#i also love his weird yellow metallic suit? thing? | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

ecto-american · 3 years

Text

The Other Side

Phic Phight Oneshot for Kiinotasha and KC: (AU) Born a halfa and raised in the Ghost Zone by his mother, Danny struggles with his human identity when a permanent man made portal appears in the Ghost Zone.

On AO3 and FFN

-------------------

Danny never questioned his life until that man made portal spawned. He never forgot when he first saw it six years ago while playing with Youngblood.

Naturally, they were playing aliens and spacemen, Danny's favorite. Earlier in the play session, they had found it, and it was deemed part of their spaceship. It was just a metal outline, an octagon. Thick enough that they could sit, and they pretended that the limited space was the entrance. Obviously on the left side was space, and the right side was their ship. Eventually their moms called them home, and during dinner when asked about his day, he told his mom about it.

She frowned, and she asked him for more details. Having played on it all day, he described it perfectly. His mom paled, and she forbid him from going there again, but she didn't expand on why.

He saw no reason to be afraid. It was just a metal shape. There were far more dangerous places in the Ghost Zone. So the next day, he told Youngblood about his mom's weird reaction. His mom had reacted the same, but didn't say why. His dad explained that it was dangerous, but not what about it was dangerous. Danny didn't have a dad, but he was sure that if he did, he probably would have said the same thing. But neither child could get it. What was dangerous about a shape?

So they just played with it again the next day, and they lied to their moms about what they did.

Two years later, another ghost had join to make them a trio. Her name was Box Lunch, and she was honestly a lot of fun. But she was still a girl, and they didn't tell her about their secret fun location until they were sure she didn't have cooties. When they showed her, she instantly knew what it was.

"That's a ghost portal!" she exclaimed. Youngblood and Danny thought she was stupid. Ghost portals didn't stay anywhere permanently. They opened and closed at random, when the human world and Ghost Zone would temporarily merge and allow for a rip to tear. But it always mended back together quickly.

"No it's not," Youngblood scowled. Box Lunch made a face at him.

"Yeah-huh!" she insisted. "My mommy and daddy get into the human world all the time! She said some people there have been trying to make a permanent portal to here!"

"Nu-uh!" Youngblood argued. "My dad said that humans wouldn't do that, they're more afraid of us than we are of them!"

"Yeah-huh!" Box Lunch said more forcefully. "My parents were human once, they said that people constantly wanna hunt us in the human world! And that they're coming here!"

"If they're afraid of us, then why come here?" Youngblood challenged.

"What else would it be?" Box Lunch asked, crossing her arms.

"It's a weirdo ghost's lair!"

And as they bickered back and forth, Danny had remained quiet. He didn't know how to feel about any of this. His friends often forgot that Danny wasn't just a ghost. He was also human.

Not that he was a ghost who was once human, that died. He was both, and he always had been. Born that way, according to his mom, because his dad was human. Danny didn't know too much about him, and he never really thought to ask.

He knew that his name was Jack, and how he looked like. His mom had hung a photo of him in his room so that he'd know; blue eyes, black hair, with a square jaw and in a distinctive orange jumpsuit. The orange suit always reminded him of the blue one his mom wore underneath a lab coat. She said he looked just like his dad when he was in his human form, and he could absolutely see it. Though as a ghost he had white hair that he seemingly inherited from nobody, with his mom's light blue skin and yellow-green eyes. As a ghost, he matched with a black jumpsuit, though as a human, he preferred regular clothes.

Most ghosts had learned of Danny's true nature early on as the news slowly spread when he was born. They loved him and accepted him as one of them. He could go out into the Zone as a human, but it always felt weird. So he was always a ghost.

That night, as he got tucked in for bed, he decided to bring the metallic object up again.

"Box Lunch said that the big metal shape is a permanent ghost portal," he blurted out. His mom stared at him with wide yellow eyes, and so he knew that Box Lunch was actually right. "Is it?"

She sighed, sitting on the edge of his bed.

"I believe so," she confirmed. Danny sat up.

"Is that why you don't want me going near it?" he asked.

"Yes," she replied. Danny cocked his head curiously.

"But if I'm also human, wouldn't they be okay with me?" he wondered. His mom paused for a long, long time. "I'm also one of them."

"I don't know, honey," she admitted. He could tell that she did know. She kissed his forehead. "I'll talk to you about it when you're a little bit older, okay?"

"Promise?"

"I promise. Now good night, sweetie."

It was four more years before it really became relevant again. He had essentially forgotten about the unoperational portal as homeschooling, other friends, and general undead life had continued on for him and his mom.

Youngblood didn't age, since he was once human and died, and so as Danny got older, they hung out less. While Box Lunch, a born ghost, grew, he became distant from her too for unrelated reasons. Danny wasn't alone, however. For a while, he hung out with other ghosts who had died young before he met his best friend. He was a bit older than him when he had died, sixteen to his fourteen, but Johnny 13 (and his shadow) and him had almost instantly become friends and hung out nearly every day. Often his girlfriend joined them too. His mom also allowed him to keep a newly dead dog that had followed him home, that alternated from a puppy to a large hulking beast of a monster dog. Danny named him Cujo.

Ghost Writer provided lessons in the arts on Tuesdays and Thursdays for him and a few other younger ghosts, which did include Johnny and Kitty. On the other days, his mom homeschooled him in her passion: the sciences. His favorite memories were of him and his mother in her lab, doing home experiments and building a wide variety of things.

She indulged in whatever nonsense he wanted to build, which included but wasn't limited to: rock cannon, small spaceships, figuring out how they could grow potatoes on the moon like the man in the martian book did, using ecto energy to cook poptarts.

Often her friend, Technus, but better known to Danny as Uncle Nico, came by to do more of the tech-based stuff. Danny believed that Uncle Nico could do anything with technology. He was one of the ghosts that often went through the natural portals, and whenever he came back, he had something for Danny. Typically game consoles and games, but sometimes fun little useless knick knacks that Danny treasured deeply. He fixed those game consoles many times, and also showed him how to download and install cheats and mods to make them more fun.

And after a morning full of science or the arts, Danny would eat lunch then rush off to play with his friends, Cujo always on his heels.

Looking back, he never did much as a human. He had to resort to his human side to rest, or would default to it if he fell asleep. It felt weird being in human form amongst ghosts, and so he was just always a ghost. He never thought much about it, and nobody ever asked him to be a human around them. It was just how things were.

On the day he'd never forget, it was just him and Johnny. His girlfriend had opted not to come. Danny couldn't remember the original topic, but it made him remember the portal. As soon as he told Johnny about it, the two idly scratching Cujo as the dog slept in between them in puppy form, the ghost's eyes lit up excitedly.

"Dude! We have to check it out!" Johnny insisted.

"I dunno," Danny hesitated. "My mom said that I should stay away."

"Come on, it'll be sick! I've always wanted to go back to the human world," Johnny begged. "And you've never even been there, despite being half-human!"

Danny paused. Well, when you put it like that...

"Okay!" he agreed. He floated up from his seat a bit so he could untangle his legs to stand. Cujo immediately got up from his spot laying near them, tail wagging excitedly. "Let's go! I think I still know where it is!"

It had changed since he last saw it. It now had huge yellow and black doors in place of the previous blank space, and it seemed somehow bigger than he remembered it years ago. But it was unmistakably the man made portal.

Even now, he didn't get what would be too scary about it that his mom would encourage him to stay far away. It was just a door.

"This is so fucking cool," Johnny whispered as he touched the door. "Imagine...no more trying to hunt down a portal. We can just come and go as we please...seeing our lost loved ones...seeing my mom again…It's been so long...I dunno if she'd even remember me..."

Danny didn't say anything, but he did begin to think and truly wonder for the first time what his dad was like. His mom never talked about him, and he never really asked. He and his mom were happy, and he also had Uncle Nico. Was his dad kind? Did he also like science? Why wasn't he here? Did his dad even know about him?

"Do you think we can open it?" Danny asked. Cujo licked his fingers, and Danny scratched his head. Johnny glanced over his shoulder at him.

"I dunno," he admitted. His hand turned into a fist and he knocked on the door. "It seems really solid. I don't think we can just break it or something."

"Hm. Lemme see," Danny mused. He came closer, and he put his hand on the door. It was cold, and Johnny was right; it was metallic, just like the outer edge he used to play on, and it would not break easily. His finger traced the middle line of the two doors. "Hm. Maybe we can pry the door open."

"The humans made this," Johnny spoke. Danny stared at him. No shit. "No, no, I mean. Maybe you should do something to it as a human." Danny thought on this, and he shrugged. Couldn't hurt.

His transformation rings came and went, leaving him in his human state. He was just in a t-shirt and jeans today, and he stayed floating near the portal.

His hand had barely touched the portal when it opened for him.

Danny gasped in shock, jerking his hand back as it opened. Johnny had also jumped, going backwards a bit, and Cujo's fur went up as he barked. It fully opened, and he couldn't see anything but the green ooze. This wasn't anything like Uncle Nico had mentioned natural portals being like. They normally acted like a window you could see through. But it was an unnatural portal made by man.

"Maybe this isn't such a-" Johnny began, but Danny had already stepped through.

There was a weird in between area that shined bright blue that he never heard Uncle Nico describe. But in this in between, he could see exactly what the ghost had mentioned. He knew he was still in the Zone, but he could look out the portal into the human world like a window.

A man in an orange jumpsuit, with black hair that was graying, was sitting in a room that reminded him very much of his mom's lab. He was staring at the portal in confusion, likely because it had randomly opened, and Danny instantly knew who it was. He had no idea if his dad could see him, but he found himself rushing backwards, and back into the Zone.

The second he returned, he became a ghost again, and he silently began to fly away as he tried to process. Johnny asked no questions, only following, Cujo following them both.

That night, at dinner, he finally asked.

"What was dad like?"

His mom stared at him for a moment.

"Well, he was very sweet," she said slowly. "Very bubbly personality. Always went out of his way to help his friends." She smiled softly as she talked about him. "Adored fudge."

"Did he like science?" Danny wondered. His mom gave a short laugh.

"Oh boy he adored it. Not the best at it, but he had a lot of enthusiasm," he replied. "We used to do experiments together all the time."

Danny stared down at his food as he thought. He looked up to her, and he could tell that she already knew what he was going to ask.

"How come I never met him?" he wondered. She sighed.

"...He doesn't like ghosts," she replied. "Aspiring ghost hunter when I met him, actually. I was alive then. Had the same ambitions." At his shocked look, she laughed again. "I know, ironic. We had dated for about two years officially. But then...I died. It was winter, and I was driving late at night during a snowstorm. My car slid off the road, and into a river. And I died from my injuries. I found that I could disguise myself as human, and I was in denial. So I just...continued on."

"...Why?" he asked. His mom shrugged in defeat.

"I guess I just didn't want to admit that it was over. I hadn't done everything I wanted to do yet. I was still in college, and I felt like my life had been forcibly finished before it had even truly started," she admitted. "Jack had proposed, but I had declined. I was too afraid to tell him. He began pursuing ghost hunting more seriously as a profession and building weapons and portals. I found out I was having you, and he was so excited to be a dad. I began getting scared. I didn't know how long I could continue the lie. I didn't know how it all would affect you. Then the police found my car and body, and I knew I couldn't avoid the inevitable any longer. So I left. I had no clue how to face him, or even how safe you might be if we talked. Especially after you were born, and I realized that you were half ghost."

The more she talked, she more somber she became. By the end, she was sniffling a little. Guilt began to wash over him.

"Have you ever talked to him again? Like after I was born?" he wondered. She shook her head no. "How come you've never taken me to the human world?"

"I had considered it. But it's too dangerous," she explained. "Humans aren't like ghosts. If they knew that you were also ghost...you wouldn't wanna find out what happens."

"...Do you regret any of it?" Do you regret me?

She smiled softly despite the conversation.

"You were the best thing to ever happen to me," she told him. "I may have been very anxious about being alone, and how you may turn out despite it all. But you were born healthy and perfect in every way. You're absolutely the light of my afterlife."

Danny smiled back, feeling some reassurance. His mom stood up, leaning over to peck his forehead before picking up her plate. He heard Cujo scramble out from under the table, ears up in excitement.

"I think I'll finish this later," she told him. "I'm not too hungry tonight." She glanced down at the dog. "This isn't for you."

Cujo whined, following her as she put her plate in the microwave. Danny nodded, sparing a small smile to Cujo and ushering for him to come over. He slipped him a piece of chicken as his mom left.

Later that night, Danny couldn't sleep. He was too busy sorting out his rushing thoughts. He was of course still him. Nothing really changed, but there was this new growing emptiness. Danny was still Danny, but there was a whole other side to him that knew nothing about. It began to eat at him more and more. Who was this human side besides just human Danny who lived in the Ghost Zone? He didn't know.

He now wished that his mom had taken him to the human world before so that he could know. She did say that there was a risk in the humans knowing he was also a ghost, which he didn't get. The ghosts accepted him as one of their own, so why wouldn't the humans? He didn't get humans at all. And he needed to know more about them. He was one of them.

By breakfast, his mind was made up.

After an unusually boring lesson with Ghost Writer together, Danny immediately went to Johnny once their small class of sorts were dismissed.

"I have to go back." Danny couldn't breath for a moment. "I have to see what it's like. Like you said, I'm also human, and I've never been there. All my unlife, I've been a ghost, here, in the Ghost Zone. My dad's in the human world. And I need to know what it's like to be human. What it means. So I can maybe meet him one day."

Johnny nodded.

"I think I get it," he said slowly. "I'll come with you. Keep you company. I think I could pass for human pretty well, even if I have to say that I have some kind of sickly disease that keeps me pale."

Danny grinned.

"Thanks," he replied. "Come on."

It took no time at all to find the portal. Danny stared up at it, his breath once more stolen as he tried to think of a reason why he shouldn't go through it.

Nothing came to mind.

"It's okay if you don't wanna," Johnny said. Danny shook his head no.

"I have to do this," he replied. "I need to do this."

Johnny patted his back, and that was all the subconscious encouragement Danny needed to turn human and press his hand to the door. Once more, it opened. The fact that he's even able to open it made him know that this was something he was meant to do. He once again stepped through with Johnny right behind him.

#phic phight #the other side #my phics #phics #danny fenton #danny phantom #maddie fenton #johnny 13

99 notes · View notes

sakurawarfare · 3 years

Text

Amidst the golden blossoms (Lumine x Childe oneshot)

Olah! I'm back~!

First off, thank you so much for all the likes and love that you've given for my first oneshot 🥺

I'm sorry for not posting anything new for almost a month and honestly, writing this one was a real doozy. Regardless, I hope you all enjoy it and again,

Thank you very much and have a nice day!

-Sakura

Exploring Liyue was certainly a challenge. Given how the terrain is a mix of tall mountains, wet marshes and winding paths that go over and under the surface, it was completely different from that of Mondstadt. Though of course, the monsters here were a lot tougher and certainly became a pain in the ass when all she wanted was to explore this new land.

However, Lumine would always marvel at how everything is so yellow here. In many of the worlds they had visited before, yellow always symbolizes joy and light. In Teyvat, it represented the Geo element, loyal and grounded as it painted the trees, leaves floating in the breeze and the flowers that bloomed almost everywhere she went, resonating with the power of Geo that once lorded over this vast domain.

Though perhaps, it was the color she was most of as it that reminded her most of her beloved brother.

The girl let out a sigh as the Ruin Guard finally collapsed, fading to blue dust as she continued on her afternoon stroll. Nearing the clearing, she noticed the golden spiral she had discovered just a few days ago.

She remembered how beautiful it had looked from afar as she first saw it atop the mountain near Guili Plains. It was fascinating to say the least, as she glided down to examine it even further. Unfortunately, she was interrupted by some hilichurls nearby that somewhat soured her mood. Even after that, once she'd activated the elemental monuments, she was ambushed by an Eye of the Storm that she disposed of with some difficulty given that she only had Fischl as her team’s archer.

Yet at this moment, it seemed that what truly caught her eye was a blot of orange and gray that stood out from the golden landscape.

Deciding to take a closer look, she slowly approached with her footsteps slow and steady. When the figure finally came into focus, she tried to ignore how her heart skipped a beat.

Standing there was no other than Childe, or rather, Tartaglia, the eleventh Harbinger of the Fatui.

She quietly ducked behind the rock near her, peering out enough just to see. What was he doing here?

Their last encounter had not been so pleasant. After all, she had to defeat him three times and even after that, she had to clean up after him as he decided to summon an ancient god in the midst of a temper tantrum and beat the crap out of countless of his lackeys.

Looking at him like this seemed weird, listless and silent. It was certainly different from the Childe she knew, given how she was well aware that underneath that boyish, annoyingly handsome exterior lay the fearsome spirit of a bloodthirsty warrior.

He was still staring up at the sky when she heard him speak. "Like what you see, ojou-chan?" Her eyes widened, somewhat startled. "You could take a picture you know, that way it'll last longer."

She clicked her tongue. There was no point in hiding anymore. She got up from her spot and strode near him seeing as he stood in the center of the spiral.

“So what brings you here?” he said with his usual, playful tone, a major difference from when he spoke during their final battle in the Golden House. His eyes were focused on her now, a smirk adorning his face.

“ I could ask you the same thing,” she huffed. She reminded herself to be on guard, after all this is the very same man who threatened to wipe out dozens of innocent people with zero hesitation.

He chuckled in reply. “Staying inside a stuffy bank the whole day just isn’t my style, you know?” He placed an arm on his hip and she noticed how the action made his top rise a little bit, giving her a peek of his well-toned abs.

He was a bloodthirsty warrior, yes, but an attractive one nonetheless.

He continued, “Plus, it’s amazing to see how different Liyue is from Snezhnaya.”

That statement certainly piqued her interest as she asked him with genuine curiosity. She was a traveller at heart after all. “Really? How so?”

Childe looked at her, somewhat surprised. She tilted her head a bit, somewhat bemused by his reaction until she realized the absence of caution in her words. “Shoot,” Lumine thought. “I-I mean-”

“ You know that there’s no harm in me telling you about my homeland, right?” he turned to her, crossing his arms.

She took a step back, “You can’t exactly blame me for not trusting you after you threw a whale at me. Twice.”

The girl was surprised to see him frown, eyes lowering a bit narrowing slightly.

Since when was he so emotional? Lumine thought this is definitely a big contrast to the Childe, or rather, Tartaglia, she was familiar with.

Although, she can’t deny that a part of her wanted to say sorry. It certainly wasn’t nice of her to treat him so coldy, especially now when he seemed to resemble the look of a kicked puppy. Sad but oddly cute. She immediately stopped her train of thought. She shouldn’t think that this man could be in any way adorable.

He sighed. “Then how about a spar? If you win, I’ll tell you all about Snezhnaya,” she noticed how his eyes gleamed at , “but if I win, you’ll share stories about your place.”

She blinked. “ I don’t see how this benefits you at all.” Given her time with Zhongli, she knows that there should be more to their deal than just stories.

He simply shrugged. “I mean I do get a good fight out of it and honestly, I’d really want to get to know more about you, ojou-chan.” There it was again, that impish, boyish smile that made her heart flutter slightly.

She put a hand to her chin, a vain attempt to hide the growing warmth on her cheeks. Although some part of her told her she certainly shouldn’t be fraternizing with the enemy, there was no harm in a little sparring session. After all, she had beaten him before and this also seemed like a good chance to know more about the Tsaritsa too, if she could figure out a way to worm it out of him.

She wouldn’t dare to acknowledge how her heart did a little dance at the thought of getting to know more about him though.

She gazed at him, the small smile from earlier returning. “Fine, we have a deal.”

That seemed to have cheered him up as he quickly ran to one side of the spiral with her following suit and taking her place on the opposite end.

Even as the sun began to dip in the horizon, she could see glimmer in his eyes, blue orbs glowing in the faint sunlight. There seemed to be no trace of his gloomy disposition earlier, and she could almost imagine him with a tail that swung back and forth, much like how a puppy would greet its owner.

She shook her head. She really should stop with the dog similes.

She was immediately brought back to the present when an arrow whizzed past her, the sound ringing in her ear. She tried to mask her surprise with a straight face, eyebrow raised as she summoned her sword.

“Hey, eyes on me ojou-chan,” she didn’t miss how his voice sounded deeper, huskier, almost like a low growl. Pushing that thought away, she rolled sideways to dodge the incoming arrows then lunged, quickly closing the distance between them.

She wasn’t surprised to hear the sound of metal and water clashing, as she tried to push against him. She was forced to jump back when he switched to a spear, slicing a wide arc in front of him.

He continued his offense, switching again to his blades this time. He gave her blow after blow, leaving little room for her to maneuver in. She parried his every thrust with her own strikes, matching his speed and power. Lumine scanned his movements, eyes calculating for an opening.

Just as she expected, he became more apparently irritated with her sticking to defense.

“Come on, it isn’t fun when-” Lumine quickly cut him off, releasing the Anemo energy she had secretly been building up with her other hand in front of her, making him stumble slightly as she pressed on with her own barrage of attacks.

Even as he stepped away, she made sure that the last swing contained a small gust of wind that managed to graze his cheek. As he caught his breath, she tried to mimic his own cocky smirk. “Eyes on me, Childe.”

She had meant to mock him for earlier but instead she heard him laugh, a sweet, melodious sound that resonated within her. A voice in her head kept reminding her to stay on guard, that she should take the first chance to strike back.

But seeing him like this, eyes filled with so much light and a wide smile adorning his handsome features, filled her with a sense of satisfaction that tugged at her heartstrings.

“Ojou-chan," his laughter slowly calming, "you are simply adorable."

Lumine felt her cheeks flush as the grip on her sword tightened. "H-hey!"

"Alright, alright." His laughter finally died down as she saw him return to his former stance, his predatory gaze set on her once more yet the smile never left his lips. "Let's have some fun."

Their battle lasted until the moon had settled in the sky, bathing the land in its iridescent glow.

A strike here, a hit there, the two exchanged blows with no hesitation. The young warriors fought amidst the golden flowers, filling the air with the sounds of their blades clashing as the yellow petals glided along with them.

Time was lost to the two as they continued in their own world, a dance that only they knew as they kept up with each other's paces, making sure to keep the other on their toes.

But as always, Lumine was once more the victor, her blade pressed closely to the Harbinger's nape, successfully trapping him underneath her.

He was panting quite loudly, his chest rising steadily against her own. "Fine, you win." He let his blades melt away, hands raised in defeat.

Lumine smirked at his surrender as she could finally focus on steadying her own breath, willing her sword away as she huffed.

"Though I've gotta say," his eyes peeked downward then back to her, "I didn't expect that you'd want to go for another round."

She raised an eyebrow in reply, continuing to stare at him in confusion. That is until she glimpsed in the same direction, finally noticing how her legs were straddling his hips as she sat on top of his stomach, the heat emanating from his body seeping into her.

"Ah!" She immediately scrambled to get off of him, trying desperately to mask the crimson that bloomed on her cheeks by sitting a few meters away. Though some part of her missed his warmth, the rational part of her brain shoved that way back inside the depths of her thoughts.

Lumine noticed from the corner of her eye that he was gazing up at the sky. Feeling her blush slowly dissipate, she moved a little closer.

"So, what do you want to know first?" He was lying down now, his blue eyes shining underneath the moonlight.

She laid down next to him, her back slightly tickled by the blades of grass underneath her as they both stared up at the sky in silence.

"Can you tell me about your favorite places there?" She faced him, trying to mask the enthusiasm in her voice.

"From what I can remember…" he muttered, "We had this huge marketplace in the center of the city where my father would always take me and my siblings to buy all sorts of trinkets and goodies for mother. Afterwards he'd take us to an old bakery that also sold Sharlotka."

"What's that?"

"It's this really fluffy cake with apples that melts in your mouyh while you eat it. The apples give it a tart, fruity taste that also balances the sugar dusting on top." He sighed. "Man, I should really make some sometime."

"Hmm, where else...Oh, we also used to go to this frozen lake just a few minutes from our house where my father taught me how to ice-fish." He smiled at the thought. "My old man would make a competition of who got the biggest fish, and he'd always say these really corny jokes just to make me laugh when I had a bad day."

"Those were definetly simpler times." He looked wistful as he spoke.

Noticing how his mood lowered, Lumine spoke in a teasing tone, "you sound just like Daddy's little boy.

He was quick to return her taunt. "On the contrary, I'm actually a proud Mama's boy," he smirked, "where do you think I got my passion for cooking?"

"Oh?" Playing along, she rolled her eyes. "So you're saying that your cooking tastes better than mine?"

"Girlie, I'm not saying. I know that I'd wipe the floor with just my own version of a Sweet Madame."

"I'd like to see you try, water boy." She laughed.

Their playful banter died down as they continued to watch the starry sky, the two basking in comfortable silence.

Childe was the first to speak. "Perhaps when you get there, you'd need someone who could show you around the city, maybe a few spots outside it too."

She smiled. "That does sound nice."

There it was. An unspoken promise that they would make plans to spend time with each other, not as Tartaglia and the Traveller, but as….friends?

She huffed slightly, friends was one way to put it. She was supposed to be wary of him, push him away and strike him down when the chance presented itself. He was a bad guy after all.

Yet somewhere in her heart knew that there was more to this man than his thirst for battle and his honey-sweet tongue.

"Lumine?"

"Hm?" Turning to face him once more, her eyes widen slightly at the foreign sight before her. For the first time ever, Childe's eyes looked unsure, perhaps even a little shy.

"Thank you for tonight." Never would she imagine that she would hear those words from him.

"What for?"

"It's been a while since I've shared something that wasn't work related…" he grinned, though she noticed it didn't reach his eyes this time, "I don't exactly have anyone to talk to about these things."

It finally dawned on her as she continued to stare at him, astounded at his confession. He was a lone soldier facing the world with nothing but his own strength to rely on. He was fierce and merciless, a force to be reckoned with.

Yet the Childe that she was talking to right now was the complete opposite. He was lonely. Vulnerable.

Lumine tried to speak, but she couldn't think of the right words to say. Instead, she reached out a hand to cup his cheek, breaking him from his stupor.

This was too risky. Too bold of a move that broke all the rules she had followed this whole time. Aether would warn her not to get attached for a traveller will never linger in one place for too long.

However, here she was stuck in an unknown world, comforting one of the most dangerous people in all of Teyvat.

"Well," she whispered, "you have me."

She expected him to laugh, to scoff at her and remind her that they were on opposite sides of a war. She thought he would pull away, and turn around to leave her there.

To her surprise, he squeezed her hand in his, relishing the warmth of her palm as he gazed at her with...Was that fondness? Were her eyes playing tricks on her or was his face turning pink too?

She squirmed underneath his stare. Why was she feeling so weird tonight?

Lumine couldn't stop a yawn from escaping her lips as she tried to fight off the wave of exhaustion that overcame her. Her whole body ached from their little skirmish earlier, on top of that she still couldn't make sense of all the emotions that swirled inside her head.

"Hey, stay with me."

Even though her mind screamed at her to move, her body struggled to do anything in her tired state. Her eyes were becoming heavier by the second as she struggled to stay awake. It didn't help that his voice sounded so calming, echoing in her ears until she was lulled to sleep.

Lumine opened her eyes as light illuminated her cozy room. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes, confused as to how she ended up here.

She wondered why she felt warmer than usual when a red cloth fell from her neck. She pulled it away, finally recognizing it as the scarf that Childe always wore.

He had brought her here. He actually went out of his way to make sure that she was safe despite how late it was. The thought warmed her heart a little more than she would have liked but she welcomed it all the same.

The girl looked around, wondering just where her flying companion was, cheeks warming as she took in the scent of his scarf.

It reminded her of an ocean breeze, salty and strong, with a hint of lemon as well. Wild and full of energy, just like him.

She shook her head out of her thoughts. It was too early for her to be so sappy.

Though try as she might, she couldn't seem to wipe off the wide smile on her face as she looked forward to the day ahead of her.

#genshin childe #genshin impact #chilumi #genshin impact lumine #fluff #fanfiction

140 notes · View notes

btxtreads · 4 years

Text

today is the day | yeonjun

➳ Today is the day your best friend drags you to 25 years in the future. For fun.

↳ Pairing: Choi Yeonjun x Reader

↳ word count: 3.1k

↳ genre: fluff, mentions of sexual activities but eh, time travel

↳prompt: Y/N and Yeonjun use a time machine to go to the future, and they meet a kid that immediately recognizes them as their parents. Cue the awkwardness.

↳a/n: found this on a prompt generator while looking for something to trigger my ~brain juice~ and thought it sounded cute. Enjoy >v<

“This is it,” Yeonjun gasped as he marvelled at the sight in front of him. “the next big invention,”

“Yes,” Y/N answered skeptically, narrowing her eyes at the machine. “A giant metal donut,”

“No!” Yeonjun pouted at the girl, glaring at her. “This is a time machine!”

“Are you sure it’s not like,” Y/N started, doubtful eyes glancing around the lab. “a ghostly portal or something?”

“Sure, it’s a portal,” Yeonjun smiled, wiggling his eyebrows. “to the future,”

He giggled as he ran over to the control panel next to the machine, leaving Y/N in front of the metal ring.

Y/N bit her lip, tilting her head at the machine.

“I don’t know, Junie,” she muttered, her eyes trailing over to the blonde happily gazing at the controls. “Are you sure about this?”

Yeonjun stopped, smiling softly at the girl.

“Do you trust me?”

Y/N’s heart stuttered in its wake.

Choi Yeonjun was a brilliant child, the son of two of the most greatest scientists and engineers of the century.

He was also very lonely, until he met Y/N in elementary.

She wasn’t anyone special. Y/N’s parents weren’t too rich or too famous, just wealthy enough to score her a place at a good school where she met him. Y/N’s parents didn’t know who Choi Sunwoo or Choi Hanbin, the world famous scientists, were. So, they didn’t really tell her to befriend anyone in particular—so she didn’t really interest herself in sucking up to Yeonjun. This is what drew him to her.

All those years leading up to this point, Y/N and Yeonjun’s friendship started because she treated him like Yeonjun—not Sunwoo or Hanbin’s son.

Sure, he met a couple more friends along the way. He’s got Soobin, Beomgyu, Taehyun and Hueningkai.

However, no one compared to Y/N. She was the best friend. No one else.

Throughout their friendship, Y/N has been pulled every which way by Yeonjun into pranks and trying out different scientific experiments by his parents—and none of them has ever worked bad for either of them. It’s been like that since they met until now, in their senior year of high school.

Sure, maybe what the both of them did was dangerous, but she was with her best friend. It will always be safe with him.

It also helps that she was completely and utterly in love with his cute face that always scrunches up when he’s confused or excited, his lips that pout when he’s whining or eating, his hair that always seemed to—

“Y/N?”

Y/N flinched and blinked over at Yeonjun, whose hand was outstretched at her and the other on the control panel.

He scrunched his face in confusion.

“D-Do you not trust me?”

“Of course, I do,” Y/N gasped, intertwining her hand with his outstretched one and moving closer to him. “I always will,”

Yeonjun smiled as he typed certain dates into the machine with a grin, his grip tight on her hand.

Y/N pulled him closer.

“I guess I’m just scared,”

Yeonjun froze, his finger close to the gigantic red button labelled LAUNCH.

He turned to her.

“What do you mean?”

Y/N frowned, pressing closer to the boy and running her hand through his freshly cut and dyed blonde hair.

She gazed into his eyes.

“I’m scared of what we’ll find when we get there,” She read the dates Yeonjun typed in.

His birthday in twenty-five years. September 13, 2045.

“What if I’m not there in your future in 25 years, Yeonjun?”

“Hey,” Yeonjun sighed, his hand landing on her face. “No, stop it. Chances are we’ll land in there and the first thing I’ll see is you eating my birthday cake,”

Y/N frowned as Yeonjun tucked her hair behind her ear.

“If I’m not there—“

“Then we’re changing the future to make sure you are,” Yeonjun stated firmly.

Y/N glanced up at him, to which he responded with a kiss on her forehead. “I’m not losing my best friend, you hear me?”

“Okay,” Y/N weakly nodded, to which he replied with another kiss on the forehead.

“You ready?”

“We’re travelling through time, on a machine we’re not even sure works properly,” Y/N mumbled, pressing herself to Yeonjun’s side. “How much ready can you get?”

Yeonjun giggled and pulled his hand from her grip, circling his arm her waist and pressing her closer to him.

“Here we go,”

He clicked the LAUNCH button.

Y/N yelped as she shot out of the wall after Yeonjun, who limply lied at the floor where he landed, gazing up at the ceiling and grunting loudly when Y/N landed on him.

She gasped, sitting up and looking down at Yeonjun, who slowly smiled and grasped her hips.

“Well, hello there,” Yeonjun chuckled.

“Junie, stop,” Y/N chastised, burning red once she realized she was straddling him.

What a precarious position to be in.

“Whose bedroom is this?” Y/N asked, clambering off of Yeonjun and nearing a bed situated nearby. “Where exactly are we? When are we?”

“I have a rough guess,” Yeonjun mumbled, pointing behind him to a gigantic calendar.

On the calendar, September 13 circled in red crayon and surrounded by multiple glitter stickers and hearts around it.

The gigantic design above it stated the year, 2045.

“We made it,” Y/N gasped. “We’re here,”

“We are,” Yeonjun gasped excitedly, going over to a desk and picking up a frame. “And look!”

The photo showed Yeonjun and Y/N, both wearing graduation caps in front of—

“Harvard University,” Y/N gasped.

“Surprise,” Yeonjun said, vibrating. “I actually know I got in and found out your results,”

“How?” Y/N gasped, hitting his arm.

“Ow,” Yeonjun pouted. “I found your acceptance letter on your kitchen counter this morning, stop hitting me,”

Y/N rolled her eyes.

“Hey, if we graduated together, I’m gonna guess that we stayed best friends after all these years, huh?” Yeonjun wiggled his eyebrows.

“We would have graduated at 2024—it’s 2045. This proves nothing,” Y/N argued, waving the photo around.

While arguing, the door to the room slowly opened.

Yeonjun turned around, eyes locking with eyes.

By the door was a young girl—maybe 3 or 4, peeking in.

“Oh, hello,” Yeonjun muttered, furrowing his eyebrows. “What are you doing at our house?”

“Technically,” Y/N pointed out. “We’re not sure. What if you moved out?”

“Our photo is literally in your hands, Y/N.”

“Yoori, what are you looking at?” A voice of a young boy asked.

“Daddy,” the girl muttered, slowly bringing her hand up to point over at Yeonjun.

“What?” Y/N asked in surprise, whipping her head over at the girl.

Come to think of it—The kid did have his eyes.

A young boy, maybe around 8 or 10, pushed the door wide open with a pout on his face.

He had dark brown hair that fell over his face and the pout was exactly the same as Yeonjun’s when he whined at her.

The kid looked exactly the same as Yeonjun did when he met Y/N.

“Daddy is at work!” The boy declared, his eyes landing on Yeonjun and Y/N. “Oh,”

“Hi,” Y/N greeted with a smile, walking over and crouching down.

Yeonjun followed suit with a confused expression, his eyes glancing back and forth between the two children.

“These are my—“

“Mommy, Daddy, you’re home!” The boy cheered suddenly, jumping on both teens.

“Mommy?” Y/N asked, surprised as she reached over to pat the boy’s back.

Yeonjun blinked. “Did you just call her mommy?”

“Daddy!” The young girl pouted, waddling over to Yeonjun. “Up!”

“Mommy,” The boy gasped, pulling away and tugging at her shirt. “You promised you were gonna bake cookies for me when you get home!”

“I did?”

The boy pouted, turning to Yeonjun and pointing angrily at Y/N.

“Daddy! Mommy forgot her promise again!”

Y/N burned red as she glanced over the small girl.

Oh God, she did look like a mini-Y/N.

The boy suddenly pulled on Y/N’s hand, dragging her out the door.

“Hey, wait—“ Yeonjun gasped as the young girl pulled him after her. “Guys—“

“Sure, sure,” Y/N groaned as the boy brought her to the kitchen. “Fine, fine. I’ll make cookies,”

“You’re the best, mommy!” The boy cheered.

“Right, Kai! She is the best mommy in the world! Right, daddy?” Yoori questioned Yeonjun, who sat at the kitchen stool red-faced.

“R-Right?”

“Your name is Kai?” Y/N asked the young boy in confusion, who nodded vigorously.

Y/N shot Yeonjun a weirded out look.

“I can’t believe we named our son after Hueningkai,” Y/N muttered under her breath.

Yeonjun turned even more red at the mention of our son.

As Y/N slowly pulled the mixing bowl out of the cabinet, Yoori piped up.

“Hey mommy, since when did Daddy have yellow hair?”

Kai and Yoori sat side by side at the couch, slurping happily at the juice boxes Y/N gave them.

Yeonjun and Y/N were silent as he and Y/N washed the dishes side-by-side.

There was a knock on the door, which both Kai and Yoori promptly ignored.

“I should, um,” Yeonjun blushed, muttering over to Y/N and sneaking quick glances at her. “get the door,”

“Our kids are in the living room,” Y/N cleared her throat, shyly lowering her head. “Go check who that is,”

“Right,” Yeonjun awkwardly squeaked, standing awkwardly beside her. “Um,”

“Go,”

“Right,” he nodded vigorously, looking like a gigantic Kai as he wandered out of the kitchen.

He reached the living room, ruffling heads of both kids at the couch

“Dad, stop” Kai whined, fixing his hair as Yoori giggled.

Yeonjun cracked a tiny smile and opened the door to be met with a woman in a doctor’s coat, a stethoscope slung around her neck and a birthday cake in her hands.

His eyes danced over her face, familiarization dawning over him as his eyes landed on the bracelet on her wrist.

The birthday gift he gave to Y/N last year—or 2019. Whatever.

“Y-You’re…”

Adult Y/N cracked a tiny smile, checking her wristwatch.

“Right on time, Junie,” Y/N said, passing by and laying a kiss on both Kai and Yoori’s heads. “I’m in the kitchen, right?”

“Yes?” Yeonjun squeaked as teenage Y/N poked her head out of the kitchen, releasing a similar squeak as she saw her adult self.

Suddenly, a tall man entered the door with a pout in his face.

“Y/N, I said I wanted a kiss.” The man whined, ruffling his blue hair with a pout. “Why did you leave?”

The adult Y/N only rolled her eyes, setting the cake down on the table.

Teenage Y/N slowly made her way over to teenage Yeonjun, settling herself behind him.

“Oh, it’s today,” Adult Yeonjun gasped, looking at himself. “Damn, I look good. I can see why you fell in love with me, babe,”

Teenage Y/N’s eyes widened as teenage Yeonjun blinked.

Adult Y/N groaned and slammed a hand at the back of older Yeonjun’s head, making him whine.

“Ow! Babe!” Adult Yeonjun whined again, pouting as he rubbed the spot Y/N hit. “I love you, too,”

The teenage Y/N and Yeonjun blushed a bright red.

“Any more comments, Yeonjun, and they’re both going to combust,” Adult Y/N pointed out, gesturing over to the two.

“You guys know what you’re, or we’re whatever, going to do to make those,” Adult Yeonjun commented, pointing his thumb over to the unsuspecting kids at the sofa. “This is just I love yous. You’ll say it everyday. Get used to it,”

Teenage Y/N buried her head on teenage Yeonjun’s back, making him clear his throat.

“Uh, Yeonjun. Me. Sir,” Yeonjun started. “Did we—are we—“

“Married,” Adult Yeonjun said, smiling smugly over at the teenagers.

The said man turned over to his wife and wiggled his eyebrows suggestively.

“Choi Yeonjun,” Adult Y/N reprimanded, making him shrug apologetically. “Yes, both of you are in the future. Yes, we knew you were coming because we experienced this 25 years ago,”

“You know, I never forget to pat myself in the back for suggesting we time travel,” Adult Yeonjun chuckled.

“Yeonjun, literally shut up,” Adult Y/N sighed.

“I made some cookies for Kai, he said you promised,” Teenage Y/N explained.

“Thank you,” Adult Y/N said delicately. “I actually forgot about that,”

“So, time travel? It actually works?” Teenage Yeonjun asked, making the older him nod.

“Yeah, this is a success,” Adult Yeonjun hummed, watching Adult Y/N fondly as she took a birthday cake out of the box, the diamond in her wedding ring glinting as it hit the light. “Mom and Dad finds out what you two did, but they won’t release it,”

“Why not?”

“Because it’s dangerous,” Adult Y/N said, smiling over at the two teens. “You two went here, to find what happens. It’s innocent, sure. You finding us didn’t ruin the timeline because we know about this so we’re not dying of shock at finding out, also you didn’t exactly do anything out of the ordinary except taking care of our kids—“

“Thanks for that, by the way,” Adult Yeonjun said, his mouth full of cookies. “And Y/N, your cookies are amazing—I’m saying this so Yeonjun doesn’t have to hide it in the next 25 years,”

The teenage Y/N blushed.

“Eat to your heart’s content,” Adult Yeonjun hummed as he picked up another cookie.

Adult Y/N rolled her eyes.

“Anyways, you guys didn’t ruin anything, but whose to say others won’t?” Y/N explained, finishing her set up of the cake. “You guys should go back now, sorry about not inviting you to Yeonjun’s birthday,”

“It’s no big deal,” Teenage Yeonjun muttered, his hands intertwining with Teenage Y/N’s. “We’ll celebrate it together in 25 years, anyways,”

“Right,” Yeonjun said. “So, I’ll bring you guys back, the machine’s this way,”

“Thank God,” Adult Y/N sighed. “Destroy it after they leave, babe. Kai and Yoori might try to play with it if—“

“I know, I know,” Adult Yeonjun rolled his eyes, kissing Adult Y/N’s cheek.

“Okay, just making sure. Love you,”

“Love you too,” Adult Yeonjun hummed, urging Teenage Yeonjun to follow him to the basement.

“Now, both of you tell mom and dad what happens when they ask. They’ll find out in like, three days,” Adult Yeonjun instructed as they found their way to the basement—in front of a familiar looking metal ring. “That’s about enough time for you two to talk about your relationship. Please do, because I’d like to be married to Y/N in all possible timelines,”

Y/N burned red as teenage Yeonjun nodded.

Adult Yeonjun nodded back and pressed the LAUNCH button.

“Takes you back to ten minutes after you left,” he gestured to the portal. “Hurry in because I’m destroying everything in 30 minutes—you know, whatever the wife says goes,”

Y/N blushed red again as Yeonjun silently nodded, seemingly forgetting how to act around his adult self.

As the two teens positioned themselves to travel back, Adult Yeonjun patted his young self’s shoulder.

“Oh, and dye your hair blue,” he grinned. “Trust me, Y/N likes it a lot. Why do you think I have blue hair now?”

Y/N’s eyes widened as she looked over at teenage Yeonjun who gaped.

“Um—“

“I think I did the blue hair maybe two years after we travelled back, you can do it as soon as you get back. I don’t think it’ll ruin anything,” Adult Yeonjun shrugged, tapping his chin in thought. “She really liked it, I think we had sex all night the first time she saw me with blue hair—“

“Okay, goodbye!” Y/N squeaked, tugging Yeonjun with her through the portal.

Adult Yeonjun’s amused laughter was the last thing they heard before they everything went black.

Similar to how they got in the future, Yeonjun fell on the floor—Y/N on top of him.

With a yelp, Y/N rolled off of Yeonjun with a blush.

Yeonjun laughed awkwardly as he sat up, training his eyes on the wall.

“Uh,” Y/N cleared her throat, standing up. “I think I should get home—“

Yeonjun’s hand shot out and grasped hers.

Y/N blushed again, looking back down.

“I’m in love with you,” Yeonjun declared, looking over at her from where he sat on the floor.

Y/N gaped as Yeonjun pushed himself off the floor.

“He told me to tell you as soon as we got back,” Yeonjun muttered, scratching the back of his neck. “So, I am,”

“S-Since when?” Y/N asked. “Are you just saying this because you saw me married to you—“

“I always have been,” Yeonjun sighed. “Since 5 years ago,”

“So,” Y/N scrunched her eyebrows. “We—“

“Maybe you don’t feel the same way now,” Yeonjun started, closing his eyes tightly as if afraid. “But I just wanted to come out and say it. If you don’t want me we can just forget this ever happened and—“

“I don’t want to forget,” Y/N muttered softly, lowering her head and tucking a lock of hair behind her ear.

“Oh,” Yeonjun said, surprised.

“Yeah,” Y/N laughed nervously, her eyes shifting.

“Well then,” Yeonjun nodded to himself before swooping down and crashing his lips on hers in a very awkward, but welcomed first kiss.

He pulled away with a red face.

“That did not go as planned,”

Y/N laughed, running her hand on the hair behind his neck.

“Come here,” she giggled, pushing him down to meet her and closing her eyes as his lips crashed on hers in perfect sync.

The perfect first kiss with Yeonjun she always dreamed of.

Yeonjun smiled as he pulled away, nudging her nose with his happily as he leaned his forehead on hers.

“Babe. Babe? Babe,” He tested, making Y/N giggle. “Hi,”

Y/N melted in his grip, giggling back.

“Hi,”

“So, will you come with me to the hair salon?” He asked, running a hand through her hair.

Y/N raised her eyebrows at the abrupt change in topic.

“Why?”

“Well, I now know what blue hair will get me,” Yeonjun wiggled his eyebrows mischievously. “And I can’t say I don’t want that so—“

Y/N rolled her eyes and slammed her palm at the back of his head.

“Ow!”

“Let’s go, we’ve got a couple of hours until the salon closes,”

25 years later

“Hey, babe?”

“Hm?”

“The blue hair worked again!” Yeonjun sing-songed, nosing the back of her head.

His hands tightly gripped on her naked waist as she scoffed.

“I really hate you,” Y/N whined.

“Oh, that’s not what you said last night. And every other night since 25 years ago,” Yeonjun pointed out, making her roll her eyes.

Y/N turned in her spot, climbing over Yeonjun with a smile as he marvelled over the way the sunlight streamed through the window and shined on her.

“Hi,”

“Hi,” Yeonjun hummed, running his hand through her hair.

“Good morning,” Y/N sing-songed, kissing his nose.

“You look great today,” Yeonjun commented, smiling as the door shook loudly with knocks. “Damn, I was hoping for another round,”

“You’ll get another tonight,” Y/N giggled, pecking Yeonjun’s lips and moving to wear her bathrobe.

“I won’t forget that!” Yeonjun said from the bed as Y/N opened the door.

“Hi,” Y/N smiled, picking the little girl up in her arms and ruffling the boys’ hair. “What do you say to daddy?”

“Happy birthday!”

Y/N smiled knowingly over at Yeonjun, who laughed in amusement.

She glanced at the gigantic calendar by the wall, her eyes trailing to the September 13 encircled in red and surrounded in glitter stickers and hearts.

Today’s the day.

now i shall watch the latest TO DO X TXT episode and indulge in Beomgyu’s forehead content before making chapter 23-epilogue of drama <33333

598 notes · View notes

oyubaat-tapcaf · 3 years

Text

Take Me To the Planetarium Chapter 3 - Shawarma

AO3 Chapter 1 Chapter 2

warnings: none

summary: Din has to pinch himself a few times during this chapter.

When Din arrived at Boba’s place he was ten minutes early. Of course, he was. He either gets somewhere too late or way too early, there was no in-between. He didn’t want to rush Boba, he probably wasn’t even ready to go yet, so Din drove round the block. When he arrived again he was only five minutes early. That was okay, he could do that.

He parked his bike on the sidewalk and set back. Din knew the street where Boba lived, it was near the centre of the city. Boba lived in an older apartment block with beautiful architecture. Din took off his helmet and looked at the trees that were framing the sidewalk. He liked being here already. Though, his gut was twisting inside of him like a snake. He was so excited to see Boba, but on the other hand, he was scared. Scared that Boba realised that Din maybe wasn’t how Boba thought he was. That Boba was disappointed by the show, that Din fucked up at keeping a conversation. That Din infodumped all the shit he knew about space and that Boba wouldn’t like that. That Din got too excited and wouldn’t stop talking...

Din got off his motorcycle and took off his gloves. It was pretty cold outside so he had to wear them, at least for the ride. He went over to Boba’s front door and raised his hand to ring the doorbell. Before he could actually press the button the door swung open and he was greeted with Boba’s always so welcoming smile.

“Hi, Din!”

Din didn’t even have time to be surprised because he immediately felt better. Boba had waited, he had been ready a long time ago. Also, he didn’t even try to hide it, because he didn’t need to. Boba didn’t try to act cool and uninterested. He showed Din that he was excited and had been looking forward to this whole...date (?). Because somehow, he knew that Din kept overthinking and he knew how to deal with that.

Din released the air in his lungs that he had been holding and smiled back at his date.

“Hi.”

He realised that Boba looked pretty good. He had put the effort into his outfit, just like Din had. He wore black jeans, that was ripped at the knees, together with a button-up that was also black. Though it had a white and grey print all over. Din couldn’t see what it was, the light wasn’t bright enough at the front door. Boba also wore a silver necklace and his hair looked like it had been styled at least a bit. The longer parts of his mullet were long enough to lightly brush his shoulders.

He held a leather jacket in his hand that was lined with a fluffy and warm looking fabric on the inside. It had a few patches sewn on it.

“Your knees will be freezing,” said Din awkwardly. Wow, what a great way to start a conversation.

Boba laughed and ran his gloved hand through his curls.

“You can keep me warm. Anything for the look.”

Din joined the laugher.

“Okay, I can do that,” he replied and gestured to the jacket. “ Also, I bet this is warm enough. Though, the ride isn’t that long.”

“That sounds good,” Boba nodded and stepped through the door and closed it behind him.

“It’s been so long since I’ve been in a planetarium. I’m pretty excited!”

Din watched Boba fumble with his keys and noticed the badass leather gloves he wore. Fingerless. Oh boy, this did something to him.

“I’m happy to help,” answered Din and walked over to his bike. Boba followed him and eyed up the vehicle.

“That looks cool. I wanted to get one too but I need money for that,” he laughed awkwardly, “My car costs so much since it’s pretty old.”

“It didn’t seem original to me. Is it tuned?”

Boba nodded and put on the huge leather jacket.

“Yeah, a friend of mine offered me to change a few things.”

“It suits you,” Din replied and watched Boba close the zipper of the leather jacket. “Ready to go?”

They both put on their helmets and Din sat down on his bike. He prepared for Boba to sit behind him. He felt the weight shift and Boba’s smaller body sitting down behind him. Boba made sure not to get all up behind Din immediately, which found Din very polite, though, he would’ve loved to feel the man pressing up behind him. He registered that Boba was already lightly resting his hands at Din’s waist. A shiver ran through his muscles which he luckily hid very well.

“Please don’t fall during turns,” said Din, his voice a bit muffled by his helmet.

“I know how to ride a bike you dingus,” Boba slapped Din’s waist and snickered.

“Well then, off we go.”

The bike started rolling, the engine started roaring and they both started to feel the wind on their bodies. The street lights began to blur and everything seemed far distant. While Din still watched the traffic, he realised how they undocked from the world and entered the wormhole where just the two of them existed. It was dangerous to start daydreaming while going 50km per hour through the city, so Din stopped hyper-focusing on Boba and concentrated on his bike.

As much as he’d love to enjoy the man’s presence behind him, there was no way he could do that for now without getting them both in trouble. Maybe, when he got used to Boba a bit more, then he’d be able to do both things all at once. But for now, he had to stay in reality.

As Din had mentioned before, the ride wasn’t long. Boba lived near downtown, which means they arrived after fifteen minutes. Din was already able to see that planetariums dome from the last traffic light. He already felt safer and way more grounded. The engine beneath him was rumbling like a sea monster in a horror movie, but the leather-clad hands on his waist felt angelic. He realised how happy he was to experience this whole situation. Planetarium in sight, on his bike, with the man he was crushing on. He made sure to remember to pinch himself when they arrive so he could make sure this wasn’t a dream.

The Moons of Iego was already greeting them with its bright lights that were nearly illuminating the whole street. The trees were touched by blue and purple, the dome of the building was brightly lit with yellow and orange. It looked like the sun.

The light show never failed to amaze Din.

The bike slowly rolled into the parking lot and through that neon sign that stated the name of the location. The sign gave Din the weird vibe of a romantic gothic style that went to a cyberpunk world. It had crooked metal bars that held the neon lights up, giving the whole entry a roughed up feeling. He was so in love with it.

There were already a few people entering the building, though, they still had plenty of time before the show started. Din liked to be early, the planetarium had an amazing interior with many cool pieces of art and items on display to learn about. Also, he wanted to buy Boba a drink.

They parked the bike and slowly got down from the seat.

After lifting his helmet Din turned to Boba and had to take a calming breath. The man was immersed in the purple light, threading through his curls and over his cheeks. A few spots of blue were on his lips and run down his neck, catching in his leather jacket. Din made sure to keep at least his mouth closed.

“What an amazing place,” he heard Boba whisper.

Din swallowed the rose that had just grown in his throat and tried to give Boba a good answer.

“I agree,” he got out and distracted himself by fumbling his keys into the pocket of his heavy biker jacket. It dreaded him a little bit to think of all the times he will have to make sure today not to let his true inner feelings show to not appear too creepy. Even if Boba was very relaxed and open-minded, Din still had to make sure. He had to go slow.

“You ready to go inside?” Din gestured to the entrance of the building that was decorated with beautiful ornaments and statues of angels and aliens.

Boba said yes to that and they both made their way to the entrance.

Din hadn’t told Boba, but he had reserved two tickets for them. he just had to be sure to get the best seats. When they entered the first big hall of the planetarium he heard Boba gasp beside him. He related to that, the first hall never failed to amaze.

It seemed like it had no ceiling because of the light show, together with the way they decorated the whole room. Din didn’t quite get how they made the effect of the endless hall but somehow they did. In the corner’s of the room were bar’s made out of silver metal and plastic to appear like space stations. The menus were hung up high up in the air, also made out of neon signs. About four meters above Din’s head were moons and space shuttles hung from the ceiling. Soft ethereal music was playing and somehow, the voices of the other visitors were muffled by the architecture of the room. It was strangely quiet in here, all the time. Just like outer space.

“This is unreal,” he heard Boba beside him and turned to look at him.

“I know what you mean.”

They both just quietly stood next to each other for a while, soaking up the relaxing energy that the room was flooded with. After a while, Din turned back to Boba.

“Do you want a drink?”

Boba met Din’s eyes and gave him a smirk.

“Sure.”

They walked over to one of the bar’s and leaned against it.

“What do you want? I’m getting a ginger ale for myself.”

Boba scanned the menu and his eyes fell on the wine.

“I love drinking alone. I’m going to take that red wine.”

“You sound like a single mom on pinterest.”

Boba started to laugh and threw his head back.

“That’s my duty. I am a single mom on pinterest. Live laugh love”!”

Din joined Boba’s cackling and realised that they were probably the loudest people in the room. He didn’t mind….and that was strange for him. With Boba, all his urge to hide from society just fell from his shoulders and out of his pockets. Boba was so confident, he took Din with him.

“Make sure that you’re still able to get on my bike after the show.”

Boba raised his eyebrows.

“I think I’ll be fine. Also, you can help me get up there. And then I’ll just hold onto you.” he leaned a bit forward and took the wine glass that Din handed him.

Din got flustered at first, his instincts were telling him to run. And then...he realised that there was no need to hide or run. He was able to play along with Boba’s flirting. He was capable of actually leading this date somewhere. He was sick of letting things happen to him. He was going to make things happen.

“Is that so? Then maybe I should buy you more drinks, huh?” Din leaned a bit closer and watched Boba take a sip from the glass. It had been a while since Din had taken control in a situation like this.

“Yes you should, because that wine tastes amazing,” replied Boba with gleaming eyes. It felt like the whole room around them had gone into a blur.

“Only the best for you.”

Boba raised his chin a little and a smug smile spread on his lips.

“What’s your goal here, biker boy? Getting me into your bed?”

Din’s inner self huffed. It was hard to keep up with Boba’s confidence and fearless flirting. He wanted to scream “Yes, kinda! Let’s go home and let me throw you on my Star Trek sheets!”

But of course, he couldn’t do that. Also, he was still very happy to be here.

“Well first, you’re going to watch that show with me and you better pay attention because there will be a test tomorrow!” Din raised his index finger as a teacher would.

Boba picked up his joke and laughed after taking another sip of wine.

“Okay, I’ll try my best, sir.”

For a few seconds, it took all of Din’s self-control to keep himself from throwing Boba over that damn bar stool next to them. He looked away for two seconds, a soft smile on his lips. Then he remembered what he actually wanted to talk about this night.

“Boba, tell me about your band. I completely fucked up asking last time.”

Boba looked surprised at that question. He then looked a little flustered, Din liked that.

“We’re an alt rock band. I play bass. Uhm...we have an EP released but the quality sucks because we don’t have the money for a good record studio.” he took a sip of the red wine and Din could see a small blush forming on Boba’s cheeks. He wasn’t sure if it’s the wine or the conversation.

“And how many people are in that band? What’s the name of the band?”

“We’re four people, the name is Spying Neighbors. We have a guitar, drums, bass keys and vocals, our guitarist also does the vocals.”

Din chuckled at that name.

“Spying Neighbors? That’s a sick name. How did that happen?”

Boba chuckled too and emptied his wine glass.

“We started rehearsing years ago at our guitarist’s parents’ house and the neighbours kept watching us and sometimes they even called the police.”

“Let me know when there’s a show! I wanna come.” Din also emptied his ginger ale.

Boba looked surprised. Probably because Din didn’t seem like a person who would go to rock shows. Which was kinda right, but he loved music and for Boba, he would go to a fully crowded club, just to see the man on stage.

“I definitely will!”

A signal from the speakers let them know that the show will start soon, only ten minutes left.

“Should we go inside?” Din placed his clas on the bar and gestured to the theatre’s entrance.

Boba nodded and picked up the jacket he had placed on that barstool next to him.

They walked over to the entrance. As they stepped through it everything turned dark. The theatre was still dark on the inside and the way to the seats was only shown by small lights on the floor. They found their seats pretty fast because Din knew the way. He had been here many times. When they sat down, Din realised that the seats weren’t even that far from each other that he remembered. Maybe he had never paid attention to it because he had never been here with another person.

“Remember the test tomorrow,” whispered Din in Boba’s direction and got a small giggle as an answer. He wasn’t able to really see Boa’s features because it was so dark in the room. But that gave him the opportunity to really listen to his voice as he talked.

“I am always amazed by all that technical stuff going on here. Like...how does this even work? Amazing!”

His voice wasn’t super deep but it wasn’t high either. It wasn’t rough, it had a smooth undertone that Din had never heard anywhere before. Also, the way he spoke gave Din butterflies in his stomach. Boba said everything with so much meaning and honesty like it was just permanently edged in his voice. It made Din happy just listening to it.

“I know what you mean. Even if someone would explain it to me, I’d still have no clue how they make it so realistic.”

“Nah, you’re smart. You’d get it.”

Din snickered at that and shook his head.

“I’m not smart Boba, I’m just interested in certain things. If I’d be that smart, I’d be working at NASA, not as a web designer.”

“What about as a web designer for NASA?” replied Boba smugly and giggled. “No for real,” he continued, "I'm kinda glad you work at Smith's, if not I'd have never met you."

Din felt his chest tickle as he heard Boba's words. At first, he didn't know what to say, and when he finally wanted to answer, the dome-like ceiling above them lit up in bright colours and music started to play. The show began.

Din already knew the show, they changed a few things from time to time but overall it was still the same. But it still didn't fail to amaze him every time. He kept his eyes glued to the projected sky above them and followed the star signs with his eyes. He wanted to look over to Boba, but he was too afraid that Boba might notice him staring.

So he kept looking at the show and leaned back in his seat, taking some time to relax and think about his next moves. The show wasn't very long, maybe about 60 minutes. He didn't want to say goodbye to Boba so soon, so he decided to ask him what he wanted to do after that. He would offer him to go to his place. He even had cleaned it up, so he kinda had to invite Boba. He was sure Boba was up for it.

He realised that being around this man made him relaxed and so confident. He felt like interacting with Boba was easy. He didn't know if it was the way Boba made sure to listen to every word Din said. Maybe it was the confidence that Boba held that washed over Din too. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, it was a strange connection he had never felt before. Din had to make sure to hold onto that.

The show had been playing for a while now and the screen showed a gigantic nebula that formed right above Din and Boba. The seats were reflecting the yellow and pink lights and Din saw that it was really bright. Before he realised he looked over to his date. Boba was leaned back in his seat, hands clasped in his lap, eyes up to the fake sky.

The colours shone beautifully in his eyes and Din couldn't stop watching him. The way his tanned skin interacted with the yellow of the nebula, the way his eyes looked more precious than diamonds. The way his lips were parted was only slightly in awe.

Din had to pinch himself, for a few seconds he was sure he was dreaming. This whole situation felt off. As if he, Din Djarin, ever had the chance to buy this human being a drink. But he wasn't dreaming. Boba was real. Real, and he was locking eyes with him.

It should've felt unnatural or weird but no, it felt like it was meant to be. Boba looked at Din, obviously liked that Din was staring at him. He smiled kindly, head slightly cocked to the side. Din felt like the gravity of the room went out and he rose up from his seat. They were floating through space, long gone from the theatre and the other guests. It was quiet, though a soft humming sound was vibrating through the void, embracing them in its fluid waves, dancing on their bodies. A look around themselves showed that they were somewhere floating in our solar system, though the earth was not in sight. Din could see Saturn and Uranus from afar. The planets were easy to recognize due to their special characteristics. He looked back at the man across from him who was holding out his hand for Din to take.

They grabbed each other's hands softly, Boba's hand the same size as Din's, fitting between his fingers so perfectly. No words were spoken, there was no need for that. It was just floating, enjoying. Looking at each other and feeling each other's skin. The colours of the Nebula were dancing on their bodies just like the humming sounds did. Din had never felt so good in his life. He could stay here forever. But he had to go.

He was brought back to reality by the voice-over of the show saying something about flying back to earth and going home. Although he didn't want to, he let go of his imagination and found himself in his seat again. He and Boba were still looking at each other as if Boba had experienced the same. Din was sure that he didn't but it still felt amazing to keep that connection.

It took them a while to realize that the show had ended and the first few guests had stood up and run to the toilet. Din had to snicker at that.

Boba was still recovering from that weird Out-of-body experience he just had. For a short moment, that world around him had been gone and there was just Din. He kinda knew that Din had experienced something similar. Something had clicked between them.

Boba looked over to Din who sat in his seat back hunched over a little, watching the people exit the room one by one. He needed to thank him for that experience.

"Should we leave too?" Din looked at Boba calmly and stretched his back a little.

Boba nodded and stretched out his legs. He hoped that this date wasn't over yet. He had to make sure it wasn’t. Din probably wanted to do something else too.

They both got up slowly and walked next to each other to the exit.

They entered the big hall again, greeted by the spaceships that hung from the ceiling. Boba looked around and watched mothers and fathers fumble with their kids' jackets. They were in a rush, the kids needed to go to sleep.

Boba was sure that Din didn't want this night to end but he also knew that, perhaps, Din had problems communicating that. He prepared himself for asking. But he was surprised when Din just looked at him, completely relaxed and…

"Do you wanna go to my place? I even have wine at home."

Boba was taken aback at first at how simply Din stated the offer. Then he smiled and nodded. Of course, he wanted to.

"I'd love to do that," he responded with as much honesty he could find, which was probably a lot because Din gave him a big smile and ushered him to the exit.

They walked over to the exit, faster than they had when they entered and stepped through the door into the cold November night.

"Don't worry I'll make sure to stay sober to drive you home." Din zipped up his thick jacket that was layered with protection. Boba had to admit that he liked the way Din looked in that jacket. It made him look pretty broad and tall.

"A true gentleman, aren't ya?"

Din shrugged and fingered the keys out of his pocket then he put on his gloves.

"Only if I want to."

Boba shook his head in amusement.

"Are you hungry? We can get Shawarma on the way," added Din.

Boba loved Shawarma so he instantly said yes. He knew which store Din was talking about, he had been there a few times.

They reached Din's bike and both put on their helmets. After they both climbed up the vehicle Din started the engine and it roared through the whole parking lot. Boba felt really comfortable behind Din and he loved to be this close to him. He leaned in a bit, wrapping his arms around Din a little tighter than he should. Din seemed to notice but he didn't say anything. There wasn't much to say about it anyway.

They rode down the road and passed many bars and clubs. Loud music was playing everywhere and the people were laughing. The streets were alive, even if it was cold as hell outside. It was a magical experience, Boba could see so much more than when he drove with his car. It felt more real.

He was still warm due to his jacket but he realised that Din had been right, his knees were freezing a bit. Maybe he should've worn pants that weren't ripped. But this one looked so good on him.

They kept driving down the streets downtown and watched drunk people partying, Then they stopped at the Shawarma place. It wasn't crowded yet so it didn't take long to order. Din paid for Boba, again. Although Boba could pay for himself, he felt good getting spoiled, it made him feel special.

Din turned way more confident than Boba had expected before and he loved it. He kind of knew that Din wasn't a very shy person, in particular, he just needed time to adjust. Boba didn't think that Din was introverted either, he just waited for the right person to talk to. He had chosen Boba. The way Din drove the two of them through the traffic safely, still with a few extra turns. He wasn’t driving wild in particular you could just sense that he had fun.

He stopped the bike in a smaller street that was filled with small bushes and trees. There was nearly no space left for car’s only a few spots were for parking. Din turned off the engine and they both got off his bike. Boba could hear the leaves rustling in the cold November winds, and as romantic as this may sound, he started shivering. His breath was fogging the air in front of him and his knees nearly fell off.

“Let me put my bike in the garage, then we can go inside. You’re freezing,” said Din immediately and opened a big dark garage door next to a (probably his) front door.

“Yeah, okay,” responded Boba and wrapped his arms around himself. He couldn’t wait to eat his Shawarma wrap and talk to Din.

Din rolled the motorcycle in his garage.

After doing that he closed the garage’s door and hurried up to open the front door. They stepped inside and Boba found himself in a small hallway with stairs leading upstairs.

Din lead the way upstairs to the second floor, where he had his apartment. He opened the door while Boba stood behind him holding the small bag with their food.

“I can hear your teeth chatter, do you want a hot chocolate or tea, coffee, a blanket?”

Boba smiled at Din’s offer and took a moment to think about it as they stepped inside.

“Tea sounds good,” he replied and looked around the living room they had just entered. It wasn’t very big and looked quite comfy. A dark blue couch, big enough for maybe three people was placed in the centre of the room with a rather big TV across from it. A few shelves filled with DVDs and books and records were nearly everywhere. Though the shelves weren’t very big, it was just a lot of them.

What Boba liked, in particular, was, that there were also things just randomly placed on the coffee table, the TV stand and the floor. He saw small and big stacks of books and random stacks of paper, drawings, in the corners of the room. A record player that was rested on a vintage-looking stool, attached to a pretty high end looking hi-fi system.

There were also posters on the wall, Boba recognised movies like Mad Max and The Matrix and a few horror movies. He also saw a painting of an artist he didn’t know. He slowly got rid of his jacket and Din took it from his hands and place it over an armchair that seemed to function as some kind of wardrobe. The same with their helmets.

Din walked across the room to switch on some lights. He didn’t switch on the big overhead light, only the smaller ones that were placed around the room. They were shining in different colours like yellow, green and a lot of red tones.

“I can’t stand bright lights, I prefer those dimmed ones,” explained Din.

Boba nodded, he understood that.

“So tea?” Din gestured to a door arch that probably led to the kitchen.

“Yeah.” Boba started walking over to Din and realised that the warmth of the room was already seeping into his body.

“I see a lot of books,” said Boba.

“Yeah, I read a lot. That’s probably no surprise. Gimme the food real quick, I’ll put in on some plates,” said and placed and turned on an electric kettle. He turned to Boba and took the bag from his outstretched hand.

Boba watched Din place the still-hot food on two plates while the water got heated up.

“So, did you like the show?” asked Din.

“It was amazing. Thank you for that experience. I really enjoyed it. The nebula was probably the best part.” Boba thought back to the moment they had when they both met their eyes during that part of the show.

Din smiled as he listened to Boba’s answer.

“That’s great to hear. I am amazed every time I go there. It’s never the same. What tea do you like? I have apple or black tea.”

“Apple.” said Boba and leaned against the door frame.

“Are your knees still working or should we replace them with robotic ones?” joked Din and brewed the tea for Boba.

“Yes, probably. I can’t feel them anymore…” said Boba. Well, that might be a bit too dramatic.

“You can sit on the couch and I’ll give you a blanket. C’mon, the tea needs to brew for a while.”

Din walked over into the living room again and took a fluffy looking, mustard yellow blanket. Boba followed him and sat down on the velvet couch after Din ushered him to do so. Without a warning, he threw the blanket over Boba.

Boba wrapped it around himself, touched by the kind gesture. He looked at the pillows that lay on the couch next to him. They were brightly coloured a few had stars printed on them. It felt like Din bought them at many different stores and didn’t like to follow a consistent aesthetic. Also, the count of the pillows revealed that he probably spent a lot of time on this couch. The coffee table in front of him was made out of glass, it was shaped like a kidney. An Ipad was laying on top of it, together with a few magazines about robotics and design. Next to them stood a Funko Pop of Loki Laufeyson.

Din had picked a record he wanted to listen to together with Boba. He turned to Boba who was curled up on his couch scanning the coffee table.

“Do you know this record?” he asked and held it up in Boba’s direction “It’s Visions, by Grimes.” It was one of Din’s favourite albums.

Boba shook his head no.

“Then I will enlighten you now.” Din put the vinyl in his record player and the music started playing softly.

#TMTTP #bobadin #din djarin #boba fett #din djarin x boba fett #bobadin au #mandalorian au #star wars au #star wars fic #bobadin fic #fan fic #AO3 #fluff

12 notes · View notes

reynie-muldoons · 3 years

Text

'The Art of Conveyance and Round-Trippery' Liveblog!

Sorry this is a few days late!! I moved across the country this weekend, we drove like 13 hours within 2 days and we did a lot of heavy lifting. I'm exhausted, but the boxes are slowly emptying and I've been wanting to watch this episode so gd bad, so LESGO

Over halfway through the season!!!! That's absolutely surreal

1:11 oooh they're getting their royal fitting

1:22 LMAOO WTF 😂😂 Princess Diaries vibes

1:42 ✨CONFIDENCE✨

1:52 Alfonse is a perfect name for that guy HAHA

2:05 Nathaniel, my guy, you've made some points

2:11 "do you feel your power?" POWER RANGERS, GO

2:24 no no hesitation just prolly thinkin bout how he was caught cheatin

2:39 "can you not allow yourselves luxury?" okay fr I feel that I get Nice Things Guilt(tm) too easily

2:52 dayummmm let's talk about Sticky being a hat stall between Hufflepuff and Gryffindor, mans is brave as fuck under extreme pressure and loyal to the point of putting himself on the line

3:15 bro Sticky getting some recognition. Love to see it, he deserves it

3:19 "is that a coincidence? Or written in the stars?" IS DR. CURTAIN CATCHING ON THAT THEY KNEW EACH OTHER BEFORE OR LIKEEEE

3:49 WHAT WORD AROUND CAMPUS 😭😭😭 MY BOYS ARE NOT A MISTAKE HOW DARE YOU

4:09 why doess the action of Dr. Curtain putting the sash on them seem so nefarious

4:36 I dont really understand the whole pastel yellow, blue, and pink palette of the school but the boys both look pretty okay in their vest-sash getup

4:42 THE OPENINGGGGG. This shit slaps.

5:41 Kate and Constance look so fucking cute in that shot, dont ask me why but hnnggggg

5:54 sash rope 😂😭 kate, honey, that's a reach

6:09 it might feel buttery, but, my guy, it also looks buttery. It's literally the color of butter. Get yourself some crisco

6:24 I find it kinda interesting that they made up new riddles for the show, I'm almost positive that that one wasn't in the book. Correct me if I'm wrong though

7:03 "I'm not gonna apologize for knowing things" the sass. the ✨confidence✨. living for it

7:03 If they build on that it sets Sticky up really nicely for the arc in the second book where he starts to show off a little

7:15 tiny Constance who is constantly dressed in pink with cute little braids is the perfect medium for the most morbid comments 😂😂

7:55 Martina's hot in her uniform. Can't prove me wrong.

8:15 why does that make me sad 🥺 eat with your friendssss. iirc they only talked about eating at the Messenger table in the books

8:26 dipshits forgot their lunches. Seems Constance is holding the communal braincell atm

8:50 anyone have Guiness on speed dial? Reynie and Sticky have a submission for them

9:25 oh hello this was alluded to in the preview!!! Morse code is compromised, rip

10:05 so are Jackson and Jillson stuck with night guard duty all the time?? They've been outside at night a lot

10:18 ahhhhhh the little blinkie light, stopppp

10:25 MILLIGANNNNN!!!

10:25 so is this the point where he starts staying on the island with them????

10:39 so are they just like "fuck it we'll do it right before sundown" ???? Like Jackson and Jillson are still gonna be on the lookout, they aren't gonna chill just because it's not fully dark

10:50 did the kids.....just not tell them that Mr. Bloom was on the island 😂 nice oversight guys

11:05 MADGE TIME MADGE TIME

11:05 remind me to tell you guys a story about Madge, I may or may not have done something irl a few years ago that would make y'all proud 😂😂😂

11:16 idk why but it makes me so happy that they kept Madge as a peregrine falcon

11:37 Rhonda, my love, you have my heart in your hands

11:46 roll credits

12:05 THE HEAD SHAKE HAHAHAH

12:06 Awww man, I was so excited for Milligan to be on the island .-. He must have been scoping out the inlet

12:07 "they're quite regal" A. I read the subtitles as "legal" the first time and that's somehow really in character for him, and B. IS MILLIGAN GOING TO NAME HER???!? HER MAJESTY???? PLEASE I WOULD LOVE THAT SO MUCH

12:15 his grimace KILLS ME

12:17 the hard cut from Nicholas in a brown setting and brown suit to Nathaniel in a blue setting and blue suit was lowkey striking

12:36 are they looking up Morse code 😳 can you imagine if they wrote down the message and are now decoding it

12:41 omfg all that for a HAT 🙃 I feel stupid

12:51 two things: 1. Those walls are atrocious, and 2. Yeah, talk about Morse code in a louder voice Connie girl, you're just in a public hallway

13:03 I'm sorry but those orange pillar things are not the vibe

13:03 the golden gate bridge called, they want their arches back

13:10 please let Kate climb the tower before the end of season 1. please.

13:22 y'all are about to be flying something else 😎

13:33 cleansing breaths

13:47 OH HELLO MESSENGER DUTY ALREADY??

14:06 what the heck is that teal pole for 😭😭

14:12 blindfold timeeee

I'm so sorry but I'm exhausted, it's 11:30 pm on Sunday night right now, I'll finish this episode tomorrow morning after I get some sleepies

Good morningggg lesgetatit

14:50 "vomit of metal" ashhdjdjd

15:16 a wild Martina appears!

15:36 and if you folks look to your left, you'll see a wild Constance being the voice of reason once again

15:57 "lose the bucket" "I'm not gonna do that" HELL YEAH KATE

16:07 I get not having the bucket on the court lolol, I thought Martina was telling Kate to lose the bucket in general. Like, yeah, good luck convincing her to so that

16:35 show!Kate is much angrier than book!Kate and I'm still deciding how I feel about that. The Kate we've known from the books is a sunshine baby with looots of repressed trauma.

17:03 ......what is that. why is that.

17:11 WAIT IS THAT SUPPOSED TO BE REYNIE AHEHDJDJD

17:15 HI MADGE

17:41 the grand swell in the music makes me think it's going to go comically wrong

17:51 she's majestic because she's a queen 🥺

18:03 LMAO CALLED IT

18:14 Rhonda and Number Two getting at each other is such a sisterly thing to do 😂😂😂

18:37 ohhhhh? Someone's approaching? Miss Perumal perhaps????

18:45 YEAHHHHH BABY

18:50 PROTECTIVE MOM COMIN IN HOT!!!

19:22 THEYRE SO PRECIOUS 😭😭😭😭 I feel like I've been subconsciously starved for her and Mr. Benedict's interactions

19:36 died at that line in the one trailer

20:00 so Miss Perumal pulled a Sherlock Holmes. Love that for her

20:20 Cheri Tupintown??? Of all the aliases they could pick, Cheri Tupintown???

20:33 "Power in Truth Inc" that HAS to be something Rhonda came up with

21:01 you can literally watch Mr. Benedict realize that this is a woman not to be fucked with and he is CORRECT

21:23 "he's fine. Perfectly fine." At this, Mr. Benedict's pants caught aflame.

21:52 something about Constance sitting in on practice!!! It scratches an itch!!!!

22:19 "incorporate the helix. Live in the helix." Lord Helix is pleased with this offering.

22:26 so what I'm hearing is Kate is going to blow up on Constance for messing with the bucket

23:13 unrelated but Jillson'a shoes are cute

23:29 why does this room give off Johnny Depp's willy wonka vibes

24:13 that looks like a chair from a doctor's office waiting room 😭

25:29 they do be egg heads tho

26:02 baby girl, I have no idea why you're crying at weird art but let me dry your tears 🥺🥺

26:50 SHE FOUND ITTTT

27:27 okay Indiana Jones, go off

27:46 why did that kinda sound like Miss Perumal

28:43 the return of everyone's favorite, "enjoyable"

29:05 not that I'm not loving the ice breaker questions and the one-sided conversation, but I'm not loving it

29:22 oh so we're getting right into it aren't we

29:54 his eyes being open again makes this infinitely creepier

30:36 "where's your proof?" Miss Perumal doesnt fuck around!!!

31:29 you're telling me Constance has been there all day?? And Kate went to find her???? 🥺

31:58 oh so we're getting right to it then?? Kate addressing her independence and trust issues arc????

33:29 NEWS!!!!

33:49 CONSTANCE RIDING PIGGYBACK!!!!!!

34:04 okay, so they opened the murder hole, what are they gonna do now

34:59 Italian? 🤨 m'sir that is so fancy

34:59 fun story I learned Italian diction in college, so I know a little bit

35:16 "take your time" the whisperer says, immediately repeating the prompt to get the answer sooner

35:31 theeeeere it is

35:46 SOMETHING ABOUT THE WHISPERER SAYING "YOU ARE HOME" 😭😭😭 the show really played up the cult shit!!

36:02 Kate being protective of Constance 🥺

36:20 ohhh shit is it time for Connie girl to have double Reynie? Double Sticky?

36:36 STICKY

36:52 "what kind of nonsense?" HAVE THEY NOT ASKED THAT BEFORE THIS?????

37:14 "and your tiny brain can somehow pick it up!!" KATE STOP 😂😂😂

37:16 "I knew you had to be special in some way." WE DONT HAVE TIME TO UNPACK ALL OF THAT

37:51 she's right, this is disregard for their safety. The show made Mr. Benedict and his team a lot more back-alley and dishonest, and Miss Perumal has every reason to be pissed

38:30 oh good they finally remembered he has narcolepsy

39:38 and the best mom award goes to:

40:38 I was gonna say that this hallway is how I imagined the KEEP in riddle of ages but then I remembered that (spoilers) the Institute is the KEEP

40:46 oh, hello propoganda

41:10 that's the other person Rhonda couldn't contact, along with Mr. Bloom. This has to be the brainsweeping process

41:22 yeppppp

41:44 this dark doctor's office theme gives me horror movie vibes

42:22 ohhhh, so that's how they replaced that scene where the four of them jump in a crate to hide and Sticky drops his glasses in the open

42:47 and so we've come to the part of the story where Sticky and Reynie become infinitely more conflicted

42:47 and since we've reached that point..... can we have the white knight scene? Pretty please? Please Disney I'm begging you-

43:12 so Reynie just figured that out without Constance? :/

44:03 love the manipulation

44:31 I'm sorry, the farm?

44:35 farm and forest????

45:16 "the Emergency has served its purpose" 😳 well okay then murder man

45:39 "one thought, one purpose" the hive mind rises once more

45:48 LOVE THE MANIPULATION

46:07 "what have you done to earn anyone's trust?" VALID

46:26 "please do!" WHY AM I EMOTIONAL

47:06 "we still have the falcon" that you do 😂

47:19 AYYY HERE WE GO!!! Time for Milligan to stay on the island??

47:49 ohhhh Constance, casual telepath strikes again

48:16 "stop it, Kate!" OOOOHHHHH

48:53 that line ("it would be nice to be unburdened") would be funny as shit if not for the fact that Constance is a telepath unbeknownst to herself and can both subconsciously perceive people's thoughts and hear the subliminal messages

49:20 HI MRS. PERUMAL!!!

49:25 wow, she's really going through with it 😳 not that I doubted her, but still, that's dedication

49:39 OH SHIT

50:17 oh, so he's an asshole to SQ too. Got it. Torches and pitchforks? Ready to kick his ass?

50:40 "for the moment, anyway" FUCKIN WHAT

This episode was really good!!! They covered a LOT. I hope Miss Perumal comes back to the group and talks about her findings, I hope Milligan goes to get the kids and they tell him no, and I hope they get that classic 4-person Society brainstorming and binding time that hits that sweet spot

#mbs disney+#mbs liveblog #the art of conveyance and round trippery #the mysterious benedict society #charity's talkies

13 notes · View notes

bubblemiya · 3 years

Text

Ace of Spades ~ Natsuo Todoroki x Reader

Chapter 1 : First day disaster

Next | Masterlist

Warnings: blood mention, abduction mention

word count: 2.2k

A/N: This is my first fic on my new blog and I am so excited about it! I hope you enjoy

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

You knew hero work wasn't going to be easy but there was still a tiny part of you that thought you'd be snatched up by a top agency right away with your flashy suit and unique quirk. That wasn't quite the case.

In fact the opposite happened, your strong quirk had very little drawbacks and many people saw it as dangerous, the nature of your quirk drew villain organisations to you. You defeated them, reported, even 'disposed' of some of them but there was one organisation you couldn't quite shake.

It was your loyalty to the side of heroes and your impressive skill set showcased in your fights that caught the eye of the Endeavour agency. Today was your first day at the agency, it had been a full year since your graduation from shiketsu, and it hadn't properly sank in yet until you were pulling on your hero suit in the women's changing room and a fiery haired sidekick basically pounced on you.

"Aren't you the new girl? I'm Moe Kamiji, my hero name is Burnin'"

She was beautiful, her hair was unique and her loud personality made you envy her. Her inquisitive staring distracted you and you almost tripped pulling up your body suit. She chuckled and helped steady you before offering to help you zip up.

"I'm y/n l/n, my hero name is Phantom Light"

"from what I've seen of your quirk, you're like a ghost type pokemon! that's so cool"

If she sensed your nervousness or felt the heat rising in your face, she didn't mention it. She instead just waited for you to tug on your boots and rambled about how much she loves working at the agency. Her bright attitude was nowhere near what you expected walking into a workplace run by the most intimidating man you've ever seen. She had a natural warmth to her that seemed to calm your fears. You guessed that they sic her on all the newbies at the agency because of that.

"well I'll show you around, newbie"

She looked confident and comfortable as she showed you around the main floors and you only hoped to feel the same way soon. You had already seen the reception and social media/pr team offices as they were on the way to the changing room but Moe had shown you the gyms with in-house saunas, break rooms, conferences rooms, and investigation rooms. The place was huge and despite being full of people, felt empty. It was terrifying, but still exactly what you expected from the new number one. Moe's phone beeped as you passed into another hallway and she pulled it from her bra to check.

"I regret not asking for pockets on this thing" she growled "shit, I'm being called to a villain attack not far from here, you're on your own for now, newbie." she turned to run down the hallway.

"Thank you Kami-"

"Call me Moe!" and before you could even respond she was gone. Your nerves suddenly came flooding back without your new friend there to ease them. With your 'almost fall' in the changing room and Moe leaving when you needed her most, it seemed lady luck was not on your side today. Right as you turned the corner you smacked right into someone exiting an office and they spilled their coffee down your shirt.

“Oh i’m so sorry!”

“It's ok, my hero suit is quite thick so it's not that bad” you attempted to laugh it off but paused as you finally looked up. Your blood ran cold as you realised who you bumped into. The six foot five figure of your boss loomed over you. On your first day you just so happened to bump into Endeavour's son and cause a coffee spill right in front of the man himself. “I-it was my fault any-”

“You just started today and you’re already causing problems, we scouted you because of your impressive skill set but -”

“Shut up, old man” Endeavour's face immediately twitched in anger but he listened to his son, not wanting to cause a scene with him. “It was an accident and it was both of our faults” Endeavour looked embarrassed but grunted something inaudible under his breath. “I'm Natsuo, I'm sorry about your suit, take this” he held his jacket out to you.

“Its ok, it's just a stain”

“Please I insist”

You took it, not wanting him to be offended, and you got a chance to get a proper look at him. He awkwardly scratched his neck as you put on the jacket. There was a brief moment of awkward silence before Endeavour pushed Natsuo past you and carried on walking down the hall. You shook your head to try and rid you of your shame, you hoped you had not just ruined your big shot in the hero world. You walked back down to the offices, keeping your head down as you passed Endeavour and Natsuo to avoid the awkward eye contact. Endeavour was immensely intimidating so you wanted to avoid getting further onto his bad side as much as possible. You filled out the last of your paperwork and set out on your daily patrol.

You kept the jacket on during your patrol and kept in mind that you should take it off to fight but hoped that wouldn't be necessary. You wandered your designated streets, taking in the general hustle and bustle of the town. Bike bells and shop doors opening were sounds you considered comforting. You nodded at people as you passed them, even stopping to say hi to some kids, and stopped at a cafe for a drink. You walked with your drink, hoping for a peaceful end to your work day, until the bird chirping and happy kids turned to screams for help. Your feet, as if on autopilot, followed the sounds until you turned a corner and came face to face with a guy harassing a group of high school girls. You recognised his face from the news, he was a low level villain who had abducted some high school students over the last 3 weeks. He didn't have any strong quirk that you knew of so you went straight in with a strong punch. However, in your haste, you failed to notice the knife he had concealed until he swung it in your direction and he caught your stomach. It wasn't so deep that it needed immediate attention so you continued to fight him off. you had shouted at the girls to leave the alley but they were frozen in place. Fear sometimes acts as an invisible paralytic,

one that we can't or struggle to fight against.

He had gotten in a couple of good swings but once you knocked the knife out of his hand he was pretty much useless. You gave him a harsh elbow to the nose that definitely broke it, a noise that you didn't wanna admit made you feel good and all but knocked him out with the hardest punch you could throw. While he was incapacitated you leaned down to slip him under your control into his body to possess him to make him easier to carry. Your quirk was called 'ghost' which not only gave you the ghostly ability to walk through walls but also to possess people and communicate with the dead. Your possession ability works like a telepathically controlled puppet instead of a typical spirit possession. Once you had his unconscious form up and ready to walk himself to the nearby police you made an attempt to calm the girls and make sure they followed you to the police so police could do safety checks and collect statements. You found it was easy to keep them distracted from their feelings by talking to them and answering questions they might have. You learned one of the girls, a short girl with black hair and black bunny ears, was named Hoshi.

"Are you a pro hero?"

"yup! I started at the Endeavour agency today!"

"Saturday is a weird day to start a new job"

"There's no such thing as weekends when you're a hero" you chuckled at the way she rolled her eyes.

"Don't I know it. My dad is a pro too"

"oh really?"

"yeah but he's away visiting my stepdad"

Your conversation abruptly stopped when police arrived on the scene and took both the unconscious villain and Hoshi away from your custody. The only thing left to do now was find where you had left Natsuo's jacket and head back to the agency to get stitched up. You ran back to a bench you passed to luckily find Natsuo's jacket still there. you didn't wanna get blood on it so you carried it back to the agency instead.

When you walked back in the agency building, Endeavour was standing in the office, handing paperwork to the receptionist, and he noticed you almost immediately.

"Phantom Light, what happened?"

"I got that guy who was abducting high school kids, the one that's been all over local news" Your chest felt heavy as you struggled to pant out your sentence. You were holding your free hand over the wound, putting as much pressure as possible on it to reduce bleeding.

"You're gonna need stitches, I'll take you to our in house doctor" He seemed a lot less tense than he did earlier and Natsuo was nowhere to be seen. You muttered a thank you and slowly walked behind him. He led you to a white door with a black metal name plate on it reading 'Dr.Kita'. You thanked Endeavour again and wandered into the room.

"Good work today, Phantom Light'' was the last thing he said before he shut the door behind you. He was being a lot nicer and even attempting to be encouraging which you figured was his own way of apologising for yelling at you earlier.

The doctor was a tall guy around forty with yellow eyes and brunette hair that was already starting to grey. He welcomed you and got you to lie down on the bench so that he could stitch you back up. He was very talkative, as most doctors are as a way to distract from pain, and he asked about a couple other visible scars to focus your mind elsewhere.

"I got the skin graft about a year ago, I got in a fight with some villain who had a fire quirk. I wasn't even at an agency yet, I was still looking to get scouted, but I walked past him harassing this man for money and I couldn't just walk past it" The doctor nodded as you told the story of the man with white hair and some nasty facial scars who burned you last year. You hissed as the final stitch went through and the doctor clasped his hands together.

"that's you all fixed up, now you just need to change and go home" he said, helping you off the bench and shaking your hand.

You walked back to the changing room and shoved your coffee and blood stained clothes in a bag and changed into your normal clothes. On your way out the building you passed Moe who all but begged for your phone number before you left.

The walk home was quiet and peaceful, The sunset was pretty and nice to watch as you made your way to the train station. The subway ride home had very few people and it was nice to have some time to yourself. You almost missed your stop though because your mind kept drifting back to white fluffy hair and pretty grey eyes. Natsuo was all you could think about. It didn't help that you had his jacket wrapped around you. The smell of an expensive cologne lingered around the collar, it was faint and softer than the cologne you expected him to wear. It was nice and comforting, a smell you could get used to.

Once you got back to your house you used your quirk to pass through the door - which is always locked because you used your quirk and had no reason to open it unless you were expecting food delivery. When you turned around to kick off your shoes you noticed the chain lock had been busted open. You quickly looked around the entrance to your house to check if anything was missing but everything was exactly as you left it in the morning. You dumped your duffle bag full of dirty clothes on the floor and went to check around the rest of the house. You upturned cushions, sifted through cupboards and looked underneath your copious number of house plants but everything seemed normal and in its right place. The only place left to check was your bedroom. Your hand shook as you grasped the door handle nervous to see if anything had been taken but when you walked in you couldn't see anything out of place until you turned your head to the dresser and there it was. Tucked into the frame of a photo of you and your brother sat a playing card, the ace of spades to be exact, with a time written on it.

"2:30 pm"

#bubble.natsuo #bubble.aceofspades #bubble.fic #natsuo todoroki x reader #natsuo x reader #natsuo todoroki #todoroki x reader #todoroki #bnha x reader #mha x reader #bnha #mha #bnha angst #bnha fluff #x reader #bnha fic #natsuo #my hero academia

53 notes · View notes

dangerouscommiesubversive · 3 years

Text

i've got a secret i've been hiding under my skin

Fandom: Kamen Rider Stronger, Kamen Rider Build

Characters: Kiryuu Sento, Jo Shigeru, Banjou Ryuuga

Song: "Mr. Roboto," The Protomen (playlist here)

Sento is so absorbed in his work that he barely hears the knocking at the warehouse door—doesn’t register it at all, really, until he hears the door opening and Banjou saying, sounding puzzled, “Hello?”

“Afternoon, young man,” says a voice that Sento doesn’t recognize even slightly. “Your name wouldn’t happen to be Kiryuu, would it?”

“Oh, of course you’re looking for Sento. No, I’m Banjou Ryuuga, hi, hang on,” and then the cheery shout of, “hey, Sento, there’s an, uh—shit. What’s your—”

“Jo.”

“There’s a Mr. Jo here for you?”

Sento frowns down at the diagram he’s been notating. “Jo? Do I know anyone named Jo?” Unsurprisingly, the diagram has no answer for him. “Hang on, I’m coming.”

It takes a moment for him to complete one last notation, and then another moment to make sure his hair doesn’t look a complete mess, and then he hurries down to the front of the warehouse, where Banjou’s shifting awkwardly from foot to foot at the door. Their guest is an older man, probably closer to sixty than fifty by Sento’s estimation. He’s wearing a dark suit with a bright yellow turtleneck and, unexpectedly, heavy gauntlet-style motorcycle gloves and similarly heavy motorcycling boots.

None of this helps clear up Sento’s puzzlement, and he approaches slowly, trying not to just frown. “Afternoon, Mr. Jo, I’m Kiryuu Sento. What can I help you with?”

“Nice to meet you, Mr. Kiryuu. A friend of a friend recommended that I come see you about some technical problems I’ve been having recently.”

Which raises even more questions than just the most obvious ‘how did you find me here’ ones, but these at least Sento feels comfortable asking. “Can I ask which friend? And, ah, what sort of technical problems? I hope you don’t need me to fix your motorcycle,” with a nod to the gloves and boots, “I’m good at a lot things, but I’m not an especially proficient mechanic.”

“The fellow who takes care of the Daitenku Temple, Tenkuuji Takeru, he gave me your address. And no, it’s not my motorcycle.” Mr. Jo pulls off one of his heavy gloves to reveal a hand that gleams silver in the light. “It’s this.”

Sento’s eyes widen, and he rubs his hands together in anticipation, barely even realizing that he’s doing it. “Oh. One of those friends. Absolutely I have some time to assist you, Mr. Jo, please come in.”

---

They’re set up in the lab, and Sento’s biting down the temptation to just spend the entire time examining the tracery of circuits embedded in Mr. Jo’s skin. Because there is skin, which he hadn’t expected. The modifications begin at the hollow of the throat and cover most of his torso and arms, and presumably also his lower abdomen and legs, but only his hands and an access panel on his chest are purely metal. Maintenance is difficult with the insulated gloves on, but given that the alternative is electrocution, Sento’s willing to put up with some difficulty.

“You don’t happen to have the schematics for your modifications, do you?” he says as he replaces a diode inside the access panel. “This is fascinating work. It’s a bit primitive, but it’s fascinating.”

Mr. Jo laughs. “I wish I did, but I didn’t think to collect them at the time that the work was done. They burned with the lab.”

“The work, was it…” Sento pauses, trying to find a way to phrase the question. “Was this…a voluntary procedure?” His hair is standing up just from proximity to so much electrical current, it’s a little distracting.

“For me, yes. For many others, no.” Mr. Jo gets that distant look again. “It was intended to be…disposable. We weren’t designed to last this long.”

“Well, you're not going to be breaking down any time soon if I've got anything to say about it. You were. Ah. Soldiers?”

“Yes. It was the usual plan, you know. Assemble an army of monsters and use them to take over the world, and only me and Yuriko to stop it.”

Sento frowns, tongue poking out of the corner of his mouth, setting a new capacitor in place. “Yuriko?”

“My partner. She received a similar procedure.”

“Do you still work together?”

“She was killed.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be, it was a long time ago.” The corners of Mr. Jo’s mouth are tight. “She’s got some peace now, at least.”

---

It takes another hour before all the repairs are completed, and then Mr. Jo stands up and stretches, blinking. “This is extraordinary work, Mr. Kiryuu, I feel thirty years younger.”

Sento grins, pleased with himself. “Happy to help, Mr. Jo. And you can just call me Sento, everyone does.”

“If you like, Sento, thank you.” Mr. Jo’s putting his turtleneck back on, tugging it down to cover circuits and wires, adjusting the collar to conceal the silver in the hollow of his throat, pulling on the long gloves to hide his deadly hands. “And I’m Shigeru. Maybe we’ll run into each other again someday.”

“I’d like that.” They shake hands, and even through the thick insulated gloves Sento can feel the grip of metal. “It’s been a pleasure meeting you, sir.”

“Likewise. Hongo’s been telling me I should come around and meet some of you young people, I’m glad I finally did.” Shigeru glances back over his shoulder to where Banjou’s puttering around in the kitchen area, probably working on one of the weird pasta dishes he’s gotten into into making lately. “Your partner seems like a good fellow, too, I’d love to talk to him more sometime. Now, what do I owe you for the repairs?”

Sento grins. “Nothing at all.”

Shigeru frowns. “You’re sure?”

“Of course. You’re a colleague, aren’t you?”

At that, Shigeru laughs, and says, “I suppose I am. Then you have my thanks, and hopefully we’ll see each other again the next time I’m in town.”

He’s whistling as he walks out the door.

#kiryuu sento #jo shigeru #banjou ryuuga #fanfiction #30 day shuffle challenge

7 notes · View notes

maggyoutthere · 4 years

Text

Idk what to name this au but here it goes :/

Thought this one should have a more classic and cute look to it. Just wholesome stuff all around uwu

Still, a little note: this is just for fun. I do ship metamy but this is just a silly au based on a funny premise. It's supposed to be silly and comical. It isn't your cup of tea? Totally chill. Leave and go have fun somewhere else!

Also small reminder that I’m not a fluent english speaker or writer so sorry for any broken english sentences u might find ;^;

─────────────────

An au where, while Amy has a crush on Sonic and he doesn't like her, Metal has a crush on Amy and she doesn't like him because metamy-

As much as I love the cold and calculative Metal Sonic we usually get, it always seemed weird that he was so different from our Sonic, since Metal is infused with Sonic's life data (personality and memories). He was being controlled by Eggman but still, he felt so off-character for someone whose sole purpose is to be a copy

I love redesigning characters '^^ it's one of my fav parts of making aus. Not to mention that making Classic Amy's design work is a pain in the ass. All the pinks and purples and greens and oranges O_O it's too much. I thought yellow would suit her joyful and happy personality well. Also yes I gave Metal a tail it looks cute shut up-

In this au, Metal has more of a personality, taking a lot of traits from his "lonesome copy" Sonic. However, he isn't as cocky and ends up being quite naive. Despite knowing how Sonic acts and thinks, he's a newly made robot that doesn't have a lot of experience in being alive. He might have all the information he needs but doesn't know how to use it.

The first time he abducts Amy, coincidentally the first time he meets her at all, he immediately recognises her using Sonic’s memories. The pink female hedgehog. He remembered her being annoying and loud. However, he doesn't develop that iconic annoyance for her that Sonic has. While Sonic met her while she rambled about them being destined to be together, Metal met her while she was scared and in panic.

That ended up making him empathise with her. The mission was to lure in Sonic and defeat him, not to harm the pink hedgehog lady, so he ended up growing attached to her and mostly enjoying her company, not exactly understanding the weird situation as it was. He'd try to engage in conversation with her despite being limited to small beeping noises; never successful. She ended up getting used to his company but never enjoying it.

One particular day, as the routine began again: catch the pink hedgehog lady, lure in Sonic and destroy him; easier said than done. At that point, Metal would expect Amy to ignore him while they waited for Sonic to arrive. However, he never did. The doctor kept insisting they’d wait and kept the pink hedgehog locked up, with Metal staying at guard and making sure she wouldn’t escape.

After a few hours, Amy finally opened up to the robot. She told him that Sonic wasn’t coming; trying not to cry as she explained that he was tired of rescuing this defenseless dumb kid that kept following him around. He was tired of looking after a little kid who couldn’t defend herself despite the amounts of times she’d been abducted by Eggman’s evil bots; that she should know better by now. She wasn’t cool or strong enough to be recognized by the love of her life.

Cool enough. Metal looked in his data-base for anything “cool”. He remembered hearing that word somewhere around his master’s base while watching him work on a bunch of inventions. Various robot models, even weapons. Eggman explained to his creation how fragile he was; a robot built to be the fastest thing in all existence, not for any kind of physical fighting. Therefore, he’d need some kind of weapon, not just to beat Sonic, but to also defend himself against any of his friends who might try to help him. A large yellow and red hammer sat on top of one the tables in the doctor’s lab; imperfect, still in progress. Various badniks said it looked cool.

“Tell him you stole it and broke out.” written on a post-it attached to the hammer’s head as he gave it to Amy. It’s what Sonic would’ve done; helping someone. No one saw her escape and Metal pretended she knocked him out and ran away.

They’d continue to see each other sometimes in that same old routine. The times he’d be able to catch her and bring her all the way back to his master became less and less over time; she had become a formidable fighter. She’d proudly stand next to Sonic and his friends and fight Eggman and his army of robots, but wouldn’t usually go after Metal Sonic herself. He considered it a merciful move from her part to not fight the robot who gave her a brand new weapon and let her escape.

She was very cool to him.

─────────────────

#sonic #au #alternate universe #amy rose #metal sonic #metamy #metalamy #i love me some babies-#they cute #ahhhhh

69 notes · View notes

bigoltrashpile · 4 years

Text

365 Nights

I got a commission a little while ago from a lovely person who wanted to remain anonymous! They asked for a fic based on the movie 365 Days about a woman who gets kidnapped by a mob boss, and has one year to fall in love with him. They wanted the same premise, but with Grimm! Be warned, it is pretty long, and there’s some smut near the end, so if you don’t want to read that, it’s pretty obvious where the smut is, so you can just skip that

Grimm always hated these kinds of deals. Not drug deals, necessarily, although those sucked too. No, the kind of deals where it was so obviously a trap that it was almost embarrassing. Seriously, who specifies “Don’t bring any weapons” to a mob boss? What idiots.

That was why Grimm had decided to come early. Even though they had agreed to meet at eight, Grimm had arrived an hour early. He didn’t want to, but Nox had insisted. Something about how he didn’t want to “CLEAN UP YOUR DUST BECAUSE YOU WERE TOO LAZY AND STUPID TO SCOUT IT OUT.” Whatever. Like they could kill him, killing a demon was almost impossible, although it sure didn’t stop people from trying.

Grimm leaned against the wall of the alley, eyes half lidded. He would take a nap, but that would almost be begging someone to murder him. Instead, he busied himself with watching the people on the beach.

The meeting point was right across from the ocean, so it was a good place for people watching. Despite the late hour, there were a lot of people there, playing games, building sandcastles, swimming, or just taking walks. His gaze was drawn to a small family, the parents trying to teach their son to ride a bike. The son pedaled a few feet on the sidewalk, and the parents cheered.

Deep inside, Grimm craved that kind of love. That love that you can only get by having a family. Him and Nox used to be like that until...well, life happened. The thought made him snap back to reality, and he continued scanning the crowd for anyone suspicious.

So far, nothing obvious. No glinting of metal underneath anyone’s belt or unusually high XP. That’s good. He was barely paying attention when his eyes shot open in shock.

‘stars…’ he thought. ‘that might just be the best lookin’ lady in the world.’

He truly couldn’t take his eyes off of her. To most people, she might have seemed like an average human, but in Grimm’s eyes, she was gorgeous. Not only was her body beautiful, but being the judge, he could see her soul as well. And damn, was it something. Grimm couldn’t remember seeing any soul quite that stunning.

Grimm quickly looked at his watch. He still had forty five minutes. Plenty of time to talk to the lady and be back in time for the meeting. Brilliant. He cast a glamour over himself to hide his demonic features and strolled out of the alley.

----------------------

The beach at sunset was always so beautiful. You love the way that the red of the sun slowly mixed in with the sky and the sea, before fading to blue. You couldn’t take your eyes off it. The wind ruffled your hair a little as you leaned against the railing of the dock. Nothing could disturb this moment for you.

That is, until someone tapped you on the shoulder. The unexpectedness of it made you jump a little and whip around to face whoever had touched you.

The person was a monster. That alone wouldn’t surprise you, normally. Hell, there was a strange yellow octopus monster playing with some humans just a little ways away from the shore. No, the weird thing was that this monster was a skeleton. A skeleton with burning red eyes, sharp teeth, and wearing a suit. He was only a little taller than you, but seemed very strong. He also had a few rings on his thick fingers, obviously expensive.

“hey there doll,” he purred. “what’s a pretty lady like yourself doin’ all alone this time o’ night?”

His voice was a deep baritone, and growly, almost like he was a smoker. Somehow, though, you didn’t think that was the source of his gruffness. You got the feeling it was just how he naturally talked.

Oh shit, you were staring. Play it cool, Y/N. “Oh, um, I just...like walking on the beach, you know? Especially at sunset.”

“heh, me too, sweetheart. ‘specially when i got a cutie like you next to me,” he purred, shooting you a wink.

You flushed and looked away. “I bet you say that to every stranger you meet on the beach,” you teased good-naturedly.

“only the real pretty ones,” he flirted, leaning closer to you.

Was your face on fire? No, you were pretty sure you were only blushing, but that’s what it felt like. You decided to change the subject by introducing yourself. You held your hand out for him to shake. “Um, I’m Y/N, and you are?”

The handsome skeleton took your hand. “i’m-late! shit shit shit, i’m gonna be late, gotta go doll, but i’ll see ya around!” As he spoke, he backed down the dock, looking nervously at his watch and the setting sun. When he got the last words out, he turned around and ran back towards the street.

“Wait, I never got your name!” you shouted at his retreating form. Damn. You frowned. What had made him run off so quickly? Well, his business was his business, you supposed. It was a shame though. You had wanted to learn more about him.

-----------------

Grimm panted as he sprinted back into the alley. According to his watch, he still had ten minutes before the other guys were supposed to get here. He hadn’t meant to take so long following you around before finally getting the guts to talk to you, but hey, a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do. And if that includes flirting with a pretty lady, then who is he to ignore his instincts? Oh well, nobody was here yet, that’s good.

He glanced around, searching for anything suspicious. Nothing, nothing nothi-

BANG!

The gunshot echoed through the small alleyway, and pain erupted in Grimm’s left side. He had been shot! He clutched the small wound, and pushed the burning pain to the back of his mind. He had more important things to worry about than how much it hurt.

There! Up in that window! A few buildings down, a gunman was reloading a rifle, obviously kicking himself for missing.

An evil smirk grew on Grimm’s face. He should have aimed better the first time. Now he wouldn’t get another chance. In the blink of an eye, he teleported to the building, right behind the attempted assassin.

He didn’t even stand a chance.

As Grimm wiped the blood off of his claws, he glanced around. This one seemed to be the only gunman. Man, this was really a poorly planned trap. Oh well, he wasn’t complaining.

Grimm tried to bend down to grab the gun, only to wince in pain. Oh yeah, he’d been shot. He’d forgotten. He groaned. Now he’d have to spend time healing and shit, and that was always such a pain. Oh well, better than being dust.

---------------------

It had been three years since you had met an unusual and handsome skeleton on a beach, and two years since you had gotten married. You weren’t...well, you weren’t unhappy. Jason was...handsome. And he could be kind when he wanted to. However, it wasn’t what you had hoped it would be when you got married.

You had known Jason since you were young, and two years ago, he had popped the question. It had been unexpected, certainly, but you just couldn’t say no. Curse your overly caring and kind nature!

But today was when it would change! It was your birthday, and Jason had agreed to take you to Italy! It would be fun and romantic and you would rekindle...something. You weren’t sure if the term was rekindle so much as just kindle. Was there ever anything between you two?

Oh well, you would worry about that later. For now, you were just going to enjoy your trip! You opened the door of the suite that you had rented for the trip, and spun around in the middle of the floor. “Isn’t this great?” you asked cheerfully. The suite was very nice, it had a kitchen attached, and a large bathroom along with a king sized bed.

Jason didn’t seem nearly as impressed. “It could’ve been bigger,” he grumbled, barely looking up from his phone.

You frowned. “I mean, yes, but you didn’t want to help me pay for a bigger one.”

He shrugged, obviously uncaring. He tossed his luggage into a corner and plopped onto the large bed, still not looking up from his phone.

You sighed. He had been spending an awfully long time on that device recently. He said it was for work, but you’d caught him smiling at it more often than most people do for work.

“Hey babe, do you want to go on a walk?” you asked. “I saw some really cool shops on the drive here!”

“Mm, pass,” he muttered.

You frowned. “How about we drive down to the beach and go swimming?”

“Too cold.”

“Why don’t you just look up from your phone and TALK to me??”

He didn’t respond to that one.

You growled in frustration. “You know what? If you want to waste our vacation by sitting inside and texting god knows who, do it! I’m going to have fun!”

You grabbed one of the extra room keys, your wallet, and pepper spray and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind you as you went.

Jason didn’t even try to stop you.

As you left the hotel, you felt tears stinging your eyes. You couldn’t believe him! What a selfish jerk! Oh well, you could have fun by yourself!

You didn’t notice the glowing red eyes fixed on you from the shadows.

-------------------------

Grimm couldn’t believe it. It was too good to be true! It was you! You were here!! He would’ve thanked God if he didn’t know she was a jerk.

He followed you at a distance, watching as you stopped at a few shops. He adored the look of wonder and happiness in your eyes. If only it wasn’t tainted by betrayal. Grimm could easily see your soul, and how it had dimmed over the years. Along the outside, there was a black, tar-like substance. Abuse. Someone had abused you since you had last met, and the thought filled him with white-hot rage.

Grimm was glad that it was midday, when his powers were strongest. As a fire demon, he got his power from the sun instead of the moon, like most other demons. This was almost too perfect! You just happened to wander near him, while nobody else was with you. An evil smirk spread across his face as a plan started to form.

----------------------

The city was much nicer than you had expected! Of course, the website and tourist industry had made it seem appealing, and it lived up to the expectations! You paused by a clothing store for a moment, admiring some of the clothes, before continuing. What a lovely place!

Out of the corner of your eye, you noticed a butterfly. Normally, that wouldn’t interest you too much, but this one was so pretty! It had bright red wings, accented with wavy black stripes and gold flecks. You followed it, fascinated. It was as if you were in a trance. The only thing that existed in the world was you and the butterfly. You weren’t worried about getting lost, or where it was leading you, or what Jason would think. It was like you had tunnel vision, you didn’t even notice as the streets around you became darker and scarier, leading you away from the busy main roads.

Suddenly, the butterfly disappeared, flying up into the sky. You frowned and shook your head, as if you were coming out of a trance. Wait...where were you? You didn’t recognize the street you were in, and the sky was much darker than when you had left the hotel. The houses around you seemed old and decrepit, obviously abandoned for years. They loomed over you like ancient sentries, blackened windows watching and judging.

You gulped and turned around, trying to get your bearings. Nothing familiar stood out to you. You were just about to pull out your phone and find out where you were, when-

“ya lost, doll?”

A low, gruff voice echoed through the dim street. You whipped around, instinctively grabbing your pepper spray. From the shadows, you saw the form of a tall, large person leaning against one of the houses.

“Oh thank goodness,” you muttered to yourself. “Yes, I am! I-I’m sorry, but can you help me get back? I don’t know where I am, I just...wandered here,” you explained quickly, a bit embarrassed.

The shape pushed against the side of the house and strolled casually over to you. As they got closer, you noticed something unusual. What you had thought was just a strange hat was actually...horns. Large, curling ram’s horns, decorated with gold chains. The next thing you noticed was that he was a skeleton. A huge, terrifying skeleton wearing a red and black suit. He had deadly sharp teeth, with a gold tooth that glinted at you in the moonlight.

You backed away, suddenly scared. There was something in the monster’s burning red eyelights that sent chills up your back. The skeleton smirked and kept walking towards you, taking a step forward for every step backwards that you took until you were pinned against a wall.

The skeleton grinned and casually put one of his hands on the wall next to your head. “whatsa matter, doll?” he purred, voice deadly low. You felt a lot like a bird that a cat had found. “speechless?”

“I-I,” you stammered. “G-get out of my face!”

He leaned closer to you, only a few inches away from your face. “such a temper! heh, don’t worry doll, i like it when kittens have claws~”

Your face turned a bright red, matching the skeleton’s eyelights. “I’m married, you creep!” you snapped.

“yeah, i’ve noticed,” the skeleton grumbled, mood shifting. He suddenly seemed angry, eyelights brimming with energy as he looked down at your left hand. “seems like a real nice guy.” His voice practically dripped with sarcasm.

You glared at him. “You have no right to butt into my personal life! Now leave, or I’m calling the police!”

“oh? how ya gonna do that with no phone?” he asked. You tried to reach into your pocket, only to realize that your phone wasn’t there. When you turned back, the skeleton was twirling it between his fingers flippantly. “a real shame. it’s always sad when someone goes missin’, ya know. gone without a trace. no way of trackin’ ‘em.” As if it was little more than a bug, the skeleton crushed your phone in his hand.

You gasped, fear going down your spine at both his words and the casual display of strength. Then you remembered. Pepper spray! You grabbed it out of your pocket and unloaded it directly into the skeleton’s face.

To your shock, he didn’t even move. Instead, the skeleton just blinked, obviously taken aback, before laughing out loud. “silly human, ya know pepper spray don’t work if i don’t got any eyes or sinuses to sting, right?”

Fuck.

Using his free hand, the skeleton grabbed you by the arm, huge hand easily holding you in place. “W-what are you going to do to me?” you stammered, fear in your eyes.

Instead of responding, the skeleton grinned wider. The world blurred around you, the only thing that remained steady was your attacker as the ground opened up and swallowed you whole.

----------------------

When you came to, you had no idea where you were. At least, that was the first thing you realized. It was obviously a bedroom, but an unfamiliar one. You were laying on a large, king sized bed, with drapes around it like you see on cartoons. They were open, fortunately, letting you see the rest of the room.

There was obviously a color scheme going on. Almost everything was red and black, with the occasional dark brown thrown in for flavor. From the bed sheets to the mirror on the wall, nothing deviated from the pattern. And all of it seemed incredibly expensive. Even the pillows you were laying on were silky to the touch.

The second thing you realized was that you had just been kidnapped.

Immediately, you jumped out of bed, eager to get out. You sprinted to the window and looked down. You were at least three stories up from the carefully manicured garden. No getting out that way. Next, you tried the door. Locked.

You could feel the panic rising up in you, heart beating faster and faster. You were going to die. No doubt about it, the skeleton with horns was going to murder you and put your head on the wall or something.

Speak of the devil and he shall appear. You turned around, desperate to think of a new plan, and the skeleton himself was in the middle of the room, grinning smugly at you. “hey doll, how’s it goin’?” he asked casually, as if you were good friends bumping into each other instead of kidnapper and victim.

You screamed and stumbled backwards, right into the mahogany dresser. Thinking quick, you picked up the lamp and threw it right at your captor.

He easily dodged it, barely stepping to the side, obviously unconcerned. “really?”

You grabbed an ashtray. Same thing. You continued throwing objects, each one easily dodged by the skeleton. When you ran out of items, he sighed. “ya done?”

“........For now.”

“good. i guess i got some explainin’ to do, huh?” he asked, sitting casually on the bed. “ya can stay there if ya want, it don’t matter.”

It was scary how confident he seemed. He was obviously unconcerned about you escaping or overpowering him. He seemed to know that, whatever you did, he could stop you. The very thought was terrifying.

“so, you’re probably wonderin’ why i kidnapped ya, huh?” he asked.

“It crossed my mind,” you responded coldly, crossing your arms defensively across your chest.

“yeah, heh, i’d wanna know too. anyway, do ya remember about three years ago, when ya met a skeleton on the beach?”

Your eyes widened, and you gasped. You had completely forgotten about it, but now that he mentioned it, you did remember! “That was you???” you demanded.

He seemed quite proud of himself. “heh, yep. the name’s grimm, doll. sorry i never got a chance to say it before. and you’re y/n.”

“W-why did you kidnap me after so long?” you asked, still scared. “And why do you even remember me?”

“well, after out lil’ conversation, i got shot,” he explained casually. He said it as if he was telling you about a splinter or a stubbed toe. “the whole time i was recoverin’, i couldn’t stop thinkin’ about your pretty lil’ face, and how much i wanted to meet ya again. and i thought i never would. that is, until ya stumbled right into my turf.”

“That’s...messed up,” you said. That was all you could think of to say. You didn’t want to seem sympathetic, in case he took it the wrong way, but you also didn’t want to make him mad. “But...you didn’t answer my question. Why am I here? Wherever we are.”

“oh yeah. well, the second question’s easy, you’re in hell.”

…………….

“Excuse me?”

“yup, look out the window,” he said, waving you towards it. When you took a second glance, you knew in your heart that he was telling the truth. Outside, black spires jutted into a dark red sky. On the streets, monsters and humans, all with horns, strolled between the buildings, laughing and talking with each other. It was like an edgy teenager had designed the place.

“This...this really is hell?” you asked, as if you couldn’t believe it.

“yup. sure is. you’re lookin’ at a bone-ified demon, heh,” he joked.

You sat on the ground, shock making your body go limp. “i brought ya here because i love ya. and you’re gonna love me too.” Grimm stood up from the bed and knelt next to you, running a strand of hair between his fingers. “ya got a year. one year, if ya fall in love with me, you’re mine forever. if ya don’t...well,” he shrugged. “i’ll just have to kill ya. it’d be a shame, but we can’t have ya tellin’ the whole world about us.”

With that, Grimm stood up to his full height and grinned down at you. “just call me if ya need me,” he said playfully. He disappeared from the room, leaving you to shake and cry, silent tears streaming down your face.

--------------------------

It had been three days since you had been taken away from your home. It was hard to imagine that you would ever get out of there. After all, you were literally in hell. Even if you got out of the house, how would you get back to earth? Or, the mortal world? You weren’t sure. You also doubted that you would fall in love with Grimm. After all, he had literally kidnapped you.

You spent most of the day hopelessly laying on the bed, until Grimm came in with food at mealtimes. He never tried to talk to you, unless you started. That night, when Grimm came in with dinner, you decided to try talking to him.

“Are you going to rape me?” you asked weakly. It would be easy for him, he was so much stronger than you, and you were helpless here.

The demon looked horrified. “w-what?” he stammered. “what makes ya think that?”

“I mean, you literally kidnapped me,” you pointed out. “And you’re going to kill me in a year. Why not?”

“i ain’t gonna-” he paused and took a deep breath. “look, doll, i’m a monster, but i ain’t a monster, ya know? i’ve got standards.” He was about to set the plate down, when he seemed to rethink it. “ya know, ya haven’t come outta your room in days. c’mere we’re gonna have some fun.”

“Fun?” you asked, raising an eyebrow. “So you are going to rape me.”

“no!” he said quickly. “i mean, like, watchin’ a movie or somethin’.”

You thought for a moment. What could it hurt, really. It wasn’t like you were getting out of here, and if you only had 363 days left to live, you might as well watch a movie with your kidnapper.

“Sure,” you muttered, sitting up. “Why not.”

Grimm smiled in relief, showing off his sharp teeth. He took your hand, pulling you up to your feet. He held the plate in his other hand, not handing it to you yet.

Your captor led you out of the classy room into an equally lavish hallway. The red and black color scheme was still the same, along with the obviously expensive decorations. Paintings and sculptures lined the walls, which you couldn’t help but admire.

It was the first time you had seen the rest of the house, so you did your best to remember the layout, just in case.

Finally, you made it to a surprisingly comfortable den. The red and black was much more subtle, and the room actually looked lived in, unlike the rest of the house. A few beer cans and chip bags were scattered on the old looking coffee table. A squishy, beat up couch stood against the wall.

Grimm plopped down on the couch and patted the seat next to him. You sat down a little more hesitantly. Grimm put the plate on your lap, and you finally looked at the meal. Lasagna. It actually looked really good, so you took a small bite. It was just as delicious as it looked!

While Grimm pulled up a movie, you ate the rest of the meal really quickly. You were surprisingly hungry. You were expecting the demon to pick a horror or action movie, so it was a shock when he chose a rom com.

“Wait, really? Love Under The Stars?” you asked, laughing a little.

Grimm blushed a little, light red magic covering his cheeks. “shut up, it’s a guilty pleasure,” he muttered.

“It just doesn’t seem like your type of thing,” you smirked. “It’s okay though, we can watch this.”

As the opening credits started, you couldn’t help but lean a little closer to Grimm. It was because...because he was bigger than you! Yeah, your body naturally drifted towards him, the couch leaned down! Before you knew it, you were leaning completely against him. Surprisingly, he was soft, not at all cold and bony like you thought he would be.

Casually, just as the two leads were kissing for the first time, Grimm yawned and casually put his arm over your shoulder.

You scoffed. “Seriously? The old yawn and stretch?”

“ya got a problem?” Grimm smirked down at you.

“.........I guess not,” you muttered. He was very soft and warm, there was really nothing wrong with this. And it wasn’t like you had a choice. At least, that’s what you told yourself as you snuggled closer to him.

-------------

Already, almost a whole month had passed since you had been kidnapped. The time seemed to fly since that movie night where you had finally opened up to Grimm. Maybe, despite being a literal demon who threatened to kill you, he wasn’t that bad of a guy? Still, you couldn’t help but worry about your friends and family you had left behind.

Grimm found you one day with your head in your hands, sitting on the couch in the living room. You had gotten bolder, exploring the house freely now. “hey doll, what’s wrong?” he asked, sitting next to you. He was just close enough that your sides were touching.

You sighed. “Well, it’s just...I’m worried. When you...took me, I was on vacation with my husband. He’s probably really worried about me, if he doesn’t think I’m dead.” Not to mention that the last time you had seen Jason, you had yelled at him. That certainly didn’t sit right. “Plus, the rest of my family and friends are probably scared too…”

Grimm didn’t say anything for a long time. You glanced at him, a bit worried about what he was thinking. The demon was fiddling with his hands, obviously anxious. “uh...here’s the thing,” he began. “your husband...jason, right? he’s been cheatin’ on ya for quite a while.”

Your mouth fell open, and you were only able to stare at him. “after i took ya, i did some...reconnaissance, ya could say. and i got some evidence.” He disappeared, only to reappear a moment later with a small stack of photos in his hands.

You took the pictures with shaking hands, part of you not wanting to see them. “these were taken only a couple days after ya disappeared,” Grimm explained. The photos showed Jason in very intimate positions with another woman. She was younger and prettier than you, which made your blood boil. “and there were messages on his phone from ‘er goin’ back months.”

For a long moment, you just stared at the pictures, hands shaking, until a drop of water landed on them. Wait, was the roof leaking? You dimly touched your cheek, only to realize you were crying.

“i can’t understand how you’re feelin’ right now,” Grimm mumbled, putting a hand on your shoulder. “but i’m here for ya. no matter how weird it sounds comin’ from your kidnapper, heh.”

You shook your head. “T-thank you,” you whispered. “For showing me. I honestly should’ve seen this coming. He always seemed more excited for me to leave the house than for me to come home, and he was always texting someone. I...wanted to trust him, but,” you laughed bitterly. “Obviously I shouldn’t have.”

Grimm pulled you closer to his side. “hey, it ain’t your fault, ya know that, right? an’ that guy’s a real idiot to throw away a catch like you.”

You laughed, a bit more genuine this time. “Thanks, Grimm. That’s actually really sweet.”

“like i said, i’m here for ya, doll. through thick an’ thin.”

--------------------

All in all, Grimm was pretty happy with his decision. Y/N seemed surprisingly happy here, and all the black abuse clinging to her soul had been slowly but surely coming off, revealing the beautiful, vibrant heart that hid underneath. Even though she was still a bit scared of him, Grimm was okay with that. He had threatened to kill her after all. He wouldn’t actually do that, but hey, she didn’t know that.

Today marked the fourth month since she had come to live with him, so Grimm decided to celebrate. Tonight, he was going to take them to the human world!

Grimm hummed a little tune as he hung up a sign in the dining room. The sign read,

kidnapping

“HAPPY ^ ANNIVERSARY!” mostly as a joke, and he had a bunch of balloons and streamers too. More than anything, he wanted to see her smile, and if by hanging a bunch of decorations for their kidnap-aversary was the way, then hey, that’s what he had to do.

Finally, Y/N walked into the room. From the chair, Grimm tooted on a noisemaker. “happy anniversary,” he grinned playfully.

Just like he had hoped, Y/N started laughing. “W-what is all this?”

“well, today marks four months since i kidnapped ya, so i figured we’d celebrate out kidnap-aversary,” he joked. “and i got a surprise for ya! ya gotta close your eyes first, though.”

Y/N laughed a little and rolled her eyes before closing them. “Okay okay, what is it?”

Grimm grabbed her hand and they fell into blackness.

--------------

When you opened your eyes, you were absolutely shocked to find yourself standing in front of a club. And not just any club, a human club! When you looked up, the sky was full of stars. God, you had forgotten how much you had missed the stars. You turned back to Grimm, beaming from ear to ear. “Really???”

“hell yeah,” he chuckled, winking. “and i got ya a cute lil’ outfit for ya too.” He haned you a bag full of clothes. “why don’t we head on in there and ya can try it on.”

You practically sprinted in the doors. It had been so long since you had just had fun, or even seen other humans! Out of the corner of your eye, you faintly noticed that Grimm had somehow managed to make his horns disappear, and was suddenly in more fitting club clothes.

As soon as you locked yourself in the bathroom, you took the clothes out, only to blush when you saw what he had picked. A very short, form fitting leather skirt and a red, low cut top that hugged your curves. It all fit perfectly, which made you wonder how he got your measurements.

You supposed you didn’t really have anything else to wear, so you put it on. You sauntered out of the bathroom with confidence, only to notice Grimm waiting right outside the room for you.

He turned around when he saw you, and his jaw fell open. You were pretty sure his eyelights were hearts, but he shook his head before you could get a better look. “damn…” he whispered. “ya look even better than i imagined!”

A light blush made your face warm, and you looked away. “Oh shush,” you scolded. “You just picked the sexiest looking thing in your color scheme.”

He shrugged. “guilty as charged! now come on, let’s have some fun!”

Grimm offered his arm to you, like he was a gentleman at a ball instead of a demon at a nightclub, and led you on to the dancefloor. A fast, energetic song was playing, and you immediately went loose. You knew you weren’t the best dancer, but hey, it was fun! You knew that Grimm was watching you the whole time, but every time you glanced at him, he was looking away.

After a while, Grimm offered you a drink. You gladly accepted his offer, and he ordered you something that sounded light and fruity, while he got a “double fireball shot.”

When your drinks came, Grimm downed his whole shot glass like it was water. You took a sip of yours. Delicious, just like you had hoped! “ya wanna try some?” Grimm asked, holding out his second shot to you playfully.

Despite your brain telling you not to be an idiot, you took it. Hesitantly, you took a tiny sip, only to start coughing loudly. Fuck, it burned! The name wasn’t exaggerating at all! You chugged your own drink to get the taste out of your throat, trying to ignore the sound of Grimm laughing loudly.

“ha! oh stars, i should’ve recorded that!” Grimm wheezed. “that was priceless!”

You pounded your chest with your fist. “Well, I’m sorry, we can’t all be alcoholics!” you grumbled, trying to sound angry, but unable to keep a smile off your face.

“yeah yeah,” the demon laughed. “everyone’s a critic.” He easily drank the rest of the shot, which was much more admirable now that you knew how strong it was. “wanna dance some more?”

“I’d love to!”

---------------

You and Grimm stumble into the mansion much later that night, giggling and leaning on each other. You weren’t sure if you were leaning on Grimm or if he was leaning on you, but it didn’t really matter. The room was spinning, and you two could only make it to the couch before flopping down onto it.

Before you knew what was going on, you crashed your lips into Grimm’s teeth. You weren’t sure how, but after a moment of shock, he kissed back, nibbling at your lips with his sharp teeth. His big hands roamed over your body, ducking under the tight shirt to feel your hips.

You moaned and ground your hips against his. There was definitely something big under there, and if you were sober, you would wonder how that was possible. However, drunk you didn’t give a shit. You just wanted that bone inside you.

You started to tug the short skirt off of your hips, when Grimm put a hand out to stop you. “woah woah woah, hold up,” he slurred.

“W-what? Why? Don’t ya wanna fuck me?” you asked. Drunk you had no filter at all.

“‘course i do, doll, i wanted it for a long time,” he responded. “but we’re super fuckin’ drunk, and i don’t want ya to do somethin’ you’ll regret.”

“But I won’t regret it!” you pouted, trying to look as sexy as possible. “Come on, please?”

“no.”

You groaned and flopped backwards onto the couch. “Fiiiiiiiiine, you’re prob’ly right.”

“heh, wish i wasn’t,” Grimm joked. He fell down on top of you, surprisingly not super heavy. “but get some sleep. ya need to sleep off all that alcohol ya drank.”

You yawned, wanting to argue, but...you were so sleepy. He was so warm and comfy, like a huge, skeletal blanket. Instead of fighting, you just let your eyes shut. So warm…

----------------

It had officially been six months since you had been kidnapped. You now only had 183 days left to live, unless you fell in love with Grimm. Although, you had to admit...it wasn’t hard to feel attracted to him. He was undeniably handsome, and surprisingly thoughtful. Like the time he had taken you to see a movie that you had been rambling about for weeks. Or when he got you a necklace with a gemstone of your favorite color, just because he felt like it. Or even when he refused to fuck you that one night when you were drunk. Despite what you said, you did remember that night.

Surprisingly, you felt more comfortable around Grimm than you ever had with Jason. Somehow, this demon was a better person than your husband. Ex-husband, you reminded yourself. It wasn’t official, but ever since you had seen those photos of him, you refused to think of him as your husband.

You hated to admit it to yourself, but...you really did like Grimm. Not to mention that six months without any kind of touch had made you...needy, to say the least. That was why you had put on your sexiest underwear and laid on Grimm’s bed, waiting eagerly for him to come in.

Finally, after what felt like hours, the door swung open. You sat up to see Grimm staring at you, eyes wide. “uh…” he said cleverly.

“H-hey, Grimm,” you muttered, blushing. “I, um...w-wanted to do something nice for you, since it’s our kidnap-aversary,” you joked, referencing the “celebration” he had made up two months ago. “So, um...here’s your present!”

For a few moments, Grimm could only stare, jaw open, as if he was processing this. Then he smirked. “heh, couldn’t ask for a better gift~” he purred, stalking closer and closer to the bed. “such a beautiful present, all for me~”

His words caused a hot bolt of arousal to shoot through you, and you knew without feeling that your panties were soaked.

“one thing, though,” the demon said, pausing. “are ya sure ya want this? i promised i’d never rape ya, and if ya feel pressured to do this, that’s rape too. so, are ya really sure ya want this?”

You nodded without hesitation. “As weird as it sounds...I trust you, Grimm.”

He chuckled and finally knelt over your body, seeming huge as he lowered his face an inch away from yours. “oh doll, that’s music to my ears~”

“B-but you don’t have ears!” you argued weakly, trying to distract from how you were rubbing your thighs together.

Grimm laughed loudly. “heh, true! well, still music,” he agreed.

Unexpectedly, he moved one huge hand down your body, teasing your slick pussy over your underwear. “mm, seems like you’re likin’ this too, ain’t ya?” he smirked, raising an eyebrow.

“M-maybe,” you stammered, trying not to buck your hips into his hands. Grimm laughed and took mercy on you. He slipped a hand under the waistband of your underwear and very gently slid a thick finger inside you.

You moaned as you arched your back in pleasure. Fuck, just the one finger felt so good! He seemed to already know the magic spot too, as he felt around a bit, quickly finding your g spot.

“F-fuck, Grimm,” you moaned. “S-so good!”

“heh, ya feel so wet and tight around me,” he purred. “can’t wait to feel how ya squeeze around my cock~”

At the last word, he pushed a second finger inside and began to thrust. “but i don’t wanna hurt ya, daddy’s gotta get ya nice an’ ready for me~”

Oh fuck, that name was so much hotter than you would have thought. A new wave of slick flooded your pussy at his words, which only made the demon laugh.

“aw, does someone like that? my baby girl likes it when daddy tells ya who ya belong to, don’t ya?”

“Mm, yes, D-daddy, I like it!” you moaned.

“heh, i can tell, you’re squeezin’ daddy’s fingers so tight,” Grimm smirked. He stuck a third finger inside you and went faster. You shrieked and scrambled for purchase, eventually grabbing onto Grimm’s horns for stability.

The simple motion seemed to make Grimm’s eyes roll back, and he shuddered in pleasure. “oh, f-fuck,” he stammered. “heh, y-ya really want daddy’s cock, don’t ya?”

You took your hands away. Had you done something wrong? Before you could apologize, Grimm gently took one of your hands and guided it back to his horns. “don’t worry, doll, it feels real good for me,” he explained.

Experimentally, you stroked his horn, which almost made Grimm collapse on top of you. “oh fuck,” he gasped. “fuck, i can’t hold back anymore, i need to fuck ya,” he growled, pulling his fingers out.

You nodded eagerly as Grimm pulled his pants down in one swift motion, revealing a thick red cock springing out of his pelvis. He didn’t make you wait, instead just shoving the member inside of you in one swift motion.

You screamed in pleasure as his huge cock practically split you in half, stimulating what felt like all of your nerves at once. He wasn’t too long, but he more than made up for it in girth. You held onto his horns for dear life, like it would ground you.

Grimm snarled at the feeling and immediately began to pound into you. His arms were propped next to your head, face inches from yours. Desperately, you crashed your lips into his, sticking your tongue in his mouth.

The demon seemed a bit shocked, but kissed back with a fervor, imitating the movement of your lower halves. Already, you could feel a familiar coil starting to build inside you, the heat of his body and the feeling of his cock pounding you into the mattress almost overwhelming.

Apparently, Grimm felt the same. “mm, ya feel so fuckin’ good,” he panted. “can’t fuckin’ stop myself, m’gonna cum~”

“Yes! Please!” you begged. More than anything right now, you wanted to feel his hot, sticky seed inside you, filling you up from the inside.

As if all he needed was your encouragement, Grimm immediately started fucking you much harder, going inhumanly fast. Your eyes rolled back and your mouth opened in a silent scream as stars appeared in your vision. You held his horns in a white knuckled grip, as if you were holding on for dear life.

Grimm moaned loudly and came, thrusting erratically. Oddly enough, his cum seemed to tingle as it shot inside you, so deep that you were sure you could feel it in your stomach.

When you both came down from your high, panting, you stared in each other’s eyes. Grimm’s eyes were shaped like hearts, and he grinned down at you, smile lopsided.

“That was...really good,” you panted. “Hell, that was amazing!”

“then you’re gonna love round two~” Grimm smirked.

Your eyes went wide. “R-round two?”

Before you knew what was happening, Grimm had pulled out, flipped you onto your hands and knees, and repositioned his cock at your entrance. “yup, round two. hope ya know what you’re gettin’ into, ‘cause i ain’t gonna stop ‘til ya pass out~”

------------------------

Two months later, you stared down at the small piece of plastic in your hand. Two lines. According to the pregnancy test, and the last four you had taken, that meant you were pregnant.

Of course, you knew whose it was. Grimm. He was the only man who had fucked you since you had gotten kidnapped, and frankly, the only man you would want to be the dad. The only question was: would he want to be a dad?

You sighed. You knew you would have to tell him sooner or later, and you would rather it be sooner, before you started to show. So you left the bathroom and wandered the mansion.

“Grimm? Grimm? Grimm where are y-oh!” you stopped shouting when he appeared right in front of you.

“somethin’ wrong?” he asked, eyebrows furrowed. “you okay?”

“Y-yeah, everything’s...well, actually, I need to talk to you,” you admitted. “I have some big news.”

He frowned, obviously worried. “o-okay. come sit down.”

The two of you sat on the couch, and you fiddled with the test in your pocket. “So, um...do you know how human reproduction works?”

“yeah, ya stick tab a in slot b an’ then a baby gets made,” he said, making finger motions to nail the point home.

“Ha! Y-yeah, in broad strokes,” you chuckled. “But, um…” you pulled the positive pregnancy test out of your pocket. “T-this is something that tells humans if they’re going to have a baby, and um...it seems like I’m pregnant.”

As if in shock, Grimm took the piece of plastic and held it up to his eyes. He was silent for almost a full minute. You started to get worried when you saw tears form in his eyes.

“Oh my god, Grimm, are you okay?” you asked. You had never seen him cry before, fuck, was he mad?

“i...i’m better than okay,” he finally said, voice wavering. “this...this is the best day of my life!”

You sure weren’t expecting that. “Excuse me?”

The demon immediately squeezed you in a huge hug, pulling you onto his lap. He kissed all over your face, obviously overjoyed. “yeah!!! do ya know how long i’ve wanted a kid? an’ obviously ya do too, so ya really do love me!”

“W-what?” you stammered.

“oh, when monsters wanna have a baby, both parents gotta be willin’,” he explained quickly. “unless both parents really, truly wanna make a baby, then it won’t happen. but yer pregnant! that means ya want this as much as i do!”

As he spoke, you realized that he was right. You truly did want this baby, and when Grimm had hugged you, your heart had soared. “I-I do!” you said happily, hugging him back. “I want this baby!”

Grimm kissed you full on the lips. You could feel him grin against you, which only made you smile wider.

Grimm pulled away after a moment and hugged you tight. “stars, ya have no idea how happy i am, doll,” he whispered from your shoulder.

You hugged back, burying your face into his neck. Your smile was so wide that your face almost hurt. “Oh, I think I do, Grimm! I love you!”

Grimm pulled away so he could look you in the eyes. Red tears were flowing freely down his face. “stars, i love ya too, doll! so, so much!”

#my garbage #writing #sans #sans x reader #commissions #undertale #undertale imagines #365 days #osha violation #yandere #kind of #demon au #mafiatale #mafiafell #grimm

121 notes · View notes

tittty-bitty · 3 years

Text

Nemuri struts from store to store like an empress gracing her presence on her citizens. Really it was businesses being graced with one of her clients limitless creditcards and her impulse shopping. Who ever invented financial domination was a mastermind.

“Come along darling! Just a few more shops then we can be done!”

“You know Miss Midnight, when you said you needed help with extra curriculars, I didnt think it would make me a pack mule for your personal spending habits.”

“Your still a pillar of peace! It’s just now you have a metal hook for me to hang my shopping bags on.”

She looked over her shoulder to see Yagi struggling with the shopping bags. Yagi isn’t weak by any means, even with out his quirk. She’s seen him spar with Shota plenty of times. Which is totally just two coworkers sparring for exercise Shota claimed, with no sexual tension at all thank you very much. But any one would struggle with that many bags, especially a man with only one lung.

They manage to make it into Gucci with out any lungs popping. Yagi sprawls on one of the ottomans with a poof and start to rub his wrists. She starts to look at the purses and leather belts. Not even glancing at the price tag before adding them to her haul. When she goes back to the waiting section she glances at Yagi. Who is scrolling away on his smartphone. Despite losing over 200 pounds of muscle, he was still an attractive man. Sharp cheek bones, piercing eyes, and such a sweet smile. His handsome features multipled when he gained more confidence in this form. Everyone could see after the truth was out about Allmight that he wasn’t comfortable in his true form. Scared to talk to other adults, skiddish and horrifically terrified of making mistakes. Not including how he obviously avoided reflections and wore only baggy outfits. But a year after his retirement and him making friendships with his colleges at UA, he finally started accepting himself and it’s amazing on the amount of progress he’s had. She’s so proud of her coworkers, especially her boys to make Allmight’s retirement less lonely. Even if one is especially passionate with the task but wants to be an edgy teenager about it.

Despite the progress the man made, he still didn’t know how to dress himself for shit. He may of got himself a few outfits that arnt 5X but he still loves to drown in his clothing. If she has to be assaulted with that damn yellow suit one more year she’s going to ask young Todoroki to set it on fire for extra credit.

If only he would wear clothes that actually fit him. Show off his long neck, his collar bones, long legs narrow waist, she could go on and on about why Yagi needs a new wardrobe. She needed to show the world how Yagi is still a fine ass man. She has checked him out countless times to be confident with that claim. There was one day where he had to actually put on pants that fit him way too well after a coffee spill and had to borrow some pants from mic. She doesn’t understand how a man so skinny could still have an ass. Nothing to go over the moon about but it was so cute, so perky for a man his age. It almost distracted her from the front, his buldge which is probably the one thing that stayed the same from his Allmight form. It was extremely hard to maintain eye contact with him that day. Not that she was complaining about the eye candy, the yellow sleeping bag that pretended to sleep on the floor didn’t seem to mind either.

While thinking about the potential of jokes about Yagi’s pillar of peace to bring up in front of Shota later, Nemuri comes across a sweater. The sweater was a high quality wool, cream colored with some green trim on the collar that goes down to a v. It would be perfect for his form, a little snug but still covered everything to start him off slow. The arms a little long for the average person but perfect for his long arms. The bottom might come up a little short though. Showing off his midriff when he reached up. Potentially showing a nice v of his hips, maybe even a nice little trail of blond that dips into his pants. Oh the thought of sweet little Yagi in a crop top is intoxicating. But baby steps. She needed him to trust her with fashion first before she tries anything to scandalous.

He was still reading on his phone when Nemuri grabs the tall man by the wrist and yanks him out of his seat. With a cute little yelp he is brought up to his feet and shoved into a changing room with the sweater being thrown at him.

“Your not coming out till you put this on.” Nemuri says as she chucks over some black jeans to go with it.

After watching awkward arms reach above the door and listening to the general struggle of a man menuvering in a changing room that doesn’t accommodate him, he steps out. His black blue eyes shine in contrast with the creme color of the sweater. Giving off a sweet older man who waters flowers in the community garden than his usual look of a man who got lost in a deflated blimp.

“Oh my god honey you look so sweet.”

He checks himself in a mirror and twists to see the back. She could see his ribs poking through the fabric wile it rides up his toned stomach not as much as she hoped unfortunately. But the fitting pants made up for it. Although they don’t show off his front for the sake of the students and people who actually want to get work done in the teachers lounge, it still shows off that cute little ass of his, and that’s all she can ask for.

Yagi actually holds his attention to his reflection of the mirror. Giving the look an actual chance. From the relaxed look in his eyes, he might actually like it.

“I never thought I would wear a wool sweater like this again. I forgot how warm and comforting they are.”

Nemuri comes up in front of him and adjusts the collar for him, opening it up a bit so his collar bones peek out a little. “I can’t imagine the amount of sheep needed to make a sweater for Allmight.”

He chuckles at the comment and how her nails tickle his chest, now used to her touchy nature. “It was in high school. My mentor forced them on me when she found out that my foster home didn’t try too hard to find winter clothes that fit me.”

He rubs the end of the sleeve to feel the texture, smiling slightly, reminiscing the memories he had with her when wearing the sweaters. It was always interesting to hear about his life when he was young. He was usually guarded when it came to anything about himself before his hero days, so to hear any little tidbit about him was to be met with a neutral yet encouraging reaction.

“Well I’ll be sure to make her proud by making sure that your fabric needs are taken care of.” Nemuri says while coming around behind him and placing her hands on his shoulders, admiring his smile in the mirror. “And I can make sure she rests peacefully by getting rid of that ugly yellow suit.”

He looks up from his sleeve. “Hey! I love that yellow suit!”

“You look like the noodle balloons that are outside of a car dealership. Im no longer letting my dear friend to walk around looking like a mustard bottle.”

Yagi takes the light roast with little grace with a small groan. He looks down at his wrist to look at the tag. He reads it with a puzzled look.

“I think we need to call an associate. I think they’re missing a decimal on the price-“

“Alright! Time to head out! I’ll meet you outside the store!” She shoves the bags in his hands, rip the tags off his wrist and waist and hurries to the counter.

“Ah. I can pay for my own clothes-“

“Nope! This is my treat! You can pay me back by meeting me at the car!”

Yagi looks at the minimum of 20 bags in his hands and accepts his fate. Trudging his way back to the car with the mini fortune in toll.

———

“Alright come on this is our last shop.”

“Ya no. I think I’ll wait in the car.”

“Dont worry, this place is very professional and no one will mention you being here. They are very strict about privacy. Also it will stop random men from asking me out.”

Yagi goes over the definition of professional in his head as he walks into a sex shop named “The Bimbo’s Boneyard”. It was suprisingly sleek inside despite the name. Defiantly one of the more higher end sex stores he’s been to. It was similar to a tech store with all the LED lights and plexiglass display boxes. It would be less weird if some of them didn’t have sex dolls that were determined to stare him down.

He decided to walk away from the display, trying to find something to look at with out actually looking at anything. His eyes catch a box with a cute little cat on it. He smirks a little. It reminds him of the stray cat that lives in the brush that’s on the way to campus from the dorms. He would give it pets every morning and eventually leave cans of food every morning. One morning he found a hunched black blob taking a nap on the grass. He was about to ask the obvious homeless man if he wanted his bento when he realized it was his coworker Aizawa. Sleeping on the cold ground at 5:30 in the morning with a cat that, while a sweet heart, was probably ridden with fleas.

“Excuse me sir, the food bank is on the other side of town.”

“I know but they were offering a cash prize for who ever found the dementia patient that ran away from his nursing home. Looks like I just found him.”

He chuckled at the memory. When their odd friendship really started to bloom. Not only with Aizawa, who while he was probably the closest too, took the longest compared to his other coworkers. He loved talking to Mic about classic American rock and fighting with him on how Nikki is so much better than Cardi. He loved trading tea with Thirteen as they go on about a new show Yagi has no clue what their talking about, but loves the passion. And Nemuri, who took pity on him the first day and decided to spoil him with attention and gifts that mostly ranged from sugar free candys and cute pens. It makes him feel like a toddler more than anything, but he thinks it’s sweet. He just never expected to have so many friends after Allmight was gone. He half thought if Nighteyes prediction didn’t kill him, then his loneliness will.

“My my my, I must say I’m surprised.”

Toshinori shook out of his self reflection and looked at his friend.

“I had my theories but I must say I never expected pet play from you. To think I thought you were just a vanilla cradle robber.”

He flushed with shock in confusion. Only to find that the box with the cat he was staring at for the past 2 minutes was for a bundle for a cat headband, a leash, mouth gag, and plug tail.

Absolutely horrified Yagi stammers to regain his reputation of role model rather than creepy old man. “Shit! No! No! I was just looking at the cute cat!”

“There’s no need to be ashamed, I am a professional after all. If you ever want to talk about that kind of stuff with me, I’m always open for questions.” She assured him calmly. “I’m gonna go to the check out if you want to look at the other options. I will say that you would look a lot better with the black ears.” She struts off with a few leather tools and some weird egg looking balls.

“There’s nothing for me to fucking look at because I’m not interested in that! Wait.. WHAT DO YOU MEAN CRADLE ROBBER?” He stomps off to catch up with her.

————

The staff Christmas party is filled with decorations, overworked teachers and spiked eggnog. Coworkers chatting and playing games as the snow falls outside. Yagi is chatting with Aizawa about how much Nezu is going to lose in poker after he demands people play with him. He takes a sip of his sugar free hot cocoa, very glad that his friends get a well deserved break.

“Merry Christmas Yagi!” Thirteen shouted as they shove a fancy bag in his face.

“Oh thank you Thirteen! I hope you didn’t spend too much on me.

“Oh no it wasn’t me!” Thirteen corrected. “Midnight was your secret Santa. She said she’s a little too tipsy to walk in her heels right now and asked me to give it to you.”

He looks past the smaller teacher and sees Nemuri in a tight red dress and tall stilettos. Giving him a wink when she notices him receiving her present.

He smiles and waves back at her. He pulls out the first item from the bag. An expensive looking cologne. He brings it up to his nose and gets notes of Cuban cigars and vannila. He sees a little tag attached to the bottle. With lovely cursive script it read “Garenteed to even get the angriest cats purr~”

He reads the tag as he hands the cologne to Aizawa. Shota sniffs the bottle and his eyes roll back a little bit. Obviously enjoying the scent.

“Wow she picked out something that matches your pretentious persona.”

“Maybe you can ask her to pick out some bar soap that you desperately need.” Yagi rebuttles without even looking up. Still trying to figure out what the tag ment.

“Is there something else in there? If not that’s a heavy bottle.” Thirteen comments before being passed the cologne to take a sniff.

Oh ya, maybe look at the rest of the gift before over analyzing the card. He opens the bag wider and is smacked in the face with realization on what the message ment. His blush going to his ears as he looked at the “Kinky Kat Play” bundle that he repressed from his memory. He looks up at Nemuri with shock as he finds her staring at him. Raising her glass with a smirk as she turns back to her pile of chips and angry, losing boss.

He shuts the bag quickly before Thirteen and Aizawa gets a chance to peek. “Ahhh ah. It’s a very personal gift that I don’t want everyone to know about.”

“Alright I understand.” Shota replies. He turns to Thirteen. “Thirteen get your hand vacuum ready.” The nosy prick demands as he lunges for the bag. Thank god for these stupidly long arms as he gets the bag out of Shota’s reach.

“It’s none of your fucking buisness you asshole!” Yagi cries as he goes on his toes as Shota climes him like a tree. Thirteen is giggling at their weird friendship while not helping anyone. Yagi would rather die than have the present be shown to his coworkers and worst of all Shota, who would NEVER let this go.

While he hates to do it, he’s desperate, and it has to be done.

The sickly man expands his diaphragm in such a way where when he coughs, he gets enough blood out of his mouth to put on a show. He makes a display of coughing and catching his breath. Blood covering his hand and dripping out of his mouth. He goes a little too far by making his hand shake but he needed extra sympathy points.

It seems to do the job as Thirteen rushes to his side to support him. “Shota you know you can’t be to rough with him.”

Aizawa stares at both of them in disbelief, then back at Yagi. “You are not seriously trying to play the sick old man card right now.”

Thirteen loops Yagi’s arm around their shoulders.“Shota you were to rough on him. The man has no stomach and only one lung. You should know better as a professional.”

“A professional knows when someone is faking when said person has no problem taking and dealing punches while sparring, but suddenly can’t handle a few grabs.” He cannot believe Yagi is trying to make an escape route by making Aizawa look like the asshole that beats up sick old men.

“You don’t need to defend me Thirteen.” Yagi says, adding a little tremble to his voice. “He just can’t handle losing to an old man. Could we go to the office? My nebulizer is in there.” The asshole making sure to add some pity coughs at the end.

“Of course Yagi.”

Shota stares openly in shock on what happening in front of him. Not only at Yagi’s pathetic stunt over something stupid, but Thirteens naiveté.

“A nebulizer treats asthma! Not bleeding lung asshole!” Shota shouts like an absolute child.

As he watches the duo walk, no sorry, LIMP to the office, he sees Yagi readjust his arm. To give an undeniable middle finger to Shota behind Thirteens head. The shameless bastard smiling back at him.

#erasermight #allmight #allmight and Nemuri being buds #The first artist Yagi was exposed too in the US was nicki and was his go to drunk Karaoke

36 notes · View notes

dontasktheradiodemon · 3 years

Text

Quasi-Confession

Alastor visits @hiss-and-vinegar Sir Pentious in the boiler room and then shit hits the fans.

Listen. Some of y’all are following for the relationship drama, right? For the soap opera action? That good good telenovela shit? This is the thread you want to read. This is the thread you’ve been waiting for. It’s got what you want. It’s got what you crave. It’s got this:

Sir Pentious moves back, out of the way suddenly, staring at Alastor like he's a different person. Was this even possible? He.... "ARE YOU IN LOVE WITH ME, ALASSSTOR???"

Brace yourselves for an emotional roller coaster.

Sir Pentious

Local snake is waiting in the boiler room, which is still pretty difficult to navigate. Watch your head, you might bump it on a pipe or cable. Or some slab of metal. Sir Pentious has an easy time moving around in here, CLEARLY you are just clumsy. He's flicking about on his phone, sending another message to Alastor to let him know where he can be found.

He sends his usual tophat :3 emoji along with it.

Alastor

It’s mere seconds before Alastor replies with a “🎶 ✔️✔️✔️” and only a few more seconds after that before he’s arrived, knocking on the door before letting himself in with a cheery “Hello~!”

He COULD have just teleported straight into the room rather than in front of the door. But he remembers how that went for his double. He’s not risking it.

Sir Pentious

Ah! There's that familiar radio voice. Penny's head swivels towards the source and he leans back against a workbench, flicking his tongue as he waves to the deerman.

"GREETINGSSSS, ALASSSTOR! GIVE ME YOUR HAND! OH, AND, I WANT TO SSSSEEE THE MUG, AS WELL."

Alastor

"Of course!" He offers over the travel mug with stacked layers of unhappy sinners depicting the rings of hell printed around it. "All of Hell, just for you, as well deserved. And mercifully free of any sad excuses for watered-down tea."

Although he was briefly tempted to fill it with hot water and claim it was one-second tea.

“Left or right?” He holds out both hands anyway, Sir Pentious can take whichever one he wants. (Also check out that bling on his left wrist. He’s got that watch Sir Pentious stole for him.) “You know I’m always eager to lend a hand, but I didn’t think it was going to be so literal!”

Sir Pentious

Sir Pentious reaches over to take the mug, purrrrring as he looks it over. It is absolutely just a travel mug, but it was an offering! He is going to put it on his workbench.

Oh, and he does notice that watch! A large toothy grin spreads upon his face, and he takes hold of Alastor's left hand. That's more common for rings, isn't it?

The ring from Valera is clearly visible on his own hand. It shines in the warmth of the boiler room's lights.

Sir Pentious adjusts those multiple lensed glasses of his to get more accurate measurements, careful yet at the same time, rough. He squeezed at finger joints and pinched skin... He could be taking measurements for all kinds of things at this rate.

"GOOD TO SSEE YOU'RE GETTING USE OUT OF THE WATCH, ALASSSTOR! HAS IT HELPED YOU?"

Alastor

He got a horrible rasping cobra purr! He'd steal every tacky gimmicky mug from every cheesy souvenir shop in Pentagram City if he thought they'd earn him more purrs. (He didn't *buy* the mug, obviously.)

“Yes indeed!” He’s enjoyed admiring it. And listening to it tick. Sometimes he even checks the time with it, although he’s generally got a razor sharp internal clock. A big help. “And quite a handsome accessory it’s made, too! But then I knew I could trust your sense of style.”

He tries not to get overly lost in the sensation of his hand being manipulated. Those were such PRECISE measurements... By this point he has no idea what in the world Sir Pentious needs these measurements for, but considering the quantity he’s taking... After a moment of hesitation, Alastor asks, “How precise do these measurements need to be? Would taking my glove off help?”

Sir Pentious

The question stirs him, and Pentious tilts his head in thought. "WELL, NO... I CAN BUILD ANYTHING *UPON* YOUR GLOVE." There's that grin again, "I'VE NEVER SEEN YOU WITHOUT THEM! IT WOULD BE *INVASIVE*, WOULD IT NOT?"

Alastor

What in the world is he building? Alastor’s current best guess is a weapon. Some kind of mechanical robot glove. Something that needs fairly precise but not skintight dimensions. “It would only be invasive if you *demanded.* I’m freely volunteering it! But, no, I wouldn’t take my gloves off around just anyone.”

Sir Pentious

Tongue flick. Once. Twice. Sir Pentious takes the other hand, checking for any inconsistencies.

"UNLESS YOUR HANDS ARE GROTESQUE IN SSSSOME WAY, I NEED NOT SSSEE THEM! MY CURIOUSSSITY ISS NOT PIQUED!"

Is it weird to offer that? He's going to think on it idly later.

Alastor

“They’re shockingly normal,” he reassures him. “So if your measurements don’t need to be that precise, there’s no need for it!”

He’s not quite sure if he’s disappointed or relieved. Relieved, probably. He said it wouldn’t be invasive, but in truth he would feel more than a little exposed with his ungloved hand in someone’s grip.

Sir Pentious

He finally seems to finish up, and Penny scribbles down all the measurements he'd taken, with a barely legible scrawl. This was not the writing he used for letters, this was definitely his engineering scrawl.

"THERE WE ARE!! ALL FINISHED!!" Prr prr prr prr, "WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO NOW?"

Alastor

He’s studying Sir Pentious’s handwriting off and on as he scribbles, until he stops writing and Alastor focuses directly on his face as he speaks.

Oh—happy sounds. Alastor automatically echoes them in pulses of static. “Well—a fine question! What’s there to do down here?” He glances around the boiler room... then settles his gaze on Sir Pentious’s throat. “How about you give me that bow tie you promised me weeks ago, hm?”

Sir Pentious

Oh the eyes on his neck get a squint out of him, but the words that follow are more reassuring.

"OH, THAT OLD THING? I'D NEARLY FORGOTTEN."

Luckily he kept a bunch of random things in his jacket, and he began to fish around for it, "YOU SURE ARE GOOD AT REMINDING ME ABOUT THINGSSSS THAT HAPPENED WEEKSSSS AGO, ALASSSTOR."

Alastor

He opens his mouth to snark back—something about *having a working memory*—before he realizes Sir Pentious is referring to Alastor’s referring to Broadway. His mouth shuts with a click of his teeth like a dial turning off. “Hm.”

Sir Pentious

He's right, Sir Pentious' working memory is generally tied to the immediacy and things that pissed him off. The serpent continues digging around before he retrieves his old bowtie, holding up the accessory and looking at the yellow pendent in the center. He holds it up as if he were dangling a piece of meat, "HERE YOU ARE, OLD CHAP. THISSS ISS WHAT YOU ARE SSSEEKING, ISS IT NOT?"

Alastor

He feels a little bit like a dog being prompted to beg for a morsel. “If that’s what you’re offering!” He holds out his hand, palm up, for Sir Pentious to drop the bow tie in. He’s got a sneaking suspicion that if he tries to grab it, Sir Pentious is going to jerk it back.

Sir Pentious

*He would be right because Penny is that bitch.* But instead he drops it down into Alastor's waiting hand, "I HAVEN'T WORN IT SINCE I REMOVED IT WHEN I PUT ON YOURS. BUT I HAVE KEPT IT WITH ME, SSO! SSTILL WARM. NYA HA!" That's a weird thing to say. He won't think on it anymore.

Alastor

Alastor won’t think on it either. Which is to say, he will think on it A WHOLE LOT, RIGHT NOW, just not on the implications of the fact that Sir Pentious felt the need to point it out.

He tugs off his current bow tie with a flourish and slides the new one in place. “I’ll have to start wearing a little yellow so it doesn’t look out of place.” As he ties the bow tie, he casts a critical gaze down at his red-on-red-with-red-trim outfit, looking for something he can switch out or somewhere he can accessorize.

Sir Pentious

He's wearing a lot of yellow and black himself, so the red bowtie does have a bit of an out of place look, but to Sir Pentious, it was the prize that mattered. He had something of Alastor's, and those who were in the know would be able to recognize that much. A symbol, a victory, perhaps. Spoils and all that.

"A LITTLE YELLOW WOULD SUIT NICELY! MIGHT I SUGGEST A BLACK COAT WITH YELLOW PINTRIPES? NOT THAT YOU COULD SSSTEAL MY LOOK IF YOU TRIED! YOU'D NEED MORE EYESSS FOR THAT."

Alastor

He’s not quite so bold to ask if Sir Pentious has any old coats he’s willing to hand off—although the thought crosses his mind. “Ha! And look like one of your minions? Not if you don’t plan on hiring me full time.” He finishes with the bow and drops his hands, tipping up his chin to show it off. “Am I straight?”

Sir Pentious

A SHARP laugh, and Sir Pentious gestures to Alastor fondly. "NOT AT *ALL.* BUT YES, YOU LOOK FINE!! VERY STRIKING."

Alastor

He blinks a moment as he tries to work out why he’s being laughed at; then huffs. All right, fair enough. “Good to hear!” He stows away his recently-removed bow tie in the collection he’s been carrying around in his pocket.

Sir Pentious

What a shit eating grin from Pentious, who leans in suddenly VERY close to Alastor, much larger than the twig of a man.

"YOU MAKE IT SSOUND LIKE YOU'D ENJOY WORKING FOR ME! BEING BOSSED BY BETTERSSS? NYA HAHA, I MEAN THAT *AFFECTIONATELY*, OF COURSE. YOU'RE NO SSSTRATEGIST."

Alastor

He doesn’t lean back an inch. He just tips his head back, smiling up at Sir Pentious. “I don’t have betters.” And for a moment, his smile is very menacing. There are ways of teasing he’s fine with. That’s not one of them.

But the moment passes. It was, after all, intended affectionately. “However, I also don’t have ambitions! Not any more glamorous than entertaining myself. And I won’t lie, I’ve never found better entertainment than assisting with someone else’s grand ambitions. The drama! The pathos! It’s why I’m here, after all!” He gestures vaguely above them, indicating the hotel.

Sir Pentious

While others might realize their teasing fell flat, Sir Pentious remained in that competitive space, looking over The Radio Demon's wide, dangerous grin. He was no stranger to danger, not at all. Though Alastor did not consider him a rival, Sir Pentious couldn't help the sheer thrill he felt from the possibility of the two at one another's throats. Part of being in Hell, you know.

He follows Alastor's vague gesturing and makes a face, "YES, WELL, EVERYBODY KNOWS YOU DON'T ACTUALLY *CARE* ABOUT THE BETTERMENT OF *SSS*SINNERS. YOU ARE ALWAYS IN IT FOR YOUR OWN ENTERTAINMENT. BUT IF YOU WORK FOR ME, A MAN OF YOUR POWER, I WOULD PREFER IT IF YOU *DID* CARE ABOUT WHAT I AM TRYING TO DO!" Though he doesn't get too uppity about it, preferring instead to adjust his bowtie, "YOU'VE PUT IN A LOT OF EFFORT TO HELP ME WITH MY AIRSHIP, SO, I SHOULD HOPE IT ISSSSN'T A LONG CONFUSING GAME."

Alastor

A game? At that, Alastor draws back a little. He still thinks—? Well, of course, still. Of course still. It’s only been a few months. He’s going to be proving himself for years. He’s going to be proving himself for DECADES. “Oh, I get most of my entertainment from schadenfreude, that much is true—but with the hotel, I’m hoping to get my schadenfreude by watching it crash and burn. Around YOU, I get my schadenfreude from all the people you’ll be crushing on the way up.” A dark smile—almost a conspiratorial one, as if they’re discussing secret plans rather than goals that Sir Pentious regularly announces at top volume. “There’s very little interesting about man challenging the devil and losing—it’s what everyone expects, isn’t it? It’s the inevitable, the status quo. I can watch an overlord fail at that any day of the week. But man OVERTHROWING the devil—a mere mortal, rising up from the mud, becoming something greater than one of the very celestial powers that govern the universe—now THAT, that IS a show worth seeing! I want to see hubris rewarded!”

His eyes are glowing brighter as he leans closer to Sir Pentious. “And all of us who are so strong because of our postmortem superpowers, we dealmakers and bargainers—I don’t think any of us stand a chance. We’re just borrowing a measure of the power of infernal demons and fallen angels. A moon can’t outshine the sun whose light it’s reflecting. The only one who can do it must be a master of the one completely human power of creation: invention. It’s you or nobody. And ‘nobody’ is a terribly boring story.”

Sir Pentious

Their faces are practically together, these weird old men. His hood floops outward, and he stares at Alastor with all of his glowing red eyes. Menacing man. Sir Pentious cannot hold back the shrill cackle of glee that escapes his throat. "OF COURSE, YOU ARE CORRECT, ALASSSTOR! I BROUGHT INNOVATION TO THIS INFERNAL CESSPOOL-- EVERYTHING THAT I HAVE, THAT I AM, I BUILT IT MYSSSSELF, I WORKED FOR IT!!! THEY WILL ALL REGRET LAUGHING AT ME ONCE MY FACE IS *EVERYWHERE.*"

He loved to be praised, so much. Look at him preening again, it gave color to his patterns and his ego hungered for more. Power coursed through his veins at the mere thought of being better than everyone else. His blood would taste sweet with ambition.

Alastor

“If one knows where to look, in one way or another your influence is visible in every building down here. You’ve already shaped Hell! Anyone who doesn’t recognize that is an idiot!” And that kind of technological prowess MATTERS to Alastor, whatever the TV/satellite/computer/Internet bozos think to the contrary. He lived a life on the technological cutting edge. “Once your face is everywhere, if you command it, they won’t be AROUND to regret it anymore.”

And oh, he can’t wait to see it.

In the meantime, seeing Sir Pentious with his ego freshly fluffed is nearly as good a sight. For a moment Alastor swears Sir Pentious looks more *vivid.* Alastor has to force himself to lean back before he does something stupid.

Sir Pentious

He's polishing his talons on his suit, then admiring them as if they were freshly painted. Sir Pentious *purrs*, looking over to Alastor without turning his head, and all of his eyes follow suit.

"MM. YOU KNOW JUSSST WHAT TO SSSAY. I'VE MISSED HAVING YOU AROUND, MY FRIEND."

Alastor

“I’ve missed *being* around.” There’s an edge of desperation to his tone before he reels it back in. Professional charismatic radio host voice. “Everyone else down here is so boring. You can’t imagine!”

Sir Pentious

"HA!" He wiggles his talons as he begins to slither around, over and under various pipes and cables, maneuvering his lengthy body with ease and fluidity. "OH, I ASSURE YOU, I CAN! I HAVE BEEN HERE MUCH LONGER THAN YOU, ALASSSTOR. THERE WAS A TIME I USED TO BE EAGER TO ENCOUNTER NEW ARRIVALS, TO SSSEE HOW THE WORLD HAD CHANGED AS TIME WENT ON, BUT THEY BECAME SSO MUCH MORE **BORING**. TRUE CLASS AND SSTYLE HASS BEEN LOSST TO THE LIVING WORLD, YOU UNDERSTAND."

Alastor

"True enough! Everything's so... *cheap* these days." He watches Sir Pentious slither around. "Somebody's got to show these sinners some proper class and style. And if you want something done right..."

Sir Pentious

Glowing eyes in shadows, anywhere that's not lit up by the extra lights Sir Pentious has added. It's a stark contrast from light to shadow, and he beams, coming up behind Alastor, though carefully. He doesn't touch him, "YOU NEED ONLY LOOK TO SSSIR PENTIOUS! HA!!"

Alastor

He glances back over his shoulder without turning, beaming back just as brightly. "And truer words were never said."

Sir Pentious

Just two guys being dudes.

"ALASSSTOR, IT REALLY IS INTERESTING THAT YOU DON'T WANT *MORE.* YOU REALLY COULD HAVE IT ALL... OH, BUT THEN WE REALLY WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO CHAT LIKE THIS, EH? WHAT A SHAME! CAN'T HAVE THAT."

Alastor

“Can’t have that!” He turns to lean back against a table so he can see Sir Pentious directly again. “I COULD, but I don’t WANT it all. I’m an entertainer, not a... a mad scientist warrior king. YOU could have a stupendous career as a circus contortionist, but I doubt you’d be any more content with that than I would be stuck on a throne making tedious decisions about infernal infrastructure and Hellish cabinet posts. I don’t want subjects—I want an audience.”

His smile twitches toward a grimace. He mutters, “I wouldn’t mind more of *that*—but I certainly wouldn’t get it as a conqueror.”

Sir Pentious

"WELL, I COULD GET YOU AN AUDIENCE! ONCE I'VE TAKEN THIS EMPIRE FOR MYSELF, THERE SHALL NOT BE ANY EMPTY SEATS TO WORRY ABOUT!" He beams, spreading out his arms, "AND THEN! OH, WELL, WE'D HAVE TO CHANGE THINGS UP EVERY FEW YEARS, SO IT DOESN'T BECOME BORING."

Alastor

"Would you?" Alastor brightens again. "I mean, I know you COULD do that, no doubt there—but would you really?"

Sir Pentious

Look at him smiling. He's smiling so much at Alastor. "WHY, OF COURSE! IF WE ARE WORKING *TOGETHER*, THEN I HAVE NO ISSUE WITH THAT. IT WILL BE *FUN* WATCHING WHATEVER YOU DO TO THEM!"

He flicks his talons this way and that, slithering through the pipe maze again. *Enrichment.*

Alastor

His eyes glitter at the thought of it. A captive audience, provided by no less a personage than the ruler of Hell. True, he’d rather his audience listen to him out of adoration rather than fear—he’s an entertainer, after all!—but they can work out the details later. He was adored before. All he needs is to be listened to again, to be given a chance to prove himself, and he’ll be adored again. He’s sure of it.

“I’m counting that as a promise!” Oh, he’s excited just as the THOUGHT of it. He taps a foot on the floor as some bouncy Harlem stride plays in the background under his words. “If you’re irritated now at me for remembering things you did weeks ago, you’re going to hate me when I remind you about this promise in a few years! Ha!”

Sir Pentious

A cackle from the rafters as Sir Pentious slithers around up there.. He finally hangs upside down in front of Alastor with that large familiar grin.

"OH, I AM CERTAIN I WON'T HEAR THE END OF IT! BUT I CANNOT IGNORE THAT YOU HAVE *HELPED* ME. I DISLIKE BEING INDEBTED TO ANYONE, BUT I CANNOT PRETEND OTHERWISE!"

He tips his hat, which is miraculously staying on his head.

"I DO NOT SHAKE HANDS WITH YOU, BUT I COULD PUT IT IN WRITING."

Alastor

“Oh, that’s entirely unnecessary!” Pause. “But I’d love it if you did!” He scoops up the nearest blank-looking piece of paper and a pen, steps sideways into an unexpectedly large shadow, and somehow emerges from it next to Sir Pentious, standing upside-down on the ceiling next to him. “So it’s to be a formal agreement, then, is it!”

He looks all dramatic standing there upside-down for a grand total of three seconds, before his clothing remembers gravity and the tail of his coat fwoofs down to dangle around his head.

Sir Pentious

Sir Pentious watches him standing upside down, and he smirks, waving a dismissive hand. "A *PROPER* CONTRACT, ALASSSTOR. I AM A BUSINESSMAN! NO BLANK PAPERSSS HERE. I DIDN'T RUN MY FACTORIESSSS ON BLANK PAPERSSS."

Alastor

“Well, you need a blank paper in order to write the contract on it, don’t you?” He offers over the paper and pen, go on.

Sir Pentious

"I CAN'T WRITE THAT *HERE*, AL! WHAT DO YOU TAKE ME FOR??" He huffs, "I WON'T FORGET, AND IF I DO, YOU WILL REMIND ME!"

Alastor

"Not if you're going to get on my case about reminding you." He drops the pen and paper. The paper flutters slowly down to the ground. "It was a nice sentiment, all the same."

Sir Pentious

Oh look at Alastor getting huffy. Sir Pentious frowns, slithering down to retrieve the paper and pen, "DON'T THROW A *FIT*, I AM NOT GETTING ON YOUR *CASE.* I SAID WHAT I MEANT! YOU WILL REMIND ME, I AM COUNTING ON YOU."

Alastor

Only very lightly huffy; and more for the drama of it than anything else. Still, the idea of being *counted on* makes him perk up. Doesn't that sound all official.

He melts back into the shadows to reappear again next to Sir Pentious. "Then I guess I'll just have to pester you about it sometime!"

Sir Pentious

"YESSS, THAT ISS THE POINT. I HAVE A LOT OF THINGSS TO KEEP TRACK OF. ONCE I AM PROPERLY IN MY AIRSHIP, AND IT ISS OFF THE GROUND, I WILL SET UP THE CONTRACT AND TYPE IT UP ALL NICE. SCRIBBLING IT DOWN ON SSOME BLANK PAPER HARDLY BEFITSSS A HELLISH GENTLEMAN SSUCH AS MYSELF." He gestures to Alastor's suit, "YOU MIGHT ENJOY A PATCHWORK SSTYLE, BUT I DO NOT! NONE OF THAT 'MAKE DO' ATTITUDE, SSSIR."

Alastor

"I happen to like handwritten legal documents! It makes them feel important. Like the Declaration of Independence." He pauses and thinks that over. "That doesn't carry much weight with you, does it? All right, typewritten it is! But I expect to see a draft before you ask me to sign. I have to make sure the terms are equitable, after all."

Sir Pentious

He leans all close to Alastor again.

"OH? EQUITABLE HOW SSSSO? WORRIED I'LL SSSIGN YOU INTO FORCED LABOR, ALASSSTOR?"

Alastor

"Worried you'll let me off too easy," he says dryly. "What if you do something like say you're going to do this big favor for me on the basis of our current friendship and my prior services rendered? What about future services? What if I never do anything else for you ever again, but this contract still holds you to helping me out? No no no, I won't stand for it! You're offering me an enormous favor, my friend, and I intend to earn it properly!"

Sir Pentious

... Oh. Usually people were expecting Sir Pentious to be the one to pull the rug out from others--this was something he... Somehow didn't see coming at all! Alastor wanted to make sure that he was held to the right standards. Don't mind Sir Pentious, he's just going to be having Feelings over here, looking away. Friend...

"YES, WELL. GOOD! THEN. IT WOULD BE A BIG MISSSSTAKE TO TRY TO MAKE ME LOOK THE FOOL, ALASSSTOR!"

Alastor

"I wouldn't dream of it!" He hesitates; then decides, well, all right, as long as he's saying friendly things already—and knowing Sir Pentious keeps asking for directness—

"Truth be told," he says, casually examining his claws like he's only half paying attention to what he says, "if I ever offered to shake with you on something—and I know you've already said you'll never shake with me, that's fine, but IF I did—that's what would be on the line. No souls. Just an unbreakable guarantee that I can't—betray you." He leaves off the *again* and adds a shrug, like it's no big deal. "I don't think you'll ever want to shake even under those conditions. But, all the same, I thought I'd let you know! Since you keep bringing it up like you think I'm just waiting for some clever opportunity to trick you out of your soul!"

Sir Pentious

There's a sound in his ears, like *ringing.* Sir Pentious could swear he could feel his heart pounding in his ears but only briefly. What was *that* sensation? Generally, he felt aches in his chest like that with Valera when she said something *particularly* caring...but this was Alastor. This was probably just another example of a good friend, and what good friends do. Good friends don't betray one another! Yes, of course.

But he couldn't let it go that easily, his brow creased as he looked the deerman all over. "*WHY?*" It was extremely likely that this Alastor had betrayed the Pentious of his own Hell before. Penny was certain every Al was guilty of that at this point... But why try SO hard? Why be so afraid of angering him? Could guilt alone be such a driving force? It felt like there was a very obvious piece of a puzzle missing to him.

"WHY ARE YOU... WHY DO YOU CARE *SO* MUCH?"

Alastor

"Because you're thirty-three percent of my circle of friends—and the only one of them I viciously, violently backstabbed!" He laughs shortly, and his stomach twists and churns as they delve back into that topic that he always feels lurking just under everything they say.

"I don't know how bad things went in your universe, but here—I... it's no exaggeration to say you might well have been ruling Pentagram City by now—maybe more—if not for me. And if we're going to be friends again, we—I know you still don't trust me fully. You can't. You shouldn't! *I* know I'm not going to betray you again, but am I just supposed to say 'take my word for it'?

"On the other hand, a bargain that means I can't betray you is *cheap* for me—in fact, it's *absolutely free*—because all I'm doing is promising not to do something I wasn't going to do anyway! But for you, why—it would give you a little reassurance without your needing to trust me a lick more! And if it costs me nothing but gives you that much... Speaking as a professional dealmaker, that's a bargain if I've ever heard one."

Sir Pentious

Well, that settled that, didn't it! For friendship. Alastor said it himself! And he made quite a big deal (pardon the pun) of it too. He always talked so much, you'd hardly want for a conversation with him around.

.... Except. That feeling gave Sir Pentious some *concern*. It was still lingering, not as strongly but it was there. He's thinking over something the talkative deerman had said...

".... NOT *ME.* I WAS BETRAYED, YES, AN ALASTOR BETRAYED A SIR PENTIOUS, INDEED.... BUT IT WASN'T *ME*." That was something that had always stuck around, lingered in the pit of his own long intestines. The serpent wrung his hands together, unconscious of his own idle fidgeting.

"IF THE ONLY REASON WE ARE FRIENDSSSS ISSS BECAUSE OF *RESIDUAL* GUILT, ISSNT THAT BOUND TO FAIL, TOO?"

Alastor

He shrugs and nods, granted, yes; they’ve both been content to treat each other as substitutes, even though each knows the other is different. Haven’t they?

But he doesn’t get a chance to address that before a question demands his full attention. “*No!*” The question horrifies him enough that he takes a step closer to Sir Pentious, hands half raised, like he’s bracing to try to stop him from swinging around a knife. “No no no, I—w—if I was motivated by avoiding guilt, then I’d be avoiding *you!* I’ve felt more guilt in the last two months than I have in the last twenty years! No. We’re friends because I *want* your friendship.”

He lets out a rattled laugh. “And you can see how well I’m proving that! I try to reassure you, it makes you worry about something else, now I have to re-reassure you.” He gestures between the two of them. “*This* is why I’m trying so hard. Because I can’t quite get it right yet.” He holds up a finger. “*Yet.*”

Sir Pentious

He's startled by the other's sudden movement, and his hood opens up. Alastor's insistence, that earnest way of speaking. It made that feeling even *stronger.*

He almost expected Alastor to grab his hand, but that didn't happen. Sir Pentious rubbed at his arm.... He's feeling guilty, too. For being so paranoid, skeptical. *Afraid.* It was a lot to think about.

"YET..." He looks away. "... I. AM SORRY, THAT I AM. LIKE THIS."

Alastor

Alastor blinks, then leans back against a work table again. Taking in the apology, turning it over in his mind. It feels like needles lining the inside of his ribs, stabbing when he tries to inhale. “For—for what, a little healthy suspicion? I didn’t get you and you didn’t get got by me, but—your suspicion is more than justified. I don’t hold it against you.” The corner of his mouth twitches weakly. “I’m amazed you’re giving me a chance at all.”

Sir Pentious

A little healthy suspicion? Sir Pentious makes a face, digging his talons into his arm further, scratching now.

"IT *ISN'T* HEALTHY, THOUGH. IS IT." This was a.... Decidedly more vulnerable topic, but this was the boiler room. No one came down here anymore, not since Penny set up shop.

"I AM NOT HEALTHY, NOT IN THE LEAST."

Alastor

Alastor tenses as he sees Sir Pentious’s talons tighten on his arm. He wants to reach out. Instead he just grips the edge of the table with both hands, claws digging into the bottom of it.

“If I were the one in your sh...” No shoes. “... If I were standing where you are? I would never so much as *speak* to a Radio Demon again. No matter what dimension he’s from or what promises he makes. So... I know you've said your mind is unhealthy, but *that suspicion*, I don’t think *that's* unhealthy.” He leans a little closer, not quite getting off the table. “If *you* think it is, I won’t know how unless you tell me.”

(He’s dimly aware that the radio distortion modulating his voice has been ebbing and flowing like waves on a beach—but like the tide going out, steadily declining. He can’t remember the last time he spoke so plainly for more than a sentence or two.)

Sir Pentious

Sir Pentious doesn't lean back this time, but he's scrunching up more. His skull is *abuzz* with activity, and what feels like pressure on his brain.

".... YOU WOULDN'T, AND YET, WHEN I BECOME SSSO SSSKEPTICAL, I CAN... *FEEL* LIKE I'VE FAILED. IT TURNSSS ME AGAINSSSST THE ONES I." Love. "THE ONES THAT ARE IMPORTANT TO ME. AND I." Lose them.

He can't even finish his sentence, dragging his talons down his arm, a grounding technique that was more self punishing than helpful.

Alastor

Alastor automatically guesses what the first word left unsaid is. His heart leaps into his throat. He swallows it back down; the word isn’t meant for him.

He can’t watch that clawing anymore. “Maybe I can’t help—I think I’d make a poor alienist—and I can’t speak for everyone else important to you” (he feels daring just including himself on that list) “but, for what it’s worth... I’m hard to break and harder to scare off.” He’s gonna. Just. Carefully reach out, and put a hand on Sir Pentious’s wrist. Hi, can he take that? He’ll even let Sir Pentious claw up his arm instead if he wants. It’s fine if not, he’ll just wait and see.

Sir Pentious

The second his wrist is taken, Sir Pentious' eyes widen *considerably.* There's that rush in his chest, a dull *aching.* The puzzle piece was just out of reach, he could *feel* it.

He doesn't even fight it, even as his mind screams at him, *you failure, you absolute failure, look at you! Might as well offer your neck for the chopping block, you miserable failure.* He *winces*, though it isn't at Alastor. Stressed out tongue flicks, he's having a hard time maintaining eye contact.

".... YOU. PROMISE. YOU HAVE TO *PROMISE* ME THAT YOU WILL NOT... LEAVE." With every second that passes, it is like an eternity of ache in his chest. Similar to when Valera held his hands, rubbed them and spoke to him so softly. Grounding him.

Alastor

Alastor flinches when Sir Pentious winces, but Sir Pentious isn't pulling back, so Alastor isn't either.

"I promise." His voice is so blatantly, embarrassingly human. "I promise that I won't leave." He'd seal it in magic if Sir Pentious would let him. Instead, he just squeezes a little more firmly. "I'm your friend and your ally. I promise."

Sir Pentious

*But why?*

Why did Valera have so much patience? Why did Alastor not hate him? By all rights, he should infuriate them, but instead, they always reached out to him...!

... His eyes snap open wider than ever, and he feels like the last puzzle piece slips into place.

"ALASSSTOR. ARE YOU...?" OH, boy. He wants to be wrong, right now, more than ever, he wants to be wrong. If he *isn't* wrong, then... All of those moments, all of those playful snuggles and schemes.... Well they weren't just friendly, were they?

He's looking very pale, suddenly, a grit teeth sort of look. He's realized it. The reason why he stuck around was the same as a Valera's.

*Love.*

Alastor

Something went wrong. He can see it. "What?" What did he do? What did he say? Was it—?

Is his hand too close to Sir Pentious's? He jerks his hand back. "Sorry! I'm sorry, that was—It's a unilateral promise, not a bargain, I wasn't trying to shake on it."

In his heart he knows that's not the problem. But he can't see what the problem is—unless it's the worst.

He hopes it's not the worst.

Sir Pentious

Sir Pentious moves back, out of the way suddenly, staring at Alastor like he's a different person.

Was this even *possible?* He.... "ARE YOU IN *LOVE* WITH ME, ALASSSTOR???" Even if the deer said no, Pentious wasn't sure he'd believe him this time. Everything they did together, the way Alastor had warmed up to him, sooner than most others ever would consider...!

He liked him *like that.* And Sir Pentious, lonely Sir Pentious, had never questioned it.

Alastor

His stomach lurches. What did he say wrong? What pushed it over the line? He tries to deny it but all that squeezes out of his throat is static. After months spent trying to reassure Sir Pentious that he DOES value him, that he IS his friend, that he would NEVER betray him again... denying the accusation now would be too much a rejection of everything he's tried to prove.

He sinks down on a bench. He didn't say anything wrong. He said what Sir Pentious needed to hear him say. This was unavoidable.

He tries to give the same response he did to Valera—*no, I'm not; just with someone who looks the same*—but words catch in his throat as he suddenly realizes they're not true anymore. He knows this Sir Pentious too well to still see him the same as his own; but that's done nothing to break his fever. *Damn it.* He twists his hands together and stares down at them, defeated.

Just a few minutes ago, they were...

But Sir Pentious is never going to touch his hands like that again.

Sir Pentious

Of all the things Sir Pentious had expected to come out of this meeting, he couldn't have predicted that Alastor, the Radio Demon, was in love with him. This explained *everything...* Eager for friendship? Wanting so desperately to be around him, to not anger him, to spend as much time as possible?

Love was the *only* answer that made sense. Friendship was difficult enough with the serpent, but love! Oh, this was so much to process. He could only stare down at the deerman. For once, for *once* in his entire unlife, he'd never seen the other so *silent.* Unable to speak, unable to say a thing. Static choking up from his throat, and Sir Pentious found his hands at his own, remembering how it felt to be unable to speak. What to even feel? What could he feel?

Shouldn't he be laughing right now? Feeling so *powerful* for being the object of *Alastor's* affections? This should be making him feel unstoppable, but instead it felt like daggers plunged into his back, dragging down. Every breath wrung with *pain.* Sir Pentious' teeth grit, and he glared, flexing his talons out toward Alastor.

"I LET YOU *TOUCH* ME, I THOUGHT WE WERE *FRIENDSSS*, BUT YOU WERE JUSSSST USING ME, WEREN'T YOU!?" There it was--that hatred for himself bubbling up, paranoia clawing its way out of his throat, "YOU SSSSAY YOU WANTED TO BE MY FRIEND, BUT YOU WERE TRYING TO-- YOU JUSSSssT WANTED--" Wanted what? Alastor hadn't *lied,* he just hadn't been forthcoming. But here, Sir Pentious felt wave after wave of feelings that he couldn't describe. Why did he feel so *betrayed?* "FROM WHENCE DID IT **BEGIN???** HAVE YOU ALWAYSSS BEEN LUSssssTING AFTER ME!? I AM *ENGAGED*, ALASSSTOR!"

He was starting to be so cruel, and he could taste his own venom on his tongue now. Why did it matter this much?

Alastor

He can already see how this is going to end: with Sir Pentious throwing Alastor out of his afterlife completely; with Alastor alone again; with Alastor having merely been taunted for two months with the hope of getting back the best friend he's ever had, before being rewarded for his audacity in daring to think he'd found a cross-dimensional loophole around his rightful punishment for his betrayal.

He can save them both time by apologizing for inconveniencing Sir Pentious, walking out the door, and never coming back.

"I'm sorry." Start there. But he can't let go. (Isn't that the whole problem?) And he can't be the one to turn his back on Sir Pentious. If Sir Pentious throws him out, so be it—but this time, at least, it's going to be for the truth, not for what Alastor leaves Sir Pentious to assume. "For—for what little it's worth—lust never factored into it. And I never—I do—we *are* friends. I've never thought otherwise. I'm not trying to come between you and your fiancée. I've always—I've tried to let you take the lead, to... to decide when and how to touch—*because* we're friends, I—it was your right to set the limits."

Sir Pentious

*For what little it’s worth … we are friends.*

These few words were enough to send stabs of agony through his chest, and Sir Pentious wasn’t much for subtlety. His eyes widened again, and he clutched at where his black heart ought to be. He shouldn’t be feeling enraged, betrayed at all! He shouldn’t be! *Penley, you idiot, what are you doing? So obsessed with yourself, you’re making this all about you, too. Looking for reasons to be alone again, aren’t you?*

But it DID hurt. It *did* hurt. There was something here, something that hurt beyond all measure–if Alastor truly wanted to be his friend, if Alastor, of all damned sinners in this inferno of suffering, truly loved him… wasn’t that a lie? It wasn’t him that he loved, it was… a different man. The same man, but different.

Rage wet his eyes, and he brought up a sleeve to wipe at them–*no*, do not *cry* in front of ~~*your enemies*~~ *anyone else* you damned old fool. Least of all The Radio Demon! Do you want to get laughed at???

*He wouldn’t laugh at me. He is my friend.*

*HE IS NOT* YOUR *FRIEND. YOU ARE A* SUBSTITUTE.

With that wicked quickness the King Cobra is known for, Sir Pentious closes the gap between them, his hood flared out as he bares those yellow fangs of his, “DON’T **FUCK** WITH ME, YOU BASTARD! HOW COULD I SET LIMITS WHEN I THOUGHT ALL IT WAS WAS SSOMETHING WITHOUT SSSUCH FEELINGSSS INVOLVED!? THOUGHT YOU COULD GET A LAUGH OUT OF ME, THE LONELY INVENTOR!!! I WAS JUSSST A SSSSSUBSSSTITUTE FOR YOUR SSSSERPENT. IF YOU HADN’T **FUCKED THINGSSS UP** BACK THEN, THEN WE’D NEVER HAVE BECOME FRIENDSS!!!!”

Oh, he was going for the jugular now. All of that pain was coming out now! And though he’d wiped his eyes, the tears brimming were unmistakable. Lonely Sir Pentious was crying.

Alastor

Alastor leans back when Sir Pentious looms over him, gripping the edge of the bench as he fights down the automatic instinct to defend himself.

*If you hadn't fucked things up*—He flinches like he was slapped. Sir Pentious is right. He's right, and Alastor knows it, and they're the same words he's told himself for the past fifty-four years; but they hurt so much more in that voice. They hurt so much more seeing the fury and pain and tears in Sir Pentious's eyes. The last time he saw Sir Pentious like that, it was among the ruins of his flagship, begging Alastor to explain why he'd just destroyed everything they'd worked for.

And yet, Sir Pentious is *wrong.* "You—think I've been laughing at you?!" He lets out a high, nervous, hysterical laugh—NO that is the EXACT WRONG PANIC REACTION for this situation—he claps a hand over his mouth with the sound of a radio dial firmly clicking off and just shakes his head *no* until he's sure he can control his voice.

"Maybe we wouldn't have met—and maybe you started out as a substitute for mine, but—you aren't now! I know you, not well enough, but well enough to see that the things I value in him *do* exist in you, and where you differ, I value you on your own merits! And if mine slithered in right this second, said all was forgiven, invited me onto his airship, and promised everything I've ever wanted—it would hurt to leave! I'd *miss* the picnics, sitting around watching ASMR videos, sparring with you, figuring out how to cook for you—even how you *breathe.*" He's digging himself the deepest grave Hell's ever seen. At least let Sir Pentious hate him for the right reasons.

Sir Pentious

That was most assuredly the worst possible panic reaction, and it would have ruined whatever it was Alastor was trying to do here–had he not continued. Sir Pentious stared, watching him explain himself, watching him dig a hole so deep he might as well have ended up in Heaven after all.

Perhaps that hole would have made Penny hate him more, but instead… he felt his chest ache further, and he grabbed at his hood, *pulling* it *harshly* to compensate for the pain, to try to keep himself grounded. Alastor was listing off things about him, things that he and Al had done together. Things that were somehow special between the two of them.

Picnics and silly little videos and making ridiculous jokes about things nobody else would care about nor have reference for. Alastor had been the closest in years for someone that Sir Pentious could have related to—he wanted so badly for that companionship, that *understanding* with another demon in Hell who *really understood him.* And now, more than ever, he really had it.

Valera would often list things that Penny did, talked about how much she loved him. The way he is always making some kind of sound, his mannerisms for talking, the way he cares so deeply for her… Every time she’d do so, he could feel his chest swell with such love and passion. It was always too much for him to handle in those moments… words always failed him, he could think of naught to say except “Thank you”, which scraped the bare minimum of how he felt about her.

And Alastor… he had begun to do it, too. It was obvious now, to Sir Pentious, that Alastor had since stopped talking about things that likely *any* Genius Inventor Supervillain had done, and rather had began to talk *specifically* about him. It made him feel seen in ways only Valera had made him feel before.

They *loved* him, and he *hated* himself.

One hundred and fifty years of self loathing

was having a difficult time combatting all of this **love.**

Sir Pentious leaned back, and attempted to speak–he pointed a finger at Alastor, fangs bared as he prepared to let loose into another barrage of insults, of *cutting* words… only to find himself *unable* to speak.

He tried again, and again, to no avail with each attempt. Here he was, forcibly speechless, as panic began to steal him away. His eyes widened further, and he began to scratch at his throat, *furiously ashamed* with this total failure he was showing himself to be. *How pitiful, Sir Pentious. And you wonder why █████ left you. You can never be counted on when you’re needed most.*

Alastor

It's a barbed wire-wrapped sword through his heart when Sir Pentious's expression of fury melts into panic and he starts clawing at his own throat.

"No, oh no." He automatically reaches up, grabs Sir Pentious's hands, and pulls them down. His hands feel like they're holding red hot irons.

"*I'm sorry.* I shouldn't touch you. But I'm not letting you hurt yourself on my account." It's the first time this whole conversation he's felt like he sounds like himself, albeit an unusually serious version of himself. "If you need someone to claw up, let it be me."

Acid blood, Sir Pentious had called it; brain-storms, they were called in Alastor's time—temporary bouts of madness brought on by distress too great for a rational human mind to endure. And Alastor is the one who pushed Sir Pentious into this one. His mind races as he tries to figure out how to fix his damage. (Stupid question. He doesn't fix it. He knows that. Didn't he himself tell Sir Pentious he's better at knocking things down than setting them back up? Didn't Sir Pentious call him a wrecking ball?)

Sir Pentious

They might as *well* have been red hot irons–Sir Pentious’ eyes were glowing brightly, wide as they were. At this proximity, Alastor would be able to feel the tremor running under that grip–He tried so hard to mask it, but he was trembling from the intensity of his emotions.

Still, that *smile.* It wasn’t quite as strong as he knew Alastor was capable of, but the fact he could see it at all cut him to ribbons on the inside. Sir Pentious, in his haze of self loathing and fear of being a joke, took that smile as confirmation despite Alastor only saying the opposite. How many times must he say it before you *believe* him, Penny?

So close now, and he could easily pull away–but instead, he sought to cause pain. This was his way of coping, and he always managed to hurt the ones he cared about. Why should now be any different? He had bitten Valera when he was like a feral beast, and here he would tear Alastor apart in just the way he wanted. After all, he *offered.*

His hood flaring out and a monstrous *hiss* escaping his throat, Sir Pentious lunged his head forward, burying his fangs into the base of Alastor’s neck, right where it met the shoulder. He easily penetrated the flesh, sinking in to the gums as his eyes carried *madness.* Not only had he bitten him, but it was the same place he’d bitten him before, two months ago.

Alastor

He gasps in with an awful feedback noise, pain shooting across his neck and over his shoulder. On some level, he isn't surprised. On some level, he realizes, he was hoping for this.

He doesn't know if Sir Pentious intends it as his forgiveness, his penance, or his punishment.

And between the pain and the uncertainty and the knowledge that even though it's agony he's still not worthy of it—he finally breaks. He bursts into noisy, crackling sobs, his voice hardly audible under the distortion, shaking so hard he might not be able to sit up if Sir Pentious himself wasn't inadvertently holding him up by the shoulder.

"I'm sorry!" He clings desperately to Sir Pentious, he can't stop himself. He's talking fast, words spilling out, trying to get it all out before Sir Pentious stops listening to him for good. "*I'm sorry.* I know you hate how I feel, I hate it too. I'd shut it off if I could! It's why I ruined everything and *ran*, because I'm a *coward* and I was *afraid* of what love would make me—I was afraid of being *this.* I'm sorry you have to put up with it too!"

One hand curls clawlike into Sir Pentious's lapels to pull him closer and his fangs deeper. This is going to be the last time. He has to make it hurt. "I wish it—I *wish* it could have been something good for you. I'd fantasized about confessing someday—when you needed proof of my loyalty, I could have made some—some grand gesture—"here, here's your proof, here's how you know I'll never betray you!" Even if you don't reciprocate, I'd hoped you could—could draw strength from it! Here's one more person who esteems you so highly! Here's one more more person who would give you Heaven and Hell! Here's one more person who would do anything to see you happy and triumphant! But I can't even do that much for you, I—I'm so *sorry*—"

He can't get any more out. His last few words break up like a signal in a tunnel, and all he's left with is wordless sobbing and shaking.

Sir Pentious

Sir Pentious had a chance now, to spill his venom into Alastor. He had a chance to watch him *writhe* in physical agony to match the swirling intensity that the serpent felt inside. But it was clear, from the way the deerman broke so suddenly in his jaws, that Penny realized there was no need.

Alastor was *shattered* in a way that Penny had never, ever seen him. Never heard him. This man, who carried himself with such superiority and class, now a broken, sobbing ruin of a demon clung to the hellish gentleman’s body. He wasn’t goading him, he wasn’t boasting. He wasn’t destroying everything he’d built only to run off or laugh in his face.

He was just… miserable. And it was misery that Sir Pentious could not enjoy… it reminded him of his own wretched wailing when Valera had been there to hold him, too. Suddenly, Alastor stopped being The Radio Demon to Sir Pentious, and had become something else.

*Al. My best friend. You’re not so bad, you old bastard.*

But he wasn’t in the right mind to forgive him, just yet. Forgiveness… what a laughable thing for a *demon* to consider. He pulled his teeth from Alastor’s neck, staring him hard in the face as tears of his own ran down his cheeks. That horrid smile of Alastor’s, twisted with intense sadness…

“Ssstop *sssmiling*, you imbecile.”

He brings his hands up, grabbing at Alastor’s face with both of them, and *forcing* the corners of that mad grin down, to the best of his ability, even if his talons pinched that face. Once he was done with that, he’d return the hug, tightly, his tail slowly wrapping up the other as the most grounding thing he could think of. Emotional intimacy was not his strong suit, but Valera had taught him some things, too.

“… JUSSST… BREATHE… AT THE SAME TIME AS ME. FOLLOW *MY* LEAD.”

Alastor

He can't meet Sir Pentious's gaze; he squeezes his eyes shut automatically. And immediately opens them again when Sir Pentious touches his face. He's distantly surprised to be told he *is* still smiling. He can't feel it at all. The crumbling remains of his smile collapse effortlessly under Sir Pentious's hands and he bites his lower lip, the corners of his mouth twitching like he doesn't know what to do with them when they aren't twisted up.

Why is he being *held*? He doesn't deserve this. But he leans into it, eyes shutting again, face pressed to Sir Pentious's shoulder, arms wrapped tight around his back. He can feel Sir Pentious's chest rising and falling with each breath—it's the most reassuring feeling, the most reassuring sound in the world. He can breathe. He can do that.

His shuddering reduces, his sobs slowly stop. He isn't sure if he's still crying or if it's just the old tears clinging to his face. But he's breathing. And he's—god, how did this happen?—he's exactly where he's wanted to be for the last fifty-four years.

He croaks, "If you're planning to exterminate me, please make it now." Cue the world's tinniest laugh track.

Sir Pentious

Satan himself, it actually worked. He managed to… calm Alastor down. He’d done exactly what Valera had done for him before, and… well, he sold himself short, now didn’t he? He’d calmed down Valera before, too. Maybe he didn’t destroy everything he touched. Maybe… he was good at maintaining his relationships, after all. Why, these two thought he was good enough to willingly be around, so… maybe he could give himself a chance, too.

The love aspect that was added on… Pentious still wasn’t sure what to do with that. Could he handle knowing that Alastor loved him? That every action between the two of them had this tension? Or would it only have tension if he allowed it to? Sir Pentious bumped his forehead to Alastor’s, a little rougher than usual to at least show he was irritated…

“YOU ARE OFF THE AIR. GIVE YOURSSSELF A BREAK.”

He adjusts the deerman’s monocle, and straightens up his suit, before he reaches into his own suit jacket and pulls out a handkerchief. Penny moves to undo the neck portion of Alastor’s suit, so that he could place the handkerchief inside and on his shoulder–but he stops himself, instead just handing him the cloth.

“…I AM ANGRY WITH YOU. I AM FRUSSSTRATED AND I DO NOT KNOW WHEN I WILL FEEL ABLE TO BE COMFORTABLE WITH YOU AGAIN. BUT I WILL WANT THISSSS HANDKERCHIEF BACK, DO YOU UNDERSSSTAND? SSSSO. DO NOT RUN AWAY FROM ME, ALASSSTOR. I WILL NEVER TALK TO YOU AGAIN IF YOU EVEN *THINK* ABOUT RUNNING AWAY FROM ME.”

His own voice was hoarse, despite how loud it was, and he was clearly tired from crying and shouting. Sir Pentious looked thoroughly tired, as if he had been drinking and yet he’d had not a drop. Emotionally drained, and all out of spoons.

Alastor

Alastor is more than capable of tidying himself up, and under any other circumstances he *would,* irritably pushing off whoever dared try to fuss over him—but it's such a shock that *Sir Pentious* is doing it, and it's so *nice*, he just stands there in stunned silence, letting him.

He numbly takes the handkerchief, and for a moment stares blankly at it before figuring out what it's for. He quickly undoes his bow tie—his fingers twitch when he remembers whose it is—and then hastily undoes his collar and slides the handkerchief under.

"I can send it back this evening after I launder it." His voice is filtered through a radio again—Sir Pentious is wrong, he's *always* on air—with the crackles and pops like an old phonogram record complimenting the hoarseness of his own voice. He looks down to avoid meeting Sir Pentious's gaze, realizes that doesn't solve the problem, and glances to the side. "If you're trying to use the handkerchief to say that you see this ending some way other than never wanting to speak to me again... then be more direct."

A few members of the invisible studio audience weakly chuckle. Alastor waves them off with his free hand, muttering, "Shut *up,* not the time," then winces as the gesture makes his shoulder sting.

Sir Pentious

Ah, he was called out. It gets a frustrated look out of him, but… you know. That’s exactly the kind of thing he’d have said to Alastor, before. Sir Pentious folds his arms, flinching a little as the pain from having scratched at himself reminds him that it is still present.

“… I DON’T WANT YOU TO RUN AWAY FROM ME, BECAUSE I WANT TO SSSEE YOU AGAIN, ON MY TERMSSS. BUT IF I SSEE YOU TOO SSOON… I MIGHT HATE YOU FOREVER.”

A deep inhale, and slow exhale. Sir Pentious slowly unravels his tail from around the other demon, though it remains behind him in case he cannot stand on his own, “… I REQUIRE TIME TO PROCESS THISS, ALASSSTOR. PERHAPSS YOU ARE RIGHT, THAT I SHOULD NEVER WANT ANYTHING TO DO WITH YOU EVER AGAIN. BY ALL ACCOUNTSS, I OUGHT TO AGREE WITH THAT AND NEVER SSSPEAK TO YOU AGAIN!”

His tail lashes with some irritability, and now it’s his turn to avoid any kind of eye contact. “… But. I sstill want to. I do not want you to leave. I have… *fun* when you are around. The kind of fun that I never had before… Because. I do not have friends. There are very few people who would want to be around me.” Blast it he was rambling on again. He covers his face with a hand, grimacing as all he can taste on his tongue is Alastor’s blood. It made him dizzy with misery. “I will be on Okkylk. When I am ready to take back the handkerchief, I will pick it up in *person.*”

Alastor

He listens to the half-threats as stoically as he can with his smile missing—he feels naked and raw and exposed—and he fears that with his face twitching after every sentence, it's not nearly as stoic as he'd like to think.

His heart nearly leaps into his throat when Sir Pentious says he wants Alastor to stay—then plummets back down. It's not because it's Alastor's friendship, specifically, that he values; it's because he needs anyone's friendship, and Alastor's the one offering it. Piss-poor and putrid though it is. He already knew that, didn't he? Hadn't he said to Valera that Sir Pentious doesn't like Alastor—he just likes that Alastor likes him? He wishes he could bring anything more to the table than this desperate last resort friendship—but he shot any chances of that in the head decades ago.

He nods wearily. "You know where to find me. You won't hear a peep out of me until you come calling, barring emergencies—overheard assassination plots or the like."

Sir Pentious

How they hated themselves. If he'd known that Alastor had come to that conclusion, well... maybe he'd have said something else. But as it stood, right now, Sir Pentious was beyond exhausted. He wanted nothing more than to wrap himself up in his fiancee, to breathe her in and feel some form of comfort after all of *this*...

It wasn't fair to think of it that way, he knew that Alastor was suffering, but what could he do? His cup was empty, and he could not pour from it. His eyes looked back up to see that pitiful expression, and... he gestured with his index talon--a smiley face. "... YOU CAN SSMILE AGAIN, ALASSTOR. YOU'RE NOT DRESSED WITHOUT IT." Ha...ha. Ha. He immediately looks like he regrets the sentence before he turns, and begins to slither back through the piping.

How he hated himself, but they loved him.

Alastor

He attempts a smile. He fails. He isn't surprised. He almost responds "*No, I can't,*" but Sir Pentious is dealing with enough of Alastor's personal problems. He doesn't need another.

He watches Sir Pentious go; pulls the bow tie out from around his collar, drops it on the workbench beside the travel mug; and then melts into the shadows.

#hissandvinegar #chat log

25 notes · View notes