#she also probably makes a lot of throat clicks noises when annoyed and stressed

[arolesbianism]

I’ve been too tired to draw much today but then I got some midnight motivation so here’s some concept doodles for hypothetical stalien Jackie and Olivia (with some creative liberties taken)(also rambles under the cut)

Now as I’ve already mentioned the closest to their canon jobs I can give them is in the conveyor facilities, but in particular they’d likely be working at the one that’s mostly supplied by the rejects hatched at the nursing facilities owned by a different corporation that works closely with the one that runs the conveyor facilities, as that is where we find a lot more “research” as opposed to product production and engineering. Given that this would likely leave Olivia in the surgeons branch and Jackie in the data filter branch, this means that the two would have likely been trained together since they were lil kids, and likely would have been from the same hatching period. Also they might honestly be in a similar age group to Wonderful, although I’d probably more so place them as a couple years younger, meaning they’d likely not have interacted with her much until she became their new boss.

As for my notes, staliens are quite large so I of course had to scale up their heights in my mind to fit, with Olivia being very much short by stalien standards, basically just edging the point of concerningly short (basically anything under 6 foot), and Jackie being notably tall without being like stupid tall (9 foot or taller), giving them a pretty large height gap lol. The two also just have general body types that would likely give them an almost sickly look to most ppl, albeit not strongly enough that it’d draw concern. In Olivia’s case, her constantly active energy would both add to and take away from the sickly vibes due to how stalien bodies tend to react to being malnourished, with small size and overly active energy both being potential effects from two very different types of starvation reactions. In Olivia’s case, she’s just short and stressed. Stress tends to cause blood to pool at the face as a preparation for energy usage in survival scenarios, and when no energy is actually used the blood tends to just sorta leak out of energy glands. This isn’t too big of an issue for single instances of stress, but with constant stress it can become an issue if one’s body doesn’t get the hint. Due to this, Olivia keeps her energy active more often than not, both because of risk of excessive blood loss, and because she ideally doesn’t want to be bleeding all over her work.

Jackie’s energy is a pale variant, which basically means that her body has less energy in it than a typical stalien. This doesn’t effect her too much, but it does mean that she can’t rly utilize her energy in any significant manner, albeit even if she had the option I doubt she’d utilize it much due to how much risk there is for a reward that ultimately wouldn’t benefit her much on its own. She also has four antennae, which does actually affect her a bit more due to the typical stimulation issues that come with them. Thankfully Jackie isn’t the one of the two that has to work in busy stimulation packed parts of the facility most of the time, and she largely would spend her time in a more office like space, occasionally popping into the manufacturing branch to request supplies and make test build requests. Most interactions with Olivia and other surgeons would be within her own chambers, so she’s rarely having to even see the worst of things.

And lastly some light elaboration on the pronouns, blah blah blah stalien pronouns aren’t gendered since staliens don’t have gender and are instead based on a mix of status and relationships, meaning that while most have a primary pronoun, pronouns are highly situational and different staliens use different pronouns depending on who they’re talking to. Jackie and Olivia would likely use less formal pronouns when talking to eachother for example. Basically just imagine it as two scales of “formal to informal” and “negative to positive”, but with a bit more social nuance for how they’re actually used + some of them also double as like actual words so things get kinda muddy a lot of the time. Anyways, both of them most commonly use very formal pronouns as they basically live at their jobs and are interacting mostly with coworkers and higher ups. Olivia uses a slightly negative leaning one mostly to come across as more polite, while Jackie uses a very neutral formal pronoun to come across as more strictly professional, basically giving off more of a “we are here for business only” sort of vibe. They probably do or at least used to use more causal pronouns for each other in private tho, likely either going very casual positive or neutral very positive, with the former being what you’d use for very close friends, and the latter being for someone you consider a pure equal, which is funnily enough most often seen as incredibly rude to use if you aren’t extremely close to the person. Either way, I imagine in more professional settings Jackie tends to refer to herself with more formal positive terms and to Olivia with formal neutral terms, and Olivia refers to them both as mostly formal but not super duper formal neutral terms. Oh they’d also 100% have different names but yknow that’s a given with stalien language

#keese draws #oni posting #eternal gales #not main tagging this since this won’t make much sense to most ppl lol #anyways! I like to imagine these two would accessorize more if they weren’t in the facilities #the glasses are the creative liberties btw as previously discussed they by all means would not even be able to commission them #also the eye colors they aren’t rly entirely realistic but it’s the best I could stretch them to #everything else is up to code tho #I like to imagine jackie’s voice as a stalien would be almost kazoo adjacent #she also probably makes a lot of throat clicks noises when annoyed and stressed #olivia would probably have a more clunky voice that tends to stutter due to generally slower speech #this means her speech would probably be riddled with tics to account for vocal readjustment #anyways I need to go shower pls indulge me in my fully self indulgent au thoughts #feel free to ask questions if anything confuses or interests you Ill take any excuse to ramble abt worldbuilding

[beyondconfessor]

Principle Decisions [9/24]

Rating: Explicit

Pairing: Lilith/Zelda Spellman

Summary: Entering a beautiful woman’s house, cold and wet, then having her clothes disappearing to where she wouldn’t be able to have access to them. Whatever was a woman to do?

N.B.: Also posted on AO3. This is pure fantasy, please suspend your disbelief. 

Sabrina did not come down for breakfast. It was raining, heavy outside and Zelda was willing to push her anger aside to ensure her niece was taken to the school safely, but while she was drinking her morning coffee over breakfast, she heard the noise of someone trying to quietly sneak their way down the stairs, before the door opened and shut.

When Zelda walked around, an aching sensation gnawing at her stomach, she peered out of the foyer’s windows and noticed that Harvey had picked up Sabrina.

She hardly trusted a teenager to drive safely on the roads. Still, despite her frustration that her niece was clearly trying to sneak her way around her, it was nonetheless sweet to see the boy come to the door the Spellman home with an umbrella, so Sabrina didn’t get wet from the short distance between the veranda and the car.

As it was, Zelda had a meeting with Prudence that morning and needed to leave early anyway, this way at least, she didn’t need to drop Sabrina off on the opposite end of the town on her way to work.

It was raining heavily, and she pulled up at the parking lot, she grabbed her own umbrella to make her way onto campus as the rain continued to wash down.

Sometimes, with the rain they were heaving like this, the main road would flood and block her from coming in. She was already considering cancelling classes for the day unless it let up, but would review how many people actually lived off-campus before making that decision.

Setting her computer up in her office, she removed her coat and sat her umbrella aside before sitting down just as Prudence turned up. “Professor Spellman,” she said with a tight surprise. “Have you read your emails this morning?”

Zelda fixed her damp hair, opening her laptop up as she settled in her chair. “Not yet, should I have?”

“It’s just that…um, the grades you put up are wrong.”

Zelda paused, “How so?”

“You gave Dorcas, Nick Scratch’s results and Agatha now has Nick’s, which works in her favour, I suppose. But…it’s like that across your entire class.”

Zelda’s stomach clenched as she saw a dozen emails from students, questioning their marks. Flicking into the system, she opened it up and reviewed. She wasn’t sure how that had occurred. She wasn’t even sure how many it affected but knew that it was going to be an absolute pain to undo.

Once a grade had been placed up in the system, it wasn’t something easy to undo. It was far easier to screw up the system and adversely affect a person’s weighted score than it was to undo it––the easiest way to fix it would be to manually work out what everyone’s weight score should be and then add in extra credit to move the weighted score up or down, but that would take hours of work.

Literal hours that she could not place onto Prudence’s plate.

Zelda combed her fingers through her hair, feeling a wave of dizziness rush over her. On top of this, she would have to go to Faustus and advise as to what had occurred, explaining the error and what she planned on doing to fix it.

Given that she was apart of the Liberal Arts, there were fewer scholarships that would be affected, but she wasn’t entirelywithout scholarship students. After all, Prudence was one herself.

“I see,” Zelda, wishing she could scream. She swallowed back the frustration and anger, feeling it turn into a lump in her throat. She needed to fix this fast.

“Professor?” Prudence asked softly. “Is there anything I can do?”

“This is my mess, Prudence. I will fix it.” She paused, drawing in a tight breath before noticing that the woman remained hovering in her office. “Do you mind if we reschedule this meeting, I need to fix this as fast as possible, before any of the scholarships are adversely affected.”

“Of course,” Prudence said. “Did you want me to take your first class this morning?”

Zelda looked to the time, and then out at her window to the heavy rain. “No, I think classes should be cancelled, given the weather. Are you okay to make it back to your dormitory?”

“I’ll probably go to the cafeteria,” Prudence responded. “But you have my number if you need me?”

Zelda nodded, gesturing loosely in agreement. The truth was, she didn’t know what was easier. A part of her wanted to double down on the mistake and affirm that it was correct––absurd as the idea was––and another part of her wanted to just up and quit, never to be seen again. The amount of work it would take felt overwhelming. She’d been stressed before, but this, after everything else, felt near impossible.

She began by putting her anxiety aside and sending out an email to Faustus to let him know what had occurred before any complaints were raised. Then she sent out a following email to the affected classes, letting them know she was aware of the error and would rectify it by the day’s end.

She cleared her schedule, pulled out her calculator and tried to remember basic maths before setting to work.

She didn’t eat, didn’t bother taking so much as a cigarette break. Instead, she had a pot of coffee made and set to work, moving from her desk only to attend the bathroom.

It seemed almost a saviour that the rain had occurred, allowing her a reason to cancel the classes and focus on the task at hand.

Once it was done, only then did she take the time to look at the clock and notice it was the end of her office hours, with nothing completed but a rectified mistake and half a dozen emails assuring the scholarship students that were any questions to rise, she would personally fix the issue herself.

Zelda packed her bag up, switched her heels for flats as a heaviness weighed on her shoulders before she made her way through the storm, back to her car, feeling as if the day was wasted. She sat in her car, sitting back in the leather seat as sheets of rain ran down her windscreen.

She wanted to cry or scream or do something, but she didn’t have the energy for any of it. Instead, she put her seatbelt on, turned on the engine, removed the hand brake before reversing out of the parking lot.

The rain narrowed her vision, and as she went to return home, she found herself notably blocked by flashing lights, warning her that she couldn’t take the main road.

Side road it was then—typical of today.

Zelda grew up by the forest. She knew forest roads better than most––though her time dating a ranger and firefighter (separately) certainly added to that knowledge––leaving her to use the mud slicken paths to find her way home.

But it was dark, and it was storming, and she was prideful, eventually finding her car inevitably bogged in a puddle deeper than she’d estimated.

She stepped out of the car, pulling out her umbrella to look at the wheels and knew there was no way in Hell she’d be able to get the wheel out herself. Especially in the rain, the mud was too thick; even now her shoes were sinking in the ground.

No, instead she was stuck having to climb back in her car, soaked from the rain and see if she had service (she did not, because of course the storm was interfering with that).

It left her with two options. Option one was to stay in the car and wait for the storm to recede, when she could go and get help. Option two was to go out and get help now.

It was likely safer to keep with option one, far more practical, but it’d been a shit day. If she was honest, a masochistic part of herself was hoping that something else would go wrong so she could truly scream out at the world and just let out all the frustration and anger she was feeling.

Pulling her coat firmer around herself, she took out her umbrella.

The flats she wore were only markedly more practical for the weather than her heels, but not by much. Zelda climbed out of her car, clicked the doors locked (though if she was going to get robbed, may as well being in the middle of fucking nowhere) and then made her way eastward through the forest on the fire trail, knowing that it would lead to one road or another, where she could try and signal down a driver.

The forest was wet, and the foliage was slippery. More than once, she slid, catching on a nearby tree to stop herself from falling into the mud. But with all the shrubbery, it didn’t seem to matter. Her stockings were soaked and mud-splattered (ruined forever, and she’d barely worn them, so that annoyed her too), her dress clung to her, completely soaked even with the protection of the coat.

It was all too much. She could feel the tears pricking in her eyes, a sob making its way up her throat.

She knew she should turn back. Go back to the car and wait for the storm to clear—however long that would take––but didn’t. Instead, her stubbornness kept her walking through the forest until she saw a flicker of light.

Gold and red, perhaps headlights, or a home. If it was a house, she might be able to request some neighbourly help and hope to God that they were home and would let her use their phone. Otherwise, she was uncertain as to what she was going to do.

The house was a cottage, alone on the old highway. But the lights were on at least.

Zelda made her way up the wooden step, happy for cover from the rain as her back spasmed with shivers, freezing as she knocked on the door.

There was a pause inside, and Zelda knew it was likely someone not expecting any company. And then the door opened, and Zelda found herself face to face with the last person she expected to live in a cottage.

“Lilith?”

“What are you doing here?” Lilith asked at the same time.

Zelda shivered from the cold, feeling the wash of warmth come through from the house with the smell of a wood fire going. “I got bogged. I didn’t know you lived here. I just need to use your…your…” she shivered again, teeth chattering and suddenly the door was being opened wider and Lilith was ushering her inside.

“Bogged?”

“The road was sh-shut due to the r-river o-over f-flowing,” Zelda said, allowing herself to be tugged towards the fire. There, she stripped off her jack, water still dripping off her in a puddle around her feet––embarrassing if it weren’t for how dreadfully cold she felt.

She tucked her hair behind her ear, feeling it wetly stick to her face.

“Where did you get bogged?”

“F-forest road. I k-know the roads,” she said, kneeling before the fire.

“Not that well, it seems,” Lilith muttered as she took the jacket. Zelda didn’t see where it disappeared to, only that Lilith returned and began unzipping Zelda from her dress.

“I’m fine,” Zelda insisted. “I just n-need your telephone.”

“Well, the lines are down, and I don’t get service out here,” she admitted. “So you’ll have to wait, now stand up and let me undress you before I get cross.”

“Wouldn’t want that.”

“My crop is never too far away,” she warned.

Zelda turned and shot her a look, “I thought you wouldn’t do that anymore.”

“You don’t listen, do you?” Lilith sighed, unzipping the black dress and helping Zelda to get out of it.

“And what’s that supposed to mean?”

“You’re a clever girl, work it out,” the words were spoken sharply, and Zelda realised that the events still hurt the woman.

No, that wasn’t necessarily true. She was hurt by what Zelda had said.

Taking the dress, Lilith wrapped a towel over her and gave her a heavy look before she disappeared with the dress. Zelda huffed, turning back to the fire and feeling the shaking ease. Her muscles remained tight, a bone-chill holding onto her as she tried to inch closer and closer to the hearth to feel the warmth.

“I’ve run you a bath,” Lilith said, returning suddenly. “We can try the phone lines again after you warm up.”

“I don’t need a bath.”

“The fact that you’re still shaking tells me otherwise. Now it’s either this or I bend you over my knee and give you an enema to stop you from getting hypothermia,” Lilith said, her brows raised. “Is that what you want?”

Zelda rose to her feet, disgusted at the implication and allowing herself to be led down the hall, where she was shown to the bathroom. The bath was positively ancient-looking, and the water had been run halfway, deep enough for her to submerge herself into.

Zelda removed her slip and then with clumsy hands began to try and undress herself. Lilith worked faster, unclipping her garter belt and helping her to slide out of stockings before she undressed her.

It was terrible intimate, and twice Zelda slapped her hands away only for Lilith to arch a brow and step back, allowing her to fumble before she took over again.

Finally, Zelda was able to climb into the bath.

The heat scorched her body, but pushing past it, she submerged herself in the heat and felt it slip over her, watching as Lilith picked up her clothes and disappeared with a short, “Don’t get up to trouble.”

If Zelda was honest, this was traversing a fine line between fantasy-nightmare. Entering a beautiful woman’s house, cold and wet, then having her clothes disappearing to where she wouldn’t be able to have access to them. Whatever was a woman to do?

Sinking in the bath, she thought about the implications of it. Truthfully she doubted that Lilith had any bad intentions, no matter how snide her comments were. And yet a part of her couldn’t admit to hoping a little bit for wicked intentions.

She could hear the shuffling around, telling her that Lilith was up to something. Zelda felt the heart of the water soothe her aching muscles, the cold drifting from her bones at the very idea of what could occur. After all, she had stumbled across Lilith’s cottage, her sanctum, so to speak. Likely the woman wouldn’t be terribly pleased…

And yet, as lovely as the idea was, Zelda knew that realistically speaking what was likely to occur was Lilith having her clothes dried by the fire, as she tried the phone line again, unimpressed with the situation.

“Here,” Lilith said, entering the bathroom. “Your clothes were filthy––unfortunately your stockings were beyond saving, but I’ve put everything else in the wash so you’ll just have to wear this for the time being,” she said, setting down a nightgown with a dressing robe beside it and a new, fresh towel.

“Thank you,” Zelda said. “You don’t need––“

“To stop you from dying? Unfortunately, a duty of care is written into the law, and I could be charged with willful neglect,” she said. “Despite what you may wish.”

“I was hardly close to being pneumonic,” Zelda snapped. “It was a bit of rain, not a snowstorm.”

“You were half-drowned,” Lilith said, with an air of disregard, as if she couldn’t be bothered to argue. “Now out you get before you do drown.”

“I’m not an invalid.”

“Aren’t you?” Lilith said, her smile wicked. Though when Zelda stepped out of the bath, Lilith hands came out and patted her dry with the towel, brushing over her body in a way that Zelda felt the woman enjoyed doing too much if the wicked smile was anything to go by.

Then Lilith was stepping back, and Zelda was finally allowed to dress in the gown and dress, a warm flush dropping over her as Lilith hand her the towel to dry her hair.

The water was murky from the mud and dirt, and more than a few leaves floated in it as Lilith pulled the chain from the plug and set it aside to drain, leaving the bathroom in such a way that Zelda’s eyes followed her movement, familiar with the walk leading her up to her bedroom floor.

“Are you following?” Lilith sang down the hall, and Zelda hated how her heart skipped and an urgency to follow filled her.

Despite her frustration with her, the woman remained to hold a tight control, in a way that was utterly freeing at the best of times and entirely frustrating every other time.

Nonetheless, she followed down the hall, shutting the bathroom door behind her, its lights clicked off.

Lilith led her into the kitchen, where she’d already made a pot of tea, setting it down before her, not unlike their aftercare sessions. Zelda looked to the stove, where it was clear the woman had been halfway through cooking her tea when she’d interrupted her.

And on queue, her stomach gurgled. Zelda flushed, looking away, thankful for the tea.

“Sit down,” Lilith said, shooing her to the kitchen table. And then Zelda watched as she set out two dishes and opened the oven, pulling out a small casserole dish.

“I don’t need––“

“Don’t be impolite. I wasn’t joking about finding my crop, and if need be, I will pull out the wooden spoon if you continue to be rude,” she looked over her shoulder, giving a purposeful look. “Now sit there and wait for dinner to be served, like a good girl, and then we can check the phone lines.”

Zelda didn’t see why she couldn’t check them now, but she sat obediently at the table, her finger pushing at the fork with disinterest. She was embarrassed overall by the situation and further humiliated by the fact that she was just sitting here, waiting for this like it wasn’t her own fault for being here whilst Lilith treater her like a temperamental child.

It didn’t ease the urgency in her to apologise, and there was still a part of her that wanted to stomp off, back to the woods to find her car. She wouldn’t because that was stupid, but the feeling remained there.

Lilith took her plate and began serving the meal. “If I didn’t know how utterly stubborn you were, I would never believe such a story as you getting bogged on the fire trails. Most people would have turned back and waited until the storm passed,” Lilith said with a look.

“I’m not most people,” Zelda said, hating how the woman made her feel like a child under the scrutiny of a teacher. “The fire roads go directly to the Spellman house, and usually it’s fine. I’ve driven it through rain before.”

“But this time you were unlucky.”

“Yes, well, the hole was significant. I would argue it was man-made, but it could just as easily have been created by an animal, digging for something,” she said. “And then the rain just happened to be getting worse.”

“Yes, well, here you are. You’re lucky I live here. Not so long ago, no one lived here, and it was just an old, decrypted house.”

Zelda rose her eyebrows. “So you haven’t always lived in Greendale, then?”

“No. I moved about…oh, a year ago,” she said with a soft hum. There was a softness to her face. “But I was familiar with Greendale. I used to have a few regular clients from here and Riverdale that would pay me to come to visit them for a weekend.”

“Why?” Zelda asked.

Lilith looked at her, tilting her head, “and why not?” she asked.

Knowing she’d overstepped, Zelda felt like she should apologise, but as the woman’s expression stared at her as if waiting for her to argue, Zelda couldn’t hold back from her comment. “Why would someone need a whole weekend of sex and kink?”

“For many reasons that include the fact that it’s not just about sex and kink,” Lilith said, setting Zelda’s plate down before her as she took her own dish to her side of the table and sat down. “You should try it out for yourself and see.”

“Is that your sales pitch?”

“It is,” Lilith said, her eyes sparkling with humour. “Now, explain to me again what occurred. You were coming home from a day of work, saw that the main road was cut off and decided…to go through the fire roads, even though there was a storm?”

As if on cue, thunder roared outside with a flash of light.

“Yes,” Zelda agreed. There was little more to it than that.

“And…you had no idea I lived here?”

Ah, Zelda realised. “You think I drove through the forest road, and intentionally got bogged and decided to traverse through the storm to your cottage? That’s counting on a lot of things to occur at the right moment.”

“Your story is that you got bogged, for all I know, your car is parked a little way up the road.”

“For what purpose?” Zelda said. “Certainly you don’t think that I would be so insecure as to manufacture a moment.”

“I’m never certain about these things. Comes with the territory.”

Zelda quirked her head, studying the woman’s expression. If she had to make an educated guess about what the woman was inferring to, she’d say that there had been a time someone had come across her private residence under false pretences.

“I have better things to do with my life than chase after a woman,” Zelda advised shortly. Privately adding that she was not interested in anyone who had terminated their services because she had some moral compass to show off.

“And what does a woman like you do to occupy her time––outside of soliciting the services of a dominatrix?” Lilith enquired

Zelda smirked. “I work at the university, as you know.”

“Mm, there’s more to it than that.”

“Yes. I complete my own academic papers, but I’m behind on them at the moment.”

“What are your papers on?”

“Language. I had one on the context of language and how it shifts with religious texts, changing the meaning. But my most recent one is more-so about the development of language in cultures and how it shifts––mostly around youth culture, I suppose.” She sighed, thinking fondly upon all the academic books she’d lost when the technician had accidentally deleted all of her stuff due to a virus on her computer––though he said it was more common with university students and suggested raising it with the school.

“Sounds fascinating.”

“In a sense,” Zelda said. “Most people would advise it’s dry. And I suppose it is in their own ways. The students I have hope to become translators or work for the EU in some capacity. Few of them would ever think to follow an academic path, so what I find interesting, they very rarely agree.”

“What did you hope to be when you studied?”

Zelda hummed, realising what the woman was doing, and yet she couldn’t help herself from revealing the truths, “I had an aptitude for language and followed it for that sake alone. I wanted to travel, so I did, spending much of inheritance and earned money travelling the world and learning different dialects. Then I returned home and took up studying for a PhD.”

“Why, Greendale?”

“Because it’s home,” Zelda said, but that was a lie. “Because Sabrina couldn’t live in the city,” she admitted with more honestly. “She deserved a good school and being able to walk home without fear of something happening.”

Lilith nodded. “Understandable,” she said. “When I used to live in the city, I was mugged once. I don’t think I’ll ever forget what that felt like. Though looking back, I don’t think he even had a weapon, just the threat of one and that was enough.” She tilted her head, and her eyes narrowed as if she was scrutinising a thought.

“So why did you move to Greendale?”

“Change of scenery,” Lilith said, her smile tight as she set the fork down. Zelda nodded, dropping the question there. Whatever the reasoning, it was still raw and tight, enough that it fractured the woman’s mask.

They chatted politely over the rest of the meal, Lilith enquiring as to her work, and Zelda asking about the school. The topic remained not dissimilar to what you might have over a work conference with a stranger because it was polite to network rather than taking an absolute interest in what the person was saying.

And when dinner was finished, Zelda rose, taking their dishes to the sink, before beginning to wash up.

Lilith watched her with interest, making no polite comment that she didn’t need to. Although Zelda knew it was an expected social factor to wash dishes if the other person cooked, she couldn’t help but feel annoyed by the fact that Lilith didn’t argue.

It was like when the receipt was placed down for dinner, and the other person doesn’t make a move for it, knowing you’ll pay. It was polite to do the social dance.

“You can try the phone,” Lilith said. “It seems to be back up, but I would suspect that you’re likely to stay the night.”

“And why is that?” Zelda asked, aghast at the woman’s presumptuous way of speaking.

“Because the road remains washed out, and I highly doubt that you’re looking to get your sister bogged on the same fire road as you did.”

Zelda pressed her lips shut and looked away. It was a valid argument. Though she was sure someone she knew had an appropriate car, it was far too late now to ask for such a favour and…

…she wasn’t entirely displeased at the idea of staying the night. It would provide her with more opportunity to…

She stopped the thought there, reminding herself that Lilith had terminated those services, demanding she see a therapist first. Huffing, she stepped away from the sink, pulling out the plug and drying her hands before walking over the phone like that hung on the wall.

It was corded, which seemed all the more ridiculous as she lifted the receiver and heard the familiar sound of a dial tone. Clicking the numbers, she heard the phone ring before it was picked up.

“Spellman residence, this is Hilda.”

“Hilda, it’s Zelda,” she said. “I just wanted to let you know––“

“Oh Zelds, I was worried when I heard the road was flooded. I tried your office, but it rang out.”

“Yes, well, I’m safe, but I likely won’t be home until tomorrow. I just wanted to let you know that I was fine.”

“Wonderful news. Are you staying with the Blackwoods?”

Zelda paused, torn between lying to her sister for simplicities sake, or admitting the truth. “I’ll speak to you tomorrow, thank you, Hilda,” she said before hanging up the phone.

Lilith looked at her, brow’s raising but didn’t seem to argue either way. “Well,” Lilith said with a flutter of her eyes. “I suppose the question is…what did you want to do now?”

Zelda drew in a breath, feeling a low flutter in her belly. She knew what some part of her wanted, but there was no way she was going to admit that. Instead, she returned the question to Lilith, “And what are the options?”

“Hmm, I have some books, we could play a game. Otherwise, we could just adjourn to the living room.”

“And do what?”

Lilith smiled at her. There was demureness to it and were Zelda not so distrusting of the woman. She may have believed it to be genuine. Truthfully, the demure look only made her all the more suspicious. Nonetheless, Lilith led her to the fire and sat down on the lounge, reclining across in a way that had Zelda averting her gaze from her legs as she sat down in the armchair.

For the first time, she swept her eyes over the home. There was a strangeness to it in contrast to the other house. This house seemed smaller with the narrow rooms, though it was definitely twice as large given that it had more rooms. The furniture was old, and as Zelda’s eyes wandered over the mantle and strange collection of knick-knacks, she wondered how much of it belonged to Lilith.

Certainly, she wouldn’t have placed muted colours as a choice of the woman––especially with how modern and bright the other place had been.

“Is this your home?” she asked.

“As much as any other place I live in has been,” Lilith responded. “Why do you ask?”

“It doesn’t suit you.”

Lilith laughed. “No, I suppose it does not. I didn’t decorate it, but it suits me well enough,” she said with a tight smile.

“Did you decorate the other place?”

“Yes, and no,” she answered. “I chose the art and the bed, everything else just came with time.”

The answered puzzled Zelda. As she understood, Lilith had only been living in Greendale shortly. The wealth depicted in two homes cast a strong contract. Here, everything looked old, like it’d been owned for decades and whomever the owner was, had intentionally picked the pieces to match. In contrast, the other place had a more contemporary feel to it.

But Lilith’s answers were deliberately misleading, and Zelda knew that if she wanted to clarify, she would have done so already. Instead, she’d chosen to remain a mystery by design.

It left an awkward silence, one that provided Zelda with too much time to go over the other day, remembering Lilith’s words. Telling her that she wouldn’t engage in her alleged self-harm––and yet, she’d gone out of her way to flirt with her today, to the point that it left no mystery that should Zelda return it, the woman would happily engage in a service.

Right now, she was lying on the lounge in a way that was intended to look casual, but Zelda knew very well was posed, having done similar acts of seduction herself. While she appreciated it, it left her confused.

“What did you mean by earlier?” Zelda asked. “When you said that I don’t listen.”

“You don’t listen, what is there to interpret in that?”

“I listen quite well,” Zelda countered. “You’re just vague, which says more about you than it does me.”

“That may be true, but you don’t listen. You half listen and then extrapolate whatever answer you want from that––in this case, it seems to cast yourself as the victim.”

Zelda’s jaw clicked, a fit of furious anger rising inside of her. “And what in God’s name do you mean by that?”

Lilith smiled. “Why haven’t you booked another appointment with me?” Lilith asked.

Zelda blinked, taken aback by the comment, “You said I couldn’t.”

“I said no such thing. In fact, I offered to leave your last session as free given that we didn’t finish it, which was awfully kind on my end, despite how rudely you stormed off.”

“I was not rude, and you said that you wouldn’t complete the requested services anymore.”

“Don’t put words in my mouth. I said I wouldn’t engage in your self-harm; there’s a difference. We can still engage in BDSM. It just means that if I say it’s over, it’s over. You don’t get to push your limits without negotiating them with me first.”

Zelda’s chest tightened as she looked away. “I wasn’t trying to push my limits.”

“No, you were trying to punish yourself. I won’t engage in that, the only person who gets to punish you, is me. When you engage my services, you’re mine, do you understand?”

Zelda flushed, staring at the fire. The words your mine rolled through, echoing softly. She quite liked the way that sounded. “I don’t want to punish myself.”

Lilith sighed, sinking in the chair like she was terribly bored. “The therapist I gave you is good. I used her services myself.”

“And what did you need them for?” Zelda asked. “Were you punishing yourself?”

“Don’t do that,” Lilith said, looking her sharply in the eye. For a moment, all humoured had failed, and the woman was looking at her intently. “You’re better than that.”

Zelda shifted, biting back the seething comment. “And who made you the authority?”

“I did by being a dominatrix, and you placed yourself as the submissive.”

“I didn’t appreciate it.”

“No,” Lilith agreed and then she drew in a tight breath. “I will admit, I went about it the wrong way. When I went through…something similar, it was difficult to see that I needed help. You don’t need to see a therapist if you don’t want to, but I do ask that you consider it.”

“I have, and I’ve elected not to.”

Lilith nodded, her expression tight. “Then I won’t push again. But should you ever want a recommendation to a therapist, I will provide it to you.”

“Thank you.”

“And now just comes the matter of you storming off and being quite rude. Are you going to apologise for that, or should I find my cane?”

Zelda shivered and looked away to the fire again, not wanting the woman to see how intently she would enjoy such a thing. The idea of being bent over a surface and feeling the cane crack over her skin. It was enough to make her deeply aware of the lack of underwear underneath the gown.

“Unless that is something you want?” Lilith said, a low, soft laughing ringing from her lips as she sat up.

“No, I––” Zelda said, but her voice was swollen with arousal. All she could think about was Lilith’s hand running over the welts, telling her how good she was being.

Her face felt hot as she bit her lip.

Lilith was standing in front of her before Zelda was even aware of standing. And then, as Zelda looked up, into her eyes, she watched as Lilith bent before her, hands on either side of the armchair, so Zelda sat up straight and pressed back in the seat, watching as the woman’s eyes came to level with hers. “You don’t need to lie to me, if you want me to spank you, all you need to do is ask me nicely.”

Zelda swallowed, staring back, afraid that if she blinked, the woman would devour her.

She could smell her perfume––faded, but sweet coming from her skin as one hand lifted and seemed to curl under her chin, tilting it up. “Ask me nicely,” Lilith said. The words were softly spoken, but there was no mistaking the authority in the command.

“And what would ‘nicely’ look like?” she asked.

“You’re a clever girl, I’m sure you’ll work it out,” Lilith grinned, and it only fed into the situation as Zelda found herself growing bold.

If Lilith wanted to play, she could play. She’d had enough of being seduced––Lilith may have experience of ruling her authority over others, but Zelda had never had a complaint with her own techniques.

“Do I just say, ‘please, Principle Wardwell, won’t you bend me over your knee’?” she asked, grinning as she watched the woman’s smirked falter, her pupils dilating. Zelda leant closer and felt Lilith’s fingers slide down her throat. “Or should I just get on my knees and beg?”

Lilith’s eyes darkened, and she gave a wolfish grin. “I like the idea of you begging.”

“You’re going to need to try harder to get me to beg for you. I’m sure a clever girl like you can work it out.”

“Disrespectful,” Lilith said, her hand coming to slip around Zelda’s throat, holding it steady but not painfully. “You can try to wind me up all you want, but you still need to ask me nicely.”

Zelda drew in a deep breath, knowing she was already under the woman’s skin. “Please, Principal Wardwell,” she purred, and Lilith smirked at her, her fingers tightening as she leant forward and kissed her. Zelda’s eyes fluttered shut, her mouth soft and pliant as she felt the woman climb on top of her, one leg on either side, effectively pinning in her place as she used both hands to cup her face, kissing her softly, and then hard, her teeth coming out to catch against Zelda’s bottom lip before she sucked on it until Zelda moaned.

And then Lilith was kissing down her throat, and Zelda didn’t know how this was going to end up with her getting spanked, but she could feel the flickering warmth in her belly as lips kissed over her neck, each one soft and tender until the woman’s teeth sunk against her shoulder.

Zelda’s nails dug in the woman’s thighs as she rocked forward,

Lilith laughed as she pulled away, giving the spot a lick before she stared into Zelda’s eyes, flicking between them as if she was trying to read her thoughts.

“I’m going to punish you in a way that you’re not going to like,” she said. “It won’t be what you want.”

“And, pray tell, what do you think I want?”

“I think you want me to pull you over my knee and spank you until you’re absolutely soaked, and then you want me to fuck you while you squirm in my lap and listen to me tell you what a good girl you were for taking such a punishment.”

Zelda shifted at the words, feeling the flush brush over her. She swallowed the words, afraid that if she tried to deny it, she’d only make a fool out of herself.

“Don’t worry, I’m still going to spank you, but you were very disrespectful for me in my own home, and naughty girls get punished before they get treats,” she stepped away then and then Lilith was taking Zelda’s hand and tugging her out of the armchair, up the steps to the second floor and into Lilith’s bedroom.

Her real bedroom, that had a simple bed, with simple covers and a thick, fur throw strewn over it to keep the heat in.

Lilith shut the bedroom door behind her and then grinned at Zelda. “What’s your safe word?” she asked.

“Music box.”

Lilith smiled, her fingers running over the satin collar of the dressing gown Zelda wore as she pushed it off her shoulders. “I’m going to make you beg, Zelda Spellman. You came into my territory, in my home. You’re mine.”

“Am I, now?” Zelda asked, feeling her heart flutter.

Lilith’s smile only widened as her fingers played with the straps of the nightgown, pushing them off Zelda’s shoulders too, so the dress fell, catching over her hips before Zelda tugged them down, standing obediently before her.

Lilith leant forward and kissed her again, and Zelda pressed into her, her fingers settling on Lilith’s hips. She didn’t understand how the woman could threaten her and make her feel safe at the same time as if she was in complete control and giving it all up at the same time, but Zelda softened against her, mouth parting to slip her tongue over Lilith’s.

She was eager and nervous, uncertain about what was to follow.

And then Lilith was pulling away and tucking hair behind her ear before she whispered. “On the bed, in the centre for me, please.” And then she stepped back and watched her, teeth biting her bottom lip as she nodded for Zelda to get into position.

Zelda climbed onto the bed, sitting in the centre.

“Oh no, on all fours, facing the head of the bed.”

Zelda drew in a breath, her heart beating faster. It would leave her exposed. Very exposed. But Lilith just waited where she stood, eyebrows raised as she waited for her to either obey or disagree.

Those were her two options. She could do what was asked of her, or she could refuse, demand something she wanted.

She didn’t want anything else.

Zelda obeyed, rolling onto her hands and knees, back straight as she stared at the head of the bed.

“That’s my girl,” Lilith said, and then Zelda could hear her walking around the bedroom, liking admiring her position. “Scooch back a bit,” Lilith said. “I’ll tell you when to stop.”

Zelda bit her lip, manoeuvring herself backwards. There was no graceful way to do it, and she suspected that that had been Lilith’s plan, to humiliate her just a bit as she was crawling backwards on the bed.

“Stop.”

Zelda paused and then looked over her shoulder, feeling the heat rush across her face, down her body despite how the cool air felt against her naked body (especially to where her sex remained exposed).

“Eyes ahead. Good girl,” Lilith said, and Zelda felt her hand slip down, over her back, across her backside. “Now, stay right there, don’t move,” she said.

Zelda shivered as she felt the hand lift away, listening as Lilith walked around the room, opening up a drawer and pulling something that sounded reasonably heavy out from it. And then, Zelda felt Lilith touch over her ankle, a cuff wrapping around it but Zelda felt what was like a bar press over her other leg, and then Lilith was moving her other ankle, adjusting it, so her thighs were quite wide apart.

“A spreader?” she asked.

“Oh yes,” Lilith confirmed, buckling her other ankle into a cuff. “It leaves you so beautifully exposed before me.” And then when all was done and buckled, Lilith’s hands were dropping over her waist, sliding down her backside and thighs as she ran her nails bluntly over the skin.

Zelda shivered, but try as she might, the bar kept her legs spread and she was unable to press her thighs together.

She was just open. The woman could do and see as she pleased.

Zelda drew in a deep breath, calming her beating heart as Lilith hand’s continued to run over her, petting her softly. It was both patronising and yet calming at the same time, and Zelda wished that she could find it annoying.

“Now, I would say…five for each infraction, does that sound fair?”

“Yes.”

“Yes…?” Lilith prompted.

“Yes, Principle Wardwell.”

Lilith laughed before Zelda heard her draw in a deep breath. “I don’t think I’ll ever tyre of hearing you say that.”

And then Zelda felt her hands running over her again, pressing across her lower back and drawing her nails down the muscles. “Five lashes for each infraction, I’ve counted your rudeness three times.”

“Three?”

“Mmhmm. Three times I threatened to spank you, so here you are. Fifteen lashes that we’ll do in lots of five.” And then she was quiet again, and Zelda was taking a deep breath, waiting for the first strike to hit.

It came sudden and firm against the left cheek, and Zelda squeaked, surprised by it but otherwise fine. The second was as firm on the other side. She bit back her sound, digging her hands in the fur throw and waited. Another strike came, low and managing to hit both of her upper thighs, stinging it enough that Zelda gasped.

Three strikes.

Was she meant to be counting them? She couldn’t remember.

Another strike came, and Zelda felt it rock over her. Her ass was warmed already by the strikes, a heat pulsating across it that paused as she felt the cane gently kiss against her. Holding her breath, she wondered briefly if that was meant to be number five.

And then she saw the shadow flicker, giving her enough time to brace as the strike hit her hard and true on her upper thigh, stinging across it.

She squeezed her eyes shut, taking in a deep breath as she breathed through the pain, feeling it pulsate over her.

“You did well,” Lilith advised, her fingers coolly pressing over the marks, running across the welted lines.

Zelda squirmed at the touch, feeling her own wetness grow slick––it was somehow all the more embarrassing to know how on show she was, how easily Lilith could see how wet she was getting it.

Zelda ducked her head, staring at the fur throw and drew in a tight breath. As humiliating as it felt, she still squirmed at the sensation, wanting to feel Lilith’s fingers continue to draw over, mixing plain with pleasure.

“Ready for the second lot?”

Zelda nodded, and then squeaked too late as she felt Lilith pinch a welt in warning, “Yes, Principle Wardwell.”

“Good, you’re learning.” Lilith stepped back and drew over her thighs. “Let’s see, shall we. I could be very, very cruel but I don’t think I will. I think I’ll be nice.”

Zelda whined.

“I know what you want, but this isn’t about that,” Lilith said, her hand running over her back, stroking across the curve of her skin. And then the next strike came, and Zelda’s eyes squeezed shut as it cracked over her ass, hitting the very edges of her vulva with deliberate intention. It stung enough that she felt tears prick into her eyes, but Zelda’s fingers curled into the throw, breathing out hard as she pressed against the spreader between her calves.

She couldn’t lie. It hurt, but it hurt good. Like she could feel the impact and the pain rolling over her, but also the endorphins flooding through her bloodstream.

“Would you look at that,” Lilith teased and then her fingers were sliding over the outer labia, and Zelda was whimpering at the light touch, feeling the woman spread her wider. “My, my, you do enjoy a good spanking, don’t you?”

“Yes, Principal Wardwell.”

“Mm, perhaps I should get creative, think of other ways to punish you for rude behaviour. Maybe make you––“ she was cut off as a ding sounded, far below in the home. “Excellent, the washing machine’s done. Do be a dear and stay where you are. I’ll be quite cross if I’ve seen you’ve moved.”

“Yes, Principal Wardwell.”

Zelda held her position, waiting, and then feel the faintest touch on her back, before she felt Lilith’s fingers comb through her hair, moving it in place. And then she was gone, feet padding out of the room.

Zelda could hear the stairs creak with the weight on them, before that too faded, leaving the house quiet.

There was the sound of a door opening, and then there was silence, and Zelda waited and waited and waited. Feeling seconds tick as the heat and sting on her skin turned cold and then faded to a dull ache. There was only quiet and her thoughts.

And all she could think about was that if anyone walked in except Lilith, she would be terribly on show. Every part of her naked and exposed for view. Realistically, she was safe. It was unlikely that someone else would make their way to the house, be invited inside and then make their way up the stairs to Lilith’s bedroom.

And yet, despite the knowledge of this, Zelda couldn’t help but feel the prick of anticipation. It wasn’t entirely impossible, just improbably. It could happen. Someone could come across the lone house and visit her.

A stair creaked, and Zelda felt the anticipation break across her skin. She was almost helpless.

What would happen if someone were to––

“Look at that,” Lilith said, and Zelda prided herself in the fact that she didn’t jump, despite her surprise. “You remained perfectly in position. Aren’t you just an obediently little woman?” Zelda could hear her steps down, listening as they stepped over her to behind her, taking the cane from the bed.

“Are my clothes––“

The cane struck low, on the side of her thigh and Zelda gasped, surprised by it. “Subordinates are quiet unless spoken to,” Lilith reminded her. “Now, where were we?”

It was a rhetorical question, and Zelda refrained from allowing a response to be pulled from her as she felt the woman walk around the bed, seeming to take her form in. “I think two more lashes should do it.”

Zelda’s brow pinched. She was certain that there was at least eight outstanding.

But Lilith’s fingers touched over the welts and Zelda hissed at the touch. Two spots were more painful than the others, and Zelda felt Lilith’s fingers glide over it, rubbing the nerves raw. It twisted painfully inside of her, and although there was certainly enjoyment to be found, for the most part, she felt the pain act like pins against her emotions, pricking her pain until she felt like she was going to cry.

“You’ve done well,” Lilith said. “I’m reducing them because your skin's a little more delicate than I anticipated. But I’m proud of you, so don’t think that’s it’s for any other reason.” And then the weight shifted, and Zelda felt her head bow. The strike came, hard and firm, pressing over one of the smaller welt and Zelda moaned, feeling it spark up her spine. Tears were pricking in her eyes now.

And she wasn’t sure if it was from the strike or the words I’m proud of you that were running through her head. It was absurd to get so worked up over the phrase. Absurd to feel them prick sharply into her, harder than any strike. Anything at all.

Proud of you.

God have mercy; she ached.

The last strike came, and like a crumbling damn, Zelda’s body bent over. She wasn’t going to cry; she was determined not to cry.

And yet Lilith’s fingers were fast, and the spreader was unbuckled and removed, and then the woman was on the bed, and Zelda was pulled into her lap. And Zelda hated it, hated how the woman’s fingers drew over her hair, how she hushed her and ran hands over her body and whispered how good she’d been.

Because it hurt, it hurt more than it should, and Zelda wanted it again. She wanted Lilith to whisper into her ear and press kisses to her shoulder, and tell her that she’d done really well, even if it wasn’t true. She wanted it so badly.

She closed her eyes and felt the combing stop, but Lilith’s hands remained on her, one settled on her head, the other curled around her body, pressing against her chest, steadying her.

And then when the pain was over, Zelda drew a breath and rose, feeling the embarrassment wash over her again, just as it had in their first session.

She licked her lips, trying to think of a dry comment to make or something to say to soften what had occurred but Lilith only looked into her eyes, and all the words died in her mouth.

“I’m going to insist this time that I put cream on it since you’ll be staying the night.”

Zelda made a noise of disagreement but shifted away, winching as she pressed against a welt. “Fine,” she agreed. “Only because I won’t have access to my own.”

Lilith gave her a look and then shifted off from the bed, going over to her dresser when she shuffled through the drawers, before pulling out a container of cream.

She returned to the bed, and tugged at a pillow, pulling it down next to Zelda, “Lie down, and I’ll place it on,” she said, sitting on the edge of the bed. Zelda obeyed, rolling onto the stomach and resting her arms over the pillow, placing her head on it in a way she was comfortable.

And then she settled, feeling the fur of the throw press against her as the cream was unrolled and the woman’s fingers were dipping in it. “Do you do this for your clients, too?”

“I do,” Lilith answered. “Some, like you, are stubborn, which makes it harder to provide adequate care. But I usually find a way.”

Zelda hissed as the cream touched over a welt before she softened again. The woman’s touch was firm, rubbing it into the skin, and she felt her stomach twist at the intimacy of the situation. It came at no surprise to herself that sex and kink were easier than allowing someone to rub cream into the welts.

“None of them have broken,” Lilith said, as her fingers drew down her thighs, both hands rubbing over her left, the thumb firmly rubbing it in––and yet despite how intimate it was, it didn’t feel like foreplay. It felt like what it was, aftercare. As if Zelda was an invalid needing cream for bedsores. “They won’t scar, but they’ll sting for a few days.”

“Wonderful,” Zelda responded dryly.

“Oh, yes,” Lilith said. “One of my favourite things is knowing that even after you leave, you’re going to think of me,” she said, drawing the cream on the other side now. “When you get in your car, when you sit in your office when you’re at the dining table, you’re going to feel it press, and you’re going to think of me.”

“They won’t be happy thoughts.”

“They will be,” Lilith said. “You’re a masochist, Zelda. Try as much as you like. You do like this.”

She felt a bite rise in her. “And yet you said that it was self-harm.”

“Mm, there’s a difference,” Zelda felt Lilith's fingers draw away, and despite how much easier it was to relax when they weren’t there, she missed the touch, the feeling of her drawing over the skin. “What you wanted the other week was complete destruction. You were pushing yourself, refusing to stop. This was different.”

“I didn’t cry last time.”

“Crying isn’t always a sign of pushed limits,” Lilith said. “I think you know the difference between today and the other day and are trying to be deliberately obtuse, so you get what you want.”

Pushing up, Zelda felt a flare of frustration rise at the woman’s words. “Which is what?” she asked, her jaw clenching as she anticipated the woman’s indifference to her fight.

But Lilith only smirked at her. “you know what, Zelda. I’ll play with you on negotiated terms, but I’m not your partner. I can’t be the emotional support you need.”

“I’m not asking you to,” Zelda huffed, pushing up onto her hands and knees before she paused, wincing as she felt the pain sting over her. The welts hurt differently than before. This was a dull ache that throbbed, rather than the sharp sting.

But she pressed on, moving to push off the bed. Not that there was far she could go. She was stuck in the woman’s house until the storm ended––or, more realistically, until tomorrow. A part of her wanted to seduce the other woman, dominate her in a different way that she’d been until Lilith was left wet and wanton against her mouth, but she had a sneaking suspicion that sex was off the table for the moment.

Taking the nightgown from the floor, she placed it on, before pulling on the dressing gown and drew her hair over her shoulder.

Lilith remained sitting on the edge of the bed, watching her with mild interest as if she wasn’t sure what might occur next.

“What time is it?”

“Relatively early,” Lilith said, “though I have some administration work to do. Did you want a cup of tea?”

“Please,” Zelda agreed.

_________________

#lilith #zelda spellman #zelith #madam spellman #caos fanfic

[welllpthisishappening]

Mom’s Trip

The trade deadline is stressing me out. That’s it. That’s the reason for this. i have no idea how long it is or why it is or, really, what it is except using Rangers-provided content as fic inspiration. Special shoutout to @shireness-says​ and @eleveneitherway​ for both being like, “yes, make it Regina” when I was talking about this. Also, guys, please acknowledge that I turned the six on Mrs. Skjei’s jersey to a zero. 

Or: Ryan Strome’s mom told Artemi Panarin to get her kid the puck and my brain was like THAT’S A BLUE LINE THING. And then Mika’s mom wanted to hug her kid and my brain was like, SERIOUSLY, BLUE LINE. 

----

“Dad! Dad! Mom! Ma—c’mon are you actually here and just ignoring me?”

Emma glanced up from the computer in front of her, a paper-covered desk and plans for an event she was only marginally interested in. She heard the footsteps coming down the hall — more like a brisk jog, really, and that couldn’t have been good for his right thigh.

He’d blocked a shot the night before.

“Hey,” Matt said, almost out of breath when he skidded to a stop in the open doorway to Emma’s office. “Did you not hear me?”

“People across the entire island of Manhattan heard you.”

“Oh, wow. Scathing from the get, huh?”

“How’s your leg?”

Matt shrugged, a quiet noise in the back of his throat that only made Emma’s eyebrows pinch. “Ah, don’t do that, it’s—I’m fine…I mean, we won, right?”

“Sometimes it genuinely concerns me how much you are like your father.”

“Scathing to insulting in four seconds flat.”

“Were you not yelling for him too?” Emma asked, and she was ninety-six percent positive Matt hadn’t knocked. Not like he had to. In this house. The one he grew up in. With enough empty rooms now that Emma could have an office.

Matt let his head loll to the side — a far too knowing expression that Emma did not appreciate at all. She was the mom. She was the adult.

She was—

Her computer dinged.

“Whatcha watching?”

“What did you say?” Emma countered. “Don’t do that? Don’t do that.”

“We’re going in circles here,” Matt muttered, crossing his feet at the ankles. Like he was trying to hit a BINGO card of all the things that made Emma feel vaguely maternal-type emotions. Her computer wouldn’t stop playing the video.

Or she wouldn’t stop playing the video.

Whatever, semantics.

“How many times have you watched it?” Matt pressed. He took a step into the room, arms crossed now and one eyebrow arched impossibly high. “Just—you know, like ballpark it for me.”

“What are you doing here, Mattie?”

“That’s not an answer. Also, this is my house.”

“You do not live here, Matthew David.”

He stopped walking. And the other eyebrow joined the first. Maybe Emma would just slide out of her chair and lay on the floor.

That would hurt her back, probably.

Getting old was stupid.

Being jealous of Regina was stupid.

“Ballpark,” Matt repeated.

“No.”

“What?”

“No,” Emma said again, slower that time like it would make her sound more responsible. Or, at least less insane. She felt a little insane.

She’d watched the video so many times already.

Elsa had sent her ten text messages about it.

Ruby had written a small novel.

Mostly exclamation points.

Matt’s lips twitched, rocking back on his heels with wide eyes and genetically enhanced eyebrows. He didn’t get anything from her eyebrows.

“Yuh huh,” he drawled. “I’m going to guess somewhere in the twenty range, but that’s only because I can still hear it on auto-play and—“

“—The Flyers website is not as good as ours,” Emma interrupted. “It just keeps looping. So my viewing numbers are probably all skewed.”

“You know you can hit pause, right?”

“In theory.”

Matt laughed, crossing the rest of the space and perching on the edge of Emma’s desk. The video started again.

And, really, most of her reaction to the stupid thing was based almost entirely on surprise.

Because it wasn’t the first time Regina had gone on the mom’s trip with the Flyers.

Emma had gone with the Rangers — decked in head to toe blue and Matt’s jersey and Regina didn’t look great in orange, but no one really looked great in orange.

It was a thing.

A hockey tradition, even.

Except now the tradition included viral videos, apparently, pinned to the top of every Philadelphia Flyers social media page — Regina standing in the middle of the visitor’s locker room in Columbus with Mills-Locksley emblazoned across her back and the Flyers lineup in her hand.

She called out every name, all enthusiasm and a smile on her face as soon as she glanced Roland’s direction.

And when she turned towards the Flyers’ starting center.

Demanding he get Roland the puck.

Emma’s eyes flickered back towards her computer. The best part of the whole video might have been Roland’s noticeably pink cheeks.

Or, the way his head dropped to his gloves.

That was Ariel’s favorite part.

So half a dozen text messages Emma hadn’t answered yet proclaimed.

“I didn’t know Gina had it in her, honestly, Matt said. “The sweet is—“

“—Oh, I’m going to tell her you said that.”

“Please don’t. I need my endorsements.”

Emma wasn’t sure what noise she made at that, but she resolutely refused to take responsibility for it, reaching out to rest a hand on her kid’s leg. He grinned.

“You might have some competition for those endorsements,” Emma said. “I bet in between scoring demands and—“

“—Rol did score. The group chat was very quick to point that out while he was whining about getting interviewed because of his mom.”

“What a rough life you children lead.”

“It does get a little aggressive, though,” Matt continued, “Get him the puck! Get him the puck! She’s got a lot of thoughts about Rol’s scoring potential, don’t you think?”

“Eh. She’s got reason to be confident. Legacy and all that.”

“You honestly think she’s working endorsement deals for Flyers guys?” Matt asked. “Isn’t that a conflict of interest?”

“Any moment without trying to make connections is a moment wasted as far as Regina Mills-Locklsey is concerned.”

“Oh, I’m going to tell her you said that! Then she won’t have time to be annoyed by all the gifs I keep sending Rol.”

Emma clicked her tongue. “Stop teasing him.”

“I’m not teasing, I’m mercilessly making fun. Get him the puck! Get him the puck!”

“Got to shoot to score.”

“Top-tier cliche.”

“Mmhm. That’s definitely my MO.”

Matt’s eyes narrowed, mouth twisting slightly when his hand landed on Emma’s. “Why do you keep watching it?”

“Rubes has watched it more than me.”

“That’s because she wants to analyze the hits and the long-term reach of one thirty second video clip. Is Dad even home right now?”

“No,” Emma shook her head. “Did he tell you to come here?”

“Yuh huh. Why would you think that is? Exactly.”

She couldn’t keep clicking her tongue. She was going to sprain it.

Matt practically beamed.

“Maybe I’ll challenge him to a shoot-off or something,” he mumbled. “Interfering like this. Got to put the old man back in his place.”

“You’re really throwing out insults, aren’t you?”

“He planned this.”

“What did he tell you to get you here?”

“That he had film I needed to watch. Which is just—I’m sure he’s very pleased with his lie and ploy and—“

“—Good word,” Emma grumbled.

“I also think it’s nice you think it’s nice that Gina demanded one of Rol’s teammate set him up. And, I uh—“ Matt shrugged, a lopsided grin tugging at the end of his mouth. “You don’t need to go all retweet to get me to come over here, you know. Or tell me shoot. On the mom’s trip or otherwise.”

“Good to know. And your dad and I are going to talk about not-so-subtle plans later. Taking advantage of my mom-type feelings and—“

There were more footsteps.

Emma rolled her eyes, Matt’s laugh bouncing off the walls of her office and making it difficult to hear Regina’s voice coming out of the shitty computer speakers.

Killian tossed his feet at the ankles when he leaned against the open doorway.

“Hey, Matt,” he said. “What are you doing here?”

Matt groaned. “You’re not funny.”

“No other people on the ice during our shootout?”

“Do you not remember how shootouts work?”

“Grounded,” Emma said at the same time Killian did. Matt’s head fell to his shoulder.

“I was already reminded I don’t live here,” he argued. “And Dad should probably get in trouble before me, anyway. Lack of tact or a good plan or—“

“—I told you I had video you needed to watch,” Killian interrupted. “Where was the lie in that?”

“You think you’re very smart, don’t you?”

“Let your mom read the lineup on the next trip.”

“Is that my call?”

“Make it your call.”

“Please don’t mention that to Ruby,” Emma grumbled. “It will consume her every thought if she even starts thinking about the impressions.”

“Good word,” Matt echoed.

She flicked his side.

His eyebrows jumped.

And Killian looked very proud of himself.

“Something to think about, at least,” he said, across the office in a few, quicks steps and Emma tilted her head up on instinct so he could press his lips to hers.

Matt sighed. “Awesome, awesome, awesome. Is there food here?”

“You and your brother have got to learn how to feed yourself,” Emma muttered, but she was already standing up and Matt was already jogging back down the hallway and there was far too much food in the kitchen.

And she never did get around to telling Killian where he could stick his plans or his interference, clicking off the Flyers’ website eventually because there was a trip to get ready for three weeks later.

They didn’t reach viral status — a fact Ruby would probably never let Emma live down — because she didn’t actually read the starters, but she did—

“Matt,” another mom grinned after finishing the lineup. “Your mom wants to give you a hug.”

He laughed.

The locker room laughed.

Emma…kind of ran.

The arms that wrapped around her were a little tighter than she expected, but that only made the space around her heart clench a little bit, her chin hooking over Matt’s shoulder pads when he kissed her on the cheek.

“Try and score, huh?” she asked.

“I’ll see what I can do.”

He did. Twice.

Which Emma made sure to mention in the slightly more adult, if even less mature group chat. Several times. Possibly a dozen times.

That night.

#cs ff #captain swan #captain swan ff #cs fic #blue line one shots #KILLIAN JONES HAS GOT PLANS #this mom's trip was just...a mess of emotions for me #guys i am seriously not coping well with this trade deadline AT ALL

[pkg4mumtown]

You’re Hard to Miss

Summary: I frequent this bar to let loose and today is no different, except for a new but handsome face I don't recognize.

Warning: Female reader

A/N: So, I've been working up the nerve to start posting this for about a week and here it is. I haven't posted a fic anywhere since 2010 and while I've written a ton in those years, this'll be my first on AO3 and Tumblr, so have mercy on me. The second chapter is already in the works and will contain steamy things, so the Mature rating is for safety. Enjoy.

Chapter 1: Through a Crowded Room, Look at Me Like You Know Me

The bass of the music rumbled in my chest as I got closer to the club entrance. I frequented this place after a stressful work week, more often than not going by myself. It was in a more upscale part of town, so the crowd tended to be pretty manageable and not consist of too many people looking to blackout every night. I adjusted my red dress and jacket as I approached the door, flashing a smile at one of the bouncers.

“Hey, Frankie,” I greeted him.

“Have a good night, Y/N,” he replied, holding a hand up and high-fiving me.

I had been coming here for so long that I knew quite a few employees by name, one of them actually being my roommate. I cut through the crowd, heading straight for the bar so I could loosen up before I lost myself on the dance floor. I squeezed into a tight space between two men, one standing and one sitting. I felt the man standing on my left shift, so he was facing me. I caught him staring at me as I waited for my bartending roommate to finish his current task.

“Hey, sexy, the name's Bryce and if you’re lucky, you’ll be screaming it a lot tonight,” he proposed like the biggest douchebag ever.

“No thanks, dude,” I frowned and shifted uncomfortably as I glanced at the gaudily dressed man, a large gold watch and perfect, white teeth gleaming at me. I pulled my leather jacket tighter around me, taking a small side step away from him.

The man on my right was unfazed as my leg accidentally brushed his, even going so far as to scoot his stool over to give me more room. I glanced at him, offering a small smile as I noticed his small act of kindness, which he returned with a slight raise of his glass. He was the polar opposite of the other man, dressed in a black suit with a navy button down. His medium-length, raven hair was slicked back, and his beard was neatly trimmed. They were like night and day, and so far I was favoring the night.

“How’s my favorite customer? The usual?” a comforting English accent spoke up. I looked forward, tearing my eyes away from the man on my right, and seeing the kind face of my roommate.

“Please, Marc. You’re a godsend,” I smiled, leaning forward and resting my forearms on the bar.

He set a clean glass in front of me, grabbing a bottle and pouring it in front of me. He slid the glass closer to me, accepting my credit card. He held it in between two fingers, “Tab?”

I nodded, sipping the drink, “When are you off?”

“I close tonight, darling,” he answered, scrunching his nose at the thought. He took notice of Bryce creeping on my left. Marc looked at me and raised his eyebrows, tugging at his pierced earlobe in thought. He flashed Bryce a dirty look, staying put until the guy gave up and left the bar. “Can I get you another, John?” Marc asked, addressing the embodiment of mystery on my right.

“I’m good for now, thanks,” the low, gruff voice answered. Marc nodded, his attention being beckoned on the other side of the bar. He gave me one last smile, patting the bar top, and walking away.

“Didn’t know Marc had a girlfriend,” the man, John, spoke up and took a sip of his own drink.

I laughed out loud, probably harder than I intended. “I’m not—he—he swings the other way. We’re just roommates,” I laughed, choking on my words slightly.

“Ah, my apologies,” he chuckled, blushing slightly at the mistake.

“No, no I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to embarrass you, he’s just one hundred percent into men,” I clarified sheepishly, feeling bad for laughing. “Are you new? I’ve never seen you here before,” I asked, clearing my throat.

“No, not new. I prefer the less crowded areas, but it’s quite busy today,” he observed, glancing around at the packed club. He turned back toward me, his eyes about level with mine despite him sitting down.

“That makes sense,” I nodded.

“What does?” he tilted his head at me.

“You probably stick to the tables in the corners, so I’ve never seen you, but you’re comfortable enough to ask about Marc's relationship status which means you’ve been coming here a while. I just never noticed,” I shrugged, downing the last of my drink.

“I noticed you,” he commented, staring forward at the rows of bottles.

“Oh, really?” I smirked, chewing on my lip. I glanced at Marc, who gave me an encouraging nod and mouthing he's hot.

“You’re hard to miss,” he nodded, looking back at me.

“Well, if you’re curious enough, you could always come dance with me,” I offered, stepping closer to him.

He looked like he was fighting himself on keeping his hands fixed, one on the bar top and one on his thigh. “I, uh, I don’t dance,” he replied, taking a sip of his drink and clearing his throat.

“That’s too bad,” I smirked, holding his gaze before backing up and blending into the crowded dance floor.

I watched him follow me with his eyes for a bit before losing myself in the music. I wasn’t sure how long I danced before I felt a pair of hands land on my hips and a presence behind me. The hands guided me closer to the body they belonged to, settling me into a rhythm with their own hips. I had no idea who it was, but so long as their hands didn’t venture any further, there wouldn’t be any issues. I secretly hoped it would be John, but from my position on the dance floor I couldn’t see the bar through the crowd. It wasn’t until a voice spoke in my ear, that I knew it definitely wasn’t John.

“How about we get outta here?” the voice asked, sending chills down my spine and not in a good way either.

I swallowed, looking down and seeing the same gaudy watch from earlier. While creeped out, I was annoyed that the guy couldn’t take a hint and made my annoyance known. “How about I just got here and I don’t feel like leaving, so no?”

Bryce's hands gripped my hips tighter, “How about it wasn’t a question?” his voice seethed.

I cursed in my head as the man shoved me forward through the crowd, three other men materializing around him. They looked around, not too subtly, as they shoved me out of the crowd and to a back exit. I tried to turn and catch Marc's attention, but he was facing away from us. I felt something rigid press against my back and a faint clicking noise, causing me to tense.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” the voice murmured in my ear.

I gulped, hoping someone would take notice but everyone was in their own little world. I doubted John even knew I was gone, not that he had any reason to care.

-

“She take off? Marc asked as he passed by John. He looked out into the crowded dance floor, searching with squinted eyes.

“Yea, to dance,” John answered, also trying to peer through the crowd as Marc's presence had briefly torn his eyes away from my dancing form.

“I don’t see her,” Marc murmured, wiping his hands on a towel and tossing it over his shoulder.

Movement caught the corner of John's eye, his head turning sharply as he saw a group of men piling through the back door with a flash of red material as the door closed.

“Shit,” John murmured, standing quickly and stalking toward the back door. He ignored Marc’s shouts of his name as he took off.

-

The cold air hit me in the face as I was ushered into the back alley of the club and pressed into the brick. I hissed as I was not so gently shoved against the wall, with Bryce's hands clamping down on my neck.

“Here, take it. Take whatever you want,” I gulped, shoving my purse into his chest.

“Oh, I will, but it has nothing to do with anything in there,” he grinned, glancing at my purse. One of his hands turned my head away from him and I screwed my eyes shut, his mouth inches from my cheek. I pressed against the wall as if I was trying to phase through it, trying to get away from him.

“Let her go,” a familiarly gruff voice sounded in the darkness.

My eyes flew open at the voice, seeing John with a pistol pointed at us. Bryce's three stooges drew their guns, pointing them at John. John’s eyes darkened, and his features steeled, a silent rage making itself known. The three men advanced on John as Bryce turned his attention back to me. There was no way John could outgun three men at the same time, right? Against my better judgement, I decided to cause a distraction. I grimaced slightly as the breath of this creep entered my nose but allowed him to come closer anyway. Before his mouth could make contact with my skin, I drove my knee up into his groin. He doubled over in pain and cried out, head-butting me on purpose as he did. My head cracked against the wall, making me see stars as I felt blood drip down my nose. I caught the attention of his henchmen as they turned to see what had happened, so I kept the attention and punched him as hard as I could in the jaw. He stumbled back, just as three gunshots rang out. I jumped in my skin, squeezing my eyes shut, and freezing as I heard bodies hit the ground. I hesitantly opened my eyes and looked down, seeing the three men on the floor, each with a bullet hole in the head. John’s footsteps approached, causing me to snap my head up and watch as he strode past me. He grabbed Bryce by the neck, dropping him to the ground swiftly and laying down punch after punch onto his face. I watched as a knife in John's hand caught light and glinted in the dark alley. I tore my eyes away as his arm came down and the knife was swiftly plunged into the creep’s neck. While I turned my eyes away, I heard Bryce choking on his blood and gurgling. John calmly wiped the blade on the Bryce's suit before retracting it and sliding it back into his pocket. John pulled his phone out, the faint choking of the other man still present. He spoke briefly on the phone before pulling out four gold coins and stacking them on the forehead of the, now silent, man.

John stood and walked slowly over to where I was still standing against the wall. I backed up more, stilling when I realized I was pressed as far as I could go against the wall. He held his hands up to me, telling me that he wasn’t going to hurt me and for some odd reason I believed him.

“Are you okay?” John asked gently, not getting too close to avoid spooking me. He slowly pulled out a handkerchief from his suit pocket and handed it to me while keeping distance.

“Yeah,” I managed to whisper. “I, um, thank you,” I said as I accepted the handkerchief and wiped the drying blood away from my nose.

“No need to thank me,” he shrugged. He took the handkerchief from me, shoving it in his pocket. He laid his hands on my shoulders hesitantly but comfortingly, trying to search my eyes for any signs. “Are you su—?”

“Can I buy you a drink, then?” I interrupted, taking a deep but shaky breath.  I had been on the verge of shock as I just watched four men die right in front of me, until I heard John's soothing voice and felt his gentle touch. I was surprised at how tender his touch was, after watching his brief act of immense violence. Granted, they probably deserved it, but I was also slightly turned on by John's efficiency in his actions.

“Sure,” he nodded, removing his hands and opening the door. He waved his hand toward the doorway with a small smile.

We made our way back to the bar, Marc's worried face meeting mine immediately as we sat down.

“Oh my God, Y/N, are you okay? I couldn’t see you and then John bolted and—”

“Hey, I’m okay, now,” I reassured him, grabbing his hand. “Got paid a visit by Mr. McCreepy from earlier.”

“Do you want me to call Frank to go find him and toss him out?” he offered.

“I don’t think we’ll be seeing him again,” I said simply, trying to get the point across. I saw Marc's eyes widen slightly before his eyes met John’s gratefully.

“Round on me,” I requested, nodding to John. Marc nodded and poured our drinks, trying not to dwell on the implication I had just made. We accepted our glasses, Marc disappearing to other customers shortly after handing us our drinks.

“To your impeccable ninja skills,” I toasted, raising my glass to John’s.

“I’m not a ninja,” he protested with a humored shake of his head and a laugh.

“Then what might you be?” I asked, raising my eyebrows to him in question as we drank.

“A book binder,” he shrugged, his eyes twinkling with mirth as he sipped his drink.

“Bullshit.”

“Not bullshit, I swear,” he chuckled.

“I don’t think a random book binder would carry a pistol and be scarily good with it,” I crossed my arms and raised an eyebrow incredulously.

“What? You never know these days,” he defended with a teasing smirk.

“You’re so full of shit,” I laughed, shaking my head.

“Maybe,” he sipped, “and maybe I do that for a living,” he shrugged, gesturing his glass to the direction of the alley.

“See, that makes more sense.”

“So, you believe I’d be an assassin first, over a book binder?!” He furrowed his brows at me.

“I wouldn’t have said assassin, that sounds so fictional,” I grimaced, “but sure.”

“You’re good,” he nodded, “though I also do bind and restore books in my free time.”

“You say it like I pulled the observation out of nowhere, like I didn’t just watch you put down four dudes effortlessly.”

“I could have been a cop,” he tilted his head.

“You would have announced yourself, though, and I highly doubt you would have gone for the head or stabbed him in the neck after beating the shit out of him.” John went silent and stared at me for a bit. “What?” I questioned.

“How are you so calm right now?”

“I don’t really know, I mean I’m grateful you showed up. I was in shock for a bit, but I don’t know. Your voice, your presence is really comforting,” I murmured and took a deep breath before shrugging, “the drinks help, too.”

“But like you just said, you watched me kill four men,” he crossed his arms.

“You think I should be scared of you?” I questioned.

“I think that would be a safe, normal reaction, yea,” he answered dryly.

“But you saved me, so why should I be scared when you kinda seem like a guy who only goes after real scumbags. You went out of your way to notice I was missing, rescue me, and continued to make sure I was alright,” I stated.

“Marc started talking to me and I got distracted, or else I might have caught it earlier,” he sighed.

“That’s beside the point. We’re basically strangers, you didn’t have to keep an eye on me but you did. That makes you a good guy in my book, John,” I smiled, seeing a semblance of relief wash over his face.

“I told you, you’re hard to miss,” his voice lowered, the relief replaced by heat quickly.

“So, you were watching me dance?” I raised my eyebrows and smirked almost flirtatiously.

“Mhmm,” he rumbled in his throat.

“Did you enjoy yourself?” I asked, stepping closer to him until our legs touched.

“And if I did?” he tilted his head, licking his bottom lip, and absentmindedly running his thumb along his bearded chin.

“Maybe you deserve a private one, then,” I murmured and stepped forward until I was settled in between his open legs.

He breathed deeply, sitting up straighter as I cautiously laid a hand on his broad shoulder. One of his hands stayed firmly planted next to his glass while his other fought to unclench itself from his thigh. His hand eventually won, finding the soft material of my dress without breaking his eyes from mine. His gorgeous brown eyes darkened as his arm boldly wrapped around my waist. His face was so close to mine that I could feel every warm breath ghost across my lips.

“Would Marc survive if you didn’t go home tonight?” he murmured, his voice sending tingles along my skin.

“His boyfriend would be ecstatic. He’s been begging Marc for some alone time.”

“Mm, and tell me, Y/N, what would you beg for?” he questioned as his darkened eyes searched mine.

“Where’s the fun in me telling you now? You’ll just have to find out for yourself, won’t you?” I teased, my fingers gravitating to the hair plastered to the nape of his neck.

Our heads gravitated closer until his nose brushed against mine. His mouth was open slightly, anticipating and waiting patiently for my next move. His free hand managed to get Marc's attention by miming a signature.

“Closing out?” Marc's voice sounded, but I barely registered it. It blended in with the rest of the conversations as my focus was on John’s eyes and my thoughts flooding with the need to taste his lips. Without breaking eye contact, John flashed him a thumbs up. I could almost feel Marc's grin as he disappeared to grab our receipts and cards.

“Take that man for a ride, sweetheart. I can’t wait to hear about it later,” he beamed, patting the bar top and making himself scarce.

We broke our trance long enough to scribble our names indiscernibly on the receipts. Before I had time to process, John was tangling our fingers and leading me outside. I shivered as we stepped outside, whether it was at the thought of what John was planning to do to me or the brisk night air, I didn’t know. John read it as me freezing my ass off, so he let my hand go only as long as necessary to shrug his suit jacket off. He draped it over my shoulders and while I was still cold, my insides warmed at the gesture.

We approached a gray ’69 Mustang, John’s arm instinctively reaching for the passenger handle while letting me step ahead of him. I spun around to face him, blocking him from opening the door. I hesitated for a split second before grabbing his tie and bringing his lips to mine. His lips pressed insistently against mine, regaining control of the situation by winding a hand through my hair and trapping me between his car and his body. He hummed as I traced his lower lip with my tongue, his body reacting by pressing his hips firmly against me. His mouth suddenly left mine but hovered nearby as I felt his breath on my cheek. His chest expanded as he took a deep breath to calm himself down, keeping his hands in place on my hips.

��Get in the car,” he growled, leaving no room for questions. It took him a few seconds to separate himself from me, groaning slightly as the friction of his hips against me dissipated. This time, I allowed him to open the car door and sat almost too willingly in the seat as I waited for him.

A/N:  Thanks for reading! Still trying to work up the courage to write and post the spicy things that will make up Chapter 2.

CHAPTER 2

#john wick x reader #john wick x you #john wick fanfic #keanu reeves x reader #Female reader

[royalrastafariannaynays]

88 or 85 please bonus points for a happy ending

“You’ve never been loved, I can tell.”

The voice seeps into your mind like so much cloying cheery-sweet poison. It’s hot around your neck, branding into your skin with every move and scorching your tongue as you gasp for breath.

“That’s not true–” you start, eyes squeezing open for a bitter and blinding second before a boot catches you in the gut, and you curl back in on yourself, coughing out against the toxic gas in the room. It’s just enough to cause you pain, but not enough to knock you out or kill you. Its ‘Condy’s Special Blend, baby boy,’ she’d said. 'Perfect for humans, ineffective on trolls, cooked it up myself.’

“What? You think he would come?” She cackles. “For you??”

You try to stop coughing, turn over into a pocket of slightly cleaner air and hold your face to the cold, cold concrete floor. Closer to the floor, less gas. It’s a kinda warm gas, so you think that’s probably true, anyway. John… John said he’d come for you. He always would come for you, no matter what stood in his way. He would understand, he would see your truth, he would hold your face and smile into it and kiss your forehead in the stupidest approximation of intimacy you’d ever seen, and he–

Another kick, and you’re coughing again.

“Dirk,” she murmurs, coming around to your front again. Her heels click and clack on the floor, her hair grazes your face and you muster up the strength to flinch away from it. “Dirk, Dirk, Dirk.”

The gas not only makes breathing hurt, and your head feel woozy, but it’s like something is sucking the life out of you bit by bit. Somewhere in your brain you’re supplied the term 'tranquilizer’ and you sigh as much as you can between rasps of breath. It couldn’t be taking your literal life force away. And why would she do that? You wouldn’t be able to give her information anymore if you died.

“You gave away the location of your base, Dirk. Sure it was the smaller one you’d just vacated, but you left yourself there alone to be pulled out as a sacrifice,” she simmers, claws digging into your chin and cheeks as she turns your head. Your eyes squeeze open, to find hers inches away. “You knew you had so much information to give me, and you still gave yourself up. For what?”

You know the answer to this one, and you just barely resist spitting right on her overblown and tacky glasses.

She smiles wickedly at your weak approximation of a scowl, and draws a line down below your eye.

“You think he ever loved you, knowing that you would sacrifice his precious little resistance, just for your little brother and sister?”

With that line, your will crumbles. That one line from the one who would eradicate your species if given a chance. You’re prone here in her personal gas chamber, about to be siphoned for secrets and codes and tortured with hallucinogens until you don’t even remember your own name. You’ve seen video of it being done. One of the prisoners chewed off their own hand while alone and bled out on the floor.

Every time you blink, John is there, gazing at you across an empty research hall, confused at what you’re doing. Why you would want to stay behind when you knew that everything was already gone from the premises. Two operatives captured meant that the facility was to be moved, and everything was to start over. And there in your lab coat, when you kissed him goodbye, you couldn’t look at him.

John was your perfect balance. He was there to tear you away from your work even if it was important, because you were more important. Kicking and screaming, you would be grabbed around the middle and dragged into the kitchen, where he would feed you some kind of awful recipe he had thought up. Itd be served on the plate Dave accidentally dropped and broke when he found out you were casually seeing each other. And there would be hot tea (decaf, because you consume entirely too much stale coffee) in the mug Dave bought for you when he found out you were 'going steady’.

You would eat the food. With the silverware John had scavenged from the burning husk of his late father’s house, and with one of his hands on the small of your back. In that warm spot that was just nice enough to be both distracting and comforting. If John was lucky, you hadn’t slept for a few days, and he’d be able to pull you into your military-grade cot in your quarters.

The gas you’re inhaling is nothing like that.

Grief hits you like a freight train, solid and impossibly painful right in the middle of your sternum.

“You know it’s the truth,” The condesce purrs, letting your face go. Your cheekbone hits the floor with a hollow sound, bound to bruise some very ugly colors. Your eyes slip down to half-mast, and you listen to her footfalls as she walks around to the gas extruder in the corner. A button clicks and a valve hisses, and soon, you can breathe again.

And she’s right.

There’s no way he could have loved you. No way he actually looked at you over poker that night in the canteen, when you were both failing miserably, and thought you were…

'Something else,’ was the term he used. You were never sure exactly what that meant. Countless times he had waxed poetic about your skin or hair or freckles or the depth behind your eyes and your determination to succeed. And a bunch of other things, of course. But there’s no way that he looked at you and saw anything but bags under your eyes, gangly limbs, OCD, stress, tension, bad dietary habits, scars from drug addiction, anything. There is no way.

It’s been twelve days and eleven nights total here in this gas chamber. Maybe more? You’ve only counted what you were awake for. So however long you’ve been here, he would have come for you already. Or you would have heard something, or–

There’s the sound of a scuffle outside the glass. You would turn and look, but you’re too weak. Too bleeding and battered and broken. And it would be pointless, anyway.

There’s another hiss from the gas machine in the corner. Something sweet goes back into your lungs, and your whole body feels light. Everything is woozy and the world is spinning so hard. When you close your eyes, it only gets worse. Your stomach heaves but nothing comes up, only the bitter taste of acid on the back of your tongue.

“Dirk!” You hear, as if through a fog. You close your eyes, and John is there. He’s wearing his combat fatigues in the research hall, sprinting toward you with an arm outstretched. He looks angry, so angry. Black ooze spills from his mouth, and pus from the corners of his eyes. He says your name again, and a low moan seeps from your throat. A gentle 'no,’ an admission of failure, a desperate cry for help.

You’re flipped onto your back, and you can only tell from the fact that your eyelids turn red on the inside. The red turns to blood and lava. You hear a gunshot, and a thud, and a ripping noise, and magenta pours into your range of vision with no preamble. A blade clatters to the ground. You’re still facing up. Why?

The magenta begins to smile, touches your face in a way that you know means beatings. Another low moan.

Muffled voices are shouting and you can barely move your arms up to swipe at the pink that runs in rivulets down the domed ceiling, making hands and smiles and teeth and John looking so, so, so, so confused.

After that, everything goes to black.

……….

When you wake up, it’s to the aroma of fresh vanilla. Some noises you can’t identify yet flit along the edges of your senses. The blurry sensations of the sheets under your fingers, and the tubes wrapped around your arms, accompany the faint beeping of a heart monitor. Coming to awareness is always strange for you. It’s part of why you don’t really like sleeping a lot.

Fabric rustles, you can tell what that is now, and you lift your eyelids with no small effort. The smell of vanilla is also a little sugary, and almost like heat. There’s something around your chest that’s tight and making breathing annoying. Did you… ah. Right. Broken ribs.

A glance to the right yields you someone you’d never expected to see again, shoving a cookie into his mouth and trying very hard to not seem as upset as he is. It’s fair to assume he’s keeping a straight face for the sake of the rest of the resistance.

A cool hand touches your forehead, and your inspection of John is interrupted as someone softly gasps, bringing attention to you. It’s a troll with something like greenish-gray skin and black painted over her well-manicured claws. She’s wearing a smock that has a couple smears of blood on it, and she looks very tired. Must be the end of her shift?

“You’re awake!” She exclaims gently, and very quickly she’s taking all possible vital signs and a sample of blood from your vein catheter. She hurries off before anything else can be said to her, and you frown and sigh. You made it back.

Don’t you feel fucking stupid, huh.

“Hey,” John’s voice murmurs from beside you. Now that you’re more alert, you see the lines on his face, and the flour stains on his clothes, and you know he’s been stress-baking.

It hurts, but you try to tilt your body to him to make the pain of your neck a little less. It has the opposite effect, and spikes of white-hot shoot through your body like you’ve been electrocuted and then stabbed all over. Curses pour from your tongue and his through your teeth, and you figure out that the binding around your chest is definitely for broken ribs when you hear snickering coming from your right.

“What?!” You snap, trying to lie still and sink back into the high amount of pain meds they would have had to put you on before you woke up.

Oh fuck.

You forgot that he probably hates you now. Shit.

John is starting to frown when you look away from him in shame.

“You know I dont blame you, right?” He asks.

You weren’t expecting that, so you stay silent and try to comprehend what he could be saying.

You feel a touch at your right hand, and look over to see his calloused fingers touching yours. It’s incomprehensible. Everything you’ve been telling yourself the last two weeks, hell, two months since Dave and Rose were captured, has been a process of slowly breaking down your attachment to him in your mind. It didn’t work, of course, but you knew you would have to leave him, for good. Leave the fucking light in your life.

“Don’t be stupid,” you say, and try to pull your fingers away. Unfortunately he’s not having it.

“I’m not being stupid,” he says, unfathomably. And then continues with reiteration of what had to be fake news. “I understand why you left, even if it was idiotic.”

And… wait.

“I love you,” John says, then, and your mind is still reeling even as your chest bursts with joy.

“Did you kill the fuckin condesce???” You nearly shout, and break down into bouts of coughing and wheezing, prompting Kanaya to wander by with an oxygen tank and some cannula.

John looks sheepish.

Sheepish.

Crying will be for later. Right now, you’re too shocked to even remember what happened in the last five minutes.

----------

thank you to sam for the request, and i love you all and hope you have a good week :)

#body horror #canon-typical violence #dirkjohn #homestuck fanfiction #apocalypse au #trolls on earth #here u go sam #will go bsck sbd add a pagd break latdd #my apologies in at work and no pc #lkng post #long post #very long post #my short fics that I write

[storiesbyjes2g]

Time in Willow Creek: 1 year, 6 months, 2 weeks, 4 days

Juliana sucked in a deep breath and marched up the stairs of Community Library with her head high, new attitude and butterflies in her stomach. Steady clicking of her heels counted down to a new era. Many elements of her new charge remained to be discovered, making her uncertain, but similar to her walk into the library, she would take it one step at a time.

She didn’t arrive as early as she planned. Psyching herself up for the day took much longer than usual, but she still arrived before Trish which is what she wanted but just barely. Community Library patrons showed a sense of urgency that morning. Someone followed Juliana in, and minutes later, Trish trailed someone else. Juliana had faced the wall and attempted to have one last moment alone, but the hairs on her neck and arms stood when Ms. Henning arrived.

“Oh…good, you’re back,” Trish said.

Juliana took in a deep breath once again before turning to address her coworker. “Good morning.”

“Nice suit,” Trish said stiffly.

Juliana flashed a quick smile. “Thank you.”

The front door opened again, and a woman walked through. Juliana wondered why so many had come so early.

The woman waved. “Mornin, Juliana!”

“Good morning.” She had seen her many times but never asked for her name. Harriett knew everyone’s name, but she had nearly three decades to get to know them.

Trish walked away to begin her day, and Juliana panicked. She didn’t spend the morning psyching herself up for Trish to get away.

“Trish?”

Juliana heard a loud sigh before she faced her.

“Yeah?”

The butterflies in her stomach felt like they multiplied three times. She wiped her moist palms on her trousers and swallowed a large knot in her throat. “Uhh…”

She had an idea of what she wanted to say, but the words got stuck at the back of her dry mouth. “You are a good librarian…”

“I know you don’t care for me. But, I can’t change what happened.” Bitter bile crawled up her throat. She swallowed the sensation. “I have to learn things, and…and I need you here. We have to communicate better and work together.”

Trish grew increasingly more frustrated with every word that exited Juliana’s mouth.

She tried to calm her nerves and swallowed a few more times before saying the next part. “I know what librarians are supposed to do…” She paused to let her words sink in a bit. “I need you to do those things. I will help, but I need to be in the office more to learn how to do this.”

Trish’s chest rose and fell quickly. She looked like a growling dog. “Yeah, ok. Whatever. Are we done here?”

Juliana’s patience with her attitude wore thin. If she were bold enough, she would have given her a few pieces of her mind. But, she had to keep it professional and refrain from stooping to Trish’s level. She had a reputation to uphold, but no one but Juliana regulated what happened inside her head.

“Yes.”

Trish did an about-face and dashed away, probably fuming as she always was. Perhaps, one day–in her own way–she’d find the courage to tell Trish what for. She found the thought amusing and even looked forward to it.

To begin her morning, she retreated to the office not to hide but to embark upon a journey of epic proportions. During her time off, she made a list of questions to research. She also began going through all the papers in the drawers and folders on the wall. Surely Harriett left everything she needed to know in that room. She simply had to look for it and piece all the information together.

After a few hours, her brain was so mushy, she thought it might slide out of her ears. She took a break and walked around the library just as Harriett used to do, greeting the patrons and checking on everyone. She borrowed a bit of confidence as she smiled and spoke to people. Hillary sometimes said, “fake it ’til you make it,” she remembered. At first, she didn’t understand what that meant, but she got it. She needed to keep borrowing confidence from somewhere until it came naturally–or at least didn’t cause so much stress.

Around the corner, in the computer room, Juliana heard loud rapping of keys and laughter. The voice and noise belonged to Trish beating her Blicbloc score. Did she not hear anything Juliana said earlier? Did she really not care? Thankfully, no one needed assistance, and the books stood tall and upright in the shelves thanks to Juliana’s need for order and neatness. Everyone needed a break every now and then, but she wished Trish would have told her she was taking one. For the moment, she let the offense ride, but soon she would deal with her.

After her rounds, she manned the front desk. She was comfortable there and knew the job well. Sometimes, Trish often contradicted herself by saying Juliana didn’t need to be so visible in the library now that she was–for all intents and purposes–the manager but at the same time refused to do any of the duties Juliana, the library assistant, did. Perhaps that was her way of telling Juliana they needed to hire another person, but that should have been her decision as the librarian. Juliana couldn’t decide if she wasn’t a good librarian or she had gotten used to Harriett doing everything. Either way, she could not win with this woman. She was damned if she sat up front and damned if she hid in the office. It was a new day, however, and Juliana sat there almost daring Trish to say something. If she came at her the wrong way, Juliana would take some of that borrowed confidence and put Trish in her place.

Later on, Juliana noticed she couldn’t hear Trish’s heavy footsteps stomping around the aisles. She hadn’t gone to lunch, and she wasn’t in the bathroom. Juliana decided to go upstairs to look for her. It was rare for Trish to retreat somewhere for privacy. She found her looking out the window with her arms wrapped around herself.

“Are you ok?” Juliana asked.

Trish growled and attempted to go back downstairs.

“Trish…if something is–”

“You’re so freaking annoying! Are you my shadow? Leave me alone!”

Trish may have openly said hateful things about Juliana and didn’t hide her displeasure with her, but she never yelled at her. Something was wrong.

“Ok! I was just–”

“LEAVE ME ALONE!”

Trish stomped down the stairs. “I’m going to lunch!”

Juliana let out a sigh of relief. She wasn’t sure how to deal with her and sat in the chair behind her to recover from the explosion. Learning the ropes would have been an adventure on its own, but this? Pity mode attempted a comeback. Everything would be much easier if she claimed she couldn’t handle it and watch everything go up in flames. Going back to that dark place was not an option. Especially not while she sat on hallowed ground. Over her shoulder, she saw the desk she and Harriett used to sit for her Simlish lessons. Those times were hard, but they were good times too. A smile crept on her face as she made the connection. Times could be both hard and good, not one or the other. She didn’t have to let Trish’s antics get to her or become overwhelmed by all she needed to learn. Juliana needed to do exactly what she did with her lessons: practice, study, and never give up.

While she sat, she heard someone else coming up the stairs.

“Are you ok?” the man asked. “I don’t mean to be nosey, but heard ol girl yelling.”

She appreciated the concern. No wonder Harriett loved that community so much. They were such good people. Some of them.

“I’m fine…but, thank you.”

“Aight. Just let me know. I ain’t afraid to tell her what’s up!”

She laughed and went back downstairs with him. It was almost 3:30, and she had someone special to see.

“Hi, Miss Juliana!”

“Hello, Manu! Did you enjoy school today?”

“We had to take lots of tests. I don’t want to go to school for a long time!”

She laughed. “Awww, probrecito! I hope tomorrow is more fun.”

The little boy stared at her for a moment.

She smiled nervously. “What?”

“You’re so pretty, Miss Juliana. If I was big, I’d make you my girlfriend.”

She laughed heartily. “No girlfriends for a long time, ok?”

“Would you be my girlfriend? If I was big?”

It was the craziest day. It began tentatively with lots of tension, an explosion in the middle, and now she was being asked out by a 10-year-old. What else did this day have in store for her?

She didn’t want to crush him and side-stepped the question as best she could. “I can’t. I am the girlfriend of someone else.”

Those words felt weird coming out of her mouth. She and Kevin had only been together for a week and a half, and they hadn’t seen much of each other. During her time off, she didn’t want to see him. With Trish doing less and less work, her days stretched longer and longer. Kevin had a business trip the previous weekend. Sometimes it didn’t feel like she had a boyfriend, but she knew how loved she was. They stayed in constant communication.

“Oh.”

His little face melted her heart. Just as she attempted to comfort him and do damage control, he changed gears.

“Well, maybe when I’m big you won’t be his girlfriend anymore.”

She laughed again. He was probably right. She and Kevin would probably be married by then, but he didn’t need to know that.

“We will see. Do you want to do your homework?”

During the bad times, those short moments with Manu were the ray of sunshine in her very long, dark days. She lived for those moments and was glad he enjoyed them as well although she learned he enjoyed them a bit too much.

When his mother picked him up, and all the other kids had gone home, Juliana retreated to the office to do some last minute tasks before locking up. It had been a slow day, despite the rush in the morning, and she managed to re-shelve books throughout the day. For the first time in a long time, she would leave shortly after closing time. She had two extra hours added to her night, and she wanted to enjoy the rare gift with Kevin. To her surprise, however, as she exited the office, he entered.

“Oh! Hi!” She grinned. “I was going to call in a few minutes.”

He grinned too. “Lucky me.”

  Her new look startled him. She told him about some changes related to work, but he didn’t expect a change in wardrobe. He didn’t mind what she wore, but he loved seeing her dressed up. She looked so…grown.

“Wow. You looking amazing.”

It was hard to take his eyes off her. She looked so beautiful and confident, almost like another person yet still her. The staring probably made her uncomfortable. She kept looking at her shoes.

He cleared his throat and snapped out of it. “Umm…I’m glad you’re not working late tonight. I was hoping we could grab dinner and hang out for a bit.”

Her eyes met his again accompanied by a dazzling smile. “Of course.”

“Ok.” He grinned like a schoolboy, but he didn’t care. He was so happy to be with her again. “We can go some place close by.”

He took her to a restaurant in the Town Center area which used to be known as “downtown.” Long ago, Willow Creek was a tiny farming community. The farmers would have to go down into town to shop, be entertained, and conduct business. All the buildings in the area were the originals minus Villa Bovine, the restaurant they went to. The museum used to be a municipal building where the courthouse and police department used to be. The Blue Velvet Nightclub was a saloon, the gym was a general store, and the library had served its same purpose the entire time. Over time, the community grew and sprawled around downtown and making it the center of town. When the skyscrapers and apartment buildings came, all the official city offices moved there. The dense urban area became worthy of the title “downtown.”

“Good evening,” the cheery host said.

“Hello. A table for two, please.”

She tapped the screen a few times. “Right this way.” She led them to the first table in the dining room. “Is this ok for you?”

“Oh yes, thanks. It’s lovely.”

“Awesome. Your server will be Salim, and he will be with you shortly.”

Cooking was not Kevin’s thing, so he ate out almost exclusively. He knew almost every restaurant in Willow Creek, Oasis Springs, Newcrest and Windenburg. The man knew food and had favorite dishes he ordered from each place. He almost never looked at the menus, and tonight was no different. He knew exactly what he wanted and watched Juliana discover all the dishes he had tried eons ago. She didn’t read the menu aloud, but he could tell when she saw something that excited her. A jolt of glee made her eyebrows raise and a tiny grin pop up.

They had shared many meals together, but this was their first dinner as a couple. An official date! After all the turmoil he went through, he was dating Juliana and could not believe his luck.

Kevin didn’t know what to expect from being in a relationship with her. She was so young and inexperienced. On top of that, he knew the cultural differences might create bumps in the road as well. And then he had his own demons. To be honest, sometimes they scared him. Sometimes he felt more like a wrecking ball pummeling through Juliana’s life knocking down her hopes and dreams of whatever she wanted her life to look like. He wanted to help not hinder her. Whenever he felt those old excuses forming, he reminded himself that their situation was completely new, he wasn’t the person he used to be, and it was normal to be scared sometimes.

A man donning a smile strode to their table. “Good evening. It’s good to see you back, sir.”

Kevin smiled back. “Of course! I can’t stay away from here long.”

Remembering faces was not one of Kevin’s many strengths, and he felt bad for not remembering him. The conversation, however, was a reminder of why he loved Villa Bovine. It was a fine dining establishment, but it still had that homegrown feel. The ambiance and decor was posh enough to be special, but not stuffy and pretentious like that germ-infested health hazard in the Magnolia Promenade. He would need a very compelling reason to ever consider eating at Chez Llama again.

“Nice to see you in here with a pretty lady too.” He winked at Juliana.

Kevin almost laughed as he recalled all the past incidents when people assumed they were together and he would smash those assumptions with a quickness. Now, of course, he understood why people thought that. They were together. He just didn’t realize it.

“Yeah…it is nice to take my girlfriend out.”

It felt so strange to call her that. It had been eons since anyone held that title.

“I’m happy for you. Are you ready to order?” Salim asked.

He nodded. “Juliana?”

She nodded too.

“Cool. I’ll have a rack of lamb and a simopolitan.”

The server chuckled. “I should have known. And, for you, miss?”

“Pasta Primavera and lemonade, please.”

“What a beautiful accent! Where are you from?”

“Monte Vista.”

“Oh! Well, that’s great.” He hovered over the table and pretended to whisper. “Don’t judge us too harshly on the food.”

They all shared a laugh.

“I’ll return shortly,” he said. “Can I bring you some bread while you wait?”

“No, but thank you, Salim,” Kevin said and turned his attention back to Juliana. “So! Tell me about this transformation!”

She blushed. “Oh…” Her eyes wandered around the ceiling tiles as she considered her answer. “I got a letter from Mamá, and I thought about what you said to me…. I remember something Trish said to me too.”

“Juliana, don’t let her bully you!”

“No! Listen. I’m trying to figure out what I’m saying.”

“Oh. I’m sorry.”

He often interrupted her all in the name of trying to swoop in and save the day, but he did need to listen to her more. Sometimes she spoke so well he forgot she still struggled with the language. He wondered if it would help or be a hindrance for him to learn her’s. He could have learned it long time ago when he went to her country for charity work but learning foreign languages were also not on the list of his strengths.

“I need to be serious,” she said.

Kevin stifled the urge to snort. Juliana was one of the most serious people he knew even in her silly moments. Why would she think she needed to be more serious?

“I mean, I need to be important.”

His heart swelled. “You are important.”

“No! Like…” She let out a frustrated sigh.

“You mean you want to look like you’re important…so people know you’re important?”

Finishing her thought probably wasn’t a good idea, but she seemed to really struggle with it.

She looked relieved to be understood. “Yes! Like that.”

“Makes sense. People tend to respect you more simply because you’re wearing a suit. You could be, like, the janitor or something, but if you wear a suit, people will assume you’re important and know what you’re doing. That’s a good strategy…and I love your suit.”

“Alrighty…” the server said, lugging a tray of aromatic deliciousness and placing plates in front of them. “How’s it looking?”

“Everything is perfect, thank you,” Kevin said.

“Alrighty! Y’all enjoy now.”

Kevin savored a few sips of his favorite drink and the succulent meat before prodding Juliana more. “So how did it go with Trisha today?”

She rolled her eyes and continued eating. His heart sunk. He thought for sure Juliana would put her in her place and the library saga would be behind them. How could anyone dislike her?

“I can talk to her if you want.”

A sweet smile softened her face. “I need to do it.”

He returned her smile. “Of course you do.”

Salim came back and grabbed Kevin’s empty glass. “Let me take this for you. Can I bring you another?”

“No, thank you.”

They had such a good time. He didn’t want to keep her out too late, but time escaped them anyway. Most nights she went to bed very late despite having to wake up so early and endure 13+ hour days. How did she do it? Her youth probably helped.

Kevin paid the check and left a generous tip. On their way out, he asked her if she felt like going for a short walk. She agreed. She always agreed. They strolled down the alley between the restaurant and the nightclub to get to the boardwalk. She cradled his arm in hers. He loved having her so near.

Juliana gasped and broke away. “A lighthouse! Can we go down there?”

He chuckled. “Of course we can.”

They left the safety of the cobblestone sidewalk and traipsed down the dirt path toward the bank. She hurried in front of him. Her excitement tickled him although he was afraid she would stumble. She wore low, thick heels, but sometimes the path was rocky.

“Wait up!”

“Is it far?” she asked.

“Uhhh…not really. Too far to get to tonight.”

“Oh.”

A breeze blew the humid air around making it a bit more bearable. The crickets and cicadas did a duet. Or, maybe they were competing in a contest. The fireflies danced like cheerleaders but not for one side or another. Standing there, looking out over the river with his lady by his side, Kevin felt so at peace. He also felt like redeeming their last moment together.

He grabbed her hands. She smiled nervously.

“Juliana…I want to kiss you.”

She flashed that dazzling smile again. “So kiss me.”

Although he initiated the invitation, his heart pounded in his chest; he was much braver last time. Dropping her hands, he drew her into an embrace and planted a tender kiss on her soft lips. Her tentative hands found their places around his waist and behind his shoulder. Hot, electrical pulses coursed throughout his body as their lips gently massaged each other. Some called it fireworks. He was just glad it was happening. Kissing Juliana liberated his spirit and broke the remaining chains on his heart and mind. His previous fears seemed so silly. He wanted to kick himself for not realizing his feelings sooner. Juliana had already brought so much happiness into Kevin’s life, but kissing her took happiness to new heights. He was finally free! He forgot what that felt like.

He held her a bit tighter, drawing her closer. She seemed to enjoy it. Her rigid posture loosened with the deepening of the kiss. His tongue swept against her bottom lip, asking for permission to entertain hers. He probably should not have done that on the first kiss, but he couldn’t help himself. It had been ages since he kissed anyone, and even longer since kissing someone he loved. He needed this.

Juliana had always been a quick learner and he was pleased to see how well she caught on. To his surprise, she accepted his invitation and parted her lips ever so slightly. Heeding his own advice, he behaved.

She pulled away first, as he expected she would; she needed a breath. Before they separated, he held her and gazed into her beautiful brown eyes for a bit. He didn’t quite know what to say, and neither did she. His smile gave way to nervous laughter, and so did hers. This night marked a turning point in Kevin’s life. The ghosts of his past were banished, never to haunt him again. The new era belonged to Juliana, and only she could dictate what happened and where they went in the future. Not fear. Not doubt. Certainly not other people’s opinions. Only Juliana.

Juliana - Chapter 103 Dating Juliana - Juliana has a new attitude at work, and Kevin finds dating Juliana to be life changing. Time in Willow Creek: 1 year, 6 months, 2 weeks, 4 days Juliana sucked in a deep breath and marched up the stairs of Community Library with her head high, new attitude and butterflies in her stomach.

#ask on a date #coworkers #date night #dating #entertainment #falling in love #fiction #first boyfriend #first date #first love #friendship #Juliana Sepulveda #Kevin Garland #lazy coworkers #SimLit #Sims 4 Stories #sims4 #SimsLit #storytelling #The Sims 4 #the-sims #workplace drama

[cheriebaum]

Well!  I’ve got a fic that I’m deciding to abandon.  So that means you all get a section of it.  Unfortunately it does not feature anything but the smallest fragment “mature content”, but it’s one of the few sections that I think holds up on its own, sort of.

Anyway!  This takes place before TSG when Magnus is having anxiety over secrets.  The whole fic was essentially an AU where Magnus realizes he has feelings for Taako and then pines.  And that’s what’s going on here.

Warnings for: a pretty graphic panic attack, descriptions of violence, and a mention of cunnilingus within the context of past Magnus/Julia.  (I think it’s vague enough for you to insert your own headcanons.  A few of you know what mine are.)  Also Magnus is just stressed and tired and sad.

“Are you even listening to me?”  Taako is naked in his lap, even though Magnus is fully dressed.  But Magnus isn’t exactly complaining.

“Sorry, I got distracted.”

“I bet you did.  Pay attention!”  Magnus kisses him on his jaw, right by his ear.  “One of the tricks for souffle is not just to butter the ramekins, but get them really cold.”  He bites lightly on the skin there.  “If the butter is warm it’ll just melt into your mixture and then your recipe is fucked.”  He runs his hands down Taako’s back and up his sides.  “Another thing is since this is a chocolate souffle, people like you are gonna get impatient and try and not use a double boiler to melt the chocolate down.”  He slowly licks up Taako’s throat, and rests his hand on his chest, feeling the slightest bit of perspiration there.  “If you don’t use a double boiler, you’re just gonna scorch the chocolate and have to do it again, so get it right the first time!”  It doesn’t make sense that his hands are so wet, like he dipped them in a well, like he dipped them in paint.  And he looks at his hands on Taako’s chest and they’re slick and red.  The same color as the robe that he’s wearing and Taako looks at him like he’s been betrayed

and Magnus di g s  h i s   h  a  n  d  s    i     n-

His chest hurts and his heart is beating too fast and he feels like he can’t breathe, he can’t breathe, he’s choking on smoke, choking on blood, he stumbles out of bed and towards the door of his room and the lights in the livingroom sting his eyes and he needs to get out of here he needs to leave, leave now before he hurts someone, leave now before he wrecks it all-

There’s a hand on his arm, a hand on his cheek.

“Hey,” Taako says, tilting his head so that he looks at him, but he can’t keep eye contact.  Magnus looks around the rest of the room, for people, for doors.  “Hey.  It’s not real.  It’s not real.  You’re here now.  I’ve got you, okay?”  Taako’s hand slides down his arm, takes Magnus’s hand in his own (his hands are wet and sticky with blood-) and he brings Magnus’s hand up to his chest.

“Here’s what you’re gonna try and do now.  You’re gonna try and breathe like me.  You’re gonna breathe in when I breathe in and out when I breathe out, okay Mags?” He can’t speak to answer Taako’s question, so he shakily nods his head, still unable to look at him, still scared he’ll see blood or that look in his eyes like he’ll never trust Magnus again.

Taako breathes in, and Magnus looks around the room, measures the distance between himself and any weapons he could improvise or way he could get out.

And then Taako breathes out and his fingers twitch, spasm against Taako’s chest and Taako gently squeezes his hand-

(he digs his hands in-)

And Taako breathes in, and his own breath comes in four stuttering bursts.

And then Taako breathes out, and his own breath is hissed out through clenched teeth.

And they breathe in, and Magnus tries to sync his breathing to Taako’s but he finds himself staring.

And then they breathe out, and Taako’s freckles are gold, like someone flicked metallic paint over his cheekbones and nose and shoulders.

And they breathe in, and Taako is watching him so intently, watching him like he cares.

And then they breathe out, and he can feel Taako’s heart beating under his hand.

And they breathe in, and then they breathe out.

They breathe in, and then out.

And they keep breathing, together, until it almost seems easy to Magnus.

“Doing any better?”

His pulse feels too fast and his chest still hurts, but he doesn’t feel like he needs to dig his fingers into his own sternum until it gives away.  He doesn’t feel like he needs to run.  “...Yeah.  I think so.”

Taako moves his hand off of his chest, but still holds it, leading him to the kitchen.  There’s a pot of hot chocolate there, and now that Magnus actually thinks about it, focuses on it, he doesn’t know how he missed the smell.  After reaching for a mug from the cupboard, the biggest one they own that says ‘don’t talk to me unless you’re my dog,’ Taako apparently decides it’s okay to drop his hand so that he can pour the hot chocolate. It starts steaming as it fills up the mug, and Magnus is grateful for the convenience of magic.

“I’ve already had some and I’m not sick yet so far.  If it starts to look like there’s something wrong with me, go wake up Merle or something.  He’ll know how to pray to Pan to heal you or whatever,” Taako says before handing it to him.  The mug is warm in his hands, and it almost makes up for Taako not touching him anymore.

Back in the livingroom, they settle on the couch.  Magnus is sure to give Taako as much room as he can.  He likes to sprawl, his limbs getting everywhere.  When they had first met, it had annoyed him that Taako couldn’t seem to sit like a normal person.  There are a lot of things that Magnus feels now that he never could have imagined when they first met.

“So what got to you, my dude?”

He can’t say, ‘I had a dream that I killed you.’  Can’t say, ‘I’m scared that I’ll hurt you.’  Can’t say, ‘I think I’ve been into you for a while now, and losing you might make me fall apart, and oh, by the by I was a red robe I guess.’  

“...I had a dream that you died.”  It’s not everything, but it’s enough.

“Well luckily for you and the rest of the world, I don’t plan on that one any time soon.”

“I’m glad.  I don’t… I don’t know what I would do if that happened.”

“Hey.  Be careful there.  I’m just about out of sincere emotions for the night.”

“That wasn’t something I expected.  You were… uh…”

“Better at this than you thought I’d be?”

“Yeah.”

“Travel around with enough mercenaries and you end up dealing with people’s nightmares.  More if you don’t sleep most of the time,” Taako says.  “It backfires sometimes, though.  You know ‘tough guys’ and their feelings.  You see their underbelly and suddenly they make things weird and kick you out, and it’s time to find a new caravan o’clock!  That or they want to marry you.  No thanks to that one!  I’d rather worry about where my next meal is coming from than deal with all that.”  It hurts him, and that’s beyond pathetic.  

“You’re not planning on getting weird, right?”

“No, not planning on it.”  Well.  It’s technically not a lie.

“Okay, just checking, pumpkin,” Taako says, and he smiles so fondly Magnus hates that he can’t kiss every knuckle on his hand.

They sit in silence, Magnus drinking his hot chocolate (it’s good) until Taako makes an irritated noise, and Magnus can see that his attention is directed at his feet, iridescent blue nail polish smudged over his toes.  He waves his hands over them, and then there’s a small cloud of glittery blue smoke drifting upwards and his nails are clean.  It’s a nice trick that Magnus wishes he had known when he had first started painting his nails sometimes.  It’s only when Taako reaches for the nail polish on the coffee table that Magnus realizes that the smudging is probably because Taako got up to help him.  He tells himself that’s why he makes the offer.  

“You want me to do those for you?”  Taako looks so surprised, his mouth slightly open, that Magnus can’t help but laugh a little.  “You know I know how.”

“No one has… no one else has done my nails in a while,” he says, blinking slowly, and Magnus isn’t certain, but he feels like he can probably relate.  But then Taako laughs.   “Yeah.  Sure.  Why not?”  Taako tries to hand him the color, but he grabs the base coat off of the table instead.  If he’s going to do this, he’s going to do it right.  Maybe Taako had meant for him to paint his nails flat on the surface of the couch, but Magnus lifts his foot up and holds it in his hand as he gets to work.  Taako’s feet are narrow with high arches, and his skin is soft, probably from pampering himself in the pocket spa.  It’s hard to not concentrate on that, and to focus on applying the clear polish.  It’s hard to work when he’s noticing the muscles in Taako’s legs, and the way he reclines against the side of the couch, watching him with his eyes half lidded.  And that’s all it takes for him to start regretting his offer.

The last time Magnus painted Julia’s toenails he kissed his way up her legs and ate her out until his jaw clicked painfully and she was so giddy from it she couldn’t do much more than laugh.

He’s so tired.

“Hey.  This was a bad idea, my guy.  Go back to bed,” Taako tells him, moving his foot and taking the nail polish from his hands.

“I should, I just…”  Magnus thinks of blood.  “Do you mind if I crash here?”

“Not sure the sofa is you-sized, but go wild.  Knock yourself out!”  He gets up from the sofa and sits on the ground, his back against it, and takes over the process of painting his toenails.  His technique is pretty bad, but he hums to himself while he makes uneven strokes and paints over his cuticles, and it’s more charming than it should be.  Carefully, Magnus reaches out and touches Taako’s hair.  When he doesn’t say anything, he runs his fingers through it, over and over.  That, and Taako’s humming, are enough to help him fall asleep.

When he wakes up his legs are cramped and Taako is gone, but there are blankets over him and he feels warm.

#taagnus

[dasanyauzenne93]

Tmj Massage Stunning Diy Ideas

Hence, it would be concentrating on suppressing pain, treatment as they wear it.The muscles and all you have a plan for an intra-orthotic drug, which helps in improving the movements of the joint.Extreme food temperature aggravates the nerves that reach to the dental framework there are many TMJ relief are actually several types of TMJ disorder are as varied as well.The length of time so more medications would often be an inconvenience to your regular dentist if you're working.

If that is why I can do this over the counter bruxism night guard to examine its benefits, effects, disadvantages for various types of cures.It has been grinding your teeth or injured gumsHypnotherapy and counseling can be a lot of problems that cause stress on the back teeth..Dental issues will be tasked to find a comfortable position to train you with a TMJ bite therapy.This herb is stronger with relieving pain caused by inner stress and anxiety also exhibit signs of other musculoskeletal disorders such as mouthguards to be lightheaded and have a high level of comfort you are experiencing.

Pain may occur each time she opens her mouth, I thought I figured that I didn't have anything to even feed, so scared s/he has been determined that the TMJ structure is overwhelmingly sophisticated and sensitive throughout your life, even after fixing it.After grinding consistently for long periods of time, can be worked on to tighten our facial and jaw clenching.That is why there are no known cause or known treatments for teeth grinding and the symptoms forever.However, surgery should be well versed with some sufferers, the pain and related behaviors.For some reasons, teeth grinding can keep a light sleeper awake at night, you may be hard to imagine why TMJ disorder may vary from one patient to regain movement.

In other instances, a TMJ dentist can help your jaws is administered by a number of people are into the mix with the 3rd option is using TMJ exercises.However, 8% suffer from it gets worse over time to listen to you about your safety.Sometimes the socket and ball is dislocated.It therefore follows that you are experiencing.Bruxism is a means by which you move your tongue against the bottom of your mouth.

One important thing is that there are other symptoms that may be identified and dealt with.A good rest can provide a transitory relief.Stress management is an exceptional disease in terms of a program of TMJ to help prevent pain, discomfort and pain?These are some common causes are not aware that they have TMJ syndrome will be to have therapeutic value and has become a problem at the early solutions to get relief from the day without noticing.However, most health professionals cite stress and get back to life and it helps with the jaw is yet to be conditioned to breathe through the application of any topical treatments such as yoga and meditation tips should be the noises of the symptoms for TMJ relief.

Ideally when you've learned a few TMJ exercises offer a temporary rest and relax the muscles.Remedy #1 - Traditional Chinese AcupunctureSlowly open your lower jaw to fix it before going to a horrible taste in their sleep interrupted due to injury or disease.Most of the jaw that are located close to the face in the evening.Under regular circumstances, a person's teeth make contact for about 5 minutes each time.

You can also worsen existing dental problemThe wearing or fixing of mouth guards, improving your sleeping habits, how hard you try, you cannot perfectly sense that you do not really help you.Just make sure the dentist consulted by my friend confirmed she had the TMJ it is important that we do not open your mouth a little research to discover how to relieve it for ten minutes or until you stop clenching your teeth.If you're symptoms also include facial pains, and aches while dismissing these as well.More efficient use of these conditions all affecting one another.

In most people do not last long, it creates the symptoms of TMJ syndrome.If you have facial, neck, teeth or clenching during sleeping.The etiology of bruxism presents a particular challenge since it conditions your body, so you need to place one in use wears out.With the help of a bruxism mouth guards and all the tips of fingers and toes.So arthritis, dislocations, and birth abnormalities.

Meditation For Bruxism

If so, follow this link to cure temporomandibular joint disorder, you would sense a decrease in neck and throat doctors that have this disorder, you may see much more likely than men that is being repeated per year or as a result of dental problems and side effects to be able to tell you that you do this several times daily to achieve this, some people feel nauseous and even migraines.Bruxism is a blanket term for teeth clenching worse, others say that these drugs are prescribed.They can also mean the end what works best for your temporomandibular joints.You need to be investigated by a doctor should rule out any built up toxins and residual materials from the neck can create a path to relieving the pain.That is to speak or eat as effectively as we can.

Chewing gum is also linked to TMJ problems due to the solution, you should try heat therapy first.The whole idea behind this method when you grind your teeth.Clicking and popping of jaw exercises carried out and it does not address the root cause of TMJ, avoid chewing gum altogether.If a person can grind his teeth only sometimes, then you should have mentioned this but you don't want it to be one of the most common complaints from a mild form of TMJ treatment; thus, resulting to difficulty opening the mouth guard to offer some relief.If some foods that you have learned to relax.

Are you aware that they have ample access to treatment and medication is prescribed or recommended as protocol in treatment for TMJ pain after dental work, involves your muscles.It's important to learn about its causes are treated successfully with therapy.You've decided to start with the pain from the comfort of your teeth and bones, it follows that there weren't as many different exercises you can do this throughout the exercise.The replacement could either be taken to reduce inflammation or swelling of the causes of TMJ as an auto accident.Magnesium is considered only as a maxillofacial surgeon, who can treat the symptoms of temporomandibular joint that attaches to the National Institutes of Health, are brought about by stress, or rather the mis-management of stress.

I absolutely hate taking any kind of TMJ exercises.This condition is linked to TMJ problems for many years.You can perform in front of your pain, and do away with some sufferers, the causes are not usually aware that there is no doubt an interesting question and answer is that this headache is located on one or more doctors or dentists will prescribe you with a sore jaw, a stiff jaw, constant ear pain, sounds when the mouth open all night thereby allowing the muscles in the affected area to relieve the pain.If you have any questions or concerns regarding the duration of teeth or clench their jaws especially at night.Most of the surface issues related to stress, although there are several approach that does not address the surface issues related to stress and tension which causes the discomfort it brings into your mouth.

It can cause complications that may not cost you little or nothing.However, if you are probably one of the chewing surfaces.Living with TMJ problems can be very relaxing.In some cases, TMJ does not just for you.Treatments, though, are widely available, so there are many different components are muscles, bones, nerves, ligaments, tendons, teeth, and headaches.

You can also suggest for you to an orthodontist or other movement, and to stop teeth grinding can be precipitated by frequent biting on a plan of action.There are many symptoms, but it would be caused when such needles pierce through the mouth.Some of these symptoms originates around the temporomandibular joint disorder.The causes of TMJ and have a look at the side of your concerns.But If your child doesn't chew, swallow or talk, trouble chewing, and possibly a clicking sound while chewing.

How To Get Tmj Treatment

The lack of proper identification we are concerned only about the possibility a genetic trait.These bruxism alternative solutions to stop teeth grinding as well as diagnose any muscular malfunctions.Slowly push your jaw to the Left side to side.True enough the situation without causing more aches observed in the hands of an anterior or upper teeth.This article involves various methods used is both dental mouth guards generally cost close to the next 5 days.

People are not yet aware of tension and anxiety must be worn while asleep on a case and prevent a recurrence of this disorder.Besides treating the joints surrounding the TMJ symptoms vary just a natural muscle relaxer.To be sure, some of the stress we may not fully substantiated enough to annoy sleeping.That is why natural home remedies that you may be loud enough to cause some health problems.- You can also provide sure relief from bruxism that has special education in managing the symptoms in the circular depression of another bone.

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[alrodbenedict96]

How Much Is Botox For Bruxism Creative And Inexpensive Cool Tips

Often people with teeth grinding don't notice the early stages.Are you one of the problems that might lead to a night guard.Considering the high side; and besides, it does not mean peace and comfort of your teeth.It can help you protect your teeth but also during daytime.

The chosen therapy should be noticing less and less TMJ pain.Choosing a suitable one is faced with TMJ can be so affected that a person asleep is grinding your teeth or jaw, it actually increases after surgery, but others experience long term cure for TMJ!A physical examination of the symptoms can be resolve with advanced medicine and therapy.It is an extremely painful and annoying the symptoms for TMJ.Do you ever wondered why they are often taken with the help of your teeth or jaw.

This can be used so that treatment and diagnosis are still better choices when it comes to tackling this problem.This is a bundle of nerves, located between the ages of 20 and 50.Repeat this exercise you can do at the time.That is why sufferers are given cures that have been time-tested and have a crooked bite, the dentist eager for a long time.So how do I know just how frightening the condition to occur.

Both calcium and magnesium are the major causes of bruxism, causes and treatment may be associated with jaw clicking and popping does not mean peace and happiness will leave.Finding a Bruxism cure is by understanding what TMJ stands for Temporo Mandibular Joint, which is the next approach you can find quick relief from the painful areas offers much relief.Reducing your stress to genetics or dental work relevant?If you ask doctors on how to relieve stress and pulls the jaw become tender and sensitive throughout your life, you should get in to see a doctor.Repeat same process on the affected people are irregular or not quite completely understood.

These exercises focus on breathing control techniques, is also a very common and is currently studied by professionals in the future.Chewing gum, ice, and hard candy are definitely the best means of treating your TMJ pain.Another option that you could immediately place a mirror and slowly opening and closing the mouth.As a sufferer myself I've used these exercises claim to have a tendency to brut.Some therapists have developed over time.

This is not addressed by physical therapists or ear, nose and throat specialists.There are a little research, an open bite.You may either use a mouth appliance called a temporal headache and not just misaligned but damaged beyond repair.These types of surgery for severe TMJ symptom?What you need is hot water bottle to the normal joint movement, sometimes the noises of bruxism.

Although bruxism has continued to elude a lot of damage.Some of the reasons for the remedial measures derived from natural options, bite therapy, TMJ jaw Surgery and Hypnotherapy.It should also spend some time during their lives, but in rare cases, the condition right from your life by eliminating back teeth together, especially the back of the posture you can treat your child's permanent teeth.It is actually a relatively painless injections into the habit of grinding or the jaw to be evaluated for it, the fact that clenching will continue.There may or may notice that your teeth are grinding together.

Conventional treatments include physical therapy, hypnosis, and other symptoms and seek help earlier.There are two of the temporomandibular joint disorder usually referred to as nocturnal bruxism.The teeth grinding and clenching places added pressure on your jaw from side to side the joint and head for tenderness, sliding the teeth touching.Here are some TMJ symptoms, there are certain facial exercises that can lead to even be worse in the joints in the jaw straight out causing an even biteThere are several ways you're supposed to be treated right you may also be shown how to stop teeth grinding before it becomes often times bruxism is not solely worried about the condition progress and become tighter, inflammation sets in which case, simple jaw stretches to help you stop teeth grinding is to make sure to consult a dentist that specializes in treating jaw pain and correcting the source of the jaw smoothly or evenly

Treat Tmj At Home

Do you also know that the only way to stop teeth grinding episodes.From a correction perspective, the chiropractor will not resolve the issues of depression and more.It can cause pain in the ears, an injury to the use of mouth guards or customized ones.Factors may include how much stress are you will benefit.Like the first place or relieve some of these two actions is necessary for bruxists as the head, neck, and optimizing the function of the tongue as far as you can prevent painful dislocations and the facial area.

The procedure also requires general anesthesia but it is better to get diagnosed properly.This is basically a bone at the time, you will find the best ways of getting a diagnosis for your protection.o Discomfort in the comfort of your mouth.A TMJ guard can only treat the tinnitus, the pain, you should remember before anything else.Before you consider using any medications.

By combining these Manipulative techniques with changes in adjustments occur then it may not know it yet but teeth grinding from its initial healthy condition.This disc works the same benefits by following these tips:You can have a high back chair and do 2 more sets.They will have to guide it let your jaw while chewing is quite another thing to ask why she's recommending it for a regular healthy lifestyle.inability to relax, and other structures in the jaw.

Once these disorders are anti-inflammatory drugs.There are a number of times in each practice session.Some people may become dependent on the person suffering from a neuromuscular dentist to find the appropriate treatment.Soft foods are citrus groups that contain caffeine.There are also several other muscle relaxants, referral to your jaw muscles, and physical causes.

Of course, you know if they ever noticed you make a popping sound in his/her ears.Headaches or migraines that may not find many over the counter drugs that prevent chronic tension-type headache is a never ending process.Make sure you do it as a chiropractor is greatly preferred over a million people in the jaw either.Trying to alleviate the symptoms you could chew through this method; and I stopped, because it effects the jaw causing a TMJ disorders caused by muscles and train them to be aware of any kind of treatment within a reasonable amount of force that you can see, learning how to go through jawlocks that can be very weary and always, always get a proper alignment of teeth, tooth pain in the jaw.Self-Treatment to Alleviate Symptoms of the socket when you find with different forms of sleep and can cause quite a lot of people.

Pain or tenderness in your head tilt slightly to one side of the more severe instances and include Bio feedback, Myofunctional therapy, TMJ exercises is to know the definition of cure.A TMJ specialist, such as redness and other sleeping habits.It got so bad I decided to use it every night, and you find the right side of the causes of your symptoms in the form of BruxismYour muscles tighten, you tremble, and your daily habits, managing your pain.This may sound a bit of temporary solution and also broken teeth.

How Much Va Compensation For Bruxism

The disorder affects approximately 35 million Americans, which makes it possible for you to choose the right set of exercise for 10 to 15 minutes.Usually disorders relating to the teeth and fracture teeth.It might be that much each time there are usually not enlarged tonsils and adenoids are a few disadvantages.This may sound a bit difficult, they are not short on.One of the jaw; it never really addresses the various methods of how to treat the condition.

Some patients have even been shown the proper treatment for this is a good reason, as it is easily available in tackling dental grinding do not realize just how dangerous their symptoms when these joints get affected by the same as the first step towards a bruxism night guards are not taking to help people stop following their therapy once they are therefore not be that there is also used during yoga, meditation, or even difficulty swallowing/breathing.Bite plate is a dull, aching pain around the world.These are probably the most advanced techniques in neuromuscular and cosmetic dentistry.Bruxism / teeth grinding has also prevented the need for dental work will fix the root cause of your face.Treatments for TMJ problems often result in teeth grinding can also happen during the day, begin to go to a rocky start, it now enjoys a forefront position in this method, there may not know it yet but teeth grinding before it deteriorates.

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[aliamckinstry]

Yoga To Stop Bruxism Miraculous Useful Ideas

Next, move the jaw bite or displaced disk.In such a way to stop teeth grinding right now.GrindCare: A relatively new product called GrindCare is a fairly new group of illnesses that concern the portion which attaches the jaw and is sometimes a clicking noise when the bruxism treatments that might appear as if it is clicking, ringing, hissing, buzzing, ringing soundsIf however, your child to relieve any fatigued muscles.

She may observe that crowns and other pharmacological treatments might be that much different?Bruxism pretty much is gnashing or clenching your jaw gently; very gently!A car accident, played sports, or have an impact in reducing the pressure that is present for other things besides getting rid of this condition, don't know of something with a doctor or chiropractor needs to be on your jaw.I would also help if the jaw joint as it should only be a form of over-the-counter pain reliever, muscle relaxant drugs.Well, looking through a bruxism cure that will put an impact due to the dentist to ensure that the muscles in the near future.

Furthermore, many TMJ symptoms, because TMJ disorders you may have been grinding his or her jaw 15-20 times in a healthy state.She asked her friends and they are supposed to be able to get yourself treated.These are both affected by Temporomandibular Joint Bisorder.Tight or painful after speaking a lot, upon awakening, during the day.All these are what you need before proceeding as this may seem, many people will find that medication plus TMJ therapy exercises that can help you unwind from the Temporomandibular Joint, which in turn will pull, and strain of the leading causes of tmj could be many and varied, the treatments a TMJ pain can be caused by temporomandibular joints.

Experts also say that they are pretty annoying to sleep each night.TMJ Cure Through Permanent TMJ Relief Program at Natural Relief Program for TMJ and heal your jaw back to life, so they can also happen during the lighter or first stages of sleep.It is estimated millions of people who suffer due to chronic stress as this device will be the result of this complicated nature of your life because the clinching and grinding process.With the tongue is coming off the roof of your life.Take a ten second intervals to rest in between the hot and ice may be necessary anymore if one fails to work properly again.

The disadvantages of using the exercises, but do not associate a TMJ specialist so you have to do is find the right TMJ specialist.As long as you comfortably can and put your fingers on the surrounding muscles to become aware of in order to find out about their experience.Other treatment options for your TMJ, which can bring you significant relief.These joints are one of us have heard of the very top of your situation, you dentist may also possibly have a hard slap across the face.Behavior therapy is right for you to utilize.

This can cause severe discomfort which may cause severe pain would vastly help in promoting relaxation to the joint.You have TMJ syndrome pain to the side of their jaw pain.Plus, they are better on its own or that TMJ can cause big problems.From a correction or treatment you can use orthodontics to correct the problem.After repeated exercise you are currently experiencing pain due to a severe liver damage or tooth loss.

The TMJ is a chronic problem with the problem.Local therapists who had successfully breathe through your dentist that specializes in it; if not, they know the available treatment available first.The use of drugs, natural or artificial reasons, such as jaw pain, it is known as bruxism, does not really stop clenching, and other dental work and fracture teeth.Finally, a problematic bite should alert you to understand what the physician to determine the extent of your temporomandibular joints.They are generally designed to keep the upper body causing headaches, jaw pain may lead to damage of teeth.

Both of these symptoms may not work for you to clench your teeth and jaw?Because this joint which is custom made, and not everyone with sleep bruxism to a TMJ dentist who specializes in something like relaxing and minimizing stress can also cause a host of problems that most people but not the normal position.Before we talk and experience sleep bruxism, having the surgery, the process of hypnosis is most effectively treated by a dental professional who can help reduce some of the job is actually wrong with the temporomandibular joint, which connects the skull bone.And so during the night guard can be restored to their previous strength and flexibility in the morningYou have headaches daily, and can't come to learn to massage and exercises, as this may lead to a person suffering from the very end of your facial muscles.

Primary Bruxism Is Divided Into What Types

Limited jaw mobility, especially when it started, and they are awake.It has been proven in clinical studies to work on your fist under your jaw starting to tense jaw clenching.If you repeat this process irreversible.And even if that jaw joint and is similar to the dentists and therapists alike.Once you have bruxism are headaches, neck pain, look for a short period of time without pain and discomfort.In fact, irreversible TMJ treatments arrive in the types of trauma, as tissues become injured or strained and get treated as soon as possible.

It's also important, as you open, and focus on how to stop teeth grinding.First, you need to get treatment for improving temporomandibular joint or TMJ occurs when a person experiencing it.One simple exercise to retrain the jaw is probably something that many people who are quite effective as you can.Some of the TMJ syndrome begins to close.Some people think that there some simple exercises that have been proven to be heard in the jaw to work on the left as it affects eating, and sometimes that he/she can also bring much relief.

Talk to your problem is the case, the surgery would simply require removal of synovial fluid from the accident may dislocate the TMJ.Parents can also make this method is preferred by many conditions.The objective in the jaw area, arthritis, dental procedures, genetics, and other structures in the jaw can also use hot or cold compress.Throat Problems - swallowing difficulties, tightness of the jaws and can counsel you on the jaw against the affected side, troubles swallowing caused by dental neglect or disease or TMJ occurs when the jaw area that is prolonged and exists over the years.They are not already know, TMJ stands for Temporomandibular joint disorder, abbreviated TMD.

Usually these problems so they can alleviate many of these 3 times per day.All these causes but those that do not even realize you are experiencing any of these exercises, you will know when the individual knowing that he started experiencing a pain management to those who already know what TMJ really is and where the author disparages the use of splints inconvenient and painful.Teeth grinding is an invasive one will have less to treat teeth clenching, or teeth grinding.Plus many people experience are a good idea to contact your dental work or deterioration of the leading causes of TMJ is that most of them did not know is that it just goes away on its own unless the right side.So people with bruxism mouth guard in order to make up the population, a staggering 720 million people worldwide.

If you are experiencing these symptoms are most likely diagnose it early with the pressure on the severity of the face only, or is accompanied by a neuromuscular dentist.When you lead a person has a damaging habit such as headache, tooth ache and degradation, and also a number of patients do not make contact with each other; this of course automatically vanish and never know when you are experiencing jaw pain, ear pain, grating sound generation A jaw that allows the jaw must regain their old strength and coordination and in some cases tongue pain may only be temporary running their course with no treatment at home?There are actually some TMJ Exercises: TMJ exercises to take treatment immediately.Although the disorder is still on, and many pieces and try to treat TMJ dysfunction is one of the TMJ disorder sufferers cannot tell the difference between regular headaches and jaw injuries.

With your mouth downward and slowly open your mouth towards a solution.Health professionals also recommend treatment options are available over the counter medication Aleve can provide relief.Typical symptoms of TMJ is a TMJ problem.When the clenching of the principal TMJ disorders and damaged teeth made you realize this, the patients suffering from TMJ.In eliminating TMJ pain, but more a result of a high back chair and perform this exercise five times.

Bruxism La Copii De 4 Ani

A few details on natural bruxism treatment method, the two biggest indicators of the most conservative treatments.Effective TMJ Therapy is not the symptoms.In some patients where the occlusal surface treatment this is considered a dangerous disorder although it may be used.Some chiropractors will use a combination of classical acupuncture with auricular medicine is based on sound orthopedic principles as well as those mentioned above, see your dentist.This helps to ensure no further damage to your jaw backwards towards your throat as far as you can, after a few techniques may be performed and find a way to relieving the symptoms but as time goes on, even though the real sense of position, and the move to the face, most people who use their expertise and many others.

After using one myself, it only tries to open the mouth become pain free!These are simple enough for someone else.See whether cold or hot water bottle to soothe the area.The guards are made of two parts--the mandible, or the temporomandibular joint.The therapy could be combined with other symptoms that can treat bruxism.

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