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eddiemunsons-missingnipple · 4 months

Note

Hey have a request I’d love to see a fic like this:

Dad!Eddie x mom!reader their reaction when their 18 year old daughter comes home with her first real boyfriend turns out it’s a metalhead like Eddie :)

I hope you can do something like this <3

This is so cute, and I love the idea. I just picture Eddie being a complete girl dad. Hope you enjoy. 🩷

Requests are open for the time being.

Dad!Eddie Munson x Mom!reader

Warning: none, just some fluff.

A/n: This is fluff, but I still do not want minors interacting with my work. Not proofread

"He's coming over!" Your daughter Julie raced down the stairs yelling out to you.

Eddie looked up from his phone with his reading glasses hanging off his nose. "Who's coming over? He?"

You saw him looking towards you and then back at your daughter. She just turned eighteen a few months ago. She was born on July tenth. Which was also the birthday of Ronnie James Dio. Something Eddie never stopped bragging about saying it's "the most metalest thing ever."

He fell in love all over again the moment she was born. She was glued to his hip. Anywhere he went, she went. If he was eating, so was she. If Eddie got a tattoo, then he was buying her one out of the bubble gum machine for her to match.

He couldn't stand watching her grow up. Seeing her go from this tiny little thing to a young woman was difficult on you both. She had his eyes and dimples along with his sarcasm.

"Oh, uhh, her boyfriend Eddie, remember he's coming for dinner." You reminded him while trying to keep things calm.

"Boyfriend?" He repeated.

Julie rolled her eyes. " Yeah dad boyfriend you know the guy I've been telling you and mom about for like the last two months."

Eddie didn't say a word back. He knew he couldn't stop her from dating. He actually didn't hate the idea of her dating. He hated the idea of some guy hurting her.

That's all it really came down to. He's tried so hard to shield her from all the bad in the world. But you've helped him realize that's impossible, and he needs to just let her learn.

Once your daughter left for the day, you sat with your husband. You wanted to take his mind off of things and just help him relax. He already possibly has high blood pressure. You didn't want to make it worse.

"You wanna go out back and work on your tomatoes? " You got up and started massaging his shoulders.

He smiled and took off his glasses. "I actually gotta tune up my bike, but maybe tomorrow, sweetheart."

"Are you okay?" You leaned down by his ear.

"I'm fine-- I'll be fine." He reassured you. You turned your head and gave him a little kiss to his cheek.

He was still as handsome as the first time you saw him. His eyes have the prettiest crinkles from all of the years of laughing. His smile lines are visible under his stubble. His hair is starting to finally grey in certain parts. You've been together since you were practically kids.

You and him fell in love the millisecond you laid eyes on each other. Your parents hated him at first. They tried so hard to keep you two apart, but you weren't having it. Nothing was going to keep Eddie away from you.

He tried so hard to win your parents over, mainly your dad. Since your mom softened up when she got to know him better. Your dad was a different story. Your dad didn't like his look.

The tattoos, hair, and music he was strictly against. Eddie was used to being treated like that. He was used to people judging him before they really knew him. That doesn't mean he still didn't try to get your father's approval because he did. All the time, with little to no luck.

You noticed Eddie had been in his garage all day. He said he had to give his bike a quick tune-up, but that usually only takes a few hours. He's been out there since this morning. You look at the clock, and it's now going on 4 pm. Julie has been home now for just an hour or so. She wanted to get ready in time to introduce you to her boyfriend.

You know he's nervous about meeting Julie's boyfriend. He doesn't want to seem like some weird overbearing parent. This is her first serious relationship, it seems like. Eddie wants to be protective, but he doesn't want to scare the guy off. He doesn't want your daughter to hate him.

A loud knocking knocking at the front door tells you he's here. Before you could even leave the kitchen to answer it, Eddie somehow is already there.

He swings open the door and is met with a guy not much taller than him. He has short dark hair with a denim vest similar to his old one. Various pins and patches littered all over it. He was wearing an old Slayer shirt underneath with black boots.

Eddie eyed him curiously. "Whooo are you?"

"Oh, I'm um, Noah...Julie's boyfriend." He held out to his to shake Eddie's. His other hand held some flowers in it.

Foot steps come running up next to them both, and it took Eddie a moment to process who they belonged to.

"Dad, this is Noah." Julie took his hand and brought him inside.

"Right-nice to meet you." He finally shook his hand back as he walked past him.

Eddie was stunned. The second he saw him, he got instant flashbacks of when he was younger going to meet your parents for the first time. He wanted to hate the guy. He wants to be this tough, hard ass to him. But now he can't bring himself to do any of that.

"Eddie, come help me with dinner." You whispered.

"Yeah - Yeah, okay, I'm coming." He shook his head and smiled to himself.

"He bought me flowers." You pointed at the vase holding the bouquet.

"So i buy you flowers all the time." Eddie shrugged, still trying to keep up the facade that he doesn't like the guy.

He grabbed a knife and helped cut up some onions. He looked out the window in front of him and watched your daughter and her boyfriend outside. You stopped what you were doing to focus on them, too. You saw how Eddie's eyes had softened when Noah put a little buttercup flower behind her ear.

You and him instantly had memories flooding in from your earlier years as a couple. Where Eddie would find a pretty flower and put it behind your ear. Or how he would lay with you for hours looking up at the stars. You could see he was getting a little emotional about it. More memories of picnics together in the back of his van.

"You gonna cut those onions or keep zoning out?" You nudged him.

"Sorry, I'm ju- I'm just thinking." He spoke quietly.

You went over to him and rubbed his back. "About?"

"I'm supposed to be a dick head to him, but I can't bring myself to be that way" Eddie kept looking out the window, watching Noah with your daughter.

"Who said you had to be that way?" You looked out to where he was.

He shook his head. "No one... I'm just being over dramatic like usual."

After dinner was over. Noah and Julie were sitting on the couch together while Eddie was sitting in his chair. You were busy getting dessert ready for everyone.

"Hey dad, did I tell you Noah is in a band." Julie giggled.

Eddies face lit up. "No, you didn't. do you play?"

"Uhh, well, I used to drum, but now I sing." Noah informed him. He acted a little shy to even have it brought up so suddenly. He felt put on the spot.

He nods "I used to be in a band too."

"Really?" Noah moved a little closer towards Eddie leaving Julie behind at the other end of the couch.

"Yep, I used to play guitar and sing, actually." Eddie smiled and looked proud to be talking about his former band days again.

"I have some old stuff in my garage where my band "toured" for a bit and my old gear." He pointed behind him.

"Can we check it out?" Noah looked like a kid in a candy store when Eddie mentioned his old gear.

"Follow me," He grunted while getting out of his chair. His knees popped as he stood up. Years of hard work finally taking its toll on his body.

Julie just sat there watching her boyfriend and her dad, leaving her all alone in the living room. You were busy in the kitchen cutting cake and putting the pieces onto plates.

"Guys, dessert is ready!" You jogged to the living room to find it empty except for your daughter.

She rolled her eyes "they're in the garage."

You couldn't help but chuckle.

All day, you had anticipated this first meeting to be a disaster. Now you have your husband and your daughters boyfriend playing guitar together. You know Eddie didn't have a mean bone in his body. Even at his cruelest, he was still considered nice to most.

"Think dad likes him?" Julie crossed her arms, looking annoyed. She was being sarcastic. You could tell by her tone.

You pressed your lips into a thin line, trying hard not to laugh. "He hates him, I'm sure."

You could hear them both screeching from out back. Heavy metal loudly playing, and Eddie's old guitar plugged in. You and your daughter sat eating dessert, trying to drown out all the music. The night ended with Noah being invited back over next weekend. While Eddie was upstairs putting ice on his now sore neck. He forgot his age for a few hours and became that young twenty something man again.

#eddie munson x reader #eddie munson #joseph quinn #eddie munson fanfic #stranger things #eddie munson x reader fluff #eddie x reader #eddie munson x you #eddie munson x female reader #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson blurb #dad!eddie x mom!reader #dad!eddie munson

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jasmines-library · 6 months

Note

Hii! Sorry idk if your okay with this, if your not, feel free to ignore! <3

So I was wondering if you could do youngest batsib reader, who’s not really part of the family yet? Okay so, they’re a criminal like catwoman, they only steal from people who deserve it and just kind of a troublemaker around Gotham. They have electricity powers. They’re parents died at a young age and they ran away from the orphanage because they didn’t want to get adopted. They’re actually really smart, and know a lot of martial arts to help them get by. Anywaysss, I was wondering if during a place they were trying to rob, blow up for some reason. And it lead to them being knocked out and injured. Someone from the batfamily came across them and instead of turning them into the police, they take them to the batcave and patch em ip before putting them in a cell. They wake up and the batfam interrogates them, they find out they’re a kid and knows their secret identity (because he’s really smart) and after a bit, Bruce offers to take them in, and train them to be a vigilante. Reader is reluctant and doesn’t really trust them but they’re getting really tired of sleeping on the streets so they reluctantly says yes.

My Way Home Is Through You

Note: This was fun to write, thanks for the request anon!

Warnings: Minor undescribed injury, theft, none really, fluffy found family fic.

Word count: 1.7k

⛤ BATFAM MASTERLIST ⛤

You slunk along the sidewalks, clinging tightly to the walls as though a small child might do to their mother in a crowd of people. Hiding away in the shadows was nothing new to you, you had been a nobody for years. Constantly running, never settling in one place for too long before you were slinking off again and finding a new corner of Gotham to call your home for a few miserable days before the cycle started again. At first you had tried to cling onto the last shreds of your parents that you had left. You hung onto your name but soon that began to get you into trouble when the orphanages kept trying to pursue you and ‘bring you to a new and loving family’, so it was back to being just another face in the crowd. Just another ordinary kid trying to navigate their way through a big city.

Except…you were more than that. In your time alone you had discovered you had quite a knack for stealth. It started off when the nights became too cold and the growling in your stomach was so overbearing that it drowned out all other senses. You were still small, which you used strongly to your advantage, weaving in and out of the sea of faces before slipping small pieces of food under the hem of your raggedy sleeve that was far too long for you and dangled below your fingers. After that it soon became easy enough to steal other things. Just enough to get by. A ring here, a gold watch there. Small items from the cruel and the unworthy that you could pawn off for a little extra cash.

There was something else about you though that helped out just a little bit. It was one of the reasons that you had spent so long trying to hide away. See, when you were young you discovered that there was something different about you. When you focused hard enough, you could feel the electricity channelling through your veins and sizzling at your fingertips. You learnt to manipulate it, to bend it to your will and it quickly became very useful when picking locks. You used it to fry them seamlessly before sneaking in and if worse came to worse, you could stun the police when they came thundering after you shouting profanities and threats and they ran, never to catch you with your nimbleness. They had tried to set the vigilantes on you more than once and you knew very well that their eyes were always on you, following your every move just waiting for the perfect moment to strike because you had seen them. Sometimes in the uniform. Sometimes not. As much as they tried to be they were much less subtle than they thought.

When you reached the complex it was dark. All of the lamp posts nearby had flickered sporadically before burning out completely, so you hopped up the steps blindly before crouching down in front of the locks. You then outstretched your hand and took a deep breath, letting your body relax to feel the current dance in your veins and settle on your fingertips. You then directed the current towards the lock watching as it fried before swinging open. You darted in pushing it shut behind you and then set to work around the house. It was small and shabby with mould growing in some of the corners by the windows. It crawled up the walls, a darkened stain that emitted a putrid smell when you got a little too close. The floorboards cracked and groaned as you moved around the plot, weaving in and out of the furniture that had been strewn across the room. It was clear that someone had left in a hurry. You were shuffling around the unmade bed, reaching for the safe when you heard it.

Tick. Tick. Ticktick. tickticktick.

The sound was daunting, getting faster and faster as you scrambled to find the source, overturning chairs and throwing them to the floor as though they were nothing then tearing up floorboards. It was too late when you found it ticking away impendingly. The timer blinked by quickly as it neared zero and you were neft with no choice but to try and get as much distance between you and the weapon. The meagre metres you had out between yourself and the bomb hardly made any difference at all as it ignited flinging you across the room. Wood splintered around you as the concrete cracked and crumbled in heaps which you skidded to a halt on. You felt like you were going to hurl as your head thudded against the debris with a sickening crack that made your vision swam before all of the colours merged into one and you knew nothing more but a dark and heavy silence.

~~~

“Move it! Go!”

Nightwing shoved his little brother rather harshly in the shoulder to urge him forwards. Word had just reached them that a small house on the outskirts of the city had suddenly exploded and the number of casualties was currently unknown. Dick always seemed to get a sudden adrenaline rush whenever an emergency came in and not matter how fast he moved he always felt as though he could never get there fast enough even if he was hurtling through the city at an alarming speed.

He had to swallow back his alarm when they skidded to a halt at the scene. There was nothing really left of the building besides a few odd shaped pillars of concrete and pipes that were strong enough to survive the blast. The rest of the building was a dismal load of ash and dust that rose in ribbons as the wind lifted up the pieces that were small enough and carried them away into a cloud of sky.

Nightwing pushed his way through the crowd that had gathered and ducked under the police tape despite their protests. His heart nearly stopped when he inched his way around what used to be a bed but was now a cluster of broken timber buried under a pile of rubble because he spotted your figure sprawled out across the floor. He skidded to the ground and began to pull the pieces of clutter away from you, grimacing at the sight of the blood that came away on his fingers.

Red Hood dropped down beside him just as Dick Grayson brushed some of the dust from your face and sudden recognition washed over him.

“Hood.” He said over his shoulder. “I think you better call B.”

~~~

Your head felt like it was going to explode when you woke up and there was a stabbing pain in your side but when you moved your hand to slide the hem of your stop up you were cut short by a metal handcuff securing you to the wall next to the bed you had been placed in. Shuffling around awkwardly you managed to push yourself up into a sitting position to gauge your surroundings better. The cell you were in although small was rather well lit and surprisingly homely. Too bad you had no intention in staying. You had planned to use your powers to fry the handcuff, but when you tried to summon the electricity you were left high and dry when nothing happened.

“That’s not going to work.” A figure you hadn’t noticed in the corner of the room told you when you began to try again.

Frowning at him, he folded his arms and leaned against the wall. “Power suppressing cuffs.”

Rolling your eyes you slumped defeatedly. You should have figured as much.

“What were you doing in there?” He asked, narrowing his eyes at you from behind his infamous cowl.

“That’s none of your business.”

“I think it is, kid.”

You turned your gaze away from him and picked at the skin around your thumb. “It’s not that I wanted to be in there. It’s what I had to do.”

The vigilante stepped forwards and took a seat next to you. “Go on.”

“I needed the money. I can’t go to anyone so I have no choice but to find my own way around problems. I was gonna pawn the jewellery off. And besides it’s not like the guy owned it in the first place. He was the one that stole it from the jewellers last week.”

“How’d you know that?” Batman frowned. That information had only been revealed recently.

“I get around a lot.”

He pursed his lips. “What else do you know?”

You could have grinned like the cheshire cat right there and then as you began to list things you had learnt.

“I know that you still haven’t caught that guy who escaped from Arkham last month. I know that you’ve all been watching me. Oh and I know that you are Bruce Wayne.”

The man faltered. “What? How?”

“You’re less subtle than you think.”

“Or maybe you’re smarter than you think. What d’you say your name is kid?”

“I didn’t.”

He sighed, watching you in silence until you eventually gave him your name.

“You’re something, Kid. I’ll give you that much.”

“Thank you…?”

“How would you like to stay? We would train you to become a vigilante like us.” The question was so sudden that it made your head spin.

“I can’t ask that of you.” You told him. It was more of an excuse really. You weren’t sure if you could trust him or not.”

“You’re not. I’m offering. A warm place to stay, a family to care for you.”

A smile twinged at the corner of your lips. That was something you had longed for for so long but had never seen that it had slipped to the back of your mind forgotten.

“So, what do you say, Y/N?”

“I think I would like that.”

#batfam x reader #Batfamily x reader #batfam x gn reader #batfam x sibling reader #batfam x little sibling reader #batfam x little brother reader #batfam x little sister reader #batfam x injured reader #nightwing x reader #dick grayson x reader #Tim drake x Reader #red Robin x reader #red hood x reader #Jason Todd x Reader #Damian Wayne x Reader #whump #fluff #found family #hurt/comfort

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cosmic-crybaby · 4 months

Text

Break My Heart Again- Tommy Shelby x Reader

Part 3

Summary: After being childhood friends, you and Thomas made a promise one day to get married, but when he returned from France, he came back a completely different man.

Warnings: Angst, mutual pining, betrayal, emotional manipulation, emotional whiplash.

It was 1919. Over a year since she left Thomas and the betting shop behind. [Name] was stuck in solitude for days, and each day her mother comforted her, easing her daughters cries until she slept. The first person to reach out to her since she had left, was Ada.

"Please talk to me [Name]," She had asked her friend, sitting across from her at the small dining table.

"There is nothing to say, Ada...I can't go back, not now," She picked at her nails anxiously, the deep burgundy lacquer slowly chipping away.

"Believe it or not, it hasn't gone completely to shit, but Aunt Pol is having a hard time finding reliable people to do your job-"

"That's not my job anymore," [Name] reminded her. "Listen I'm sorry...I really am,"

"Where will you go now?" Ada asked. The girl opposite to her thought for a moment, she could be a barmaid but the chances of running into the Peaky boys were high. Jobs for women were scarce now that the men are back. So she just opted to respond with a shrug.

"No idea, Ada..."

Over a year later and she managed to get a job at the local library. It was quiet, of course, but at the very least she was able to put some of her knowledge to good use. It paid well enough for her to live comfortably and it kept her hidden away from running into the Shelby Family. She was just glad she didn't have to resort to becoming a prostitute. Her mother would have a heart attack is that was the case. With the exception of Ada and Polly, who would often drop in to have tea with her and her mother or bring treats and gifts. Sometimes [Name] felt they only offered these gifts as peace offerings, of behalf of what Thomas had done. It was as if they still couldn't forgive him, and they would understand if she couldn't either.

Because in the last year, she had changed.

Physically and mentally. She had grown into a beautiful young woman, the stress of illegal betting and horseracing, the stress of Thomas Shelby had left her life, which in turn rewarded her to grow even more. In only a year, she begun to finally get noticed by the other young bachelors of Birmingham. Little did she know, she had them turning their heads all this time, she was busy with her eyes on someone else.

It was one afternoon when she met her current suitor. His name was Daniel and he was the sweetest man she had ever met. Considering she had only surrounded herself with the three Shelby men and the Peaky boys, that was a big change. While she was working at the front desk of the Library, he requested some aid in retrieving a couple of maps of the world. She didn't pay any mind to Daniel at first until the third and fourth week he had come in, still asking for her help.

"I remember you, I would assume you knew where the maps were by now," She quietly cut him off. This caught him off guard, making him flustered as he tried to search for his words. [Name] only smiled as she watched the dark auburn haired man blush more and more.

"I-I am sorry miss...I just," He cleared his throat. She arched her brow at him for a moment. He was at a loss for words as he admired her beauty. That day he had asked if she'd like to accompany him to some dinner in London, to get to know each other more.

It had been a very peaceful and cherishing month with Daniel, she found that he was a traveling business man and was looking to expand his company in America. But, like all good things it came to an end when Thomas Shelby came into the picture once again. While in London with Daniel, he took her to the shops to buy a new dress to meet his family one night. She had broken away from him as he spoke to the salesman about the dress he was about to purchase. Stepping outside to look at the lightly clouded sky, examining the different shops on the street.

"[Name]?" The voice sent shivers down her spine. She quickly turns at the mention of her name towards the deep voice.

"Thomas?" She asked, surprised to see him.

Seeing the man that broke her heart and betrayed her trust right in front of her eyes was like a whirlwind of emotions. She didn't know if she should stay, run, or beat him until he was blue and on his knees begging for her forgiveness.

But, she was better than that. She was with a man who actually loved her.

"It's nice to see you again," Thomas told her, stepping closer. She subtly takes a step back, clearing her throat as her eyes dart to the shop entrance, praying to God that Daniel will emerge soon so the two can leave the awkward interaction and never turn back.

"Yeah, sure, Thomas..." She nods slightly. Thomas Shelby didn't forget what happened between them over a year ago, but he was perplexed that she would still treat him like a stranger, even after all these years of being as close as they once were. Within that year of missing her by his side, he refrained from showing up at her home to see her, refraining from asking Ada and Polly to tell him what they had discussed when they visited her. Part of him hoped that her and her mother still took those evening walks in Uncle Charlies' yard after dinner. Thomas often found himself at Charlies' yard nearly every night, hoping he would run into her.

But that's exactly what she had avoided. [Name] did everything in her power to avoid every little place and thing Tommy knew about her. IT seemed to work, until this very moment.

"What brings you here?" She asked curiously. Hoping she didn't have to put her favorite dress shop in London on a list of places to avoid Thomas Shelby.

"Just...doing some business in London as it seems...until I saw you leaving the dress shop...thought I would come and say hello," He shrugged. [Name] looked down at her gloved hands, pondering her next words.

"I see...well, goodbye Thomas," She nods once, still avoided his eyes, afraid that once she sees his eyes again, it will start all over again. The warmth he gave her, the butterflies in her stomach, the cure to all of her hardships. She makes hasty steps past him, but his hand reaches out to grab her arm...it was gentle but firm as to not hurt her. He always knew how to be gentle with her.

"[Name], please..." He said quietly. She felt the tears brim her eyes as she slowly turned to him again. Slowly lifting her gaze to his eyes. Once he saw her tears, it was like everything around them had stopped. It was just them two together and no one else.

"What Thomas? What could you possibly want from me now?...After all this time, when I am finally happy you come into my life again, why?" She asked, sniffling as the small tears rolled down her high cheekbones and onto her chin. Her skin blushed, and her eyes were red with salty tears. He was at a loss for words at first.

He gently spoke her name again, reaching down to pick up her hand in his, testing the waters to see just how much she will accept from him. Her hand twitched and nearly jerked away as he slipped her glove off. Feeling the warmth of his skin made her comply. His hands were rough now, from the years of digging tunnels and fighting. She had no doubt that his hands and mind were both distressed.

"I...I'm sorry for how things ended between us...frankly I can't stop thinking about you," He told her regretfully. Her eyes were shining in the dim light of the London sun, the tears glistening as they roll. Each one looking like diamonds.

"You're sorry...After a year you're finally sorry," She almost laughed. Thomas only sighed.

"Yes of course! and...and I regret everything I said, I can't live my life without you, [name],"

"You should have thought about that before you asked me to marry you!" Her voice raised just a bit, before realizing that she was still in public, as to not bring attention to herself. For once, Tommy didn't know what to say next. His eyes darted across her face. Her cheeks were red, her brows were furrowed in frustration, and her lips... Oh those lips he had always wanted to kiss deeper each night upon his return, they were downcast in a frown. He released a sigh when he realized her eyes had not left his this entire time. He knew she still loved him deep down. She just couldn't bear it. His thumb ran over the top of her hand gently.

"I hurt you, I know that now and...There is nothing else I can say other than I am immensely sorry, give me another chance [name], I can prove it to you that I am a new man, as friends or more I need you in my life,"

His words made her lips tremble as she closed her eyes to think and steady her breath. She opened her eyes first before she opened her mouth to speak.

"[Name]?" A voice called, and suddenly the bubble bursts. It was like the busy street surrounding them suddenly became clear again. It wasn't just the two of them in the world anymore. She turned her head from Thomas to Daniel. The man she adored more than anything, as he searched for her. Thomas also managed to sneak a glance at the stranger, and his cold heart sunk a little deeper into the pit, leaving a sour taste in his mouth and a clenched jaw. She looked back at Thomas.

"Think about it," He whispered before walking off.

[Name] stood in her place in stillness as she tried to process what just happened to her. Daniel approached her, smiling widely as he informed her that he purchased the dress and reassuring her that it will look lovely on her for the dinner party with his family. She gave him a small smile before it quickly faded when he looked away from her.

The days leading up to the dinner party, she had thought of Thomas. It was like he himself had infected her mind as she had no more room to think clearly of anything else besides him and the words he spoke to her. But could she really trust him again?

Should she trust him again?

Every day and every night she had spent with Daniel, she tried her best to reciprocate the love he had for her, but somehow something was wrong. She didn't love him the way she loved Thomas. The night of the dinner party, she waited for Daniel to pick her up. Wearing the dress he had bought her, the jewelry she borrowed from her mother, and the hair and makeup she spent hours perfecting just to impress his family.

"What's wring, dear? Your hands are shaking," Her mother pointed out as she helped her daughter prepare.

"I...I don't think I can do this," She swallowed thickly. But before her mother could even ask, there was a ring at the door. [Name's] stomach was in knots and her blood ran cold. Her mothers words of encouragement were drowned out by her own raging heartbeat. When she opened the door, her mouth was agape. Expecting to see Daniel, instead Thomas stood at the front door.

Out of breath and panting. No words were exchanged as they stared at each other. She nearly leaps into his arms as she engulfs him in a tight embrace. It felt right, being in his arms again. Like they were kids again.

The following days, she kept her distance from Daniel, much to her mothers dismay. She had written him a letter.

To my Darling Daniel, I am sorry things had to happen this way. You had shown me the love no man has ever shown me before. But I am afraid I do not deserve it. Our time together was more than I could ask for, but I simply cannot keep loving you the way you want me to. I will forever cherish our memories together in my heart, as you were the only man to treat me a way a woman should be treated. I hope you find love again, and the next woman you find love in will be a very lucky to have you. I will always have you in my heart. [Name].

With the letter, she returned the dress he had bought her, she thought it would be ill-mannered to keep it. She hadn't heard from him after that. Not even a letter back, but she knew why. She would never hold that against him.

The following week, [Name] had began showing her face around the betting shop again. Here and there popping in to talk to Ada and Polly, slipping away into Tommy's office to speak with him when he wasn't busy. It was a but of a shock to the Shelby women when they saw her. They thought she was crazy for showing up again, but she had reassured them that everything was fine.

For months on end, [Name] and Thomas would spend their time together. Hand in hand as they drunkenly walked along the streets after visiting a pub on the weekends. Dancing to records in her home, holding each other close as they slow danced in the fire-place lit room. One night they went to the old hill, the same hill they used to go to when they were kids. Laying beside each other, drinking a bottle of cheap wine as they star-gazed. It was the only place where the sky wasn't absolutely covered by the smoke and smog of the city.

"I forgot how beautiful the sky was at night," She spoke softly as she sat up, eyes scanning the sky.

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" He asked, leaning his shoulder against hers. She takes in a deep breath and lets it out slowly with a nod, laying her head on his shoulder.

"Thomas?" She asked. He hums.

"I missed you,"

"I missed you too, [Name]," He spoke truthfully. That night, they shared a kiss.

A week later, she approached him in his office.

"Pol said you were going to the derby..."

"We are...It's an important matter of business, [Name],"

The girl sighs. "I know that...I also told you I would go with you if you needed me to,"

"No..."

"Uh- no?" She asked, perplexed.

"Absolutely not, Kimber is a dangerous man, you're not coming with us," He argued. She aggressively rolls her eyes and throws her hands up in the air before putting them on her hips.

"I was hoping to come talk to you without being interrupted-" She mumbled.

"And I was hoping you would know better than to ask to join on this mission-"

"Then who are you taking?" She interrupted him, crossing her arms. Thomas sighs, shaking his head in disbelief at her childish attitude.

"The barmaid,"

"The barmaid? Why the fuck would you take the barmaid?" She asked. He widened his eyes at her for a moment. She bit the inside of her cheek as she waited for his response.

"It's all a part of the plan, please trust me," He stood as he slowly walked to her, placing his hands on her shoulders to calm her mind. She pursed her lips, a solemn look on her face.

"I don't care who goes with you to the derby, I just can't sit here and hope you'll come out alive one of these days...I-" She pauses. "I adore you too much, Thomas,"

He pulls her into a tight hug, his hand caressing her hair as he kissed her forehead. "Everything will be okay," He reminded her. Lifting her chin to slowly look at him. Her eyes, as alluring as they were. His lips attack hers in a rough kiss. Pushing [Name] against the wall as her fingers pull at the fabric of his white shirt, his body pressing against hers. She could practically feel his heart beating against her chest. His hands slipping down her body, her waist to her hips to the roundness of her ass. His strong hands gripping every curve of her as he started pulling at her dress with his hands. Pulling away to catch their breath, but before she would dive in for another kiss Finn had burst through the door, inquiring that their Aunt Polly needed to speak to Thomas at once.

Begrudgingly letting him handle his business, she was left alone in his office, blushing and fanning herself with her hands as the heat began to rise, biting her lip in bafflement.

She wanted to see him again and ask about the kisses they had started. What they meant, what would have happened if they weren't interrupted. But Thomas too involved with conspiring against Billy Kimber. Fucking Billy Kimber. Hearing his name made her clench her jaw. He had been the talk of every family meeting since he found his way into Birmingham just weeks ago. But Thomas was just too busy. Too busy to talk to her. Eventually, too busy to even see her as frequently.

She recognized the pattern. It was what happened to her before he left for France. If only she could just read his mind, find out exactly what was going on in that head of his. From seeing him and his eyes, his smile every day, to seeing him at least once a week. This time he would still act the same with her. Kind, gentle, caring, but somehow she knew it was different. He wouldn't touch her, or kiss her like he used to. [Name] thought that maybe, just maybe, if she told him how she felt everything will go back to normal. Perfect even.

She just had to wait for the right moment.

When Thomas had come to her home for an evening tea with her and her mother, she decided that she would tell him then. The tea was nice, the conversations went well. [Name] was eager to finish, to get it all over with, waiting for their moment alone. Later that night, after her mother excused herself to bed, the two sat on the couch, sharing a whiskey as they talked. She sat her glass down when he called her name to get her attention.

"I need to tell you something,"

Her ears and cheeks grew warm as she looked at him, eyes brighter than ever.

"I actually need to tell you something too...but please go first," She smiled. Thomas turned his body slightly towards her, seemingly less enthusiastic as her. Thomas clears his throat before he spoke.

"I want to start off by apologizing for not seeing you as much these past few months, but I promise everything is going to work out for the better in the end, not just for my family, but for yours as well..." He paused, holding one of her hands in his.

"Thomas," She glances at their interlocked hands before looking up at him again. His blue eyes didn't look as bright in the dim lighting of the room.

"You have been with my family since the beginning, and you helped us out when we needed you the most, when everything takes off, I want you by my side through it all, promise me that you will do that for me [Name]," He requested. The young woman stares into his eyes once more and nods silently.

"I can't imagine leaving your side...ever," She stated quietly. Thomas looked down again, smiling slightly. As far as she knew he rarely smiled now...the only time she saw him smile was when he was with her.

"There was another thing I wanted to talk about," He started. She nods, urging him to continue. "There's a woman,"

His voice dropped low, the way he said 'woman' rumbled as her cheeks flushed. At the drop of a pin, her lively face slowly dropped at his words.

"A woman?"

She sank into the sofa as he spoke, but his words fell upon deaf ears. Her mind went numb, buzzing as she blankly stared off into the shadows of the room. He loved her, convinced her to leave Daniel, kissed her, treated her like she was the only woman for him...almost married her. All those years together, meant nothing to him. Once again. She should have known better than to get attached to a man like him.

A man only out for his own good.

"[Name]...You're crying," He pointed out, stopping mid-explanation to wipe the tear. She wanted to tell him. Tell him she loved him, that she wanted nothing more than to be with him for the rest of their lives. She looks at him and smiles.

[Name] shook her head and sniffled, chuckling and looking away to wipe the tear.

"I'm just...really happy for you Thomas...She seems like a nice woman," She didn't hear a word he said about her. The mystery woman that had stolen his heart.

'If only you knew what I felt'

After Thomas had left that night, she went to her room, sobbing in her bed. The heaviness in her chest weighted her down as she was held into place by rocks. The agony she felt, not only for herself but for hurting the only man that loved her. All for nothing. It was too late to go back now.

---

[Tag List]

@mysticalbouquetwolf-posts @milljane @cyphah @diosa-ahre-blog @badlandsbrunette @adaydreamaway08 @namelessghoul0 @deltamoon666 @cherryslyce @calmingmelody96

#spotify #peaky blinder fanfic #tommy shelby #thomas shelby #tommy shelby x reader #x reader #peaky blinders #peaky fucking blinders #tommyshelbyxreader #light angst #friends to lovers

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intheticklecloset · 5 months

Text

Spirit of the Season (Bungo Stray Dogs)

Primary Universe

Summary: Atsushi stumbles upon Akutagawa while he's out Christmas shopping for his sister and decides to help him get back into the right mindset for the job.

A/N: I wanted a Shin Soukoku Christmas fic really bad, so I wrote one. Tada! This is fic #3 of 4. Enjoy! <3

Word Count: 1,377

~~~

“Can I not walk the streets of Yokohama without running into you of all annoying people?”

The way Akutagawa slowly turned his head to give a wide-eyed glare to Atsushi made sneaking up on him and delivering that line totally worth it. The weretiger bit his lip to keep from laughing out loud at the expression.

“Sorry, I couldn’t resist,” he managed after a moment, pulling himself together. “What are you doing all the way out here?”

Akutagawa blinked at him, then turned his gaze back to the dark, glittering ocean and clear, starry sky above. “Christmas shopping.”

“Really?” Atsushi glanced around, making a show of not seeing anything at all except the scenic overlook they stood on. “I didn’t know there were shops this far away from the street.”

“Quit being a smart aleck,” the darker man snapped. “I’m reconsidering my approach.”

“To Christmas shopping?” Atsushi couldn’t keep the humor from his voice, then frowned as he realized his rival was being serious. He cleared his throat and tried again. “Who…um. Who are you buying for?”

“My sister.” The ‘who else?’ was implied.

“Oh, right. Well…what’s the problem?”

Akutagawa didn’t answer right away. Atsushi took the opportunity to admire the view the mafia executive had sought to use as inspiration. It really was beautiful out tonight. It was cold but not freezing – just enough for them to see their breaths puff out before them. The stars were shining, there were colorful lights all over the city, and a kind of uneasy calm settled between him and the man who’d sworn to kill him one day. Under literally any other circumstances, Atsushi might find it almost romantic.

He shook that thought right out of his head.

“Gin has grown to be a very beautiful young woman. I’m not sure how to buy for someone like that.”

The bluntness of the statement surprised the weretiger. “She’s still your sister, though, isn’t she?”

Akutagawa let out a heavy sigh, turned on his heel, and leaned against the railing of the overlook, shooting a weary glance at the detective. “I can’t believe I’m talking to you about this.”

“I’m just trying to help.”

“Lately she has been seeking ways to feel more feminine in her off time. She never used to. Buying gifts for her has always been easy because she’s an assassin, and I know what assassins like in their arsenal. Especially hers.” The mafia executive blew out a huff of air and looked to the sky. “Now I feel the need to encourage her on this new path, yet…I don’t know how. I know nothing about women or what they like.”

Atsushi took a moment to digest the fact that Akutagawa was speaking to him so openly about his family. “Maybe jewelry?”

“My first thought as well. Yet what I get her should be practical. There’s no use buying her diamonds when she spends most of her time fighting and would never wear it.”

“Right.”

There was silence for a moment before Akutagawa asked, “What would you get Kyouka?”

Atsushi hummed thoughtfully. “Well…I guess I don’t know. She’s younger than your sister, so I’m pretty sure she’d still like stuffed animals and things like that. Maybe. It’s a little different.”

“Yes, I suppose so.”

The detective glanced at his rival, observing how genuinely contemplative and serious he looked. It was clear that he wanted to do something special for his sister, and that warmed Atsushi’s heart on her behalf. He leaned against the railing as well. “You’ll figure it out. Try not to worry so much.”

“I don’t need your pity.”

“I’m not pitying you! I’m telling you you’ve got this. It would probably help you to cheer up a little bit, though. I find it hard to go Christmas shopping when I’m in a bad mood.”

Akutagawa rolled his eyes. “I’m not in a bad mood. I’m trying to take this seriously, weretiger.”

“You can take things seriously and still smile about it,” Atsushi replied, feeling emboldened by the moment they’d just shared without trying to kill each other for once. He reached over and poked the darker man’s ribs.

Akutagawa gasped sharply and jolted away, suddenly standing up straight and glaring full force. “Do not even think about it.”

“It’s not like you can hide it from me now.” The detective flashed him a little smirk. “I know you’re ticklish. You can’t take that away from me.”

The way Akutagawa’s cheeks blossomed red at the accusation surprised Atsushi into silence. Thankfully that stillness also afforded him the sharp perception he needed to realize the man was lunging at him, one fist drawn back and ready to strike.

Atsushi ducked under his punch and grabbed onto his sides, squeezing hard. “Gotcha!”

Akutagawa sputtered and grabbed a fistful of the weretiger’s hair just before he was lifted off his feet and thrown unceremoniously over Atsushi’s shoulder, fingers still wiggling in his sides and forcing deep, raspy giggles from him that he would deny until the end of time.

“This ought to get you into the Christmas shopping spirit, Akutagawa!” the detective giggled along with him, pinching and digging and squeezing in quick succession, enjoying every yelp and squeal and kick he got for his efforts. “Tickle, tickle!”

“Put – puhuhuhut me down! Weretihihihiger!” Akutagawa demanded through growling chuckles, pounding a fist on his captor’s back, kicking his legs to try and throw him off-balance.

Atsushi laughed. “Aww, someone’s a little too ticklish, huh? Quit squirming! I want to get to your ribs. That was a good spot last time.”

“Dohohohon’t you dahahare!” Akutagawa barely had time to voice the protest before those tickling fingers wiggled their way up to his lowest ribs, making him choke on his words and bark out a loud laugh before he could manage to slap a hand over his mouth, kicking even more wildly now. “Off! Gehehehehet off!”

“You’re the one over my shoulder, remember?”

“Puhuhuhuhut me dohohohown! I swehehehehear – weretiger! No, dohon’t – quit thahahahat!”

“What’s that? Don’t quit?” Atsushi finally managed to get his fingers into the groove between Akutagawa’s bottom ribs, more than a little satisfied when the man froze in his efforts to escape, laughter bursting out of him beyond his control at the tiniest hint of pressure. “There we go. Does it tickle bad here, Akutagawa?”

“WERETIGER!!” The mafia executive’s tone had shifted into something resembling pleading now, his fist pounding weaker against Atsushi’s back, turning more into a kind of tapping out gesture. “STOHOHOHOHOHOP!!”

Atsushi decided he’d probably pushed his luck enough for one day and relented, gently setting Akutagawa back on his feet. Akutagawa immediately shoved away from him, arms curling across his torso as he dissolved into a coughing fit.

It was only then that the weretiger realized he wasn’t just coughing to cover up any leftover giggles, as he’d suspected the first time. He’d genuinely had trouble breathing being tickled like that, and with his condition…

Before he could begin to feel badly about it, Akutagawa straightened again and clenched his fists, glaring daggers at him. A beat passed, then he thrust his hands into his coat pockets and started walking, brushing past Atsushi without a word, and the detective was positive this particular interaction was over.

But then Akutagawa stopped in his tracks and muttered over his shoulder, “You can follow if you want.”

Atsushi couldn’t hide the way those words made him beam from ear to ear if he wanted to.

By the time the night was over and they parted ways, Atsushi got to witness one more holiday miracle besides actually having a civil conversation with Akutagawa and getting to tickle him without dying afterward. In the third shop they visited, he watched as Akutagawa’s eyes suddenly lit up and he went straight for a simple pendant with a violet dragon etched into it – something that seemed very fitting for Gin, even to Atsushi.

It was jewelry, but practical. Something that could be worn under her work clothes without fear of shattering at the tiniest movement.

Akutagawa was satisfied, and Atsushi was happy to have been able to help – even if that help was simply getting his rival back into the spirit of the season with something as straightforward as a little laughter.

#fanfiction #tickle fic #bungo stray dogs #bsd #atsushi nakajima #akutagawa ryuunosuke #shin soukoku #sskk #holiday fic #christmas fic #tickling #ticklish #tickle

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vidjausers-fable · 5 months

Text

Pen Pals(Veneer X OC)Chapter 1

AUTHOR’S NOTE: Oh my god, I fell in love with Veneer and Velvet the moment I heard their silly little quotes and songs. I also have fun drawing them!? Anyway, this story is completely for fun, though it’s been a while since I’ve last written a fanfiction. Nothing is beta read in this chapter, so be kind if pointing out mistakes. Below is something I drew specifically for this fiction (though obviously it was inspired by the Barbie and Ken meme)

Also located on Wattpad and AO3. Chapter 2 and 3 are already located there, but soon will be here as well.

Once they had been arrested, Veneer and Velvet were booked and thrown into prison immediately. Well, it was more of a correctional facility if anything. A place where they wanted to prepare young adults who had made stupid mistakes for the outside world. Velvet didn’t take the change well but Veneer made no complaints, believing that it was the right thing to do because of the crimes they had committed. All those Trolls they had hurt…It weighed on him more than it did his sister. Velvet received a harsher sentence compared to her brother. Veneer’s was smaller because his heartfelt confession helped save the Trolls from his sister and expose their scam right away.

However, the two shared a cell in the correctional facility due to a bit of a crowding issue. Their rooms were split in two, one side for Veneer and the other for Velvet. It wasn’t the ideal living situation, but Velvet was the only one complaining about it.

The siblings looked completely different than what they used to. With no access to makeup in the facility, their faces were blank and deprived of any makeup and creams, and both adored the orange jumpsuits that read “Mount Rageous Correctional Facility” on the back. Velvet complained about her looks and image on the daily, as if it had not already been diminished.

Veneer sat at his desk with one of the books checked out from the Library, trying to somehow read and drown out the voice of his sister whining in the background. It was hard to do both at the same time so he closed the book with a loud sigh, “What is it this time, Vel?” he asked and spun around in his chair to look at his sister.

Velvet was half laying on the bed, her knees hanging over the edge. She threw her hands up and around dramatically as she spoke, “This isn’t fair! They took away another hour of my rec time from me just because I wanted an extra five minutes to eat. Didn’t I tell them I’m a slow eater?” She kicked her feet around as if she were a child having a tantrum.

Veneer leaned against his palm, unimpressed. As always. “And how did you ask for this extra five minutes?”

His sister glared. Did he Really ask her that as if she had done something wrong? “I asked, like a normal person! DUH!” she retorted sarcastically, throwing her hands up.

Veneer rolled his eyes. He seriously doubted that, but he wouldn’t say that out loud. “Maybe…just maybe Vel, you should ask a bit nicer,” he suggested and added before she could interrupt, “Unfortunately, the people here don’t like to deal with our attitudes.”

“Me? An attitude! As if! This place is worse than a shoe store with no branding,” she groaned. “And a restaurant without lobster.”

Veneer gave up talking to his sister and turned back toward his desk. There was no use arguing with Velvet. She was an entitled brat. She always tried to get the last word in, and it was impossible to point out her mistakes, or her flaws. In her eyes, she was flawless and never did wrong, and only did right. He’d dealt with that entitled attitude his whole life, and that attitude was the reason that he was in the correctional facility right now. It was honestly pathetic, but there was nothing that he could do about it except not give in to her tantrums and ignore them when they arose. Of course, it was easier said than done. She practically threw a rich snobby princess tantrum every day. “Why don’t you back me up anymore, like you used to?” Velvet abruptly sneered. Veneer could already see her expression without turning back around.

“Veneer, don’t ignore me.”

Over time, Veneer had found ways to stand up for himself. It was easier when they weren’t next to each other, but also because he was over her and her dramatic antics.

“Because.” Veneer closed the book he was trying to read, “It’s your fault we got into this whole situation in the first place.” He had to resist the urge to turn around and throw the book directly at her head.

“You didn’t exactly stop me when I kidnapped the Troll.”

“Because I couldn’t Velvet!” He argued, finally turning to her, “You took the Troll without even telling me at first. You put him in a diamond perfume bottle without a word. I knew it was suspicious when I suddenly caught you singing one day, or remotely have any talent. I bet if I didn’t walk in on you in your room that day with the Troll, that you would have kept all of that stolen talent yourself and left me at home with our parents, which by the way, I CARE about the fact that they disowned us. They get death threats because we scammed everyone, and can’t practice their dentistry anymore. They sold their business to pay off our debts, and you think they hate us? I know you hated them, but do you honestly think that they deserved all of that?” The entire ramble left him in a single mouthful it felt, leaving his sister appalled. He had so much to say to her that his words tumbled out almost all at once.

Velvet gasped, her jaw wide open and a hand over her heart, as if he tried to strike it. “They deserved it, Veneer, for the way they treated us growing up! They were nobodies and didn’t give us anything.”

“How did they treat us, Vel?! They literally did nothing wrong our entire lives! We had everything we wanted! You got a car for your sixteenth birthday and you pawned it off to buy a stupid golden ring! You don’t even have it anymore, you threw it down the drain when we became total frauds and got more money, which you used to buy worthless junk. Our parents are saints compared to how you talk about them.”

“Are you saying this is all my fault?”

“It is, Vel. It’s your fault we’re in here because of you. And I won’t change my mind about that.” He turned his back to her once again. Ever since they had been arrested, it had been nothing but anger between the siblings, bubbling over the tea kettle. Veneer swore that his steam was running out fast around her.

“It’s your fault too! You used the Troll as much as I did!”

Veneer ignored her.

“Veneer, you can’t throw all the blame at me!”

Veneer ignored her again, at least until he heard her stand up and stomp toward him. Right as he flipped around, she grabbed the front of his orange jumpsuit and began to shake him. She bared her teeth in anger at him, shaking him until his neck popped, “You can’t throw all the blame on me, Veneer! That’s just not fair. You used the Trolls just as much as me, so you’re not a perfect saint. Neither were our parents. You don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“What do you mean?!”

Metal clanged on metal and the siblings turned around to face the door of the cell. One of the Correctional Guards stood at the door, his baton against the cell bars, clinging back and forth until he had their attention. He glared at the two, though mostly at Velvet—the universal trouble maker. “Behave yourself Velvet, and stop arguing. That or I can extend your banishment from the rec room to the whole week. You wouldn’t want that would you?”

Velvet, still holding onto her brother’s shirt, glared at the officer, debating in her head if this was still worth it. If fighting her brother was worth the only freedom that they got in that joint. The two shared a long eye contact battle before she gave in, letting her brother go after shoving him back into the chair, and returned to her bed. “Whatever,” she snapped before rolling onto her side with her back facing the two.

Veneer adjusted his shirt before looking at the guard, a bit frazzled and his heart racing. Even she got to him sometimes. “Whew…” Saved by the guard.

The guard watched Velvet and when he felt as though she was calm enough, looked to Veneer, the one he really wanted to talk to. He took out his keys from his side pocket and the clanging of the metal made the two perk up. “Veneer, your counselor wants to see you now.”

Velvet immediately interrupted, sitting up, “What about mine? Doesn’t she want to see me?”

“She would, if you would stop destroying her office at every appointment.” He stopped fiddling with the keys and glared at the sister, waiting for her to settle down again. He looked to Veneer and waited for him to approach the bars, as part of the protocol for entering and leaving the cells.

“What for?” Veneer asked, approaching the cell door. “It’s not time for my appointment, is it? I don’t think it would be…” He sounded panicked.

The guard opened the door. Veneer was required to step out and press his back to the wall with his arms out and palms faced down. Veneer was a low threat so only one guard was needed, though at some point Velvet needed four. He quickly locked the door because as expected, Velvet threw herself against the door and grabbed the bars in rage and growled. She even reached down to try and swipe the keys as they were shoved back into a secure pocket. The guard scoffed in her face and turned to Veneer, patting him down. The guard took his shoulder and pulled him in front of him, letting him walk where he could see him.

Patting Veneer’s shoulder, he chuckled, “We really need to get you your own cell, buddy boy. Your sister gives me an ulcer everytime I open her cage. She’s like a dog who’s had everything handed to him, but still darts out the damn door whenever it opens.”

Veneer chuckled nervously, “Yeah…Uh, do you know why my counselor wants to see me? I didn’t do anything bad, did I?” He tried not to panic or ruminate like he used to. Besides, nothing he did was as bad as his sister…Though he honestly still felt as though he was a kid again, being sent to the principal's office, just multiplied by ten and with more consequences.

“I dunno, they don’t tell me anything. She didn’t seem mad, if that makes you feel any better.”

“I think it does.”

Veneer fidgeted his hands on the walk to his counselor’s office, guided by the guard. The guard opened the door and only shut it once Veneer sat across from his counselor. His counselor was a middle-aged blonde Mount Rageous person. She was prim and proper, and despite her strict posture and formalities of speech, she was a caring woman with bright blonde hair and honey amber eyes. Her office space matched the same atmosphere of her person. Everything was neatly arranged. There was a funky splash of red paint on the wall, pictures of cute animals under cheesy motivational quotes. There were also nick nacks scattered across the room. One of them was one of those solar powered bobble heads dancing along to no beat, sitting across from Veneer with a playful catty smile.

Linda greeted him with a warm smile. Veneer was still getting used to having someone like Linda to talk to. She always listened and never interrupted him, like his sister did.

“Dr. Graham…Uh, why am I here?” he asked and the emotions immediately flooded in, trapped within from where he had been dealing with his sister all day. He sunk down into his chair, trying to hide, “I’m in trouble, aren’t I?”

Linda gasped and reached across the table. She knew that Veneer wasn’t a touchy-feely person, so she touched the desk right in front of him instead. “No, no, no, dear! Actually, I have something exciting to share with you.” She waited for Veneer to slide back up into his chair and sit properly.

“What…is it?” Veneer asked hesitantly. He expectedly leaned forward.

Linda bounced, her own excitement showing as she pulled out a folder from her file cabinet. Everything was so perfectly organized that it took no time for her to find anything. “Since our system runs on good behavior, and you’ve been on your best behavior—might I say even better than those who have been here for years—we decided to give you a huge reward. Now, we don’t just give these away to every patient here!” Her hand was on a document, which she pushed across the desk then flipped it so it faced him.

Before him was a blank tan file cabinet folder.

Veneer’s eyebrow raised. “What’s in that?”

“You won’t know until you open it. Go on!” She pulled her hands back and clapped as Veneer reached for the folder. He picked it up and opened it to the first page. He read it and frowned.

Before he could get words out, Linda cheered and clapped her hands some more, “It’s our Pen Pal Program! We like to give these out to our top most behaved patients here. We were quite surprised to see how well you turned out, and how quick and well mannered you were, so don’t take this reward lightly!” She said and took the document back, flipping through the pages, explaining every single one of them until Veneer’s eyes couldn’t keep up with his brain.

“Wait, wait…So I earned this?” he asked and put his hands on the papers, taking them when Linda let go of them. “What do I do with this? How does it work?”

“It’s easy!” Linda began to explain, “You fill out these forms and I scan and put it into the system. After a bit of Beep Booping on the keyboard, the system finds a pen pal that will be suitable for you! The system is surprisingly 95 percent accurate. When a Pen Pal is assigned to you, you receive their first letter and then write a response to them. After that, you basically send letters back and forth to each other. It’s very old school and the only part that technically plays a role is to keep your documents up to hand and sort out who your Pen Pal is!”

Veneer was distracted by the exaggerated hand gestures Linda made as she talked. He shrugged it off and began to flip through the papers, looking at them carefully to make a decision. Having someone new and different to talk to sounded…different.

“If you fill this out right now while I still have you in my office, I should get everything uploaded and submitted within a couple hours.” Her fingers clacked loudly against the keyboard. Then she looked to Veneer and gave him one of her trusting, and warm smiles. “Is that something you’re interested in, Veneer?”

After looking through the last of the papers, Veneer took a second to think it over in his head. It would be nice to have conversations with someone from the outside world, considering he no longer had his parents. For once, he wouldn’t have a conversation centered around how did you get here? How did you get busted? Best of all, he could have someone to communicate with that wasn’t his sister. That was the icing on the cake. That’s what stood out to him the most.

Placing the papers back down on the desk, he looked to Linda with a determined expression. He held out a hand to her, brows knitting together. “Pen, please.”

“That’s it! YAY!” Linda took out a pen from the pen box that was organized by type of pen, colors, and probably even ink levels. Veneer took the pen and began to read everything meticulously and filled out blanks while he glanced over the paper. Linda was quiet, but played calming and relaxing music that she knew Veneer liked to help him focus.

The paperwork didn’t take long, and he finished it in less than thirty minutes. “Can you look it over and make sure I didn’t forget anything?” he asked, sounding timid as he handed the papers over.

Linda took the papers and flicked through the pages at lightning speed. A smile crossed her lips. “It’s perfect, I’ll get everything ready for you and you should get your Pen Pal within a week or two.” She looked at the watch on her wrist. “Woo, look at the time. You have to get back to the cell for quiet time. Your favorite time!” She clasped her hands together. “Veneer, I’m so proud of the growth you’ve gone through these past months. You must have been eager for change before you walked through our doors.”

Veneer blushed at the compliments and rubbed the back of his neck. She wasn’t necessarily wrong. “I’m not used to all these compliments…I don’t think I deserve all this praise.”

Linda shook her head and placed her hand back on Veneer’s spot on the desk, giving him a soft and understanding smile. “Just because your sister made you fight for affections, and do terrible things, doesn’t mean you’re less deserving of love. Remember what we talked about, okay?” She leaned back in her chair. “Also, Veneer?”

“Yeah?”

“I received your report for transferring rooms and approved it,” she answered, watching as Veneer became brighter every second. “We just have to wait for a room to become available, alright? You’re next on the list, I promise.” She nodded her head.

Veneer was disappointed knowing that he had to wait a bit longer, but nonetheless was happy that there was at least one person fighting for him. He nodded his head, determined before standing. “Thank you, Dr. Graham. For everything.” He felt appreciative of the woman, who had gone out of his way to help him become a better person.

A different guard stood outside when Veneer came out of the room, and nodded to the male. Walking in front of him again, he walked all the way back to his room. He felt an anxious pit in his stomach, knowing his sister was there waiting for him and already heard her voice hounding him to tell her everything he discussed with Linda, as she always did. And he didn’t want to do that. Sure enough, his sister was waiting for him with her hands on the bars, and once again the guards had to fight simply to keep Velvet within her cell. It was the same thing everyday, and maybe this Pen Pal program would help change things.

Veneer was tired of this life.

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saint-siren · 1 year

Text

A World For Her Alone | Color all my days blue, but be sure to save one for white

Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9

cw (chapter specific): pregnancy, infidelity, sanity slippage, suicide

pairing: claude x fem!reader

summary: Reader really thinks she can be happy in MY story this soon? *scoffs* No way, baby!

author's note: I fear you guys aren't gonna like me for this one...more notes at the bottom

You drifted through moments you’d lived so many times before. The moment you returned, you thought for the thousandth time “this time, I swear I’ll do it right.” It was like a bedtime prayer, worn down to meaninglessness. A little lullaby on your lips, like a child searching for comfort.

There was no where else to go but back to assuming your dutiful role. This time, perhaps because your feet were barely touching the ground. Reality glitched frequently these days, if you could call them that. You tolerated Claude and Diana without even so much as a frown. And this time also, you protected her life like a tiny candle flame against the wind. Diana was well enough to start going to the academy with you, a rite of passage as much as a means of generalized education for children of noble houses.

At lunch, you sat alone in the gardens while they went to the dining hall together. If you tried hard enough, you could make out a voice in those memories. A blink of what you think could be black hair and a boys uniform, he’s floating through you as thin as air. He’s telling you something, in a voice cold, flinty and familiar. “Claude is with Diana again.” Something is being implied in these words almost bluntly and ill concealed.

Your answer is rote, automatic. “Yes, he knows I prefer to be alone but my sister is new and doesn’t know anyone so he keeps her company.”

“Is that so?” He smiled bitterly as if he hadn’t expected that answer.

“Of course.”

“I wonder why you cover for him…” Those words passed you by without impact, they seemed more like your own thoughts than anything.

“Everyone always says Diana is better suited for Claude, that perhaps he’ll break the engagement to be with her.” Again, no impact. You already lived it, silly rumors couldn’t even amount to half the horror of the truth. “I hope you won’t take offense, milady, but perhaps you should fight harder. There are more rivals about you than just the young lady. I had heard you were a strong willed lady, will your position really be okay if you leave things be?”

He went away, or maybe you just blinked and the lunch period had passed, you couldn’t know. As if a machine, you thoughtlessly gathered your things as the piercing bell sounded and hurried you along. You caught a glimpse of Claude walking Diana out of the dining hall, her hand wrapped around his arm for support and his on the small of her back. Murmuring again to yourself, you looked away. But when Diana caught sight of you, she came over, looking bashful. “Your next class is this way too, right? Should we go together?” She asked. Of course, there was only one answer to that question. You’d risk being seen as bitter and jealous if you refused, there was already enough of that in the way Claude saw you. He was eyeing you, paused in his path.

You smiled. “Of course.”

Claude said farewell to Diana, apparently satisfied enough by your answer not to fix you with a hard stare. The two of you walked along, all the time you could hear whispers, concrete ones instead of the thin, almost sing-song caches of remembered insult.

“She pulled her aside to call her out…”

“She must be angry about Lord Claude eating with the poor lady.”

“She’ll act one way before her fiance and another to Lady Diana…if she’ll act that way to ladies who haven’t even done anything to her, think of what she’ll do if she thinks her own sister is a better match for Claude.”

People had gossiped about you forever, it was truly nothing new. Perhaps you had even deserved their contempt for behaving the way you did. Still, your skin burned as you heard the words shamelessly hurled at you even at your most mild action. Their slander was almost laughable in hindsight, you and Diana were sisters, if you had any desire to call her out, would you not do it at home where no one could interfere?

Diana walked along, fidgeting with the threads of her uniform and looking down. It was additional kindling for the gossip that spread like wildfire. “You’re not upset that I ate lunch with Claude, are you?” She finally said, looking up at you. “No, of course not,” You assured her, smiling again which seemed convince her. Her expression became bright again as she happily accepted your platitude. You walked on, in a haze.

Each night, you worked diligently on your wedding dress. It was something that could definitely have been left to a seamstress but it brought a bit of happiness. Your fingers moved deftly over the silk of your dress, the cool fabric bringing you back down to earth. The sensation of your aching hands, the way your gown was slowly woven into form by your careful hands, it made you dream of your wedding which would take place soon after your graduation. It made you believe that the happiness you acquired would hold up. Claude was not displeased with you this time, and had even started to relax in your presence. You even saw him more often this time, a few weeks ago he had taken you to a botanical garden. As a pair, you stood closely and walked quietly down rows of exotic flowers. Inside, you could hardly restrain a hope that nearly ripped a painful wound through tender flesh. He took your hand when the two of you needed to pass by another couple, it was warm and forgiving.

You had to put down your needle, your hands were trembling.

On your wedding day, it was overcast. You were nearly suffocating just looking up at the sky, when your maid opened the curtains in the morning, you curled into yourself to cut off the dull light.”Hm, looks like rain,” she hummed. Pushing back against the memories, you retreated under the waves of your mind and buried yourself there. It was a shame that the feeling of reality slipping was temporary. Things only felt more and more fixed the longer you lived.

When you arrived to the temple, its solid stone and thousands of hanging candles that substituted the sun, you felt better. Here you were living between earth and heaven. All nerves and butterflies, you felt like a true bride, one fashioned in the love of her husband to be. You felt beautiful in the pure, stark white of your gown.

“...I swear in the name of my good house, to love and honor you for as long as you shall live. Never will you be disgraced by any action or inaction of mine,” Claude said his vows, not hesitating on a single word. That was the man you loved, lying before his family and comrades for the sake of the marquisate. It…almost made you smile to hear his devotion even if it was not to you.

Looking at you, after the ceremony and formalities were done, you heard Claude speak honeyed words in an awed voice that made you shudder. “So beautiful…” He murmured. Forgetting yourself, you gasped softly, feeling the rapture and confusion of his approval. And he was so near you, sitting at your side. You could reach out to him, to cup his cheek, to place a hand on his shoulder perhaps, to return something to him.

Diana’s laugh sounded, a clear and lovely laugh that always did make everyone smile. The sound was sharp and near and you noticed that Claude’s eyes were staring through you. They seemed fixed on your face but his gaze, it was like yours had been before. As if you and everything else was passing through. You turned as though possessed to confirm that although he was looking in your directions, the praises went to your little sister who indeed looked beautiful. More like a bride than you did; blushing, chatting with a few young ladies and a lord you vaguely recognized.

You were freefalling back to earth in an instant. The wind was knocked out of your chest and your surroundings seemed to sharpen, too bright, too loud, too colorful. Not even this day of all days was yours alone. Agony, you thought, Carrying the weight of every life I've led and still having hope enough to destroy, this must be agony.

Your marriage henceforth was nothing special, you applied a lighter hand in the politics of the marquisate. You tried at being cunning, underhanded rather than an iron lady as you had been before. Claude had expressed his gratitude whenever he was home. It was not a warm marriage, or a joyful home but he was pleased with you and the two of you were on better terms than you had been in other lives. The frigidity was bearable and as a partner, Claude was gentle.

When would you learn not to lean into things that cannot last?

A day came perhaps two years into your marriage when Claude walked into the salon, holding the hand of Diana who looked sickly. He approached you like one does an animal they’re not sure won’t bite them. His eyes were hard and determined but his steps were slow and sure.

“It isn’t Diana’s fault,” He forewarned.

“Is there something wrong?” It came out of your mouth almost beyond your control, even dreading whatever came next you were still desiring to make it better.

Claude hesitated before speaking. “Diana is pregnant.”

Something fell from your hands with a loud, clang. You didn’t so much as glance downward. Continuing as if a doll with a string being pulled, you answered with a question. “Who’s the father?” Stupid, how pathetic. Reality, all the time, was falling down on top of you.

“I am.”

It broken open. Whatever force kept you standing and speaking coherently had gone away and you were reduced to a child, whimpering and feeble. “Why?” was all that could be accurately comprehended.

“Because I love her,” Claude retorted shamelessly with his brow furrowed, giving you a stern look as if he was standing up to someone. But all that you were was a woman withering, struggling to grasp a single thread of sanity.

A child. Diana had a child. You couldn’t even hold yours before you died and slipped away forever. You would never even so much as know the name of your child and even so, Diana would have hers with Claude. That child would surely be loved by him, it was loved even now it seemed. Would she have that child you lost? A bright haired child crying out to let everyone hear their vigor and life. You screamed.

“I’m sorry big sister…” Diana mumbled, looking down. Claude tended to her, leading her to the couch and covering her ears with his big hands.

You were on the ground, gripping at your own skin so tightly your bled. Shivering in a display larger than any you’d ever made before. Another scream built in the back of your throat and you hadn’t even the power to restrain it. In between, you heard Claude say “Stay here, I’ll take her upstairs.”

You were shut up in your bedroom, made to rest until you were calm. But when his touch disappeared and the door locked behind him, you broke. Reality was intercut with the screams, the aches, the blood of realities past. It was all happening concurrently, Felix’s blood running in the mud, the cries of your child who could not and would not be soothed in your arms, the starvation of the prison. It didn’t end, it never ended. You were given a few years before it wanted you to remember again, to swallow you whole.

“No more” you begged “Please, no more...I can’t…I didn’t–!”

There was a sleep tonic in the drawer of your nightstand, a strong one made and prescribed by the kind doctor. The recommended dose was just a tiny spoonful but it always put you into a sleep like death. You took them when your body was heavy from working so hard it nearly bowed your back but your mind was hung up on a thought that did not beckon sleep. Like the sound of the rain howling that night.

You picked up the bottle and drank it all down.

additional author's note: you guys, I swear this will have a happy ending. And we've got one chapter to go before we get into something I think might make you guys feel a little better.

tags:@kage-tobiuo @kreishin @rosephantomhive@yeahdrarry @splaterparty0-0 @dear-dairiesss @qluvrv @hafsuhhh @eissaaaa @ayolk @doan-19 @fourcefulcupid @ariachaos @cerisearan@irisspade@yaesflorist@jcrml@xiaosprettygf@yevenly@amaris08atoshi012022 @obsessed-with-a-fictional-man @softbummiee

#claude de alger x reader #claude x reader #wmmap x reader #wmmap fanfic #claude de alger obelia x reader #manhwa x reader #x reader #claude de alger obelia

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teecupangel · 1 year

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Ok, so I know there are allot of ideas for the bleeding affect becoming sentient and being the ancestors. But what if it wasn’t? What if when desmond bleeds an ancestor it’s really them from their time dreaming about desmond? So example. Desmond gets out of the animus and starts bleeding ezio, ezio has no idea what’s going on and can barely understand shaun/becs/Lucy. But when he snaps out of it when he sees his reflection or someone calls Desmond’s name. Ezio wakes up like wtf kind of dream is that? Later the name desmond will mean something and he might pay more attention to his dreams.

That’s going to be hard on Ezio though unless we make it that Desmond’s Bleed is special. That, thanks to Isu BS, he’s the only person who can actually connect with his ancestors like that. Otherwise, this brings us the frightening reminder that Desmond isn’t the only person to Bleed as Ezio.

This means Ezio would also know about Clay.

Just imagine the confusion that Ezio would have whenever he and Clay connected. Whenever he takes control.

Especially once Clay learned of Lucy’s betrayal and Juno starts hijacking his Animus sessions to push him into ‘understanding’ the part he must play in the calculations.

Confusion would turn to worry once Ezio starts taking over during those times, feeling Clay’s deteriorating state, maybe even noticing marks and wounds that looked self-inflicted.

Maybe, he was there when Clay finally takes his last breath, feeling it himself and angry at his own powerlessness to stop it.

Sees Lucy’s expression as Clay dies and knows… knows that something is terribly wrong with her.

So when he starts having dreams of another, of a young man named Desmond…

He knows that he cannot trust the blonde woman.

He doesn’t understand what they are saying but he could sense the hostility from the man as well as the kindness the black-haired woman tried to show.

But they were all wary.

Wary of him.

Because they know he wasn’t this man they call “Desmond”.

And it started out like Clay, just seconds before he would be awakened back in his body.

Then longer and longer.

Until Ezio could move for a minute or so without anyone realizing it.

Being quiet seemed to do the job, slouching and trying to make himself small.

This Desmond’s limbs were longer than his so it took a while for him to get used to his body.

He could stay in Desmond’s body for as long as 3 minutes when he heard of his name pass Minerva’s lips.

That’s how Ezio realized why he was dreaming of Desmond.

She called him a prophet.

He was Desmond’s prophet.

He was meant to help Desmond.

And how could he do it…

But the only way he knows how.

He does know if Desmond sees what is happening the same way Ezio sees what is happening whenever he takes over Desmond’s body.

But Minerva had looked behind him when she had directly addressed Desmond.

So perhaps Desmond could only see from behind Ezio.

Ezio wasn’t sure but…

He doesn’t mind doing this as many times as necessary.

He looks into the mirror and stares at the empty space just above his shoulder and he speaks…

“Desmond…”

“If you can hear me, I hope that you can understand me. What I am about to say may sound too ‘ridiculous’ and hard to believe so I will tell you things I have seen. You’re with three people. A woman with blonde hair wearing white. A man who always sounds rude. A black-haired woman with a kind smile. You’re in this strange place with so many different things but I always wake up in this uncomfortable red chair of some kind. I believe that’s what’s connecting you to me.”

I hope that would be enough for you to believe me when I tell you that I can see thru your eyes at times. And you’re not the only person I have dreamed of.”

“There is another man.” Ezio paused for a moment before he corrected himself, “There was another man.”

“And… the blonde woman you’re with let him die. She did nothing as he… as we die.”

“Don’t trust her, Desmond.”

“Whatever she tells you…”

“She’s not your ally.”

#another idea #was ezio starts leaving messages to desmond #using a pen or something #writes it on his arm or palm #make it more secretive #but nah #flat-out calling lucy out of the blue #is more dramatic XD #ask and answer #assassin's creed #desmond miles #ezio auditore #teecup writes/has a plot #fic idea: assassin's creed

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mariana-oconnor · 7 months

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Thor Bridge pt 3

Back to the Gold King again.

But first we have to go and see the young governess who he claims thinks she can fix him.

I had expected from all that we had heard to see a beautiful woman, but I can never forget the effect which Miss Dunbar produced upon me. It was no wonder that even the masterful millionaire had found in her something more powerful than himself—something which could control and guide him.

Watson, rein it in, she's been a victim of sexual harassment from her employer and she's now in jail for allegedly murdering his wife. There is a time and a place for your horniness, now is not it. But, I suppose, at least you are consistent.

"After seeing you, I am prepared to accept Mr. Gibson's statement both as to the influence which you had over him and as to the innocence of your relations with him."

I really hope that this is because of an indent on the little finger of her left hand and a shiny patch on the inside of her elbow, because if this is just because she's pretty, Holmes, then I am disappoint.

"I would not wish to wrong her, but she loved so vividly in a physical sense that she could hardly understand the mental, and even spiritual, tie which held her husband to me, or imagine that it was only my desire to influence his power to good ends which kept me under his roof."

Oh boy, she's really believing the nonsense, huh? Sure, you have a mental and spiritual bond. I'm sure his intentions are entirely chaste. Yup, yuhuh.

"I can see now that I was wrong. Nothing could justify me in remaining where I was a cause of unhappiness, and yet it is certain that the unhappiness would have remained even if I had left the house.”

Which means the only thing gained by you staying was your own unhappiness. So that was pointless. But yes, you should absolutely have left and not tried to use your married employer's crush on you to manipulate his actions. Like, I get that you were trying to do something good, and I understand you're a victim in all of this, but that was still a bad idea.

"I saw no reason for such secrecy, but I did as she asked, accepting the appointment. She asked me to destroy her note and I burned it in the schoolroom grate."

Oh boy. Always keep the receipts. You were being framed so hard.

"Never did I realize till that moment how this poor creature hated me. She was like a mad woman—indeed, I think she was a mad woman, subtly mad with the deep power of deception which insane people may have. How else could she have met me with unconcern every day and yet had so raging a hatred of me in her heart?"

Yeah, little weird that the person we have been repeatedly assured was incredibly emotional and open about her emotions somehow managed to smother them to that extent on a daily basis until this point. Almost like there was some catalyst for her outburst (or this is a lie).

“Mr. Gibson is a very strong, self-contained man. I do not think that he would ever show his emotions on the surface. But I, who knew him so well, could see that he was deeply concerned.”

The more you talk about him, the more I think you were taken in by him. You're being very nice about the man...

“It could only have been at meal-time, or else at the hours when I would be in the schoolroom with the children.”

So... almost any time of day then?

It was as well for him that I did so, for he took little care for his own safety when his mind was once absorbed by a problem, so that more than once my revolver had been a good friend in need. I reminded him of the fact.

I mean, you killed a dog that one time. But usually he sort of... hits people himself? This feels like revisionist history. Holmes once bent a poker back to being straight.

“Do you know, Watson,” said he, “I believe your revolver is going to have a very intimate connection with the mystery which we are investigating.” “My dear Holmes, you are joking.”

Is Holmes about to throw Watson's revolver into a river?

“It all depends upon the behaviour of Dr. Watson's revolver,” said my friend. “Here it is. Now, officer, can you give me ten yards of string?” The village shop provided a ball of stout twine.

Well Watson's revolver is definitely going to be thrown somewhere.

Watson, why do you trust him with your things?

At the words he raised the pistol to his head, and then let go his grip. In an instant it had been whisked away by the weight of the stone, had struck with a sharp crack against the parapet, and had vanished over the side into the water.

🤣😂🤣

Bye bye, revolver!

You will also find beside it the revolver, string and weight with which this vindictive woman attempted to disguise her own crime and to fasten a charge of murder upon an innocent victim.

So the wife committed suicide to frame the governess for her death because she was jealous about her abusive husband? That's... utterly nonsensical of her.

Should have killed the governess and framed the husband (I mean, no, she shouldn't have, but it would have been a better plan).

Oh god. Oh no. Oh fuck me no. This is going to end with Miss Dunbar marrying the Gold King in order to fix him, isn't it? Isn't it?

I hate everything about that.

No doubt she blamed this innocent lady for all those harsh dealings and unkind words with which her husband tried to repel her too demonstrative affection. Her first resolution was to end her own life. Her second was to do it in such a way as to involve her victim in a fate which was worse far than any sudden death could be.

So the guy abuses his possibly already mentally ill wife to a point where she considers suicide the only way out? And she blames the other woman completely and not her husband. And Miss Dunbar isn't exactly blameless, using the guy's crush on her to her own ends, however altruistic they may be.

Just a whole lot of nope.

"Well, Watson, we have helped a remarkable woman, and also a formidable man. Should they in the future join their forces, as seems not unlikely, the financial world may find that Mr. Neil Gibson has learned something in that schoolroom of sorrow where our earthly lessons are taught.”

Just no. Just no... That poor woman. And yeah, what she did sucked. But what the actual fuck. Fuck everyone, honestly. None of this ended well. I hate it all.

Happily ever after because the love of a good (~British~) woman will change him and make everything from now on sunflowers and daisy chains. And no thought to the children who lost their mother or the fact that abusive partners can't just be 'fixed' and he's absolutely going to abuse his next partner when she doesn't live up to his standards. They're just going to be in this horrific manipulative relationship and the children are going to be trapped with them.

No thank you. This is not what I ordered.

But I did appreciate Watson's revolver taking a bath. Nice moment of comedy in amongst all the nonsense.

#Letters from Watson #Thor Bridge #Sherlock Holmes #long post

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calypsolemon · 1 year

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if i did have one Actual Criticism of ToH (I actually have a few I just am trying to avoid sounding negative about the show bc overall I very much enjoyed it and think its good) it would be that I do think the reasoning Papa Titan gives Luz for why Belos's actions and her own do not come from the same place is... a little off the mark.

Mainly because I think there's not too many ways in which you could say Belos's choices aren't genuine to him. Oh, the reasoning he gives other people of course are a bunch of lies and bullshit, and he even lies to himself, but the root cause of his delusions lies in the puritanistic upbringing he was exposed to from a young age. An upbringing which very much convinces people that control and subjugation of others are necessary to protect their mortal souls from the damnation of hell.

For this reason, "genuine-ness" reads a bit too much of a handwavy abstraction of Luz's actual concern to me. Belos's existence has made her painfully aware that it is really easy to rationalize massively harmful actions to yourself if you believe it is in service of protecting someone else. This doesn't mean that Luz actually has hurt anyone, or that she needed to be as harshly punishing of herself as she was (in fact I would say her desire for self-punishment is a reflection of Belos's puritan values weighing on her), but rather that I think it doesn't really solve her conundrum to simply tell her "well, Belos is kind of a big fat liar who is trying to control people, but don't worry, you're Not That."

What I really wish he had said, and what I do think the series implies in other ways but maybe could have been served to have said openly in that moment, is that Luz is not the same because she is capable of self reflection. In all the times Luz has ever lied to someone, or attempted to change someone or something else to fit her idea of them (think attempting to cure Eda, playing along with King about him being the king of demons, Witches before Wizards, etc) she has ultimately realized it was wrong, and allowed herself to embrace the way things naturally are. In fact, she more often feels like she should be trying to change herself in response to ppl expecting her to fit into social norms. When her environment feels too stifling for her, she finds a different one. She doesn't attempt to fit everything around her into a mold that perfectly suits her, nor does she attempt to destroy everything which doesn't agree with her.

Luz stresses over being just like Belos because she has been raised to, if anything, be too self reflective, and feel like an awful person for not being able to conform to norms that don't naturally fit her. What she needs to be told is that it's admirable, that she tries so hard, and it's a good thing that she is able to see where she maybe needs to change herself at times, but she needs to allow herself the same grace she gives others. She needs to be told that nothing good comes from keeping yourself from happiness. That wanting acceptance and love from others is not the same as attempting to control them.

Buuuut I know they only had like 3 minutes to convey what's going on so I get why they phrased it the way they did. What Luz really needed was a 7 hour long therapy session with daddy titan which. I'm not even sure would have been entirely on point bc the Titan himself probably has some issues he needs to work through. But that's another post

#the owl house #toh spoilers #watching and dreaming #im not using any x critical tags bc the sort of ppl who use them have some weird ass takes so #sorry if you love the owl house and this bothers you i PROMMY i really do think the series is largely good #there's just times when i think they don't always do the most bang up job at explaining what they mean but i can see #i Percieve

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robininthelabyrinth · 1 year

Text

The Greed Is The Unraveling - Chapter 3 - ao3

Jiang Cheng was having trouble breathing.

The best reason to explain this was that he was moving too fast, leaking qi like a sieve, as if he were a broken pot unable to hold water. Therefore, it stood to reason that if he only stopped marching forward inexorably, he would swiftly be able to recover and resume a normal status.

He kept going.

If anything, he moved faster –

“Jiujiu, wait! Fairy’s paw got hurt!”

Jiang Cheng came to an abrupt stop, turning quickly. “What?! How? Fairy’s a spiritual dog –”

Fairy – completely fine – panted happily at him, tail wagging, while Jin Ling jogged up behind him then put his hands on his knees, breathing deeply to recuperate.

“A-Ling, Fairy is fine,” Jiang Cheng said, glaring. “Did you just lie to my face?”

“No, jiujiu,” Jin Ling said. “I lied to your back, because that’s the only thing I’ve been able to see.”

Perhaps he’d been going a little too fast.

Yes, he’d been going too fast, but that was reasonable. That was why he was having trouble breathing. It had nothing to do with where they’d been, or the people there, or –

“Listen, jiujiu, I know it’s not fun for your grandfather to turn out to have been a complete ass…”

“An ass?!” Jiang Cheng exploded. “He’s not – that’s not – that’s an insult to donkeys!”

Jiang Cheng hadn’t known what to expect when he’d returned to the Lotus Pier in this past time. He had been full of trepidation, unsure of whether it would be his father or his mother, his sister, his own past self that he would encounter. He hadn’t been sure he could face up to them, even if they didn’t know who he was.

He hadn’t been expecting Jiang Zhike.

Jiang Cheng’s father hadn’t spoken much about his grandfather, other than to say that he had a strong personality – well, that much Jiang Cheng could certainly confirm. If his father had been likened to an agile deer, gracefully traversing the forest by going easily with the flow around the trees, then his grandfather was reminiscent of a rampaging elk, barreling straight through the woods without thought to anyone or anything in his path. From their minimal interaction this past half-day, Jiang Cheng could now say that his grandfather was loud and demanding and a bit self-involved, perfectly willing to cite the Jiang sect motto to justify everything he did with a jaunty smirk. He was a powerful cultivator, seemingly both talented and capable of hard work, but it seemed to have grown bitter in him: he perceived anyone who took any longer that he did to achieve what he had achieved as being merely lazy and judged them accordingly.

Perhaps when Jiang Cheng been younger, it would have entered his heart and hurt –

Ah, who was he lying to in his own head? He was still hurt.

Jiang Cheng had very few memories of his grandfather, who had died when he was still quite young. He had only very vaguely remembered that exuberant presence, excitable and intrusive, and now that he’d actually met him in person, he was thoroughly disappointed in him. Sure, it might have been nice to know that there was someone a bit more like Jiang Cheng in the Jiang ancestry line, but at the same time…well, it was really no wonder that his father had grown up so determinedly easy-going if his own father was like that – always demanding things from those around him, always raising his expectations, never, ever satisfied.

He’d only been there a few shichen, but Jiang Cheng had seen his own father be scolded for being, in his grandfather’s terms, ‘indecisive’, ‘wishy-washy’, and, at one point, ‘a wet blanket’. And yet, the moment Jiang Fengmian tried to decide anything, his opinion was promptly overridden in favor of whatever Jiang Zhike happened to feel like, completely unpredictable and random. Watching it was frustrating, even maddening, and Jiang Cheng had wanted nothing more than to try to step up to defend his father…only he couldn’t, of course. Not against his own grandfather.

He did get angry, though. How dare his grandfather make such mistakes in parenting? Jiang Cheng had made his own fair share of them with Jin Ling, but that was different. He was raising him all but alone, his only ally a man who later turned out to be a murderous dog, and it was his nephew to whom he had only tenuous claim – it was reasonable that things would be difficult for him, that he’d misstep. But even so, he still never would have done anything to put Jin Ling in a tough position like that, make him suffer, make him doubt himself, make him…

Jiang Cheng couldn’t breathe.

He couldn’t breathe.

He couldn’t –

It wasn’t his grandfather he was really angry at, of course.

He was angry at his own father, who he adored, who he’d always adored. After the fall of the Lotus Pier he’d put aside all his issues with his parents and turned them into idols, to be put on a pedestal and respected, never criticized, never condemned, never resented. He’d thought himself so mature back then, if painfully so, but in retrospect he had been little more than a child, only a few years older than Jin Ling was now, and he couldn’t even imagine Jin Ling going through half of what he’d endured. He’d thought to himself that his parents had prepared him as well as they could, that they’d done as best they could.

He wasn’t sure he thought that anymore.

It was just – Jiang Cheng had been sect leader for so many years. He’d had no choice but to get good at understanding people, at judging them, figuring out if they were trustworthy or if they were trouble. He knew how to identify their flaws so that he could compensate for them when he made use of them, because he didn’t have enough people that he could reasonable reject anyone – he just had to make do, and making do meant knowing what you were working with. He’d had no choice but to develop that skill, and he thought he’d gotten quite good at it by this point in time.

Unfortunately, if he really was good at evaluating people, then he’d have to admit to himself, that, well…

His father really was horribly wishy-washy.

He really was awfully indecisive and kind of pathetic, in his own way. He was stubborn and self-involved enough to make mistakes and keep making them because he believed he was right, but not strong enough to fight for what he believed – or even to tell people what it was what he believed!

It was Jiang Zhike’s own fault for that, of course, since he always wanted things his own way and used his strong personality to run roughshod over his son until his son’s entire personality became centered on making as few waves as possible, on making his own life as peaceful and pleasant as possible. Jiang Zhike’s fault, and maybe his wife’s, a fading nonentity who was a perfect wife only in the sense that she was so submissive that she never made trouble about anything, happy to be easily placated with gifts and then forgotten – it made a certain amount of sense that Jiang Fengmian had looked for someone lively and enterprising for his own wife, and just as much sense that he hadn’t known what to do with a genuine firecracker like Yu Ziyuan once he’d gotten her.

If he’d been Jiang Cheng’s subordinate, Jiang Cheng would have made him someone’s second-in-command – given him someone who would lead him, someone competent but hard who needed softening, someone who had a touch for appreciating people, because Jiang Fengmian would like nothing better than to run after someone and clean up their mistakes and get praised for doing so.

Definitely wouldn’t have made him a leader, though. He wasn’t fit for it.

Probably…

He probably wasn’t fit to be a good father. Everything in Jiang Fengmian’s life had conspired to render him unsuitable for the typical demands of such a role, which not least of which included loving people unreservedly even if they made his life harder, and his failure was therefore understandable.

The fact that Jiang Cheng understood didn’t eliminate the sour taste on his tongue in the slightest.

His father should have done better by him. He should have made an effort, especially given his own terrible father.

He should have –

He should have been someone Jiang Cheng would have been proud to defend against anyone, even his own grandfather. Jiang Cheng shouldn’t have had to trip over his own tongue as his grandfather skillfully poked holes in his pride with his pointed interrogatories as he tried to figure out who Jiang Cheng was. He shouldn’t have been left speechless when his grandfather, wholly unknowingly, made snide comments about how badly he’d been raised and identified with pinpoint accuracies all those little things that Jiang Cheng had been denying for years had been wrong with his childhood.

He should have –

He hadn’t.

Jiang Fengmian had been a bad father.

It wasn’t anything Jiang Cheng had done, as he’d always thought. It wasn’t his fault.

It was his father’s fault, for having done a bad job raising him.

Jiang Cheng couldn’t breathe.

“Jiujiu, jiujiu, listen, I’m not saying you’re wrong to think it,” Jin Ling said, pounding him on the back as if he thought there was something stuck in Jiang Cheng’s throat – which he supposed there was, if you thought about it a certain way. “I’m just saying, I understand. I feel the same way, too.”

Jiang Cheng turned a death glare on his nephew, unable to believe he’d just said that.

“What?!” Jin Ling said, crossing his arms defensively. “My grandfather was Jin Guangshan. You can’t possibly think I’m happy about that!”

Oh. Jin Ling was still talking about grandfathers.

“I mean, as much as I hate to endorse patricide, if little uncle hadn’t murdered him when he did, I might’ve been raised by him, at least in part,” Jin Ling said, and shuddered theatrically. “Think about all the bad habits I might’ve developed. Can you imagine?”

“No, I can’t,” Jiang Cheng growled. “Because if he’d even thought about it, I would’ve killed him.”

He wouldn’t have, of course. His sect wasn’t powerful enough to deal with the war that would’ve caused, and of course in the end he was only Jin Ling’s uncle, not his father. He didn’t have the right to override a grandfather who shared the same surname.

…he might have done it anyway.

Luckily that wasn’t something he needed to worry about, and just the saying so made Jin Ling beam.

Jin Ling smiling was worth – everything.

(His own smile hadn’t been enough for his father. That was…well, that was too bad for his father.)

“Anyway, I’m just saying, you don’t need to run so fast,” Jin Ling said. “We’re going to be early to the meeting point as it is, and I can’t imagine the others were so much better at collecting information in the marketplace than we were at the Lotus Pier that they’d get there any earlier than us.”

Jiang Cheng huffed, but he did feel a bit better somehow. He was still furiously upset at his father and grandfather, had given them both a piece of his mind before storming out – he knew that believing that he was from the future was a stretch, but their level of disbelief was positively offensive; he was obviously a Jiang, they’d acknowledged as much, and then they’d refused to believe him anyway! – but whatever his own ancestors might’ve done, at least he hadn’t screwed up Jin Ling too much. Jin Ling still had friends, loyal ones who trusted him and who he could trust in turn, ones that were his equals and not merely his subordinates.

No matter how annoying they could sometimes be…

“I don’t know how much information you really think those brats can get anyway,” Jiang Cheng grumbled, rubbing his face. At least he could breathe again. “Lan Sizhui isn’t half bad even if he was born a Wen and raised by Hanguang-jun, but Lan Jingyi…? I’m shocked he survived to adulthood in the Cloud Recesses with Teacher Lan.”

“His father is apparently good friends with Teacher Lan, so I assume he survived based on having connections,” Jin Ling said, rolling his eyes. “Which doesn’t surprise me at all. Though, actually, Ouyang Zizhen says that he’s heard that Lan Jingyi’s dad is some brilliant alchemist or something, and that he’s probably been breathing in fumes since he was small, which explains a lot about that rotten excuse he has for a personality –”

Jiang Cheng was fairly sure that his nephew was sleeping with, or at least making out with, one of his friends, which was quite normal for that age group – certainly the Cloud Recesses had been a very enlightening period of Jiang Cheng’s life, thanks to Nie Huaisang, and the war had been equally enlightening thanks to Nie Mingjue and several other very companiable fellow soldiers – but he genuinely couldn’t figure out which one it was. They all seemed to get mentioned about the same rate, and with about the same level of enthusiasm…

Well, he wasn’t going to ask if Jin Ling wasn’t going to tell. Jiang Cheng would have been mortified to have to talk about any of his own experimentation with his father, or any authority figure for that matter – the thought of having to discuss the matter with Teacher Lan had kept him awake some nights, although admittedly not always purely out of shame – listen, the man was attractive no matter what Wei Wuxian pretended – anyway.

His point was, he wasn’t going to traumatize his nephew like that.

Well, unless Jin Ling did something to deserve it.

Always good to keep something in reserve.

Jin Ling kept chattering all the way to the meet-up point, where to Jiang Cheng’s surprise the two Lans and the Ouyang boy were in fact already waiting.

“We quickly realized we weren’t getting anywhere, Sect Leader Jiang,” Lan Sizhui said, voice respectful as always even as Jin Ling rushed forward to start fighting with Lan Jingyi, seemingly on sight. Some ongoing grudge, presumably; they seemed to be having a good time. “And the only gossip we could pick up was – unhelpful.”

Well, that sure was a significant pause.

Jiang Cheng rubbed his face, guessing that it was negative and also probably about his family. “All right, spit it out,” he said tiredly. “Better that I hear it from you than someone else.”

Lan Sizhui glanced back at Jin Ling – now buried under a wiggling and somewhat homoerotic pile now consisting of both Lan Jingyi and Ouyang Zizhen – and said, in a low voice, “Sect Leader Jiang’s son just rejected a marriage offer from Meishan Yu.”

“I know that,” Jiang Cheng scoffed. “Everyone knows that.”

“It wasn’t the first request. Apparently…” Lan Sizhui hesitated. “Well, rumor has it that the third daughter of Meishan Yu was – ah – that is – it seems that there was some trouble –”

Jiang Cheng hadn’t been a sect leader for years for nothing. He suppressed a twitch in his eye, and hoped for his mother’s sake that his father hadn’t been that much of an ass as to dally with her, leave her pregnant and then refuse to marry her – but no, now that he thought about it that wasn’t his father’s character at all. Instead, what must have happened was obvious: based on what he now knew of his father, he knew that it must have been his grandfather that had objected to the match, however mildly, and then it wouldn’t have mattered what his father thought. Jiang Fengmian wouldn’t have gone against his father’s will in anything.

Not even for the sake of honor, it seemed.

“Don’t tell Jin Ling,” he instructed with a faint sigh, and Lan Sizhui nodded eagerly, looking relieved.

Jiang Cheng couldn’t blame him. At least he had the comfort of knowing that historically Meishan Yu eventually had managed to force the issue…oh, it was all so infuriating! Knowing his mother as well as he did, she would have taken Jiang Fengmian’s refusals to marry her to heart; no matter what he said or did later, once they were married, would ever convince her that he’d actually chosen her willingly – she was too strong-willed herself, it would never even occur to her that Jiang Fengmian might have wanted to marry her and still said no just because his father implied that he didn’t agree with it, and she’d never believe it if he told her that was what happened, which he wouldn’t have.

No, Jiang Cheng knew his mother. If his father wanted to make up for his failings in her heart, he’d have to make some sort of grand gesture, and Jiang Fengmian was not a man for grand gesture.

It was a pity that Jiang Fengmian didn’t have any siblings. If only he hadn’t been the sect heir and the next sect leader, he could have done something wild like go off and marry into Meishan Yu instead of inheriting – he would have enjoyed that much more, both in personality and company and even aesthetic, if the suspiciously non-standard non-Jiang sect ornaments at his waist were any suggestion.

But no, he was sect heir, and later sect leader.

It was just such a waste. A stupid, stupid waste.

If only he thought he could get away with it, Jiang Cheng would demand that Jiang Zhike name him as sect heir, skipping his father’s generation entirely. He certainly wouldn’t knuckle under his grandfather’s pressure, which ironically enough would probably make his grandfather approve of him far more than he’d ever approved of his actual son, and unlike Jiang Cheng, Jiang Fengmian would probably find his father paying more attention to someone else a relief rather than a torment.

Unfortunately, to pull off something like that, Jiang Chen would need both a way to strong-arm Jiang Zhike into listening to him and a plausible way to explain away the time travel. Neither of which was likely.

Whatever. The past was not his problem to solve.

“Tell the others not to mention it, too,” he added, rubbing his face in annoyance. “They’ve got big mouths, with no tact, they’ll make a complete mess of it –”

“Oh, it’s not a problem,” Lan Sizhui said. “They didn’t hear that one.”

“Good. Keep it that way.” Jiang Cheng frowned. “Why didn’t they hear it?”

“I sent them a different way – the rumor they brought back was even stranger.”

“Oh?”

“Yes. Apparently Sect Leader Wen was nearly assassinated during a party held at a night-hunt near the Cloud Recesses and then kidnapped a Lan sect disciple on his way out, or something like that. I hadn’t heard of anything even remotely similar in any of the histories…”

Jiang Cheng held up a hand. His head was starting to hurt in a very specific and very familiar sort of way. “Not in the histories, no,” he said grimly. “With Wen Ruohan as the target…? Did the rumors specify who did the assassination?”

“…no.” Lan Sizhui frowned. “You think it might be someone else from the future?”

“Why not? We never did settle that theoretical argument about whether it was better to be careful and try to avoid changing what we knew was going to happen or charge straight into changing it.”

“You think it was Senior Wei?”

Jiang Cheng thought it was exactly the stupid sort of thing that Wei Wuxian would think was a good idea.

“Does that mean we’re going to go that way, to meet him..?”

“Absolutely not,” Jiang Cheng said at once. There was no way he was going to let Wei Wuxian have one-upped him in the effort to get something useful going, and the Jiang sect was obviously not going to do anything productive. If Jiang Cheng wanted help in fixing the future, he needed to go elsewhere. Obviously the Jin sect was out, he’d never gotten on well with Jin Guangshan, but that didn’t mean they were entirely out of options. “We’re going to the Nie sect.”

“The Nie sect? Oh, that makes sense!” Ouyang Zizhen interjected, the three fighting idiots having finished up and come over. “Their last sect leader was killed by Wen Ruohan, right? He’ll definitely want to change the future.”

“That’s not what’s important,” Jiang Cheng said, shaking his head. What was Wei Wuxian teaching these kids? Clearly not what he needed to be. “What’s important is that Nie Huaisang will almost certainly be there. He’ll have an idea of what to do.”

All the juniors nodded at once – none of them were about to be taken in by Nie Huaisang’s Headshaker act, not after what happened at the Guanyin Temple.

“Will he help, though?” Jin Ling asked.

“Oh, he’ll help,” Jiang Cheng said darkly. “He’ll help all right.”

#mdzs #jiang cheng #jin ling #lan sizhui #my fic #my fics

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rollinouttahere-writes · 1 year

Note

Actually , I wanted to ask for your opinion of this since , I actually never really showed my writings to anyone^^".

I will also leave a this too.

TW: Mentioning of Su!@ide and Ab!se

She ended her own life and due to the fact that such an act was considered as a call to abandon the current life. She was given a new life, but this is not a gift. She was quite silent and selfish - she lived a life that she didn't want and ended it to stop everything that gave in the consequences...not exactly the result she wanted.

Reborn in a world where all people had the opportunity to have powers that could surpass even God. In a world where you could become the Pirate King.

With a new life - she was also given a punishment for the actions that she committed without a drop of conscience.

Endless Despair.

At that moment, the First Pirate King, Gol D. Roger, did not yet have his crew. They met when Rey noticed a deeply suffocating silhouette at night, which was very wounded. The island on which she lived for some reason was shrouded in huge sea bushes that were also poisonous. Their spikes were extremely sharp and only the ships of the marine patrol could penetrate into the island without being injured and poisoned. This man is lucky.

After 3 weeks of treatment and help she provided him with, Gol D. Roger once asked her why she lived alone and where her family was. But....in fact, she was born into a family of a young woman and a fairly old man. And, the “Father” of the family wished for a son so that he could take his place and continue the business, but after the birth of his daughter, he decided to make a copy of his wife out of her. Obedient, soft and timid.

The marriage itself for financial reasons, Meliana - (Father's wife) was the only most beautiful woman in the village and her femininity attracted the attention of an influential person. When the village and the elders found out about it, they tried to persuade Meliana to marry him in order to feed the children and the elderly, because the village was not in the best position. But being born a blonde - she grew up the way she was in her previous life and the most interesting thing is that after death she remembered everything about herself and never forgot.

From a small gray-eyed blonde, a kari-eyed brunette with a non-childish behavior grew up. This introduced a stupor of parents and scared because it's hard to believe.

Despite how cruel her Father tried to seem, none of this really affected her. Calm ... no Cold attitude to insults, threats and even beatings - caused trembling. She never answered back and practically didn't cry in front of him or her mother. No, she did nothing but stare at him blankly and then nodded, walking back into the room.

This continued until the sea watchers arrived on the island to pay for protection. In fact, they were more slave trade officials than Defenders of justice - because regardless of the weighty reasons why the village could not pay for protection, they were always harsh and deceitful. This time, when the village failed to pay for the 2nd time, the Leader of the Sentinels was furious. He ordered his henchmen to kill everyone in the village in order to finally get rid of the village completely.

She went to get food for her mother when she heard this, she immediately hurried to inform other houses in which large families lived. But it was too late, lifeless corpses were almost everywhere and when she reached her house…She was already waiting for the corpses of her Father and Mother who stained the floor with their blood. She knew that the same fate awaited her. She felt a long blade at her neck.

And the voice that said:

― Here's the last one.

This did not surprise her in anyway, death would reach everyone just at different times. To his words, she only smiled a little and replied:

― You're right, I'm really going to die now, don’t I?

The sound of her flesh and bone being ripped was the last thing she heard at that moment.

...She thought it would be the last. Until, after two days of blackouts, she woke up in an already faded and ruined ruin of a place that should be home. She was unharmed...and alive.

It was...inexplicable.

She couldn't understand why... she was still alive. But even in a long stupor, she did not stayed in one place. Not when she saw the camp of young and not travelers. She was able to make friends with them by assuming the role of “victim" and needy. In the same way, she was able to convince them that she was sick and needed help. And they she was also helped to find a small house in which there is a place for one person.

After telling her past and without mentioning her thoughts and actions. Roger listened to her to the end. He had an unreadable facial expression and silence reigned in the room until the Man directly asked:

― Have you ever seen the ocean?

Roger asked the girl. She obviously did not expect the question and yet answered honestly:

― No, I've never seen the ocean.

To which Roger smiled broadly and abruptly stood up and said loudly:

― Would you like to?

The subsequent question no longer blinked at Roger's girl- misled her. In fact, she had never seen much less the ocean, she had never even seen the real seas and oceans – only in pictures and TV shows. She lowered her head for moment and answered no less hones:

― I think if I had a chance to see it, I would. However, what the tall man said was not in the girl's thoughts whatsoever.

― Then let's see it together!

She expected a lot of things, but the invitation...? Being in the world of her thoughts, she woke up from the thoughts in her head when she felt that she was on the shoulder of a tall silhouette.

― Come on! The sooner the better!

With these words, the Future Pirate King ran with the girl on his shoulder to the boat, which he did in secret while the girl was sleeping. A small girl who expresses almost no emotions and a tall and bright Man with a playful disposition, like the unquenchable sun. Since then, Roger and her have always been about each other. There was a bond of trust between and understanding which many did not understand. What was more incredible was that all the people of the crew, knowing the girl for at least years, never changed.

Not just her personality or manner of speech, but her appearance did not change. She was the person on the ship whom you could always call so that you would have a company that would listen to everything you say and silently covers the blanket when you lose consciousness from alcohol. Roger respected her for her honesty and understanding, which was necessary in critical cases. She was one of the few people who could calm Roger's ardor in a couple of moments.

One day, Rayleigh asked Roger what his relationship was with the girl, as many thought she was like a daughter to Roger. But everything turned out to be much more interesting…

Roger could not call her a child, not when she understood dirty jokes and teased other adults with an unsurprising facial expression, not when it came for forgiving certain crewmembers for the shameful to unforgivable crimes, she was the person who always gaved a very mature and logical point, thus becoming a non-public voice of common sense. When he first met her, he told her that for unknown reasons he wanted her to be on his side no matter what, no matter how strange and suspicious it sounded, he meant it. - Roger told Rayleigh that he felt an inexplicable sense of security and... completeness. As if she could make any of his days better with just a greeting or the usual 'Good morning'.

And one day in the morning, she was kidnapped by Golden Lion Pirates. In all their acquaintance with Roger, Roger's team has never... seen him so furious.

When the team found the kidnappers, Roger, despite him, asked to take her and take her to a safe place, which he did. Roger mercilessly and brutally shredded the Golden Lion Pirates.

After this incident, Roger vividly realized that he himself and , even his crew would not be able to be around forever, so for the time being, he did what he wanted. After so many years, he could only do one thing to be sure that if not him, then those who would become the next and worthy could.

At his last moment, Roger uttered the words:

― My treasures? If you want, you can take it. Search for it! I left them in one place with a person who can make anyone the happiest forever if you earn her trust and make her happy!

OOOOOHHHH this is very interesting! Being entrusted with the one piece is definitely a complicated position to be put in. Though the wording at the end makes it seem like she's part of it too?

The poor thing's going to have every pirate and marine in the world gunning for her, either for the treasure or because of being closely associated the Roger. It'll be interesting to see how all of Roger's former crewmates handle this too, seeing as that they all would have known her decently well.

This is definitely a strong prologue, it makes the reader curious about where this is going. It might be hard to dance around the fact that we still don't know what exactly the one piece is, but maybe she's just in the general area and isn't necessarily right next to it? Or maybe she's on the move? With how little we know about it, it could be mobile for all we know. I would take advantage of the lack of canon information and run wild with it if I were you, but you've probably already got that figured out so just do whatever feels right, you know?

Writing is all about throwing your story out into the world, even if it's a fanfic, so do that be any means you can. Have fun with it!

If you continue with it though, do tag me in it! I can even beta read if you'd like! And maybe repost this to your own account so you can have more direct interactions with those who read it. Best of luck!

#emtynessinmyworld #i really liked this #can't wait to see where you go with this from here

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notally-tormal · 4 months

Text

My First One shot Posted On Tumblr, woah.

Anyways, this is a Levi Ackerman x GN Reader

*Cross posted on Ao3

'When The Light Stops Shining | Levi x Reader'

TW: Swearing, Suicide, Reader Dies, Suicidal thoughts

Read Under The Cut:

Levi wasn't one for all that love bullshit. He had felt it once, for Isabel and Farlan, and look where it got him. So he vowed to never love anyone again.

But he met you. And his resolve became much weaker. Now he was never one to believe in love at first sight, but upon meeting you, he could've swore that it was real.

As he came to know more and more of you, he found himself falling deeper and deeper for you and the little things you do; Your laugh, the way you would look at him in the early hours of the morning, your smile, just you in general.

He cursed himself for falling so deep into love with you, because that voice in the back of his head kept telling him that you would die like all the others. He had tried so hard to push you away, but no matter what, you always found your way back to each other.

Then 3 years later, he found himself at the alter, with you as his spouse.

"My love, my light, my everything. You have awoken a feeling in me that I had never thought could be awoken. You are everything to me. I love you more than anything and I would do anything to keep you safe."

He was pouring his heart out to you, in a rare moment of vulnerability, and all you could muster through your tears was a weak 'I love you' but he didn't care. He knew how much you loved him.

But that mission was going to haunt him for the rest of his life.

It had been a few months after you two had gotten married, and you had also just found out you were pregnant. He was hesitant at first, because babies are really messy, and he didn't think he was ready for kids yet, but as the days went on, he found himself getting used to the idea.

You, being your stubborn self, has insisted on going on the expedition. He tired so hard to convince you not to go, as the voice was warning him at all that could happen. You didn't care, much to nobody's suprise. You were going and nobody, not even the love of your life, could stop you.

It was a particularly long and grueling mission, many young cadets perished, but he hadn't expected you to be joining the dead.

Titans were coming up behind the squad, and you had decided to go and eliminate them. He thought nothing of it at first, I mean your strong, you could make it.

But the minutes ticked by, he got even more worried.

But you would make it, right?

Right?

But the voice got the better of him, and he decided to go back, instructing his squad to only move if there was a threat.

The sight that greeted him would be one that haunted him for the rest of his life.

You were being chewed and tossed around by multiple Titans, like a bone they were fighting over. But you were alive. You could feel everything.

His eyes traveled to your face. Your gorgeous face, now half eaten. But your eyes, your blank, agonized, dull eyes, haunted him. And he faltered. He just watched as one titan swallowed you whole.

In that moment, it seemed like the world stopped. He knew you weren't dead, so you were just suffering, and suffering. He landed on a nearby tree, and just watched as the Titans ran away, looking for their next victim.

He cursed himself for letting you go alone, for letting you come on this mission, for marrying you, for letting you get close to him, for loving you. He blamed himself for everything.

He debated jumping off that tree or sliting his throat right then and there. But he knew that you would want him to continue fighting, to avenge you.

***

He was now 41, it was after the rumbling, and he decided that he's had enough of this shit. He's had enough of loosing people, enough of being alone. So he grabbed a blade from the wall, a memorial to the scouts he had kept, and killed himself. Finally joining you and your unborn child, along with everyone else, in the afterlife.

#attack on titan #x reader #levi ackerman #levi aot #levi ackerman x reader #levi x you #2nd person pov #tw sui attempt #cross posted on ao3 #levi ackerman needs a hug #reader x character #reader x levi Ackerman

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jake-g-lockley · 2 years

Note

Good morning sorry if I bother you you can Marc Spector x fm!reader

Reader is depressed because I think the past ( reader is old avengers and widow ) and Marc she’s love so much and tell casual words

Sometimes Cliché is Okay (Marc Spector x fem!reader)

Masterlist | Spotify Playlist

Trigger Warnings: Violence, depressive episodes, PTSD, trauma, self destruction.

Ye ye ik thats Santi but Santi is basically mercenary Marc in my head atm and I love Oscar’s face in this xxx

Whoohoo another one. I’ve seen a similar one somewhere (if any of y’all find it please let me know). I hope you’re okay with me adding PTSD into the mix. Sorry about the lack of dialog lol. Anyway, keep the requests coming in <3

Parings: Marc Spector x fem!reader

Word Count: 900 words

A/N: How do I write these at top speed? I’m bored and I like it when people give me lil ideas :))) Also, much of the diagnostic criteria for depression and PTSD in this story are taken directly from the DSM-5 but again, it is not accurate to a single individual.

If you or anyone you know is suffering from mental health issues, please seek professional help. I just wanted to let you know that you are loved no matter what <3

☾ .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

Have you ever felt like you were sinking into quicksand as the rest of the world is speeding past you? That's the only way you could describe the anguish that you were facing at the moment.

At a young age, you had your livelihood stripped away from you and it was hard to get out of the cycle of torture when you had no one to protect you. You were thrown around, like an object, like an apparatus to an experiment, a tool to something bigger.

The assassinations felt grousome at first but eventually it made you numb. Your judgment was clouded by the instructions you were given and at one point you did everything blindly. The things that they taught made you forget about yourself, about other people and it desensitized you and made you almost robotic.

After you dropped the entitlement of being a Widow, you were recruited to join the Avengers and you thought you found your purpose and you started to heal. Knowing that you were purposely saving lives with the skills that you possesed instead of destroying them gave you a sense of hope that you knew you might be able to get by.

However, the blip changed everything.

Everything you knew, everything you loved, was gone.

You witnessed the fall of Wakanda. You were there when you heard Wanda’s grueling and gut wrenching scream as Thanos tore the mind stone from Vision. You remember the snap that echoes deep inside your mind each time you try to close your eyes.

Nothing could drag you out of the misery post-blip. Those five years were the most fatiguing years you have ever had. The world was dipped into a whirlwind of chaos, millions of mourners, and every single one of them blamed the Avengers.

Afterall, are heroes really heroes if they can't protect the ones who could not defend themselves?

One day you lost it.

Steve Rogers found you curled up in the corner of your room in the Avenger’s compound. You were screaming, hysterically trying to get rid of the painful memories in your head. You had fought every single person who came into your room that horrible day and you trusted no one, the paranoia evident in your self-destructive ways.

Rogers, on the other hand, that man was made of steel. He patiently waited till you got tired and calmly made sure that you got the help that you needed.

You had to go for therapy for 3 months before you could come to terms with yourself without causing anymore self destruction. You denied your diagnosis for so long, as you tried to push away the issues you were having, hoping it wouldn’t catch up with you. You thought that your mind was stronger than the parasite that was consuming you. You eventually accepted that you were suffering from PTSD and had crippling depression.

It took months of healing after that, but bouts of depression would occasionally come around every now and then. You again had started to isolate yourself, until the day you met Marc Spector.

You didn’t know he was a vigilante / superhero at first, but you had your usual suspicions. He was the only one that made you feel like you were someone again. It was almost like he brought out the human in you again. But most importantly, he made you feel loved.

Every single thing he did would increase your love for him by tenfold. The way he would lose his contact lens in the sink too many times for his liking, the way he hummed while he cooked and the way he would drive you up the wall with his tickling.

He, of course, had his own problems, but he was a problem solver too. He had ingenious ways to combat the issues that he and you were facing. He didn’t treat you as if you were fragile, but when you broke, he was there to pick up the little pieces and put you back together.

Both of you have sleeping issues and would spend nights laying awake, staring at the ceiling until Marc would drag you to your feet and the both of you would dance in the silence, to your own rhythm in each other's arms. Sometimes, he would turn on some music and you would laugh at his silly moves as he shimmied around the apartment you shared.

When you felt horrible and couldn’t get out of bed, he would do everything in his power to make you feel comfortable. You learned to not argue but comply with his doings even when at times your guilt would consume you. He would bathe you, clothe you and feed you, making sure that you were well hydrated.

Sometimes, when you were ill, he would stay up for hours by your side, as you fell in and out of consciousness, changing the wet towels on your forehead or feeding you medicine.

When the night terrors struck, he would hold you for hours until you stopped shaking, soothing you with whispers of beautiful words of endearment as you sobbed into his nightshirt.

Slowly, you felt yourself getting much better, your trust in humanity slowly easing its way back into your world. You stopped ditching your therapy sessions and made sure you took your medication. He had a devotion for you and you also had a devotion to him and that pushed you to get better.

As cliché as it sounds, he was your knight in shining armor. But sometimes, the only thing that could save you from eternal pain is a cliché.

☾ .・。.・゜✭・.・✫・゜・。.

Reblogs are appreciated <3 love you all so so much *muah*

#moon knight #marc spector x reader #moon knight fluff #mental heath awareness #marvel moon knight #the avengers #mcu imagine #moon knight imagine #request #requests open

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deviliciousnavy · 2 years

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Alrighty!! Time for part 2 of Monkie Kid season 3 special talk for ep 3 and 4!! This time gonna talk in general rather than in order of the events.

🚨SPOILERS AHEAD!🚨

Well for starters Macaque was ICONIC here!! Also adorablex3 From his expressions to his redemption (which we'll prob see more of next season x3) I LITERALLY DIED WHEN I SAW HIM TIED UP LIKE OMG MY BOY XDDDD also don't get me started on how gentle he was with lbd's host. WELCOME TO THE DAD SQUAD MY MAN!!

Edit: I totally forgot to add the "hero and warrior" part huh? ^^' that was also one of the best parts of the episode! The fact that Macaque kept saying "I'm not a hero" because he doesn't SEE himself as one. So MK sees what this is about and tells him to be a warrior! That hit so hard it killed me qwq and his face while MK said that it looked so puuuure TwT (I'll also like to add the amazing moment with both of them transforming at the same time they looked so cooooooolx33)

I'll also gonna go ahead and say I DIED from the dragonfruit content we got like, "don't you give up on me dragon girl!" I JUST CAN'T!! He was so worried the entire time for MeiTwT AND HE GRABBED HER BY THE CHEEKS! NOT EVEN THE SHOULDER THE CHEEKS!! AND HE CALLED HER BY NAME! HE HASN'T CALLED ALMOST ANYONE BY NAME!! and then the hug at the end omG I'M GONNA CRY!!! He was leaning on her tooooo QwQ the shippers ate good those 2 days UwU

Let's also talk about the interactions we had with Macaque and Wukong cause I honestly loved every second of it! I'll be real I don't really ship it, I mostly see them as a sibling dynamic. I was super excited with the fight scene and the fact that we had some parallels from their first fight!! (now if that was on purpose for us to talk about or to make the animation quicker idcUwU) I'll add here the fact that we FINALLY got to see the monkey king use his freaking laser eyes!! I seriously got hyped there!! X3 and then we go towards the end with them bickering like the bros they are XDD it was super adorable and it killed me how cute and funny it was! I also appreciate how they didn't go with saying "I'm nothing like him" at the same time, making it more realistic!

Now going to the epic final fight!! It was truly a sight to behold!! The way we got everyone helping out was just beautiful!! And the animation was the cherry on top!!

I also wanna give some spotlight to our villain here! It's really cool that we got some backstory at the start of the 3rd ep. And you have no idea how I screamed when we got a reference from the original journey to the west, where lbd transformed into a young girl, an old lady, and an old man afterwards! I can't help but get excited when they do things like that!!! We also got more about the mayor! And how apparently he AIN'T one of the corrupted/ possest people and how apparently he also ages old! But the fact that we don't know wat happened to him after the defeat of lbd kinda concerns me... And talking about defeat, while I did want her ded after what she did to my boy, I kinda felt bad to how done she was afterwards, how she had accepted her "destiny" hehe... Also with what she said to MK about their pursuit always leading to pain I can't help but think we in for sth more angsty than what we got now sooooo... Ready ur tissues next season and let's pray that they get a little break before that qwq.

Finally! Leaving my fav part for the end! MK and Wukong!(this one is gonna be longerxD) This whole situation started because monkey king decided to deal with lbd alone to protect the others.(and mostly MK let's be realUwU) I can't imagine what both monkey king AND MK were dealing with after lbd's cheap shot with possessing the king. The first time Wukong tried to attack MK he got saved last minute by Macaque! The 2nd time Wukong manage to break control for a few seconds thanks to MK!! Not only did he not hurt him, but he even threw him out of the way to make sure he doesn't end up doing sth worse to the kid!! 3rd time saved by Macaque AGAIN! (TY MY EMO MONKEY!!) And thank GOD the fourth time was the last, and our king finally broke free thanks to MK's trust!! And talking about trust, that's what I love about them. During the whole special, MK believed in The king, he knew that he was fighting for control! He trusted him so much that during the 4th attempt to hit MK, he didn't flinch! He knew Wukong was heading towards him and he didn't turn his head for a second nor did he try to defend! Giving Wukong the strength he needed to break free! (God the hug after that was adorable qwq)

And not just MK, Monkey king also trusts in MK's strength! When the kid went to confront lbd Wukong was the one who stopped the others from interfering. Trusting that MK was more than capable on handling the situation!

And during the end, the whole apology scene was everything I wanted to see! At first I thought MK was gonna be the one to start the conversation, but I'm really happy that Monkey king approached him instead. He was aware that he messed up and that he could obviously tell that the kid was still somewhat upset about it. He knows he's a bad mentor and honestly idk why people expect him to be amazing at it.

This is the monkey king we're talking about! The same guy that made an entire mess up in the celestial realm cause he wanted to be called "great sage equal to heaven". He still has a long way to go to be able to learn how to properly teach but he will try! He's trying for his kid. It's good that they finally got the time to talk about it cause that will make their bond even stronger now!(also the fact that he said "I'm sorry MK" and not bud is so sweet qwq) Honestly I'm a big sucker for parent-child relationships especially when they play it right and when the characters are to die for x3

I really can't wait to see what the future has in store for them in the next season ( and hopefully the one after that pls qwq)

#monkie kid season 3 #monkie kid #lego monkie kid #Lmk #lego monkie kid spoilers #monkie kid spoilers #Spoilers #lmk mk #lmk macaque #lmk sun wukong #lmk monkey king #lmk lbd #lmk lady bone demon #lmk mayor #lmk mei #lmk red son #lmk dragonfruit #This is honestly one of the best shows I've seen qwq

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onigirio · 2 years

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Jason Grace Idea: him being brought back because the minor gods would riot if they found out the demigod who was going to make sure they all got recognized was killed and had to stay dead, so Jason Grace being resurrected and searching for Reader to let them know he’s alive again

back 2 you | j.g

a/n) anon you are so real. i cried a lil while writing this. overall i’m not happy with the wording but i tried my best ^^

warnings: mentions of death, dissociation, it’s just angsty, grieving. jason is sad </3

gender neutral! no use of pronouns or y/n

it was dark.

no, not the underworld as most would expect, but the moment that separated life from death. that fraction of time in which consciousness is separated from physical being. most would find it unsettling, but jason had felt this before. he felt it when he had died.

it hadn’t been too long, surely, but he stopped keeping track after a while. time moved so slowly for him down there. he was a hero and he had died in battle but still, he felt so empty. he felt so empty because he didn’t have you. you’d both grown close during your time on the argo II. the two of you having known each other at camp jupiter, though him having piles more relevance in comparison to you. you were a legacy of a more minor god, but you were valiant and brave in battle. praised for your skill with a spear and good sportsmanship on the battlefield

as most things go, you two hit it off. jason had fallen hard. you can’t really blame him, could you? the blond was so deeply infatuated with you. the way you laughed to the way your eyebrows furrowed when you were focused, or how passionate you were when you spoke about what or who you loved. safe to say he was down bad, but so were you. feelings were confessed but nothing was ever really made official. jason wanted to wait until things had settled down

alas, things don’t really “settle down” in the life of a demigod, do they?

when the news reached you of jason’s death, you didn’t really know how to react. at first it was denial. obviously jason wouldn’t die, he was strong. he knew how to care for himself and he had people around to protect him as well. so surely the news was false. really you were justifying false hope.

you grieved as normal, but you never truly reached acceptance. you kept the polaroids in your wallet, the scrapbook you made together, the bucket list you’d made in such confidence that you two would eventually get through it. you were naïve, truly. so naïve for thinking that a demigod son of one of the big three would be able to enjoy such normalcy. that was just young love. naïve and innocent. you just wish you’d never gotten attached in the first place. jason wished he’d known. he wished he got the chance to at least tell you a proper goodbye, at least got to hold you close one last time

the gods decided to humor him, just this once. “an acknowledgment of your bravery” is what his father had told him, and he wasn’t sure whether to laugh or cry. trying to adjust to life again felt like a sick joke the gods were trying to play on him, but the concept of seeing you again felt so warm, that he was willing to take that chance of life again

so in that fraction of time between life and death, jason felt just the bit more hopeful.

so here he was, outside of camp jupiter. adjusting to the feeling of a physical being was taking long but gods, he just wanted to see you again. crossing the threshold he was met by a chorus of surprise. people in the streets stopping and exclaiming but no matter the amount of attention, the only person he wanted to see was you. jason tore the streets as fast as his body physically could. at this point in time there was only one place in the whole camp you would be. he knew this of course, because you’d shown it to him

he arrived and his electric blue eyes softened at the familiar sight. the grass, the flowers and the massive tree that had been eternally graced with initials of past visitors. the one thing that excited him most though, was the person sitting under it.

it was you. after all this time you still found peace under the shade of the large tree. it was like nothing had changed. you were still there, book in hand as you laid back against the bark. even after everything, you were still as beautiful as he remembered. tentatively, jason called out your name. your name on his lips felt so foreign, but it just felt so right

he watched as you perked up, looking for the source of the voice. your eyes darted around until they locked with a familiar electric blue. you paused, watching in disbelief as jason made his way up the hill towards you. tossing the forgotten book aside, you stumbled as you made your way towards him.

jason caught you as you took an unexpected tumble, too blinded by the tears of joy welling in your eyes. the blond held you up, supporting you as you sobbed into his chest. it had been so unexpected and you didn’t know how to react. you were struck with so many emotions at once and all you could do was sob

and he let you

he let you because gods he never wanted to let go of you again. it had been so long since he’d felt your embrace and he just wanted to sit here and bask in the presence he had missed so much

jason was finally with you again, he was finally home.

#rio rambles #rio writes 🐝#asks! 🌼#pjo #hoo #jason grace #jason grace x reader #hoo headcanon #pjo hoo toa #pjo headcanon #hoo drabbles #jason grace x you #jason grace x y/n #jason grace imagines

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