i'm thinking of zeus. big ask for me to care/remember the nonsense plot going on from an episode in s5. i can only imagine if i watched this as it aired. perpetually lost

SAM That's not… I'm saying this has become a whole thing with you lately. DEAN A whole thing? SAM Yeah. DEAN Since when? SAM Since the last time we opened up a rift. Since you decided to sideline me and then head to Apocalypse World with Ketch. DEAN Okay, well… we talked about that. SAM Did we? Because I gotta be honest, after everything, you're treating me like I-I deserve to be back at the kid's table or something.

good on you, sam

DEAN Sam, I'm not gonna apologize for protecting you. SAM So that's what you think you're doing here? DEAN You remember what happened the last time we had front row tickets to the Lucifer/Michael show? 'Cause I do. You died… and went to Hell. But see, this time, the apocalypse isn't looking for us. We're actually looking for it. I don't care what happens to me. I never really have. But I do care about what happens to my brother. SAM Dean, we're going to that place, and we're gonna save Jack and Mom. Together. And if something happens, we will deal with it together. And if we die? We'll do that together, too.

on one hand it's like oh yeah, maybe dean is feeling the lingering trauma of what happened the last time michael and lucifer were in their lives. but also, they let so much of that slide it feels like it's just being used for convenience. but whatever. i'd rather this than no conversation at all

and damn straight, sam, everything together. dying is a little much, and you didn't get to follow through on that one anyway. read a fic the other day that was about dean being afraid once sam's blurry wife got to heaven, he'd want to leave to be with her. and they made the point that sam had almost the same amount of years with the blurry wife as he did with dean. and now i'm making myself sad again 🥲🫠 this is why i don't read much heaven fic

#supernatural #spnwatch #spn 13x20 #jay gruska #meredith glynn #sam and dean mush

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blackinquisitors · 1 year

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Are there any characters or story beats that feel weak in rdr2 to you? Also, things you wished there'd been more exploration of, characters or ideas or themes

oh my god so much. I love red dead and its absolutely the best game ive ever played - and probably one of the best games ever - but its definitely not without flaws

Blessed are the peacemakers makes no sense in the plot. It does a few things: makes arthur doubt dutch, illustrates dutchs decline and his apathy (perhaps for the first time for the player), and shows that colm odriscoll is working with the pinkertons, possibly doing foreshadowing for micahs betrayal by showing you its possible for outlaws to become rats. BUT I think this could have been done in a billion other ways than "Lets torture arthur and never bring it up again!" bc he doesnt mention it, his shoulder injurt doesnt hinder him, he doesnt have ptsd from it. theres not a reason why that in particular had to happen. arthur could have been captured, but not tortured and shot, for example. maybe they could have drugged him and thru his haze he overheard colms plans and then managed to escape when he came to, only to find that it had been several days that he was missing and no one came to look for him. that sort of thing. same prinicple but without the ridiculous glossing over of TORTURE

Guarma. This one sticks in my craw and I get more annoyed every time I play it. R* originally was going to have villages and stranger missions on the island but abandoned it for some reason? time I guess? But I really would have liked to see a more personal look at the people there and how cornwall and fussar have hurt them. PLUS it would have been a very good opportunity to show how the way the rich men rob from the poor isnt too different from what dutch and the gang does. It would give arthur a really good image of how far they had fallen, that they were similar to these awful men, when they originally started off as robin hood-like men that gave back the money they stole to shanties. but no its just 3 missions of endless combat which can be fun but isnt really bc I dont even have my favortite gun with me. Also it didn't do a good job of showing Javier's sudden loyalty to Dutch/Bill/Micah. I would think that Arthur being stuck w these four, who eventually betray him, with nobody else would be a good opportunity to show how they all grow to hate him for some reason, but its not there. SIDE NOTE guarma is also glitched for me and this is a common bug. The time stays at 9am and half the guarma-exclusive animals dont spawn so I didn't get to fill out my compendium. R* never fixed this

I think all the girls could have been expanded upon. Tilly's role in the gang especially bc she was raised the same way as john and views dutch like a father, yet if you never heard her camp dialogue explaining this, you would never know. Molly especially needed more detail. She was supposed to be on the mission to go to the saint denis mayors party, and was cut for SOME REASON. but she would have done wonderfully. She should have had a part in it

The timeline of the gang and their relationships makes no fucking sense. Abigail says she always liked Mary, but Abigail joined the gang in 1894, and Mary and Arthur talk like they were in their early twenties when they were together. Theres a dialogue w Abigail and Uncle where they reminisce on her working girl days (bc Uncle was her pimp - very weird) and she says it was ten years ago. but that would mean she was working two years after she gave birth to jack which 1. didn't happen and 2. COULDNT happen bc I dont think men would want to pay for a night with a mother who had children fairly recently. the stretch marks and loose skin would give that away. Arthur has an antagonizing line to Jack that he looks like a williamson or an escuella- Javier didn't join the gang until about 1895, a year after abigail, and presumably when she was already pregnant or had given birth to jack. Theres other examples but these are the main ones I can think of

That encounter with Sonny in the swamp had no reason to be in the gang aside from R* thinking male victims of SA are funny

I wish they had more detail with Isaac. I mean clearly I wish that, ive got a 130k+ fic exploring arthur and Isaac's relationship, but within red dead I wanted just a bit more than a couple of lines. Originally Isaac and Eliza were both supposed to be in the game and Isaac was a newborn that would have frozen to death in the prologue, and I think Eliza would have ran away. Instead they went with making them a footnote in Arthur's story. On one hand, I understand why Arthur would rarely talk about them bc it would be too painful, but I also think if it was more overt, it would color his interactions with Jack/Abigail/John differently. Plus it would lean more into the themes of cycles of violence, and breaking out of it to be a father. Arthur didn't and he died childless, John tried to but he couldnt manage it and doomed his son to follow in his footsteps

THE EPILOGUE. Oh my godddd the more I play the epilogue, the more empty it feels and the more I realize why few people like it or finish it. It feels very tacked on. There needed to be a scene between the saddest video game death in history and John and Abigail arguing. The fact that there is no break inbetween like 2 hours of arthurs story wrapping up and another hour of John's story starting. Farm chores are fine but tedious if youve played it before. John being desperate for money and risking his life w sadies bounties makes no sense when Ive just done a treasure map and have $1000 in my inventory. "The gang needs money" is an endlessly attainable goal, moreso than "I need money". John's player model is just Arthur's reskinned- But they originally planned for you to play as John's npc model. You can see this in the pictures they have in the menu of John in the missions. The fact that there are NO NEW STRANGER MISSIONS aside from evelyn miller which is really nothing. They unlock new austin, but theres NOTHING to do there except collectiables and sight seeing and a couple bounties. Why even bother? When you compare how dense New Hanover is with Stuff To Do compared to New Austin which is HALF THE TOTAL MAP, its ridiculous!! I think it was just rushed and needed either more fleshing out, or cutting out completely bc John doesnt even live in new austin, and doesnt visit it until rdr1. Doesnt Bonnie give him a tour bc he doesnt know where things are? I may be misremembering that

Money. Money is so inconsistent and the values make no sense. Right its 1899. I rob a stagecoach and get $40 for it. This must be like $1000 in todays money. Wow Arthur beat a man to death for $40. This must be a lot of money. What do you mean a pair of jeans is $15. Thats how much they cost now! Wait why is this can of bean $1.40? I can buy them now for 40cents! Not to mention the Valentine bank robbery gives you $2000, essentially making money completely useless. Add on all the treasure maps as well as random gold bars lying around, which is 24 accoring to gamerant. $12,000 for all of those. So once you have this much money, all the fun outlaw stuff of robbing stagecoaches, mugging people, robbing stores and trains, is completely irrelavent. I never do any of it bc its not worth the bounty for 50 bucks. And paying off bounties isnt a big deal either bc its barely a dent in your pocket. Basically it takes the difficulty away, and the need to engage in these criminal activities for afford anything in the game. Its hard to take dutch seriously w his "We need more money" when I have a cool 8k in my man purse. Its also hard to believe Arthurs lamenting about his behaviour "I'm a bad man I rob and kill and am so terrible to people" no you aint but I dont make you do anything criminal unless the game makes me in a mission

Theres a lot of cut content and I wish almost all of it was back. Most notably, roulette tables, boat to guarma for John, more stranger missions, more companion activities in camp. I think they were orginally going to allow come sort of companion mechanic where people from camp could accomanpy Arthur on his adventures. I understand why they didnt bc that would require 10x more voice acting and would be really complicated with stranger missions, but I would have loved it all the same

Okay. I was going to add another one but tumblr said I reached my limit. my last thing is I wished they didnt play the native american flutes every time anyone in the wapiti tribe came on screen. silly.

anyway NOW I'm done. I think. Ill probably think of more but this post is already very long

#long post

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boysplanetrecaps · 4 months

Text

The Great Produce 48 Rewatch: Ep 3, Grade Reassignments Concluded

Welcome back, National Producer-nim, and Happy New Year!

This crazy Produce48 Rewatch project is just flying by! In episode 1, we saw the girls enter the studio and begin their auditions. In episode 2, we saw the end of the auditions and the dorm move-in, as well as the video evaluations for their final grade reassignment, which we covered in the previous post. Now, in episode 3, we’ll finish the grade reassignments, see the huge performance of Nekkoya, and see the beginning of the first Challenge Mission! Of course, in this post, we’ll only see as much as I can cover with only 30 screenshots, which is up to the end of grade reassignments. Feel free to watch along: https://kshow123.tv/show/produce-48/episode-3.html

We start off with a short clip of YGK+ model Ahn Ye Won on the phone with her mom. The 17-year old would-be idol can’t help but cry. In her journal, she has written “I started crying as soon as I called my mom. I told her it’s hard. I wanted to go home.”

This kicks off a montage of trainees expressing their doubts and fears. Future Kep1er member Kim Dayeon voice overs, “It’s a lot harder than I expected.” Previously voice-less Goto Moe says, “I felt like I lack a lot.” Show-punching-bag Shin Suyhun says she feels like she’s the only one falling behind, which is definitely not true. Friendly Choi Yena says she’s mad at herself. Kato Yuuka journals, “I feel like I’m facing a wall.” As we see Honda Hitomi’s cute face, we hear from Yu Min Young, the mint-colored-polka-dot auditioner, who wonders, “Is this all I got?” They’re all so tired, emotionally and physically.

But peppy music kicks in and the montage gets more cheerful, as girl after girl says something like “I want to debut!” and “I’m going to keep trying!”

After the title/credits, we get right back to where we left off at the end of episode 2 -- with the Great Grade Reshuffling.

As a reminder,

Jeremy* is giving the news to the A class

Psychopath giving the news to the B class

Cheetah giving the news to the C class

Mary J Lee giving the news to the D class

Dance Bae giving the news to the F class

*That’s what I call Lee Hongki

We don’t see much of Mary J Lee, but she seems really great. These are her grade-delivering heels!

Also, a lot of the Japanese girls aren’t present because they’re off doing something else for their AKB48 jobs.

So the plan for the Great Grade Reshuffling is to have the girls from the lower grades move to their new grades first. This means that the A-class will find out their fates last. Jeremy tells them that if a lot of new girls arrive in the A classroom, there is an even higher chance that they’ll move down.

Side note: It's interesting that Jeremy was chosen to deliver the news to the A-class girls. He wasn't their vocal teacher -- Soyou was -- so he would have been comparatively unfamiliar. It might just have been that Soyou was unavailable, but I could convince myself that they chose Jeremy because Soyou is too nice to mess with their heads the way that Jeremy does. (Clearly Jeremy is just acting on orders from production, of course.)

We've already seen a few people's grades, but let's see a few more, and then when we're done I'll tell you everyone's grades and the new makeups of each group.

First up is a trainee moving from D down to F. It turns out to be YGK+ model Choi Yeon Soo, who completely forgot the words during her video evaluation. We saw her being sweet to Sailor Mercury earlier on, drawing a little picture to encourage the 14-year-old to get some sleep. She seems like a really nice girl, even if she might be a nepo baby. It’s a bummer that she has to move down to F class, but at least she’ll get to join her equally nice label mate Ahn Ye Won, who has failed to move up from F.

Yewon laughs at Yeonsoo a little, but I don’t think it’s mean-spirited. From what we see of both girls, they seem really nice.

Next we see a trainee moving down to F from -- it’s Jang Gyuri from fromis_9, as discussed earlier. The girls are really really chincha chincha shocked.

There’s Huh Yujin, future Le Sserafim, wearing yellow, second in a column of two.

Next, there’s a trainee moving from D to B. And it’s Miru-chan, as we talked about earlier. The Japanese girls already in class D are surprised to see her, because she charming and they consider her a good dancer. But the judges think her singing is unstable and her dancing is “heavy,” like she’s getting twice as much gravity as anyone else. It’s just because she’s sad! Aww, Miru-chan!

Next, we’ll see a girl moving to C from F. Of course, Chiba Erii would love to move up to C -- she’s not confident about her singing but she is confident with her dancing. But as we know, she’s staying in F. Dance Bae says, of Erii and her dancing, “Every time I see her, it’s so sad.”

She really does have an arresting face, though.

So who is moving up from F to C? Well, as previously mentioned, it’s Goto Moe, the one with laryngitis on audition day.

She says she thinks the trainers are giving her a C for "chance." Aww, this is sweet. She’s still a pretty terrible singer but hey, she’s getting better. Ganbatteyo, Moe-chan!

Who moved to C from D?

It’s Very Pretty Girl Kim Minju, who has also proven herself to be a Very Hardworking Girl. Dance Bae says, of Minju’s audition, “She’s not very good, but she doesn’t deserve to stay in D.” That’s Dance Bae for you! It’s accurate -- Minju’s singing was sometimes on key, but sometimes a few tones off, and though she seems to have done the whole dance, she still doesn’t exactly own the floor. Still, it’s great improvement. Minju, fighting!

She voice overs something kind of sad: “I was told that I’m ambiguous. I’m not very good at singing or dancing or even acting. Then it said C next to my name for my final grade. I thought I was always ambiguous. I was disappointed.” I get what she’s saying. She’s so pretty that the entertainment industry is looking for an excuse to put her on screen, but she doesn’t really stand out with any particular skill. Aww. At least she seems fairly self-aware.

Next to Minju in the shot above is Nakanishi Chiyori, who wore the pink fluffy skirt in What's Your Name?. Looks like she’s not thrilled with moving up only one spot. Hey, take your wins, Chiyori!! Some people in F stayed there -- it could always be worse.

Next, someone is moving from C to B -- let’s see who it be! As mentioned in a previous recap, it’s Son Eunchae, future Bugaboo, who got so much story focus. She seems pretty happy, though -- not annoyed that she didn’t get into A class.

But who *did* make it into A class, stealing spots from the current A-class girls? Even though the spots aren’t limited?

First, it’s Kim Shihyun, future member of Everglow, who literally comes running in to the A-classroom. She’s obviously delighted to be there.

We see a clip of her evaluation video, and obviously, she does great.

Next is Ah Yujin, who also moved up from B.

Also moving up from B is little Kang Damin (label mate of flat tummied Hwang Soyeon) and future Rocket Punch Juri.

I hate that the staff told the A girls that if more girls moved up from lower ranks that they were more likely to move down, because as the lower ranked girls enter the room, no one seems happy to see them. Kind of a rotten welcome. Of course, that must be editing, too. I bet Soyeon was happy to see Damin.

Moving up from C are Ko Yujin (“Hyuna lookalike”) and Honda Hitomi, as I mentioned earlier. We see a clip of Hitomi’s previous practice that we’ve never seen -- Soyou saying that Hitomi has one of the weakest vocals among all the Japanese girls. The judges were all shocked at how much she had improved. Wow, that’s great! I love that. (Kim Nayoung, future Lightsum, also joins, but we don’t see her come in.)

The A-classroom is starting to fill up. Jeremy, piling on the pressure, tells the girls that they should know that there was also a girl who moved up from F class all the way to A, but that she’s in Japan right now due to a scheduling conflict.

We get a cute scene of Jeremy telling Yabuki Nako that she moved all the way up to A, via video chat. She screams and jumps up and down. It’s adorable. Her dream came true!

The new members of A-class: Kim Shihyun, Kang Damin, Ah Yujin, Juri, Kim Nayoung, Ko Yujin, and Honda Hitomi

Now that the new members of A class are there, the current members of A get their new grades. They aren’t supposed to react or spill the beans, so as to maintain the suspense (that I already ruined).

Who is this formerly A-class person walking through the door of B-class?

The Starship girls -- including original-face-Wonyoung -- are shocked that it’s…. Yuehua's Choi Yena.

She looks so different without her cheerfulness and without her ponytail. It must have been weird for her to experience the happiness of her Yuehua labelmate joining A class, only for her to almost immediately leave it behind.

Now, who’s this coming into Class C? MNET drags it out, of course, but it’s… Kwon Eunbi.

She sits down behind Kim Cho Yeon (fire eyes girl) and Kim Doah (future Fanatics/GP999), who have also both moved down from A class with her, and quietly begins to cry. None of them really has the strength to comfort the other at this point.

Kim Su Yun, future Rocket Punch and current labelmate of Eunbi’s, covers her face to hide her tears. Suyun probably didn’t come on this show genuinely hoping to make the top 12 -- she’s here for exposure, mostly, and the experience -- but she knows that 22-year-old Eunbi really NEEDS this.

Eunbi tearfully explains that she feels bad because as an unnie, she always tells her younger labelmates that they can do this -- and she feels like she broke her promise.

Back in A class, Jeremy announces that the trainee who is moving down to F should go now. Someone stands up, and no one looks that surprised, just sad. They saw her recording her evaluation video and knew that something like this was possible, even likely. A pixelated blur moves down the hall and makes its way to F class. Who could it be? The F class girls are shocked to see that it’s Jo Yuri, one of the Chewing Gum auditioners (she was in the lemon yellow).

We see a clip of her evaluation video, in which she completely froze. Poor kid. She’s only 16. When I was 16, I had a fight with my mom the night before the SATs and I couldn’t sleep all night, like not at all, not even for 10 minutes. I was just seething with rage and I couldn’t make it stop. I had to go take the SATs on no sleep at all and I just stared at it, like, what is this? What is 2+2 again? If my whole future had rested on that exact test, my whole future would have turned out quite different than it did.

Thankfully, I had another chance, and thankfully, Jo Yuri will have another chance too, when she does some of the upcoming missions. So it’ll be ok, Yuri.

Now that Yuri and the other “failures” have been kicked out of the room, Jeremy tells the 14 remaining A-class girls that they will be the center of the big performance of Nekkoya.

And here is the final arrangement of trainees:

New group A:

Before, there were 15 members of group A. After, there were 14 members of group A. Obviously, no one moved up, but 9 members moved down. 8 new members joined.

Left to right, top row then bottom row:

Kang Da Min, the li’l baby in pale yellow at the audition with her flat tummied teammate, Soyeon, future member of Queenz Eye, moved up from B

Ko Yu Jin, very pretty “Hyuna lookalike” who did Lip and Hip, moved up from C

Kim Na Young, future Lightsum, did I Don't Like Your Girlfriend, moved up from C

Kim Si Hyeon, future Everglow, had been on PD101 season 1, moved up from B

Na Go Eun, future Purple Kiss, was in A all along

Sakura was in A all along

An Yu Jin, future IVE, moved up from B

Yabuki Nako, who moved up from F to A like an absolute monster!

Lee Ga Eun, the Pledis giraffe and former member of After School, in A all along

Lee Chaeyeon, future soloist and famous older sister, in A all along

Lee Ha Eun, the “mini-Chungha” little 13 year old, in A all along

Juri, beautiful future Rocket Punch Juri, assumed her rightful throne, moving up from B

Honda Hitomi , auditioned with Mister by Kara, moved up from C

Hwang So Yeon “little Sunmi” with the flat tummy, was in A all along

New group B:

Before, there were 25 members of group B. After, there were 20 members of group B. 17 members left. Of them, 4 members moved up, and 13 members moved down. 12 new members joined. 3 came down from A, and the other 9 came up from lower grades.

Left to right, top row then bottom row:

Kim Dayeon, future Kep1er, was in B all along

Kim So Hee, future Rocket Punch, moved up from C

Kim Chae Won, future Le Sserafim, was in B all along

Kim Hyuna, husky voiced Hyuna, was in B all along

Nakano Ikumi, who is known for her dancing, moved up from D

Jurina was in B all along

Motomura Aoi, sweet-faced Aoi, moved up from D

Park Minji, future Secret Number, was in B all along

Bae Eun Yeong, mint Chewing Gum member, moved up from C

Son Eun Chae, future Bugaboo, got a lot of story focus, moved up from C

Yu Min Young, who did the Celeb Five song wearing mint polka dots and who Psychopath told her she had no charisma, moved down from A

Yoon Eun Bin from CNC school, who may have a crush on Psychopath, was in B all along

Jang Won Young, the Giant Baby herself, future IVE, was in B all along

Cho Kahyeon, the non-IVE Starship trainee, was in B all along

Cho Ah Yeong was in B all along. She’s from FNC and auditioned with Cherry Bullet’s Haeyoon

Choi Yena, future soloist, who auditioned with the two future Everglow members in the first audition, moved down from A

Kato Yuuka moved up from C. She wore the furry orange collar in Funny People.

Kojima Mako moved up from C. She was in Playing With Fire with Juri.

Takeuchi Miyu, the talented singer/song-arranger who sang in that fabulous orange bulls-eye dress in her audition, moved down from A

Han Cho Won, future member of Lightsum, moved up from D

New group C:

Before, there were 22 members of group C. After, there were still 22 members of group C. 18 members left. Of them, 9 moved up, and 9 moved down. 18 new members joined, 9 from higher levels and 9 from lower. It's all very symmetrical.

A lot of these names are probably familiar by now, so I’ll only review those who we haven’t talked about a ton.

Left to right, top row then bottom row:

Kwon Eunbi - moves down from A

Goto Moe - moves up from F

Kim Dahye - from Banana Culture, moves down from A

Kim Doah - future Fanatics/GP999, moves down from A

Kim Minseo - was in C all along, yellow polka dots in Celeb Five

Kim Minju - a Very Pretty Girl, moves up from D

Kim Suyun - future Rocket Punch/Queendom Puzzle, stays in C

Kim Choyeon - fire eyes girl, future Bugaboo, moves down from A

Naiki Kokoro - was in Funny People, moves up from D

Nakanishi Chiyori - was in What’s Your Name?, moves up from D

Matsuoka Natsumi - distinctive face, was in Never Ending Ferris Wheel, moves up from D

Murase Sae - was in Funny People, moves up from D

AleXa - moves down from B

Wang Yi Ren - future Everglow, Chinese, moves down from B

Imada Mina - tall, no bangs, was in Never Ending Ferris Wheel, moves up from D

Lee Seunghyeon - aka H1-Key Riina, moves down from B

Lee Yu Jeong - future Lightsum, was in C all along

Lee Chae Jeong - future Alice, was in C all along

Ichikawa Manami - shorter hair, was in What’s Your Name?, moves up from F

Cho Yeongin - auditioned with Shower, moved down from B

Choi So Eun - auditioned with Question Mark, moved down from B

Tanaka Miku - auditioned with the Banana Song, moved up from F.

New group D:

Before, there were 15 members of group D. After, there were 16 members of group D. 12 members left. Of them, 8 moved up, and 4 moved down. 13 new members joined. Of them, 9 came from a higher grade and 4 came from F.

Left to right, top row then bottom row:

Kim Yu Bin from CNC school, who auditioned with Team, moved down from B

Mogi Shinobu, the living meme girl from What's Your Name?, moved up from F

Muto Tomu, who auditioned with Juri with Playing with Fire, stayed in D

Miyazaki Miho, the multi-lingual queen who auditioned with What's Your Name?, stayed in D

Park Seoyoung, the blonde former YG trainee who sat in the Number One Chair, moved down from C

Park Chanju, who auditioned with Roller Coaster, moved down from C

Park Haeyoon, my new Cherry Bullet bias, moved down from A

Shiroma Miru, our Miru-chan from Queendom Puzzle, moved down from B

Shitao Miu, who wore the hat on her waistband during her audition to Mister, stays in D

Asai Yuka, who auditioned with Knock Knock, moved up from F

Asai Nanami, aka Sailor Venus, moved up from F

Wang Ke, the Chinese girl who wore red polka dots in Celeb Five, moved down from B

Yoon Hae Sol who auditioned with Question Mark, moved down from B

Lee Si An, former Idol School contestant and grape Chewing Gum girl, moved down from C

Iwatate Saho, who auditioned with Dancing Hero, moved down from B

Kurihara Sae, who had the great bangs in Never Ending Ferris Wheel, moved up from F

New group F:

Before, there were 19 members of group F, but 2 of them dropped out, so 17 members stayed. After, there were 22 members of group F. 9 girls moved up. 14 girls joined F from higher grades. 🙁

Left to right, top row then bottom row:

Kang Hye Won “Purity is all she has” - started in F, stayed there

Nagano Serika, who auditioned to Mister by Kara - started in F, stayed there

Murakawa Bibian, the little baby doll from Never Ending Ferris Wheel, - started in F, stayed there

Park Ji Eun, future ex-Purple Kiss, fell from C

Park Jinny, the former YG trainee/ future Secret Number member, fell from C

Sato Minami, aka Sailor Mars, owner of Lemon-chan, fell from D

Shinozaki Ayana from What's Your Name?- started in F, stayed there

Shin Su Hyun, the one who auditioned by herself to Playing with Fire, fell from D

Aramaki Misaki, one of the girls from Never Ending Ferris Wheel, started in F, stayed there

YG KPLUS model Ahn Ye Won, started in F, stayed there

Yamada Noe, gravelly voiced girl who probably shouldn’t have been put in C in the first place, fell from there

AKB48 Oda Erina, who was apparently known for her singing, fell from C

Won Seoyeon, who I thought did a great audition with Heroine in her blue plaid dress, fell from C

Jang Gyu Ri, from Idol School / Fromis_9, the pink Chewing Gum, fell from B

Little Cho Sa Rang, who we saw sweetly singing Tomorrow from Annie, fell from B

Jo Yu Ri from Idol School, the lemon Chewing Gum, fell from A

YG KPLUS model Choi Yeon Soo, fell from D

Tsukiashi Amane who applied her name tag up really high in Never Ending Ferris Wheel, started in F, stayed there

Chiba Erii, aka Sailor Mercury, started in F, stayed there

Hasegawa Rena, Noe's partner in the audition, fell from D

Heo Yunjin, future Le Sserafim, fell all the way from C to F.

CNC School’s Hong Ye Ji, who auditioned with Dayeon and the other CNC girls, fell from B

At some point around episode 3, Tsukiashi Amane withdrew from the competition, so this is our chance to say goodbye to her and see how she’s doing now.

After she left the competition, she went back to HKT48 and performed with them until 2020, when she graduated, saying she wanted to leave the J-pop sphere. However, in 2022 she debuted in a J-pop group called Fruits Zipper. Per their website:

FRUITS ZIPPER is a 7-member idol group consisting of Tsukiashi Amane, Matsumoto Karen, Manaka Mana, Sakurai Yui, Hayase Noel, Nakagawa Luna, and Chinzei Suzuka.

The group was formed from participants in ASOBISYSTEM’s idol project KAWAII LAB. The group’s name combines FRUITS, meaning ‘to bear fruit,’ and ZIP, meaning ‘to give energy.’ The group’s concept is ‘from Harajuku to the world,’ and the group will transmit what they call ‘NEW KAWAII’ from Harajuku, an area known for fashion and individuality, to the world.

From collaborating with renowned creators to selling out monthly concerts, the girls have already made a name for themselves at numerous large-scale events despite having only just debuted.

Even before FRUITS ZIPPER made its debut, the girls attracted plenty of attention with their stunning visuals. With their cute image and incredibly powerful stage performances, the group has already captured the hearts of fans around the world.

They’re doing a thing and honestly, I’m here for it. That’s Amane in red in the middle.

This is either their most popular MV or an ad for Beanie Babies. I’m not 100% sure. I’m not adding it to my playlist, I guess I’ll say.

Her tiktok is pretty active, as is her insta. Looks like she’s dabbling in gravure a bit, and also doing some modeling for magazines and brands. Get that money, girl!

Ganbatte and Happy trails, Amane-chan!

And that's it for this post! I'll see you in the next one, when I provide a bit of analysis on the overall grade changes. We're getting close to the first challenge mission. Thanks for reading, and I hope you have a great New Year!

#produce48 #produce 48 #bpr recaps p48 #le sserafim #iz*one #ive #rocket punch #jang wonyoung #takahashi juri #everglow #akb48 #Mary J Lee #jo yuri #choi yena #an yujin #huh yunjin

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mysticfoxdesigns · 1 year

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First || Next || Previous

https://archiveofourown.org/works/37869214/chapters/94700995#workskin

Chapter 2: The Plan

“Are you sure?” voiced Nino. Chloé rolled her eyes, Nino and his damn pacifism, why did he have to be the voice of reason in all of this?

“Yes I am sure,” Chloé snapped back, inspecting her nails. "They have gone too far. Lila's reign has gone on for too long, she needs to be put in her place."

"For once, I agree with Chloé," Nathaniel said, swatting Chloé’s leg away as she tried to kick him off the chaise.

"I don't know if we should guys…" Marinette stated, not moving from the hug.

"She ruined your commission sketchbook! She needs to be taken down," Kim replied, tired of dealing with Lila's bullshit.

"Maybe we should take a stance, Mari. She's been harassing you for too long," Nino said, surprising everyone else.

"You've never been one to straight up agree with our group. What's the change of heart Lahiffe?" Chloé teased him.

"I'm still a pacifist Chloé, but no one hurts my friends and gets away with it. I'm not joining in the violence, but she needs to be taken down," Nino replied sternly.

Chloé had an evil smile on her face, as she turned her body to sit instead of lounging on the chaise. She looked at everyone there, before turning her direction towards Marinette.

"Well. We just need our empress to agree," she said, a knowing grin on her face.

Marinette stayed still but soon sat up in her bed, moving away from Nino and taking the blanket off. Red, puffy eyes stared back at Chloé, evidence of the hurt she felt.

"Let’s fuck this bitch up."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

In the Agreste mansion, Adrien sat in his room, feeling like an utter bag of shit. His advice led to this. His advice caused more pain to Marinette than he thought was happening. Guilt had washed over the blonde, knowing that he could have done something to stop this sooner. Marinette was one of his closest friends, and he ignored her feelings for the feelings of a two faced faux.

But alongside the guilt laid anger. Lila had gone back on their promise. She hurt Marinette behind his back. She had lied once more.

It was time for that lie to be her last.

Sitting up from his self wallowing blankets and pillows, he knew he had to do something.

"Plagg, what should I do?"

Plagg looked over at his chosen, Camembert cheese still in his paws. He saw a new side to Adrien and knew it was time for a change.

"Well," he started, "you could start by apologizing."

"How would I be able to apologize for something like this? I royally screwed up," Adrien replied, falling back on his bed again.

"So ask Ladybug for advice."

Adrien sat there, contemplating Plaggs words. Ask Ladybug? She doesn't like when he talks about his personal life. However, she would be the best person to get advice from.

Deciding then, he would talk to Ladybug during their next patrol together. Thank kwami the weekend was close.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Back at the bakery, a plan was brewing. Marinette had already dried her eyes and pulled down her planner. Thankfully, she changed the planner to remove Adrien's schedule. Looking back on that she internally cringed, god she took that crush a bit far.

Chloé had Marinette's old book out, which held every information on each student in the school. Everything from their crimes, to their good deeds, were recorded, along with family social economic status and how much money was donated to the school.

Max had his laptop out, finding every information he could about Lila. Markov was over his shoulder, helping in the research. Kim was, helping? He mostly just wrote some stuff down in the notebook next to Max. He made jokes most of the time, trying to help keep up morale.

Nino was next to Nathaniel, helping create a game plan for their comeback. Everyone knew they would have to go to Aurore and Mireille to spread the word about the Royal Primaries coming back.

Marinette turned from her spot at the schedule, marker in hand after writing down some basic plans.

"Alright. I think I have an idea of how to do this."

Everyone turned their attention away from their task and focused their eyes on her. Marinette stepped to the side to reveal what she had.

The calendar showed them the rest of the month, with that rest of the week dedicated to getting everything they needed ready. Clothes had to be bought, pins had to be found and any broken repaired, and they needed to get their Royal Shades in on the business. The rest of the month was blank, besides their comeback for the next Monday.

"Any ideas for when we should do anything?" Marinette asked.

"I was thinking. We let Lila think she's safe with a faulty pin. I know Nathaniel’s family could get something made," Chloé suggested.

Nathaniel nodded in agreement, "I can see what I'll be able to do. No guarantees though."

"Alright, and I was thinking Chloé, what if we have Sabrina, Juleka, and Rose as our undercover girls? I know Sabrina is already faking, but I think we need more for backup," Marinette said while adding the pin idea to the board.

"That would increase our success rate by 36.78%. However, what if Lila sees past it?" Max added on.

"Oh please. Lila is an attention whore, having three people eat up her words will send her over the moon," Chloé sassily responded.

Max shrugged at her comment as Marinette added the secret spies to the list.

"Anything else?" She asked.

"I want to try and talk to Alya. Hopefully, get through to her about Lila," Nino said solemnly.

A silence hung in the air. Everyone knew that Alya was one of Lila's biggest followers, her blog had basically become the Lilablog instead of the Ladyblog.

"I know it may be hard," Nino started out, "but I still want to try. She's my girlfriend after all."

A silent agreement was made. Everyone knew it wouldn't end well, but it was worth a try? Maybe?

"I'll make sure that there's ice cream," Chloé said before turning her attention back to Marinette, "well?"

"We have a plan now."

#the color court returns #ao3 #ao3 crosspost #miraculous ladybug #mlb fic #hbic au #miraculous hbic

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totallyuseless-ugh · 1 year

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It’s not hard to understand Dungeons (and Dragons)

Darnell never understood the hype around roleplaying games, even less so the tabletop kind. Growing up, nobody he knew around school played anything like it. Him and Pico briefly dabbled in Magic the Gathering at most. But other than that, neither Darnell, nor his friends had anything to do with these games. Most of his time was invested in studying for school, especially chemistry, and starting in high school, he also got into freestyle rapping.

He never knew there were any dice other than the classic six-sided ones, which resistance a copper Dragonborn had, or how often a level five cleric could cast cure wounds, let alone what any of this meant.

That was, until CJ came into his life.

When the two first got to know each other properly by name, they had agreed to meet up the very same day after work. Darnell was still a little hungover, but it wasn’t as bad anymore by the end of his shift as it was in the early morning.

CJ was nice enough to pick him up and drive to his apartment where they spent the whole day. Both shared their hobbies, and they talked for hours despite having vastly different interests. What did however get Darnell confused was the mention of Dungeons and Dragons coming from CJ. He just gave them a confused look and they immediately began a huge ramble about the game, though it didn’t help him understand anything even in the slightest.

“How about this,” CJ eventually gave up explaining the game system. “I got a session scheduled soon with my friends. You could tag along, watch us play and see for yourself if it’s your kinda thing.”

It took them another minute to first explain what exactly a session meant in the context of the game, but Darnell eventually agreed. He would witness his first session of DnD.

The coming weekend, Darnell came along with CJ to the apartment of one of their band mates. Sunghee’s dining table was set up to have a lot of room, which was mostly occupied with bowls of various snacks for the time being. Sydney was already sitting at the table, chatting with Sunghee. She took the chair at the end of the table, half hidden behind a wide cardboard screen with a laptop, several books and a lot more things Darnell, or anyone else could not see from their perspective.

CJ themself sat down and took a collection of things out from their bag. A notepad full with scribbled words and messy sketches, a collection of weirdly organised paper full of tables with numbers, which Darnell later learned was a character sheet, and the probably most interesting item of them all, a dice bag.

Shortly after Rika also joined the table began the game. Sunghee told her friends what scenarios they found themselves in, then they’d tell her what their characters did, and occasionally, they’d have to roll a die to determine if they’d succeeded.

It certainly looked interesting, but just from watching, Darnell couldn’t really figure out a lot. At least Sunghee was kind enough to show pictures of the creatures she talked about so he’d have somewhat of an idea what situation the group was in at that moment.

Listening in on the session sure was fun, so Darnell joined in whenever he had time since then. He only watched though, never feeling the need for playing himself. However, he did eventually create a character of his own.

Around the holidays, CJ’s sister Marie was planning a oneshot and wanted as many players for it as possible. After a bit of convincing, Darnell gave in and met up with CJ to make his first ever character. He decided on a Half-Orc Ranger, simply because it sounded like fun. Since Darnell didn’t fully grasp the game rules yet, they went over the basics together.

While CJ explained what rolling for a skill meant though dropped Darnell the 20-sided die by accident. It took them both almost half an hour to find it again. He apologised for the chaos over and over, mostly because he noticed CJ’s twitching eye whenever he held the die in his hand since, despite how often they said it was alright.

When the oneshot came around, he was given a dice set of his own. CJ said it was an early Christmas present, as a welcoming gift to the game. Though Darnell figured it was more so that he would never have to touch their dice ever again.

But despite the introduction to Dungeons and Dragons, Darnell never got as much into it as his partner did. He certainly understood the basics when CJ spoke about the sessions they were a player in, but he lost track as soon as they began a campaign of their own.

Any mention of world building, lore and game rules became like a static noise to Darnell whenever they’d go on a tangent about their latest plans. He’d try his best to listen, but CJ could tell that he didn’t understand a single word. And yet, Darnell insisted on them telling him about it, simply because he liked to see them talk about the things they enjoyed. Something about it made him happy himself.

The campaign progressed, occasionally taking place at the shared apartment as well. But only when Darnell didn’t have a late shift so the group wouldn’t accidentally wake him up once he went to bed. He’d often sit down with CJ to watch and see what it was like behind the Dungeon Master screen.

The amount of notes and information they had to keep track of was insane. But Darnell wasn’t really sure if that was normal, or just his partner being obsessed with details and organisation.

It still bothered him though that he didn’t understand as much of the material. He didn’t just want to sit around and nod along to whatever campaign plans CJ would talk about. So one day, Darnell decided it was time to change that.

After another session was over, Darnell helped cleaning the table with Sunghee while CJ, Sydney and Rika were putting away all the snacks and preparing a proper dinner in the kitchen before everybody would head home.

“Hey, Sunghee?” He asked hesitantly, keeping his voice low so that CJ wouldn’t accidentally hear him. “Can you help me with something?”

“Sure thing, what is it?” She walked over, at first thinking he needed help with what they were doing.

“Can you.. teach me to understand DnD?”

Sunghee looked at him for a moment. Before she could say anything though, Darnell continued, feeling the need to explain his request. “I just want to understand what CJ is talking about all the time, that’s it.”

She began to grin at his words. “You don’t need my help for that,” she told him with a quiet giggle. “They got all of the books. You can just read those.”

Right, the books. CJ always had a stack of big, colourful books on the table when they were having a session. They’d occasionally use it to check the rules for something their players were planning or see the stats of certain creatures.

Since that day, Darnell spent nearly all his free time reading. Whenever he was home alone and had nothing planned, he’d always sneak one of the rule books from CJ’s shelf and read it thoroughly. When going out, he’d often listen to a podcast of other campaigns. All the time he didn’t spend with CJ, Darnell was diving into the lore and workings of the game system.

He didn’t tell them anything about it. For one, because Darnell was afraid of saying something wrong, but mostly because he wanted to keep it a surprise. So when he began to understand what CJ was telling him, he was pretending to be clueless as before.

Even a while after he had finished reading all the books, Darnell didn’t say anything. He never mentioned anything to Sunghee, didn’t jump in with his knowledge when CJ had to check the spell list in their Player’s Handbook, kept quiet in every session about anything that wasn’t basic player knowledge.

Darnell was waiting for the right moment, the perfect opportunity. And it took a while to present itself.

The couple had a day off together. But instead of getting to enjoy it in any romantic way, they had to tend to their usual adult responsibilities. At least they could go grocery shopping together, that made the task just a bit less mundane.

Back home, they were putting away the groceries as CJ began to talk about their latest campaign ideas. “I was thinking of swapping out the silver dragon from the original book story with a white dragon. I just think it would fit more into the setting of the icy mountain peak, y’know?”

“And they’re supposed to get information from that dragon, right?”

“Exactly. I feel like an ancient white dragon is more likely to have knowledge about an artefact called the “never-ending snowflake” than a silver dragon.”

“That wouldn’t work with the lore, though.” Darnell said it in his most casual voice as he put the milk cartons in the fridge. CJ just stared at him in disbelief. “I’m sorry, what?”

“First off, white dragons have their lairs in cold mountain *caves*. But more importantly, they’re too dumb and animalistic to speak with your players. Especially since they can’t speak common.”

Keeping their surprised expression, CJ stood in the kitchen unmoving. They needed a second to process what their boyfriend had just dropped on them before they’d get their phone to check this information.

“Fuck, you’re right.. wait wait- why do you know all of that?”

Darnell just shrugged, “Read the books, did some research.” He closed the fridge door and before he knew it, CJ had him pinned against the counter, kissing him all over. He surely got the surprise as wanted, but this reaction was certainly unexpected, not unpleasant though.

It certainly paid out that he enjoyed doing deep dives into any interesting type of topic.

#cj #darnell #short story #sorta beta-ed #I’m sorry #thanks to steddie Twitter for giving me this idea lol #Sunghee #ferocious maniacs in general tbh #just no Egeith #sorry dojo

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lindsayrps · 2 months

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radiant beam in the night

nell hates the idea of a going away party but mary insists that they’ve got some time while the boys are grounded for a few days, everyone loves a good party and who is she to deny them their fun at a time like this? she doesn’t quite trust that mary does all the planning on her own but doesn’t bring it up and, instead, focuses on counting down the hours until she’ll be leaving the base behind for a more permanent post in london. it’s hard to say that she regrets the decision because she doesn’t, not really, but she’s come to realize that it wasn’t as easy of a decision to make as she’d initially thought it would be. the people here, the red cross girls and an unexpectedly large contingent of the airmen, had become as close to family as nell would get in circumstances like this and it was hard to let that go.

the night before she leaves, mary and helen insist on doing her hair and makeup and while nell doesn’t get the fuss, she’s happy for some time with the two of them. she’s never had sisters, imagines this might be what it’s like and almost cries at the thought of not seeing them, or anyone else here, after tomorrow until helen tells her that she better not ruin all of her hard work. she’s almost happy she has to wear her uniform otherwise she was sure that they’d spend half the night trying to find something nice to wear in the very little nell had been able to bring with her. they pull her over to the club when all is said and done and long before they even get to the doors, nell can hear the music pouring from the inside. they don’t make a grand entrance (for which she is thankful) but she feels put on the spot, all the same, when the three of them walk in and all eyes are suddenly on her. there’s a few hoots and hollers, nell’s sure they all come from a select few people, but the attention dissipates quickly as everyone goes back to enjoying their time off while it lasts.

not unsurprisingly, the friends she’d made here are gathered at one end of the bar. they’re maybe a drink or two in, already, but she doesn’t mind and happily joins them. drink in one hand, sidney halstead slings an arm over her shoulders and pulls her against his side. he’s grinning so wide like everyone else around her, regaling each other with stories from the last few weeks. it’s a sight she doesn’t think she’s seen in the entire time she’s been here and it’s so nice that, for a moment, nell forgets that things can be so bleak and unforgiving beyond the walls of this place.

"you enjoy your party," sidney says to her, "it’s a miracle we got the damn thing planned in time."

"we?" nell glances over in mary’s direction, the other woman averting her gaze as nell smiles, "mary said she planned the whole thing."

"like hell she did," he exclaims, tosses an accusatory look in her direction.

"it was my idea!" mary crows and sidney flaps a hand in her direction as if to dismiss her.

"so you’re all pilots," nell tilts her head to look up at him and then around the group, "and party planners? is there anything you can’t do?"

"sing" echoes from two sides, both elliot and indigo chiming in at the exact same time and elicits laughter from almost everyone without missing a beat.

"speak for yourselves," david says, nursing his drink. "sid and i are fantastic singers."

there’s more laughter before some of them scatter, weaving through the room. when nell tries to do the same in an attempt to see who else has shown up sidney pulls her back and into a crushing hug that she swears would’ve suffocated her if she hadn’t rested her chin on his shoulder ever so slightly. "gonna miss seeing you around here, howard." he says.

"i’ll miss you, too, sid."

he finally lets her go and she turns to survey the crowd of people. she’s sure she’s seen all of them at the clubmobile over the last few months, doling out coffee, donuts and cigarettes, mostly, when they aren’t on high alert for one reason or another. nell figures she’ll miss the quieter moments the most, the ones where she isn’t holding her breath or counting the number of planes that land back on base after missions.

there were too many people to talk to, to be sure, but she crosses the room towards david. if nell hadn’t known better, she’d have guessed that he’d been flirting with every woman here tonight but he’d changed or at least she’d thought so, anyways, in the last few weeks. she didn’t think he’d ever really stopped but he’d maybe been a little less persistent from what she could tell. she taps him on the shoulder, asks "got time for dance?" when he turns towards her and is swept, perhaps a little too enthusiastically, over to the dance floor.

she’s never not liked him, to be truthful. they were never going to be perfectly matched, for many reasons, but she might even go so far as to say she’d become fond of him in her time here.

"told you i’d save you a dance." david says with that grin on his face that she’s gotten used to over the last few months. "just had to wait a little bit."

"you were very patient." nell nods, laughs as he spins the both of them around the makeshift dance floor. it’s not the same, they both know that, but she appreciates the sentiment all the same. his hand is warm as he squeezes her waist gently and for maybe the first time, she doesn’t hate it. the music changes and david glances just over her shoulder which...isn’t entirely hard to do, honestly. she’d been right to assume, the first time they’d met, that he’d be at least a foot taller than her if they were ever on even ground and the fact that she’s wearing heels did very little to change that. "think someone wants to cut in," he says and she turns, spotting elliot standing there. he’s too nice, she’s learned, to make much of a fuss but david knows so he gets it even if elliot doesn’t say anything.

they switch places but it’s more intimate, there’s no denying it. the music is slower and they dance closer together. nell’s hand rests in his, the other one curving around to rest on his shoulder, his free hand at her waist. losing her brother in the early days of the war had broken her in ways she hadn’t thought possible and she’d promised herself that she wasn’t going to get close enough to anyone for however long this thing lasted to avoid meeting the same fate and yet, elliot had crashed (gracefully) through the defences she’d set up and planted himself firmly in a place she couldn’t quite get him to leave.

not that she would’ve wanted him to.

"do you know when the new girl is supposed to be here?" she asks, unsure if she can talk about anything else with him without tears pricking at the corners of her eyes. he’d been so supportive and understanding but she knew if he’d asked her to, she would’ve stayed here, would’ve continued working with helen and mary and would’ve tossed aside something she’d wanted since the beginning. she knew, though, that he wouldn’t let her do that.

"helen says about a week, maybe a little less." he speaks low enough for only her to hear, like they’re exchanging secrets only meant for the both of them.

"can you do something for me?"

"anything."

"keep david away from her." nell says with every ounce of seriousness she can muster. "and try and keep him and sid out of trouble."

he laughs and it breaks the tension she feels in her shoulders. "i’ll do my best." he nods, then adds, "they’re slippery, though, so you can’t hold it against me if i can’t make it work."

#try writing shorter things bitch challenge impossible apparently #this is really nell x everyone #verse: at the end of the world #type: writing

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motownfiction · 2 years

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home

For Elenore, the concept of home has always been a tough one.

Legally, logically, empirically, she knows that she was born in Southfield, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit, and that she lived in another suburb until she was seven and a half, a graduate of the first grade at St. Catherine of Alexandria Elementary. She knows that in the summertime, when she and her parents plan their visit, she joins them when they say, “We’re going back to Michigan.” Because she does feel like she’s going back. She feels like Michigan means something to her. More than just a birth certificate. A home.

But in her heart, home is also New York City. It’s the Metrocard she got last year when she turned thirteen, and it’s the place where she and Sean Fitzpatrick eat pizza until they turn into blobs of sentient grease and pepperoni. It’s the stale pretzel she got on a field trip to see Annie last spring, and it’s the pigeons she was afraid of until the sixth grade. It’s the place where Emma was born, and their family became complete. It’s not just the place where they moved for Mom’s Ph.D. and Daddy’s law school. It’s their place. A home.

Elenore thinks about the tension on an afternoon in July, between eighth and ninth grade. Once again, she and her parents are on their yearly trip back to Michigan. That’s how she says it when Sean asks: back to Michigan. She almost taps Mom on the shoulder and says something, but then, something else happens.

“Need You Tonight” comes on the radio.

Daddy turns it up as high as it will go. Emma, who’s three and already accustomed to loud music, begins to kick her feet in the air. Mom throws her head back and sings with absolute abandon: I’ve got to let you know / you’re one of my kind. And Elenore just sits back and watches it all play out.

The saga of the Callaghan-O’Connor family and “Need You Tonight” usually takes too long to explain, but they’re still in Ohio, so Elenore figures she has some time. When Elenore was four, she and her parents moved for the first time (from out of Grandma Mary and Grandpa Jack’s basement and into their own two-bedroom apartment, just a few minutes away). For the first two weeks of living in their new place, Elenore couldn’t sleep. It was too new and too different, and Elenore has always been bad with too new and too different. Daddy tried like hell to soothe her: read her stories, gave her hugs, played soft music on the radio. But none of it worked. None of it worked until Mom came into the room, blasting INXS much, much louder than their neighbors would have preferred.

“Get it, Will?” she asked. “‘I need you tonight / ‘cause I’m not sleeping?’”

And though it wasn’t a great joke, it made them laugh – all three of them, surely thanks to the fortnight of sleep deprivation. From that night on, it kind of became their family song. Some families have a crest. The Callaghan-O’Connors have Michael Hutchence.

Somewhere on I-75, Elenore realizes that wherever they play “Need You Tonight” will always be home. Even if they go back and forth. Even if they’re in the car.

#drabble #writeblr #ch: elenore o'connor #ch: lucy callaghan #ch: will o'connor #ch: emma o'connor #year: 1998 #year: 1988 #asks #areiphilos #thank you!

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ghost-town-story · 2 years

Text

(So, ASTHC is currently planned to be 5 ish sections long, so for funsies and bc this is how my brain works, here’s the beginnings and endings of the 3 middle sections)

Jasmine

I emerge into cool twilight. Through the leaves overhead, I can see the moon hanging in the sky, silver and half full. At ground level, the forest I’m in now appears near identical to the one I just left, though I’m sure if I cared at all about botany I’d be able to find some differences.

I can’t help the grin that spreads across my face as I turn towards the portal, ready to drag Jason and Alex into exploring the second they appear. The grin disappears the moment I see more forest behind me, without a trace of the portal that brought me here.

“Weird.” I retrace my steps and wave my hand through empty air, hoping it’s just invisible and I might stumble upon it. My hand passes unhindered through empty air.

A sinking feeling starts in my stomach. Even if he had hesitated, Alex should have joined me by now, and Jason shortly after him.

Unless, a little voice in the back of my head says, the portal decided to dump them elsewhere.

... I am so dead.

My breath catches in my throat. At the edge of the hall, half hidden in the shadows behind a pillar, is--

“Alex!”

Alex

Walking through the portal is like walking through a waterfall. I can feel the magic washing over my skin, cool and fluid, with a rushing sound that drowns out everything else.

The sensation only lasts for a moment. My foot hits the ground, and the fluid magic is replaced by warm air, thick with the scent of damp moss and budding flowers.

I take a few steps forward so Jason won’t run into me, then I pause and turn, searching for Jazz. “Where are you Jazz?” I ask.

The only answer I receive is crickets chirping and the sound of a river or stream some ways away.

“Jazz?” I turn my head, listening for any sign of my cousin. “Jasmine Marie, quit playing games!”

But even as I call for her, my heart begins to sink. Jazz might be the most impulsive person I’ve ever met, but even she wouldn’t wander far without me and Jason right behind her. That, plus the fact that Jason still hasn’t followed me, leads me to a terrifying conclusion.

I’m all alone.

A figure comes stumbling out of the wreckage. Blood runs down his forehead, there’s scrapes along his arms and bruises already forming, but even at this distance I can recognize him.

Jason tumbles his way free of the ship and waves his hand. The fire winks out of sight, the only evidence left behind being the blackened forest and still groaning metal wreck behind him. He takes a moment to catch his breath, then he grins at us.

“Hey.”

Jason

The moment I step through the portal, I know something is wrong. There’s no sight of either Jazz or Alex on the other side. Jazz, I’m not halfway surprised. But I know Alex, and at least he would insist on waiting for me to join them before beginning to explore.

I turn in a slow circle, taking in my surroundings. I’ve emerged into another forest, but instead of the late spring I left behind, it’s the middle of autumn here. The leaves around me are a striking medley of reds and oranges and golds, and when the wind blows, they flutter like the heart of a flame. If I weren’t so worried about Alex, the sight would be enchanting.

My survey of the area also reveals no sign of the portal I came through. My mouth goes dry at the realization.

“Alex?” I call, in the vain hope that just maybe they’re hiding out of sight. “Jazz?”

The breeze is the only thing that answers me, rustling through the leaves. I’m on my own, lost in some strange world with no way home and no idea where either Alex or Jazz ended up.

I’m going to kill Jazz when I find her.

“Alright.” I slide into the pilot’s chair. Out of the corner of my eye I see Jazz and Alex settling down. Jazz has that familiar sharp, hungry look she gets when adventure is at hand. Alex’s knuckles are white against the arms of his seat.

I give him a reassuring nudge and shoot Jazz a grin, then press the button to start the ship’s engines. “Let’s see how this girl flies.”

#writing #in which i write #snippets #the og story: second gen #asthc

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littlepadika · 3 years

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Calling Home (1) | Frankie Morales x Reader

Summary: You are a receptionist at the VA. Frankie Morales keeps calling. Yearning ensues...

Rating: M -> E in later chapters

Warnings: fem!reader, age gap (legal), praise kink, voice kink, discussion of addiction/PTSD/trauma, no use of y/n, no beta reader, reader is bad at Spanish, Frankie has a sexy voice 😩

Masterlist here

AN: My first fic. Pedro writers have inspired me to finally start writing again 🥺. Concept inspired by the movie RED. I hope you like it ❤️Set after triple frontier.

Chapter One

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The first time he called was an ordinary Thursday.

“Veterans Affairs, how can I help you?”

You had been working at the VA office for about two weeks. Fresh out of college you felt lucky to have a job in the first place. You went to school to be a writer but your big idea for 'The Next Great American Novel' had yet to present itself. At least here you had access to the most inspiring stories and interesting people. Men and women who had seen more and done more than you probably would in your entire life. You loved talking to clients on the phone. It was weird but something about only being able to hear people’s voices excited you. You would sometimes write little stories in your head about the people you'd talk to, filling in the details that were unknown.

Your desk accessories reflected your love of books and writing. You had your growing collection of books sitting on your desk sandwiched between baby pink bookends. Next to them was a matching desk organizer filled with your favorite sparkly pens and sticky notes. You had decorated the plain cubicle walls with posters of quotes from your favorite books. You also brought your favorite candle from home. Even though you couldn’t light it you still liked to lift it to your nose once and a while and smell it between chapters. When you weren’t on the phone or scanning documents you would read. You finished To Kill A Mockingbird in your first week on the job and were now halfway through Murder on the Orient Express.

You were starting a new chapter when Frankie Morales called the first time.

You picked up the phone on the second ring already mustering your chipper 'customer service' voice. “Veterans affairs.” You stated your name. “How may I help you?”

“H-Hi. My name is Frankie- uh-Francisco Morales." A deep voice answered you. "I’m calling because I have gotten my benefits check yet. It’s been a month. I was hoping you could tell me if it got sent?”

“Okay Mr. Morales." You flipped on the computer. "Let me check. Can you spell your last name for me?”

“M-o-r-a-l-e-s”

“Okay... let's see.” You clicked on his account. You were momentarily distracted by his picture likely taken when he graduated basic if you had to guess based off the uniform. He looked sweet. Sharp nose and strong jaw balanced by kind eyes and a shy smile. You could imagine how age would continue to soften his expression making him even more handsome. The image was a strange juxtaposition to the voice you were hearing on the phone which was much deeper and rougher. His profile said he was special forces. A pilot. The rest of the information was blacked out. Something you were used to seeing on many people's accounts but even his years of service were redacted. He must have been involved in some dangerous stuff, you thought to yourself. The dates that were not redacted were mostly in Latin America. You clicked over to processing requests. “Looks like the check got sent one week ago.” You informed him.

"I'll look again but I haven't seen anything-" It sounded like he was apologizing when clearly it was not his fault.

"No no. It's probably a mistake on our end." You interrupted. With how shitty and outdated the payroll interface was you wouldn't be surprised if there was a mix up. "I’ll go ahead and let payroll know to send another."

"Great. Thanks." He replied sounding relieved. The roughness in his voice gave way to a smooth baritone.

“No problem. I'm sorry for any inconvenience it may have caused. We'll get it sent right away." You hoped he was not relying on this benefit check for anything important. While you could promise you'd fix the problem, the administration was notoriously slow. When he didn't respond you asked, "Is there anything else I can help you with today, Mr. Morales?”

“Uh-no" The roughness back in place. "Thank you." He paused before adding your name onto his thank you which made you smile. People usually never remembered your name.

“Alright. Have a nice day and thank you for your service.” You chirped before hanging up. The smile he put on your face lingered for a few minutes as you returned to your book.

The next time he called was exactly twelve days later.

“Veterans affairs” you answered, your routine greeting cut short as your eyes were still on your book.

“Hi- I’m calling because uh I still haven’t gotten my benefits check. This is Frankie Morales.”

“Oh Mr. Morales.” You recognized his voice even before he even said his name. You quickly shut your book, pushing your hair out of your face. Had you been thinking about him? No! Okay maybe you stared at his picture for a few minutes longer after he hung up. Yes, it was probably very unprofessional but you couldn't fight the curiosity. You were trying to rationalize the contrasting sharpness and softness of his features with his voice. How it all worked together. How one person's voice could change textures and colors so easily. You wondered what kind of things this man might have seen on the job. Most of the veterans you would help day to day did not have so many redacted missions and deployments. You were in the middle of Narcos season one so you immediately thought of drugs or something equally dangerous. After much pondering, you had come to the conclusion that Frankie Morales was both insanely attractive and insanely courageous. “Still no check, huh?”

“Nope.” He sighed the sound making the phone's shitty speaker crackle as you held it to your ear.

“Let me just check that it was approved...“ you found his profile again and scrolled to the status page. “Hmm... it says it was sent out last Friday after we spoke. That’s so weird...”

“Yeah. Really weird.” He echoed your frustration on the other end.

Typical payroll, you thought to yourself as you rolled your eyes. “I'll get another one sent to you right away. I'll see to it myself.” You tucked the phone under your chin and typed out a short email to Mary in payroll letting her know you'd be stopping by her office to explain the situation. You realized he hadn't hung up yet.

“Sorry for the back and forth.” You said, trying to fill the silence.

“It’s not your fault." The earlier irritation gone. "You’ve been really helpful.” His voice sounded warm and reassuring. Less gruff than it was last you spoke. Instead it was that rich baritone that you caught of glimpse of last time.

You feel your face warm at his compliment. It was this annoying reflex you had. Praise always made you blush no matter what context but it was worse when it came from a (you assume) gorgeous stranger.

“And just to verify that your address is correct- you’re on Maple Lane in Miami, Florida?”

“That’s right.” He confirmed.

“Okay. Sent!” You clicked send on the email, which caused the window to close and reveal Frankie’s profile page again. “I was curious-" You spoke before you really made the decision to speak. You didn’t want to overstep but once again your curiosity got the better of you. Honestly, you were just searching for a way to keep him on the phone. The day had been so boring.

“Your profile says you were stationed in Costa Rica.”

“For a bit.” He replied after a moment. He didn’t sound too defensive but there was definitely some tightness in his answer that made you feel bad for asking. Like you were scratching a wound.

“Did you like it? The country I mean.”

“Are you planning a trip?” He sounds a little amused.

“Yeah- well- kind of. It's more a trip in my head right now. I’d like to go there one day. It looks so beautiful.” You sighed closing your eyes trying to imagine the heat on your skin.

“It is." He agrees. "Really humid though.”

“Mm that sounds nice.” You would kill for some warm weather after such a long winter in DC.

“It was too muggy for me at times." He grumbled. "If you do go, stick to the costal areas where it’s more breezy or else you’ll just be sweating the whole time.”

“I don’t mind a little sweat” you shrugged, still thinking of the awful east coast winter you were currently suffering through. The sexual connotation of what you said hit you hard as soon as you heard the statement in its entirety. You felt your face flush again, though the man on the other end would never know.

“I’m learning Spanish!" You announced loudly trying to move the conversation past your awkwardness.

“Wow. Muy impressivo.”

“Si” you replied but after a moment you admit “I don’t really know what you said.”

Frankie laughed loudly on the other end and you couldn’t help but join in, drawing dirty looks from the elderly lady, Donna, working in the cubicle across from you. You ducked your head behind a stack of papers to avoid her glare.

“Fake it till you make it.” He chuckled.

“Maybe you should help me out.” You took on an indigent but still playful tone. “You sound better than duolingo” Your smile widened when he laughed again. His laugh was what you hoped it would be, by all your assumptions from his picture. It was an unencumbered, unburdened, rich sound with only a hit of roughness from the air behind it.

“Tell me you’re not using that dumb app to learn.” he scoffed, saying your name in an almost scolding tone.

“I’m got my thirty day streak today.” You boasted.

“You’ll be a total tourist if you go by duolingo.”

“But the owl is so cute every time I get something right!” You argued your voice taking on a more childish cadence.

“That’s how they trap you, silly girl.” He teased right back. Usually such a condescending nickname would piss you off but something about the affection behind him using it made you feel very differently. You felt warm like you were proud to be silly as long as it made him laugh.

“Then you saved me just in time, Mr. Morales.” You bit your lip. His scoffing and laughter died down on the other end.

“Frankie” He corrects you.

“Frankie…” You repeated it, smiling at how well the nick name suited the voice over the phone. Honest, sincere, and not pretentious at all. Way better than the pompous guys you know with equally stuffy names like “Edward” and “Christopher.”

“So what do you want to know?” Frankie interrupted your thoughts. “Dime”

You started asking him questions in Spanish to the best of your ability. Granted they weren't particularly probing questions. What is your name? What is your favorite color? What is your favorite animal? What's your favorite book? I am reading Gone Girl. He answered them all with patience and amusement, occasionally interrupting you to correct your pronunciation or explain what a word meant. Every time you’d repeat the word back correctly he would say something like “good” or “there you go” or “you got it”. You hated to admit that his kind words and his praise was doing something to you. You didn't even realize you were clenching your legs together unconsciously, almost in anticipation of his next correction or next answer. His low voice so sweet and encouraging against your ear, more tangible when he was speaking Spanish. You just wanted to hear more of it. Would it be this sweet in other situations? Would it get huskier or rougher? If you closed your eyes it was like he was sitting right next to you. It would be all too easy to slip into that daydream and escape the dull office.

Suddenly out of the corner of your drooping eyes you saw a flashing red light on the phone console meaning another caller was waiting.

“Shoot- i’m sorry, Frankie- I have to take this call.” You shot forward in your chair, legs uncrossing.

“Of-Of course. I should let you get back to work.” He sounded a little sad or so you hoped. You felt bad for interrupting him after you both were having so much fun. You wanted to say he could wait on hold but he killed that idea when he said, "I have work too. Technically I'm five minutes past my lunch break."

Your pout turned to a smile. He was spending his precious lunch break with you? Get a grip! you snapped at yourself.

“You’re welcome to call again if you want.” You threw out the offer in a small voice, scared you would be rejected. You peered over the cubicle wall to see if you were still being glared at. Thankfully Donna was away from her desk. Probably out for a smoke. “It’s really boring here and usually no one calls.”

“Maybe I will.” He replied and you could hear the smile behind those words. You felt your heart clench weirdly in your chest like it didn't know how to process the sudden spike in emotions.

“Bye, Frankie.” You beamed.

“Bye”

This time the smile on your face lasted for hours. Frankie’s laugh echoed around in your head, taunting you, sending your mind to the gutter. His voice went from grit to molasses on a dime. You wanted to be the one to bring out those sounds. You wanted to hear his voice bend and stretch and strain as you fucked him. What the hell is wrong with me? you screamed internally. You had never been so depraved and with a stranger no less! You clearly needed to get laid fast because this much yearning would not end well.

Frankie got the second VA check a few days later and this time he didn’t even feel bad about ripping it in half. He was already reaching for the phone to call you.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Tags: Message to be added 💕 no minors please!

#frankie morales #francisco morales #triple frontier #pedro pascal #frankie morales x reader #frankie catfish morales #pedro pascal x reader #frankie morales x you #triple frontier fanfiction #pedro pascal x you #pedro pascal x y/n #frankie morales x y/n #catfish morales #calling home series #i would die for frankie #frankie morales has a sexy voice #daddy!frankie

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babymetaldoll · 3 years

Text

"Victory" (Spencer Reid/ Reader)

Requested: Yes

Summary: Spencer's daughter hates her father's girlfriend. But when he is in prison, life pushes them to finally get along.

Warning: Cursing, a little angst, a mean teenager, and fluff.

Word count: 5,4K

A/N: Hello, pretty people! How are you? I've missed you! Life has been a little messy and filled with angst, so writing hasn't come easy in the lastest weeks. Hope you like this story, and I hope I can bring you a new one soon 😉

Masterlist

»»————-　　————-««

Spencer's daughter hated her dad's new girlfriend. And she wasn't subtle about it. She hated that her father was now dating, 'cos she didn't want to share his love. So now she didn't even want to be around him anymore 'cos he was so happy, it was annoying.

It wasn't that she hated her father, 'cos she loved him. But she was never going to face the fact she was jealous. She didn't want to share Spencer with anyone because he was all the family she knew, and they were a team.

Victoria Reid was twelve years old. She had grown up alone with her dad 'cos her mother had ditched the two of them soon after she was born. Spencer had tried to explain to his daughter her mom had left 'cos she wasn't ready to deal with the responsibility of being a mother, which was true. He, on the other hand, was happy to know he was going to be a father, and he repeated over and over again she was the best thing that had ever happened to him.

That was true.

When Spencer and his ex found out they were going to be parents, he was ecstatic. He couldn't wait to hold his baby in his arms and watch them grow. He didn't know his girlfriend had other plans, though, and soon after Victoria was born, she had left the two of them and never looked back.

Spencer wasn't going to lose the chance of being a dad. Even when he knew he was too young, Reid was ready to raise that baby on his own and give her all the love he had.

That's why he and Victoria were so close. Spencer was the only parent she had ever had. He was her world. And though Spencer was only 24 when Tori was born, he had given her his best.

Tori was the BAU's baby girl. Everybody in the team was a part of her life because she had grown up with them. Penelope was her best friend and godmother. Victoria would spend a lot of time with her while her dad was away on a case. Derek was her cool uncle. He helped her train to get into the basketball team and taught her how to dance. JJ was the closest to a mother figure in her life. Tori would spend time with her after school, playing with Henry. Spencer always said JJ was like a sister for him, and that's why they were all like family. Tori actually called Henry and Michel her cousins.

Emily was like her best friend. They could talk about anything, and at least twice a month, they would go out together shopping, just the two of them. Spencer always respected his daughter's relationship with his friend 'cos they were their little extended family. Tori called Rossi "Nono." He had taught her himself, and she loved going to his mansion, 'cos he always had new video games to play with her.

But then came (Y/N). She had joined the team when Victoria was only six years old, and for the first five years, they got along just fine. (Y/N) would come along shopping with her and Emily, sometimes she took Tori out for some pastries, and talked about bands, boys. Victoria loved her.

That until the incident.

She hated (Y/N) after the incident.

Victoria refused to talk to her after THE INCIDENT.

It was a warm spring afternoon, Spencer and (Y/N) had the afternoon off, and they were at his apartment... heavily making out on the couch. That's why they lost track of time.

(Y/N) and Spencer had started dating a few months before. They had been in love with each other for years. Still, neither of them had acted on it until Rossi's birthday party, when they had a little too many drinks and finally confessed their feelings. They wanted to take things slow, but when you make out in front of the whole team, it might be a little harder imagined.

But they had decided to wait for the right time to tell Victoria. But, unfortunately, the right time didn't come soon enough.

- "Dad!! I'm home!!"- Victoria opened the front door and froze in shock at the scene going on in front of her. The twelve-year-old had asked her best friend's mother to drop her home earlier when Penelope told her Spencer had already gone home. In Garcia's defense, she had no idea what was going on in Reid's residence, and if she had known, she would have never let Victoria know her dad was home.

(Y/N) widened her eyes and quickly grabbed a pillow to cover herself. She was shirtless, sitting on Spencer's lap. She still had her bra on (thank god), but anyone could tell that scene was leading to the bedroom in a few seconds.

- "Shit!"- Spencer whispered and closed his eyes as he realized what was going on. (Y/N) held her breath as she stared into the young teen's eyes. Victoria didn't know what to do or what to say, so she simply ran to her room and slammed the door.

- "Ok... so I think Tori knows about us"- (Y/N) tried to ease the mood and smiled at her boyfriend as she put on her shirt. But Spencer sighed and covered his face with both hands- "Oh, come on. It doesn't have to be a bad thing. Let me talk to her."

- "No, (Y/N), let me talk to her first."- Spencer stood up and kissed (Y/N) 's nose- "I know she is mad, and I should be the one dealing with her anger."

Reid knew his daughter well enough to anticipate her behavior. People had often told him he could be a little passive-aggressive when he was upset. And his daughter was just like him.

- "Victoria, open the door!"- he said and waited a few seconds after knocking.

- "Go away!"- the teenager yelled, laying on her bed. She felt betrayed and confused. But most of all, she felt angry that her father had decided to have a girlfriend. He had no right to do such a thing. He had to take care of her and her grandma. No one else.

- "Victoria, we need to talk about this!"

- "You seemed too busy with your girlfriend to talk to me, dad. So go away!"

- "Victoria Marie!"- Spencer knocked on the door but got no answer from his daughter. (Y/N) heard it all from the couch and tried to think of a way to fix things with the young girl.

Sadly, it wasn't going to be easy, and in the months that followed, everything was far from being normal again.

- "I hate her!"- Victoria huffed and left her book aside. Spencer was trying to explain to her why (Y/N) would stay with her and Diana while he took a short work trip for the weekend. But the girl didn't want to hear a word about it.

- "You used to get along with her just fine until we started dating."- Spencer tried to dialogue with his daughter. Still, it was honestly getting harder and harder each time they touched the subject.

- "Used to. You just said it. I have the right to change my mind about people. Why can't I stay with auntie Penelope for the weekend?"

- "Because I want you to make an effort and try to get along with (Y/N) again. Victoria, we've been through this before. I love you, and that's not going to change just because I am dating (Y/N)."

- "This is so unfair! I hate you!!"

Spence tried to stay calm, but after over four-month having the same argument almost every day, he was losing it. Victoria stormed out and slammed her bedroom door behind her back. Maybe it was better not to push it, Spencer thought, defeated, and called Penelope to ask her if his daughter could spend the weekend with her, 'cos he had to travel. Maybe Victoria and (Y/N) weren't going to get along if he forced them to spend time together.

Everyone had already tried to talk to her about what was going on: JJ, Emily, Penelope. But Victoria wasn't ready to give in. She wanted to hate (Y/N), and nothing was going to change that. Or so she thought.

The day Penelope showed up in Victoria's school and announced her something had happened to her dad was engraved in the girl's memory forever as the worst day of her life. Her father had been arrested in Mexico, but Garcia had assured her, the whole team was working to bring him home safe. Meanwhile, she would stay with her in her apartment (she was already there anyway), and Diana would stay home with her nurse.

Victoria's heart was broken. She was basically alone in the whole world. Her father was her anchor. Her protector. Her superhero. Her best friend. And now, all of a sudden, he was gone, and though everybody told her it was going to be ok, she knew it wasn't.

- "Hey,"- (Y/N) walked into Penelope's office and found Victoria doing her homework- "Pen told me you were here, and I thought maybe you'd like one of these."

The young SSA said and handed the girl a box of fresh chocolate frosted with sprinkled donuts and a strawberry milkshake. Her favorites.

But Victoria didn't reply. Instead, she looked at (Y/N) right in the eyes, not moving a muscle, and then returned to her homework.

It had been two weeks since Spencer had been accused of murder, and he had been transferred to Virginia. But the team was far from solving the case.

- "Ok, Tori, please stop this. I know you don't like me dating your dad, but this is not the right time to fight. I know..."- (Y/N) made a short pause and took a deep breath before resuming her idea- "I know how you feel."

- "No. You don't."- Victoria Reid's voice was loud and clear, like thunder, hitting earth with anger. So clear, in fact, (Y/N) widened her eyes when she heard her.

- "You have no idea how I feel. Your dad ain't in jail accused of killing some woman in Mexico. You have no right to tell me that!"

- "My boyfriend and best friend in the whole world is in jail right now, and it doesn't matter if I work myself to death 18 hours every single fucking day; I still can't find the way to help him. I feel lost and alone, and most of all, scared, 'cos I've come to realize I have no idea how to live without him anymore. I'm guessing that's very close to what you feel."

(Y/N) poured her heart with complete honesty to her boyfriend's daughter, fighting the tears back, though you could feel the desperation in her voice. She didn't know if it would be of any use, but she had to take that from her chest. She missed Spencer so much she felt she was going insane. She had no idea what to do.

Victoria stared at her, furrowing her eyes and pouting. She didn't want to cry in front of (Y/N) 'cos she didn't want her trying to console her.

- "Just because you are dating him doesn't mean you have to take care of me. I can take care of myself."- Tori said and looked at the donut. She was hungry, they looked delicious, but the teenager didn't want to accept any gift coming from (Y/N).

- "I am not here because you are my boyfriend's daughter. I thought you were a cool kid way before I fell in love with him."- (Y/N) tried to calm herself down and sat across the table from Victoria- "And I am not trying to steal him from you. I just wanna... make him happy."

- "We were happy,"- the teenager's comeback was like a slap on (Y/N) 's face, but she did her best not to take it personally. She knew it was useless fighting with a teenager.

- "I have a visit scheduled for tomorrow. If you'd like, we could go together."

Tori held her breath. She hadn't seen her father since he left for Mexico. Of course, Victoria wanted to see him and hug him. It was all she wanted in the whole world. But... she didn't want to be friendly with (Y/N).

- "If I go... it doesn't mean I like you."- the young girl whispered.

- "I know"- (Y/N) nodded, feeling already triumphant.

- "And it doesn't mean I'm ok with you dating him."

- "I understand. I just know you miss him, Tori. I really know how you feel, and I'm gonna help you whenever I get a chance."- Victoria didn't answer; she just sighed and grabbed a donut. (Y/N) tried not to smile, feeling she had a small victory.

Spencer couldn't believe it when he saw his little girl waiting for him sitting next to (Y/N) instead of his lawyer in the small grey room. Victoria stood up and ran to him the second the door opened and wrapped her arms around her father as tight as possible.

(Y/N) looked at the guards, thankful neither of them had tried to stop the teenager.

Spencer kissed his daughter's cheek a few times and whispered how sorry he was to put her under those circumstances. He didn't know what to do or what to say. He was speechless. A part of him hated the idea of his daughter visiting him in jail, but he also missed her too much to argue with (Y/N) for bringing her over.

- "I'll go fill a few forms. Be right back"- (Y/N) whispered and saw Spencer's warm smile as he mouthed "Thank you," still hugging his daughter. She whispered, "I love you," and walked outside the room. She knew Victoria would appreciate a few minutes alone with her father, and she didn't want to take that away from them. She really wanted to make Spencer and Tori happy, and spending time together was what they needed.

- "I know this is hard, peanut, but we'll get through it. I'll be out in a few weeks. I promise"- Spencer held his daughter's hands as they sat across the table.

- "I miss you"- her voice was a soft whisper, as she kept trying not to cry anymore. She didn't want to make him feel guilty, sad, or anxious.

- "Me too. How are you? How is living with aunt Penelope going?"

- "Ok... we watch a lot of movies."

- "And school?"- Tori shrugged.

- "Ok, I guess."

- "Victoria..."

- "I got a C on my history paper."

- "Baby..."

- "I know, I know, I should have tried harder, but I really didn't want to do it."

Spencer was torn between lecturing his daughter for getting a bad grade and actually telling her it was ok, 'cos they were going through a rough patch. It was obvious she might get bad grades, all things considered.

- "I'm sorry I wasn't there to help you"- it was all Spencer managed to whisper.

- "Don't say that, dad. I'm sorry I slacked off."

- "You know, you could ask (Y/N) for help,"- Spencer suggested, but Tori just rolled her eyes, annoyed- "She has a master in the subject..."

- "Dad, please don't force me to talk to her."

- "I'm just saying... you don't have to be her best friend, just ask for help when needed, especially when it comes to school. Besides, it's clear she isn't a bad person if she brought you here today."

- "She just wants to win me over."- Tori mumbled and crossed her arms on her chest. But she knew her dad was right in one thing: (Y/N) had done a pretty good thing taking her to see her dad and letting them spend time together on their own.

Victoria thought she was losing her mind after three months had passed and her father was still in jail. It didn't matter that (Y/N) took her every Saturday morning to visit, played her favorite music, and bought her all the pastries she loved. She needed to live with her father again and do all the small things they loved: making breakfast together, playing scrabble, taking long walks in the park, eating ice cream. Tori even missed her father's annoying habits. She missed his rambling and how he always had an answer for everything, even for the things she didn't want to talk about with him.

Spencer was an amazing father, no questions asked, and Victoria Reid knew she couldn't ask for a better dad than him. She just wanted him back.

But things weren't going to improve soon.

When the team found out Diana Reid had been kidnapped, (Y/N) had to take a minute and lock herself in the bathroom to cry her heart out. She felt bad things were never going to cease, and she didn't want to tell Victoria. The girl had already been through so much, adding the abduction of her grandmother wasn't fair. Tori was just twelve. She shouldn't be going through all that.

- "Victoria?"

Prentiss decided she was going to be the one to tell the girl what was going on, and (Y/N) offered herself to look for her. She was in Rossi's office, reading a book curled on his comfy couch. That poor kid almost lived at the BAU by then.

- "My homework is done."- she replied, not taking her eyes from the page she was reading.

- "That's good. And what are you reading?"- Tori sighed and showed her the cover- "Something Wicked this way comes," I love that book"- (Y/N) smiled and took a look around.

- "Figured my father forced you to read it."

- "Actually, I read it when I was ten, and it's one of my favorite books."- (Y/N) looked at Victoria, but the teenager kept pretending to read, ignoring her- "Emily needs to talk to you."

- "And why are you here? Why didn't aunt Emily come? Are you her secretary?"- there was something about Victoria's attitude that reminded (Y/N) of Reid.

- "I wanted to see you, see how you were doing, and take you to the conference room"- Tori sighed and stood up. She hoped Emily had good news about her father, 'cos she was honestly going insane.

But of course, Prentiss didn't have any good news.

- "I'm sorry, Tori, but... you are going to have to stay here tonight"- the girl frowned, confused, and looked at the whole team around her. Everybody looked like they hadn't slept in days. Which, by the way, was very accurate.

- "Why?"

- "'Cos we are going to have to..."- Emily paused and held her breath, staring at her niece's eyes.- "I'm sorry, Tori, but this is the truth: the woman who framed your father has kidnapped Diana, and I'm scared she might try to get you too. So until we catch her, the safest place to be is here, at the BAU. With us."

Tori gasped and covered her mouth with both hands as tears filled her eyes in a second.

- "Nana? Is she ok?"

- "We don't know yet, but we are working to bring her home safe as soon as possible"- JJ caressed Tori's arm and tried to hold her, but she pushed her away mad frowned.

- "You keep saying that, you keep telling me you are working to bring my family home safe, but so far, you haven't done anything!! I am still alone! Dad is in jail, and everybody knows he is innocent! And now nana is gone too!!"

- "Baby, we know it is hard, but..."- Emily wanted to explain to Victoria everything was more complex than they had expected, but the girl covered her ears and shook her head, yelling as she stormed out of the room

- "I don't wanna hear you!! I want my dad!!"

It was painful to hear those things, 'cos the team was doing the best they could for Reid and his family, but they could understand the frustration and, most of all, the fear that little girl felt.

- "I'll talk to her,"- (Y/N) said and turned to Emily- "You guys continue what you were doing. I'll try to calm her down."

- "Are you sure you wanna go?"- Emily asked and cut (Y/N) a short smile.

- "Yeah, for once, she is mad at all of us, not just me."

The young SSA walked to Garcias's office, where Tori was hidden underneath a desk, crying.

- "Hey."

- "Leave me alone."

- "I know I'm the last person you wanna be with right now, and I am sorry I can't do anything to make you feel better. I can only promise you this: we are doing all we can to bring your dad and your grandmother back home safe." - (Y/N) whispered as she walked slowly towards the girl, who sobbed, whipping off the tears from her eyes.

- "Just leave me alone. I want to be alone,"- Tori mumbled and wrapped her arms around herself, sobbing.

- "I'm not gonna leave you alone, Tori. You are not alone here with us."

- "I am alone!! I want my daddy!! I need my daddy!!"- the girl continued crying her eyes out, hidden underneath the desk. (Y/N) kneeled next to her and sat on the floor.

- "Come here"- it was a bold move, 'cos (Y/N) knew the girl was going to reject her, but she didn't care. She couldn't deal with her sadness, and it scared her to think how bad the child was feeling. So, (Y/N) opened her arms and moved the teen closer to her.

Surprisingly, the girl didn't reject her. Instead, she cried against the fabric of (Y/N) 's sweater and sobbed, shaking, as (Y/N) caressed her hair carefully.

- "I swear, we are not gonna rest until he is free and until Diana is home."

- "I want my family back,"- Victoria mumbled and sighed.

- "You'll get it. I swear, I'll do everything I can to bring them back to you."

That was the first time since (Y/N) started dating Spencer that Victoria let her close. In the middle of the mess they were all lost into, it felt like a little break of peace. Another small victory for the young woman.

(Y/N) didn't mind spending the whole night awake going through an endless pile of files if it meant there was a chance to bring Spencer back home. Tori stayed in Rossi's office, where she made something that looked pretty much like a fort on the couch, with blankets and pillows, to hide from the rest of the world.

It was heartwarming and heartbreaking at the same time, looking at the girl hidden there, trying to read, trying to draw, trying to do anything to take her mind from reality. Penelope brought her something to eat, but she rejected it, saying she wasn't hungry. Emily and JJ had tried to talk to her, but Tori kindly said she wanted to be alone. Even Morgan had called her and announced to her he was taking a plane from Chicago to help the team looking for Diana.

None of that cheered Victoria up.

- "I bought you this,"

Around ten, (Y/N) opened Rossi's door and walked in, holding a box of frosted chocolate donuts with sprinkles.

- "They always cheer your dad up, so I'm counting they will do the trick with you too"- the young woman tried to joke but found Victoria crying quietly insider her fort.

- "Please, just leave me alone,"- she whispered and hid her face with both her hands. (Y/N) didn't pay attention and sat with her inside the fort.

- "Not a chance."

- "I really don't wanna do this now, just leave me alone,"- the girl sighed, defeated, and continued crying.

- "Come here, I told you, you are not alone."

- "I am alone, (Y/N)! My dad is in jail, my grandma is kidnapped, and my mother left me 'cos she didn't love me!"

- "No, baby, don't say that"- (Y/N) wrapped her arms around Tori and kissed the top of her head.

- "I know my mom didn't want to have me, and maybe she was right... maybe I am cursed, and all this is my fault."

- "Victoria Marie Reid, you are talking senseless" (Y/N) held the girl's shoulder and looked into her eyes.

- "You are an adorable young girl who deserves the best in the world. Why did this happen? I don't know, bad shit happens in life, and we must try to learn something from it. That's it. There's no reason or cause. Shit happens, baby, but we must raise stronger than before. You are an incredible young girl, and I know your dad is proud of you. I am proud of you, 'cos you've been so courageous and brave."

- "You are just saying that 'cos you are with my dad."

- "No. I would say that even if I hated your dad. You know why? 'Cos I am not lying, you are awesome, and I love you, get that into your head. And you are not alone, 'cos I am here, see?"- (Y/N) ran her thumb on Tori's cheek, whipping off a few of her tears- "I'm here even when you don't want me to be, so I don't know if you can tell, but you are doomed, you can't get rid of me now. I'm like a disease, but a good one... I don' know if there's a good disease. I'm sure your dad would have the answer for my random comment right now."

Both Victoria and (Y/N) chuckled at the same time, and the girl nodded.

- "He definitely would..."

- "He would also lecture me why I shouldn't give you sugar after dinner, but he is not here, and I am not telling him, so please don't tell him 'cos he is going to be mad at me... and at you."- (Y/N) handed Tori the box of donuts, and the girl smiled.

- "I won't tell him."

- "Great, we have our own little sugary secret. Eat all the donuts you want; I'm going to be with the team in the conference room. Emily has a meeting early morning with the judge."- (Y/N) kissed the top of Vitoria's head and stood up.

- "If you need anything, I'm across the hall."- the SSA said, and the girl nodded, chewing a donut.

- "Thank you, (Y/N)"

By the next day, the miracle had happened. Victoria couldn't stop crying when (Y/N) announced she was taking Spencer back home. Tori stood in front of his father's girlfriend and felt how the tears filled her eyes in less than a minute. Happy tears, for once.

(Y/N) smiled at her, glad to know the young girl was going to have her life back. It surprised her when Tori hugged her, wrapping her arms around her tight. (Y/N) stayed still for an instant, trying to understand what was happening. She hugged Victoria and kissed the top of her head. The child was crying, and suddenly, so was she. The nightmare was over. At least a part of it. They still needed to find Diana. But the fact they were going to have Reid back was already giving everybody the peace of mind they needed to finish the task.

(Y/N) held Spencer's hand tight all the way from the prison to the BAU. He kept his eyes locked on their hands, fingers tangled together. He couldn't believe it was actually happening. He couldn't believe he was a free man.

- "How's Tori?"- he whispered and turned to his girlfriend. Penelope and Luke were in the car with them, but somehow, Spencer could only register the presence of his girlfriend. Not because he didn't care about his friends, but because he could only take just a small amount of information at the time. It was all too much for him at that moment.

- "Good. She has been incredibly strong."

- "Did you tell her about mom?"- Spencer was afraid to ask but needed to know what was going on with his daughter. (Y/N) nodded and sighed.

- "We decided it was better if she knew what was happening, we had to keep her at the BAU, and she was going to get suspicious she couldn't go to Penelope's... sorry."

- "Don't be. You did what was best for her."- Spencer turned to his girlfriend and smiled at her for a second. It was a short, sweet smile. Almost shy. But it was enough to warm her heart and wake the butterflies in her stomach. She was so in love with Spencer Reid, everything he did fluster her.

Victoria thought her heart was about to burst as he waited for her father to arrive. Spencer looked at (Y/N) one last time, and she squeezed his hand kindly, smiling when the elevator door opened, and all he heard was:

- "Daddy!!"- Tori yelled and ran to hug Spencer as soon as she saw him. He couldn't even step out of the elevator when his daughter nearly tackled him, wrapping her arms around him tight.

- "My baby!"- he whispered and spun her in the air a few times- "Are you ok?"- he held her face with both hands and took a good look at her. She was crying but smiling as she nodded.

- "I'm so happy to see you, dad."

- "I missed you so, so much"- Spencer kissed the top of her head and sighed. (Y/N) smiled, and whipped off the tears from her eyes as she stared at the scene. Garcia and Luke stood next to her, enjoying a brief moment of happiness and peace.

- "Me more,"- Victoria whispered and hugged Spencer again- "I swear I'm never going to fight with you again."

- "I'm taking a mental note of that,"- he answered and felt her body shaking as she giggled. Spencer hadn't heard his daughter laugh, giggle, or even watched her smile in the three months he had spent away from her. And that sound was sweet and warm, like a balm to his soul.

- "I'm sorry, Spencer... but, we have to..."- Emily interrupted the moment and smiled at her friend. They all knew they still had to do one more thing before celebrating. They had to take Diana Reid back home safe and sound. Victoria let her father go and smiled at him.

- "I love you, dad."

- "I love you too, princess."

And as the team walked to the conference room to brief Spencer about the case and update him with the latest information, (Y/N) felt someone hold her hand.

- "Thank you,"- Victoria whispered and cut her a smile that warmed her heart.

- "Come here,"- she answered and turned around to wrap her arms around her for a second. Spencer looked at them, and for once, he didn't know what to say. Victoria and (Y/N) just stood in the middle of the hall, hugged for a few minutes, and Reid couldn't believe it. It was so heartwarming and emotional; he really didn't know how to react.

- "Come on, dad!! You are going to miss the movie!"- Victoria yelled and set the popcorn on the coffee table.

- "You can pause it!"- Spencer yelled from his desk, where he was finishing writing a letter for his mother.

- "Or you can hurry!"- Tori answered and sat on the couch.

- "Here's your tea, your highness"- (Y/N) walked to the girl holding a tray filled with cups and more snacks- "Come on, honey! We are not waiting for you!"

Three months after prison and life had never been so good for Spencer, Victoria, and (Y/N).

- "I had never seen you so eager to watch a Marvel movie, since when are you two fans of Thor?"- Spencer walked to the living room, hearing his girlfriend and daughter laugh.

- "Always, huge fan."- (Y/N) smiled and tapped on the couch. Reid sat between his two women and sighed.

- "I can smell the sarcasm in the air."

- "No, honey. We love Thor, right Tori?"

- "Yes! Big fans, huge, the biggest fans"- Spencer looked at his daughter and raised an eyebrow.

- "Ok, I'll buy it. Let's watch the movie."

(Y/N) and Tori giggled at the very same moments like they were sharing a secret joke Spencer couldn't understand, but he didn't really matter. He was happy, his heart was content, and there was nothing more perfect that minute, 'cos his family was all on the same couch, watching a movie, enjoying an afternoon together. Like he had always dreamt of.

----

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