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modx-reborn · 3 years

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It Dosen't Feel Like Falling

One of the three fic's I have been working on! I felt like it was high time I did another DreamXD piece and as I do write for Philza that I do a full piece with him in it.

This is inspired by an ask I had gotten once. So! Here we are, two in one!

SMUT UNDERCUT! MINORS DNI!

Old gods, new, gods, server gods, the minor gods with the name of admin. You had met them all, served under just as many as you had met and yet here you are, serving another serve god when you could have branched off, made your own server, reached beyond what you had been before but no of that seemed appealing to you. Days of crafting landscapes, months of an empty plane as mortals come and go not settling as you would have invited them to do, just a total lack of appeal.

But working under one of the established gods? Now that you can do, this is familiar and easy to work around, even if this was the third server you had served in.

Unlike the others, this servers god was very shall we say inactive in the early days of the server, not really doing much bar sending you to pass messages to the admins and keep the portal to the server clear of the unwelcome.

In doing this you met someone new, a traveller with letters from the server tales of what had been going on with one of the mortals that had been building and bombing each other as of late. Each time he came to the server entrance he would wave the letters at you, asking when he could come through even just for a visit to the one sending the messages, but every time you only could tell him 'No one comes to visit here, if you step through you cannot leave.'

Each time you told him the same look would pass over his face as he looked at the portal, longing but confused, it's not till he comes back with no letter in sight just his cloak and a small bag that you get a name and an explanation for his eagerness for a visit.

His name was Philza, a man that much like yourself had spent years serving one of the older gods and earning his title of the angel of death, and through the portal lay his son. A young man he called Wilbur, telling you this and that from the letters, flitting every now and then to the bag to reach for something only to change his mind, likely some of his son's letters lay inside.

The visit felt like a bid for him to earn your favour so that he could eventually walk the path to the server his son had settled in, yet time and time again he returns. No letters insight, but looking to hold a conversation with you, enjoying the access to someone that may be just as old as he is, if not older, it's enjoyable, to say the least having someone to chatter with on these long periods that you spend perched on top of the entrance portal.

It's almost a friendship if not for the vast difference in your roles, especially when the day comes that he holds an actual invite to the server, the portal is now open to him and he looks so happy as he calls to you. Excitedly calling out that he was finally going to see his son, that even if he couldn't come back the way he came right this second he was finally going to see the person he had been so eager to visit.

But we all know how that tale ends, you were unfortunate enough to have not been at the portal that day, standing beside the server god as he flicks through image after image of the server. Marking areas and places for things to come, writing out invites that will beckon new faces and bring new activities, but one of the images hold stead against the shifting masses, an image of the large settlement that had been in strife since day one.

There amongst the rubble stands your friend, the crow winged man Philza, cradling the body of what you assumed to be his son.

That was death, a final one for this server of three lives, the list of active mortals blinks with two lost names, but your god XD barely reacts, casting his hand across the list and marking their deaths as true, there would be no coming back from that not without XD stepping in and granting them life once again.

Days after that are spent in the endless white halls of the server gods realm, pointing other servants of the world to their duties, never far from the main hub where XD would oversee the server.

"My lord, if I may I have a question for you?"

"And what would that be little one? It is not often one of you who serve have questions."

"I just wanted to ask about the crow, I grew rather fond of him when he was attempting to visit the realm in the early days and I-"

"No."

The abrupt answer stops your questioning, most times anyone talks with XD he is not this blunt, rather sticking to the vague and avoidance of clear answers and yet here he is, clearly expressing a dismissal of your question and bringing more questions to mind.

"My lord what do you mean-"

"It means no little one. No, I will not tell you about the crow or what he may be up to. No, I will not let you into the server to see him, and it means no more questions are to be asked do you understand?"

Server gods do tend to be possesive of their underlings in the presence of other gods, but the crow was a mortal now, bound to a law of another server that was allowed to carry over with him. Blessed or cursed depending on the person, to have only one life and one life alone, but the way XD had reacted was beyond how he would when any of those in his service would be baited into another gods control.

Yet you had not served as long as you had to know that blind loyalty would get you what you want, letting the subject drop and returning to your watch over the server alongside XD.

The moment you had an excuse to leave his side, being called to aid one of the admins in cleaning something from the server did you start to act out. Leaving the admins side to search out Philza, using the knowledge you have of how often XD was watching to weave your way around till you found him, sitting locked away in a house amongst the rebuilt city. Knocking against his door before slipping in, knowing that XD rarely watched inside the mortal's homes, not being interested in watching what went on inside.

This was all you needed to anchor a point of entry for yourself in the home of the crow, watching how his face lit up at the sight of you, springing to his feet and reaching out to take your hands in his own. Seeming excessively happy at the sight of you, pulling you into another room of his home offering you a seat and something to drink, accepting despite knowing you would get nothing out of the substance.

"Been a long time since I last saw you mate! How have you been? Still posted out by the portal, or have you been moved?"

"No no I am no longer by the portal, X-Ahh the lord prefers to have me help with the observations. Actually, I am not even meant to be here right now..."

The look you cast at him when you admit to breaking the god's rule is pure mischief, one that he returns with a slight laugh, knowing exactly what it has been like to the same.

"Well regardless I am glad to have some company, not many people come round these days. Landed myself on the-ahh wrong side of things for the moment, tried to keep someone safe is all."

The visit is short knowing that you would be cutting it close even as you left Philza's home, quickly returning to the post you had abandoned temporarily, not even batting an eye when XD looks down at you. He may not have visible eyes when he wears the mask that mimics his head admin, but you can feel the way he looks at you, trying to unravel just why you were so happy now that you were back.

Things are quick to change between you and the server god when you would normally stand beside him, now one of his many hands are keeping you seated in his lap, unrelenting in their grip on your waist. Trapped in the truest sense and even when you dare to attempt to ask why the only response you are given is a distorted 'mine' and the hands-on you waist tightening their grip.

There are a few more sneaky visits to Philza when you are allowed onto the server, your friendship shifting more and more each time, the hands the guide you to sit in his now tundra bound home linger longer than before, friendly gaze now turning dark when you come in your less casual and more revealing clothes meant for the work you had been planned to aid in.

Somedays even having to bat him away as he follows you back to your return point, laughing when he grabs you trying to keep you from the portal back, enjoying the time you spend together and basking in the understanding that another servant of the gods can bring. Letting yourself slip further from the idea of friendship as well, welcoming the lingering touch and brushing your hands over some of the dark feathers as you pass him by.

All in all, it is a dance around each other to find out who will be the first to falter and give in, enjoying the play as much as you do the person you are playing with despite the way you know in the back of your mind that XD is watching, building to whatever punishment may be coming for defying him and his 'No' from so long ago.

But the punishment you face is so different from what you had in mind, thoughts of being stripped of your service and made mortal being the main ones and yet this outcome is not unwelcome after all these days under watch and quite blatantly breaking a rule that had been set for you and you alone.

Today had been another chance to break free of the hands holding you to the server god, another day that you could spend with someone that had become dear to you. But when it came time to leave Philza's lingering hands stop you, pulling you close and pressing his head to your own, eyes flicking across your face before he speaks.

"You don't have to leave you know dove, you could stay here for a little while longer..."

And so you are made weak, nodding and giving in, letting him lead you back into his home, hands pulling at each other's clothes and stripping down till skin meets skin. Minds to caught in each other to feel the static building in the air, foretelling the arrival of someone that had laid claim to you long before the crow had even known of anything like you.

It's the moment when you are bent over, braced on all fours as he holds your hips to his, buried in you, leaning over you to place more marks on your bare skin looking forward to the blooming marks that will likely not survive past the next few hours, not that he cared. But in how you moan at the feeling of his lips on your skin, you hear the static once again only this time it's not just noise.

Before you forms XD, your lord, god of the server and from how green light is spilling from the cracks of his mask, and his ever manifested hands reach for you lifting your head and pulling you away from the hybrid that had been fucking into you and making you sing, the actual physical hand of your lord wraps around your throat not squeezing just reminding you that he is in control.

His mask is tilted away from you, pointed at the man behind you, whose hands have once again found their way to your hips hoping beyond hope to pull you back and away from the being that had just manifest in his home.

"They are MINE crow, not yours. There is nothing here for you, no matter what you may think, no matter what may happen they are mine."

Any words that may have come from you is lost when your lord's grip falters for a mere second allowing you to be pulled back and into Philza's chest when he speaks, the ghostly hands of XD now pressing into your mouth silencing you as they press against your tongue, a clear show that this was between the hybrid and the god.

"I do believe they chose me mate, seeing as they are here with me, breaking your rules and taking my cock like a good little thing. Not yours."

The pressure on your jaw increases for a moment before distorted laughter fills the air, the bottom half of XD's mask dissolving to show a sharp smile, the display nothing but teeth in truth.

"Maybe so crow but so long as they serve me, they will belong to me. You can have your fun, but not alone."

The few sections of the conversation that reach your mind are muddled the moment your legs are spread once again, still pressed flush to Philza's chest he is quick to lift and line himself up once again, using how you are seated in his lap to have you sink down on his length, once again being fully sheathed in you. While the ethereal hands in your mouth dissipate letting you release an almost feral noise at being filled once again.

To soon after your mouth is emptied are you being pulled forward, the hands of your lord forcing you down onto all fours, putting you at the perfect height for him to press the head of his cock to your lips using the way your mouth falls open as Philza starts to move to press in, weaving a hand into your hair guiding you further and further down his length with every jolt forwards.

The god's doubled voice was louder than the sounds of skin on skin, and even your own choked noises.

"That's it little one, take all of me. It's time you knew your place, you can play with the mortals all you like but you will always come back to me. Always."

And he was right, even if you kept sneaking down here to see philza there were things beyond explanation that bound you too XD, and yet feeling the way Philza was fucking you, thrusting with little care for how it was making you almost choke on the length that was already pressing into your throat was intoxicating in its own way.

There was nothing to prepare you for what was about to come, hearing XD release a breath before his hips begin moving in a proper sense, short thrusts turning to rough snaps of his hips, using your mouth to chase his own pleasure. Watching how tears began to build and fall from your eyes, his smile still nothing but teeth as he fucks your face at the same pace as Philza was.

Neither mortal nor god was caring at that moment for anything beyond showing you their claim on you, from the drool that had slicked your chin as XD kept up his brutal use of your throat, to the bruising grip on your hips as Philza finally begins to find his end. The crow hybrid giving in to the feeling of you clutching around him even though throughout this ordeal neither of them had been focused on your own pleasure.

Selfish they may have been, but there is something that feels so good about being pressed between a mortal that had worked his way into your care and the god of which you had sworn service to, despite the voice in the back of your mind that whines when Philza pulls himself from you his hands moving from your hips to spreading your cheeks to watch how his cum drips from your hole there is nothing but want still colouring your thoughts.

Strings of spit connect you too XD when he pulls free from your mouth, ethereal hands once more form to grab at you, pulling you away from Philza and into the god's lap.

"What comes next little one is for my eyes only."

You can feel a brief moment when Philza tried to reach for you, fingers slipping through the fading form of you and the server god, leaving him alone on his bed.

#c: philza #c: dreamxd #dsmp smut #k: face fucking #k: marking #possessive behavior #mxad

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zeta-in-de-walls · 2 years

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Okay, now I’m gonna give a little history of the band Take That. (Sorry random recent obsession of mine.) So they were formed in 1990. Their most recent album came out in 2019 I believe. So yeah they’ve kinda been around for a while. xD

Now as it happens, this band was not a group of friends coming together with the great idea of making music. In fact the band was manufactured when their future manager had this great idea of creating the perfect boyband. He modelled it on New Kids on the Block and went on the hunt for five boys that would be sure to make it big!

Things started well when he discovered this kid called Gary Barlow who had already been singing every night in some pub like establishment and even better he was also writing his own music. He impressed the manager with the track a million songs, which he’d written when he was 15 and was surprisingly good.

But he needed more than some pretty tunes. That’s cool but not really what a boyband needs. What a proper boyband needs is image. It needs to be iconic, full of character, it needs to be outrageous and attractive. So he found himself a cute boy, a more muscular sexy boy, a cheeky rebellious boy, and a quiet boy with killer dancing moves.

Yeah dancing! The band had to do lots and lots of dancing. All five of them doing dance routines together. It meant they could put on quite the show. So besides Gary, there was Jason Orange, Mark Owen, Howard Donald and Robbie Williams.

And they went big.

Like they were insanely popular at their peak in the 90s. They developed a really rabid fanbase really quickly. Of mostly teenage girls. They were massive, they were having consecutive number one hits and massive concerts and had fans who would stalk them everywhere. It was quite the phenomenon. (Mostly contained in the UK though they were popular in Europe too.)

So they did well for a few years but then there issues. A lot of internal conflict. All they were thinking about was growing and being big and the band and life was moving fast and they weren’t really taking care of each other. It hit Robbie the worst, he was the youngest and got into heavily drinking and taking drugs and just recklessly. There was also a ton of friction between him and Gary. Gary had seen himself as most important what with the songwriting and he tended to monopolise taking lead vocals too. And there probably a lot of other issues as well. Who knows? Either way, the band confronted Robbie, asking him if he was taking it seriously and Robbie left the band.

A year later, things weren’t the same and the band broke up in 1996. Sobbing teens across the country (no literally - the Govt had to set up a helpline for the heartbroken fans).

Gary tried going solo which failed when Robbie went solo much, much more successfully. Robbie was incredibly charming and also bitter about the band and had no kind things to say and the press at up his narrative so the rest of the band faded into obscurity as Robbie achieved bigger and bigger success, becoming the biggest UK male Solo artist. He was Robbie Williams. He’d shed his boy band image.

Flashforward to 2005. The old band minus Robbie have a documentary and reunion and it turns out that the world misses Take That. So they decide to tour together as a four-piece and unexpectedly it all works. They’ve settled all their issues now all a bit older and wiser than the hectic life they’d been thrown into as teenagers with far less control over their lives.

And so the decide to try the whole band thing again and release a new album with new songs that they all wrote together, now working more as equals, all getting the chance to sing lead vocals and just generally working together so much more smoothly. They take the world by storm releasing number 1 singles and a number 1 album and just generally having the best comeback of all time.

And it continues. Another sell-out tour and then another album and they finally reunite properly and reconcile with Robbie Williams and they join together as a five-piece once more, 15 years after they split apart. They are incredibly successful. It’s a good story of reconciling and talking out their problems and realising they’d both done things wrong and that there was a lot of pain because there was a lot of love their too. And they’re all much, much happier for it.

So a couple years later, Robbie goes off to do solo stuff once more, bt they’re now on good terms and he can rejoin whenever he likes. Jason also decides to leave the band for personal reasons (likely needing a break from the life).

They’re down to three members so they decide to stay with it, even naming their next album III. It’s been years now so they’re not as big anymore but they’re still sticking around and their tours are all sell-out tours because their concerts are literally unparalleled. They release another couple albums, get involved in more stuff like a musical and even a potential Take That movie.

They’ll probably do another album in a year or so, they’re all fathers these days and have a lot going on but they’re still Take That. A band that is just kinda beloved. They’re the sort of group you want to root for, having started as a cringy boyband and grew up and allowed their music to mature with them. And they respect their past and love to play their old songs without relying on nostalgia either and its good to see that they can put differences aside and work out their problems. Fam has been a real rollercoaster with big highs and lows. Amidst all that, they’ve released a lot of great music.

#sorry guys don't mind this #i jus had to ramble #zeta talks about takethat #aah i probably missed out all the interesting stuff #i didn't even mention some of the insanity of their early stuff #let's just say their was a lot of revealing outfits and flirtiness between bandmembers #actually some of that never stopped

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angelanimedesaray · 3 years

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Through the Looking Glass Chapter 9: April

AN: I’m getting ahead of the question now and stating that in this world, AOT isn’t an anime (Poor souls). So no, the Reader isn’t going to become omnipotent to Levi’s life/world.

They did not binge this in one day. The first round, for sure they did, but it was a little broken up in spurts. For the sake of brevity, considering this was already going to be a long chapter, I cut out all the flickering back and forth and just focused on their Movie Nights and them watching the show.

It might feel a weird mix of rushed and long, because they’re watching the entirety of Your Lie In April, but I wasn’t going to transcribe the whole show, so there’s a lot of summarizing and cutting things out and highlighting certain pieces, but its still long because there’s a LOT to cover.

Also because of how emotional this chapter is actually going to be, I want to just remind...that Levi is like, mid teens, and hasn’t gone through much of the stuff that adult Levi has been through, so in my mind, that justifies a bit more of a REACTION for some of this stuff. But he’s still Levi, and he’s still going to be reserved and such, just...not as controlled as Adult Levi.

This whole chapter is like one big lead up to the next chapter, funnily enough. XD

Also got to listen to “Constellation” by Far Out feat. Karra on repeat writing this. It felt so fitting!

I’m putting quotes from Your Lie in April in italics with quotes and an indent like this, so its clear that they came from the show. Levi’s thoughts/memories will just be in italics, no indention .

Characters: Levi, Reader

Pairing: (Eventual Levi x Reader)

Warnings: SPOILERS FOR “YOUR LIE IN APRIL”, Angst, FEELINGS, Language

Word Count: 10994

<----Previous Chapter Masterlist Next Chapter---->

*Levi’s POV*

At long last, Y/N was finally going to show him those movie, show things she kept talking about. He knew plays and acting and putting on an act, but the concept of a show that was saved so you could watch it whenever you wanted without having to make people do it over and over was novel to him.

Boisterously proclaiming that it was going to be a “Movie Night” day, she’d grabbed his hand and dragged him after her like she’d used to do when they were young, despite his protests. To be fair, he didn’t try too hard to wiggle away, either, letting her pull him along to the living room as she fussed and tried to decide what they were going to watch.

After all of her attempts to explain what a movie or TV show was, she decided that the best way to explain it to him was just to show him, though she still had to stop and explain the type of show they were watching.

“Okay, so what I’m showing you right now, is actually called an anime. It’s a type of animation from a country called Japan, and it’s made from computers or hand drawn. They draw the story, picture by picture, and put it together to make the characters and such move, with actors doing their voices and recording it in time with the pictures, sound effects like bells and wind also being saved, background music, so on and so forth,” she explained as she cut up pieces of paper and layered them on top of each other, pulling out a pencil and drawing a circle on each page, moving its position slightly each time. “See, if you do it frame by frame, and then move it really fast, it's like the ball is bouncing--animation, and anime, works off the same concept, except they’re drawing everything,” she continued to explain, grabbing the bottom page and then letting the papers rapidly spring free, causing Levi to see the ball she drew appear to move along the page, even though he knew it was a bunch of individual drawings going by rapidly.

“They draw a solid background that doesn’t move, and then they add another layer on top that you can see through like glass, but they draw the moving parts on that layer, so it looks like they’re in the solid background and they’re walking and whatnot. It’s really cool--makes me wish I could draw,” she continued, putting aside the papers she’d used for her demonstration and picking up the controller so she could get them started, gesturing for Levi to take a seat on the couch. “I haven’t seen this one yet, but a friend recommended I watch it cause I love music, and I play the piano, and she said it was a really good coming of age story. I’m a little wary cause she said she wanted my reaction to the end, but she usually suggests stuff I love, so I’m gonna trust it,” she continued to babble as the screen lit up with colors and pictures like a computer screen, most of it nonsensical to Levi as she shifted rapidly past most of it looking for the specific show.

She stopped on something extremely colorful, blues and yellows and pinks and reds in vibrant color with four drawn people lying in what looked like the sky, and she abruptly turned to face him. “Are you okay with having to read what they say? The original is in a different language, so it’ll have subtitles at the bottom translating what they say. There are other versions where they redid the speaking parts in different languages, but I really like listening to the original--I feel like it really gets the emotions across because it's so well done.”

Levi hesitated for a moment, contemplating her offer of putting it in a language they understood or keeping the original and having to read what they were saying. Eventually, he just shrugged. “Whichever you want.”

“Subtitles it is,” she said, turning back to the TV and messing with a few things before she finally started the show, coming over to sit by him on the couch. He was sitting normally, his ankle propped up on his leg with one arm resting against the back of the couch, the other lying casually in his lap. Y/N, however, sat directly beside him, his arm behind her shoulders and her side pressed slightly against his, causing Levi to glance at her, mind flashing back to how she’d sat at the piano with him not too long ago. She wasn’t even glancing at him, though, gradually relaxing next to him like a kitten curling up to get warm, her eyes fixed on the colorful display that was now on the TV.

Turning his attention back to the TV, Levi studied the images in front of him, a cheerful bit of piano music fluttering towards them as vibrant and colorful images of a girl chasing a black cat moved seamlessly across the screen, much smoother than the quickly drawn bouncing ball Y/N had put together to describe what they would be watching.

If she was trying to sneak a peak of his reaction, she would catch his eyes had widened at the vibrant colors and amazing detail, the realistic sounds that came through and made him want to check and see if the piano behind them was being played, or there were people hiding somewhere making the character’s voices and singing the song as the scene suddenly shifted to what Y/N described to him as an intro, a quick prologue of sorts that set the tone of the show. Thankfully, however, she’d already explained to him that the sounds were done beforehand, recorded and somehow stored so it would be repeated to the images on the screen as they watched.

It was a little...outside his realm of understanding, how it all worked, and he had the sneaking suspicion he’d just have to accept that it just was and he needed to sit back and try to enjoy it. That was how a show was supposed to work, right? And that was exactly what Y/N seemed to be doing.

As she had warned him, the characters were speaking an entirely different language, so Levi couldn’t understand what was being said on its own. Thankfully, there were the subtitles to translate, Levi’s gaze flickering between reading the small letters to looking at the colorful screen to see what was happening, trying not to get too caught up in the details he didn’t understand, like the games the kids were playing, and how different the environment was even to what he saw in Y/N’s world.

At least the basic stuff he could easily make sense of--the main character was obviously the quiet and reserved, black haired, blue eyed pianist Kousei, and the characters were around Levi and Y/N’s age. The point of the story wasn’t clear yet, but she’d explained this was going to be episodic--it would be played like chapters in a novel, stopping at the end of a chapter before they would have to start the next one. So it might be a while before he started catching that. Right now, they were meeting characters, finding out their relationship to one another and getting hints at the history between them all.

Like the fact that Kousei lived alone because his father was absent, and his mother was deceased. She’d succumbed to illness when he was still young. That alone had the stirrings of empathy settling in Levi’s chest for the main character. He couldn’t relate to the abuse, but the desire to make her better, that somehow he could do something to make her feel better did resonate. It made him listen to their conversations a bit more, since he already had a foothold and something relatable.

Once he started drawing comparisons to the story unfolding in front of him, he couldn’t stop noticing them.

“The moment I met him, my life changed. Everything I saw, heard, and felt. All the scenery around me started to take on color. The whole world began to sparkle.”

A world of monotone, devoid of color, until he meets a certain vibrant youth who brings a sudden rush of color and life into the world around her, dragging Kousei in by the hand--as if he could ever resist the force of nature she was.

Hm. He wondered who that reminded him of.

He didn’t even notice when the “chapter” ended and the next started, his gaze flickering subtly towards Y/N on the couch beside him, appearing just as taken by the story as he already was.

However, this new chapter did bring about new questions, and was a bit closer to his grasp of understanding after watching Y/N play music for so long.

“Do you ever do competitions?” Levi asked as the characters walked around the competition and the history Kousei had at this specific building was teased, easily able to see that there was a piano on the stage despite it being a violin competition. Surely if there were competitions for violins, there were for pianos?

She shook her head, chewing slightly on her lower lip as she answered him. “No way--I play piano for myself and a few people. I’m not looking to make a career of it or become famous for it. Not to mention, I don’t think I’m cut out for competitions. There’s a lot of pressure, and they’re really strict about playing the pieces exactly how they were originally written. I want to play the piano how I feel, and that’s not always by paying attention to how it's written on the sheet.”

“And violins? What are they like?” he asked. He hadn’t seen or heard a violin yet, and was curious to hear what they would sound like.

“They’re a string instrument--portable, small. Really beautiful, too--they’re my second favorite instrument. They usually pair wonderfully with pianos--I’m pretty sure it’s common for a piano to accompany a violin in shows and competitions.”

Levi hushed with his questions again as the scenes playing out on the TV continued to unfold and the first violin performer took the stage, Levi hearing the light and lively music of the violin for the first time, the same song being performed over and over by the nondescript and nameless musicians on the stage in the show.

Beside him, Y/N was slowly tilting her head side to side as she listened to the music being played, eyes fixed on the screen. She must have felt almost in her element watching this, while Levi felt a bit more like Tsubaki, not understanding a lot of the names and such that were being thrown around by the characters in discussion, but still there to enjoy it nonetheless. When Kousei was tapping his fingers on the armchair to the piano music, Levi’s gaze flickered to Y/N to see if she was doing something similar, since she seemed focused on the music as well. It wasn’t as precise as Kousei, maybe she wasn’t playing every note in her head, but her fingers were lightly tapping against her legs like she wanted to be playing the keys on the piano.

Then came Kaori’s first performance.

Watching, Levi felt a familiarity in the girl’s intensity, once again reminded of the girl sitting next to him, who seemed to throw herself into every aspect of life around her--at least compared to him. There was a tension in the air, a feeling that this was going to be much different than the music they’d been hearing up until this point. Even Y/N had stilled next to him, eyes riveted to the girl on the screen.

The first notes were shocking. After listening to Y/N play the piano for so long, even his unprofessional, inexperienced ear could hear the shift in the sound, and how rich and deep it suddenly was. Beside him, Y/N shifted into a more upright position, eyes suddenly lighting up and sparkling as she leaned forward, her breath catching. The ripple through the audience wasn’t just in the show, but in reality, as the two of them on the couch suddenly focused entirely on Kaori’s performance.

The girl’s eyes flashed on screen, and the music suddenly leapt to life before them, making his own heart seem to pound a little faster, the sounds pleasant and uplifting to his ears, making him restless in a good way. It sounded similar to when Y/N played the piano with him that one day, not necessarily in skill, but in the life and emotion that was in it.

Like Y/N, Kaori was pouring herself into her playing, she shone brightly through in the piece, made like it was pulling back a curtain to reveal a part of her soul. Kousei even said as much, stating that Kaori was making the piece hers and hers alone.

The performance ended, and Y/N suddenly grabbed his arm with a squeal. “That was awesome! I’m going to have to find a recording of that!” she said breathlessly. Her excitement was infectious, and almost prompted Levi towards a smile as they slowly settled back onto the couch, the story progressing in front of them.

She was such a stark contrast to the black haired youth in front of her, the whirlwind to his reserved personality, but even she would show flashes of vulnerability, for his eyes only, it seemed. And he did what he could to hide what he could in order to protect her, without her ever knowing, probably.

Wait, was he still thinking about Kaori and Kousei?

Levi shook his head, focusing back on what was happening, reading Kousei’s contemplations about how he could still hear the refrain of the music Kaori played in the competition he witnessed, over and over.

Levi’s fingers tapped slightly against the back of the couch and in his lap, barely tapping out the melodies for the song they’d played on the piano the other day, music he heard even when he was alone with his thoughts in his own world, still able to feel her fingers aligned with his, guiding him through each key. He’d find himself tapping them out in rare moments of idleness, like he was still clinging to the memory of the sound even if he didn’t have a piano in his world.

Y/N shifted entirely back to her relaxed position against Levi’s side, head brushing briefly against his shoulder and making his skin tingle where the brief contact had been, his stomach squirming.

Kaori dragged poor Kousei around everywhere, usually into situations far out of his comfort zone, and far more aggressively than a certain someone sitting beside him. However, it seemed like more often then not, those situations were wonderful places that he wouldn’t have found or experienced on his own.

She brought color to his monochrome life.

Where he was hidden in shadows, she was cast in light, and she didn’t hesitate to pull him into the sun.

”I know you’re broken and beat up, but I want you. I choose you. I want you here.”

The beginning chapters seemed to fly by quickly, with Kaori pushing Kousei more and more, and beside Levi, Y/N seemed to be slowly wiggling closer to him. Was it intentional? Did she realize she was doing it? He did--he seemed hypersensitive to every motion, yet he didn’t pull away, didn’t even twitch. He stayed still, like sudden movement might frighten her away as easily as a stray cat.

As intriguing as the events on the screen were--and he was taking in the information, such as how Kousei used to have a black cat, how he couldn’t hear the sound of the piano after his mother died and quit piano directly afterwards, important stuff like that--Levi’s thoughts kept wandering as he watched.

He thought of how beautiful the trees with the pink petals were, how breathtaking every scene with them was, and how prominently they seemed to feature in every scene that had something meaningful going on. Y/N called them cherry blossom trees. He wanted to see one. What would it look like? What would the scene be if he stood under one with her?

Before he knew it, Kaori had cornered Kousei into accompanying her on the piano, and they were rushing towards another performance. Anticipation stirred in the air between him and Y/N, both of them wondering how this piece would sound, considering Kousei had already been framed as a child prodigy on the piano, and they knew Kaori was breathtaking. What would it sound like when they played together? Levi worried about how it would turn out, how Kousei seemed to be unraveling in front of them just before they went up on stage.

Before Kaori gave him a literal smack to get him out of his own head.

As lighthearted and carefree as she seemed to be, every now and then, she would drop these little petals of wisdom.

Levi’s gaze flickered to Y/N again.

Her eyes would shift from a sparkle that almost seemed naive to a depth he hadn’t expected to see, and she’d say something that seemed beyond her years.

“Go on a journey. A man away from home need feel no shame.”

“Natural. Bizarre. It’s like this girl herself is the journey with no clear destination.”

“You’re Freedom Itself.”

The couple took the stage. The song started out slow, sensual, peaceful. It reminded him slightly of the song Y/N taught him.

Before, predictably, Kaori brought her wild, fast paced playing back, bringing liveliness to the performance. It started beautifully, but just as the music seemed to portray some kind of descent, Kousei lost sense of the notes, the sound distorted even for them, listening, as if they were Kousei, only able to faintly hear Kaori while the rest sounded muffled, strangled out by water. When they were allowed to hear the sound again, it was off, it sounded harsh and jarring, out of sync. Not at all pleasant.

Considering the earlier mentioned problems, he should have known this wasn’t going to be a perfect and completely enjoyable performance. It was grating, and while he understood the emotional significance of seeing Kousei give up halfway through, his ears were a little grateful by that point.

The surprise was seeing Kaori stop as well. He’d thought perhaps something would urge Kousei to start playing again, but he hadn’t expected Kaori to stop in the process. Beside him, Y/N seemed to be biting on her thumbnail, her brows furrowed as she watched the screen in concern, a frown on her face, leg shifting restlessly around on the couch as she suddenly curled closer to Levi, directly against his side, oblivious to the surprised look he shot her because she was so focused with what was happening on the screen.

“Maybe there’s only a dark road up ahead. But you still have to believe and keep going. Believe that the stars will light your path, even a little bit.”

Kaori began to play again, the sound of just the violin playing on its own sounding lonely and out of place, especially when he knew there should be a piano playing with it. All they needed was for Kousei to play again. Would he? No excuses, Kaori needed his support, and Levi found himself silently judging Kousei, mentally pushing him to help her, to play, because that was what she needed from him.

”So what was it that you saw in me?”

“But you have me! Look up, and look at me. Look at me.”

Kousei starting to play again was a relief, even if it wasn’t quite right at first. After a bit of inner reflection, some time where they spent listening to the underwater sounds, it all faded away, and a soft scene of a mother and son filled the screen. The mother’s softly sung lullaby was soothing, and as it shifted to a scene of the sky, Levi’s eyes widened at the brilliant beauty it was, the range of color, of blues and whites and even some purples and pinks. How it sparkled and shimmered, stirring up emotions he didn’t know he’d buried somewhere inside him as he suddenly felt small again, curled up in a nest of soft warmth, staring out a small window up towards the sky high above him for the first time, gazing in wonder at the stars and moon that glittered high above him.

Words from one of the many times Y/N had played the piano for him drifted to his mind. How she had perceived her music had struck some kind of chord with him, even if he wasn’t saying anything--even when he realized he had no words to describe what he was feeling listening to her play that single song. He remembered how she’d told him that the point, what made music with her time, was how it could communicate what couldn’t be said with mere words.

The music shifted, and Kousei finally began to play, and the sound was enrapturing. There were no words--it could only be felt, what was happening between the boy at the piano and the girl with the violin.

Could he find a violin in his world? Could he learn to play it, so he could play with Y/N like Kousei played with Kaori? Would they manage to produce something similar, something wonderful like that? What would it feel like? What would the sound between them be? What would it say?

”I can hear your sound.”

So caught up in his thoughts, in the raw emotion and the music that had just enraptured them both, Levi was caught off guard when the mood took another shift.

He tensed, hand gripping the back of the couch a little harder as the sound faded away into an echo as Kaori suddenly collapsed. The hairs on the back of his neck seemed to raise, warning him of something incoming, even though there was no physical threat. He had a bad feeling, suddenly, seeing Kaori’s paler form in the hospital, seeing Kousei’s disbelieving look, the way all of her face wasn’t visible during certain key answers. It put dread inside him over what was happening with her, where this would go. A brief moment of happiness...but what did it mean in the long run? What did it matter, if it was going to be ripped so harshly away, anyway?

“It was everything to you, and you’re trying to rip that away by force. As if you were plucking off your limbs. That’s why it hurts too much for you to bear.”

“Do you think you’ll be able to forget? No, not a chance. Because you and I are living for that moment.”

“I won’t forget. I won’t forget, even if I die.”

“Thank you.”

The mood of the show mellowed drastically, far more serious notes seeping into the air around them as Kousei and those around him were faced with far more serious matters than who liked who, and music competitions. The competitions seemed to be fading into the background, a mere backdrop to the true story.

Ah…

He might be seeing it now.

There was more to this tale than just playing in competitions.

And he had the feeling he was going to be facing some...difficult scenes. Not the kind of gristly scenes of the everyday Underground. The personal, emotional kind. He was already getting flashes of past events, old emotions stirring this early on. What would come next? How deep was this show going to dig to bring out emotions or thoughts he didn’t even know he was keeping buried?

Y/N shifted again, now blatantly sidled up beside him, head leaning slightly to the side, coming to rest very lightly on his shoulder. Levi stilled, pulled entirely from his thoughts, both of them seeming to hold the position to see what the other would do.

She didn’t pull away.

Neither did he.

Her head leaned a little more heavily against his shoulder, and she got more comfortable in her position next to him. Levi relaxed, letting her do as she pleased, silently grateful for the companionable warmth her presence beside him seemed to be offering him, allowing the scarier thoughts to temporarily be soothed and chased away. It helped that the story was shifting towards the more light-hearted as well, as Kaori and Kousei began to prepare for a piano competition.

“Before your fingers touch the keys, you must determine in your mind how you’re going to play it. Why do you play the piano? Is it for your sake? For someone else’s sake? How do you want to play this piece?”

Levi turned his head slightly to look at Y/N, curiosity stirred up in his mind as Kaori grilled Kousei for his mental imagery while he played. “What about you? What do you think of when you play the piano?” he asked her.

“Hm?” she asked, pulled for the first time out of the show as she turned slightly to meet his gaze, surprised by the inquiry. “I...don’t know. It depends on the moment. Usually it’s memories, though. Certain songs make me think of certain people, usually memories with that person. Maybe something I want to do or say to them? I haven’t thought of that much before...usually I just...do it. And I tend to get lost in what I’m doing, too. I guess that’s part of the reason why I haven’t thought of it much before.”

Levi continued to look at her even as she turned her attention back to the show, barely holding back a question that bubbled up inside him.

Have you ever thought of me?

She was teaching him to play the piano, right? What would his mental imagery be when he played?

While Levi got his quick question in and mulled over his own thoughts once more, the mood shifted to something more serious in the show again.

Kaori was worried she was being too pushy, that Kousei might resent him for forcing him into the position he was in, now. That she was being too hard on him. And something that they said resonated with him, because of recent events.

“You’re suffering because of me. I’m sorry.”

Levi saw Y/N in front of him in his mind’s eye. Her eyes were downcast, lips pressed together, shoulders slightly hunched, and she was on the verge of tears after his barbed words expressing how shitty this situation was for him, how it teased him with what he could never have. Did she blame herself, for him being pulled into her world, always around her for a brief while before he was kicked back?

But again, she’d been right. Even if it was brief, that didn’t mean the time he spent here with her was worthless. It still meant something to him, and it still brought him some comfort and, oddly enough, a sense of security. From the very first time they’d met, she’d provided him with somewhere he could truly feel safe and cared for.

“It was you who swept away all the dust. For sweeping away the dust that had collected on my body...thank you. For encountering me.”

The more hints the story dropped about Kaori’s health, the more worried Levi became about the turn this story might take. He was bracing for impact, a small frown on his face as he saw the pile of medicine Kaori was carrying around with her at the competition. Kousei’s musical rivals didn’t register so much with him in the previous two chapters, because he was still so focused on what was happening with Kousei and Kaori.

Y/N had gotten up at one point by now to get a drink, bringing back a water for him to sip on as they continued the story, time passing by without either of their knowledge of just how long they’d been sitting here. Even Levi, usually so much more active, was content to sit here and watch, hardly noticing his inactivity as he drank up every scene, every word, some ringing out through his mind, others falling into place as narrative importance, worry and elation and nostalgia, as well as so much more, all stirred together inside him, Y/N curled up like a kitten at his side, his arm still leaning against the back of the couch, his hand resting softly on her shoulder.

However, while he and Y/N were falling into a position of ease, the story seemed to be starting to shift more to the relationship between Kousei and his mother, and what happened to her. Kaori was getting worse, it seemed, and they were digging into a relationship that felt, in certain ways, similar to what Levi had gone through, and not too long ago, either, now that he was forced to look at it. It made him...uncomfortable, to say the least, but he wasn’t saying anything--he needed to see where this story was headed, with how invested he was at this point. And even if it got personal, he thought he might be able to sit and endure it all the same.

”My mom’s coming from the hospital to see me perform...so you see, in order to make Mom well again, in order to make her happy, I’m gonna play my very best as a gift!”

The first hit actually made him flinch. It was slight, but it was there, and Y/N might have caught it--he wasn’t expecting it, not from the tone, or what had just been discussed, or the way the scene changed so rapidly from the cheers of the audience after little Kousei finished playing his best for his mother to the slap across his face from the ailing woman. He suddenly felt tense, his hand still on Y/N’s shoulder and his expression suddenly unreadable as the hits kept coming, making something dark and angry well up inside him as Kousei was hit hard enough to draw blood against a backdrop of the abuse he’d been suffering the entire time.

Perhaps Y/N hadn’t caught it, because she was flinching as well, and her reaction was far more open on her face, eyes watering with near-tears, a slight shake in her body, and the occasional, shaking breath.

”All I wanted was for you to get better. All I wanted was for you to be happy. And yet...I wish you would just die.”

“That was the last time I said anything to my mom.”

Levi’s grip tightened on Y/N’s shoulder, but neither of them said a word, a grimness in the air as they continued to watch the story in front of them that had started so colorful but was taking a darker turn rather quickly.

Levi scowled slightly at the switch to such an upbeat little song at the sudden end of the chapter, which would be followed by another upbeat song at the beginning of the next.

“These ‘intros’ and ‘outros’ are deceptively cheerful,” Levi criticized.

“What’s a good story without some struggle?” Y/N replied, though she briefly untangled herself from her position at Levi’s side and wiggled off the couch. “Though, I think I’m going to go grab some tissues. I’m starting to think there’s going to be some really sad or heartfelt stuff coming up. Tell me when it’s back on if I’m still missing!” she added before darting away, leaving Levi to sigh quietly to himself and look up at the ceiling, keeping track of the show in front of him as he waited for her to run off and come back with a colorful box, squirming back into place beside him and letting his hand return to her shoulder as she placed the box next to her on the couch, sighing contently.

“The show must go on!” she insisted, face devoid of the strong emotion they’d been sharing just a few moments ago. She settled next to him with a soft sigh, the sight of Kousei struggling at the piano returning where the previous chapter left off.

They watched him struggle against the ghost of his mother, trying to force himself to play through it, to play even though he couldn’t hear, even as the sound grated on them. Watched as he slowly gave up, until he stopped entirely before the song was even over, just like he had with Kaori.

Part of him had expected Kousei to have some kind of revelation just before he quit and push through, but he’d really stopped. Now it just remained to be seen if he could start again. Of course, after his performance with Kaori, they knew he was disqualified. But would he find a reason to play anyway, like she had?

”Even the you that’s here inside me, won’t let me give up. That day, I wonder. What did you play for?”

Levi felt the ghost of her fingers on his again, unaware that he was tapping the keys against the skin of her shoulder at the memory.

Once more, the sound changed as Kousei found his reason to play. The girl who’d changed his world from monotone to color, who dragged him into a whirlwind of life without giving him the chance to think twice about it.

“Just one person matters to me. Only you matter. Thank you...Will it reach her? I hope it reaches her.”

”Your hidden emotions. The you that you’ve never known. The piano drags out everything…”

Levi’s gaze once more was unfocused on the screen as he was swept away in a sea of his own thoughts, thinking back to the times he’d listened to Y/N play. What had he been hearing those days? What would he hear in her playing in the future? If he put enough effort into learning to play as she tried to teach him...could it help him communicate some of the things he struggled to say? It was at least worth giving it a shot.

And he would be sure to pay closer attention in the future to see what he could hear, what he may not be aware of.

The pacing lulled into something more relaxed once more, a brief reprieve after the emotions that were just thrown at them, allowing him and Y/N to talk a bit more, both of them keeping one eye on the subtitles even as they made little comments about what they’d heard so far. The unspoken love triangle? Maybe it was a triangle. The romantic feelings were crisscrossed and all over the place between this group of friends. They commented on their observations about Kousei and Kaori, what they thought was going to become of the two as they watched, whether Kaori or Tsubaki would end up the one with him in the future.

Music was another thing they talked about, obviously. How they wanted to hear Kousei and Kaori play together again--and were excited they had the chance to with the upcoming concert. Y/N also expressed how she loved Chopin pieces, and as a result was happy about how many Chopin pieces were in the show so far and was hoping to hear more. She also mentioned that Love’s Sorrow, the song they were working on now for the concert, was a beautiful piece--mournful, obviously, but beautiful. She even offered to help him learn it when he got more used to the piano if he wanted to.

Levi was a little distracted, though, by the further warning signs that something was going to happen to Kaori. In the same stroke that he contemplated how she had a skill for seeing the beauty in the world, like Y/N tended to do for him, she said something ominous that further solidified a growing suspicion that Levi was keeping in mind.

“You know, I’m not always going to be around to help you.”

As worried about Kaori as that line made Levi for the context of the show, it also reminded him of his own situation with Y/N. He helped when he could, but he was absent so often...and it worked both ways. He was perfectly capable of taking care of himself when he was on his own, but Y/N he worried about. What if something serious happened when he wasn’t around to help her? Would she be all right? Would she be able to take care of herself until he could be here to help her?

It was another line that resonated with him, another one that was going to burn in his mind and make him brood over their situation. This show was rife with them, and it had his emotions all over the place, despite his outward calm posture.

He had no way of knowing just how strongly the next chapter was going to hit him.

He was as riled up as Kousei after hearing that smart mouthed kid claim that the music Kaori made was just disastrous noise. If he’d ever heard someone say that about the music Y/N played, he was liable to sock them in the mouth. Honestly, after that comment, he’d thought that the focus was going to be on Kaori again, even with all the recent focus on Kousei’s mother. That misconception was quickly fixed, though, when the chapter began with a flashback to Kousei’s mother and how he became a pianist, further reinforced when Kousei started to play and they were given the first glimpses into his thought process, and what his new mentor--his mother’s old friend--was thinking.

Kousei’s mother’s favorite song, Kousei’s lullaby.

”Would she have played it like this?”

Kousei was curled up against the wall in the darkness of a room with no one else, knees pulled up to his chest, head buried, trying to shut out the world, the woman who’d known and been close to Kousei’s mother finding him in the darkness as Kousei cried out for his mother, for someone to help him, save him. Levi tensed, going completely still beside Y/N with his gaze riveted on the scene in front of him.

”That son of ours is about to bid you a last farewell.”

”Will it reach her?”

Levi’s jaw clenched, his teeth grinding together as he attempted to keep a lid on the emotions that were trying to rise inside him again.

“After I’m gone, what’s going to become of Kousei? Will he be able to earn a living?”

There was a pressure on his chest making it impossible to breathe and a forceful pain in his throat that was pushing right at the back, like there was something stuck there that wanted to come out but couldn’t, because he wouldn’t let it no matter how much it pushed.

”What a terrible mother. There’s nothing I can leave that boy...”

His breathing ground to a halt except for the barest, shaking whisper through his nose.

“I wish I could’ve stayed with him longer...Will my treasure ever find happiness?”

Eyes fixed on the screen, Levi suddenly felt the overwhelming need to bolt, could feel his fingers and legs twitch like he was about to without warning, but the music was reaching a crescendo, and he thought maybe, just maybe, he might be able to make it through this, even as the pain in his throat and the pressure on his chest seemed to grow more crushing, more painful, so much harder to contain.

”Do you think it reached my mom? The way I played my very best? Do you think it reached Mom?”

“You two are connected, aren’t you? Of course it reached her.”

Kousei broke on screen, and Levi suddenly realized he wasn’t going to make it to the end of the episode. He needed to bolt now or he might shatter.

Levi tapped Y/N on the shoulder to get her to move, not daring to look at her and possible see her a crying mess already at the emotional scene. He gave a brief, “I need to take a shit,” that he managed to get out in a steady voice past the pain in his throat by some miracle, and then stood up, the brief statement her only warning to shift before his movement accidentally dumped her on the ground. He didn’t run to the bathroom, that would be too much of a tell. Instead, he got up calmly and made his way to the bathroom, not hurrying his step until he was out of sight and already halfway up the stairs.

By the time he reached the bathroom, he couldn’t hold it back any further, safely locked behind the bathroom door with the water in the sink running seconds before he finally choked on the feeling in his throat and chest. A strangled sound left him, and he leaned over the sink, trying to catch his breath even as his body tried to make him sob. His breaths hitched painfully, a slight shake in his hands before they clenched the edge of the sink, shoulders hunched and teeth grinding painfully as a soft whine escaped his rigid body.

Y/N was waiting for him. He couldn’t stay up here forever, but he at least had to get ahold of himself before he headed back down there. Out of stubborn determination, Levi tried to gulp in air and steady his breath and hands. Once he had a strong enough hold of his breathing, he cupped his hands under the water and splashed some of it onto his face to help calm himself down.

Only when he felt his composure had returned, Levi dried off his face and hands, then carefully made his way back downstairs, well-aware that the chapter wasn’t even over, and there were still several chapters left--nine, according to Y/N.

A lot could happen in nine chapters.

Levi calmly returned to his seat on the couch, Y/N giving him a quizzical, examining look before she resumed the position they’d been in before resuming the show in the exact spot he’d left--thankfully, it was after Kousei’s breakdown, so he wouldn’t have to see any of that again.

That didn’t, however, mean that he was in the clear. No, now that they had put a neat little bow on Kousei’s struggle with his mental image of his mother, they were moving on to the one who had been concerning Levi since one of the first few episodes.

”There’s an ever present sorrow hanging over Arima’s music...Then it’s a demon’s path he must walk. His growth is spurred by sorrow. If he walks that path, he might have to lose someone to move forward.”

Kaori was in the hospital again, and Levi felt the uneasiness and dread about the direction this show was taking grow substantially. Especially as Kousei ran inside the room and saw Kaori in the exact position his mother had been in. The way this show was starting to dig at some subconscious and deeply buried pains and fears of his that he would rather keep far from the front of his mind, but it kept plodding on, and he felt far too invested now to just leave it where it was. The curiosity and need to know what happened next would eat away at him if he asked Y/N to stop it there--plus, asking that might tip her off that something about it was upsetting him, considering at this point he couldn’t claim he was bored with it.

”You’re gonna be fine, right?”

“I can see you again, right?”

“You won’t leave me like my mom did, right?”

At this point, the focus on Tsubaki and Kousei’s relationship was a much needed break from the reality and darker questions being asked with Kaori and Kousei right now, questions that he had asked himself from time to time regarding Y/N, questions and concerns he didn’t want to think about for his own sanity. What was happening with Tsubaki was more lighthearted, less grim, even if it was confusing and brought up even more questions to ask himself. After all, Tsubaki was being faced with the question of how she felt about Kousei--the boy who had been her friend since they were little, who she was falling in love with no matter how much she tried to deny it, who she had always been beside and wanted to be beside forever.

It made him wonder. He and Y/N were friends--had been for years now. She was there for him during his darkest moments, and he’d been there for some of her scariest moments. Yes, they were friends, but...was it starting to go deeper than that? Did he feel closer to her, somehow?

Her hands had felt warm against his when they played the piano together, pressed against one another with his arms around each other so they wouldn’t get in each other’s way. His skin had tingled where she touched him when she’d taken care of and cleaned him up after that fight. He felt comfortable sitting beside her now, with her leaning against him, her head on his shoulder, despite how borderline intimate it felt.

Had she felt something similar? They hadn’t really looked at each other in these moments--they’d been avoiding looking at each other whenever something like that happened, so he had no idea. Was she aware of just how comfortable he was around her? How different that was for him? Did she have any clue how important she was becoming to him, how big a part of his life she had gradually become despite the very real distance and difference between their two worlds.

This entire time he’d been drawing similarities between them and Kousei and Kaori, when perhaps the comparison should have been with Tsubaki and Kousei.

It sure as hell might make him feel better, considering he was rather sure she had a terminal illness. After growing up in the Underground and with the experiences he had so far, fatal illnesses were something he could spot, especially when there were as many warning signs as there were for Kaori. She only seemed to be getting worse--he was pretty sure she’d been told she was going to die, even though there was no audio for the moment to confirm it. Since the first episode, Kaori had been centered on making an impression, about living on in the memories and hearts of others--she was clearly afraid of disappearing without a trace after she was gone.

Still, amid all the aching and pain, there was still flashes of hope as Kaori struggled against her illness, and more moments that made him think about the relationship between himself and the girl next to him--more damn connections between them and Kousei and Kaori, which did nothing to sooth his nerves and fears he didn’t even know he had.

“Why are the sounds you make so beautiful I think I’m going to cry?”

“That devotion you showed. Her heart had turned grey, and you gave it color.”

Had he managed to give her what she gave him? He felt like he didn’t have anything to give, coming from the dreadful world he did. She was always the one bringing color into his life, had he ever brought color to hers? Would he ever be able to? His world, his life, was ugly and dark and probably tragic. What could he offer her out of that?

”Did I reach him?”

“You don’t have the time to see me.”

“It’s not about time--I want to see you.”

The chapter started so calmly--discussion about the next round of the competition, Kaori continuing her struggle to get better, Tsubaki finally admitting her feelings for Kousei in a way. Levi even made a quip about how Watari and Kaori really needed to stop dragging him along as the awkward extra in their group, practically rubbing it in his face even if it was unintentional. There was even another moment of resonance with something Tsubaki said to Kousei.

“So you won’t lose your way, so you won’t have regrets, I’ll stay by your side forever.”

Still, he should have seen it coming. It shouldn’t have surprised him, considering he was well aware of the cruel shittiness of the world, even if Y/N wasn’t. All this time he’d spent bracing himself with the hints of just how bad Kaori’s illness was, the ominous lines of hers. All the lightheartedness and self-discovery of the past several episodes came crashing down with the emergency with Kaori as, from what Levi could see even though they clearly had far more advanced medicine that Levi knew nothing about, Kaori had some kind of close call, a brush with death, right in front of Kousei. And then with the damn cat getting hit and dying literally moments later, Kousei having to wash the blood off of his hands and breaking down in the wake of everything that was happening. He shouldn’t have been surprised, but it still ached to see it.

And there were two chapters left. Realistically, he doubted that Kaori was going to recover in two chapters after all this time. By now, he was certain that she was going to die by the end of the story.

She wasn’t even gone yet, and Kousei had already given up. Levi had seen plenty of people reach that point. No fight left, no will to move. Kousei was right back in the position he’d been in at the start, the impending loss of Kaori the final nail in his coffin, his breaking point.

“Why does it have to end up this way? I can’t...go on. No more...I can’t try anymore.”

He hadn’t hit his breaking point--he hoped he never reached that point. But he was sure even he had one, even if he wasn’t sure where his limit was.

Levi blinked at the white fluttering from the sky on screen. A novel sight he couldn’t ignore or just accept. Snow, Kaori called it.

So that was what it looked like. One of the many things he’d heard about but hadn’t seen…

“Have you seen snow before, Levi? Since you live Underground,” Y/N suddenly asked from where she was curled up into his side, head turned to look at him curiously. Levi shook his head no, and she hummed. “You’ll have to show up some time in the winter so I can show you all kinds of awesome things you can do when it snows. It’s cold, but it’s fun. And everything looks so clean and pure...my favorite things are the trees encapsulated in ice,” she said with a wistful sigh, eventually quieting down as the scene on the screen continued to develop.

Maybe one day. But he would have to come through not only when it was winter, but on a day that there was snow, and he had no control over when he blipped over into her world.

Blipped, blip...her word for when Levi flickered into and out of her world. Clearly, it had caught on even in his mind.

“The people I care about keep leaving me...I’m going to be left all alone.”

Inwardly, Levi felt himself flinch, and that desire to bolt was trying to rear its head again, the desire for her to shut it off and spare him these comments that kept digging into the darker corners of himself, the weakness he kept hidden away for no one to see.

“But you have me. But you have me.”

For the first time, Levi felt Y/N’s hand give his little squeeze on his knee as Kaori repeated her sentiment to Kousei.

Perhaps the feelings were mutual. Maybe he wasn’t the only one drowning in emotions on the inside and drawing parallels while they watched this show, if she was giving him a little squeeze after those words. After he registered that he had felt it, and he hadn’t imagined it, he gave her shoulder a small squeeze in return.

“I’m going to struggle as hard as I can. Struggle, struggle, struggle, like there’s no tomorrow.”

“You gave me this desire to cling to the time that I spent with you. Aren’t you going to struggle to? We’re so good at struggling.”

Hell if that wasn’t the story of his life so far, right there.

Collectively, the two of them held their breath, watching as, after Kousei declared how useless it was for him to even try to play in the state he was in right now, Kaori got to her feet on her own, and the sound of the violin softly flickered towards them from the screen. It was like the music was from a dream, her imaginary violin ethereal, Kaori lit up by a flurry of snow as she played to a crescendo and smiled at Kousei.

“See, miracles can happen just like that.”

Shaking, legs trembling, sweating, collapsed into Kousei’s arms with a breathless laugh, clinging to him like a source of comfort. It wasn’t her reciting of the things she knew about Kousei, or what she wished she knew, that drew a response from him, but her heartfelt pleas with Kousei as he held her in her arms.

“I’m scared. I’m scared! Don’t leave me all alone!”

That was why it was familiar. That was how Y/N had held him when…

And perhaps the reason he’d lashed out when he’d found out about how fleeting this world was for him had been because…

Levi shifted, and it was only when Y/N started to pull away did he realize he’d been shifting to get up and walk away, to bolt. When she fixed him with that questioning look again, not-yet-spilled tears in her eyes from the emotion of the scene, her hand still fisted in his shirt, it brought him back to what was happening in the present, and he shook his head as if to dismiss the movement as he sat back down, relieved when the scene changed again.

Considering it was going to the competition and Kaori’s surgery at the same time, he doubted he was going to get much of a reprieve before the emotions hit again. Kousei was still a mess, though it was a miracle he’d at least shown up to the competition, but even watching him was worrisome, wondering if he was going to break at the piano again after all this progress he’d made throughout the show, everyone watching in concern in the show and on the couch.

“I made you remember something you don’t want to remember…”

“I won’t forget, even if I die…”

“You can just forget about it all, like you’ve pressed the reset button…”

“I guess maybe we never should've met, huh?”

Levi had to close his eyes for a moment after that one, sucking in a sharp breath. It was like it had come right out of his denial of their entire situation, how angry he’d been, the pain it had caused, how for a few moments, he’d felt like it would have been better if he could forget it all, if they had never met, because then he wouldn’t know about what he could never have. His heart ached painfully, the words reverberating not in his mind, but in his bones as the pain in his throat already seemed to be returning.

He opened his eyes, and on screen, Kousei started to break down again, face in his hands, on the brink of tears seated at the piano, on stage in front of everyone once again.

Tsubaki sneezed, and after a few moments of reflecting, after realizing how many people he knew were there...Kousei finally began to play, the notes reverberating deep inside his chest in a full, resonating sound. Something about it made him nostalgic, but also so...it was so…

“Bursting with such mournful color.”

The chapter suddenly came to an end mid performance, which startled Levi--especially when Y/N darted forward so suddenly to grab the remote and quickly jump to the next one, immediately snapping back into his side, clutching to his clothes like her life depended on it, curled into a ball as he realized for the first time that tissue box was suddenly right in front of her, easily accessible.

The last episode.

Considering the set-up, neither of them were going to get through this last part unscathed emotionally.

It started from the beginning of the piece this time, the commentary being made by the onlookers and Kousei different this time, centered entirely on Kousei after the very beginning. Levi and Y/N were both enraptured by the performance though, holding to one another on the couch with gazes fixed forward, completely still, even their breathing slight as they paid full attention to every word, and let the music pull them in deeper into the emotional symphony Kousei was creating with just the piano.

“I’m so scared...Somebody…”

“But you have me.”

“I’m not alone. From the moment that we meet someone else, none of us can ever be alone. We’re all connected.”

Levi’s grip tightened slightly on Y/N’s shoulder again, and he felt her grip tighten in return.

“Don’t leave me all alone.”

“Dummy, you have me.”

“Inside me...you exist.”

Y/N nuzzled into his side like a cat, and he thought he felt his shirt starting to get damp. He ignored it, keeping his grip on her firm and steady, staying still beneath her as he stared stalwartly at the screen, even as the emotions were starting to stir violently around inside him.

”No way am I going to leave you all alone. Reach her. Reach her. Reach her. Reach her.”

The scenery changed entirely, like Kousei was playing in the sky amid a shower of colors, floating around like leaves that autumn day when he and Y/N had jumped into the piles and sent them scattering into the air. Kaori’s whispered ‘Thank you’ as Kousei carried her back down the stairs sent a shiver down his spine, especially when Kousei of the present reacted, and turned his head to see Kaori materializing beside him, violin in hand.

Beside him, there was suddenly a whine from Y/N, and a rather large sniffle, as well as that damp feeling on his clothes starting to spread. She trembled slightly beneath his arm and hand, and he realized she was starting to cry rather heavily, her face partially buried in his side.

The music was jarring, disorienting, suddenly intense and tragic as Kousei closed his eyes, barely holding back tears.

Oh.

Oh, shit.

And there it was.

Kaori’s rich violin playing joined into Kousei’s suddenly mournful and tragic playing, and Levi realized that they were witnessing the last time the two would get to play together. It couldn’t happen again in body, but at least in spirit. Words weren’t needed for this moment. Nothing was said between the characters on the screen, and not a word was spoken between Levi and Y/N. She was continuing to cry into his side, with Levi starting to semi-awkwardly rub her shoulder to try and comfort her even as his own heart seemed to be pounding painfully at the sight in front of him, every note piercing him deeper than he thought possible with the raw emotion behind and pure weight of this single moment. All there was at this moment in time, was him, Y/N, and the music being created on the stage in front of them between Kaori and Kousei, one last time.

A sob broke past Y/N’s control as the colorful day turned into a rich night, and Kaori stopped playing. Levi held his breath, watching as transfixed on the scene as Kousei was transfixed on Kaori, the music softening for the briefest moment before it started to turn slow, mournful, and tragic again.

”Wait...please don’t go!”

As Kousei started to beg Kaori to do all of these things with him again, good and bad, Levi felt the pressure on his chest return, the burn in his eyes and the clench in his jaw, the pain in his throat. Memories of his own were flickering before his eyes in place of what Kousei begged of Kaori.

A small hand offering a still-warm roll. A splash of cool water to the face with shrieks and giggles filling the air. The security of being able to lean comfortably against a warm back with the sun shining down from above, hands gripping his legs and his arms wrapped around the girl who carried him home on her back. The cool taste of ice cream as they leaned against the brick store. A gentle hand rubbing soft circles on his back as he slipped in and out of lucid thought in his feverish state. The sound of hope amid darkness that they managed to create together despite his crude piano playing. Her hand even now clenched tightly in his shirt seeking comfort, like when he’d led her home in the dark through the desert.

His hand was stretched out before him, pulled along by the girl that suddenly disappeared when he closed his eyes. He tried to reach a little further, as if his fingertips could press past some veil between his world and hers, so he could reach her even for another moment. The warmth and the softness of the comfort she wrapped him in evaporated into smoke between his fingers, disappearing in translucent curls, leaving him with nothing to hold, the weight of her presence suddenly disappearing.

What if one day he didn’t come back?

What if one day it all just...ended? Without any warning? The only sign that he would never return the passage of time and gradual loss of hope?

“Don’t go, don’t go, please don’t go, please don’t leave me behind!”

Y/N was sobbing openly into his side now, but she didn’t move to stop the show--she kept watching it. Levi was unaware of the fact that his hand was shaking against her shoulder, all of his effort on keeping the emotions bottled inside him as he watched Kaori disappear before Kousei’s eyes in a flurry of petals, swept away by an indifferent wind.

The rest of the last chapter seemed to pass by in a blur, Levi spending most of that time trying to work his way down from the emotions that scene had stirred up in him, glancing over at Y/N to see a collection of tissues around her while her gaze remained fixed forward, still a blubbering mess over the events that were unfolding on screen. Shards of Kaori’s letter made it through to Levi, certain fragments sticking with him in the moment, others slowly settling in likely to make an impact on him later.

“I want Kousei to play the piano for me!”

He understood that sentiment. He loved listening to Y/N play for him, it was one of the many reasons why he brought it up so often. Sure, it was nice she was trying to teach him to play, but the true moment of enjoyment for him was when she played for him.

“Isn’t it funny how the most unforgettable scenes can be so trivial?”

“None of it was trivial.”

No, none of it was. From playing card games in her room to playing tag on the playground, or eating frozen treats on the steps while they played simple games with their hands. Every little moment was one Levi kept stored away, a secret trove of memories just for him and her, something bright and...something that the Underground couldn’t corrupt, because it couldn’t reach or touch this world or the girl at his side.

“Was I able to live inside your heart? Do you think you’ll remember me at least a little? You better not hit reset. Don’t forget me, okay? That’s a promise, okay? I’m glad it’s you, after all.”

Like Y/N said, just because the moments were fleeting, didn’t mean they didn’t matter. Even if they stopped one day, for whatever reason...at least he would have everything that had come before, the memories, the moments that nothing could take away. He didn’t think she would want him to try and forget, anyway. And a part of him wouldn’t want her to forget him, either. Unlike everything else in his life so far, he wanted this good thing to last, one way or another.

“Will I reach you? I hope I can reach you.”

This time, when his mind procured the image of his hand outstretched in front of him, trying to catch the disappearing back of the girl in front of him, fingers finding nothing but air, he let his hand squeeze slightly against Y/N’s shoulder once more, reminding himself she was right here in his arms right now, and not to take that for granted. Maybe sometimes she’d be out of reach, but right now, she was right here. She wasn’t always out of reach. He’d just have to make each moment he was here count for something.

Thankfully, she already seemed pretty good at making that happen, so he felt like he wouldn’t have to worry about it too much. She was always taking him by the hand to have him run with her wherever she wanted to go and explore, and so far, she hadn’t made him regret following her on her little adventures.

She made his life colorful.

“Thank you for being my friend, Levi.”

“I’m the one who should be thanking you.”

Next Chapter---->

Levi Tags: @clary-quinn @humanitys-hottestsoldier @whalerus @sunny-flo @thirstyforsometea

Through The Looking Glass Tags: @artist-bby @kaz2y5-pie @tartheyes @super-peace-fangirl @huntersbunker @nefelimalfoy @soft-levi-girl-blog @honeygivemeachainsaw @regalillegal @sugas-daddy7 @cathyannecookie @chaoticshepardplaid @roayaloveslife @sanrioclit

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f0rever15elf · 4 years

Text

Gold Rush

Pairing: Modern!Ezra x f!reader Word count: 6,391 Rating: T+ Warnings: Slight swearing, short description of a brutal injury, mention of medical opiate administration via injection

Find the continuation of the story with Colorado Rocky Mountain High

Summary: It’s been a long time since the precious mineral rush hit the Rockies of Colorado. So when national news breaks of a potential gold vein left untouched in your quiet little town, no one is prepared for the rush that follows. And you certainly weren’t prepared for the man you meet.

A/N: So, I adore Ezra’s vocabulary and accent. I felt like a modern twist on it could be interesting. Someone really needs to control me when I start writing these oneshots xD

Masterlist | Ao3

You would never forget the day you first laid eyes on him. He looked a mess, dirt and soot clinging to his sweaty face. Mud clung to his coveralls, and his hair stood up in all directions having just taken his safety helmet off, a little blonde patch catching your eye. He looked positively exhausted as he lounged on a boulder set off a little bit from the rest of the commotion. The grueling heat from the mid-day summer sun did little to help the heat you felt rush to your cheeks when his warm brown eyes locked on yours. You averted your gaze quickly, scurrying off to finish your work in preparing the food for the new prospectors.

Your little mountain town tucked up in a secluded region of the Colorado Rockies had always been exceptionally quiet. That is, until a kid happened to stumble upon the start of what looked to be a gold deposit. It wasn’t unheard of, the mountains were rich with all kinds of valuable minerals. Hell, some of the towns got their names from the gold and silver deposits that brought them to life. Finding something here though, in your quiet and reclusive neck of the woods, was something your town was drastically unprepared for.

News broke nationally and within a week the town was flooded with prospectors and independent contractors all vying for their piece of the pie. The economic boost for the town was good, but the available resources were minimal, and the town felt the burden. There wasn’t enough room in the one bed and breakfast the town had to house them all, making little tent camps near the edge of town a very common sight.

Naturally, the close knit community rose to the occasion, coming together to make community meals for the visitors. Communal lunches were the most anticipated time for the workers, and they would flock to the picnic tables to fill their bellies as soon as the lunch bell rang. Most were nice and talkative, thanking the town for doing this for them, and promising to go visit the shops when they finished for the day. Some kept to themselves, staying quiet. Others would talk your ear off, but you had to approach them first. It was a strange new normal, but one that was easy to fall into routine with.

It’s been a little over a month now, and prospecting is in full swing. The little bit of gold the boy had found was just the beginning of one of the richest gold deposits this region of the Rockies had ever seen. More and more miners made their way to your town every day, and your new full time job became helping with the meals; making food runs down into the nearest large supermarket or tending to the vats of food that seemed to always be simmering away. But even when you were distracted with all of this hubbub, it seemed impossible to forget the man with the small blonde patch.

Today is a grey day. The clouds thick in the sky promise heavy rains. Yet still the lunch bell rings, calling the prospectors from their mine shafts and tents to come and join the community for food. The man with the blonde patch sits closer today, his usual boulder taken over by two of the newer prospectors whose names you had yet to learn. As you work, you feel his eyes following you, watching you like a hawk as you do your best to ignore it. Quite a few of the prospectors spent time ogling you, but this man’s gaze consistently feels different. Arms full of things to take back to your house to clean, you begin making the trek up the incline that leads to your house when lightning cracks the sky. The resounding rumble of thunder through the canyon scares you out of your wits, and the dishes go crashing to the ground as you lose your footing, stumbling backwards. You close your eyes, preparing yourself to hit the ground, knowing you’d be tumbling for a bit before you could regain yourself, but the ground never meets you.

“Careful there, sunshine.” The voice is honey thick, a deep Tennessee drawl that borders on music as it drips from the lips of the man who catches you. Opening one eye, you look up to see the man with the blonde patch holding on to you, having been the one to keep your from falling down the hill. You open your other eye as well, looking up at him for far longer than you are sure was proper before your cheeks grow hot and you scramble to get your footing again.

“I’m so sorry! The thunder frightened me, I didn’t mean to..I just...I – Thank you.” You blabber as you crouch down to start gathering the dropped and scattered dishes, cramming everything back in the chili pot.

“Not a worry, sunshine. Would have been a mighty rough fall there.” He crouches down to help you gather the dishes, only pausing to look to the sky when the first few drops land on his face. You look up with him and sigh.

“It’s going to be a hell of a storm.” His beautiful eyes turn back to you at your comment, an eyebrow raised. “The season is changing,” you grunt, getting to your feet. “Best to make sure your tent is secure, sir. Else this rain and the wind that will come with it will blow it half way down the canyon.”

“I appreciate the advice, but I do not believe that to be something I need concern myself with presently.” The way he spoke, words pouring from his mouth with such sweetness, was unlike anything you had ever heard. “I haven’t a tent to my name, you see. Just the clothes on my back and tools on my hip.”

“You didn’t bring a…?” Your voice tapers off in concern and confusion as the drops fall more rapidly, the rest of the prospectors dispersing to tend to their own things. “Come inside with me. You stay out in a storm like this you’ll get sick. Come on.” Turning, you begin your trudge uphill again, eyes on the sky as you wait for it to bottom out. The strange prospector follows you in silence, his tools clanking on his belt with every step.

And then it happens.

The sky opens up, the deluge drenching you both and you let out a small scream, sprinting down the street to the safety of your porch, the man hot on your heels. “C-Colorado rain is always so damn cold,” you chatter through clenched teeth, opening your front door and kicking off your soaked shoes. You’re half way to the kitchen when you realize the man hadn’t come in after you. Looking back over your shoulder, you see him standing just outside the doorway, the spitting image of a drenched kitten, conflict clear on his face. “Don’t just stand there, come inside where it’s warm.”

“It would be rather impudent of me to make a mess of your home in such a way.” You wave your hand at his comment, setting the dishes on the counter before returning to him.

“I wouldn’t offer if I wasn’t alright with it. Come on, you’re letting the cold in.” When he still doesn’t move, you roll your eyes and grab his hand, tugging him inside before shutting the door behind you. “You can use my shower to get cleaned up. Go on.” You all but push him down the hall, him protesting in far more words than necessary as you do. “There’s towels in the wicker basket. Use whatever you need.” You turn to leave, stopped only by his hand catching your wrist in his gentle grip.

“Thank you, sunshine.” You look up at him, struck by the sincerity on his face, in his eyes. “I am beholden to your unbridled grace and kindness.” You flash him a shy smile and nod as he drops his hand from your wrist.

“I’ll get you something dry to change in to once you’re done getting cleaned up.” Your voice is soft as you turn, letting him to his business as you go to find him some clothes. It is at this time that you’re beyond grateful that your brothers were so damn forgetful, having left several articles of clothing at your place every time they visit. Humming a low tune, you rummage through their chest of forgotten clothes, pulling out a v-neck you’re pretty sure will fit him along with a pair of gray sweatpants that might be just a touch too short. They were better than nothing, at least. You quickly fold the clothes, setting them in the hallway outside the bathroom door before knocking.

“Sir, there are warm and dry clothes for you in the hall way. I’ll wash your wet ones when you’re out.” Over the sound of the running water, you catch a muffled, loquacious reply. You have only been speaking to him for a few minutes, but he’s already proven to have a more robust vocabulary than most anyone you’d met. Chuckling, you make your way back to the kitchen to get the dishes cleaned up, resuming your humming.

A bit later, you’re interrupted by the sound of a throat clearing. You look over your shoulder to see the prospector there, leaning against the doorway into the kitchen. Relief washes over you when you see the clothes did fit, making a mental note to not tell your brothers that you were giving away their clothes. “Enjoy your shower?”

“The breadth of generosity you’ve show this old man of ill repute is without measure,” sugar sweet words drip from his lips again, bringing a heat to your cheeks.

“Oh please, it’s nothing, really.” You gesture outside to the torrential downpour. “If you have no shelter in this type of weather, it has the potential to bring a rapid end to your prospecting career. The nights are too cold up this high to go to sleep drenched to the bone.” Your eyes rake over his figure, settling on his hair again, sticking out in all sorts of directions after having towel dried it. A smile pulls at your lips before you look back at his face.

“Well, all the same sunshine, I seem to find myself indebted to your good graces.” The corner of his mouth tugs up in a lopsided smirk that makes your heart stutter.

“Well if that’s the case, help me dry the dishes and I’ll call us square.” You grin and toss a towel to him as he joins you at your side. “By the way, I don’t think I ever got your name.”

“How discourteous of me! I go by Ezra. Just Ezra. Pray tell what name such an absolute vision of beauty such as yourself goes by?” You can’t help the giggle that bubbles from your lips as a heat rushes to your cheeks. You give him your name, a nervous air in your voice. He nods, repeating your name back to you and you can’t help the shiver that runs down your spine as your name sounds like liquid gold on his lips. You wouldn’t mind hearing him say it again and again, you think.

“I like that name. Ezra. I think it suits you.” You flash a smile as you hand him a pot to dry. “Tell me though. How have you been here since the rush began, yet still you don’t have so much as a tent to cover your head?” His laugh is deep and rich as he takes the next dish, drying it thoroughly.

“I find it more prudent to be frugal with one’s earnings in such a tumultuous line of business as freelance prospecting. Nature tends to provide what my mortal body needs as far as shelter, so the earnings I amass in mining go towards improving my station.” You nod, turning off the water as you hand him the last plate.

“And you’ve been living this way for how long?”

“By my approximation, I’d say I’m just about at the ten year mark.”

“I can’t imagine the lifestyle is easy…”

“There is an ache that lingers in my bones, no doubt, but the drive to press ever on towards greatness...well, that is what distinguishes those who simply chase a dream of getting rich quick from those of us who yearn for something beyond that which words can describe.” He turns, leaning against the counter to cross his arms, eyes staring off into space. You’re quiet for a moment as you watch him, taking note of the creases on his weathered face. Laugh lines linger along the corners of his lips, and smile lines accent the corners of his eyes. He is beautiful in every sense of the word.

“And when you reach the end of the vein here? Where will you go to next?” His eyes refocus on you and he smiles, pondering the question for a moment.

“I suppose that entirely depends up the riches chanced upon during my toils in your hospitable hamlet.” The way he says riches as his eyes watch you strikes a chord within you, and you have a feeling that it isn’t just the gold he is speaking of. Something about this man bewitched you, and you find yourself struggling to break eye contact with him. His smile is warm and welcoming, but there is something there just below the surface that hints of danger. And it thrills you. Another crack of lightning and rumble of thunder startles you from your trance and you push away from the counter with a nervous chuckle.

“Well, I do hope you’re able to find what you’re looking for here, Mr. Ezra. Please make yourself at home, I’m going to go set your clothes into the wash for you.” You turn and all but sprint down the hallway to the bathroom, Ezra chuckling in the kitchen behind you.

As you start his laundry, you take a moment to compose yourself. Your heart is racing and your hands trembled in a nervous excitement as they braced against the washer. The air around Ezra is different, you think. Something about the man sets him apart from those you had had the chance to speak to so far, and you are determined to figure it out. After calming yourself to a reasonable level once again, you make your way out to join Ezra in the living room. He’s found your meager book collection, helping himself to one of your novels, and the sight of him perched on your sofa with it balanced on his knee looks like the most natural thing in the world.

“Avid reader?” you question, sitting down on the other side of the couch, tucking your feet up underneath you.

“I have been known to indulge when such an opportunity affords itself to me.” He flashes you that lopsided smile that you just can’t help but return before re-affixing his eyes to the text in front of him. You watch him for a time, trying to learn as much about him as you can from his posture, his looks, until your eyes drift to the window behind your couch. The rain blurs the windowpanes, turning the landscape into some abstract watercolor painting and all that can be heard is the sound of the rain accented with the occasional turn of the page as Ezra reads. Relaxing into the couch, your eyes slowly slip shut as you drift off into a peaceful sleep.

When you finally come around, the sun has set and the rains have stopped. The house is quiet save for a gentle fire in the fireplace, one you hadn’t set before falling asleep. A blanket has been delicately draped over you and you smile to yourself. You sit up and rub the sleep from your eyes, searching for the friendly prospector. “Ezra?” Your voice is heavy, still thick with sleep as you stand to look for him. You find him outside on your porch, leaning against the siding as he looks out over the canyon visible from your home. “Ezra? Is everything alright?” He simply nods, not looking over to you. The full moon illuminates his skin in the most radiant of ways, accentuating every curve and plane of his face, brightening that little blonde patch in his hair. It left you near breathless. A shiver runs through you at the crisp mountain air, left cooler after the rains, and you wrap your arms around yourself to cope. Ezra shifts his attention to you.

“You should be inside, sunshine. The cold will do you no favors.” He pushes off of the wall, turning to usher you back inside. You hear it though, the slight sadness in his voice that wasn’t present earlier today. You allow him to lead you back inside, shutting and locking the door behind him before you turn to face him.

“What’s wrong, Ezra?” A flash of emotion crosses his face so quickly you aren’t even sure you actually saw it. But if you did...for a moment he looked almost...pained…

“Nothing, sunshine. The chill of the night just leaves an ache in my bones, is all.”

“You’re lying,” you whisper, stepping closer. Perhaps it was the bleariness of sleep that still lingered with you that emboldened you. Or perhaps it was the tantalizing aura that surrounded him that drew you in. Either way, you find yourself staring up at him, concern shining in your eyes bright as the full moon outside. His smile is forced, you can tell, as he puts his hand on your shoulder.

“Little gem, I promise you, the weight I carry is not something I need burden you with. Your hospitality has been unparalleled, and I will not permit myself to impose on you more than I already have.” His warm, tender eyes search yours, begging for you to listen to him. But stubbornness has always run hot in your veins.

“Didn’t I tell you before?” You reach up and take his hand gently in yours. “I wouldn’t offer if I wasn’t sure. Ezra, what’s wrong?” His hand twitches in yours before he gently pulls away, his smile significantly sadder.

“The life of a reprobate like myself should never tarnish the luster of someone like you, sunshine. I will not give you my sins to carry.” He reaches up to tuck a strand of hair behind your ear before smiling and moving past you to lay down on the couch. A glance to the clock shows you’ve well missed dinner time, sitting at 8:30 now. With a sigh, you meander back into the living room, taking a seat on the floor in front of the fire, letting the heat warm your soul from the chilly night air.

“We all have our own sins to deal with, you know.” Your voice is low as you watch the sparks wick up the flue. You can feel his eyes on your back, waiting for you to continue. “Everyone has a story. But the mountains don’t care about that. They don’t care about who you were before you arrive here. They don’t care about blood on your hands or the loss you’ve endured. They were here long before us and will remain here long after you or I return to the stardust we are made of.” You turn your head to look over your shoulder to see Ezra still staring at you, the fire flickering in his chocolate eyes. “The mountains offer you a chance, Ezra. That’s why I’m here...and as fate would have it, it’s why you’re here as well.” You turn your face back to the fire, Ezra staying quiet for some time behind you.

“The life I have taken to isn’t an easy one, gemstone.” His voice is low and gruff, his drawl more prominent. “I’ve done things in this life that I am ashamed to admit. Lost as much as I’ve gained, taken as much as I’ve given. And every single soul I’ve urged on to whatever follows this painful existence torments me every time I attempt a moment of respite.” The sigh from his lips is heavier than any weight you’ve ever carried, and it pains you to know he carries it alone. “I tell myself it’ll all be worth it in the end. That I’m toiling away day in and day out for a greater purpose. But it’s been near a decade, gemstone, and the end never nears.”

“You’re tired,” you whisper, turning around to look at him, taken aback by the shine in his eyes. “You’re tired and lonely. I can’t even imagine how heavy your soul feels carrying everything you do all alone, and still managing to put a smile on your face. Lord knows I couldn’t...not ‘till I came here, that is, and the town helped me bare my burden. Ezra, I don’t think it’s a coincidence you ended up here in our town. I really don’t.” You flash him a gentle smile, standing up to grab another spare blanket from the linen box, handing it to him. “Think about it, okay? Stay here for tonight. This cold is no place for anyone right now.” He takes the blanket from your hand, perplexity painting his face as you smile down at him. “Goodnight, Ezra. I hope the fire keeps the specters at bay for you tonight.” He nods as you turn, heading back to your room after turning over the laundry. He was odd, but you liked him.

Bright and early you hear a rummaging in the kitchen, the smell of bacon permeating the air. Stretching, you stumble from bed, following your nose and growling stomach. Ezra is there in your kitchen in just the sweats he was borrowing, humming to himself as he cooks. The broad expanse of his back is littered with faded white scars, some that looked to be from blades, and some from burns. His humming voice is lovely, you think, smiling as you lean against the doorway to watch him. He seems so at home, you feel it inappropriate to disturb him. It’s when he turns to put a bowl in the sink that he catches you from the corner of his eye.

“Well good morning, sunshine. I beg your pardon but I permitted myself the liberty of preparing a warm breakfast for the two of us.” His smile that pulls at his lips is brighter than last night, and you felt certain the dread that plagued him had passed for now.

“Did you sleep well?” You inquire, moving into the kitchen to pull down two glasses to fill them with orange juice.

“A specterless dream for the first time in what seems like forever, gemstone.” He places his hand on the small of your back as he moves past you to keep you from bumping back into him, setting the plate of eggs and bacon on the table. The touch feels electric, and you find yourself shocked in how much you enjoy the feeling.

“The mountains have that effect on a weary soul,” you smile, bringing the glasses over. “Coffee?”

“That would be magnificent. But I don’t presume that the mountains have much to do with the reprieve I was so graciously afforded last night.” Your smile doesn’t fade as you put the coffee pot on to percolate, taking down two mugs after the fact.

“Pray tell what you think might be the source of such a thing?”

“I do believe it might have a thing or two to do with the enchantress that graces my vision in the radiance of the morning light.” Heat floods your cheeks as the coffee pot buzzes, the smell of fresh brew mingling beautifully with that of the bacon. You pour two cups, handing Ezra his before joining him at the table.

“I’m a simple mountain girl, I doubt it has anything to do with me.”

“You humble yourself far too much, gemstone. A heart of purer gold than the ore I mine, and the shining soul to match.” He holds his mug up in a toast before bringing it to his lips. “Ones like you are few and far between.”

“And ones like you even more so, I would say.” You return his toast before serving yourself a bit of breakfast. “Thank you for cooking, Ezra. It was very kind of you to do.”

“But the smallest thanks I could give in return for such philanthropy as what you have shown me these past twelve hours.” He chuckles, eating rather quickly, a habit that you feel was one developed over the long time spent in his lifestyle. He finishes well before you, standing to clear his plate. “I’ve imposed for far too long, I fear. I’ll change and be on my way. Gold doesn’t mine itself, I’m afraid.” You chuckle and nod, standing to stop him as he moves towards the hallway.

“Ezra, you are welcome here always. Tent or no tent, you’re welcome to kick your feet up on my hearth whenever you wish. And I do mean that.” Your voice is soft as you look up at him, eyes to match. He returns your gaze, a gentle smile working his way across his lips as he smooths your bed-messed hair.

“There is that heart of gold, my little gemstone.” The tenderness in his voice warms you through, and your heart aches when he steps away. “But I won’t impose a moment longer.” His smile stays as he goes to collect his clothes, quickly changing in the bathroom before making his exit, heading back down to the mine.

And so the days continue. The miners would come for lunch and you would help to serve it, each day Ezra staying close to you to keep you company. His honey dipped accent brought you more joy than you thought a simple sound could, and it made the days pass more quickly. In the evenings when he was done at the mine, he would come to your doorstep, leaning against the support as he talked with you, reveling in the laugh he was able to earn from you with his tales. Each night, you would offer him a warm place to lay his weary head, but every night was the same. A polite decline and an insistence that he could not allow himself to burden you more than he already had before he would excuse himself, heading back to the ridge where the trees would keep him company.

The night he doesn’t come to talk to you, you find yourself watching out the window for him, worry seizing your heart. The sky had been boiling as you had finished working in your yard for the evening, waiting on the loquacious prospector to come and keep you company as he had for weeks now. Rain was coming, you could feel it in your bones, a chill gripping you as the night grows colder. As far as you knew, Ezra still hadn’t purchased himself a proper shelter to ward off the rain, and that thought terrified you. No one should be out in such conditions, no matter how much they felt they deserved to be.

Lightning cracks the sky, your worried reflection flashing back at you for the briefest of moments as the bottom opens out of the sky. A Colorado thunderstorm, true to form. A shiver runs through you at the thought of Ezra out in this, and you decide it best to start a fire in the event that he happened to stumble to your doorstep. And no sooner have you worked the fire up to a low roar in the hearth, do you hear a knock at the door. You wrap your knit blanket around your shoulders, moving to open the door, and there he stands looking more akin to a drowned rat than you have ever seen. Lightning illuminates his face and all you can see is pain, sending your heart into a sprint as you reach for him, pulling him inside.

“Ezra, oh my God, what happened? Why were you out in this?” You lead him into the living room, sitting him down in front of the fire to dry him out and warm him through. “Are you hurt, what happened?” He only groans, leaning forward until his face rests against your shoulder, his breathing ragged. Your arms gingerly wrap around him, holding him to you. “Ezra, you’re scaring me, what happened?”

“A-Accident. In the mine. Rock slide. Hurt m-my arm…” He groans and your throat all but closes as your blood runs cold. You pull back gently, cradling his chin in your palm. The way his forehead creases in pain terrifies you before you even so much as see his arm. You pull back just enough to see the blood soaking through his drenched jacket, his arm cradled at an unnatural angle.

“Oh fuck…” You pull back, easing him down as gently as possible as you pull out your phone, cradling his head in your lap. After the third ring, a gentle voice answers. “Dr. Renslier, I need you to come to my house right away. I have an injured miner here. His arm is badly hurt and he’s bleeding through his clothes. I’m scared to move him…” Ezra’s breath hitches as he bites back another groan, guilt settling in his stomach at causing you so much worry.

“G-Gemstone, stop those tears…” He reaches up with his good hand, wincing as it jostles his right arm, to wipe the tears from your cheeks. “An incorrigible man such as myself is undeserving of such acts of affection. Save those diamonds, little gem.” You tilt your head into his touch, fear still paralyzing your heart.

Dr. Renslier was the only doctor in town, a retired surgeon from Denver Medical Center. He was the best of the best during his time there, and decided to take his skills to this little community, settling in with his wife and their three dogs. The town loved him, and he was one of the few people you would trust with your life in a fraction of a heart beat. So when your door opens and you hear his voice calling from the doorway, a wash of relief floods over you. He kneels next to Ezra, already pulling out scissors to cut away the bloodied jacket. The sight this reveals has your stomach turning and you fight to keep dinner down.

“W-Well? How bad is it doc?” Ezra’s usually rich voice is weak and strangled as he battles with the pain. “Give it to me st-straight.”

“It’s...not good. I don’t think...I don’t think we can save it.” Bone protruded through what was left of the skin in multiple places, the breaks jagged and splintered. “Even if we were in Denver I don’t think I could...save this.” He rummages in his bag for a syringe, tapping out the air before squeezing the flesh of Ezra’s shoulder, administering the injection. “That will help with the pain.” He grumbles about the storm as he pulls out a tourniquet, tying it off just below the shoulder. “We need to get him to the office. He’s going to need a transfusion and I need to operate, now.” You nod as you shift out from under Ezra, him already feeling the effects of what you could only assume was morphine, before helping the doctor to carry him to the car. You elect to ride along, knowing he would need help getting Ezra inside before the nurse on duty would take over.

As soon as you are ushered from the operating bay, you stagger to a chair, sitting down heavily as the adrenaline finally wears off. Tears brim and spill over once again before you drop your face to your blood covered hands, sobbing. Eventually, your sobs turn to whimpers turn to pained sniffles before exhaustion overtakes you, succumbing to a fitful sleep. You are awoken by the nurse, a gentle, pity-filled smile on her face. “He’s out of surgery and resting in a bed now. We need to get you cleaned up before you can see him, ok? We have a set of scrubs you can wear for now.” You simply nod, getting up to follow her as she leads you to the bathroom. The scrubs are folded neatly on the bench by the sink and you smile despite yourself.

Once clean and dressed, you make your way back out to the hall, the nurse waiting to lead you to the recovery beds. You feel as if you could collapse in sobs once more seeing Ezra laid up as he is, face pale and IV drip in his arm. Small bandages littered his face and what you could see of his left arm. As for his right...all that was left was a nub just below his shoulder, tied off in a neat bandage. You draw up a seat next to him, taking his hand in yours, drawing circles along the skin with your thumb. You would wait here for him to wake, you decide.

And so you do, falling asleep with his hand in yours. The feeling of his hand twitching in yours is what wakes you, your eyes snapping open to check on him. The groan that slips from his lips sounds so pained. Slowly, his eyes flutter open, squinting at the bright lights of the med bay before they land on you. A smile tugs at those lips of his when he realizes you were still there, beside him, and he squeezes your hand weakly.

“My little gemstone…” His voice is hoarse, but sweet, traces of that honey slowly returning. “Did you stay here the whole time?”

“As long as they would let me, Ezra.”

“You really didn’t nee-” You cut him off before he could finish the sentence.

“I wanted to. Please don’t ask me to leave, Ezra, because I won’t. I’m not leaving your side.” Rich chocolate eyes grow glassy at your proclamation, hips lips pressing into a tight line, but he nods all the same, secretly relieved that you wanted to stay with him.

“You must believe me a damn fool for finding myself in such a predicament.” His voice is tinged with humor, and you flash him a tired smile, shaking your head.

“It was an accident, Ezra. You said so yourself. I’m just relieved you’re alive to joke about it.” You return the squeeze to your hand and his eyes travel down to where you have interlocked your fingers with his. “Ezra,” you say quietly, drawing his eyes back to yours. “I want you to stay with me.”

“Well, I imagine that will certainly be preferable to the minute comforts an institution such as this could afford me whilst I recover as best I can…” His voice trails off, tight at the end of his statement as he looks to what remains of his arm.

“That’s not what I mean,” you whisper, your voice trembling with trepidation. Concerned eyes find yours again, an eyebrow arched. “I want you to stay with me. No more roaming, no more running...stay here. After the rush leaves, I want you to stay. With me.” His lips part slightly as you vocalize a desire he has had since the day he first followed you home.

“Sunshine, I couldn’t possibly be such a burden on you.”

“Dammit you bullheaded man! Listen to me! You aren’t a burden, you aren’t a hassle. Arm or no arm, I want you here, with me. Sharing my home, my life. I want that, Ezra.” You pick up his hand, bringing it to your lips to brush them over his knuckles. “I want you. I want an us…” You clench your eyes closed and you feel him pull his hand away before he lays it against your cheek.

“Gemstone...look at me.” You do as asked, looking up at him with glassy eyes that match his own. “Do you mean it? Do you really want me here? Is that what your heart is singing to you?” You nod, laying your hand over his against your cheek.

“Yes, Ezra, and I think it has been since the day you followed me home. Please, Ezra…” Confliction flashes in his eyes as he watches your face, your tears spilling over once more and he quickly wipes them away with the calloused pad of his thumb.

“No tears for me, little gemstone. I...I’ll stay…” You blink, almost not believing the words that came from his mouth.

“You...you mean it?”

“I do. My bones are tired, gem. My soul is tired. And since you extended such kindness to me that night, my dreams have left me in peace. All I dream about are your eyes which hold galaxies and your musical laugh. And being next to you…” You turn your head to nuzzle his hand, warmth flowing through you as you take in his words before you look back to him.

“We’re not so different then. You haven’t left my dreams, or my thoughts, since that night.” Ezra chuckles lowly before letting out a yawn, sinking back into the pillows. “Rest now, alright? I’ll be here when you wake.” He nods, pulling your hand away from where it holds his to your face, bringing it to his lips to place a feather-light kiss to your knuckles before laying it to rest by his side, his eyes slowly slipping shut.

The gold rush brought many people to your quaint little mountain town; miners and prospectors, dreamers and fighters, men and women with delusions of grandeur and those just trying to scrape by. But out of all of them, all of those you had befriended in your time helping to ensure they were fed, the one most important to you was Ezra. You don’t think it was a coincidence he ended up running to the same town you did so many years ago. The universe worked in ways no mere mortal would every truly understand. But that didn’t matter. So long as you had him by your side, the universe could act however it saw fit. Because with Ezra here beside you, your two weary souls could finally find solace in the cradle of the mountains.

~~~~~

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simplyxdolxstyles · 3 years

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Halloween Frenzy

This piece is a bit old but just wanted to post it. It’s also 1st person this time so that a bit different. Let me know what you think, feedback is always appreciated.

Warning: badly written smut, d-bag gray, and an overall shitty halloween party but what can you do?

Enjoy. (also the title is horrible but I just didn’t know what else to call it.

I was at a Halloween party with my friend (Y/F/N), a Halloween party that surely made bingo night seem fun. She was a cat and I was Minnie Mouse.

Her costume was slutty, though mine had a bit more decency. I opted on doing my hair but decided against it and just wore a red bob wig instead, while (Y/F/N) wore some extensions to her already long auburn hair.

“I heard Grayson is around here somewhere.” (Y/F/N) told me. Grayson Dolan was a dirty, rotten, player. Hot, but a playing jerk. Sure, he may seem so innocent that the teachers and adults seem to fall for, me? It didn’t get very far. To me he was nothing but a good looking bad boy looking for trouble.

“Great…” I trailed of rolling my eyes. Unfortunately, I was like any girl here who had a crush on the schools rebel, I just didn’t show it, or give into his satisfaction like all these brainless zombies seemed to be doing. Hating to admit like the other girls, I was drooling as I watched him play soccer. He wasn’t exactly the tallest person on the team, but having him sweat and take off his shirt at the end made up for so much.

Just as she had said that, I heard someone’s loud, obnoxious laugh. I looked to my right to see a boy wearing a white tank top, and baggy jeans with chains. With his back turned towards me, I gave him the nastiest glare I could muster. I had found Grayson.

“Easy there, girl. He won’t like you if you’re glaring,” she teased, nudging me slightly.

“Ugh! Shut up…” I hissed. As if he could feel my stare, he slowly turned around till he too was looking straight at me. After studying me a few minutes he slowly smirked. Red cup in his hand and feeling so cocky, he walked over to me, (Y/F/N) running out of sight. ‘Gee, thanks (Y/F/N)!’

“Well, well. If it isn’t Minnie Mouse. What’s a matter? Couldn’t find a Mickey?” he chuckled at his own joke (boo, sorry for that lame joke xD)

“Last time I checked, this was a Halloween party, not a douchebag contest.” I said grimly.

“And last time I checked, this wasn’t a WHORE house” he retorted. I rolled my eyes and scoffed at him. It wasn’t like the other girls here weren’t dressed the same anyway. In fact, probably more revealing than I was.

“What are you supposed to be anyway?” I asked, even though I didn’t want to.

“I’m not in costume, but people think I’m a gangster. Either way I don’t care, this is a lame party anyway.” He shrugged, shoving his hands in pants pockets.

“I see, well you could’ve fooled me,” I muttered mostly to myself. He was hot, but this outfit just made him look like an asshole, well more than he already was.

“Alright ladies and gentlemen. Time for a special performance by the ‘Cupcakes.’” Mark announced.

“Now if you don’t mind, I have to dance now,” I sassed. (Just think of any song lmao)

We head out to the make-shift stage out in the backyard. Walking up the stage we got into position. I caught eyes with Grayson briefly, throwing him a sly smirk. Let’s see you now hot shot.

Showing our stuff this way and that, we were getting a rise out of the audience. With all the eyes that were on us, I could feel Grayson giving the most intense stare of all. Studying me, watching my every move.

With the final moves of our dance, the crowd started going crazy with cheers and hollers. I saw Grayson give a cocky grin, though he was clapping. Seeming genuinely impressed with our special presentation. Something to at least give life to this dull party.

As everyone was back inside once again, drinking, making out, and doing god knows what. I went to grab a drink to calm my nerves.

“Hey, you did well out there,” came from behind me. Turning quickly around, I only found (Y/F/N), secretly I wished it was Grayson.

“T-thanks, so did you.” I took a sip of the cheap, stale beer. Certainly not the best, but better than anything.

“Don’t worry, (Y/N), I’m sure by now he thinks you’re hot, he won’t be able to resist you.” I just gave a closed mouth smile. With a comforting pat on the shoulder, she stalked off to go get drunk or something. I snorted at what she said. It wasn’t likely to happen but. She did put an image in my head.

Not long after, everything started to get fuzzy. I hadn’t seen Grayson since we did the routine. ‘He’s probably bangin’ some chick right now’ I thought to myself. At the thought, I felt myself moisten. Thoughts swam through my mind wondering how he was in bed. Exactly how many of the student body had he slept with? As I exited the bathroom, I froze when I saw who was just on the other side of the door.

“Finally, I found you,” he smirked. He had taken off the biker hat, his messy, charcoal black hair in show. “Yeah right.” I muttered to myself. He walked closer to me as if he heard me.

“I’m serious.” He whispered lowly in my ear. God! I just wanted to dig my hands in his hair and make an even more mess of it. I gulped hard. Pushing a way slightly, I tried to play it as he did. But I was crumbling, like a pie.

“Why, couldn’t find a lay?” this time I smirked. He narrowed his eyes at me menacingly.

“Come with me,” He demanded me. He grabbed my arm and roughly dragged me somewhere. It all happened so fast. He pulled me until we were in a room. Probably Mark’s guest room, and slammed the door shut behind him. Pinning me against the door, he held my writs above my head. Oh my God? Was this happening?!

Nose almost touching mine, I stared into his cold, dark eyes that held anger, frustration, and lust?

“You know what you’re doing, don’t you?” he seethed in my face. I was genuinely confused. What was he talking about? His eyes that were usually a warm brown colour was only a thin ring as his dilated pupil was full blown.

“What are you talking about?” I stared at him, a confused look graced my features.

“Don’t play dumb with me! You act like a slut tonight, the dance for example. I know you like me! I’m not fucking stupid. You wanted to get a rise at me, we’ll you will fucking get it now!” he exclaimed with such a dark aura. He pushed me into the door, it was actually starting to hurt.

“Flaunting yourself around in that costume, dancing in front of all those people. You wanna be a slut fine, then I’ll treat you like one!” he pulled me off the door and pushed me on the bed, wig falling as he did so. Oh my god! This was happening!

He crawled on top of me, wrists held by his hands again. He was acting like a maniac, but looked beyond gorgeous as the moon shone light on his face.

“Go ahead, Make your move,” my blood was boiling. I was angry yet so turned on. He just knew how to work his magic.

“Watching me at those soccer games. You think I don’t notice you stare at me? Huh? I know you like me, just like all those other girls. You are the worst one of all, pretending to act all innocent. You are a slut, don’t you ever forget it!” he roared, pressing me further into the mattress. I whimpered in pain from the tight grip. God, it was so hot in here.

“Don’t worry, babe. You’ll soon be screaming my name. In pleasure.” he whispered lowly in my ear. How could a guy with a cute face have a sexy, yet aggressive side to him? I was enjoying every moment of this. He gripped me by the neck, carefully not to cut me out of breath and forced me to look at him. My now free hands landed in his hair, pulling at the roots. I lowered his head till I could feel his breath against my lips.

“Oh yes, I’m a big slut,” I cooed teasingly. He ran his thumb along my lower lip before he placed his lips upon mine. Kissing me twice before he licked into my mouth. I opened my mouth for him as he entered. He kissed me with raw desire, biting at my lips and tugging them, running his tongue against my teeth. I swear I could taste a little blood. After our little make-out session and leaving nothing untouched, he pulled me up and went for the zipper of my Minnie Mouse costume.

He licked a strip up my neck, teasing before he went to a spot on my neck that drove me completely mad. I was at his beck and call, and I enjoyed every second of it.

“Ahhh!” I gasped. I could feel him smirk against my skin. I knew he burst my capillaries, thus know sporting a hickey. He licked over his creation a couple of times before he pulled down the shoulder part of my dress. Grayson kissed my shoulder a couple of times before moving down towards my collarbones, again leaving marks.

I gently pushed him off me before I climbed onto his lap. I kissed from his jaw down to his neck, the same way he did to me.

“You know, you looked so hot tonight. I couldn’t control myself. I would have gone mad.” He whispered lowly. He let out a delicious groan that only infused my hunger. Seeing guys in pleasure was surely a sight to see. Letting go of his flesh I tugged on the hem of his tank top, signaling I wanted the offending material off. He chuckled as he pulled it over his head and somewhere in the room.

“Ha, couldn’t wait could you?”’ he teased. It was only fair if I took of my costume, throwing it somewhere in the room along with his tank top. Thank god I picked the good set of undergarments tonight. “Shut up.” I playfully nudged him.

He now laid on his back as I placed kisses down his chest all the way to his abdomen. His breath increasing, the heat was too much. He gripped the sheets as I got to the hem of his pants. Placing butterfly kisses here and there. Seeing him at his mercy was a pretty hot sight to see.

“(Y/N), please do something. Don’t tease me.” He whimpered, gripping the sheets again.

“Aww, where’s the fun in that, huh?” I cooed. I teased, but I couldn’t wait either. The anticipation was killing me. Popping open the button of the pants, slowly moving along to the zipper and pulling it down at a painfully slow pace. I tugged down at his pants till it was at his knees, with his help of course. He was wearing black boxer shorts, but I could still see his outline.

The little trails of hair he had that led to the ‘promise land’ were fine, like baby hair just starting to grow. I took the band of the boxers and slowly began pulling down. His member slapped out hitting his belly button and a little past. He wasn’t huge, but he sure was thick. Twitching at my touch, he bucked in my hand. I wrapped my hand in a small fist and began to pump.

“Gahhh! Shit… Oh my God…” he released a loud moan. Eyes shut tight, eyebrows furrowed, biting his lip and writhing in pleasure. Pre-cum started to ooze out of his slit, I took my thumb and rubbed it all over the head of his member, jerking at the sensitive touch. I was about to take him in my mouth when he stopped me.

“Wait! Come here and turn around, you’re back to me,” he instructed. I pouted but did as he told. I took off my bra as I felt him tugging my thong down. Lifting myself to aid him in the process, it was finally off. God he looked so sexy. His cheeks flushed, his messy hair. I would have loved to take a picture of this moment, but that would have been weird. He pulled me by the hips till I was backed up to him, until we were both in line.

“Whenever you’re ready, baby.” I lowered my face, lightly licking from base to tip, the same time he licked up my wet opening. Twirling my tongue around the head of his member urged a groan to escape once again.

“Oh Lord! Don’t stop…” he practically begged. I didn’t. We both worked at the same pace, if I was slow then he was slow, if I sped up then so did he, we met the perfect rhythm. Not too fast not to slow. That was how Grayson worked, regardless anything.

“Ohhh!” I moaned around his twitching length that was in my mouth. He had hit a spot deep inside me as he fucked me with his tongue. Spots were soon seen in my line of vision. We were both close.

“On three, baby. One…Two…Three!” we moaned each other’s name as we wen spiraling into climax. Pleasure filled my veins as we gasped for air. I pulled off his dick and turned around to face him. He smiled a bright smile at me which I mirrored. ‘God, he was so cute!’ I thought. He pulled me up over to him and kissed me thoroughly, taking my breath away. His lips were so soft, it was like kissing a cloud.

“Don’t think we’re done just yet, I still need to fuck you, you’re still a little slut who hasn’t learned,” He gave a hard slap to my ass that made me yelp in surprise.

“On all fours! Ass up…NOW!” he barked, in his smooth, velvety voice. I got into position like he told me to, I could feel myself getting wet with want.

“Now, are you gonna be a good girl and listen? Or do I have to teach you to behave, Hmm?” I was all over the place at this point. He gave me another slap, this time I was more used to it.

“I’ll be good I promise. Just fuck me!” I exclaimed impatiently. He rubbed the head of his member against my slick opening, I couldn’t help but grind against him.

“Bad! Don’t move, or I will slap you even harder,” he growled, from somewhere deep within his chest. I wanted to object but I obeyed. It was probably better that way. He placed it back against my heat, but I didn’t grind this time.

“Beg! I want you to beg. Beg me to fuck you, c’mon. I’m waiting…” Man, he sure knew how to push someone over the edge.

“Please, Grayson, fuck me. Fuck me like the slut I am, I need to learn to behave!” I wailed in agony.

“No! Not Grayson, you will refer to me as ‘Master’ now. So tell me.” He smacked me once again.

“Master! Please, I need you to fuck me. I need to behave, just do something!” I cried out. I probably looked so pathetic right now compared to other’s girls. But wouldn’t you do the same if you really wanted someone. With that, he thrusted himself inside me.

“AHHHHHH!!!” I screamed. He was buried in there good. He gripped my hips steadily, moving in and out feeling everything inside.

“Faster GR-MASTER! OHHHH!” He obliged and started going faster. Each thrust sent me closer to release, sweet relief. He roughly pulled my matted hair in a ponytail, adding more to this sweet pain/pleasure.

“How’s it feel? Do you feel good, baby?” he asked, smacking me once again. There was going to be an imprint of his hand if he kept that up.

“Yes, so good, master. I’m getting close,” I wailed loudly, the sounds of the party was loud enough to mask my moans so I could be as loud as I wanted. He jackhammered into me, touching all the right spots. I would’ve cum in no time, but sadly, he stopped.

“Ride me!” he spat. He sat up straight as I climbed into his lap once again. Holding himself as I sank down on him. ‘Wow, what a feeling!’

He filled me all the way up, just how I wanted him to. I held on his shoulders as I rocked back and forth. Then he guided my hips in movement as I slowly began to bounce.

“You look so hot right now, god you feel so good. Kiss me, baby!” He said weakly, his dark hair plastered to his forehead. I pulled him by the face and brought his lips on mine. He licked inside, exploring my cavern once again like how I explored his. The sounds of wet kissing and slapping filled room, along with our moans and grunts, we were ready. Grayson savagely attacked my neck and collarbones with kisses and hickies, hickies I would surely have to cover up.

“Ohhh, I’m almost there!!” I mewled as he continued to attack my collarbones. He hadn’t moved but moved his hand in-between us and rubbed my clit in circles.

“Mmm…” he moaned in my neck, biting it slightly. I could feel heat pooling in my lower abdomen. I started bouncing harder, getting him to hit the spot inside.

“I’m going to-ohhhh! GRAY-MMPHH” He kissed me hard, fueling the fire further.

“Scream my name, babe. Scream it!” he rasped. Hot flashed was going through my body, body feeling fuzzy and tingly.

“GRAYSON!!! AHHHH!!” I screamed loudly. I felt him follow not to long after. Feeling him shoot thick ropes of his seed inside as he lowly grunted. Exhausted, we feel back into the bed, feeling the post-sex bliss.

“Holy Shit!” I heaved. He chuckled, pulling me into his chest, muttering a quiet “I know.” I snuggled into him, inhaling his scent. Sweat, a tinge of soap, and himself. It made me smile. He pecked my temple softly as I drew patterns on his body.

“What are doing?” he asked, giggles as I traced.

“Nothing,” I answered cutely. I let go and looked up at him. He pecked the tip of my nose softly before he did the same.

“That was amazing.” I uttered, mostly to myself. It really was, it felt like we had done this before. “It was.” He agreed. It couldn’t have been more perfect.

“We should probably get going though, people might wonder where we ran off to…” although I could see he didn’t want to.

“Alright,” I just had one question, where did this leave us. Was this some hookup or did he actually want something. I had to know.

“Hey, Grayson? I just wanted to ask where this leaves us, you know…” I trailed off at the end. I saw him freeze a little as he went to get his shirt.

“(Y/N), you know I have a reputation to withhold. I can’t just drop it now. Especially because of a party. My head dropped and I nodded glumly. I knew it was too good to be true.

“Listen, tonight was amazing. Sweetheart, please understand that. But I will tell you this, I have never ever felt like this in all my time since we started high school. I wanted you for the longest time, but you are some much better than a guy like me, a lot better. I’m a no good loser who just passes by along every day, you don’t need me to hold you back.” He cupped my cheeks, I willed myself not to cry, though I felt a tear slide down my cheek,

“Don’t cry please, that last thing I want to do is make you cry. Shit.” He muttered the last to himself.

“I-I really l-like you,” I said. He quickly looked up at me as if he hadn’t heard what I said. He heard loud and clear.

“Baby, don’t do this. I can’t just say I’m taken. It’s so obvious.” He tried to reason. I knew he was right.

“I’ll wait for you,” I stared deeply into his as how he stared into mine. He gave a small smile.

“Perhaps, one day. But right now, it’ll be way too complicated.”

“I g-guess.” I sighed looking down. He nudged my chin up to make me look at him.

“Hey, it’s not the end. You know, if you’re always looking, you know where to find me.

“You have something those girls/guys never had. A heart. You see people differently, you see the good in them. I could try and not be too much of an asshole, but that’s about it,” He made a face. I chuckled at that, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. I was determined to wait no matter how long it would be.

“Hey…” He began. He cupped my face softly in his hands and kissed me long and passionate, relishing the feelings into this one kiss. He pulled back and smiled a toothy smile, I mirrored it.

“You know, the assembly is next Tuesday, wanna skip and you know, fool around a little?” he threw a cheesy wink a little. I had to laugh at his childishness sometimes.

“You’ve got yourself a date,” I replied, he pecked me one last time and waited for me as I got my costume back on.

As we walked out, I saw (Y/F/N) and caught her eye. She looked between Grayson and I, her eyes grew the size of saucers.

“Tell me!” she mouthed. I laughed a little.

“Later” I mouthed back.

From then on, Grayson and I had a different relationship, sure he still did stuff here and there, but besides that. We had something that no one could or would understand. A Connection. Everyone was too quick to judge just because he was a player, but I knew he was more than that. He was willing to work it with someone. On the day he is finally ready to take that step, I would gladly welcome him with open arms.

#grayson dolan #grayson dolan blurb #grayson smut #dolan twins #smut with a bit of angst and fluff #grayson dolan imagines #grayson x you #grayson x reader

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avictimofthejazz · 3 years

Note

[ 👻 ] does your muse have regrets? what are some of their deepest ones? -For B.A

[ 🐺 ] does your muse have trouble relying on others? why or why not? -For Maggie

[ 🪀 ] what was your muse’s childhood like? how did their upbringing affect them? -For Michael Knight

[ 👨‍🏫 ] how much does your muse care about image? how would they react if something personal got leaked about them? -For Face

@letsturnandburn

[ 👻 ] does your muse have regrets? what are some of their deepest ones? -For B.A For BA, a BIG regret is not being able to go home to his mom. He knows it’s not his fault, or Hannibal’s, that they are wanted by the military and that they were set up…but he still wants to be able to go home and take care of his mother. He misses her and knows it’s not right that the best he can do is quietly wire her money a few times a month and send letters and phone calls. Even the letters and phone calls slow down though when guys like Decker get too close—he doesn’t want his mother accidently caught up in any of the A-Team’s wake.

[ 🐺 ] does your muse have trouble relying on others? why or why not? -For Maggie (I actually already answered this one and since it’s not the kind of question that can have multiple answers, I just brought back the other answer XD) Maggie finds it fairly easy to rely on other people. Being a doctor and a combat medic, she got used to working in a team arrangement. If she could not rely on the rest of her staff, or if she constantly doubted and second-guessed them then someone was going to die. A person still has to prove they’re competent before she’ll let them too far off the leash but once a person proves themselves, she trusts them to do their job right. If they can’t pull that off…well…that is a conversation for a different time.

[ 🪀 ] what was your muse’s childhood like? how did their upbringing affect them? -For Michael Knight Michael’s childhood was fairly standard and happy, aside from his father dying of leukemia when he was nine. His mother raised him on her own after that but he also had several uncles who stepped in to be ‘dads’ for the young Michael Long. An All-American boy in many senses of the word, Michael’s childhood was filled with fishing, playing sports, going to school, and playing with the other kids in his neighborhood. Growing up as he did left Michael with an innate trust in the overall decency of humanity and a love for people. While experience has given him a crusty, cynical edge at times, he has never lost this core tenant of his personality. When he does have reason to be bitter and cynical, it is aimed at the individual and he never makes assumptions about a group at large because of the actions of one person.

[ 👨‍🏫 ] how much does your muse care about image? how would they react if something personal got leaked about them? -For Face Face really cares about his personal image—especially when he’s stressed and feeling out of control. The more stressed Face is, the more likely you are to see him wearing Armani and Rolexes. (Granted he does dress like this at other times too BUT a Face who’s wearing three-piece suits for the fifth day in a row is a Face that needs to have someone to check in with him). When everything else in his life feels like it’s spiraling out of control, his image is one thing he can control and does so aggressively. That being said, he’s not too worried about anything personal being leaked about him. The bottom line is that most of the ‘embarrassing’ information is already pretty public knowledge (the botched job in Vietnam, the arrest etc.). He can be indiscrete at times but NEVER to the point of compromising photos or video and mere rumors he can deny if he ever needs too. If anyone could get anything personal on him to leak, he’d be annoyed but also acknowledge that they worked for their dirt at least. Now if someone fabricated such information on purpose, he would be far more annoyed and track that person down to have a chat.

#Muse: BA Baracus #Muse: Maggie Sullivan #Muse: Michael Knight #Muse: Templeton 'Face Man' Peck #Letsturnandburn #headcanons

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georgiafm · 3 years

Text

big boobs ? what ?? ummm, chile, anyway... soo. hey angels ! xD fun fact ? positions has been on repeat for like 4 days straight <3 i’m c / cely ( she + her ), whatever floats ur boat, i’m a 23 yr old from the eastern tz who’s 110% struggling to adult properly, and i’m rlly not all tht interesting, so let’s move on to The real star here

p.s. i promise i’ll try but 9/10 i am terrible at ims 😔 so feel free to hmu on the disco @simp 4 shawn 5ever#1305

chicago’s very own georgia ‘gigi’ madigan has been spotted on madison avenue , with a striking semblance to madelyn cline ! you may know them as @gigipuffs or hitting the front page of tmz as shamed child star gigi goes gaga on pedestrian on broadway street . according to tmz , you just had your twenty-third birthday bash . your chance of surviving new york is uncertain because you’re irascible , but being congenial might help you . things that would paint a better picture of you would be head held high despite the sooty markings of a dirty neck , deafening music blaring from a convertible speeding down residential streets , cherry chapstick on a pouting mouth . ( cisfemale + she/her )

stats.

full name : georgia stormy madigan.

nickname(s) : gigi.

birthdate : sometime in october during ‘97.

zodiac : libra.

sexuality : bisexual / biromantic.

hometown : born in dallas, texas but moved to chicago at age 5 when her mother remarried, then eventually, nyc at 16 after her step-father received a huge job offer.

father : sullivan “sully” madigan-- retired soccer player & hall of famer. now, currently lives in honolulu, hawaii. gigi’s best friend. she goes to him often to either whine about her family, or laze in the sun. leads a normal, modest life with a new family. mellow & altruistic.

mother : gwendolyn mayfair-- talk show co-host ( the view reimagined ). was miss texas in ‘84, then miss america in ‘86. ambitious, but superficial & overbearing.

step-father : michael mayfair-- sports commentator. basically, sukie’s second father as he married gwendolyn while gigi was still young, therefore, was instrumental in raising her. was once sully’s biggest fan, then stole sully’s wife. funny, but flighty & unreliable.

siblings : riley mayfair-- half-sister. 4 years old. if it was still a thing, you’d without a doubt catch her on a toddlers & tiaras episode. keith madigan-- brother. 27 years old. currently serving life in prison for 3 counts of manslaughter. a painful detail the family doesn’t talk about. it always makes gwendolyn cry. it makes georgia’s blood boil.

occupation : host of one of the most popular podcasts in america.

traits : - irascible, sardonic, skeptical, flippant, scatterbrained, tactless, insubordinate. + congenial, benevolent, resilient, individualistic, waggish, uninhibited, candid.

character inspo : pinterest. viola hastings ( she’s the man ), maeve wiley ( sex education ), miley cyrus / ashley o ( black mirror ), alyssa ( end of the fucking world ).

* 𝐫𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐧𝐞 : georgia madigan’s most scandalous articles

sully madigan’s problem child throws tantrum on set.

“ i know madigan. nice guy. but that daughter of his is out of control ! ” director leopold lincoln recounts georgia madigan’s horrific attitude.

racy photos of nearly nude georgia madigan leaked !

mental breakdown ? georgia madigan attacks paparazzi !

meltdown madigan at it again ! georgia’s meltdown with boyfriend caught on tape !

disney axes contract with georgia madigan. is this the end for the child star ?

ex disney star’s fall from grace * tmz image of a 19 year old georgia on her hands & knees vomiting outside of a nightclub *

why no one in hollywood wants to work with georgia madigan.

* 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐢.

when gwendolyn first learned she was with child, she was ecstatic. she prayed & prayed for a girl. she daydreamed often about what it would be like having a mini her; pictured her in pageants ( dominating the competition if she was anything like mommy ), in ballet, getting their nails & hair done together like close mommies & daughters do.

when she found out she was having a boy, she begrudgingly accepted it as her fate, but vowed to try again, already planning her next pregnancy while still pregnant with her first; a child she'd name keith, &... she liked him okay. the first born always occupies a special place in the heart; but she wanted a girl. keith would grow up knowing a subtle kind of rejection. the second time gwendolyn learned she was with child, she was over the moon. this time she knew it'd be a girl-- a psychic had told her so. she didn't listen to anything else the psychic had to say.

* 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐢𝐢.

georgia was her mother's perfect little doll... until she wasn't. but until then, she dressed her up, ensuring she only adorned pastels, bought her lots & lots of barbies-- replacing the ones that'd turn up with their heads missing with dozens more-- forced her into hosiery & leotards while the child cried & cried & cried, smiled through the embarrassment when she'd sabotage her own performances at pageants, smiled in polite agony, face colored crimson, when she'd pick georgia up from school with her dresses covered in dirt, pigtails lopsided & drooping sadly. this wasn't what she pictured having a daughter would be like.

but instead of letting up, letting georgia explore her own interests, she pressed on. her sights eventually set on the silver screen. by 6, georgia was crying on disney sets. by 10, she had no more tears left to cry; & what would be the use anyway ? they never worked. by 15, georgia was acting out in a very different way. her father was gone, driven away across the country & an ocean by gwendolyn, her step-father mostly looked the other way, complicit, her brother, in prison-- gwendolyn’s biggest disappointment & heartache. georgia was alone.

* 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐢𝐢𝐢.

by 16, georgia had been dropped by disney, & a deep depression would befall her. when she was younger, friday night lights used to glint off of warm starry eyes. her father & step-father would take her to all the games & teach her all the happenings on the field until they made up their own little game of guessing plays-- up until there came a time when georgia would always emerge victorious. she dreamed of following in her father’s footsteps when she was young, but now, it was too late. her youth had been wasted, & she felt utterly drained. she used to think she had all the time in the world, but adulthood was rapidly approaching, & all she could do was lament over all that wasted time.

she eventually dug herself out, some time an ocean away from her mother doing her good, but when she returned home, gwendolyn had replaced her. this time, this baby would be a mini her. like her brother, georgia would come to know a subtle kind of rejection.

generally easygoing & big-hearted, over the years, georgia’s earned a bad reputation she’s undeserving of. while she has difficulty controlling spurs of anger, said anger is never without reason, it’s simply exacerbated. she doesn’t take too kindly to aggressive authority figures or injustice. after she established a podcast on youtube & spotify when she was 20, however ( the subject matter is some of everything; football, soccer, pop culture, racy content, politics, think pieces, philosophy, she even hosts people on occasion to keep things fresh & exciting ), people were finally able to get to know the real her.

#wealthyhq:intro #not me having this rdy for days oop #plotting tomorrow bc ya girl is not present tonight :sob: iykyk #depression tw

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horrorboydyke · 4 years

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From the prompt list for davenzi ❤️ 9. “If you slit my throat tonight, I’m gonna have a hard time forgiving you for that.”

Anonymous said:

8. “Even though that’s dripping with sarcasm, and definitely isn’t genuine, I’m gonna take it.” - these quotes are all so fitting xD

Hi anon’s!! I hope you like this one-shot!! (read on ao3) (also please read the paragraph i put at the bottom of this post!!)

Matteo hated being in quarantine, he absolutely hated it, he is mainly a homebody, preferring to stay at home rather than being out but now he isn’t allowed out unless he needs to get groceries or medical care, he feels like if he can’t go outside he would die. He sits on his sofa and sighs loudly as he looks out the window, the empty street bellow is a weird thing to look at compared to how it was a week ago. He sighs dramatically again and chuckled when David groans from on his bed.

“Dude shut up I need to hear when the fish but the bait thingy,” David says not taking his eyes off of his switch and Matteo rolls his eyes, throwing himself off the sofa and down onto his best next to his boyfriend who just moves over slightly to give Matteo more room but not taking his eyes off his game.

“Why do I feel like you love animal crossing more than me?” Matteo asks with a pout and David snorts out a small laugh. Matteo leans over and watches his boyfriend for a few minutes, feeling himself smile when David furrows his eyebrows as he presses A too early and the fish shadow of the fish swims away.

“Those peaches are so cute,” Matteo says softly as he points to a tree with three peaches growing on it and David playfully swats his hand away from his switch.

“Yeah they are adorable but watch this,” David says with a smile and his little character shakes the tree, the three peaches falling out and Matteo watches as David shows him the orange, cherry and apple trees he has grown.

“Can I play?” Matteo asks shyly and David looks at him with a smile and hands Matteo his switch.

“I thought you said animal crossing was a game for babies,” David says in a mocking voice and Matteo shrugs his shoulders as his eyes fixate on the cute little character that he’s controlling.

“Did you try to make him look like you?” Matteo asks as he mentions to the character David dressed in a green and white striped shirt and blue jeans, Matteo looks closer and smiles at the tuffs of blue hair he sees pointing out from underneath a hat.

“Not really I just dressed him in whatever clothing is the cutest and whatever hair colour I feel like depending on the day,” David says as he watches Matteo try to make the character catch a butterfly,

“Oh and Matteo,” David says in a serious voice which makes Matteo look away from the game and at him, “don’t touch my trees or the flowers.”

David moves from the bed to the sofa, he grabs his laptop and starts to edit a piece of media for one of his class assignments, he occasionally looks up laughs to himself at the image of Matteo getting mad because he doesn’t understand how to catch a fish yet but once he does, every fish he catches he insists on showing David.

The sun had set a few hours ago and Matteo was still entertained by his game and David still found Matteo grunts of frustration so cute so he didn’t grab the switch off of Matteo. The light from his laptop had started to hurt his eyes so he put it down and jumped onto the bed and Matteo nearly screamed as he was suddenly jolted, his fingers moving out of reflexing and hitting the A button.

“I was just about to catch my first shark,” Matteo yells and David chuckles while Matteo picks up a pillow and hits his boyfriend a few times with it and David can’t stop laughing. After Matteo calmed down David grabbed the console and saved Matteo's progress before turning the switch off and putting it on the charger.

“Come on, time for bed. You can catch a shark tomorrow,” David says as he wraps his arms around Matteo and pulls him down into a lying position.

“I’ll kill you for that,” Matteo says lightheartedly and David laughs.

“If you slit my throat tonight, I’m gonna have a hard time forgiving you for that,” David replies jokingly and Matteo shakes his head with a laugh.

“You never know,” Mateo says and raises his eyebrows a few times in a suggestive manner and David rolls his eyes, planting a kiss on his boyfriend’s forehead.

“You didn’t touch my trees right?” David asks after a few seconds as he remembers seeing Matteo shaking a tree before he scared the boy. He watches as Matteo’s eyes widen and he goes silent.

“What no, of course not,” Matteo says as he lies through his teeth and David side eyes him.

“Even though that’s dripping with sarcasm, and definitely isn’t genuine, I’m gonna take it,” Davids says, too tired to know what Matteo did to precious fruit trees.

“I’ll regrow them,” Matteo says quietly and David nods his head.

“You most definitely will be or I’ll make sure you never catch a shark,” David threatens, sort of joking but Matteo knows he’s serious.

“I’ll regrow them, honestly,” Matteo presses and David nods his head with a laugh.

“I’ll hold you to that,” David says as he sits up and grabs his laptop and pulls up Netflix.

“What did you wanna watch?” Matteo asks and David hums as he searches through the shows and movies they added to their list.

“What about that tiger king show I see people making memes about on twitter?” David asks and Matteo nods his head and shrugs, he nuzzles into David’s side as the first episode starts.

(PLEASE READ!!! There really isn't anything special about this fic, it was just cute to write. I think people forget that Matteo and David are teenagers and because I'm a teenager myself, I just wanted to write them doing what I've been doing for like the last week which is, you guessed it, playing animal crossing and watching tiger king lmao. I don't know why I'm just saying this whole thing now but I am a teenager, I'm 4 days away from turning 17, so not everything I write will always be serious or sad because sometimes I just want to write feel-good fics that will showcase my interests that are obviously very kiddish (because I am a kid). I never want to depict David or Matteo in a childish way but they are teenagers and do like things other teenagers do. I really hope ya'll don't mind!)

#druck #druck fanfic #asks #anon my writing #Anonymous

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miscellaneous-miraculous · 4 years

Text

Painted Lady Chapter 4 - Threads and Jesters

Sorry it's a bit longer than usual, some scenes in this chapter were being difficult. I'm still not 100% satisfied but at this point I just need to move on or I'll never publish it XD Hope you enjoy! - Min

Read on AO3 here

“Hey, Tikki, do you think going out to dinner next Tuesday would be okay?” Marinette set down her tape measure and pulled down her schedule. She’d gotten into the habit of making one every month during collège and marking down events for all her classmates. Balancing only four or five schedules at a time now was a piece of cake. “Most of the festivities should be wrapping up by then and celebrating the end of classes would be a good way to keep Adrien’s mind off things.”

"You could ask your parents about using the bakery,” Tikki added. “It’ll be easy to keep any triggers away there and Adrien loves baking.”

“And you love cookies,” Marinette giggled, poking Tikki. “That’s a great idea though.”

“I should hope so, ideas are my domain.” Tikki handed Marinette her phone.

“Along with – aiyah!”

“What’s wrong?”

“Nino sent me a text twenty minutes ago about an akuma!” Marinette said, sending a quick reply before transforming and leaving from the balcony. One of the things they looked for when apartment hunting had been an easy exit for superheroing. Nino had been thinking along the lines of a window that was open to a more secluded area, but Adrien had wanted a balcony specifically and Marinette had gone along with it, remembering how convenient her own at the bakery had been. Later she’d found out his real reasoning.

Their first anniversary there had Adrien dramatically reciting love declarations from below. Her birthday had been a poem. Valentine’s was a candle-lit picnic like the one he’d set up for her all those years ago. You know you love it, Bugaboo Adrien’s voice teased in her head as she felt her cheeks flare up at the memory of his last attempt at poetry. The rose he’d given her was still sitting in a vase on her desk – soon she’d have to decide if she wanted to press it or dry it out.

Focus, there’s an akuma on the loose!

She spotted Chat Noir first, standing beside – Ladybug? No, she shook her head, scanning around until she found Rena Rouge, hidden behind a nearby tree with her flute. Carapace was holding up Queen Bee, who looked rather dazed, and the akuma was addressing Chat Noir and the Illusion-bug. As she moved closer, Ladybug recognized Lila’s voice coming from the akuma. “Hand over the miraculous to me. Otherwise, all of Paris will suffer, starting with your pathetic little sidekicks. I’ll finish them off one by one until the entire city sees how weak and useless you are. Then, once you’re all alone with your reputation in tatters, I’ll rip the miraculous from your ears myself.” Ladybug tried to push away the images her brain began conjuring. Lila hadn’t succeeded in her threats during collège and lycée – she wouldn’t succeed now.

“You’ll never win, Lila!” Illusion-bug shouted. Carapace spotted the real Ladybug and made a motion to his head. The hairbow.

“Oh, Ladybug, haven’t you heard? It’s Painted Lady now.” The akuma raised her signpost, but before she could do anything else, Ladybug swooped in and snagged the hairbow, landing beside Chat Noir and Illusion-Bug. “No!” the akuma snarled.

“Yes,” Ladybug grinned, breaking the object and allowing the butterfly to escape. The Illusion-bug vanished with a bow as the real Ladybug captured the akuma.

“Lucky charm!” Ladybug called and a small plastic horse fell into her hands. “Miraculous ladybug!”

As the ladybugs began repairing everything, she turned to Chat Noir. “Sorry I was late.”

“Nothing new, right?” Chat Noir teased. Ladybug rolled her eyes, giving him a playful shove.

“W-what happened? Where am I?” the girl asked. She looked six or seven at most, a floral-patterned band-aid on one knee and a bit of dirt smudged on her nose. Tears began welling up in her eyes, “I want my mommy!”

“We’ll help you find her, I promise,” Chat Noir said gently, leaning down so they were eye level. “Can you tell me your name?”

“Camille,” Chat Noir smiled. “You were akumatized. What’s the last place you remember being?”

“At the – at the park,” she sniffled. “The mean kids were teasing me, t-they said I was too little to play with them because I’m not strong enough, but I’m super strong! I help my mommy all the time.”

“I’m sure you do,” Chat Noir said. “Your mommy is really lucky to have such great helper.” Camille smiled at that and Ladybug thought her heart might melt from the cuteness.

“I’m going to lie down,” Queen Bee whispered, pulling Ladybug’s attention from the girl. While her miraculous cure fixed everything, it didn’t erase injuries so much as heal them. They’d discovered that when Adrien had needed to get glasses and the doctor had asked how he had sustained so many repeated head injuries. When Adrien admitted he wasn’t sure, she’d explained that they’d seen several cases where there was evidence of akuma related injury that had been quickly healed, not removed. Ladybug thought it would have been nice to know that sooner.

“I’ll make sure she doesn’t pass out on the way or anything,” Carapace added. “Meet back at the apartment after.”

“Okay, Rena, Chat, and I will take care of Camille.”

When Ladybug turned around, Camille had a firm grip on Chat’s hand, “Camille says we’re looking for a park with a carousel and a fountain.”

“With ducks!” she added.

“With ducks,” Chat Noir nodded seriously. “She was also very clever in figuring out the lucky charm.”

“My mommy said to meet by the carousel if one of us got lost and Chat Noir said your lucky charm was horse and the carousel has horses!” Camille was bouncing on her toes, her smile showing off a missing tooth.

“Good job, Camille,” Ladybug said. “Thanks for your help.”

“You’re welcome!”

Before they could move, several news vans pulled around to corner and Camille shrunk closer to Chat Noir, partially hiding behind his legs. “Chat, why don’t you take Camille to her mom? Rena and I will stay behind to answer questions. I’d rather get some answers out now before people have a chance to panic and rumors begin flying around.”

“Is that okay with you, Camille?” the girl nodded, still tightly clinging to his hand. Chat turned to Ladybug, taking her hand with his free one and kissing the back of it. “Farewell, my lady, I shall count the moments till I can see you again!”

It seemed to have the desired effect with Camille giggling and Ladybug rolling her eyes, unable to hide the pink dusting her cheeks.

“All the cheese Plagg eats must go to his brain,” Rena laughed as he vaulted away.

“I’d agree if he wasn’t like all the time anyways,” Ladybug said, unable to wipe the fond smile from her face as they moved towards the reporters. She recognized many of them by now, though there were a few new faces in the mix. Not for the first time, Ladybug wished she could do every interview with Alya. It was easier when she could think of it as just talking with her friend, and when she was able to watch the footage before Alya posted. Otherwise she usually ended up in a spiraling panic in their apartment because she couldn’t remember exactly what she’d said or what her expression had been. It had gotten better over the years, but interviews still weren’t her favorite thing.

“Ladybug! Ladybug! Was that an akuma just now?”

“I thought you had defeated Hawkmoth?”

“What happened?”

“Is Gabriel Agreste responsible for this? What about his son, Adrien?”

“This was an akuma,” Ladybug said evenly, trying to keep her temper under control. She hated when they brought Adrien into it. A small voice in the back of her head reminded her they didn’t know Adrien was Chat Noir. They didn’t know just how ridiculous the claims of his helping Hawkmoth were. They didn’t know he’d been forced to arrest his own father and testify twice at the trial. They didn’t know.

continue on AO3

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purrincess-chat · 5 years

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In your opinion, what are all the things that ML writers could do to fix the show and make it better?

Oh, Lord, how much time do you have?

I don’t even know how to begin gathering my thoughts for this, so if this ends up being a big incoherent brain dump then, uh, I’m sorry. XD

So, first and foremost I guess, they need to balance their main characters better. Why is all of the plot tied to Adrien? Why does Adrien have a more fleshed out backstory than Marinette? This is supposed to be a girl power show, and yet it revolves more around the boy’s life from the girl’s perspective basically. Marinette really doesn’t have a dog in that fight outside of the fact that she was asked.

Marinette needs some kind of tie into the plot that doesn’t revolve around her love interest which is basically all they are willing to give her in this show. Everything about her has to relate back to the boy somehow, and if girl power is their message, then they are kind of defeating the purpose. Sure, they have episodes that are supposed to depict that the girl doesn’t need the boy, but then when you pile on top of that dozens of other instances where she gets pushed aside in favor of the boy, including words coming out of the creator’s own mouth (or off of his two thumbs onto a screen) then it doesn’t exactly hold the same weight.

If your protagonist doesn’t have a tie into the plot, then why are they the protagonist? Take other shows, for instance: Avatar: the Last Airbender, Aang is the avatar and it’s his destiny to keep the balance in the world, She-ra, Adora was destined to become She-ra, it’s in her blood. But you have Marinette who is Ladybug because….the greater good? Some fairy sprite bug thing asked her to be?

The villain isn’t personal for her, there is no mark of destiny that deems that she must be a hero, she’s just kind of there. Even her family barely gets fleshed out in comparison to Adrien’s. I mean, her parents are just blindly supportive of her meanwhile Adrien’s mom is in a magical coma, his father is cold, distant, and neglectful, which for some reason turns his assistant on and makes her want to sacrifice her fucking health even though Gabriel looks like a dried up soft pretzel. They canceled the special where we were supposed to learn about Marinette’s family, and I think that about sums up my point.

Secondly, I think they need to abandon the idea that Adrien is perfect because it’s not doing his character any favors. Thomas is so far up his ass about Adrien being a perfect example to boys that he has actually looped back around and made Adrien a poor example to boys. He gets away with all of his bad behavior because Thomas just covers his eyes if you call it bad behavior, he refuses to take no for an answer from the girl he likes, he thinks standing up for yourself is being unkind to the other person regardless of how unkind they are being to you, he conveniently turns a blind eye to the abuse of his friends, but god help you if you try to assert yourself against your aggressor because “you should just be nice to them and eventually they’ll change” like um, and maybe they won’t, in the mean time, I don’t want to put up with their bullshit!

By insisting on this perfect image, they prevent Adrien from growing because you can’t improve perfect. I have said it before numerous times, but Adrien reeks of amateur fanfiction author’s self-insert OC. He’s described as being perfect, he’s good at a lot of activities just because, he’s wildly attractive, charming, smooth, can generally do no wrong, everything revolves around him, the narrative is constructed in a way that usually puts him above the everyone else. The fact that more people don’t realize that, especially the creator himself, is laughable.

“But Cat, Chat Noir gets mind-controlled and thrown around and is goofy and-” Okay, but when Chat throws a tantrum about Ladybug not returning his feelings, who apologizes sincerely? Who is painted as being wrong in that situation? When Chloe puts a train full of people in danger just to play hero for a day, who does he scold? And of the two, who does the fandom adore more? Bonus: who do the Chibi specials revolve around and pity?

Thirdly, they need to actually delve into shit more. It’s season 3, they’ve only been greenlit for 2 more seasons, and what plot do we have? Gabriel wants to bring his wife back from her magical coma, Master Fu messed up something in the past that led to two Miraculouses being lost as well as their temple to be destroyed where presumably everyone else but him died making him the last member of that magical society. That’s it. We don’t know how Emilie got to be the way she is. We have suspicions, but nothing explicit in canon yet. Same with Fu. We don’t know what his mistake was, only that he made one. We barely know any lore about the Miraculouses, the origins, how they were made, when they started working with humans, why they were created.

If you want my honest opinion, with how slowly they’re dragging out this Agreste plot, they could have accomplished it in two seasons if they actually made every episode count and mean something. We get like maybe 1-2 minutes of actual plot relevant information once every few episodes, if that, and sometimes that “plot relevant information” is just the villain learning that there’s a guardian. Hang onto your asses, guys, they’re really laying it on thick for us.

Seriously, they give us breadcrumbs of plot, and they don’t even go into any of the cool shit (like fucking Master Fu and his ancient magical fight club perhaps??) because obviously the villain’s assistant being in love with him despite the fact that he’s married, has a kid, and is doing all of this to resurrect his comatose wife whom he loves and devotes everything to is WAY more interesting and important than all that froufrou magical ass Chinese bullshit, right? Like, this show has all of this Chinese lore and a biracial lead, and they still somehow manage to make it all about white people. but ya know, the French are proud of themselves I guess

Fourth, chunk the status quoyo out the fucking window. I get that this decision may not have been the writing team’s, but in fact a higher up decision, but it’s still a stupid ass decision. For a show that is trying to introduce deeper plot, you cannot progress anything if you constantly have to set everything back to the way it was at the end of the episode, and that much is evident. The relationships are getting stale, characters aren’t developing, plot is moving at a snail’s pace, all because they are so bound by this idea that everything needs to be right in the end to maintain an episodic format. If they wanted to keep the series episodic, they shouldn’t have gone in for all of this lore and backstory that they say exists, but never tell us what it is because that just leaves a lot of people unsatisfied.

Fifth, for the love of god learn how to write dynamic characters. Not everyone needs to be dynamic, but your main cast should probably be. Adrien, I love him to bits, but he is static as all fuck. Which, again, see point number 2. One of the biggest complaints floating around about Stormy Weather 2 is that the characters haven’t changed. With the exception of Marinette, none of the other characters have really learned anything. Adrien hasn’t, Nathalie doesn’t have enough focus to learn shit, Nino and Alya really haven’t, Chloe sure as hell hasn’t, and Gabriel can’t decide if he’s an abusive piece of shit or a sympathetic, heart broken sad man, so I barely count him.

In fact, 3 of those characters’ “development” just revolves around being in love. Nathalie’s “change” is that she for some reason wants to fuck Gabriel (I guess the whole gray-ass pompadour, candy cane aesthetic really does it for her), and then Alya and Nino’s “change” is that they fuck love each other now which them being a couple has basically just become their entire character. They’re barely separate anymore, particularly in Nino’s case more than Alya’s. I’m sure that Chloe’s bit about having changed juxtaposed with flashbacks of her not being nice coupled with how she wasn’t nice in this episode was just for humor because they like to make the point that mean people will never change, but for some reason they still feel the need to teach the protagonist a lesson about being nice to mean people so that they can change, but they don’t do that, they just think that you should keep hoping. :) :) :)

I honestly think that the writers don’t know what “character development” means, and Stormy Weather 2 was just proof of that. All they did was show that the characters have been in a number of different situations, but none of them have really learned anything or grown from those situations, so it’s kind of a weak argument to say that they’ve changed when they’re all intrinsically the same. Except for Marinette because she is constantly the writing teams’ punching bag in all of these morals of the day cause can’t teach shit to perfect boy cause he’s perfect, but of course they don’t reflect on all of the lessons they forced her to learn, what are we, stupid? No, her only importance to the plot is the fact that she loves the boy that the plot really focuses on, so of course her only significant development of character is that she can talk to him sometimes without foaming at the mouth. Not a peep on how she has learned to overcome her jealousy and hotheaded nature, gained confidence in herself, and learned to maturely accept when someone doesn’t return her feelings, a lesson that a lot of us wish good old perfect boy would fucking learn, but he can’t because he’s perfect. :) :) :)

Another part of the problem with characterization in this show, is that often times characters behave in such a way to push the moral of the day rather than giving them established characters. It’s why Alya only questions Marinette’s sources in Chameleon while she just lets Lila claim a bunch of wild shit without batting an eye because she only cares about journalistic integrity when she can use it to beat down her friend so she can learn a lesson about turning the other cheek. :) :) :)

Sixth, pick up a fucking romance novel every once in a while cause hot damn is their relationship progression a heaping pile of hot garbage. Their love drama is so forced and there’s no real development because of the #status quoyo because they must drag this shit on until we’ve all basically lost interest. I’ve seen more people dropping off the love square in the last half season than I’ve ever seen in any other show. Part of that has to do with Adrien becoming a real “nice guy™” but a good chunk of it also has to do with the fact that they don’t really know how to write love drama or romantic tension in a way that makes you care. We all pretty much know that Adrien is never going to figure it out, even if someone grabs him by the shoulders and screams it in his face that Marinette is in love with him, so why should we care? We know that Chat Noir is never going to stop loving Ladybug, but Ladybug is never going to stop loving Adrien so why should we care? We know the show is never going to break the square because they’re endgame so why should we care about the love rivals?

Seriously, Captain Hardrock didn’t give me a reason to care about Luka or ship him with Marinette. I still stand by my opinion that their chemistry was incredibly forced and inorganic, and it still is, and as much as I love Kagami, I wasn’t convinced that she was interested in Adrien at the end of Riposte either. The only reason we know Luka likes Marinette is because Winny said he “fell in love with her at first sight” on Twitter (which the whole love at first sight trope is bullshit, but that’s a post for another day). Somehow in Frozer Kagami was randomly into Adrien all of a sudden, and no one likes to bat an eye about the fact that she told him to change targets because the girl he likes doesn’t like him back and then at the end of the episode when Adrien admits that he still likes the other girl over Kagami, Kagami is all “well, it’s fine. I’ll wait.” like bitch, again on characterization. A strong and confident character like her would know her worth and would show that boy the door. But of course she would contradict herself because they need her for #love drama later even though we all know it doesn’t matter.

I love the love square, and I live for soft moments between them, but I’m ready for them to turn up the heat and give me some actual drama and tension that doesn’t revolve around Chat being a pouty pissbaby or Marinette fucking up another love confession. Cause when you do that too many times, it stops being interesting. You have to throw us a bone somewhere or else we’re gonna stop caring, and lots of people already have.

Seventh, can we please stop pitting all of the girls against each other while the boys just get to be cool with each other? For a show that promotes itself as being a “girl power” show, there are a metric fuckton of misogynistic undertones to this show. See: why does the plot revolve around the boy even though the girl is the slated protagonist. See: why does the girl learn all the lessons while the boy gets to be right all the time. See: why two teenage girls are “the worst things I can think of” while an actual neglectful father gets to be sympathetic and “do anything for his family” uwu

Seriously, I think making Kagami and Marinette rivals while Luka and Adrien are just chill dudebros is so tired. Girls fighting over boys is tired, especially because we have it not once, not twice, but three fucking times in this show. Chloe and Marinette don’t often fight over Adrien, but in Despair Bear Chloe sure as hell didn’t want them dancing together. Marinette initially follows Lila because she’s hanging off of Adrien, and even at the end of Chameleon, Lila makes it known that she is still gonna try to steal Adrien. Kagami basically tells Marinette that she better stop hesitating or she is gonna steal Adrien away, and we have Backwarder where Marinette is basically plotting to cockblock them even though we had Frozer where she decided she wasn’t going to be jealous of them because Adrien liked her. Again, see: characters behaving in a way that is convenient for the plot of the episode. All of the drama is between girls. All of the women in this show are described as being terrible, the worst things they could think of, never going to stop being mean. Seriously. Chloe and Lila? Worst things Thomas can think of. Audrey is constantly shown intimidating her husband who is extremely corrupt himself, not that anyone bats an eye at that. Nathalie/Mayura was described by Jeremy as “making Hawkmoth look like a baby.” Any time they show a man being problematic, they have to bring in a female to be ten times worse, and the worst part is: they don’t even know they’re doing it. #girl power, am I right?

Eighth, speaking of making people bad, can we stop half-assing redemptions? Honestly, they’re so back and forth on whether or not they’re going to redeem Chloe. First it’s “mean people will never get a miraculous” then dingdong, who’s that? Queen Bee, motherfuckers. Then it’s talk about how they’re not going to redeem Chloe then bam bitch, “why don’t you love me?” But even after that they reset the status quoyo and have her go back to being mean. Even after they give her a second chance to be a hero and do good, she still goes right back to being her nasty self. I think they really highlighted in Stormy Weather 2 how much they haven’t changed her at all, and yet somehow she still gets to play the hero.

Additionally, now we have them trying to make Gabriel sympathetic? Boo fucking hoo my wife is in a coma so I terrorize the fucking city on a daily basis, pity me! Also I neglect my son, verbally abuse him from time to time, and I don’t even let him see his friends or feel any happiness, and even though my superpower revolves around feeling people’s negative emotions, I never seem to care about my own son’s unhappiness, but hey, I’m doing it for his mommy, so that makes me better than the 14 year old girl. :D

Shit or get off the pot, Zag. Either you’re going to redeem these characters, or you’re going to leave them the way they are. Make up your damn mind.

Ninth, be diverse in more than name only. For a show that prides itself on its biracial female lead and its ties to Chinese culture, uhh, they spend a lot of time focusing on not those things. I said it before, but they focus all of their plot attention on rich ass white people drama more than the vastly more interesting Chinese lore they have going on. Their black characters were paired together just cause, and their only real important quality now is that they love each other. Their ship is basically their character now, and we barely have a reason to root for them outside of the fact that they’re canon. They have such shallow relationship development that my feet wouldn’t get wet if I stood in a puddle of it. Can we have more on them, please?

This show is diverse only on the surface. They use diversity as decoration then fill everything else with less interesting shit, and even then they get a lot of shit wrong. It drives one of my Asian friends nuts that Sabine’s neckline is facing the wrong direction. (for those unaware of what I mean, it should look like a y. hers is backwards) They use diversity to pat themselves on the back and say they are diverse, but they have no intention of doing anything meaningful with it. It’s just a gold sticker they wanted to give themselves to draw in an eastern market. It’s cheap, and several of us see through that shit.

And last, but certainly not least: Shut the absolute fuck up on Twitter. Just shut the fuck up. Every time Thomas opens his mouth, he just pisses off more people or makes everything more convoluted. Shut the fuck up. Please.

Now, I know a host of you are going to be like “buhhh, it’s a kid’s show, go outside, hur dur, I’m so smart and mature,” but like, honestly that’s a weak argument. Yes, Thomas’s audience is young now and they may not be able to see all of this shit, but when they get older and decide to go back and watch one of their favorite childhood cartoons, all of that shit is gonna come out. They’re not gonna be so naive forever, especially if our generation is raising them, and just because they can’t see all of this shit now, doesn’t mean that it’s not still there just because they don’t notice? That doesn’t make it any less problematic. One thing I love about several shows I used to watch as a kid is that they aged well. When I go back and watch them now as an adult, I find things that I missed as a kid that I appreciate now as an adult. I can’t say that the same is going to happen with Miraculous, especially in this day and age.

Additionally, kids learn a lot through media. I never believed that I was any less than the boys growing up because I consumed a lot of media that taught me that, and going back and watching it over now, I still get that from those shows. Clearly, if you apply two ounces of logic to this show, it falls apart, and that’s not because it’s a kid’s show, it’s because it’s bad writing. I can always see what they are going for, but they always miss just a little bit. sometimes a lot

A lot of us complain because we are concerned with the message being spread to the next generation because those kids are going to grow up one day and be influenced by what they are consuming now. If we teach our girls that the perfect boy is going to chase after us no matter what we say to them and if we teach our boys that in order to be the perfect boy we have to continually chase after the girl until she says yes, how are those kids going to approach relationships? That mentality is actually something that we are trying to combat in the world. That mentality is why rape is so prevalent because we teach boys that they are entitled to a woman’s affection if they’re “nice” to them, and if she doesn’t give it to them, then she is wrong.

Media has an impact on kids, whether we like to admit it or not. Yes, parents can still teach them, but sometimes things get into your subconscious and it can determine how you see yourself and the world. Lots of kids engage in make-believe play where they put themselves in that character’s shoes and play pretend. I just think it’s important to give them the right things to look up to.

#ml salt #ml spoilers #meta #miraculous ladybug

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bangtan-madi · 5 years

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Hi! Is it okay if I make another request? I think it would be a reaction.. or scenario...? I'm still unsure about the categories. What would be Zen's reaction after finding fanfics his fans have wrote about him? Like, he was checking tripter to see what photos Seven's bot have posted recently and ended up seeing a link to said fanfics... Or something like that. Please?

Sooo, I went a little overboard with this one, but I just had way too much fun xD Hope you enjoy, lovely!!

The camera clicks on, black screen illuminating to life. Though the picture is shaky at first, MC comes into view within the first few seconds. Once her hand steadies enough, she holds the camera up high so the frame focuses properly on her face.

“Hell, I hope you’re focusing, you piece of s–”

MC’s hand slips, and a curse emanates from her mouth. “Shit! Don’t fall, don’t fall.” Both hands grasp the device, and her wide grin returns once again. “There we go.”

MC turns to glance behind her, silently listening for the other person wandering somewhere in the house. When she hears his laugh from the other room, she turns back to the camera and giggles.

“Zen is in his bedroom doing some work on his laptop, I think. Or…something like that.” She waves her hand nonchalantly at the end of the sentence. “Point is…I have a really great idea on how to get him back for scaring the living hell out of me the other day. He caught that on camera, and somehow, it ended up on Instagram…and now it’s viral.”

Zen laughs again, and a huge, evil grin spreads across MC’s face. “But this is gonna be sweet revenge. Here I come, babe. Get ready to be scared shitless.”

MC gives a quiet–yet animated–evil laugh as she disappears from the frame.

She carries the camera in front of her, the door to the next room now visible. Her hand pushes the surface, and she continues to walk down the hallway, towards the bedroom.

Zen sits on a floor cushion in front of the tiny coffee table, a place that acts as a desk space when he needs it. His back it turned to MC, and both the camera and it’s owner creep closer. On eerily silent feet, the stagnant space between MC and her boyfriend closes.

As MC closes the distance to less than a foot, she takes a deep breath in, preparing to let out the loudest scream she can muster.

Just as the sound collects in her vocal cords, Zen throws his hands up excitedly and shouts, at an extraordinarily high volume, “HEY, MC! Come check this out!”

The camera slips from her fingers and falls to the floor with a loud thud, in tandem with the loudest screech Zen has ever heard.

Both he and MC, still in the frame, jump away from each other in surprise. Zen tumbles over, foot catching on the low coffee table. He hits the ground with a groan of pain. As she screams, MC falls backward into the basket of clean laundry, spilling the contents all over her and the floor.

A beat of silence follows the screams, groans, and crashes as both people clutch their chests in fear and confusion. MC breathes heavily, and Zen stares at her with wide eyes.

“MC! What the fuck!”

Though MC is still startled and petrified, a small laugh starts to slip from her lips. The look on Zen’s face is priceless. His hair is askew, scarlet eyes are wider than she’s ever seen, and a hand is still clutching tightly to the white t-shirt covering his chest.

Eventually, as the shock passes, MC bursts out into louder laughter, a sound that fills the room and echos down the hall.

“Oh my gosh, you should see your face!” she cackles, unable to control herself.

Zen gives her a scowl, though it’s an expression to hide his own amusement. “This isn’t funny! I could’ve broken my ankle again!”

MC falls backward onto the pile of laundry, the garments covering her head and shoulders slipping to the floor. She curls up on herself, laughter shaking her entire body.

Zen stands on shaky feet and snatches the laptop from the table, an object that luckily did not fall with him.

“Fine, keep laughing! I won’t tell you what I found through Seven’s tripter bot.”

Instantly, MC recovers enough to pull herself into a sitting position. “Whaaat, nooo! Show meee.”

Zen shakes his head, and like a spoiled brat, sits on the mattress with his back to her. “Nope. Sorry, babe. You lost your chance.”

MC crawls over to the camera, picks it up, and holds it as she wanders over to the mattress. She places the device on the dresser, still aiming the lens at the bed. Despite Zen’s grumpy attitude towards her scaring him, MC wraps her arms around his shoulders and rests her chin against the curve of his neck.

“I’ll be honest, I totally came in here to scare you.”

Zen scoffs and nods his head towards the camera. “Is that why you brought that thing along?”

“Hey, it was payback for scaring me the other day! And posting it!”

The white-haired male grins at the memory. “Yeah, that was pretty damn funny.”

MC pinches his arm, earning a slight, “Ow!” from him.

“But, if it makes you feel better, I’m still shaking…so we both got scared.”

Zen pushes the laptop aside and turns to glance at MC over his shoulder. The smirk is back, and he turns enough to wrap an arm around her waist.

“Fine, I’ll show you what I found. Get the camera, though. You’re gonna want to see this up close. It’s freaking hilarious.”

MC jumps up with a giggle, then grabs the camera and returns to her spot behind Zen. “Whatcha got there, Zenny?”

Zen, instantly in I’m-on-camera mode, gestures to the images on the screen. “Seven’s tripter bot has been scouring the internet all day, and I had no idea why. When it finished running the search, this is what it pulled up."

He gestures to each site and link on the screen. Titles such as "Dating Zen Would Include…” and “Zen Relationship Headcanons” fill the screen. When he scrolls down a bit, more links appear. “Zen Smut,” “Fifty Shades of Zen,” and “Zen’s Kinks” are among the many, many listed.

This sends both MC and Zen into another fit of laughter. “This is great!” he exclaims. “Look at it! It just keeps going, and going, and…oh! There’s stuff with the other members of the RFA!”

Sure enough, MC starts to see things like, “Seven x Zen” and “Jumin x Zen,” along with basically every other pairing with the others in the RFA. Even “Jaehee x Zen” makes an entrance, as well as “Human!Elizabeth the 3rd x Zen.”

MC groans and covers her face with her hand, trying to decide whether to laugh or cry. “Your fans are the worst,” she mutters behind her palm. “The absolute worst!”

Zen chortles at her comment and shows a different page of fan fiction results. “Hey, they’re not all that bad!”

“You’ve read some!”

“What’s your definition of ‘some,’ MC?”

“Zen!”

He points to a result in the queue as a defense. “Look! They’ve written some pretty sweet stuff about us!”

Rolling her eyes, MC takes a closer look. As he scrolls through the synopsis, she finds herself intrigued by the alternative universe setting, interesting plot, and near-perfect grammar.

“Hmmm, maybe not all of them are that bad.”

Zen grins over his shoulder. “This one’s actually great! We fight human-eating monsters and make out a lot.”

MC plops onto the bed beside him with a scoff. “I thought that was our regular lives?”

The pale-haired man smirks at her and cocks an eyebrow suggestively. “Wanna read it together?”

MC’s smile widens. “Hell yes."

As MC gets settled on the bed, Zen leaps up and crosses the distance between him and the camera. After his signature wink and wave, he shuts the camera off, and the picture fades to black.

#kyojin-madi writes #mm #mm scenario #mm imagine #mysme #mysme imagine #mysme scenario #mystic messenger #mystic messenger scenario #mystic messenger imagine #zen #hyun ryu #zen imagine #zen x mc #zen x reader #zen scenario #fanfic

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ma-lemons · 5 years

Text

jealousy? never heard of her.

@miggy97 has a headcanon!! I love it!! Thank you so much! (Sorry this took a while)

Rosegarden Headcanon: Oscar gets lowkey (at least he thinks it’s lowkey XD) jealous whenever he sees Ruby and Jaune spending time together

****

“Ruby, you have something on your face,” Jaune muttered one night at dinner. The Huntress proceeded to wipe the wrong cheek with her sleep. “Here?”

Jaune shook his head and pointed to a location on her cheek. Ruby tried again, and missed. Jaune, at this point, found that it would be easier to just help her. He took a napkin and wiped the bit of spaghetti sauce off the girl’s face. “There you go.”

Ruby chuckled sheepishly. “Thanks, Jaune.”

It was nothing but a friendly encounter. Well, that was what Oscar was trying to tell himself. He was staring hard at the blonde-haired Huntsman. What was he trying to do?

“Uh, Oscar? You’re getting spaghetti on your clothes,” Ruby pointed out. She was right. He was holding his fork, trembling, and didn’t even notice spaghetti falling on his clothes. Weiss stifled laughter as she handed the poor farmhand a napkin. Great. His new clothes were ruined. Everyone watched the encounter curiously. Some were aware of Oscar’s feelings for Ruby. Some like Maria and Nora. Everyone else either pretended not to know or were completely oblivious to the fact that the boy was head over heels.

After dinner, Ruby and Jaune offered to clear the table. Oscar raised his eyebrow; usually Jaune helped with cooking and Ruby helped with cleaning. Seperately. He was supposed to help Ruby clean.

“Oh, Jaune, I can clear the table. You helped cook today,” Oscar laughed dryly, tugging at the rag that was in the young man’s hand. Jaune was probably a foot and a few inches taller that Oscar, but that was a giant gap. He towered over the boy and Oscar was just under Ruby’s height.

Jaune dismissed his request with a shake of his head. “Nah, let me help today. You can go rest.” Jaune then smiled at Ruby and took the plates with her into the kitchen. What was Oscar supposed to do then? Fight him for the rag? It would just make him look very very jealous, which he wasn’t.

You look like you’re jealous. The professor and his unwanted opinions were back again.

How can I be jealous when there’s nothing to be jealous of?

Go sit down, Oscar. It’s not right to even pursue a relationship in our situation. The headmaster’s voice was stern, yet fatherly at the same time.

Your past lives have all had relationships and kids. What’s different now?

You can do whatever you’d like Oscar. That doesn’t stop the fact that every being I inhabited merged souls with mine. Pursuing a relationship is troubling not because I hate romance, but because loving someone like us is a package deal. My past hosts have had... trouble telling their significant others they have an old man living in their head. Some didn’t confess at all. I just... don’t want you to get hurt.

Well stop. I’ve got this under control. Who says I even want to be with Ruby?

You forget we share the same mind. You’re not great at setting up mental barriers.

“—Oscar!”

“Huh? What?” the boy cried, startled. Yang was shaking him.

“You stared off into space again. And Jaune needs your hands off the table.”

Oscar looked at his hands which were placed firmly on the table out of frustration. Jaune nervously chuckled, showing Oscar the rag. Blushing, Oscar left the dining room, hoping no more incidents of him being distracted would occur.

He seated himself on the couch, his arms crossed over his chest. Nora, Weiss and Ren were trying to set up the screens, to see if they could get a signal. Oscar hadn’t watched anything in a long, long time. He remembered this one show with drama and betrayal and romances in every episode that his aunt used to watch. He wondered if it still aired.

“Jaune, stop! My cape is getting wet!” Ruby yelled from the kitchen.

“Look, you decided you wanted to wear a cape everywhere you go and look where it got you. I’m just trying to clean,” Jaune retorted.

There was a clang of plates and Ruby muttered, “Vomit boy.”

To which Jaune replied with, “Crater face.”

“Still at it with the nicknames, eh?” Oscar murmured under his breath.

“Something tells me you really wanted to wash dishes with my niece,” Qrow’s voice piped up. Oscar looked up to see Qrow on the other sofa, nodding to him. Oscar noted the hostility in his voice and how he referred to Ruby as his “niece” rather than her name.

“What? Of course not,” Oscar panicked, face turning red.

“Uh, huh.” Qrow stood up and walked past him, stopping just before the hallway. He turned back to the farmhand and said, “Stay away from my niece.”

Oscar gulped. Maria decided that was a good time to walk in from the kitchen. You stupid boy.

Do you see what I mean? Is this relationship worth pursuing?

I’m not pursuing anything.

They’re simply friends, Oscar. Can’t two people of the opposite gender be friends? I wouldn’t want to upset Qrow even further; I suggest you keep your feelings in check.

Oscar sent an image of a gesture his aunt told him never to use to Ozpin in his mind. Ozpin seemed to get the message and stayed quiet.

The next morning, Qrow demanded the Huntsmen and Huntresses practice.

“You guys are getting a bit rusty,” he said, sipping from his mug of coffee. Coffee seemed to be his new thing, after a deal he had struck with Ruby to lay off alcohol for a week. Oscar was glad to see he was keeping his promise, and smiled when the old man embraced his niece willingly. Ruby was left with a dopey smile on her face.

“Okay. Weiss, fight with Blake. Yang, you and Nora. Jaune and Ruby. Oscar and Ren. Got it? No killing each other. Maria’ll watch you. I’m gonna go call Ironwood.” Qrow sipped his coffee and gave them a wave before heading back into the house. Maria cleared her throat and clapped her hands, from where she sat on a bench. “Begin!”

Oscar was disappointed that Jaune ans Ruby were paired up. Usually he would be paired up with Ruby or Jaune, but it seemed that Qrow wanted them together. He tried to stay quiet as Jaune high-fived the smaller girl and they separated.

“Ready, Oscar?” Ren asked. The serene Huntsman was in position, gripping the handles of StormFlower. Oscar awkwardly held Ozpin’s cane and prepared himself for a fight that would probably be half-assed. He wished he was paired up with Ruby...

“Wait! This is a no weapons fight! Hello? Hand to hand, he said!” Maria called. Yang and Nora were already halfway to pummeling each other when she announced this. Qrow had never said anything about close-range combat, but no one was willing to argue with the elderly woman. Ruby groaned and thrust Crescent Rose onto the ground.

“Now... fight!”

Ren gave out a strange battle cry and ran at full speed at Oscar. Oscar ducked from underneath Ren and went behind him, kicking his leg. Ren’s leg buckled underneath him and he fell. Oscar snuck a glance at Ruby, who had gotten shoved to the ground by Jaune. Weiss was running around Blake in circles, and Blake was using her semblance to dodge Weiss’ punches. If anyone needed help with hand to hand combat, it was those two. Oscar would’ve thought growing up in a rogue terrorist group would’ve taught Blake something, but there was more to everyone—

Watch out!

“Augh!” Oscar let out a cry as Ren socked him in the face. One punch after the other. Oscar was on the ground, looking into Ren’s fierce eyes. He managed to roll out from underneath him and launched himself on top of his back. Now Ren was carrying a five feet tall child on his back.

“Let go of me!”

Oscar had never seen Ren so frazzled, unless he was around Nora. Wrapping his legs around his torso, Oscar pulled at the young man’s hair. Ren was trying to pry him off, but there was no use. Oscar had no clue what he was doing, only that he wanted to stay in one piece.

“Ahaha, Ren look at you!” Nora cried from her fight with Yang. Nora had a busted lip and Yang’s eyeswere slightly red, which meant she was fired up. Ren poked at Oscar’s legs, trying to get him off.

Don’t make me take control of your body. Stop this nonsense.

Shut up.

“Haha, go Oscar! Short people for the win!” Ruby cheered from her spot. Oscar grinned, seeing Ruby compliment him. Oh no, Jaune was approaching—

“Ruby watch out!”

It was too late, Ruby was dusted on the ground. Jaune went over to her to grab her arm and Ruby quickly sat up, and kicked him in the leg. Jaune then joined her in the dirt. Instead of continuing their fight, the two laughed, side by side on the ground. How didn’t anyone see this?

“Oscar, could you please get off of me?”

“Never!”

“Fine, I didn’t want to have to do this.” Oscar didn’t understand what Ren was talking about until he felt a strong wave of pain from his fingers. It took him two moments to realize Ren had bitten his fingers.

“Nora does the same thing. I thought negotiating would work with you,” Ren sighed as Oscar yelped in pain. He immediately let go and crashed into the thick dirt. Ren turned around and stretched. “I don’t care for these things, but you kind of annoyed me back there, Oscar.” Ren cracked his knuckles, and Oscar was deathly terrified now, and was too weak to stand. Ren didn’t look the same; his eyes were darker and he looked quite sinister. As he inched towards the farmhand, all Oscar could do was hold his breath and wait for the inevitable.

———————

“Is he awake? His eyes are fluttering?”

“Poor guy.”

“He’s been out for two hours!”

Unfamiliar... no these were familiar voices. The young boy opened his eyes to see many pairs of eyes looking down at him.

“He’s awake! Oscar! Are you okay?” Ruby wailed. Oscar looked around. He was in his room he shared with Qrow. How did he get here? How...

He met Ren’s eyes and remembered. Everything came flooding back to him, the fight, the night before...

“Did you knock me out?” Oscar asked quietly to Ren. Nora burst out laughing as Ren panicked, his pale skin turning red. “No, no! You fainted! You looked at me as if I was going to kill you,” Ren explained.

So he fainted out of fear. Great. Ruby probably thought he was a wimp. Ruby, who was laying underneath the Atlas sun with Jaune just hours ago.

“Get some rest, pipsqueak,” Qrow sighed, shaking his head. The Huntsmen parted ways so he could give him something. It was an ice bag for his head. Just then he noticed a dull, aching pain at the base of his head.

“Thanks,” Oscar muttered. He pressed the bag to his head, taking in the freezing sensation. Ruby smiled, a little sadly. “We’ll let you rest. Take it easy.” The girl turned to Jaune. “Okay, you owe me one piggy back ride to the market for comic books! Since I won the fight and all!”

Jaune scowled. “No, you didn’t win the fight! I let you win the fight!”

“Weren’t you both on the ground?” Weiss asked, exasperated. That earned her a chuckle from Blake.

Ruby rolled her eyes. “Nooooo, I was taking a little break! Come on Vomit Boy, bend down!” Jaune reluctantly obeyed and crouched down, allowing Ruby to launch herself onto his back.

Jaune turned to everyone and said, “We’ll be back in an hour or so. If my back doesn’t give out.”

“Less talking, more walking!” Ruby yelled. “Onward!” Jaune, struggling, managed to walk out of the room with Ruby on his back. Everyone else filed out of the room except Yang.

“You do realize you’re jealous, right?” she snickered.

“I am not,” Oscar huffed. “I don’t like her like that.”

Yang rolled her eyes. “Okay. I believe you.” She left, shutting the door behind her. When she was gone, Oscar let out a deep breath. He wasn’t jealous of anyone. He put the ice bag on the nightstand beside him and nestled himself into the blankets. If he managed to convince himself of his feelings, he could convince everyone else, too.

Outside the room, Yang stood in front of her friends, her family, hands placed on her hip.

Nora looked at her eagerly, her eyes gleaming. “Well?”

Yang nodded. “He’s totally jealous,” she whispered. Everyone else nodded, confirming their thoughts.

“Did he actually think he was being discreet?” Blake laughed, as she took Yang’s arm and walked into the living room.

“I think so. Strange, right? And why would anyone be jealous of Jaune?” Yang said, her eyes lighting up in amusement.

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