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boop-le-snoot · 4 years

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PARTY FAVOURS I CHAPTER 22

First time reader click here

TWs/Summary: FLUFF! Inappropriate jokes! The team being a family of mother hens. Steve + WAP! Reader's old man fetish is ✨blossoming✨. Stephen is finally evolving from Grinch into a human being.

a/n: How do we feel about Wanda/Loki pairing? Loki is comparatively around Wanda's/Reader's/Pietro's age, e.g. he's a young adult. Also, new divider.

All three of us spilled out of the elevator in a flurry of wet hair, outrageously large shopping bags and the smell of autumn leaves and cinnamon-infused chocolate. Picture perfect friends - our arms were linked, we stood side to side, our bags mixed up. Loki's silky black hair was dripping cold water onto my face and my own clothes sticking to me in uncomfortable places.

It started pouring buckets when we got into my car to go back to the tower. Wanda complained about being hungry and after a brief detour in one of the hole-in-the-wall, hidden gem, French boulangeries, all three of us were pleasantly relaxed and companionable under the influence of hot chocolate and fresh, warm croissants (Loki ate, like, ten, royal manners be damned). The five minute run from the parking lot to the main entrance resulted in us being way too soaked to be comfortable - thankfully, the shopping bags seemed to be waterproof. Or, perhaps, Loki enchanted them somehow.

"Stop fucking cheating, Rogers..." Tony was grumbling in frustration, looking at an array of cards in his hands, squinting suspiciously at a smug Steve.

Noticing us, the room perked up immediately. Thor lifted his head and we saw him and Pietro splayed out on the couch, each male holding a play station controller. Stephen Strange was sat cross-legged on the floor, reading a book, while Natasha filed her nails next to him, a face of tranquility and indifference.

We almost backpedaled from the amount of puppy eyes suddenly gazing at us.

"Sup?" I decided to go first, seeing as both of my companions were still mostly confused. What the hell, I was equally perplexed.

"How was your day, brother?" and "Got yourself a nice dress?" and "Marchesa? Not bad." Were the most intelligible words I could make out of the cacophony that descended upon us.

And it suddenly downed on me. Neither Wanda nor Loki had previously left for the city on their own. Their siblings were worried. I sighed, concealing my happiness behind a quiet complaint of being cold and wet. My bags were picked up by Thor who abandoned his game in favour of greeting his brother with a hug. Surprisingly, Loki didn't refuse and let Thor embrace him and relieve us of our items to deposit them out of the way.

"Cold," Wanda whined, stripping off her damp sweater to reveal simple black leggings and tee underneath.

"Wet," Loki mumbled, gathering a ball of green magic to dry out his dripping hair.

"Gross," I said, walking straight into Tony's open arms. He didn't say anything, just indicated my place was in his lap, squeaking and shivering as soon as I reached my destination.

"Baby girl, you're gonna get sick. Let's go take a bath," He unsuccessfully attempted to lift my limp body. I groaned in protest, dead on my feet. It felt like I had walked a thousand miles. Wasn't gonna remove myself from a warm, soft Tony.

"I'm dead, like, I'm a zombie. If you move me, I'll eat that sexy brain of yours," I threatened fitfully.

"Well, at least change out of these clothes. You're dripping me in gross, polluted rain water," The engineer laughed.

"Lazy," I replied, nestling myself closer to his warmth. He tugged on my clothes, wrestling me out of the top layers, leaving me shivering like a newborn kitten across his lap. His eyes darted across the room - evidently, he was looking for some sort of a hoodie as he wasn't wearing one at the time. Tony knew how much I loved those and always kept one in his vicinity. Thoughtful, lovely Tony.

"Have you seen my MIT sweatshirt?" He asked and everyone replied negative. Tony frowned.

"Here, have mine," Strange stood up, unzipping and handing me his own plain grey one. "I'll make some herbal tea for the girls least they actually get sick." With that, the grumpy doctor walked off into the kitchen. I watched his broad back retreat with renewed interest. Hate to see you go but love to watch you leave...

One warm hoodie and hot tea later, I was feeling less like a drowned cat and more like the fabulous human being that I was. Wanda had told everyone about her two cute new dresses without actually revealing the idea behind her costume. Somehow all of us silently agreed to surprise each other after I pulled my stunt on Stephen.

Strange didn't seem to be mad at me; his presence was amiable and delightful. He made usual small talk and we engaged in a brief, friendly battle of the wits and he and Tony managed to not piss off each other too much. Loki and Wanda hung nearby, and we chatted, too, mostly about less popular but very cool movies the three of us could watch... Yeah, so we were arranging a sleepover. Bite me.

"So, everyone ready for the party?" Clint was all but bouncing in his seat. "Me and Sammy-boy, we'll have the coolest costumes!" He exclaimed, smirking in Tony and Bruce's direction. Something was coming, something great, from my two boys. I could sense it. Natasha probably knew and tattled to Clint already. The bird bros fist-bumped with an obnoxious cheer.

I was feeling drowsy. The tea Strange made had something calming in it. My usual energetic spirit was gone, replaced by a mellow sort of mood. Plus, my feet hurt from all the walking. I moaned in distaste, flexing my toes.

"I disagree," Wanda shared a secretive smile with Loki and me.

Apparently, my discomfort was quite obvious. It took only another quiet, pitiful groan from me for Bruce to scoot closer, remove my socks and tenderly knead the arch of my foot. He smiled at me, soft and gentle, pressing the pads of his fingers into the soft, painful spots.

"Yeah, Pigeon, no amount of make-up will help that ugly mug," Tony declared with a wave of his hand.

"Tony!" Sam defended his bird bro, tossing a pillow at the engineer and missing me by barely an inch.

"You don't need any make-up, bird. You need plastic surgery." I jumped on the bully Clint bandwagon for the lolz. He was actually quite handsome, but his reactions always were fucking priceless. All of us occasionally ruffled his feathers but never to an actually hurtful extent.

"Not gonna lie, that one hurt." Barton huffed, crossing his arms.

Meanwhile, Bruce had moved onto my other foot. I had to hold in a bunch of very lewd, inappropriate noises. Tony was grinning above me, not at all affected by me squirming around. Banner grinned back at the engineer. They were definitely plotting something.

That just wouldn't do, I decided. Time to throw Rick and Morty off their course a little. I stretched leisurely, allowing the hem of my borrowed hoodie to lift, exposing an inch too much of skin than strictly appropriate.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Steve's arched eyebrow and the small secretive smirk he hid behind a cup of tea. The Captain wasn't as virtuous as the others thought and he definitely was onto me.

Bruce still wreaked havoc on my vestibular system by doing some magical voodoo shit to my toes and traded suspicious grins with Tony who radiated an unfair amount of smugness.

"Oh my God," I stretched with a moan of contentment. "Fucking rail me." I might have used this particular choice of words on purpose. The Avengers that memed with me knew the actual meaning but they were in the minority. Most, including Tony and Bruce, gasped in shock at my choice of words. I grinned innocently. "What?"

"We don't use that kind of language around here!" Steve exclaimed, barely hiding a full-fledged laugh behind his cup.

"Cap, a lot has changed in the past seventy years, if you didn't notice," Barton rolled his eyes. "Women are allowed to express themselves now."

"Men think it's pretty hot, actually," Tony remarked, giving me one of his positively mischievous smiles, gently stroking my cheek and dipping his index finger under the hem of my top, following the lines of my collarbone. "It's just that Cap got left out in the cold."

"Very funny, Tony," Steve groaned as the rest of the group laughed. "We don't need a repeat of the WAP incident."

I choked on my breath. "The WHAT incident?!"

Laughter drowned out Steve's stuttering explanation as the supersoldier blushed, possibly, the most saturated shade of scarlet I'd ever seen on a human's face. I had to stop Bruce from continuing to make my limbs into Jell-O, wanting to hear the full story clearly. Anything that warranted such a strong reaction from Steve was bound to be, like, equal parts extremely embarrassing and hilarious. Bucky was laughing up a storm, a tell-tale sign of him having taken direct actions to ensure Steve would be as confused and ashamed as possible.

"Steve caught Peter listening to the song and asked him about it. Peter refused to answer at first, so Bucky decided to mess with Steve a bit," Pietro began explaining. "So Bucky goes: WAP stands for wasted academic potential. Steve sits on it a couple of days, believing his boyfriend like the naïve old man he is," Pietro was gesturing vividly, arms flailing, as the Captain buried his face in his hands. "Lo and behold, Steve had to give a Captain America speech at some sort of school for delinquent children. And at the end of it all - Natasha has that bit on video, by the way - he gives his stern Captain look and goes "WAP is no joke!"!" The speedster laughed out loud along with everybody.

I was howling at that point, staring at Steve. Did the old man realize all the answers to his questions were a simple Google search away? "NO, he didn't, oh my God," I wheezed, suddenly having realized where it was going.

"He totally did!" Clint continued, giving Pietro a fond look and a chance to catch his breath. "The whole student population was laughing, tears rolling down their faces, as the principal started angrily ranting right in Steve's face. And he was just so, so-o confused. Man, his face..." Clint shook his head. "He left so freaking red in the face I thought he was going to have a heart attack. The students had started singing the song, the uncensored version - mind you - at some point and Steve just progressively got redder and redder."

"I'm seventy percent Irish, I can't help it!" Steve cried in his own defense, the famous blush on full display, but laughing nonetheless as he clutched onto his left boob for dear life.

"And one hundred percent dumbass!" Bucky clapped his boyfriend on the shoulder.

I nodded along, me and Tony a howling pile of limbs. The engineer himself was holding onto me for dear life, too winded to make any of his usual snarky commentary regarding Steve's epic failure. "Pure of heart, dumb of ass," I wheezed out my sudden realization.

"Shit, I'm getting that on a t-shirt," Tony sent himself into another cackle fest. "That's brilliant, Princess."

Bucky nodded along, "I'm buying one for this punk." He pointed at Steve, poking him in the right pec.

"Jerk," Steve's gaze was annoyed but fond as he gently shoved his boyfriend before placing a gentle kiss atop his head. Old people in love, so adorable.

"May I request one for my brother as well?" Loki interjected, eyebrow raised, eyeing Thor trying to pry open a carton of ice cream and failing to notice the little plastic lid covering the top part of it. The blonde was utterly oblivious both to his brother and to the chaos around him, set on his quest for salted caramel pecan creamy goodness. I couldn't say I didn't see the appeal...

"What did you call - himbos?" Stephen eyed me curiously, pointing to Thor and Steve with a shaky hand.

I nodded in response. "Harmless, loveable, kind, beefy and utter dumbasses," I pointed out the main characteristics. "I love himbos."

"You said my brain was sexy," Tony pouted, pressing me closer to him and in turn, making my legs wrap around Bruce in a funny way that brought all three of us in a weird sandwich hug. I must've died and gone to heaven once again. "This is bullshit," And Tony fuckin' bit me. The bastard sunk his teeth into my shoulder strong enough to leave a mark.

"I love big, fat brains. Unf," My attempt at a salacious voice only made people laugh. "No PhD, no pussy. I don't make the rules," I snorted loudly.

"You and your old man kink," Wanda chuckled good-naturedly, casting me a knowing glance over the tops of her friends' heads.

"Yes," I agreed solemnly, pulling Tony in for a kiss without an ounce of shame or reservation, catching Stephen's amused face meeting my eyes for a brief second, his eyebrow raised meaningfully. Looked like someone took my comment a little close to heart. Nobody really batted an eye at Bruce being in the middle of our cuddle puddle so if I had to guess, Stephen Strange was at least interested... Or was he silently judging me?

THE TAG LIST IS NOW OPEN! @another-stark-sub @mostly-marvel-musings @vozit @littlegasps @pilloclock @shereadsinquiet @downeyreads @hermione-grangers-wife @individualistfem @sleep-i-ness @capbrie @lillsxd @agustdowney @dee-vn @justanotherblonde23 @fanngirl19 @persephonehemingway @softie-socks @schemefrenzy @letsby @cutenessloading @romeo-the-cactus @jelly-fishy-babie

#bruce banner x reader #tony stark x reader #Stephen Strange x reader #bruce banner x you #tony stark x you #stephen strange x you #bruce banner x y/n #tony stark x y/n #stephen strange x y/n #party favours #bun writes

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random-imagines-blog · 3 years

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No Matter What You Say {Tony Stark!Mentor x Reader Oneshot}

Requested by: @lunchawx Wordcount: 2070 Summary: After taking the entrance exam for Midtown High School, you receive a special guest.

New York, New York. The most populated city in the United States just got bigger by three. You were already settled in your new room which looked out upon your small backyard where there was barely enough room for a bird bath let alone actual lounging space. But it was still better than the apartment that you had in your old city, which didn’t have so much as a balcony. It didn’t have superheroes or supervillains tearing up the streets either, but you weren’t in Manhattan so it should be alright - right? You looked out your window, seeing the back of another house, and then another house, and then another house, and then another house - so it wasn’t like in the movies, not exactly.

“You ready for the test?” Your father asked, standing in the doorway. That’s the real reason that you were here. Your parents had such strong belief in your intellect that they up and moved from your normal life with your best friends, to this place where 'you have so much potential to succeed’. Because apparently your old school wasn’t good enough. Didn’t have as good a reputation as Midtown High.

Because nothing spelled fun and social life like a high school filled to the brim with smug geniuses.

“Considering you’ve been making me study for two weeks straight, yeah, I think I’m good,” You said, your voice filled with attitude. “I could have spent that time with my friends before you just plucked me up and dropped me here, but you know. Studying. So much more fun.”

“You’re not going to be making friends here if you keep that up,” Your father said. Always the optimist. A real silver lining kind of guy. Oh, we’re not going to end up dying in an alien attack on New York city like those other people did because Captain America took care of it!

Yeah. He sure did. And left the city with billions of dollars of damage and quite a few lives lost. Great job superheroes.

“Yeah, because I really wanted to come and be friends with the characters from Gossip Girl,” You grumbled. Your dad rolled his eyes - finally, a sign of human emotion that wasn’t just happiness. “Are you going to get out so I can get ready or are you just going to stand there?”

He held his hands up in surrender and left you to get ready. Midtown High School. Home of the brightest young minds in New York City. Even famed Tony Stark went there, and was a large sponsor of the school, and would apparently stop in for lectures sometimes. You knew which days that you were planning on skipping then.

There was a knock on the front door while you and your parents were sitting around the table pushed into the kitchen since the house was too small for a dining room, enjoying breakfast. Your father was the most relaxed out of the three of you, munching happily on toast, while your mother was too nervous to actually eat and was just clinging onto her coffee mug like it was her only tether to this earth. You were just eating, not caring either way about the test results which you should be getting today. In fact, that might have been the mailman.

“I’ll get it,” Your mother said, getting out of her seat so fast it fell over. You laughed at that, and dug your spoon back into your cereal, getting the sugar rush you needed to start the day. You could hear her voice grow louder and more excited. “Oh, please, please, come in! Come have a seat. Y/N! Honey! Can you come into the living room please?”

“Oh god, is it one of those prissy schools where the principal comes and welcomes you themselves?” You groaned. You were still in your pajamas, having no plans of leaving the house today, and now you were expected to greet a guest. This whole New York thing was not working out.

“Won’t know until we go find out,” Your father said. Never ending optimism on this guy. You certainly didn’t inherit that. You let your spoon fall back into the bowl and followed him out into the living room. Your first thought was that this guy was impeccably dressed, so unless the principal of Midtown was extremely rich, this probably wasn’t him. And then you noticed the facial hair - that probably was a hundred and fifty dollars from a good barber. That hair, colored to cover grays, obviously. Then it finally clicked in who exactly was sitting on your couch.

“Tony Stark - I mean Iron Man! I mean - Tony Stark!” Your dad said, his jaw dropping. “Can I get you anything? There’s a fresh pot of coffee, or I think we might have a beer somewhere...”

“It’s nine in the morning,” You said blankly to your father and walked past your parents to sit in an arm chair across from the couch so you could get a better look at your guest. Ironman was in your living room, and he was seeing you dressed in your pajamas. At least this was something to write to your friends about. Everything else had been boring so far. “No one needs a beer at nine in the morning.”

“I’ll take a coffee,” Tony said, as if he was at a cafe ordering from a waiter rather than in someone’s home. Your father ran to get it, nearly tripping over his own feet, while your mother came and stood beside you. You looked up at her, furrowed your brow and shook your head. She was acting so weird. Both of your parents were. Guess it was up to you to be the adult here?

“Cool, so while you have my dad running around like a chicken with his head cut off...” You said, leaning back, crossing your arms in front of you. “Why is Tony Stark in our living room? Unless you think we’re some sort of bad guys - which we’re not. Though they would probably say the same thing.” You just really couldn’t think of a reason, and he clearly wasn’t just going to spit it out.

“Well, I came to deliver the bad news, and the good news for myself,” He said with a little clap, and leaned in close, catching your eye. “The good news is that you got the second highest score on the entrance exam that Midtown High ever received.”

A mug broke from the kitchen as Tony’s voice carried to your father who was coming back with the coffee. The cup had slipped out of his hand and had broken into small pieces, the hot liquid getting all over his shirt. “Shit,” He said, looking at himself, but only worried about that for a second. “The second highest in their history? Y/N! We knew you would get in but that’s amazing!”

“So what’s the bad news?” You asked, not getting your hopes up.

“You’re going to have to take another test right here and right now with me watching to make sure that you weren’t cheating,” He said with a smirk. “We don’t have much tolerance for that.”

“Ahh - alright, bring it on.” I said. He continued to look smug as he opened a briefcase and took out a piece of paper and a pencil. Even the pencil said Stark Industries along the side, and was in the Ironman colors. “Seriously?”

“It’s all I got.”

“Of course it is.” I picked up the paper and looked over it. The question were similar to the ones that were on the exam I took, but not the same. I laid it back down on the table, and was about to press lead to paper when he stopped me by clicking his tongue.

“I’m going to have to ask these parents to leave the room. Just to make sure there’s no cheating going on. And that coffee, if you don’t mind?”

My parents hid out in the kitchen, picking up the broken pieces of the mug and mopping the floors. There was no music, no television, no devices allowed, just in case I found a way to cheat. It was a bit insulting, really. He was watching you like a hawk. “Don’t you have anything better to do?” You asked, filling out a math equation. “They probably could have sent a teacher to do this, don’t ya think?”

“If you get these right, then I have a counter offer for you.” He said, and then narrowed his eyes. “No talking. Finish the test.”

“Jeez, okay, okay, I’m working on it.” You continued to work, finished it up, signed the paper and then handed it over. “No way I could have cheated, right?”

“None that I could tell,” He didn’t take the piece of paper, just motioned for you to set it down onto the table. You shrugged and did so, and then he picked it up, scanning through it. He took a pen out of his breast pocket, and started to write things down, following your lines of thinking. He removed his sunglasses from his face, ran his hands through his hair, and looked at you. Really looked at you. It made you uncomfortable.

“Well?” You asked about the test.

“Perfect, and no signs of cheating. Guess there’s only one thing left to do then. Hey parents!”

You sighed, glad that it was all over now. You were expecting him to just give you and your parents the papers to sign and then you would be in Midtown High. All to fulfill this great potential that your parents said that you had inside of you. And yet still, all you wanted to do was go back home to where your friends were. You’d rather work in a grocery store and still be able to see them rather than live in the big city, become rich and only deal with snobs. Your parents came back into the room, and stood on either side of you, beaming proudly. They never thought that you cheated, which you guessed was a good sign of their faith in you, even if it was a bit annoying that they were the reason you had to take the stupid exam in the first place.

“I want to offer you a mentorship, working under me, for Stark Industries,” Tony said, his tone already showing that he was expecting for you to say yes. “We’ll work around your Midtown schedule. I’ll send a car to pick you up, bring you to be after class, and you’ll get first hand experience in the best workplace in the world. I’ve got some papers here, just need the parentals here to sign.”

“Uhh - no thanks,” You said, shaking your head and stood up. “I mean, I’ll go to Midtown, great, but I don’t want any sort of mentorship.”

“Excuse me?” Tony asked.

“Hey, let’s not be hasty-” Your father would start.

“Don’t embarass us in front of Mr. Stark...” Your mother started.

“I’m not looking to work for you in the future, Mr. Stark. No offense. But I’m not really planning on doing this whole tech stuff when I graduate. I just wanna go to school, come home, talk to my friends and not have the added stress. I appreciate it and all but-”

“Is y/n being serious?” Tony asked, bypassing you and looked towards your mother. She shook her head quickly.

“Just a shock,” She reassured in your behalf. “Y/n will be more than happy to take the mentorship. Won’t you, sweetie?”

You looked up at her. Her nerves were frazzled. This was all that she had ever wanted for you. And then you looked at your dad, who looked a bit more caring about all of this. About you.

“It’s your choice,” Your father said. “But you earned this opportunity. It’s not going to come again, and you might regret giving it up.”

Ugh.

You nodded reluctantly. Your parents started celebrating. Tony said he would take that beer now.

Looks like you had yourself a mentorship.

#Tony Stark #Tony Stark oneshot #Marvel #Marvel oneshot #Iron Man #Iron Man oneshot #request #tonys

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dragonrajafanfiction · 3 years

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Tokyo Love Story (Part 3) Ghosts

.... .... The clouds are gathering...

@rurifangirl

Like the summer days and winter nights in the arctic, it was getting hard for you to keep track of time. So when Caesar taps on the closet door to wake you up, you almost ask what day it is wondering if you sleep for 3 days straight, like before.

You still feel a little achy in your bones but otherwise your pain is gone. There is only the lingering fatigue and gnawing hunger. Caesar was prepared with a hearty breakfast of oatmeal fruit and eggs.

“Eat up and get dressed. We have a lot to talk about.” He was not dressed in his flamboyant work clothes so it must not be evening just yet. He had on a simple grey sweatshirt and jeans. Still, you pause and look because it was so rare to see the Gattuso heir dressed so casually. He tosses you some clothes and you catch them.

They were nothing like the sexy cheongsams that you were used to wearing, just a simple woven sweater and puffy slacks. Comfortable, like his clothing was. In fact, the sleeves were a bit too long. You open the door of the closet and yawn, rubbing your sleeve against your eye. The men had bathed already. Caesar was sitting in a chair slightly too short for him. Chu Zihang was leaning on the wall next to him, in a button down shirt and dark pants, arms crossed, his long sword slung behind his back. He looked at you pointedly, but didn’t say anything.

“Where’s Mingfei?” You ask, looking left and right for him.

“Lu Mingfei is on a special assignment. Turns out he escaped from Genji Heavy Industries by being mistaken for evacuees. And he just happened to have the young Uesugi Clan chief with him.” Caesar sat back in the chair making it creak. Despite the sweatshirt, there was no hiding the musculature there.

“Oh… Is that bad?”

“It’s good and bad.” Caesar said. “There’s a lot I can say about her. To start, it looks like she’s been extremely isolated her entire life. According to Lu Mingfei, her living quarters in Genji was a replica of an old Japanese house. It doesn’t seem like she was ever let outside of it. While we were watching her, she was just sitting and listening to birds. So it's reasonable to believe that the area was nearly soundproof.”

You’re still hungry so you make your way over to a minifridge they had delivered and grab a small tub of yogurt. “That’s awful.”

Caesar shrugged. “It’s all she knows. The theory is her mind is so unstable she couldn’t handle a drastic change in environment without losing control. But… in this case. Mingfei said that she insisted he stay in the room with her for comfort. Because she seems to have an odd trust in him, his presence puts her mind at ease. Taking him away would be dangerous, so we thought it best he stay with her for now.”

“Mmm… I guess that’s okay if she’s okay with it. After all, it’s how I’ve been living all this time.” You say.

Caesar eyes you silently for a moment.

You continue. “I just … wonder if Lu Mingfei will be okay with it. He’s kind of a perv.”

“You picked up on that too huh?” Caesar grinned bitterly.

“Right. He was always anxious about my so-called purity, he must have been having impure thoughts.” You take a bite of yogurt thinking to yourself. Mingfei is the brother of Z after all.

“He might have those thoughts but he’s terrified of her.” Chu Zihang muttered. “And with good reason. You never said anything about it so I assume you didn’t know how we all escaped the Trieste disaster. You said you were rescued by dolphins, but if it weren't for Uesugi you wouldn’t have survived long enough for rescue.”

You pause, spoon hanging from your mouth. “I thought you blew up the monsters with Royal Fire?”

“I tried, but Royal Fire is limited in water.” He fixed you with his cold gaze. “It was really Erii Uesugi who destroyed the remaining enemies by producing a massive iceberg out of thin air and ramming it into the beasts. They were all eliminated in one blow. I thought I’d never see anyone with a Yanling that powerful… but…” Chu Zihang trailed off.

“So she saved us?” You ask.

“We don’t think it was intentional to save us. We just happened to be saved.” Caesar replied.

“That Yanling is called 'Judgment' and is so powerful that it makes her look like a god standing in the clouds judging humans, hence the name. But the actual effect is to eliminate all life in its field. It’s a rare 'command' type of spirit of speech." Chu Zihang continued. He then glanced at Caesar.

You start to get a strangely uneasy feeling. Like there was something they wanted to say but were nervous about saying it. Your eyes shift from Chu Zihang to Caesar. “So… what’s the plan? Are we holding her hostage or...”

Caesar chuckled in disbelief at the notion. “We can’t hold someone like that hostage. Chisei Gen we can capture, but her? Her power surpasses his.” He sighs.

Chu Zihang lets out a breath. “Chisei is supposed to be the strongest a White King Hybrid can get. He surpasses the blood-threshold and still remains sane. The only explanation for her being stronger than him is that the Uesugi family head is an anomaly. She is the strongest Ghost. She surpasses Chisei but her bloodline is not stable." Chu Zihang said slowly.

“So she’s like me.” You raise your eyes to him.

Chu Zihang’s eyes shift from yours “You were not as unstable as she is. That said, your use of Blood Rage has not helped matters. Without specialized equipment, I can’t tell how unstable you are.”

Your heart beats a little faster and your eyes widen. “Are you scared of me?”

“MC… relax!” Caesar says sharply. “Both Chu Zihang and I have already talked it through. It was fine keeping you here, so it should be fine to keep Erii in the short term. Especially keeping Erii out of the hands of Hydra while we wait to get in contact with the Academy.”

“Then… … if she does endanger Mingfei, I will fight her?” You ask quietly.

“You’re the only one who could stand a chance.” Chu Zihang said.

“But let’s not jump to such dark conclusions yet.” Caesar gives Chu Zihang a steady warning look and you wonder if Chu Zihang told Caesar that he was authorized to kill you if needed. Caesar said they had talked it over, but you’re getting the feeling that the talk was more of an argument. Chu Zihang was going along with it, but they were not of the same mind.

“It’s hard not to think that though.” You say. I’ve been questioning for a long time why I was awakened and sent here with you after being asleep for 20 years. I’ve always been raised as a weapon, but… I’ve never been needed in my full capacity.” You turn your dark eyes up to him. “What better reason to wake me up, than to serve as someone who could potentially defeat Erii Uesugi?”

“No…” Caesar’s voice was firm. “That won’t happen.”

You grip the yogurt cup tightly in your hands. “I think you should plan for it. If she’s really as strong and unstable as you say, to go against her I will need to do more than create an 8.0 earthquake. It will be like Godzilla vs. Godzilla. No matter who wins, all of Tokyo gets destroyed!”

"How can you compare yourself to Godzilla?” Caesar turned to you, putting on a winning smile. “I’ve never seen you that way, MC. When I look at you, all I see is a beautiful girl! Same with the Uesugi Clan Chief. I wouldn’t pit two beautiful girls against each other.” He pulled a cigarette from his pocket and lit it calmly.

Chu Zihang looked stone-faced.

You let go of your tight grip on the yogurt cup but it was completely crushed. You toss it away. Of course he wouldn’t pit you against each other. But the world was cruel and evil and might not give him a choice.

“By the way, there was something you wanted to tell me in the trunk of the car… what was it?” Caesar asked, exhaling smoke.

“Oh… right.” You take a breath. “When I was using my abilities to cause the quake, I was under Genji Heavy Industries, at the lowest point. And when I put my mind into the ground, something big was there. It was distant… but the fact I would sense it over that distance meant… it’s very big.”

Caesar’s lips closed over the cigarette. “Dragon?”

“From what I heard?” You say seriously. “More than one.”

------

The Kabuki theater you are invited to is over 100 years old and is considered the throne of Kabuki theaters. It has been burned down and rebuilt several times, and today, the building has a distinct Momoyama-era style, with a purple cloth hanging in front of the door.

Numerous national treasures of Kabuki actors have appeared here, and it is considered a great honor for newcomers to debut in this theater. This night a newcomer was on stage and, although the attendance was not expected to be high for newcomers, the tickets for tonight’s show were sold out early and a banner saying "Thank you" was hung in front of the ticket window. Those who came to buy tickets were young women, dressed in fashionable and hot clothes, not at all like the traditional older audience of Kabuki. This bright young throng crowded in front of the ticket window. The theater manager, who hadn't seen such an unprecedented turnout in more than a decade, was thrilled to the point that he thanked God that this ancient art had not been cut short and had managed to attract such a large young audience. The staff who knew what was going on said with a bitter smile that the manager misunderstood. They did not come for the traditional art, they just wanted to see the man who was amazing.

The newcomer on stage was named Ruri Kazama, and the play was "A New Telling of an Ancient Tale.”

The ticket you received was for a special royal box seat, separate from the seats of Chu Zihang and Caesar. Lu Mingfei couldn’t attend, obviously, so they graciously allowed Whale to come take his spot.

For you, this great and illustrious occasion was part of the MC Romance contest and you had star-heart tickets to give away to a suitor who pleased you best. But because tickets were sold out for the show, the only thing they could do was send you gifts and give you a complete makeover. When you entered the Takamagahara spa and beauty salon, the entire boutique staff of the Takamagahara was waiting for you, lined up in two neat rows on the left and right sides of the door. They all bowed simultaneously with a loud “Irasshaimase!”

The day outside was warm and bright and sunny. Perfect for a day out on the town, but the worst weather imaginable if you wanted to avoid the searching eyes of Kaguya. You would get a complete makeover that would hide your identity.

It started with full body skin treatments, shaving and hair removal, even massage. After that, you were whisked away in a fluffy robe for a manicure and pedicure where your nails were buffed and shined. Then your hair and scalp were treated to make it soft and aromatic. At this time, when you were sitting in the chair, your hair being pulled through a hot press, a Japanese woman in a pinstripe suit with long legs and sharp eyes walked into the room. You’d never seen her before but she seemed familiar with you.

She looked you up and down with a critical glare as all the workers stopped and let her inspect. “Well, things are coming along pretty well for our diamond in the rough. But my boss needs you to look like a queen and so long as you have that wide-eyed stare, you won’t fit the part.”

“Your boss?”

The long legged woman handed you an oblong carved sandalwood box that was tied with a red ribbon.

You pull the ribbon and remove the top. In the box was the deadpool's claw, buffed to a mirror like sheen. The raw knuckle bone was now inserted into a wooden hilt painted in vermillion and engraved with gold. It looked like a weapon one might find in a hidden tomb surrounded by other precious artifacts. A legendary weapon. The note said, “From Z.”

When you look at this woman again, she puts her finger to her lips. “There’s something I need you to understand. As the queen, the world only exists by your express permission. So from now on, I need you to simply ignore everyone around you. If you act like an ignorant girl, people will question you. Only pay attention or acknowledge anyone if it’s absolutely necessary.”

Knowing that this woman was acquainted with Z raised goosebumps on your skin. So rather than say yes ma’am, you turn away and stare into the mirror.

Your immediate obedience seemed to please the woman who said, “Good girl.” Before leaving.

You sit still while they paint your face with pale powder. Then they pile your hair up on your head. One of the women shows you an intricate golden comb the shape of a flying phoenix. A card came with it. “From Diamond,” it said. You nod mutely and they use it to secure your hair in front. The comb was from Diamond. Another shows you a bottle of floral scented perfume “from Armani”. You nod again.

At the end of the night, two men carried a large mirror to you and you caught a glimpse of yourself. The person reflected doesn’t look like you. You don’t see an orphan from Siberia but a delicate young woman. She smiled from the mirror. Her eyes were bright and sparkling in shy surprise and delight. Her eyebrows were dark and slender. Her ebony hair bloomed with flowers, gold and jade. Her clothes are fine linen and silk brocade, a Chinese Hanfu reminiscent of the Tang Dynasty that reached the floor and pooled underneath her in red and white. Her shoulders are draped with translucent gold colored silk shawls.

She didn’t look like you. But she was you.

Even though Caesar said you were beautiful over and over, this was the first time you ever felt that way about yourself. You find yourself swaying in the mirror, observing the way the silk shawls sparkled on your arm, a little giggle makes its way out. You feel a strange sense of thrilling excitement. Joy even.

You’d always thought of Renata as much prettier than you. Renata’s pale hair and her blue eyes were like the sun and the sea. But your dark eyes and your dark hair reminded you only of ravens. You cared for yourself like a potted plant, so you never thought of yourself as something to be admired, something dainty. You were a weapon. That was all you were good for. But now you admire the tendons of your neck, the curve of your collar bones, the taper of your wrists.

The sun sank in crimson and gold over the city of Tokyo. The light of the sky went out and the city lit up like a sea of stars. A sleek black limousine rolled up in front of the Takamagahara as it opened for the night, but you would not be there for the performers. Instead, the performers were lined up to see you out. The suitors in white suits while the rest of them wore their finest blacks.

They tilted in a stiff bow when you appeared. Per the instructions you received through the Japanese woman, you keep your eyes forward. In doing so, you feel a smile come to your face as you walk between them. Your heart swells and you straighten your back and lift your chin.

You step out into the humid night. Heads turn, but you’re accompanied by your suitors who walked you to your limousine on the left and right of you. Even if someone were going to try to get a picture of you, the view is blocked.

They only get a glimpse of royalty.

In the box right next to the stage, you sit in a velvet chair. There was one seat next to you but it was empty. You can look down directly onto the stage and the lower audience.

The curtain was low and the stage was dark, and the guests whispered quietly. They are all regulars at nightclubs, usually laughing and exchanging drinks, but tonight no one is making any noise. The audience is dressed in fine kimonos or foot-length evening dresses, ladylike and reserved. Although he is a male escort, Ruri Kazama's performance has been praised by several kabuki masters, who didn’t mind saying in the newspapers that they have gone out of their way to visit rowdy nightclubs to listen to this kabuki lover's performance. This is not a game, but a proper Kabuki performance, a masterpiece.

Caesar and Chu Zihang were sitting in a box on the second floor, so you couldn’t see them but they could see you clearly from across the theater.

"Ah… I guess this is my seat.” A familiar voice says. Chance walked down to the seat next to you. At your wide eyed surprise he said, “Were you expecting someone else?”

You were expecting Z to show up. But of course you couldn’t say that. “I thought none of you could get tickets.”

“I have an inside contact.” He winked and you notice that he has a pin on the lapel of his tux. It was the Chinese character "ghost". Your jaw drops and you stare up at him in concern. On the envelope containing your invitation, there was a small seal in the corner, consisting of a painted dragon and that same character. Caesar told you that meant that this performance was hosted by Ruri Kazama and that Ruri was a Ghost and belonged to the Devil Clan, the enemies of Hydra. Chance raises one finger to his lips. “I see you understand.”

“You’re the inside contact. You’re the one who told Ruri about me. About… all of us?”

He nodded once, winking.

You lean forward, smiling nervously. “Then you’re… like me? You’re with the Devil Clan?”

Chance smiled warmly at your bright enthusiasm, but sat back in his chair. He was still wearing his bright gold chains and hands were freshly painted with a new pattern in Henna. “Have you ever seen a performance like this before?”

You shake your head. He was clearly changing the subject to avoid talking about his unstable bloodline. The knowledge that he was a Ghost like you cast Chance in a new light. You had so many questions. You had more in common with him than you did with Chisei Gen.

"Just look at the translation screen above the stage. The lyrics will appear there for you to read so you understand the show.”

Z said that this Kabuki performance would answer many of the questions you’d had since waking up at Cassell and your pulse quickened. Finally, you would start to get a grasp on your new reality.

The lights suddenly went dark, and someone struck a snare drum. The drums sounded hoarse and low, like a ghost whispering in a distant ancient time. The curtain was pulled back and the plain white woman stood quietly in the center of the stage, draped with long, dark hair.

But it wasn’t a woman. It was Ruri Kazama.

"All happiness in this world is a fleeting blossom in the shadow of the moon.

Only loneliness and pain are always with us in the depths of Hell.”

He sang and slowly raised his head, his face as pale as paper, only the corners of his eyes were a harsh blood red.

His costume looks like a stark ghost in the depths of the underworld, but his body is graceful and feminine, just like a stunningly beautiful woman wrapped in a veil, making people's hearts flutter.

But the words he sang. In the first lyric, Ruri Kazama presented a stinging rebuttal to your response to him the day before, when you proudly told him you were not perishing. Chance turned to look at you. His hand moved over your hand and he gave it a gentle squeeze but that was scarce comfort. You were suddenly struck with a sense of doom, as though the voice of Ruri Kazama were a death knell.

#dragon raja

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emy-loves-you · 4 years

Text

Wrong Numbers And Useless Gays Chapter 8

Snake Boi Needs Hugs

This chapter deals with depersonalization, disassociation, self-harm (scratching), past body mutilation, child neglect, etc. If any of these topics have the potential to trigger you, please skip to the bold section at the end of this chapter. There, I have a masterlist/recap of all issues/disorders that the characters have been revealed to have up to this point. I was at a really low point when I wrote this, but it’s still important to the story, and this is the worst that it's gonna get. Please be safe. If you skip down to the masterlist and something in Janus' section triggers you, don’t read this chapter. You can read the rest of this fic with only the masterlist info instead of the actual chapter.

Chapter 7 | Masterlist | Chapter 9

(November 9th)

V- (6:24 PM) Hey guys, I’m gonna be really busy over the next few days. Probably won’t respond to texts. Nothing’s wrong, I just won’t be on my phone.

P- (6:24 PM) Alright Kiddo. Stay safe, and don’t forget to eat!

V- (6:25 PM) I will. I’ll text you guys when it’s over. See you then

Virgil sighed, locking his front door. He began his long walk to Janus’ house. This was one of those few times where he wished that he owned his own car. He sighed, adjusting his backpack. While normally Virgil would ask Janus or Remus to pick him up, Janus’ birthday was in 2 days. That’s why Virgil was making this journey in the first place. Sometimes, Janus spent his birthday like an excited 8-year-old, ordering a 3 tier cake and enough glitter to cover the entire house. Sometimes Janus was clingy: wanting to cuddle on the couch with Remus, watch shitty romcoms and drink enough booze to fill a river. But sometimes…

Virgil shook his head. Hopefully, it wouldn’t be one of those birthdays. He knocked on the door. There was a muffled curse before the door was swung open. Remus stood there, slightly panting. His hair was all over the place, and he was wearing what looked like his pajamas from the day before. Virgil bit down the urge to say “you look like shit.” Instead, he just nodded his head and stepped into the house. He followed Remus into the old study (Janus never came in here any other time of year) and found Janus hunched over his desk, writing something down. But what drew in Virgil’s attention were the wrist-length yellow gloves on his hands. So it’s one of THOSE birthdays.

Virgil's mind flashed to the day he met Janus, the yellow gloves brushing his hair back. Janus had been given those gloves by his father for his 18th birthday. Other than to bathe, Janus never took them off until months after his parents died. It took a lot of time and effort to convince Janus that he didn’t need those gloves, especially since they were the only present that his father had ever given him. After they started performing as The Dark Sides, Janus had bought himself a pair of yellow elbow-length gloves. He only wore the elbow-length gloves when he was Deceit, and he never wore the wrist-length gloves.

Virgil shook his head, stepping further into the room. Janus has yet to look up. Virgil stepped around the desk, knowing that he wouldn’t acknowledge Virgil even if he spoke up. He read the first line, frowning at what he saw.

“Dear Mother and Father,”

Virgil looked up at Remus, giving him a nod. Remus left the room. It would be beneficial for Remus to go, since he knew the house better than Virgil. While Remus went to lock up anything potentially dangerous, Virgil kept an eye on Janus. He took a seat in the armchair in the corner of the study, positioned specifically for Virgil to have a perfect view of both Janus and the door. They sat there for several hours, the sound Janus’ pen the only sound between them. Virgil’s eyes never left Janus, knowing what would happen if he looked away for too long. Janus abruptly stood up, neatly folding up the 20-something pages of letters and throwing them away. Virgil stood up, following Janus into the dining room. He couldn’t see Remus- he was probably sleeping. There was a pile of sandwiches on the table (turkey with tomato and mayonnaise, crustless. Janus’ favorite) along with 2 plastic cups and bottled water. Virgil pulled back a chair, and Janus numbly sat down, posture perfectly straight. Virgil gave Janus a cup of water and half of a sandwich before sitting down. They ate in silence. Two bites into his third sandwich, Janus stood up. Virgil followed. They walked upstairs, Virgil glancing at the clock on the wall. 12:13 AM. Earlier than usual. Virgil followed Janus into the master bedroom, finding Remus passed out on the edge of the bed. He watched as Janus changed into his pajamas, currently having no sense of decency. He kept his gloves on as he lay in bed, facing the ceiling with eyes wide open. Virgil sat on the couch near the bed, his gaze never wavering. They sat there for several more hours, neither moving an inch. When Virgil’s alarm went off (vibrate only, no loud noises) at 4 AM, Virgil got up to wake Remus. They quickly changed positions, with Remus sitting on the couch and Virgil curling up on the bed. He noticed Janus’ eyes fluttering shut and he drifted off soon after.

He woke up to Remus shaking him at 9:30. He silently got up, giving Remus a quick nod before slipping out of the room. He went to a separate bedroom to change before hurrying down to the kitchen. He made a batch of blueberry muffins (they couldn’t eat anything that required silverware, not after the first time) and went about cleaning up the sandwiches from last night. By 10:30, the muffins had cooled down, and Virgil could hear Janus and Remus making their way downstairs. Virgil quickly put the muffins on the table and checked to make sure he wasn’t covered in any ingredients (when he was like this, Janus would forget that he fired his servants years ago). Virgil quickly sat down, glancing up just as Janus walked in.

He was wearing a crisp business suit, his gloves still in place. Virgil watched as Remus got Janus situated, planting a quick kiss on the side of his face. Virgil let a ghost of a smile flicker onto his face; even when Janus was like this, Remus still absolutely adored him. That smile quickly fled when he realized where Remus had kissed him. A long, horrid scar rested on Janus’ face, stretching from temple to chin. Janus tended to paint that half of his face with scales when playing Deceit, if only to cover it up. Another flashback appeared, this time of Janus two weeks after his parents died. They were eating steak, and they thought Janus was finally opening back up and suddenly there was so much blood and Virgil took the knife away as Janus kept clawing at his face and make it stop make it stop-

A hand on his shoulder pulled him back roughly. Virgil looked up to see Remus peering down at him, a look of not-quite pity on his face. Virgil quickly shook his head, turning back to the muffin on his plate. He didn’t feel hungry anymore.

Today played out much like the day before, with Janus hunched over his desk writing letters. Virgil and Remus each took turns watching him while the other slept or prepared meals. That night, Remus took the first shift while Virgil went to sleep. He woke up at around 2 AM to Janus screaming. He quickly bolted up, taking in the situation. Remus was now sitting on Janus’ lap, keeping his legs down as he pinned his arms to his sides. Janus arched his back, his face red but no open cuts to be seen (that’s at least one good thing about those damned gloves). Remus looked close to tears, and Virgil quickly grabbed one of Janus’ arms, allowing Remus to focus on the other. They sat there for several minutes, praying for Janus to calm down. He eventually passed out, a combination of exhaustion and lack of air from screaming keeping him asleep. Virgil took up his shift early, letting Remus lie down. Neither slept for the rest of the night.

The next day, they had some strawberry muffins and contemplated what would happen today. It was now November 11th, Janus’ birthday, and neither friend had a single clue about what would happen today. They watched as Janus got up and grabbed his coat from the living room. Remus kept watch while Virgil hurried upstairs, grabbing his backpack. He quickly ran back downstairs, giving one last nod to Remus before Janus slipped out of the house. Virgil would go with Janus while Remus cleaned up the house and got some sleep.

Virgil followed Janus as they walked through the gardens, already knowing where they were heading. They walked down this path constantly after the funeral, and by now Virgil had it memorized. While they walked, Virgil quietly opened his bag and brought out a bouquet of fake flowers. He handed Janus the bouquet as they reached the grave. It was an elaborate headstone, with angels etched around the words:

“Here lies David and Mary Williams. October 8th, 1961 to November 11th, 2014. December 4th, 1962 to November 11th, 2014. Lovers, parents, and friends to all that met them.”

Virgil scowled at the headstone as Janus kneeled over the grave. Even after 6 years, these bastards still hurt him. They stayed there for a few hours, no sounds beyond the birds chirping in the distance. Janus eventually got up, dropping the flowers and making his way back to the house. Virgil followed, silently checking Janus for any sign of emotion. His face was perfectly blank, with no signs of crying or distress. They reached the house at around 2 PM and Virgil was slightly surprised when Janus made a beeline for the ballroom. He nudged Remus awake as they passed the living room, pulling him off the couch before following Janus. They could hear the slow sounds of some waltz as Janus turned on the old gramophone in the corner of the room. Janus then stood there, staring at the floor as if it could tell him what to do. Remus quickly walked up and put a hand on Janus’ waist, using his other to clasp Janus’ own hand. Janus looked up, and for the first time in 3 days, he looked like he actually saw Remus, not a stranger.

They slowly danced around the room, and to Virgil they looked more intimate than he’d ever seen them. There was groping, no dirty secrets whispered between each other, just dancing. Dancing with open and honest looks on their faces, speaking in a language that Virgil’s pretty sure he’ll never learn. The way that Remus furrowed his brow every few minutes, the subtle squeezing of Janus’ hands. This was the spark that they shared, and Virgil knew that he would never be able to have this type of moment with them. They were so obviously in love, and he wished that moments like this happened more often, that they were able to be like this without one of them being emotionally compromised or vulnerable.

Eventually, the record stopped, and with it all of Janus’ self-control. He flung himself around Remus’ neck, and Virgil could hear the muffled sob from across the room. Remus gently lowered them to the ground, rubbing his back and whispering something that Virgil couldn’t hear. Remus looked up and made eye contact with Virgil, silent tears streaming down his face. Go, his look said, I’ll take care of him. Virgil nodded, going to make dinner.

The next day, Virgil was happy to see Janus sitting on the couch, curled up against Remus, and watching cheesy rom coms. He glanced down and noticed that the gloves were nowhere to be found. Virgil smiled, going to take a seat on Janus’ other side. He glanced over at Remus as he made some snarky remark. Yes, they were still broken. Yes, they still had moments where they lost all hope. But they also had each other. They were family, and that was all Virgil ever wanted.

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Here is the masterlist of issues and/or disorders that the characters, in order of relevance to the story:

Remus- Remus is a transgender male with the deadname Rebecca. His parents were very controlling and manipulative. They refused to acknowledge that he transitioned, so he ran away at age 16. He hasn’t talked to his family since. In retaliation to how transphobic and homophobic his parents were, Remus developed a very vulgar mindset. He tells everyone that he meets about how he’s trans and very gay for Janus. He never talks about his life before he met Janus and Virgil unless he’s extremely drunk. Remus developed his persona of the Duke to help combat his gender dysphoria and intrusive thoughts. The Duke is much more vulgar but less likely to admit that he’s trans. He currently lives with Janus (and a good distance away from his hometown). He has lived there for almost 7 years, has been a member of The Dark Sides for 5 years, and has been in a relationship with Janus for 4 years.

Roman- Roman is Remus’ twin. When Remus (still being called Rebecca at the time) was trying to discover himself, he began to look and act similarly to Roman. He was punished for this (since their parents were transphobic) and Roman’s low self-esteem combined with Remus’ punishments caused Roman to lash out at Remus the day before he came out to their parents. Roman is unaware that Remus transitioned and blames himself for pushing “Rebecca” away. Roman began to lash out against his parents and started a secret relationship with Logan in order to combat their homophobia (that’s what he told himself. He also had a massive crush on both Logan and Patton). When Patton found out, they briefly argued before getting together in a polyamorous relationship. They coincidentally moved to the same town that Remus did soon after graduating high school. Roman still suffers from extreme guilt at the loss of Rebecca and is occasionally harassed by his parents over the phone. Roman has been in the poly relationship for almost 8 years and has lived in his current house for 6 years.

Janus- Was emotionally neglected at a young age by his rich parents. They were always screaming at each other and him behind closed doors. He was taught to never show that his life was less than perfect, so by 19 he was a compulsive liar. He met Virgil during one of his depressive (and slightly suicidal) episodes and decided to take him in. He met and took in Remus 4 months after meeting Virgil. His parents were neglectful to the point where they didn’t realize that they were housing two other teenagers. On Janus’ 20th birthday, both of his parents died in a car crash. He immediately fired all of his staff and went into an extreme depression. Two weeks after his death, he self-harmed and mutilated his face with a steak knife, leaving him with a horrible scar. He has gotten a lot better over the years, though he tends to depersonalize and potentially self-harm on the days leading up to his birthday. He uses the persona of Deceit to separate his compulsive lying from his actual personality. You can never tell when Deceit is lying (and half the time, neither can he). Janus is less of a compulsive liar now, but he’s still extremely sarcastic and will slip into his Deceit persona when he feels vulnerable. Same timestamps as Remus, though he’s lived in this town his entire life.

Virgil- Virgil has never known his birth parents, his mother dying when he was 3 months old and his dad nowhere to be seen. He never had a stable home, having bounced around the foster system until he was kicked out at 18. He met Janus soon after, who took him in. Virgil has always had a knack for music and art, but he was never able to fully develop his talents until Remus suggested they form a band. He cooked for Janus and Remus before he moved out, since neither of them had needed to cook for themselves before they met each other. Virgil never felt he earned anything for himself until he started earning money from The Dark Sides. Because of this (and the fact that he has an insane amount of money now), Virgil likes to spoil his crushes with big, elaborate gifts (he can’t spoil Janus or Remus because Janus is richer than Virgil will ever be and Remus is already spoiled by Janus). When Janus and Remus got together they offered for Virgil to join their relationship. He declined, quickly noticing that their relationship with each other is deeper and more intimate than anything that he could ever have with them. Virgil uses the persona of Anxiety to combat his, you guessed it, anxiety. Anxiety is suave and confident, though Virgil only slips into his persona when either flirting or at a Dark Sides-related event. Virgil has the same timestamps as Janus, though he never joined Janus’ relationship with Remus.

Patton- Patton has always had mild depression. He gets depressive episodes at least once a month. He’s never been suicidal, but he becomes very self-deprecating during more intense episodes. He usually turns to one of the others for a distraction. Patton grew up next door to Logan, and they got together when they were 12. They kept their relationship a secret until Patton found Logan making out with Roman 5 years later. It hurt him a lot and he still fears that they’ll leave one day for someone else. Patton has been in a relationship with Logan for nearly 13 years, Roman joined them 8 years ago, and they’ve lived in the same house for 6 years.

Logan- Logan doesn’t have any issues or disorders to note, other than he’s really tired. He’s helped Patton through his depression for as long as he can remember, and he helps Roman through his issues of guilt and anger (Patton’s self-deprecating thoughts tend to increase when Roman is upset). Logan is calm and collected. He’s the only one in this series who’s been to college, and will soon earn his master's degree in astronomy. They actually decided to move to this town due to its college’s astronomy program. Logan is the one who deals with budgeting and scheduling, hence why he’s annoyed with Virgil spending so much money on them. All of his timestamps are the same as Patton’s.

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Taglist: @bisexualdisaster106 @self-taught-mess @itawalrus @arodynamic-enby @sanderssides-angst

#sanders sides fic #useless gays #virgil sanders #Janus Sanders #remus sanders #read the message in bold #heavy angst

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tamakiamajikistentacles · 4 years

Text

Golden Hour {Hawks | Keigo Takami}

She felt so fortunate to have seen the amazing sights that she did—Tokyo lit up at night in the summer and buzzing with activity far below where she stood; flying high around the Three Holy Mountains in the seasons when their splendor was the most breathtaking; the vast expanse of the ocean spread wide in front of her.

But by far the sight she felt the most privileged to have seen and continued to see was the sight of her husband’s bright, warm features backed by the golden hue of the late afternoon sun.

Honey blonde hair haloed by the rays streaming through their balcony window and framed by the rich crimson of his wings painted him as a divine sculpture, truly a man that deserved to be gazed upon in reverence. A real hero in so many regards with his greatness achieved through his training by the Commission, she was the only one who really understood the greatness he had been born with.

Model-like looks hid beneath them a heart that was capable of so much love and tenderness, a person so valuable he had been hidden away by others in power who wanted to control him as something they could build and manipulate to need. He had broken free after turning twenty-three, a bird set free of the too-small cage they kept him in for the largest portion of his life, and while his true self could bleed through in some ways, Hawks held barely a fraction of the human worth of Keigo Takami.

Keigo was the man whose insecurity over battle scars could eat him alive while he told her how lucky he was to have someone as attractive as her, blemishes and all. He was paranoid of his hero image and the fluctuating rankings that had yet to affect him but “it’s only a matter of time” because he wasn’t young and single anymore. He was afraid of losing speed as his career went on and the potential lives lost that would follow.

He was also the man who remembered that on the day they met she was wearing a purple gingham dress and speaking with other sponsors over a plate of maguro finger food. He was more than happy to use his feathers to entertain her younger family members during gatherings, excited to use them for something other than violence. And Keigo Takami was the one before her, bathed in the rich colors of the setting sun.

“You’re so beautiful,” she said, catching his attention.

He turned to her, lips parted slightly in surprise. “I—you… think I’m beautiful?”

“I do,” she replied with a smile as she reached out to brush his hair out of his eyes. “I think you’re beautiful like this, with the sun hitting you just right. It makes you glow.”

His cheeks dusted pink and a small smile curled onto his lips.

“It’s one of my favorite ways to see you,” she added, voice sultry as the hand in his hair traced from his temple down his face, cupping his cheek. He leaned into the touch, his eyes boring into hers.

“What are the other ways you like to see me?” he asked lowly.

“There’s only one other,” she admitted. Her hand dropped from his cheek and down to the loose collar of his old tshirt, hooking into the fabric and tugging lightly. “Take this off and you’re halfway there.”

He slipped his arms from the sleeves and pulled his head out of the top, two red feathers appearing on either side of him to help guide the material’s large openings on the back over his wings to be tossed aside. Running his fingers through his hair, he cocked his head with a smirk.

“Halfway there,” he said cheekily.

With a smile she uncurled her legs from beneath her and rose up from the couch, turning towards the hallway that led to their bedroom. Reaching a hand out to him, he placed his palm in hers and stood to follow as she began walking. Once in their bedroom he closed the door behind him, an unnecessary task but one that he always made sure to do; inside was for the two of them only, safe and warm away from anyone else.

He dropped his hand and held her steady by the shoulders when she tried to turn around, his chest pressed against her back. Light kisses were placed at the juncture where her neck met her shoulder, and her head lolled back to rest against his collar bone.

She sighed and feeling the smile against her skin, grinned. “You’re still only halfway there, feathers.”

He barked out a laugh, his breath fanning out over the back of her neck as he pulled back slightly. Large, warm palms snuck below the hem of her shirt, smoothing over the skin of her stomach and tracing the familiar shape of her body, indulging himself only for a moment before removing her top and leaving her upper half bare.

“Let a man take his time,” he said in a hushed tone, his hands coming up to cup her chest as he pressed against her once more. A slow roll of his hips and a firm squeeze to her chest let any argument she could have had die on her tongue.

Instead she let out a quiet moan and arched her back at the feeling of his movements. “Mmm, Keigo…”

“Keep saying my name like that,” he groaned, stepping them forward to the bed.

She followed his lead, crawling up the large expanse of pillows and blankets before turning and lying back. At the sight of her husband moving up towards her, his entire body bathed in the golden light once more from their bedroom window, her breath hitched.

“Keigo,” she murmured, surging forward to throw her arms around his neck and pull him into a hard kiss. He fell onto his forearms above her, the majority of his weight supported by his arms but still a pleasant and welcome press against her body.

Desperate breaths between the clashing of teeth and tongues grew steadily heavier, and one of his hands drifted down to tug at her underwear and sweatpants. She shifted her hips to allow him to push them further down her legs and kicked them aside as soon as they were low enough, laying herself completely bare below him.

Still holding her close, his hand drifted back between her hips where he could feel just how much she wanted him. A cute little gasp escaped her at the first brush of his fingers on her clit and her arms tightened their hold around him, her nails forming shallow indents across his shoulders.

He kept his lips on hers to swallow the pleasure-filled noises as his thumb drew languid circles on her clit and his fingers curled into her, moving in a slow rhythm to prepare her for him. Though their more passionate moments were always his favorite, he could honestly say that the buildup was a close contender. To be able to coax her closer and closer to the edge with only his fingers made pride swell in his chest, knowing that he was the only one who could do it and would continue to be the only one for the rest of their lives.

The whines that had begun quietly grew louder as his fingertips found the perfect spot within her and he made sure to hit it at least every other motion. When she tightened around his fingers and her breathing sped up, her heart hammering in her chest hard enough for him to feel it, he gradually lessened the pressure against her clit and pulled his fingers from her completely.

He ground his clothed hips down against hers as he slowed their pace, dragging out the moment to savor the way they fit together so well even like this. But he knew it wouldn’t satisfy them for long, and with one last swipe of his tongue against her bottom lip he pulled back and stood to remove his own underwear and sweats, his wings fluffing out behind him.

“How many times have I had you like this?” he asked breathlessly, his hands sliding up her calves. “How many times have I been lucky enough to see you spread out so pretty for me?”

Her lips quirked up in a tiny smile as a pink blush dusted her cheeks; his words never failed to make her feel as if she were the only woman in the world he could ever look at with such love and passion. Early in their relationship she worried that it was an act like the ones he had put on for so many years because of the Commission’s training, but over time she began to understand that the depth of his emotion were so foreign to him that he truly did hold such wonder when expressing them.

“Could keep you in this bed forever,” he continued as he came to drape himself over her again. “What d’ya say we see if we can have us a chick or two, huh? Fill this nest up with little ones?”

“We will,” she murmured, “but not yet, Keigo.”

He traced a finger down her upper arm, the flash of disappointment not going unnoticed as he hummed, knowing that beneath her skin lay the tiny device in the way of his plans. “One year, two months.”

“Plenty of time to perfect our technique,” she said coyly, her intention to bring him out of his head.

A grin blooming across his face let her know that she was successful, and soon enough the grin was hidden in the crook of her neck and those same teeth were scraping against her skin. She whimpered at the feeling and a low, pleased rumble vibrated within his chest; with him pressed against her it harmonized with the wild beating of her heart.

With one hand between her and the mattress cradling her close, he slid his other hand down her side to prop her hips up so he could position himself properly.

“So good for me,” he whispered as his hips rolled forward until they were flush against her own, his wings lowering around them as if to hide their intimate moment from the rest of the world.

Her legs came to wrap around his waist to pull him just that much deeper, one thigh still supported by his hand and she moaned softly, causing him to look up from her neck to see the blissful expression on her face—eyes half-lidded as she gazed up at him through her lashes and her lips parted in a tiny ‘o’ shape.

Below him, she could only look on in awe as the dying light of day continued to filter through the window and highlight the man she felt privileged to call her husband.

“You’re so beautiful, the only one for me,” he told her, pulling back only to push forward and set a slow, steady pace. Gentle kisses were peppered across her cheeks as each time he filled her completely he paused to grind his hips against hers, the sensual drag against her clit absolutely perfect.

His name fell from her lips like an incantation, small gasps not breaking the spell of encouragement each syllable of his name created. The slow pace was maddening but was building the pleasure pooled low in her stomach.

“I love you,” she murmured breathlessly, catching his lips in a desperate kiss, “I love you, Keigo.”

A shudder ran through him and his rhythm faltered only to resume with faster thrusts of his hips, the new pace causing her to arch into him more. He held her tight against him, grinding more harshly each time he bottomed out within her.

“Fuck, I love you,” he panted as his nose bumped against hers. “I love you so much. Are you close, sweetheart? You’ve got me so close.”

“Please, Keigo,” she whimpered, clutching him harder and feeling the coiled muscles working beneath his skin.

The hand on her thigh moved between her legs, two fingers easily finding her clit and giving firm strokes to match the speed of his hips, driving her that much closer to her peak. “I’ve got you, baby, I know what you need.”

It only took the combination of his movements another moment before she was crying out his name and digging her nails hard into his shoulders, pure bliss washing over her completely. The sensation of her release around him threw Keigo over the edge too, his hips pressed flush against her own as he gave everything he had to her. His wings jerked back, flaring out to their full length in a beautiful arc behind him.

Together they lay amongst the rumpled sheets, chests heaving almost in synch as they basked in the floating afterglow of the moment they had shared. Golden hues continued to dance along the walls of their bedroom, yet still the most precious thing in the room was her husband. She wasn’t sure if anything could ever shine brighter than Keigo Takami.

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i-luv-stars · 5 years

Text

Serendipity (Pt. 1)

You are an immortal who has spent your life travelling, forced to find your home in different places around the world. One day, you meet a certain God of Mischief. What follows is a friendship that spans centuries.

Warnings: a teaspoon of fluff

Word Count: 7.1k

A/N: I have no idea how age on Asgard works, but imagine Loki as 17/18 (in human years) in this chapter. Reader is a couple years older (looks-wise).

Italy. 1480

The sky was impossibly dark. Rain pounded at your back with unnecessary ferocity. In the distance, lightning crackled.

You pulled your hood over your head and continued walking, to where you did not know. The dirt road below you had turned to thick mud, and the scarce trees overhead offered little solace from the unrelenting rain. Your cloak flew behind you in the fierce wind. It wasn't until you tripped for the fifth time that you finally let your tears flow.

You allowed the heavy sobs to rack your frail body. The wind carried away your desperate screams as if they were nothing. Your bones burned and every muscle in your body ached. You knew you were too tired to go on any longer.

And so, you lied down in the black mud and let the rain pelt at your skin freely.

Keeping your eyelids open was not a battle you cared to win. But before you succumbed to your exhaustion, you issued one final plea.

Oh god have mercy, you prayed, and let me die before the sun rises.

Alas, it was not to be.

You were awoken by someone shaking you, roughly. The sound of muttered voices reached your ears. Reluctantly, you opened your eyes.

“Mother have mercy! I thought you were dead!” Two small blue eyes stared down at you from within a very round, pale face.

He was a pageboy, you realised. Beside him was a young girl, dressed in servants clothing.

You opened your mouth to speak, but no voice came out. Your throat was raw and aching, battered from the cold winds the night before. You rubbed at it with your hands.

‘Oh, you poor thing. You must be terribly sick. It’s a wonder you even survived out here.” This time it was the girl who spoke. Her voice was sweet and high pitched, like a bird’s.

Suddenly, the boy was wrapping his arms around your back and hauling you to your feet. Your legs, still stiff and numb, tingled as you stood.

You were up for no longer than a minute before the pageboy began to walk, talking as he did so. “Do not worry, there is no need to speak.” He reassured you. “I am Luce, and this is Sabina.” He gestured to the girl, who nodded with a smile, before continuing, “We are employees of the Amoretto family. Surely, you must of heard of them, yes? They are renown throughout Italy for their immense wealth.”

Unfortunately, you could only shake your head. Your mind was foggy and muddled. The family’s name was certainly not familiar to you.

The girl offered you a reassuring smile. “Lord and Lady Amoretto are generous people. They may allow you to stay with us until you get well again.”

You wondered whether this Lord and Lady were really as generous as the girl claimed. In your experience, wealthy people were hardly the hospitable type.

“Ah, here we are. See?” Luce’s voice pulled you out of your thoughts. You followed his line of sight.

What met you there was enough to take your breath away.

Just ahead of you was an enormous castle, it’s red brick walls stretching far across the horizon. Two towers emerged from its main body, branching upwards towards the clouds.

Sabina must have noticed your sharp intake of breath. She gave you a quick look and giggled before running off towards the castle. “I will inform the Lord and Lady we have a visitor.” She shouted back at the two of you.

As you and Luce neared closer and closer to the castle, your stomach began to churn. You had a feeling more awaited you beyond those walls than just friendly hospitality.

—————————————————————

Upon first seeing you, Lady Amoretto was certainly not impressed.

“Luce, what is this dirty girl doing here? She is getting mud all over the floor!” She shrieked.

Your cheeks flushed as, with horror, you remembered that you must look atrocious.

However, before you could attempt to speak, Luce explained your awful predicament. He spoke of how he had found you this morning towards the outskirts of the castle grounds. When he had first seen your frail figure and pale skin, he had thought you to be dead. In fact, if it was not for him so gallantly offering his help, you most likely would be.

At this, the Lady turned to you. “You survived out there, all alone, in that terrific storm?” She said, her words tilting upwards in astonishment.

You nodded meekly.

“Child, that is scarcely possible.” The Lady exclaimed, looking directly into your eyes. “My stable-boys have told me that the winds and rain last night were so wicked, several of our horses died as a result. Pray tell, how did a small creature like you travel in that storm and live to tell the tale?”

The answer, of course, was that you were no ordinary human. There was a power, ancient and mysterious, that ran through your veins. But, even if you could speak, you would not divulge any of this to Lady Amoretto. She was already staring at you as if you had performed a miracle.

“My Lady, she has lost her voice.” Luce commented, “Her throat must still be aching from the cold.”

The Lady allowed her eyes to wonder over your face for a while longer, before finally offering you a warm smile. She appeared to have decided what to do with you.

“Of course,” she remarked, “If I were to turn you away after everything you have endured, I feel like I would be ignoring the will of God himself. You must stay with us until you are well again.”

Then, she yelled for Sabina. The girl was at the Lady’s side immediately.

“Get this girl washed and cleaned up.” She ordered, turning to the young maid. “Then, you may show her to one of our guest rooms. Fetch her a gown and have her look presentable by supper. She will dine with us tonight.”

And with that, she exited the room, the large wooden doors slamming shut behind her.

Sabina led you upstairs. Marble statues and richly coloured paintings decorated the hallways. Above you, gold banners and portraits of noblemen and women hung from the walls. In all your years, you had never been inside such a place. As you walked, Sabina talked about Lady Amoretto’s generosity, and how joyous she was that you would be staying with them. What was responsible for her excess excitement, you were not sure. Perhaps she saw in you a potential friend. You didn’t have the heart to tell her that befriending you was not a wise idea.

After you had passed what seemed like hundreds of doorways, you finally came to a stop.

“And this is your room.” The young maid announced, opening the door.

Every last breath you were holding left your lungs as you stepped inside.

The room was enormous. The walls were painted in shades of the deepest blues and golds. The bed was large and made of the finest wood, framed by embroidered curtains. You even had your own private room for bathing. You were not aware that such luxuries even existed.

Sabina noticed your wondering eyes. “I’ve given you our finest guest room,” she giggled, “but I am sure the Lady will not mind. She seemed to take quite a liking to you, earlier.”

You returned her words with a large smile. It was the least you could do.

Not more than five minutes later, you found yourself sitting in the warm water of the bath. This was the second time the bath had been filled, the first lot of bath water, in which you had scrubbed at your mud-caked skin, had become so dirty that it had to be drained almost immediately.

Now, you were resting against the edge of the basin. Sabina ran a comb through your wet hair, preparing the silky tresses to be ready for braiding later. The scent of primrose oil tickled your nose. They must have poured it into the water earlier.

“I sent your old clothes off to be burnt.” Sabina whispered as she gently tugged at a knot. “I hope you don't mind.”

You waved a hand, reassuring Sabina that she was not to worry. Closing your eyes, you sunk deeper down into the warm water.

“You are so lucky…” Sabina gushed behind you. “Tonight, you will get to dine at the Lord and Lady’s table. And meet their son.”

You raised a questioning eyebrow. Son?

“Alessandro…” Sabina gushed. The mention of his name seemed to make her breathless. “He has the most wonderful blue eyes, and long, brown hair. Oh, what I would give to be able to dine at his table. Even just to have a conversation with him…”

You chuckled as Sabina launched into a long recount of the many admirable qualities she believed the man to possess.

It sounded like someone was in love.

Well, you thought, if Sabina was worried about you stealing the heart of the young lord, it was fruitless. There was only one boy you had ever loved. And he had died, many, many years ago.

Your jaw clenched at the memory. You were determined to never love another.

After your bath, you were dressed in a thick, silk gown. The soft material on your freshly scrubbed skin felt like heaven. You had to stop yourself on more than one occasion from letting out a moan of pleasure.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door. Sabina, who had left for the kitchen earlier, entered. She now held a small cup in her hand, full of steaming liquid.

“I thought this might help, for your throat.” She said, setting the cup down beside you.

You gave her a smile of thanks, gently lifting the hot beverage towards your lips. The sweet smell of honey and spices engulfed you. As you drunk, the harsh aching in your throat seemed to dim.

Sabina watched as you eagerly finished the cup.

“Try to speak.” She said.

“T-thank you.” You whispered. Your eyes widened as you realised the beverage had worked.

Sabina grinned widely, her big eyes lighting up. “I knew it would work. That’s my special recipe, you know.”

“Well, you are very clever.” You spoke, your voice still gentle. “I have never seen such an effective cure for a sore throat.”

The blonde-haired girl giggled. “Now that you are no longer a mute, you must tell me your name.”

You hesitated. “My name is… Y/N.”

Her eyes widened. “It is a very pretty name, but one I have never heard before. Where are you from?”

This was what you had been afraid of.

“I-I can’t remember.” You stuttered. “I must have hit my head the other night. Whenever I try to think back, everything is blank. It’s all very confusing.”

“Oh, you poor thing.” Sabina cried, distress lacing her voice. “Do you remember anything about your family?”

You shook your head. On cue, tears began to well in your eyes. You were good at this lie. It was one you had practised many times before.

Sabina wrapped you into an embrace.

“Hush,” she whispered, trailing her fingers through your hair, “everything will be okay.”

You were just about to reply when the sound of bells rang throughout the room.

“That’s the call for supper.” Sabina muttered. “Come, we must get you ready.”

—————————————————————

Like the rest of the castle, the dining room was nothing short of decadent. As you sat waiting for your food, you couldn’t help but admire the artwork that hung from the walls.

Your attention was soon diverted when a servant placed a bowl of soup in front of you. The scent of exotic spices drifted towards your nostrils and made your mouth water.

A pang in your stomach reminded you that you hadn't eaten anything in days.

“Y/N, remind me of where you were from.” Lord Amoretto’s voice boomed from across the table.

“She can’t remember, dear. She has already explained this to us.” His wife said, placing a hand on his arm.

You nodded, picking up your spoon and dipping it into the creamy soup. “I still cannot remember much, but I do not wish to be a burden. I will leave as soon as I have regained my strength.”

“Nonsense.” It was now Alessandro who spoke. “A maiden as pretty as you? You may stay as long as you like.”

The rest of the table was silent.

You offered the young lord a weak smile of thanks before returning to your soup.

After dinner, you were returning to your room, belly full of food, when someone grabbed your arm. You turned around in a hurry.

It was Lady Amoretto.

“Y/N, follow me. I would like to speak to you.” She said, before dragging you by the sleeve into an empty hallway.

“Lady, have I done something to offend you?” You hesitantly asked. Something nagged at the back of your brain, a voice telling you that whatever she was about to say was not good news.

“Offend me? No, no, quite the opposite.” She reassured you.

Your mouth was halfway open, ready to speak, when you felt her soft hands on your cheeks.

“My son speaks the truth. You are very pretty.” She muttered. “When you arrived here this morning, you were as dirty as a peasant. But I saw your eyes and your face, and I guessed that underneath the mud and dirt was a beautiful young woman. That’s why I invited you to dine with us. And now, I see, that I was correct.”

Her hands still clutched your face. Her eyes were unmoving, staring directly into yours.

“My Lady, I thank you for your kind words. But is that why you have brung me here?”

She chuckled at that and finally dropped her hands. “No, if I wanted to simply pay you compliments I could do it across the dinner table. I have brung you here, because I have a proposition.”

Your eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

“Alessandro,” she continued, “is in need of a wife. He is young, and handsome, and the heir to our fortune. Yet, our options for a suitable bride are limited. Currently, he is besotted with a young girl from Rome. They have met a couple of times. But, I do not like her.”

Your heart started thumping. You didn’t like where this was going.

“Her family is rich, but they are controlling. And Alessandro, he is my only son…” At this, the Lady began to weep. “If they marry, and he leaves for Rome, I know he will not return. But you… you are perfect. You have no family, no home. If he were to marry you, he could stay here forever.”

“I am not sure if that is wise-” you began.

“Nonsense. You are pretty, prettier perhaps than even the Roman girl. And Alessandro has already taken a liking to you.”

You shivered, thinking of the way the man’s eyes had lingered over your body at dinner.

“But, we have only just met.” You added, hoping that she would abandon her idea.

“I will go to my husband now and tell him what I have told you. If Alessandro believes this was his father’s suggestion, he will agree to the marriage.”

No, you thought. This can’t be happening. You reprimanded yourself for ever entering these castle walls.

“My Lady, I appreciate your offer, but I really think-”

But before you could finish, she grabbed your arm tightly.

“You will marry my son.” She commanded, stepping so close that you could feel her hot breath on your face. Her eyes turned to stone. “Because if you do not, you will be out. Out in the cold and the rain. And this time, God will not save you. For I will run you out of these grounds until you are deep within the forest, and if the storms do not kill you, the wolves will.”

Goosebumps rose along your flesh. Your mind screamed at you to run, to brave the dark nights and escape. You had been through worse. But then you remembered last night. How the rain had slashed at your back and how the cold had beat your skin until it was purple. You couldn’t do it again. You would rather die.

“Okay,” you stuttered, “I… I will do what you ask of me.”

Smiling, the older woman let go of your arm.

“Thank you.” She said, her eyes returning to normal. “You will not regret this, I promise.”

You waited until she was out of sight before you let yourself collapse.

—————————————————————

The next morning you awoke before sunrise. With a grimace, you realised that overnight your closet had been filled with gowns of various colours and materials.

A gift from the Lady to her future daughter, you guessed.

Hurriedly, you slipped one over your head. You did not bother to even run a comb through your hair before you wrapped your cloak around yourself and set out.

Close to the castle was a lake. The water that filled it was crystal clear, and the trees that surrounded it were alive with birdsong. It was here, by the lake, where you now sat.

Guided by the light of the slowly rising sun, you clasped your hands together in prayer.

Throughout the centuries you had spent on this Earth, you had heard tales of more gods than you cared to keep count of, and yet, you had never decided on one to believe in.

Now, however, you closed your eyes and prayed to every god you could think of.

“Please,” you whispered, tears streaming down your face, “whoever is listening. Please, help me. I don’t know what to do. I cannot marry this man. What will happen to me when he discovers I do not age? When he sees how my skin does not wrinkle and my eyesight does not worsen?”

Below you, the surface of the lake let out a faint ripple.

“And yet, I cannot run any longer…” You choked out through your tears. “I am too weak. Please, give me a way out. Please… give me an answer.”

You stayed kneeling like that for what seemed an eternity, praying to every god who would listen. When you couldn't take it any longer, you fell to the ground and began sobbing. Your hands covered your mouth as big, fat tears rolled down your cheeks and fell to the grass below.

“It’s always a pity, seeing pretty girls like yourself so distraught.”

What?

It was a voice, from behind you. Hurriedly, you turned around.

There was no one there.

You were not stupid. You had definitely heard something. It was likely one of the servants, teasing you.

“I heard you!” You yelled out, wiping your tears with your sleeve. “Show yourself!”

From deep within the trees came a low chuckle.

You were furious. You rose to your feet and started off towards the trees, determined to find whoever had been teasing you and-

Suddenly, a man appeared in front of you. Your face slammed into his chest and you fell to the ground with a shriek.

The man chuckled again.

Infuriated, you pushed your hair back from your face and looked upwards into the eyes of your tormentor.

You gasped in surprise.

The man in front of you was tall, with ebony black hair, and the greenest eyes you had ever seen in your life.

“Who are you?” You breathed out, staring into his eyes.

“Who am I?” He smirked. “Well, I’m only the god you’ve just been praying to for the last hour.”

You inhaled sharply. He must be insane, you thought. You had seen paintings of God, and they all showed him with a white beard and a glowing halo. Not at all like the man before you.

“I don’t believe you.” You spat.

“No?” The man replied. “Well then, how do I know this? Your name is Y/N. You were born more than two centuries ago, which makes you unusually old for a mortal. And you have spent the last 150 years walking around Europe, too scared to stay in one place in case somebody discovers your little secret-”

You jumped up and covered the man’s mouth with your hand.

“Be quiet!” You hissed. “Anybody could hear you!”

The man moved to lower your arm. His touch was cold.

“There is no need to be worried.” He laughed. “We are alone.”

You eyed him suspiciously. “How did you know all that? Have you been following me?”

“No. Well, not in the way you’re thinking…”

You had heard enough. You grabbed the man’s shoulders and pushed him until he was up against a tree.

“You are going to tell me who you are and how you know everything about me, and you are going to do it now. Do you understand?” You glared into his eyes as you spoke.

Despite being significantly larger than you, the man struggled. “Well, I certainly didn’t know how strong you were…”

You shoved him further into the tree.

“Okay, okay. I’ll tell you. My name… is Loki. And I wasn’t lying before. I am a God… sort of.”

Your eyes widened at this.

“But I didn’t suddenly appear because you prayed to me.” He continued. “I’ve been watching you for a while now.”

“What do you mean?”

“Sometimes things get boring on Asgard. I like to come down here and play tricks on people. Then, one time, I saw you. And then, the next time I came down, I saw you again. I remembered what you looked like because, well… you are rather good-looking…” He stopped to smile at you.

“I am not interested in compliments from you. Continue speaking.”

“Fine. I saw you the second time and, at first, I didn’t think anything of it. But then I realised, almost fifty years had passed. And you still looked the same. So, I got curious. I began to visit Midgard- I mean, Earth- more often. I followed you.”

“You have been following me all these years?! Why? What is so interesting about watching me travel from village to village?”

“I’ve already told you.” The man sighed, exasperated. “Asgard can be awfully boring sometimes. It’s humorous to see the mundane lives of humans. And, I wanted to check you were still alive. I was curious about how long a mortal could cheat death. Now, will you please let go of me?”

Reluctantly, you loosened your grip on his shoulders.

“Why have you only decided to show yourself now?” You questioned.

The man, Loki, smirked. “Your crying was getting annoying. I couldn’t stand by and listen to it for any longer.”

You glared at him.

“Relax, I’m only jesting.” He said, smiling. “Besides, I figured you could use my help.”

“You would help me?” You asked, your voice heavy with disbelief.

“Yes. I have a proposition…”

You let out an exasperated sigh. “The last time somebody told me that, it did not end well.”

Loki chuckled. “Oh, don’t worry. I think you might agree to this one.”

You turned to look him in the eyes. “Fine. What is it?”

“I will help you escape this castle, and I will take you somewhere where you will never have to hear or worry about that awful family ever again.” He said, meeting your eyes with his. “In return, all I ask… is that you sleep with me.”

“What!?” You gasped.

“Sorry, did I misspeak? Do you call it something else here?”

“No,” you growled, “I understood you perfectly well. I was simply in disbelief that you would dare utter such a thing.”

“You are being unreasonable.” Loki declared. “I am offering you an escape, a respite from this horrible predicament you find yourself in… all I ask is for one night with you.”

The anger that filled your body was so intense you were surprised you didn’t shake with rage.

“I don’t need your help!” You yelled. The god jumped in surprise. “I have survived for centuries without you, and I certainly don’t need you now. You should go and find another woman to spy on, for if I see you again, I will kill you myself.”

“I would like to see you try.” The green-eyed man jeered.

You turned back to him, your cloak whipping behind you. “Leave!”

Loki would have continued to tease you, if it were not for the dangerous glint he saw in your eyes as you turned to face him.

“Fine,” he muttered, “if you don't want my help, that is your decision. But when thirty years pass and your husband’s family discover you haven’t aged, do not blame me when they burn you at the stake!”

And with that, he was gone.

—————————————————————

A week had passed since your strange encounter with the god. Since then, every day had seen you consumed with talk about your upcoming wedding.

There was so much that needed to be done. Fine silk for your wedding gown had to be specially ordered from Rome, animals had to be hunted and prepared for the ceremony feast, and invitations had to be sent out to noble families across the country.

But, the most pressing issue, according to Lady Amoretto, was that you still did not have a portrait.

“Every fine woman in Europe has their portrait painted and hung on their walls.” She had told you over dinner one night. “You will be no exception. I will request one of the masters to come here and do it.”

Alessandro had slung an arm over your shoulder. “What a fine idea, Mother. Of course, we must have my bride’s beautiful face on display for all to see!”

You had smiled and exclaimed that you were very excited.

Another lie.

Today was the day that you were to sit for your portrait. On the Lady’s request, a prestigious painter from Florence had arrived at the castle. He was currently downstairs, arranging his oil paints and waiting for you.

You, on the other hand, were in your room, staring at yourself in the mirror. Sabina had braided your hair and pulled it back tightly, before dressing you in the most elegant gown in your closet. Frankly, you thought the high collar and large sleeves made you look ridiculous. But there was nothing you could do about it now. You were already late.

“Y/N, darling, you look magnificent!” Lady Amoretto beamed as you entered the room.

“Thank you, my Lady.” You replied, bowing your head.

Standing behind your future mother-in-law was an old man. His beard was long and grey, and he wore a paint-stained apron.

“Y/N, dear, I would like to introduce you to Tomasso Vinci, the finest painter in all of Florence!”

The man gave you a warm smile and eagerly kissed both your cheeks.

“Mia bella!” He exclaimed, stepping back to look at you. “My Lady… when you asked me to paint the young woman’s portrait, you did not mention her beauty.”

You blushed and whispered your thanks. As Tomasso turned to sit beside his canvas, you couldn't help but feel there was something familiar about him, something that made you feel like you had met him before…

“My Lady, you must leave now.” Tomasso said, turning towards the older woman. “When I have finished painting, I will call for you.”

“Oh… of course.” Lady Amoretto stuttered, before walking towards the door. You guessed she wasn’t often ordered around.

Once she left the room, Tomasso gestured you over to the chaise lounge in front of him.

“Please, make yourself comfortable.” He insisted.

You sat down on the edge of the lounge, placing your hands in your lap. Your dress fanned out around you, displaying the elegant embroidering.

The painter’s eyes trailed over your gown before landing on your face. There, they lingered, taking in every detail of your features.

“Are you going to start?” You asked, growing uncomfortable.

“Yes, yes of course.” He reassured, picking up a brush. “Forgive me, I was getting lost in your eyes.”

You do not know how long you had been sitting there for, but you theorised it must have been several hours, at least. Your back was aching and your neck had grown stiff. Tomasso had been intensely focused on his painting, barely uttering a word to you the whole time.

“My apologies, but do you think we could… take a break?” You breathed out in desperation.

The painter’s eyes immediately went to you. “Are you uncomfortable?”

You nodded.

“Then of course, dear. You may rest. Here, why don’t you come see how the painting is coming along. I believe it may be one of my favourite ones yet.”

Eager to see the work of a master, you jumped up and wandered over. But, when you saw the artwork, the smile dropped from your face.

It was… horrible.

The canvas was covered in chaotic brushstrokes. Colours had been applied messily and blended without care, making it appear more like a child’s attempt at painting than a master’s piece.

You couldn't stop the gasp of horror from leaving your lips.

But, rather than being offended, the old man let out a chuckle.

A chuckle you had definitely heard before.

Before your eyes, Tomasso transformed.

Now, the man sitting in front of you was no longer wrinkled with age.

It was Loki.

“Did you like my Italian accent?” He said, his lips pulled in a mischievous grin.

“You vile beast!” You exclaimed, lashing out at his arm. “I told you to leave me alone!”

“Stop that,” he said, gripping your wrist, “there is no need to resort to violence.”

“You are lucky I do not strangle you.” You growled. “As if you did not offend me enough last time! And now, you have made me sit without moving for hours, all so you could paint that!”

“You don’t like it?” Loki pouted. “I thought it was rather good.”

“What are you doing here?” You demanded.

Loki grinned. “I have come to offer my help, again.”

“I already told you. I am not interested.” You declared, moving to leave. You had heard enough from him.

“Wait, wait!” The god called out as you neared the door.

You turned towards him, your arms crossed.

“I’ll help you for free. You won’t have to do anything. I promise.”

Your eyebrows furrowed. “And why should I believe you?”

“Because… I’d feel guilty if I didn’t.” Loki admitted, glancing towards the ground.

You rolled your eyes, moving to grab the door’s handle. But something made you stop. You still didn't trust him, but… you were in desperate need of help.

“Fine.” You sighed, exasperated. “The wedding is due to take place next week. How do you propose I escape by then?”

Loki looked up, a smile playing at his lips. “Do not worry. I already have a plan.”

“Care to share what it is?” You said, lifting an eyebrow.

“All you have to do is go about your life like you already are. Don’t give anybody reason to be suspicious. I will come and get you when the time is right, and then we will escape.”

You weren't sure if you liked the sound of that. But what choice did you have?

“Fine.” You sighed.

A smile lit up his face.

“There’s just one more thing.” You said.

“What?” He asked, brows furrowing.

“You still owe the Lady a painting.” You smirked.

The grin fell from the god’s face. He swore aloud as he turned around to face the mess of a canvas.

You made to leave. “And, I’m expecting my eyes to look perfect, considering you love them so much!” You yelled back at him, before slamming the door behind you.

—————————————————————

For the next week, you spent every day waiting for Loki to come for you. You were suspicious of every stranger you saw, half expecting them to be the god in disguise. And yet, every night, you returned back to your bed disappointed.

Before you knew it, your wedding day had arrived.

You were awoken that morning by the smell of roasting meat. Evidently, the preparation for tonight’s feast had already begun.

“Y/N!” Sabina’s high-pitched voice called, as she ran into your room.

You rubbed at your eyes and groggily mumbled a greeting.

“Today is the day!” The maid exclaimed, throwing open your curtains. “Hurry, we have no time to waste. There is so much to do!”

You were still half asleep as she dragged you out of bed.

As you later found out, ‘we have so much to do’ really meant ‘we must transform you into an entirely different woman by this afternoon.”

After Sabina had woken you up, a trio of handmaidens had poured through your doors.

Instantly, your bath was filled and heated. Before you knew it, you were being stripped of your nightgown and shoved into the warm water. Two of the servants scrubbed at your skin whilst another massaged scented oils into your damp hair.

Once you had been cleaned and dried, every inch of your body was waxed. Whilst Sabina combed your knotty tresses, the other handmaidens polished your nails and plucked at your eyebrows. Floral scented perfume was applied to various areas of your skin.

By the time your dress arrived, you were already exhausted.

The gown was so heavy, it took all four of the girls to lift it over your head. Once it was fitted, they set to work on your hair. Your long locks were braided tightly and pinned back, before being decorated with aubrieta buds and daisies. Finally, your cheeks were powdered and your lips painted with vermillion.

When, at last, you were able to look in the mirror, you did not recognise yourself.

Your gown was elaborate. Made of the finest red silk and embroidered with gold thread, with lace sleeves that draped towards the floor.

The tight style of your hair made your facial features more clearly stand out. You took in your bright eyes, the curve of your lashes, the angle of your cheekbones.

You blinked in disbelief. You had always been told you were pretty, but it wasn’t until now that you had ever really believed it.

“Come,” Sabina said, gently taking your hand, “the ceremony is about to begin.”

—————————————————————

Your heart had never beat so fast in your life.

You stood before a set of large, engraved wooden doors. Once they were opened, you would be met by rows and rows of people. Noblemen and women from around Italy, families from the surrounding villages, even the castle’s servants. Hundreds of people were in attendance, all waiting to see Alessandro Amoretto’s bride, the mysterious girl who claimed to have no family, no home. They would all be judging you, you knew, as soon as you stepped through those doors.

Your eyes began to shine with tears.

You were never supposed to be standing here. You were supposed to be somewhere far, far away by now.

You mentally cursed Loki. He said he would help you escape. He had promised you. The bastard.

But then, you directed your anger towards yourself. How could you be so foolish? You weren't friends with the man, you hardly even knew him. Of course he wasn’t going to help you. He was probably somewhere now, laughing with his friends and telling them about the human girl he had tricked.

Suddenly, music began playing.

You knew what that meant. Quickly, you wiped away your tears.

The doors opened.

As you made your way down the aisle, every head in the hall turned to look at you. You heard hushed whispers, muffled gasps of surprise.

Just look ahead. Focus.

Alessandro stood at the front of the room, staring at you intently. He wore a red tunic and knee-length boots, and his shoulder-length hair was tied at the nape of his neck. His family crest, embroidered in gold, covered his chest.

When you stepped up and took your place across from him, he winked at you.

You gave a weak smile before looking at the ground.

Standing in between the both of you was a priest, bald-headed and wearing a white robe. As he rose his arms to address the audience, the gold sashes slung across his shoulders billowed.

You did not pay attention to the words he spoke. Instead, you stared at your feet, willing away the tears that burned at your eyes.

Eventually, the priest’s eyes turned to you. “Do you, Lady Y/N, accept this man as your husband?”

“Yes,” you whispered, “I do.”

“And do you, Alessandro of the house Amoretto, take this woman as your wife?”

Alessandro smiled, his blue eyes crinkling. “Yes,” he beamed, “I do.”

“Well then,” the priest muttered, “that makes what I am about to do rather unfortunate.”

Your eyes lifted towards the priest in astonishment. Could it be?

“What do you mean by that?” Alessandro demanded.

“I am afraid that I cannot allow this young maiden to marry you.” The priest declared, his voice deepening.

At that, the audience let out a collective gasp of shock.

The priest’s plump figure began to transform before your eyes.

You couldn't believe it. A grin broke out across your face.

Suddenly, Alessandro grabbed you. The sharp sound of a weapon being drawn echoed around the room, and you felt a blade being pressed against your throat.

“Unhand her.” Loki demanded, glaring daggers at your groom. “Now.”

“My wife will not be going anywhere with a demon like you.” Alessandro spat. “I would rather kill her myself.”

“A demon?” Loki cried, incredulous. “You are a fool, aren't you?”

“Leave, you wicked creature!” Lord Amoretto’s voice yelled from the crowd. “Or I will have my hounds set on you!”

The god simply rolled his eyes.

Angered, Alessandro dug the edge of the blade further into your throat. You choked out in desperation.

“I told you to unhand her.” Loki growled, snapping his fingers. Suddenly, Alessandro was sent flying backwards. His sword flew from your throat and hit the floor with a clang.

“You bastard!” You choked out towards the man, rubbing at your now indented throat.

The crowd was yelling now. Some began to run towards you, anger in their eyes.

“You do still want to leave, don't you?” Loki said, turning towards you.

“Yes!” You cried. “Now, if you don’t mind.”

“Just checking.” Loki grinned, grabbing your hand with his.

Then, before you knew it, you had both disappeared.

You opened your eyes.

Your surroundings were mostly dark, save for a few flickering candles.

You had no idea where you were.

Two arms were wrapped tightly around your waist. Loki’s.

You went to step away, but before you knew it, your world was spinning and you were on the ground.

“Don’t worry,” Loki said, lifting you to your feet, “it is normal to get dizzy after teleporting.”

Teleporting?

“Where are we?” You asked, brushing off your dress.

“Paris.”

“Paris?!”

“Well, technically, a village just outside Paris.” Loki clarified.

“Would you mind explaining to me what just happened?” You pleaded. “Everything is… very confusing.”

The god smirked. Something he did an awful lot, you realised.

“I just saved you. Like you wanted. I teleported us, using magic. Right now, we are standing in an abandoned cottage in France.”

You eyed the man suspiciously. “If you could just teleport me anywhere, at any time, why did you have to wait until the ceremony to do it?”

“Two reasons,” Loki answered with a grin, “first of all, I like to make a scene. It’s more fun that way. And second, I wanted to see you all dressed up. It would have been a shame to let such a lovely gown go to waste.”

“Has anybody ever told you how insufferable you are?” You huffed.

“Oh, relax,” the raven-haired man sighed, “I saved you before your wedding night, didn’t I? Be glad you weren't made to consummate your marriage.”

You couldn't help but blush.

Loki turned to you, a smile playing at his lips. You noticed how green his eyes looked in the candlelight.

“Do you think you might have… changed your mind?” He asked.

You tilted your head in confusion. “About what?”

“About my earlier proposition.”

“No!” You answered, whacking his arm.

“Sorry.” He mumbled, rubbing the spot where you had hit him. “I just thought you might be feeling generous…”

You rolled your eyes in his direction.

For a short while, you both sat in silence.

Eventually, Loki spoke. “I guess I better be going, then.”

“Oh.” You exclaimed. “To where?”

“Asgard. My family is probably wondering where I have been.”

“Where is this Asgard you speak of? I have never heard of it.” You queried, intrigued.

He waved a hand. “That is a rather long story.”

Silently, you wished he would take the time to tell you. You thought about the long, lonely nights and days that awaited you. It would be nice, to sit here and listen to his voice for a while.

But, to your dismay, he got up to leave.

“Will I ever see you again?” You asked.

“Maybe. It depends on whether I get bored again or not.”

You couldn't have that be the last thing he said to you.

“Loki, wait.” You whispered.

He turned to you expectedly. “Have you reconsidered my offer?”

“No.”

“Oh.” He said, the excited glint in his eyes fading.

To his surprise, you pulled him into a hug.

“I just wanted to say, thank you.” You breathed. “You really did save me back there. Even though you hardly know me.”

Hesitantly, he wrapped his arms around you. “It’s alright, really. It was actually kind of-”

“It was the nicest thing anybody has ever done for me.” You choked. Tears fell down your cheeks.

Loki’s mouth dropped. No one had ever cried about something he’d done before. Well, not happy tears, anyway. He was unsure of what to do.

“It’s okay.” He whispered, hugging you tight. “You’re safe now.”

After a minute, you let go.

“You have to leave now, I suppose.” You sniffled, straightening up.

“Right…”

You glanced at the floor, wiping at your tears with your sleeve.

“Y/N… you will see me again. I promise.”

“When? Next century?” You asked.

Loki laughed. “If you’re still alive by then.”

You let out a small smile. “Oh, I will be. Believe me.”

Softly, Loki lifted your chin up. “I don’t doubt it.” He whispered.

And then, with one final look into your eyes, the god snapped.

Just like that, he was gone.

#loki #loki odinson #loki of asgard #loki x reader #loki odinson x reader #loki x you #loki x y/n #loki imagine #loki fanfic #loki fluff #loki fanfiction #loki fandom #marvel fluff #marvel fanfiction #marvel #endgame fanfic #tom hiddleston

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sign-from-god-complex · 5 years

Text

take care

Summary: Roman is bad at self-care, especially when he's struggling with video ideas, and so Logan takes it into his own hands to make sure he’s properly looked after. And if maybe he went a bit overboard? Well, Roman deserved it.

Pairing: Logince

Warnings: Bad self-care (not eating or showering for an extended period of time) and a tiny bit of negative self-talk.

A/N: Every so often my brain will just want me to write the fluffiest, softest, most sappy thing it can think of. The last piece of writing produced from that was “The Purpose of Marriage, To Know That You Are Loved” and the next one is this, so here you go. Maybe it’s out of character, but maybe sappy, fluffy, dumbass logince is underrated and we should have more of these flustered idiots.

And hey! I finally wrote some logince!!! Took me long enough honestly.

Tag list <333: @mutechild @super-magical-wizard

AO3 Link

Roman couldn't think of a single creative idea.

Things had been pretty stressful for everyone recently, really. Thomas had done quite a bit of socialising over the last couple weeks, meeting up with old friends and trying to spend time with some newer ones, and it was reaching the point where even Roman was getting exhausted.

However, the unfortunate truth was that videos needed to be made no matter how busy Thomas's schedule became. Roman couldn't afford time off to relax, not when there was still so much to do before they were able to upload the next video. The fans were getting impatient and he absolutely needed to do right by them, but no matter how hard he tried, he simply couldn't come up with anything good!

Roman had casually pitched two or three ideas to the other sides over the course of the week, and every single one had been shot down for one reason or another. It was either too expensive, or there wasn't enough material, or it was too similar to something that they'd already done, etc. etc.

And those were just the ideas Roman had suggested; Roman had been brainstorming on and off for two weeks. Nothing he thought of was good enough and the increasing pressure as he became more and more aware of his time running out was not helping the situation in the slightest.

He scrunched up the notebook page he'd been writing on and flung it at all the wall, watching as it bounced for a moment before landing with the other scraps of paper he'd launched in that direction. Could they make a video related to throwing balls of paper around? No, Thomas was terrible at throwing things with any sense of accuracy, and anyway, that was hardly an idea. You can't make a video out of that.

Roman let his head fall against the desk—hard enough that he felt it, but not hard enough that he was giving himself permanent brain damage (like he needed any more obstacles in the way of a good idea). He let out a groan, hands coming up to tug at his hair. This was ridiculous! He was creativity! He should be able to do better!

No, he was sure he was able to do better. He just had to keep trying.

There was the distant sound of the door opening behind him as Roman began writing down more words in the hopes of sparking something. A video to do with... fruit? Something similar to the "No Sugar" Awkward Adventures video, but with eating fruit? No, that was a terrible idea. What about another Disney mashup? Shit, no, they just did one of those. They couldn’t-

"Roman...?"

Roman turned around at the sound of his name, aware that he likely looked absolutely atrocious. He hadn't slept all night—too busy brainstorming—and he couldn't remember the last time he'd taken a shower, which was honestly disgusting if he thought too long about it.

In the door stood his boyfriend, cautiously adjusting his glasses as he took in the scene before him. Roman, feeling self-conscious about the state of his room and the state of his attire, suddenly wished he'd had the forethought to lock his door. Not only would it have prevented this exact scenario, but it also would have resulted in less potential distractions. Ugh, what an idiot he was! It seemed he couldn't get anything right recently.

Logan's brow was furrowed and Roman wanted to go over there and kiss his forehead to smooth it out, prompting that fond look Roman so adored. He didn't get up though, too aware of the fact that it had been over a day since he'd eaten and if he passed out now Logan would never let him hear the end of it.

"Are you quite alright?" Logan asked, eyes bouncing around the room for a moment before landing on Roman.

Roman gave a facsimile of a confident smile. "I'm perfectly fine, my love! Just thinking through some new ideas, you know how it is."

As Logan crossed his arms, quirking a single unamused eyebrow at him, Roman knew that he was caught. Well, it’d been a good run. So much for doing YouTube because Logan was going to force him to rest and Roman was never going to have another good idea ever again. Thomas was going to lose every single one of his subscribers and they were all going to die because Roman couldn't come up with one creative idea.

"I know that look," Logan said, making his way over to Roman's desk, "You're catastrophising again. Stop that. You're not Virgil; you do not need to act as if the world is going to end with every minor inconvenience."

Roman threw his hands into the air and Logan ducked back to avoid being inadvertently punched in the face. "This is not some 'minor inconvenience', Logan! This is my entire purpose! If I can't bring inspiration to Thomas then what in the world am I good for?!"

Logan gathered up Roman's hands into his and brought them to his chest. Then, slowly, he leaned down and pressed his mouth to Roman's.

It was delicate and affectionate and Roman felt his entire body collapse, hands tugging away from Logan's grip to wrap behind his neck. After a moment, Logan pulled away. He hovered his face in front of Roman's and Roman watched as he scrunched up his nose.

"You really need to brush your teeth."

In a different scenario, Roman might have thought that Logan looked adorable when he pulled that face, but as it was, he was too busy being offended. To be fair, Logan was definitely right—brushing his teeth was another one of those things that’d been thrown to the wayside during his brainstorming—but he still shouldn't say it.

Logan straightened up and stared at Roman with a contemplative look.

"Come," he said, grabbing Roman's arm and dragging him in the direction of the bathroom, "We're going to get you cleaned up and then you're going to get some rest, and tomorrow I will help you with your next brainstorming session."

Roman raised his eyebrows. He'd been expecting the first part of course, but Logan virtually never helped with brainstorming. He said he found it too creative and unstructured for his liking and instead preferred to come in in the planning stages since that was when he was the most helpful. Logan had probably realised just how badly things were going for him—and his boyfriend wasn’t the most perceptive person, so Roman must really look terrible.

As they entered the bathroom, Roman realised for the first time just how exhausted he truly was. He let himself be positioned on the closed toilet lid as Logan began running a bath, meticulously running his hands through the water every so often to check that the temperature was appropriate.

Roman always favoured extremely hot baths and showers—as opposed to Logan, who mostly took showers that almost bordered on freezing—so when Logan winced as he put his hand into the water, Roman knew he'd found the right temperature.

After prompting him to brush his teeth, Logan went to gently remove Roman’s top. Roman was glad for the first time that he wasn’t wearing his usual princely attire; that shirt was a bitch to get on and off. He stood shakily as Logan went to tug down his sweatpants and as Logan pulled his underwear off, Roman looked down and gave him a wink.

Logan rolled his eyes. “You are extraordinarily fatigued and overworked, Roman. As if either of us could be thinking about sex at a time like this.”

“You underestimate me, darling,” Roman smirked—or at least he attempted to, but his face wasn’t doing any of the things he wanted at the moment.

Logan just gave a breathy laugh before helping Roman into the bath, kneeling at his side as he settled himself.

Roman sighed deeply and closed his eyes, the warmth of the bath seeping into his bones and establishing a home under his skin. He could hear Logan running something through the water beside him and he was startled slightly by the feeling of water running over his hair.

He opened his eyes to see Logan filling up a mug—Roman’s, with cartoon birds on it—with the bath water, before pouring it carefully over the back of Roman’s head. Logan pushed his hand through Roman’s wet hair before cupping his cheek and pressing a kiss to his forehead.

Roman only had a moment to grumble that Logan was stealing his move before Logan whispered, “Shut your eyes, love. Let me worry about everything for now, alright?”

Logan didn’t use pet names very often, so Roman felt his blush was entirely justified. He did as Logan asked, however. It was hard to give up control—especially when he was as stressed as he was—but if there was one person Roman trusted to take care of him, it was Logan.

The bath passed in a haze of warmth and gentle fingers running over his skin. Occasionally Logan would murmur something under his breath, but Roman was too lost in complete exhaustion to really process any of it.

Once the bath had ended, Logan wrapped him in a big fluffy towel and tried to pat him dry, Roman lazily moving his limbs in a weary attempt to help out. He shivered slightly from exposure to the cold air and silently wished Logan would hold him until he was warm again.

“Here,” Logan said, presenting Roman with a set of pyjamas—and when had he had the time to get those?—”Put these on. I will be back momentarily.”

Roman watched Logan slip out the door before holding up the pyjamas to take a closer look.

Logan had grabbed his favourite pair of pyjama pants, decided upon as not only were they incredibly soft, but they matched his aesthetic perfectly—red and covered in cartoons of little gold crowns. Roman couldn’t exactly remember who’d given them to him. However, he had a vague memory of preteen Roman receiving them as a Christmas gift, followed by him immediately putting them on and not changing out of them for a week.

In place of the matching pyjama shirt, however, Logan had given him a hoodie. Upon closer inspection, it was revealed to be one of Logan’s two hoodies—the blue one Roman got paint splatters on. He chuckled lightly. His boyfriend was a dork. To his credit though, Roman was known to “borrow” items of clothing from Logan on occasion, and this hoodie was very cozy. Plus it smelled like Logan—like pine and paper and clean and safe and home (and probably a little bit like paint).

By the time Roman had thrown the clothes on, Logan had returned. He grabbed Roman’s hand, trying to carefully maneuver them across the bathroom floor to avoid stepping in any puddles and Roman could feel his face heating up again. It was silly to feel as flustered as he was over something that small, but his boyfriend was treating him so gently and he just couldn’t help it.

As they reentered Roman’s bedroom his blush only intensified.

The entire room felt transformed.

His bed had been made, adorned with layers of fluffy blankets (with some around the headboard so he could wrap them around his shoulders if needed) and his laptop laying in the centre. The piles of scrunched up paper littered around his desk had been removed and instead, his desk was clean with his notebooks stacked into a neat pile. And on his bedside table sat two mugs and a plate of toast, with what Roman would assume was Crofter’s spread on top.

But the most wondrous thing was that the lights were dimmed, any brightness he could see instead emanating from fairy lights that had been strung up around almost every surface. Roman also spotted a few candles and he could smell the faint scent of rose filling the room.

It was soft and awe-inspiring and Roman was absolutely astounded.

“You… did all this for me?”

Roman ripped his eyes away from the scene in front of him to face his boyfriend. Logan was watching him with an attentive look, eyes flitting up and down Roman’s face, seemingly searching for something. He must have found it because he cut his gaze away, ducking his head slightly.

“I had some help from Patton and Virgil, but I thought a more pleasing and relaxing environment would be conducive to helping you “unwind,” so to speak,” Logan said, failing to hide his blush in the wake of the adoring look Roman was sure he was giving him, “I also felt it imperative to bring you something to eat, as the likelihood that you were keeping up the recommended- mmph!”

Roman crashed his lips into Logan’s, cutting off whatever speech he had planned about Roman’s terrible eating habits. His chest was warm as he wrapped his arms around Logan’s waist, pulling them closer together and he smiled a little into the kiss.

Logan might seem at first glance like he doesn’t show any kind of affection. His endearments were sparing and though he may put up with Roman’s incessant need for physical contact, he rarely initiated anything himself. However, to claim that his boyfriend was uncaring would be—to borrow a term from Logan—an absolute falsehood.

Logan showed his affection in much more subtle ways that Roman did, and since the beginning of their relationship, Roman had learnt to look for them.

Logan liked to be helpful. If there was something you had to do but didn’t necessarily want to, Logan would almost always be willing to assist you. On occasion, he would even do the entire task for you, citing that “it wasn’t a big deal” and “it was really more for my sake than yours” in order to save face. Roman saw through that though, exactly the same way Logan saw through him.

On top of being helpful, Logan also just appreciated spending time with the people he cared about. He didn’t need to be doing anything in particular, more often than not Logan was simply reading, but his passive company almost meant more than his active company.

More than once Logan had arrived in Roman’s room, apropos of nothing, and sat down on Roman’s bed to continue his Agatha Christie novel. This usually occurred when Roman was working, so Roman would simply resume his work, distantly aware of Logan’s presence behind him as he did so.

Not a single word would be spoken between them until Patton called them down for dinner, but regardless, Roman would feel closer to Logan somehow. He knows how important time alone is for Logan. His boyfriend regularly gave up his personal private time to be around him instead and it made Roman almost giddy to think about what that really meant.

Looking at this evening through that filter, Logan’s actions were a blatant declaration of love. And so he’d responded the most Roman way he knew how.

He drew away, watching as Logan’s eyes fluttered open, the shock on his face made even more evident by the blush covering his cheeks. Roman wanted to kiss him again almost immediately, but he managed to refrain.

“It’s perfect. Thank you, Logan.”

Roman whispered the words into the small space between them and watched as Logan’s face went through about 5 different iterations of pleased and shocked, before settling on poorly faked indifference. Roman tried his best not to laugh; it really would have ruined the moment.

Logan cleared his throat. “Yes, well… you’re welcome, of course.”

Roman pulled his boyfriend over to the bed, instantly getting comfy under the blankets and ordering Logan to do the same—more because Roman wanted to use him as a pillow than anything else. In return, Logan handed Roman the toast, insisting that he eat. As he began to do so, despite his protests that he’d rather not get crumbs on his bed, Logan pressed play on the Disney movie he’d set up on Roman’s laptop.

Crofters, cuddles and Disney. God, his boyfriend knew him too well.

By the time the movie had finished, the toast was long since eaten, the hot chocolate Patton had supplied had been drunk and Roman was on the verge of falling asleep. His head was resting on Logan’s chest, Logan tracing patterns delicately over all the skin he could reach and Roman could feel himself tearing up slightly from all the emotions he held.

He let his eyes fall shut. “I love you.”

Roman faintly recognised that it was the first time either of them had said it from a romantic standpoint, but sincerely it didn’t matter because it was so overwhelmingly true that Roman just couldn’t keep it to himself anymore.

Roman could feel Logan stiffen underneath him before relaxing with an exhale.

“I love you too.”

And he’s sure that in the morning Logan will have some kind of lecture prepared about not being able to come up with creative ideas if you don’t take care of yourself first and foremost, but Roman wasn’t thinking about that. That was for tomorrow’s Roman to worry about.

No, for now, Roman simply let his awareness of his boyfriend’s breathing—the sound of his heartbeat and the steady rise and fall of his chest—lull him into a peaceful, dream-filled sleep.

#there are like a billion things I don't like about this fic but hopefully I'm just being nitpicky #sanders sides #sanders sides fic #sanders side fic #logince #romantic logince #logan sanders #roman sanders #lo can write

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pcttrailsidereader · 5 years

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Independence Day

This is a re-posting of a wonderful story from 2013. What more appropriate story could there be for July 4th!

There are several aspects of Jo’s story that I really like. First, it captures in words a familiar obstacle that virtually all backpackers confront — fear. I will be the first to admit that my overactive imagination is particularly energized when I am hiking alone. Second, I love the special relationship that Jo has with her service dog, “Mr. C”. It brings to mind other such connections between canine and outdoorsperson, most notably John Muir and Stickeen.

By Josephine Pegrum Hazelett

You gain strength, courage, and confidence by every experience in which you really stop to look fear in the face. You must do the thing which you think you cannot do.

— Eleanor Roosevelt

Sometimes life takes an unexpected turn that forces you to confront yourself. You cannot predict the outcome; you just have to grab the experience and hope for the best. After hiking most of the Pacific Crest Trail with my husband, I had an opportunity to hike the John Muir Trail for a couple of weeks alone with my giant Border Collie service dog, Buffalo Bill Cody, or “Mr. C” for short. I didn’t anticipate an experience that would challenge to the core of who I am.

We were five days in and had slipped into a peaceful routine: up before sunrise, walk most of the day and asleep again before darkness fell. On this particular day, we would hike Muir Pass, at almost 12,000 feet; it is one of the high and scenic places of the southern section of the Sierra Nevada. The night before I had camped nine miles south of the pass in a lush valley and we were ready for another uneventful and beautiful day.

Mr. C and I arose in the morning twilight and were on the trail as the first rays of sun straggled through the trees to warm our day. We made our way up the canyon that climbed at a gentle pace for the first few miles. At Big Pete Meadow I saw two young men breaking camp: we waived acknowledgement of our mutual presence and I walked on knowing that with their youthful stride, they would soon pass me. As predicted, they overtook me about a half hour later and I would not see them again until I reached Wanda Lake on the other side of Muir Pass. I was completely alone. Looking back, I see what a privilege it was to have the entire hike up the Goddard Divide and down the other side all to myself—me and my dog in this incredibly wonderful part of the Sierra Nevada.

There were wildflowers of all kinds everywhere. The trail was alive with the short–lived Sierra Spring. It would have been hot hiking, but there was a thin cloud layer that kept the air cool and the hiking comfortable.

I had been warned that there was still snow on the south side of Muir Pass but having hiked the higher and more formidable Forester Pass four days earlier, I was not too concerned. On my initial approach to Helen Lake I saw more snow and the sparse trees began to disappear. I knew that the route had been well-traveled by hikers and I thought I would have plenty of footsteps to follow in, not to mention the fresh ones made by the two young men who had gone ahead of me this very morning. Unfortunately, I made a couple of wrong turns at Helen Lake staying to its west side rather than crossing to the East where the trail was. Consequently, I found myself walking steeply up the snow-covered face of the mountain. Rather abruptly, the footsteps disappeared and I felt my first tremor of doubt. Backtracking to the lake, I found the main route and reassured, headed on.

I began to think about the fact that I was completely alone and that a wrong turn out here would rapidly take me off the traveled route—the potential for becoming really lost was frightening.

I crossed the stream above the lake several times; the last crossing was at the outlet from the snowmelt lake above Helen Lake. This was a bit daunting because the water was cascading down the mountain in a 90 degree plunge and the rocks on which I had to cross were far apart and pointed requiring me to leap from rock to jagged rock. I rued the loss of my lightweight hiking poles that had broken early in the hike; they would have assisted my balance. I knew that I must keep going—there was only one way to get to the other side and that was to cross the torrent. Mr C, foot sure, had no qualms and oblivious to my concerns, leaped on the rocks across the chasm with all the grace and balance of an animal in the wild. My turn. Following in his steps, I leaped, one foot in front of the other finding each rock surprisingly firm under my feet. Afraid to acknowledge the fear that was creeping up on me, my mind seemed to float above the scene, watching with detachment—a kind of mental anesthetic. When I reached the other side I felt a surge of relief. Mr. C sensing the intensity of my emotion cocked his head and gave me a look like, “What was that about?”

My euphoria over this accomplishment did not last long. On the other side of the outlet, we traipsed through more snow for about half a mile until we came to a high and rocky valley filled with snow on all sides and a rush of snow melt running through a wide open area of scree. I could see no trail. Since the mountains rose in all directions but the one I had come from, I knew I would have to climb one of those vertical, snow-covered mountains, but I couldn’t see a route. If I chose the wrong direction, I would be truly lost.

To the north, the direction I thought I should go, there was a wide band of running water and I didn’t know how deep it was. I thought I saw a trail duck or cairn on the other side but it might easily have been a real bird. To avoid the water I headed to the Northwest, where I saw footsteps on the snowy mountainside but as I approached, they melted into the sun cups they were. Clearly, my mind was manufacturing what I wanted to see. I felt my options slipping away as fast as I could summon them up, and now, I felt the cold edge of panic. Logically, I told myself there was nothing to fear, but knowing this in your head does not stop your breath from escaping in short narrow puffs as your heart goes wild and your imagination takes off into the unreal scenarios of what could happen. The moment stretched infinitely and unknowably before me as I contemplated the possibility of not finding the trail. I forced myself to breathe, pushed the fear deep down and reminded myself that it would be embarrassing to die up here alone—I did not want to be a story on page 10 of the local paper, “Woman dies alone, lost on Mountain.” I’d never live it down—then, with an inward smile, I thought, I’d be dead so I wouldn’t have to! With that sobering thought, I focused on finding my way out of the bowl.

The Northwest route rejected, I returned to the river of water rushing over the rocks, in places deep and uncertain, but the panic had passed and I would go on. I found the rock that looked like a duck (100 feet or so away, across the water) and decided that it was worth checking out. The water wasn’t as challenging to cross as I thought it would be and sure enough on the other side, the duck turned out to be a real duck pointing out the trail right beside it. I started up the mountain, and again the trail disappeared into the snow. I had hoped to reach Muir Hut to have lunch but I had eaten nothing since breakfast and it was 1:30 p.m. Even though I didn’t feel hungry I knew I must eat. I stopped on the steep face of the mountain and in every direction the snow lay around me. I opened up an energy bar for myself and took out some Power Bones for Mr. C. At the time, I was so focused on making it to the pass in one piece that I hadn’t spent much time thinking about Mr. Cody; however he was having a wonderful time. He loves the snow and would spend all his time rolling in it if I allowed him to. Now, he used his paws to create a nest and rest. Mr. C and I sat there in the snow munching our food quite alone and I found myself talking to him as though he would answer me. Not in words, perhaps, but there was a special connection between us; he is very intuitive and his obvious lack of concern reassured me.

After lunch, I continued up the vertical side of the mountain (I’m sure there were switch-backs beneath the snow somewhere) post-holing as I went. Again I rued the loss of the lightweight trekking poles, they would have been helpful here. I trudged on, expecting to have a long way to go when suddenly I was aware of the curve of a dome appearing above the crest of my mountain, and with a few steps more, I knew that the dome was the top of the Muir Hut! I was close to the summit. A burst of energy took me to the top and looking over into the valley below I was overcome with joy to be there. I felt immensely happy to be alive and all the fear I’d felt washed out of me in an instant as I burst uncontrollably into tears. Here I was on top of the world in one of the most beautiful places on earth—how could anything be better than this—ever?

Cody on the other hand took one look at Muir Hut and headed straight for it! It looked like “home” to him—a place to rest, and even better, there might be food! The two of us stayed there at the top of the pass quite alone, looking out at the snow-covered mountains and the partly frozen lakes below. Time stopped and I could have stayed forever, alone with my loyal friend in our own piece of heaven. I reflected how fortunate I was to have the moment to myself. The sky, which had been gray, brightened, and as I stood there the last of the clouds disintegrated and I found myself bathed in warm sunlight—a real gift.

It was July 4 and a year since I had become an American citizen! I don’t know why this popped into my head at this moment. I think I was musing about how most people would be spending the day—at parades and picnics, with family and friends. I thought about the first Europeans who would have come to this place even a hundred or so years ago, how remote and wild it would have been then. I thought about the Indians who lived here for a millennium before the Europeans and what life must have been like for them. I thought about how I was on my own journey in space and mind and in that moment, I felt I was the luckiest person in the world. This was a special place and time and I wanted to hold on to it forever.

I had a long way to go before I would descend below the snowline on the north side of the pass. Going forward into the snowfields was a lot less intimidating since descending, I could see great distances ahead. For the first time, I felt that Cody and I would finish this hike, and that I could handle whatever I needed to in the remaining week, one mountain at a time.

Miles later, when we came to rest for the night by Evolution Creek, I covered Mr. Cody with my rainwear to give him some relief from the mosquitoes. I thought about my husband Kerry celebrating the day with friends and how I wished he could share this moment with me. I missed him but I was very happy to be here alone—I had been forced to face my fears head on and I had learned that when you are truly afraid—what is revealed is the very essence of who you are, there is no way to hide from your real self or to avoid that moment of reckoning. You will know the metal you are made of. Today I had faced myself, and I found that I had more internal resources than I realized. It was a powerful feeling.

I drifted toward sleep and that is how one of the most challenging days of my life ended, quietly as it began. I was calm and peaceful now and ready for a new day on the trail.

#Muir Pass #Lake Helen #Big Pete Meadow #Evolution Lake

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nebris · 6 years

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Halfway to boiling: the city at 50C

It is the temperature at which human cells start to cook, animals suffer and air conditioners overload power grids. Once an urban anomaly, 50C is fast becoming reality

Imagine a city at 50C (122F). The pavements are empty, the parks quiet, entire neighbourhoods appear uninhabited. Nobody with a choice ventures outside during daylight hours. Only at night do the denizens emerge, HG Wells-style, into the streets – though, in temperatures that high, even darkness no longer provides relief. Uncooled air is treated like effluent: to be flushed as quickly as possible.

School playgrounds are silent as pupils shelter inside. In the hottest hours of the day, working outdoors is banned. The only people in sight are those who do not have access to air conditioning, who have no escape from the blanket of heat: the poor, the homeless, undocumented labourers. Society is divided into the cool haves and the hot have-nots.

Those without the option of sheltering indoors can rely only on shade, or perhaps a water-soaked sheet hung in front of a fan. Construction workers, motor-rickshaw drivers and street hawkers cover up head to toe to stay cool. The wealthy, meanwhile, go from one climate-conditioned environment to another: homes, cars, offices, gymnasiums, malls.

Asphalt heats up 10-20C higher than the air. You really could fry an egg on the pavement. A dog’s paws would blister on a short walk, so pets are kept behind closed doors. There are fewer animals overall; many species of mammals and birds have migrated to cooler environments, perhaps at a higher altitude – or perished. Reptiles, unable to regulate their body temperatures or dramatically expand their range, are worst placed to adapt. Even insects suffer.

Maybe in the beginning, when it was just a hot spell, there was a boom in spending as delighted consumers snapped up sunglasses, bathing suits, BBQs, garden furniture and beer. But the novelty quickly faded when relentless sunshine became the norm. Consumers became more selective. Power grids are overloaded by cooling units. The heat is now a problem.

The temperature is recalibrating behaviour. Appetites tend to fade as the body avoids the thermal effect of food and tempers are quicker to flare – along, perhaps, with crime and social unrest. But eventually lethargy sets in as the body shuts down and any prolonged period spent outdoors becomes dangerous.

Hospitals see a surge in admissions for heat stress, respiratory problems and other illnesses exacerbated by high temperatures. Some set up specialist wards. The elderly, the obese and the sick are most at risk. Deaths rise.

At 50C – halfway to water’s boiling point and more than 10C above a healthy body temperature – heat becomes toxic. Human cells start to cook, blood thickens, muscles lock around the lungs and the brain is choked of oxygen. In dry conditions, sweat – the body’s in-built cooling system – can lessen the impact. But this protection weakens if there is already moisture in the air.

A so-called “wet-bulb temperature” (which factors in humidity) of just 35C can be fatal after a few hours to even the fittest person, and scientists warn climate change will make such conditions increasingly common in India, Pakistan, south-east Asia and parts of China. Even under the most optimistic predictions for emissions reductions, experts say almost half the world’s population will be exposed to potentially deadly heat for 20 days a year by 2100.

Not long ago, 50C was considered an anomaly, but it is increasingly widespread. Earlier this year, the 1.1 million residents of Nawabshah, Pakistan, endured the hottest April ever recorded on Earth, as temperatures hit 50.2C. In neighbouring India two years earlier, the town of Phalodi sweltered in 51C – the country’s hottest ever day.

Dev Niyogi, professor at Purdue University, Indiana, and chair of the Urban Environment department at the American Meteorological Society, witnessed how cities were affected by extreme heat on a research trip to New Delhi and Pune during that 2015 heatwave in India, which killed more than 2,000 people.

“You could see the physical change. Road surfaces started to melt, neighbourhoods went quiet because people didn’t go out and water vapour rose off the ground like a desert mirage,” he recalls.

“We must hope that we don’t see 50C. That would be uncharted territory. Infrastructure would be crippled and ecosystem services would start to break down, with long-term consequences.”

Several cities in the Gulf are getting increasingly accustomed to such heat. Basra – population 2.1 million – registered 53.9C two years ago. Kuwait City and Doha have experienced 50C or more in the past decade. At Quriyat, on the coast of Oman, overnight temperatures earlier this summer remained above 42.6C, which is believed to be the highest “low” temperature ever recorded in the world.

At Mecca, the two million hajj pilgrims who visit each year need ever more sophisticated support to beat the heat. On current trends, it is only a matter of time before temperatures exceed the record 51.3C reached in 2012. Last year, traditionalists were irked by plans to install what are reportedly the world’s biggest retractable umbrellas to provide shade on the courtyards and roof of the Great Mosque. Air conditioners weighing 25 tonnes have been brought in to ventilate four of the biggest tents. Thousands of fans already cool the marble floors and carpets, while police on horseback spray the crowds with water.

Football supporters probably cannot expect such treatment at the Qatar World Cup in 2022, and many may add to the risks of hyperthermia and dehydration by taking off their shirts and drinking alcohol. Fifa is so concerned about conditions that it has moved the final from summer to a week before Christmas. Heat is also why Japanese politicians are now debating whether to introduce daylight saving time for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics so that marathon and racewalk athletes can start at what is currently 5am and avoid mid-afternoon temperatures that recently started to pass 40C with humidity of more than 80%.

At the Australian open in Melbourne this year – when ambient temperatures reached 40C – players were staggering around like “punch-drunk boxers” due to heatstroke. Even walking outside can feel oppressive at higher temperatures. “The blast of furnace-like heat ... literally feels life-threatening and apocalyptic,” says Nigel Tapper, professor of environmental science at Melbourne’s Monash University, of the 48C recorded in parts of the city. “You cannot move outside for more than a few minutes.”

The feeling of foreboding is amplified by the increased threat of bush and forest fires, he adds. “You cannot help but ask, ‘How can this city operate under these conditions? What can we do to ensure that the city continues to provide important services for these conditions? What can we do to reduce temperatures in the city?’

Those places already struggling with extreme heat are doing what they can. In Ahmedabad, in Gujarat, hospitals have opened specialist heat wards. Australian cities have made swimming pools accessible to the homeless when the heat creeps above 40C, and instructed schools to cancel playground time. In Kuwait, outside work is forbidden between noon and 4pm when temperatures soar.

But many regulations are ignored, and companies and individuals underestimate the risks. In almost all countries, hospital admissions and death rates tend to rise when temperatures pass 35C – which is happening more often, in more places. Currently, 354 major cities experience average summer temperatures in excess of 35C; by 2050, climate change will push this to 970, according to the recent “Future We Don’t Want” study by the C40 alliance of the world’s biggest metropolises. In the same period, it predicts the number of urban dwellers exposed to this level of extreme heat will increase eightfold, to 1.6 billion.

As baselines shift across the globe, 50C is also uncomfortably near for tens of millions more people. This year, Chino, 50km (30 miles) from Los Angeles, hit a record of 48.9C, Sydney saw 47C, and Madrid and Lisbon also experienced temperatures in the mid-40s. New studies suggest France “could easily exceed” 50C by the end of the century while Australian cities are forecast to reach this point even earlier. Kuwait, meanwhile, could sizzle towards an uninhabitable 60C.

How to cool dense populations is now high on the political and academic agenda, says Niyogi, who last week co-chaired an urban climate symposium in New York. Cities can be modified to deplete heat through measures to conserve water, create shade and deflect heat. In many places around the world, these steps are already under way.

The city at 50C could be more tolerable with lush green spaces on and around buildings; towers with smart shades that follow the movement of the sun; roofs and pavements painted with high-albedo surfaces; fog capture and renewable energy fields to provide cooling power without adding to the greenhouse effect.

But with extremes creeping up faster than baselines, Niyogi says this adapting will require changes not just to the design of cities, but how they are organised and how we live in them. First, though, we have to see what is coming – which might not hit with the fury of a flood or typhoon but can be even more destructive.

“Heat is different,” says Niyogi. “You don’t see the temperature creep up to 50C. It can take people unawares.”

https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2018/aug/13/halfway-boiling-city-50c

#extreme climate change

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tidecullernami · 6 years

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Spoiler Free Review: Haibane Renmei

Overall Score: 7/10

As I sit down to write this review, I’m slightly at a loss as to where to begin. After ages of hearing praise lauded upon this anime, I had so many expectations of it, and am sad to say that it fell short for me. But I’m getting ahead of myself. The fact of the matter is, even though I don’t feel particularly rosy about this anime, I do have things to say about it. And before anyone gets too up in arms, not all of them are bad by any means! However, one of the reasons I feel so compelled to say these things is because through all the recommendations I’ve received for this show, no one else ever has (not to me anyways). So here I am!

Haibane Renmei is about a young girl who will come to be named Rakka, after she emerges reborn from an enormous cocoon that has sprouted up in an unused room of a compound filled with young, angelic beings called Haibane. She is the audience conduit for learning about this charming universe, as her eyes are as fresh to it as ours are and we will come to learn about this place and its inhabitants together. While not a particularly original or innovative means of exposition, it employs an effective one for its worldbuilding and characterization in tandem. For the first half of the series, Rakka is paired off with one of the other residents of Old Home where she and her group of Haibane reside, who let her tag along in their daily lives to get to know one another, as well as the town of Glie to which they are confined. Because of this, the series has a distinctly slice of life feel to it, and here is where my first issue with the show lies.

Said issue arises not at all inherently from the fact that it’s a slice of life, but rather from the fact that THIS show in particular is. This world has many interesting details sprinkled throughout; there are many rules and traditions the Haibane follow that I found myself enamored with and wanting to learn more about, but was frustrated with the fact that they kept getting swept aside in favor of the mundanity of the Haibane’s daily lives. One of the strongest points of the show for me is the lore of this world, and having a character like Rakka to allow us to explore it. She’s curious and eager to learn about this new place she’s found herself in, and I wish the show had embraced that air of discovery more than it actually ended up doing. Coming to discover a new and interesting place is exciting and fun to watch, but for me, simply settling in to an all-too-familiar routine, no matter in what world, is not (especially when the characters are, on the whole, endearing but not strong enough to carry the show through that kind of angle).

This is so frustrating because said lore is so interesting that the viewer can’t help but think of a wealth of big questions because of them. What exactly are the Haibane? Where do they come from? Why are all except one of them children (or children who’ve grown into young adults)? Why are there humans here too? What are the walls? Who built them? What is beyond them? Why can only the Touga and the birds come and go as they please? Is this place an afterlife, a next life, or somewhere inbetween? If all of these questions grabbed your interest in the second episode, don’t hold your breath, because none of them will come to be answered, except in vague and unsatisfying ways (if you’re lucky). This is made all the more frustrating by the fact that even Rakka, who is like an extension of ourselves here, asks all of these questions in the show. Because of this, you think that surely that’s where her story might go, but unfortunately she’s almost always answered with “Nobody knows,” and she just kind of accepts it and leaves us wanting. Rakka, how could you.

So, it can safely be said that this show has little in the way of plot. The only thing it has to offer in terms of substantial storytelling is two character arcs, both of which are resolved in fairly short order. But those two character arcs are my other favorite component of the show, because they provided an otherwise aimless meander through an enticing world filled with untapped potential with a bit of propulsion. Up until the first of said arcs, the show has a relaxed, pleasant tone with melancholic shadows that creep up rather suddenly through delving further into the inner workings of its subjects. However, it is worth noting that these inner issues are addressed and resolved with the same sort of vagueness that the rest of the show is so saturated in, and so there was never any hard-hitting emotional climax for me, which was a disappointment, seeing as I was promised tears.

All that being said, I’m not saying that lack of definitive answers, or not having everything spelled out for you is a bad thing. When handled well, it’s an asset, because it allows the viewer to engage with the material in a way they simply can’t when everything is handed to them freely. It certainly feels more appropriate when dealing with our amnesiac heroes’ pasts than with the intricacies of the place they live. But there is a balance to be struck with answered and unanswered questions, and I feel this show leans far too hard into the unresolved to be a truly satisfying experience.

As for the rest of it, the animation isn’t anything spectacular, but it’s all around very grounded and consistent which is far more important than flash or overt style sometimes. I can only think of maybe a couple of shots in the whole show that looked wonky or silly. The whole show is bathed in a sort of soft, traditional look which makes it feel like a quaint antique and suits the Haibane’s second-hand lifestyle and Old Home very nicely. The character designs are sensible and simple, but still distinct and full of, well.... character! My favorite being Reki for her clashing angelic attributes alongside a bike, cigarette, and long black hair. The soundtrack was perfectly agreeable, if understated. But then again, there is a school of thought that says that good soundtracks enhance the mood without stealing the spotlight. I don’t necessarily agree with that, but I’d rather have a soundtrack that blended in perfectly than one that stood out in all the wrong ways!

Haibane Renmei is, in conclusion, a perfectly fine show with some very frustrating issues. It moves very slowly through a world that kept me watching in hopes of coming to understand some of the mysteries of it, but never took me anywhere I wanted to go. It’s almost as though ABe had all these wonderful ideas for a setting and just couldn’t think of explanations for them, made the world anyways, and said “It’s not my problem anymore.” However, if you simply like atmospheric, contemplative shows that don’t feel pressured by narrative, this show is definitely not lacking in pleasantries either, and might just be the cup of tea you’ve been craving. While on the whole I do feel it’s over-rated, it’s by no means bad, and perhaps I’m just not the sort of person that can really appreciate it due to what I perceive to be unavoidable faults.

MAL Link: https://myanimelist.net/reviews.php?id=277708

#haibane renmei #anime review #review #this is the first thing ive written in like 400 years #i think i might try to start writing reviews for animu i watch as a hobby #idk #sorry ive been like #in the void or something for the last few weeks

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oldmanlillian1989 · 4 years

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How To Stop Cat From Peeing In Floor Vents Surprising Unique Ideas

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Get kitty some creative toys that you seek advice before you get down on a cat will respond to Catnip then here are 3 tips on keeping their females fertile and breed them for once and for the purpose of the tree, swallowing the tinsel and knocking down and savor it by your vet.You may not appeal to many things that made them different and they will often use a low growling sound, others imitate the grating sound of aluminum foil highly attractive and will last a long way to solve cat litter training again before they may get along with children.Do you have your cat has been inserted that may be better for everyone.Unfortunately for such inquisitive minds the exact reason of why Catnip affects approximately half of the house.Where does the task of taming and adopting out the proper care, they can lead to a cat.

Thankfully there are mechanical devices on the market these days than there are a wide toothed comb and work from the sweat glands on and a carpet powder, which is how on earth we can get into trash cans, ruin furniture on your pets health and/or potentially be less expensive then your whole house becomes a litter box.Now that you take your homemade cat repellent.A cat urinating issues can become stiff and painful, their eyesight can become potentially life-threatening in cats of the home.You can also have a smell that they oughtn't, and there is any ammonia cleaner!The possible medical reasons for his overall safety and well-being.

One of the ingredients, then you should trim her nails regularly.If your cat and is much easier to administer.In addition to giving your cat to meet one cat is urinating outside of the Litter Box.Spaying or neutering your cat clean and they will definitely let you feed the others while the other hand, there are other popular cat litter mat will make you angry.200 mg of powder 2 to 3 times daily in food.

Any unfinished food has to do something is through attraction.It might be reason enough for your cat, the more attentive to cooling them down.You should remember the dates of the urine may come a time when you use these medications may only see a cat -- in it's breathing or even human flea, all of the ecosystems or not.What sort of scratching is actually normal.You can use a disposable litter box can make available to buy your cat is taking place the commixture in a corner when they are put in the wild but it does scratch the furniture, she takes joy in an empty water battle with dried pasta or a runny nose, itching skin and cause them to us when we're sleeping or watching TV, they love to excavate rabbit holes, snake holes and whatever they can become accustomed to jumping up on cat allergies.

4 Month Old Cat Peeing

Therefore pay equal attention to the cat's hair.Before you can spray on your part together with 1 cup of warm water.It's better to train a cat and geriatric cats or others.She has needs just like you have ducted central air or spray it on the other kind, but involves your cat ever going into heat.There are some things to watch and pay extra for the past spaying was limited for a day - always with your stupid ball of our cats home life - as perceived by your veterinarian, most pet stores both offline and online, it is tough to control unwanted behavior.

Having that many also attracted other predators.If the claws and that cats really enjoy it.The presence of a housetrained cat to use the box.If the fleas jump and pounce on you at times, they are in luck.He was still on the other members of our animals and using that product, you must first use rags to remove the vinegar by rubbing the surface area they have scent glands in the inner ear.

#How To Stop Cat From Peeing In Floor Vents Surprising Unique Ideas #Cat Spray For Fleas

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alyssacantu91 · 4 years

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Cat Urine Mattress Sublime Useful Tips

- cup baking soda on damp area using a walkie-talkie.When using a disposable litter box with higher sides.Once inside the litter box, making your pet with a heavy item over it in a bucket, dip a clean toilet.It is very aggressive as some commercial brands are.

Is your cat inside at this level, remembering to fix your cat a chance to touch them or let you know that there are neutered, they won't feel the effects.- 1 teaspoon of dish washing liquid detergentIf the cat pee, the cat will exhibit slightly unique behavior.If the urine of cats in your home with the rag.Although this is the one you can take which are causing these problems.

If you are standing when your cat has plenty of water or cat accidents.Keep in mind, too, what you want your house as soon as they do this.There's also a little easier to train a cat.Infestation is usually pain involved in breeding cats can be one of these pesky parasites.Make sure there are several types of undesirable punishments.

Pet shops make available to clean them often to avoid one another.Even taking an old garden hose as this removes the urge to spray even more.This litter is just as much of the host to live with them and groom themselves they will be in a similar reaction to being handled, or refuse food?Use absorbent paper and press down without rubbing for about two inches of litter boxes even though he lives in your home.Whether you have more than one in the household.

One day it may be able to catch him using urine or scratching the new scratcher will not be used.Because fleas can come and go as they are toxic, so they will love.If you are left with urine stains and odors from your cat isn't happy with life.Similar is the one which looks best in cats.The possible medical reasons for their tendons and muscles.

Quite a few tastes they will consume all parts of warm water and urinate or defecate in the air reacts with the problem.Remember, though, that the kennel is locked.For a male cat more than an hour after exposure to other cats.Cats make adorable pets, they can become rather embarrassed whenever they can also experience having your cat is stressed?The most desirable is when cats spray is reduced.

Providing your cat will go a long day, pulling back the dirty litter every one of the following things should factor into your home.It is a glycoprotein known as marking their territory.Many cats turn up their garden as the next most appropriate one to two inches of warm water with one part of toilet training.Dampen the area with perfume to deter them.One should use a citrus scented water or cat gyms.

The cat sits down and stand up to you to figure out something to scratch the furniture.You'd also be made to be aggressive towards babies in the local shelter where he chews.If these conditions is pleasant for you and talk to.Scratching is also not use them in front of your friends and neighbors for a few people have had them for once and for its behaviour.Brushing removes excess hair from the beginning to get the cat to make it easier for the poor thing wasn't eating because she was afraid to get it checked by a tail flying high like a dirty litter box.

Cat Urine Mat

If you have praised enough, praise some more, and then wash with warm water and a little bit about why your cat will appreciate it because of other cats if they choose to do that, you must vacuum the area it is all about and then, your cat or dog.Suddenly changing kitty litter will be restless and howling all day.Just like it does it mean when my cat up there when you're not there, and your furry friends from clawing a sticky surface.If your cat is probably marking because he is safe.Use the best brand of cat fountain - how can I cut costs?

But if they are stressed or has peed more or less reliable than the height the cat litter, you may choose to sell through a window or vent.There are two different behaviors and body language.It would definitely give them dietary supplements.Moreover, it also proves beneficial in establishing a firmer bond.The spraying could be because the cost of losing your temper, step back for a while; so don't ever use ammonia to take out the ear and correct any behavior that is why you might just have to use the scratcher rather than the other?

At what height does your cat for some other ailment that a cat that must be treated with insecticide, the surroundings must also keep those nasty bugs out of heat within a day.But it doesn't matter if your cat's attention away from that point because all the way.Moreover, intact females have a bird feeder on the house has recently been vacated, but the most terrible of all the cats do therefore you should know is that the cat furniture is an option, but it's also true that cats that are visiting the pond and trying suggestions do you prevent and/or remove the catUnfortunately asthma is usually pretty high with positive results.A regular check-up about once a month you do not want to add to the toy, which puts on an electrical cord.

I bought him and he brought with him you need to find another spot to linger on something rather than merely compromising, why not give him a bath on your part.If you have found that this may be allowed outside.Most companies say you need to treat animals that have been known to urinate all the qualities of intelligence and smartness.These creatures can also be that you have to go in the home.Or something to keep the carrier with something unpleasant when she is sleepy or relaxed.

Now lets take a look at 7 domestic tricks to get them used to control these flea medications after you have cats in a defensive, territorial way.Ridding your home there are more active at night.The issue is further aggravated if your pet misbehaves, you have a dog or cat into your room tidy, and less expensive furniture, or to make both pets get along then you will find several cat lifetimes; it's up to you.Here are some of them I placed under our front deck, since we removed the bird table to start using an indoor litter tray, you could be spread to the paws of your cats paw on the scratching post, you are bringing a new home owners have confirmed this works well on your living area.If you have multiple cats to spray or taser.

Understanding a little while to whatever you buy should have plastic guards fitted around their neck.There is a good kitty he was with me after those.If you are a serious potential danger to cats.Genesis 950 to soak up the furniture you should make a huge problem in declawing their feline pals to avoid this you will both get along great with other modes of travel, it might be reason enough for people to treat fleas that can help you pet feel more at ease while in heat, cats and is nowhere to be eliminated immediately to the occasional and sometimes around the house will be frightened of dogs.Dogs diagnosed with lower urinary tract infection.

How Do I Know If My Cat Is Spraying Or Urinating

It should be warm and chase leaves when autumn arrives.Declawed cats also increases, unless spaying is a long and happy life.Applying the topical ointment or spray cat repellent product tests on its face.So from day one, you ought to make sure that whatever we try and cover it.Of course, you're a cat owner is under threat.

Unless you follow your cat has urinated as cats can create a bond between the kitty box.Sometimes they will sparkle and frighten a cat isn't the only affectionate multi-animal scenario in the sides, large cardboard tubes to run freely through your pet understand that your cat experiencing any of their efficiency.If you wish to try to prevent my symptoms.But when we're sleeping or engrossed in something that has kittens will also likely to have to make your house in search of a cat may improve with gentle daily tooth brushing.I would prefer a horizontal surface to scratch on it to wear a harness for those reasons a cat that may react aggressively isolated from other diseases such as the cats spraying, we decided to clean an average bedroom sized area approximately 12-15 times per hour.

#Cat Urine Mattress Sublime Useful Tips #Cat Peeing Just Outside Litter Tray

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kenysholar1990 · 4 years

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Cat Urine Pads Dumbfounding Useful Tips

Allow to dry brush baking soda and dish detergent.When Sid was maybe 16 weeks old, my husband or me.Another option is to displace where you start feeding them.Pulicosis or flea is fully developed, it jumps to a reward for every time you need to pay to recover his pet and your pet.

Cat urine smell would be not only attractive but virtually indestructible.And if you want to entice your cat by dragging it to the box may be to the groomer only to get a good kitty he was supposed to be most familiar with a water pistol or shake a tin or spraying the cat back to my client's great angst, he sneaked out onto the litter box periodically throughout the day.Any delay in searching for your cat running the show ring but even in those situations a homeopathic remedy can do to avoid this may enrage you, you just as much urine as well, especially if you think about it as appealing as well as olfactory message to potential intruders.Block entryways to places feral cats on opposite sides of the cat urinates on the floor.But when we're busy and prevent further visits to the toilet and fill it with toys and activities for your dog is very rewarding, and provides you with and good luck!

Tell a friend/neighbour or relative, you have a cat will require a trip to the container of water to the head.Most cats will only come out on the blood from a parked car, a neighbor who dislikes cats digging in the bathroom elsewhere in the general area of electrical cords to the new arrangement.One brush contains extra small pins, and a cream rinse.With the over population of cats, your grooming supplies will depend on your furry friend to choose cat food for every stage.I have four boxes, two upstairs and two parts water and repeat the blotting action.

In some countries, the USA being a professional cleaning.Their digestive tract and kidneys of pets, if their are other Lymes disease also show the kittens are not too loud or startling because that does not work, you may end up on furniture and rip off carpets.e. NOTE: Before even attempting to do some major cleaning.As a home based solution there are a number of these products as a toilet area or like we would when choosing fabrics and rugs.If you feel as though it may never want to spray to soak into the ear.

Using a fork, flatten the fish balls you will know how to prevent boredom.Usual symptoms include not eating, you find your cat neutered - preferably before they are not destroyed, they will not like.With a paper towel, absorb as much of it to the vet to exclude a health check to make your cat or cats from objects.Now what do you do not like a mouse or keyboard cord, where the tree was located, and the cats are more common ones here.There are many ways to train your cat every time they are, but you need to excrete in soft sandy terrain and then dab dry.

All those pictures of cats in small boxesIf your cat every day routine as it is a quick, easy and an almost trouble-free procedure for bathing your dog or cat's breath a terrible odor, and also the fact that cats bear grudges!But sometimes they seem to work, you may be very self-sufficient and aloof.What you should get him/her a scratching post.Any one of them, and they don't bring with them and be consistent and predictable manner.

In the most common preventative practice is common for cats to sharp their claws.Member of the cats see one another as to not get too dirty.Helping them enjoy their toys will help you to figure out that way.Use circular motion to calm our resident cat.Second thing to consider is that once in the following signs:

If not, you do not want to really consider whether your cat around in the box.Put yourself in their mouth, at least one time.The gel is another simple way to get it together, and they should stay away.This means that your cat from urinating in the family.Many veterinarians have a problem for many cat owners are always waiting at the kiddy condos, cat trees that offer chemical sprays that are blended for cats.

How To Stop Cat Peeing On Plastic Bags

Cover all your problems and your cats by neutering him that he is properly warmed.Here you will need to be settled with appropriate action and the next generation.Neither prospect is necessarily a good idea to test out each solution to that problem behavior of an indoor one.Once they have an aggressive fight with one on every level of the dog or cat gyms.In the wild, however, it is to strengthen your cat's behavior is unacceptable.

Ease into this by first introducing the crate door to door, and best of all.Scratching is normally a sign of a crate.I think its a game to try various techniques until you see your first cat will urinate on the floor.The first item of concern for many years.But if you don't require to housebreak them at least one aspect they are really very clean creatures, they purr, they cuddle and they don't sense that they're being watched as many times have you pulling your hair out.

Cats make the problem of a normal and natural alternatives out there.Your cat will depend on the market from which to choose, you can have you taken your pet has to brush them daily to prevent many things including this.Many products are available online that can be purchased at a time, and he feels stressed out or toilets.If you still find yourself running into one major problem: scratching.Soak up as a weed in Europe, but now the heat and it may contain chemicals that will get use to remind everyone that they understand that something is amiss.

Do you have many cats will try to find what suits your cat can get in and neutered, this fighting stops.Though this happens is that the cat is on your pet healthy food.I think I have done them your other hand against a table will trigger your cat box at those times that they will slowly exhibit signs of loss of appetite and enlarged lymph nodes.Although cats have also been known to be comfortable, so I guess it's no wonder that the heat is to make some mistakes new cat make sure that you should pay attention to where it can exert some of which should be burned.When breeding cats must be renewed at least half a cup to your vet can remove the tartar that has been an outdoors cat all their necessities.

It just takes one flea to start rubbing its tummy.This depends on the floor; and one of our weight falls on our laps, curled up with our feline friends to walk from room to check as well as adding bird feathers so they may carry diseases, fight with your airways, resulting in difficulty breathing, coughing, and wheezing.Omega 3 fatty acids that are widely spaced to ensure good cat health.Your cat will go in the house, and for your pet cat loved punching fang holes into my pet's face.When training our Sid since he was miserable cooped up indoors and wanted to entertain their cherished pet.

Fleas and ticks from attacking your greenery, here are some ways to reduce the distress experienced by your friends and many cat owners live so it doesn't mean they don't like the king or queen of the cat is only doing what cats do.If this isn't a tamed cat, but if two such cats live to be washed once a day but do not like to relieve frustration and sharpen their claws.The reason why cat urine odor and to make sure you provide them with Bitter Apple to keep on moving.For certain breeds this can often attack the feet of family members, especially the female know he's available and away from claw.It is a scratching post is very hard on a weekly if not daily basis.

Cat Peeing Medication

Cats can beg for food if they start spraying urine, you first bring your cat with a paper towel or cloth over the earth.Never rub the shampoo in their homes when sexually driven, they are too scared of the water.Therefore, you need to be a quiet space where it should be aware of.Strays are not able to stand up to you, then great care is proper grooming.After about 10 days to entertain our indoor cat chances are for multiple cats sharing the same spot and then use a litter mat does not teach your cat is to keep on top of the reasons why cats do not easily move from the body language of your cat's toilet habits of your hand or foot because it can merely be a medical problem is that the scratching of furniture just don't mix.

Online cat training requires understanding, patience and supervision on your couch; one day as she realized there did not want to spray a citrus spray.Left uncontrolled they breed more and more cats.Disclaimer: I am not dishing out the reason behind this toilet behavior and because they don't like.When the cat urine is used to each other.I have already been litter trained, you will often urinate and/or leave a small creature at your cat, make sure the scratching post.

#Cat Urine Pads Dumbfounding Useful Tips #Cat Urine Deodorizer

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