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#nonbinary oc
perotovar · 6 months
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INTO THE BEAT OF THE NIGHT — masterlist (18+ minors dni) — ONGOING
summary: frankie morales thought he had himself figured out by now. he liked both men and women, had dated both in the past. but when someone that challenges what he thinks that means comes into his life, in an unlikely place, he truly learns who he is, and more importantly, who he loves.
series warnings: discussions of sexuality/gender, limited knowledge of the military (i make gifs and write fic now, i'm not a miracle worker), discussions of drug addiction/recovery, an abundance of goth references/stereotypes (because that's fun), frankie/will/benny/santiago being uneducated and thus not knowing/saying the wrong things sometimes but being supportive, unprotected piv sex (wrap it up!), handjobs, fingering, more to be added as it happens.
oc/love interest is non-binary and afab. they like penetrative sex and their genitals are referred to as a pussy. they're described as very androgynous. if you are non-binary, you do not owe anyone androgyny to be non-binary. this character is a work of fiction and does not speak for/represent all non-binary people. a lot of this character's experiences/opinions are very similar to my own.
if you have any questions/concerns, i encourage you to reach out to me directly or conduct your own research on the matter. thank you.
chapter i — transmission chapter ii — fear of the dark chapter iii — self control (18+) chapter iv — thin flesh (18+) chapter v — human fly chapter vi — precious (18+) interlude — shake (18+) chapter vii — in my side (feb 22 ✨) chapter viii — come feel (18+) chapter ix — dreams chapter x — fade to grey
incredible art of river and frankie commissioned by the talented @lights-on-the-ridge
there are three separate playlists for this fic. one for the fic itself, mostly for vibes/plot points. one for river, full of music they listen to. and one for frankie, full of music he listens to. take your pick at whichever one you wanna vibe to!
there's also an official pinterest board for all your vibe and aesthetic needs~
thank you so much for taking a chance on my first real fic! ♥
for notifications, follow @oakslibrary
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itzsassha · 1 month
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OC: Roh [they/them]
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anoki · 3 months
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Ilya will do a whole lot to win Dror Ragzlin's trust, but how far will the drow go? :}c
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magpie-murder · 6 months
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gay men but they’re both only sort of men and also get mistaken for girls constantly
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i post all my oc stuff on @vampyr-bats now btw
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wanderingaldecaldo · 1 month
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Lynx Lyons
Lynx (they/them) debuted in my story "Cut Your Hair", a short bit of fluff that's part of Into My Arms, the series based on Val and Mitch. Lynx is one of the first people to befriend Val after she joins the Aldecaldos, but as a scout they're not always around. While they love the family and don't mind staying at camp on occasion, Lynx much prefers being on their own. Cruising the highway and listening to the radio at full blast is where they love to be.
I'd had an idea of what Lynx looked like for a long time, but it wasn't until I played with the tunnel earrings mod that everything finally came together. I'll probably give them some cyberware but I haven't decided what yet. They're also my first time using the heterochromia mod, which gave me the idea for that eye being a replacement from the accident that caused their scar. What was the accident? No clue. We'll find out later, I suppose! 😅
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aceghosts · 8 days
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Rooney Shepard (They/Them)/Yorinobu Arasaka Screenshots (6/X)
Death of Peace of Mind Pose Pack by @elfjpeg
MOD LIST
Taglist (Like this post to opt in/out for edits): @bbrocklesnar, @sergeiravenov, @marivenah, @alexxmason, @strangefable, @carlosoliveiraa, @nightbloodbix, @captastra, @direwombat, @voidika, @amalkavian, @cloudofbutterflies92, @socially-awkward-skeleton, @inafieldofdaisies, @cassietrn, @katsigian, @onehornedbeast, @thedeadthree, @confidentandgood, @clicheantagonist
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what-if-i-just-did · 10 months
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Sometimes Less Is More (HFY Edition)
War is never pleasant. We usually try to avoid it- that doesn't always pan out. The Galactic Council was experiencing a civil war, the first war in about two hundred Earth/Terra years. I state this specifically, because the humans, native species to Earth/Terra, had been with the Galactic Council for fifty-three of their years. During this time, they have continually suprised all other species, proving they were strong, cabable thinkers, yet also absolute idiots at times.
Despite this, we were not expecting much of them; they're rather small, very squishy and thus easily woundable, they didn't have poisons, toxins or venoms, they didn't have sharp claws or projectiles, they couldn't breathe underwater, in fact, asides from their 'adrenaline' feature, they were pretty useless. They didn't even have weapon-laser technology, psychic detonators or sense-attacks.
Humans were good climbers, good swimmers, good at communicating via thousands of means, good at de-coding if you had the right one, and great at desicion-making if you found a rational one. So these were the positions given to the humans for this war; look-outs, weapon-planters and defusers, medics, comminication officers, trainers, de-coders, and some command positions. They were good, important functions, and we thought they'd be greatful- humans have quite the affinity for war. And it's not that they disobeyed orders, not really- but there were complaints. The look-outs, the medics, communication officers and weapon-planters, those closest to the battlefield, doing work without which the soldiers surely wouldn't survive, felt useless. This was their exect wording, in most cases. They felt useless. They wanted to DO things.
After one too many complaint and comment from a human in a low command position, they were sent to my outpost. Their name was Officer Loki Freimuth, they weren't too strong-looking and they were a little too overactive, but they said they knew what they were doing.
I wasn't quite sure how to handle this. Humans were still slightly behind in technology in galactic scale, and generally it was forbidden to share technology with species more than 0.2 kreish behind on the haufnishx scale, but this was war, and the human wasn't likely to be usefull without our weapons.
I shared my ponderings with Officer Freimuth, and to my suprise, they smirked. "It's okay, don't break your laws. I've got my own weapons, sir." I frowned, and I would have told them that their species' weapons could not possibly measure up to those that would be used on the field. Unfortunatly, I was whisked away to a strategy meeting, unable to tell the new human this, and I did not think of it much, further. If only I had, I might have saved all of us what happened the day after.
That evening, I didn't have any guarding duty. We, being myself and the off-duty people in my command, were huddled around a Dark Heater (a device that warms a space without also producing light, designed to function outside). Amung us were four Kgrifu, two Heyna, one Xylithhy, four Rai-cha', one Rai-cha' and Kgrifu hybrid and three humans; Officer Freimuth, Officer Zuko and Runner Anthos. We kept quiet, mostly, but the humans didn't need sound to communicate; they spoke, rapidly and with great amusion, in sign language. The concept facinated me so much I never bothered to wonder what they were saying.
The day after, we were ambushed. Our guards were killed, and our camp was infiltrated. They 'rescued' our pow's, and they burnt half the camp down. Out of the twenty-three people under my command, six were Ayiyaiscsh (a water-based species that used masks to be able to breathe air, who would definetly not survive a fire) and five and a half were Kgrifu (a species made of a dellicate jello-like substance that could absorb practically anything, but could and would dry out and they'd die). I had no lonely hope in Hell to survive with that many of my people gone, and neither did the rest of them. Then...
Some of us were choking on the smoke, others were getting intensely dry, I think the arsonists (four female Hiriushu, who have biological metal plates to cover most of their bodies and are fairly fire resistant) used small psycic detonators (the smaller ones are worse), everything was in chaos, and it was, well, war.
Then a sound. It was louder than anything I had heard before, louder than sense-attacks. I heard a distinctly human grunt, and turned, expecting to see one of my humans dead. Instead, I was met with the sight of Officer Freimuth throwing small-ish handheld devices that I couldn't recognise to Officer Zuko and Runner Anthos, whose eyes were wide. Officer Zuko was erratic when she asked, "Where did you get these? These are prime twenty-first century! Nine mill ZEV's, reduced muzzle flip, extended rails and custom grip, these must have cost a fortune!" "I know a gal, now shut up and shoot" "right"
After this small (and honestly, confusing) interaction, they continued 'shooting' at the Hiriushu, and I found out what the noise had been; it was the shooting. It was louder than anything else, overpowering my senses to the extreme. And the smell... with the heat I only then noticed the smell. I overturned my C-rations of last night, partly consumed. It only took the humans a few shots to figure out where to shoot; within twenty minutes they'd re-captured the pows, plus an added three, doused the fire and were preforming medical aid.
The rest of us... would have been in shock, were it not for our training against that. No reason to lose good soldiers to the reality of war while we still need to fight it. But we did not have training for this.
I'm sorry. I'm sorry for what I did next, I honestly am- but I couldn't get myself to do anything else.
That night, all but the humans and the pow deserted.
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iron-sparrow · 6 months
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Slow and sudden miracles View of other worlds from our window sills With the weight of eternity at the speed of light This is a life ♫
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rorywritesjunk · 3 months
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Be gentle with yourself as you uncover Your best kept secrets yet to be discovered
Buggy meets an infamous pirate who dabbles in magic that everyone seems to be after, but they only have eyes for Buggy. Why is he so special? Rating: PGish. Warning: None. Buggy is unhappy and doesn't want strangers touching him without asking first. A/N: My "Howl's Moving Castle" fic based off the movie because I never read the book. It will have different moments than the movie just to omit some things. This story uses "You" but I couldn't not give the character a name and for some reason "Shore" is what I thought of. And Shore is referred to as they/them, nonbinary, and breaks hearts wherever they go. Buggy is Sophie in this fic, is 22, and not always in a good mood.
Title comes from "Better In The Morning" by Birdtalker.
TAGLIST: @fanaticsnail
Chapter 1 + Chapter 2 + Chapter 3 + Chapter 4
Chapter I
The final performance of the evening finished. The final bows given as the lights faded and the music played the performers out. Buggy stood to the side and out of the spotlights, arms crossed with a scowl as he watched his companions soak up the attention: the attention he deserved for all that he did for them but he was never thanked. Sewing costumes, fixing props, the makeup, cleaning up before, during, and after each performance. And every night Buggy was there, ready to do what was needed to ensure the circus lived on. 
It was frustrating. He had been a promising performer, up and coming, his former ring master said so, but when he died and another took over, Buggy’s chances were destroyed. He had to stay at the bottom of the pile, taking care of everyone and everything. It was hard, he watched as a child how the circus was built up, but now it lacked the flash, the passion, the creativity he once knew, and no one would listen to him. Years of being pushed aside took its toll on Buggy. He stopped offering suggestions, only staying around to try and maintain the image of the circus he once knew.
He spent hours cleaning, ignoring the chattering voices of the performers. Their latest bit of gossip was of a notorious pirate, one who stole the hearts of beautiful men and women at every town they went to. He heard a jab made at his expense, Buggy’s lucky, he has nothing to worry about! followed by laughter. They always said things like that, figuring he didn’t hear them. Their voices often carried through the tent.
Assholes, all of them.
He was done hours later and the last one to leave. His home was the tent, wherever it went, but some nights he needed to get away. A walk around the town would be nice. The circus was never around in a town for too long, a few weeks at most, before packing up and leaving to the next one. He could always stay behind, Buggy knew that; he was young enough to start a new career. At just 22 he had his whole life ahead of him, but his heart was in the tent. He couldn’t leave it, not ever.
He grabbed his jacket and pulled it on before heading off the grounds and into the night. The town had seemed quiet so far, a nice change from some of the rowdier places they had been. 
It was nice to take some time to think without the noise of the crowds, of the performers, just to be by himself without anyone else around. 
Except he walked past a Marine after ducking down an alleyway, one who was much bigger than Buggy, who stopped in front of him and blocked his path with a drunken grin. He leaned forward, using the corner of the building for balance as he looked Buggy up and down. Buggy could smell the alcohol on his breath and grimaced.
“Is the circus in town?” The Marine laughed. “Can you do any tricks, jester?”
Buggy hesitated for a moment. If he fought back, he’d be thrown in jail and no one would bail him out, so it wasn’t worth it. Instead, he stepped around him, choosing to ignore him, but there was another one waiting.
“Wow, you found a funny lookin’ clown!” The other Marine chuckled as he reached up to touch Buggy’s hair. “This a wig?”
“You forgot to take your nose off!” The first Marine added with a laugh. Buggy took a step back, the urge to fight growing though the little voice inside him said don’t, not worth it, but it was so hard to not give in. He wanted so badly to fight back but what would be the use? The two started to crowd him, taking up his space, and before Buggy could scream at them to back off, a hand was on his shoulder. It wasn’t one of the Marines, the touch was too warm, too gentle, and when he turned to see the visitor, his voice was caught in his throat.
The first thing he noticed was your hair, white as snow, cropped above your shoulders with barrettes keeping your hair out of your face. Hazel eyes shining bright in the darkness and for a moment Buggy thought maybe he saw the stars reflected in them. You were shorter than Buggy by a few inches, he had to look down at you to see your face.  You tugged him close to you, keeping your hand on his shoulder as you smiled at the two drunks. “Sorry I’m late! We need to get going if we want to make our dinner reservation.”
“Wait-”
The two Marines tried to step in to stop but with a flick of your wrist they both went still before turning and marching in the direction Buggy came from. He stared in shock as they marched, invisible strings controlling their actions. You gave his shoulder a squeeze, catching his attention. He turned to look at you, meeting your eyes for just a moment before he looked away.
“Let me drop you off at home. I want to make sure you’re safe.” You said with a smile. “Can I hold your hand?”
“Can you- what? Why?!” He demanded, unconsciously reaching for your hand. You grasped it in yours, the warmth was still there and he was glad it was dark so you didn't see his red cheeks. You pulled him closer, glancing behind him before grinning.
“I'm being followed. This will be faster.” You said as you took his other hand in yours. “I hope you're not afraid of heights.”
“Afraid of heights?” He repeated, confused.
Before Buggy could register what you said, you held both of his hands and jumped up, bringing him along. There was a noise below, a crash of shadows and men with swords and axes, all matter of weapons, attacking where you both just were. He was in the air. Not quite flying, but you started moving your legs, strolling along as though normal. His legs wouldn't move, he had them tucked up against his body, suddenly terrified that if he even thought of relaxing he'd fall to the darkness below.
“I got you, don't worry.” You assured him kindly, giving his hand a squeeze. “Relax and walk. You're safe with me.”
“I'm not scared!” Buggy snapped at you as he forced his legs to start moving, stretching them out below and trying to make them walk. You chuckled, leading him in the direction of the red and white striped circus tent.
“I didn't say you were.” 
He glared at you, huffing in annoyance as the two of you gradually drifted downwards to the ground. The lights around the tent were still off, no one else was awake. He wasn't gone that long, but between walking, the Marines, and then you helping him made him drop to his knees in exhaustion once you touched the ground. He felt like he ran a marathon with how wobbly he felt. Was it just adrenaline? He wasn't scared. Buggy didn't get scared. But maybe just keeping up with you in the air, trying to make sure neither of you fell to the ground, tired him out faster than he expected.
Your hand was on his shoulder once again, giving a gentle squeeze. He looked up at you, scowling once more. Why were you sticking around? Were you expecting payment? He didn't ask for help, he would have been fine without you. 
“Go get some rest.” You said as you pulled your hand away, the warmth gone from Buggy's shoulder now, already something he was missing. He wanted to at least ask your name, just so he knew if you were coming later to demand any kind of payment or favors later then he could be sure he was ‘off site'. 
Buggy finally got to his feet and you were gone, walking off into the night, someone he wouldn't see again. The kindness you showed him in that moment stuck with him as he headed into the tent. All you did was help him, ask to touch him, which was more than anyone else in his life had done. The only other person to treat him like that was the former ringmaster, dead now six years and Buggy hadn't had someone smile kindly to him since then. Until you, that is.
The tent was quiet, the lights off, save for one lantern lit in the middle of the ring. He knew he blew them all out before leaving, but maybe one didn't stay out. Shaking his head, he approached the middle and picked the lantern up, opening the little glass door as he readied to blow it out.
“So, who's your friend?” A voice asked, low with a hint of amusement. Buggy jumped, nearly dropping the lantern as his head turned to see who spoke. At the entrance of the ring was a woman, around his age maybe, who was leaning on a mace with a grin on her face. 
“Circus is closed.” Buggy told her, straightening up and trying to sound authoritative despite his voice wavering. “First show tomorrow starts at four. You can come back then.”
She laughed as she lifted her weapon up, resting it against her shoulder as she approached Buggy. When she got close enough, her hand extended out towards his face, he took a step back. He didn't know who this was, why she was in the tent, but he didn't like it one bit. 
“The circus is-is closed, you need to leave.” He insisted. She just smiled at him and took another step forward, palm open and against his cheek suddenly. Buggy thought he was dunked in ice water, the feeling of her hand against his face was nothing like the hand on his shoulder minutes ago. There was no warmth, no gentle touch, and he felt himself start to panic. 
“You're telling me to leave?” She asked with a smile. “Sweetie, don't you know who I am?”
“No, and I don't care!” Buggy snapped as he jerked away from her. “You need to take your weapon and leave now!”
It wasn't working. She just shook her head and patted him on the cheek. “That's no way to speak to Alvida, the Witch of the Waste, sweetie.”
Witch of the What?
“Lady, I don't know who you are, so take your weapon and get out! You're not welcome!” Buggy told her. “Get the hell out, you nobody!”
“Nobody?” The faux friendliness vanished, she was no longer smiling. She let the handle of the mace slide through her hand, the heavy head of the weapon striking the ground with a thud, causing Buggy to jump. Her free hand went into the pocket of her jacket. “Oh, sweetie, that wasn’t very nice.” 
Before Buggy could respond, she pulled her hand out of her pocket, fist clenched tightly until she held it up to her mouth, relaxing her hand before blowing. Sparkly pink dust hit Buggy in the face and he coughed, waving his hand in front of his face as he tried to waft it away. What just happened? He managed to open his eyes, squinting through the sparkles, as Alvida smirked at him.
“Good luck telling anyone what happened to you, sweetie.” She said as she lifted her weapon back up. “No one will know.” Resting it against her shoulder, she turned to head out of the ring. “Oh, and tell that pirate Shore that I’m looking for them.”
“Sho-Shore?” Buggy coughed. “Who the hell is that?”
“You know who it is.”
She left with that, leaving Buggy alone. Shaking his head, he collected the lantern and headed to his room. Whatever was in those sparkles made him feel tired, his body ached a little and he couldn’t help but hunch a bit. Maybe it was that… other person, maybe they did something too. Coughing, Buggy rubbed his arm before heading to his room. Maybe a good night’s sleep will help him forget what happened tonight.
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rottingfern · 5 months
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sweetened breath, tongue so mean || a Bad Omens fanfic
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Pairing: Noah x nonbinary OC
Summary: They're screaming at each other. They're throwing hands. They're half a second away from a violent hatefuck. And at the end of the day, they'll still call each other friends.
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: ANGST, toxic relationship, language, heavy consumption of alcohol, degradation kink if you squint, brief discussion of body image, OC gets deadnamed, depiction of a panic attack, choking, cunnilingus, penetration, hair pulling, slightly dubious consent, spitting.
A/N: Wow do I love angst. But be warned going into this: THESE BITCHES IS TOXIC. Noah is not a very nice person in this, and neither is OC. This fic does not depict a healthy relationship. This is a work of fiction depicting a fictionalized version of Noah and does not represent him in real life.
A MASSIVE THANK YOU TO @signs-of-ill-portent AND @the-way-of-words FOR BETA-ING THIS FIC AND SCREAMING ABOUT IT WITH ME, for getting on my characters' levels with me and for egging me on to delve as deep and dark as I needed for this fic, for not allowing me to mince words and for listening to me catastrophize about the story beats as I figured out how to convey all the nuance this fic needed. Y'all really did the most when you didn't have to, and I AM EXTREMELY GRATEFUL TO YOU FOR THAT! My heart eyes are laser focused on you.
Brainrot Club: @meekahy @foliosriot @badhedonist Theme song is Hatef--k by The Bravery. I actually made a whole playlist! Click here to listen. Masterlist here.
Title taken from Angel of Small Death and the Codeine Scene by Hozier; banner made by me; dividers by @saradika
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Lee’s just about done with this show (though it hasn’t even begun) when their shoulders hit the poorly finished wall of the back hallway of the venue. 
His lips are searing, supple and wet and clingy as they suck to their own. They clench their teeth shut at the insistent push of his tongue past their lips, demanding entry into their mouth. Maybe this whole moment - the hands on their shoulders, the thigh between their knees, pinned between drywall and a solid mass of body heat and want - would be hot, desirable even, had it all not belonged to the one shithead they’d been hoping to avoid tonight. 
Of course, Lee would have more luck surviving a plane crash into the ocean than avoiding a shithead when said shithead is Noah Sebastian Davis. This whole situation is vomit-inducing. Embarrassing, honestly. They push on his chest, hard, like their life depends on it. 
“God, knew you’d want it,” Noah pants when Lee finally manages to separate his suction cup of a mouth from theirs, his shit-eating grin planted firmly like he’d done something - whether he meant to be sexy or purposely disgusting, they’re not sure - and it doesn’t help he hasn’t learned to be less cryptic since they’d seen him last. “What, no ‘hello’, no ‘how are you’?” Lee shoots back. They’d backpedaled out that green room as soon as the members of their entourage were occupied by conversation, though they really should’ve expected this. Noah following them down dimly lit hallways with dishonorable purpose is par for the course. “Didn’t think I’d need one. Once a slut, always a slut.” His chuckle is like shattering ice, each shard aimed at Lee. “Isn’t that right, Leanne?” 
Noah hasn’t changed in the ten years since they’d met, and Lee isn’t about to let the persistent press of his thick, hard cock against their stomach through layers of denim and terry cloth (or the way an engine downstairs springs to life when they feel it) change their opinion of him: that he’s a shithead through and through, cocky in the worst kind of way, hell-sent the day he was born when the universe decided not only to make him a bigheaded fool but also to let him win the genetic lottery in one fell swoop. 
Doesn’t stop the clench of their cunt that they struggle to suppress. Doesn’t prevent the mental scolding they’re forced to give themself: the chaos monster that is Noah Davis’s entire being isn’t worth dealing with for even a hookup. It’s pathetic, tacky even. 
Something primal, old and hungry flashes in the glassy gel of Noah’s eyes when he forces Lee’s gaze to his, fingers hooked firmly round their jaw; something uncontrollably soft in the way his jaw trembles to mirror Lee’s own when he grazes their hip with his free hand, when he presses his thumb firmly to their clit through the denim of their shorts. 
There are a million things Lee could’ve picked from the Rolodex of elaborate insults soaked in a decade of contentious acquaintanceship they’ve stored specifically to knock Noah off his self-appointed pedestal, if only the butterflies insistently bubbling below their gut would just shut the fuck up for a single second. Could’ve, had Noah’s propensity to always control every situation so it goes his way not also applied to their own bodily function, apparently. Instead, they lower their chin, defiantly forcing his grip on their throat to tighten. 
Dangerous mistake. Stupid fucking mistake, because their hips buck forward along his thigh at the pressure, just an inch, and Noah’s smile widens dangerously, and oh. Oh no. They know this look, and the words that are bound to slip from his mouth in three, two -
Like a miracle from God or whatever the fuck other omnipotent being lives in the sky, a shout of their name echoes through the corridors. Noah’s hands find Lee’s shoulders again, head dipping once more as their own hands push desperately against his chest in a mad scramble for dominance and escape. They will not be caught - will not be seen - kissing Noah fucking Davis in front of their coworkers. No fucking way. Gag. Although… 
It does feel nice to be wanted, and it’s been so, so long since they’ve allowed themself this - no strings, mindless, just a quick way to get theirs. How long has it been? Since before they got sick, since before they put on the weight, surely. And Noah throws them around so effortlessly, they didn’t even feel that hot sting of insecurity as his hands ran down their body just minutes ago. And it’s not like they aren’t attracted to him, as long as he doesn’t speak. He’s always been hot - even Lee’s freshly-eighteen mind had been excited by the idea of snapping his scrawny little bones with their bare hands back then. And he’s only gotten hotter, with that fucking haircut and the way his once-concave pecs now ripple with muscle under their palms. 
So, what’s the holdup? It’s not like the two of them haven’t done this before. It would be so easy: they give Noah what he wants, they get theirs, then they never have to see each other again (at least not for another three years or four years, likely). Why shouldn’t they just let him kiss them again?
“Lee!” comes another shout, snapping Lee from their reverie. It’s closer, the sound of footsteps to match echoing just around the corner now. 
Their wandering mind had loosened their push on Noah’s chest to a caress, but now they use his momentary distraction to force him from them with all their might once again, schooling their stance into a casual side-lean against the wall just seconds before their friends round the corner. 
“There you are,” Mike sighs. “C’mon, bitch, we don’t wanna miss the openers!” As Lee follows Mike and Noor out to the floor, they toss a playful smirk over their shoulder, but Noah’s already replaced his mask of impassiveness, arms crossed sternly with clenched fists. His loss.
Noor’s laserlike gaze scans Lee as they collect their drinks from the bar. “Have a sweet reunion?” she asks.  
Lee huffs. They get enough of this shit from her at home, at work, basically everywhere. They love Noor, truly, but she’s impossible to fool and Lee really doesn’t need her picking around their brain when they themself don’t have a full understanding of what’s brewing in there.
“Sweet as fucking vinegar,” they instead reply, eyes rolling demonstratively. Noor’s lips purse in suspicion, so they turn away before she can do that fucking clairvoyant inspection of details thing she does, leading them back through the crowd to their coworkers. 
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It’s not that Lee is stupid enough to truly believe they’d manage to avoid Noah at a Bad Omens show - rather that they’d have elected to straight up Not Attend were the outing not made mandatory by their boss. 
Mercury Hall is the largest venue in Burlington - a mid-size club with two balconies, standing thirty years with a stellar reputation to boot - but behind the scenes, despite a revolving door of staff, Mercury regularly employs a group of college kids who collectively have the common sense of a single person. Not that it’s surprising, really, considering Burlington houses two universities and both offer a “music business” major. Lee thinks Mercury should be hiring communications majors instead - maybe that’d fix their massive communication problem. 
Ouroboros - Lee’s place of gainful employment - is a smaller club on the other side of Downtown, and has absolutely no affiliation with Mercury… except that the owners of the two clubs go way back, oldheads who’ve been buddies since school and all that, and Lee’s boss regularly makes any problems down at Mercury his problem. 
Or, the problem of his long-suffering staff, to be precise. 
Just like last week, for example, when Lee was just trying to sort out next month’s scheduling while jamming to some ABBA, and was interrupted by their boss Roy roping them into solving the issue with Mercury’s scheduling instead, on only a week’s notice.
Really, the solution was a no brainer. One band was not local and on a tightly-scheduled tour; the other - from just three hours south in Boston, were playing just a one-off gig. Ask the Boston guys to move to the following night - they’d get a Friday spot anyway, way better deal. Enlist Mike and Noor to assist with rescheduling the hired crew to Friday. It helped immensely that the Boston guys only recently graduated to playing Mercury, that Lee knew them from their years of traveling up to play Ouroboros. The other band was Bad Omens. So, really, Noah should be thanking Lee.
Thanks only came in the form of Hank, Mercury’s owner, interrupting their pre-show planning meeting two days ago to inform Ouroboros staff they’d been guest-listed for the Bad Omens gig. Lee thought better thanks would’ve come in the form of Hank hiring staff capable of doing their jobs, and stands by that opinion. 
Excited chatter had erupted the minute Hank shut the door behind him - it’s a rare occasion that a decent metalcore act rolls through Burlington - but Lee could only focus on the cold pit that opened in their stomach at the thought of seeing Noah again. Later that night, they’d get disastrously wine-drunk with Noor on their ratty porch couch and lament on the absolute asshole that was Noah Sebastian Davis, but in that moment they only sat blank, nodding along obediently, as Roy instructed them to attend Hank’s “extremely generous offering”.
The issue isn’t going to the Bad Omens gig, because if there’s one positive thing they can say about Noah it’s that he really hit his stride with this project and Lee respects the grind. Nor is it the idea of being in the same room as him; it’s not like they haven’t been around him plenty and willingly over the past decade between touring through RVA with their college band, and in the multiple shared friend groups they’d amassed over the years. 
Noah’s annoying as all hell: the kind of person who says and does whatever, whenever the hell he wants, who doesn’t know when to shut the fuck up, who will unapologetically push forward if it pleases him. And, apparently and unfortunately for Lee, his biggest pleasure is making them absolutely fucking miserable whenever they’re in proximity of one another. And especially unfortunately, he knows exactly how to push Lee’s buttons, which ones to push, and how to drive them to absolute breaking point. 
And, his greatest pleasure is knowing Lee will just hatefuck him when they get too fed up. Lee would bet their life savings (spoiler: not much) that he was one of those kids who pulled all the girls’ pigtails on the playground. 
Going into the evening, Lee’s biggest issue was just that: that they’d snap at him in front of their coworkers, that Roy or Hank would clock the familiarity and fire them or something, that they’d get overwhelmed and just fucking cry. Dealing with Noah’s antics was even a knife’s edge in the past, in casual environments where their friends would laugh it off as “Noah and Leanne bullshit”, when they’d had security in their identity and image. 
In the now times however, with their confidence dropped to near-zero, with meds that make them burst to tears at any strong enough emotion, with a fragile half-decades acceptance of their queer identity (and Noah’s inability to fucking catch on and stop misgendering them), Lee wasn’t certain they’d be able to handle the pressure of the battle of wills Noah insisted on having each time they met. 
Now, as the giant party of the Ouroboros staff, the touring party, and those of the Mercury staff who are legal to drink head to the Archives for after-hours drinks, Lee’s issue is that they’re actually enjoying themself because Resident Shithead Noah Sebastian Davis is being actually fucking pleasant. And they’re really not sure how to deal with that. It’s new territory. A no-person’s land, if you will. 
He’d slowed down to where Lee trailed behind the rest of the group, likely sick of tripping over Church Street’s uneven cobblestones trying to keep up with Joakim’s (they refuse to call him Jolly. What the fuck kind of grown man calls himself Jolly?) speed racer pace. “Hey,” he says quietly. 
Lee releases a long-suffering sigh. “Hi, Noah.”
They walk silently beside each other for a few minutes. From the corner of their eye as they tilt their head back to admire this year’s lighted arches, Lee sees Noah fidget uncomfortably. They’re seconds from spitting out an out with it, already when he finally asks, “So, archaeology was a bust, huh?”
Here we fucking go. They’ve decided their Rolodex of insults is useless and resort to just tossing him a nasty look, a roll of the eyes, and to speed up to walk with Mike, Noor and Folio when he hurriedly follows up with, “Only you seemed so excited about your degree.” He sports an unfamiliar expression Lee has never seen him wear (is it sheepishness? abashedness?), head dipped low. “Y’know. Back then.”
Lee’s brain is short circuiting. That’s the only explanation for the wall of static and dial-up tones smashcut with thirty different trains of thought that occupies it and allows them to respond only with a blank look and a dumb-sounding “oh” because, did Noah actually just ask them about their life????? 
Since when did he give a flying fuck about anything but making their night hell? All Noah Sebastian Davis cares about is his boys, his music, and getting his. But, it makes sense, right, since the last time they saw each other was at a holiday party and barely spoke at all - maybe he is just curious. He’s being pleasant, but to what end? When does the other shoe drop?
Or, a small part of their brain whispers, maybe he’s finally grown up. He does look awfully sincere, chocolate eyes wide with concern. “Just didn’t work out,” Lee shrugs, electing to open up. “For a lot of reasons. Mostly because, I guess I didn’t love it enough to work up to the fun stuff once I started getting hired.” A bitter, self-deprecating chuckle escapes their throat way too loudly for comfort. 
The group has reached the Archives now, and Lee sends a short nod in response to Noor’s concerned glance as she hesitates behind Mike at the bar door. They light a cigarette and lean against the wall, shuffling their foot along the pavement awkwardly. Lee tosses their gaze back up when Noah’s shoes stop before them. He’s open, inquisitive, and they can’t help but relax into it, dumping the rest out: “It’s a lot of travel. And my aunt was sick…”
They choke on the rest, and are suddenly enveloped in possibly the most comforting, needed hug they’ve received since she died. 
“My mom, too, recently,” Noah eventually lets out, voice matching Lee’s choke. He presses them harder to his chest, holding them, clinging, letting Lee soak his shirt as they rock back and forth. 
They break away from each other after a few minutes, Noah turning to let Lee try to wipe their tears without ruining their eyeliner as he swipes his own away with the heels of his palms. They turn back to each other with tight, abashed closed-mouth half-smiles, letting out matching embarrassed chuckles. 
He slumps against the wall and they stand, shoulders grazing, gazing at the night sky. “Y’know, it’s strange to see you here, because I associate Philly with you first, Leanne,” Noah ponders lazily, “But Vermont strangely suits you.”
There’s that bitter feeling again. Lee lights another smoke (having lost their previous to the hug) and follows the smoke trail as it draws circles around the distant stars above, shining bright as though they’re watching from somewhere far, far from civilization. 
There’s something you don’t get in Philly - that feeling of awe, of being just a molecule amidst the inconceivable mass of this universe, of every worry and problem being an ant to a continent, and you’re just trying to live your life to survive to the next and the most you can do is just live and love it. There’s something they’d missed for years being away from the far Northeast, something they take for granted until quiet, gentle moments like this. They don’t share any of that with Noah. Instead, they reply: “Noor’s rich parents bought her a house here, and she took me with her.”
“How long?” Noah sighs. He sounds dreamy, on the verge of sleep, eyes closed, body leaning firmly against theirs. 
“Nearly five years, now.”
Noah’s eyes snap open, a smirk spreading his face like wildfire, words flowing faster than Lee can even brace for the hit. “Five years of Vermont Cheddar’s done wonders for that ass,” he snarks. 
There it fucking is, the other fucking shoe. Leave it to him to open his stupid fucking mouth at a moment like this. Here they are, opening up about shit they’d barely even told their best friend, crying about their dead family together, and he’s making caveman-brain comments about their body. 
Lee kicks off the wall, dislodging Noah’s resting body, flicking their unfinished cigarette at the ground. If there’s a God, he’ll make the ash ruin Noah’s squeaky-clean white Vans. 
They feel an absolute idiot for trusting this idiot, for choosing these feelings to entrust to him. Should’ve known better. “With as much disrespect as possible: fuck you, Noah,” Lee spits at Noah’s stumbling form before jerking open the bar door, slamming it shut behind them. 
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Note to future self (which will inevitably be forgotten and ignored): beware the Archives after hours - it’s completely shot and always devolves to the same bullshit. Yes, every time. Do not be fooled by the arcade machines - they are half broken and will not save you.
Hank and Roy left after chugging their first and only beers in under a minute the way Frank and Charlie shovel down cat food before bed on Always Sunny. Mike’s sniffed out that one gruff DL crew guy that’s seemingly copy-pasted onto each tour that comes through town and is working on enticing him to go back to his place above Ouroboros with that fucking slick grin of his (“It’s only around the corner, they’ll be none the wiser”). Nobody’s behind the bar, because it’s easier for Donny to just let people serve themselves - not like afterhours is official or legal here, anyway - so why would he bother serving? 
Everyone’s broken off into small groups or pairs, and Lee? Lee’s nursing their fourth whiskey, stuck finishing the shitty fries Noor always orders after she’s had her first drink, the same shitty ones she eats like, five of before pushing them away in disgust. 
The floor is sticky, left to be cleaned by the opening staff, and more than half the bar’s got their wax pens out, making the whole place smell like wet dog. Like the top note of a sick perfume resting above the heart note of the sweat of thirty slightly-too-warm people. Eau de metalhead. They really oughta turn off the heat in this place already - it’s fucking June.
It’s not the heat that’s got Lee absolutely boiling, though, no, that would be too simple. It’s that among this absolute hellscape, Noah is ten feet away, laughing like all that shit outside just didn’t happen. He’s fucking with the glitchy Ms. Pac-Man machine with Nicholas. He’s shotgunning beers with Mike and Mike’s newest conquest. He’s not looking at Lee. 
“- and after all that, like we had a moment, and after all that -” Lee laments to Noor, “For fuck’s sake, bitch, will you quit making eyes at Folio for one second?” 
Greta Van Fleet’s “Heat Above” is playing over the tinny speaker, and Noor’s distracted “uh huh” as she bops along is tell enough for Lee. The bitch is gone. 
“Fuck’s sake, Noor, you really gotta fuck the drummer every time?” Lee hisses, reaching blindly behind the bar for the whiskey they’d set in arm’s reach. Noor doesn’t hear them. Noor is too busy being her beautiful self, flicking a chunk of perfect raven curls behind her shoulder. Lee watches in horror as Folio presents the other tell that Noor’s one-hundred-percent gone for the night, something Lee has only seen happen genuinely, unironically in two situations - one in movies, and the other when Noor flirts with men: Folio fucking wiggles his eyebrows at her. 
There’s the whiskey. Goddamn, do they need another drink. Somewhere behind them, Noah cackles. Nails on a fucking chalkboard. 
Can you hear that dreadful sound? Fire still burning on the ground, Josh Kiszka screeches. You, or the other one, Josh? thinks Lee as they pour themselves another drink.
They turn, ready to shoot Noah a dirty look, and the fucker winks at them. They down their three fingers in one go and push off their stool towards the toilets. 
Their vision swims, not from the five whiskeys, not from getting up too quickly, but from the pins and needles of bitter fury tearing at their chest. 
It’s not that Noah’s enjoying himself. Good for him. It’s not that he’d been a vulgar dick, either, because they’re pretty sure that wasn’t the first time they’d gotten the “wonders for your ass” dig from him before. 
It’s that they’d allowed him a single moment of benignant sincerity for probably the first time ever, let him in, showed their tender belly, and then he’d gone and stabbed them where they’re most vulnerable. That he’d pissed on any genuine connection they’d been building up to then. 
It’s not that Noah was an asshole tonight, that will never change. That’s the sky blue. It’s that this time, Noah actually hurt their feelings. 
Lee shuts the bathroom door with their back, melds themself against the metal, digging the heels of their palms into their eyes as they let out a dry, heavy, tear-less sob. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale -
The second sob drags up with it hot spittle, sending them coughing and gagging into the sink. It’s that it’s all their own fault for letting him in, for getting comfortable in the first place. That’s what you get when you let Noah in. 
How fucking shot in the head do they have to be to expect anything less than this bullshit? Because this isn’t how someone with an ounce of sensibility would handle this, right? RIGHT?! Hey, let’s go trauma dump on this dude who’s never had a kind thing to say to you. Let’s go talk about our feeeeeeelings with the guy who still deadnames you FOUR years after you changed it everywhere. Oh, he gave you a hug? Oh, he shared his little emo feels with you too? Awwww. Ohhhh. Cute. Fucking. Idiot. 
Their eyeliner is smeared, their skin blotchy and red, and their hair absolutely refuses to lay well despite all their efforts to make it behave. Under the overly-bright fluorescent lighting, they can see the blue of the vein bulging in their forehead. They look like they’ve been beaten, or fucked, or both at once. Lee swears their reflection grins at them then.
They need to clean themself up and get another drink, and then they need to punch Noah in his stupid, smug, sexy face. Another dry heave works up their throat. No, no, this isn’t right. This is neither healthy nor productive. They can’t keep going on like this, can’t keep allowing themself in situations where the rage literally makes them sick.
Lee sighs, rubbing a hand over their tired face, presentability be damned. They need to go home; just crawl into bed and sleep it off and avoid any gatherings Noah might be at forever. They should probably cut off their mutual friends, too and never step foot in Richmond again, or L.A. for that matter, though they’d never willingly end up in that helltown, anyway. 
Home. Bed. Sleep. Never see Noah again. 
But when they swing open the bathroom door, he’s on the other side.
There’s a beat as he takes them in, and a small part of Lee thinks, hopes, prays he’ll grant mercy this time. Just this once. Look at me. Please. Mercy.
But prayer’s so unreliable, and Noah is so, so consistent. “Lookin’ good, doll,” mocks the physical manifestation of No Sense Of Time And Place. “Whoa -”
This is it. Their chest is exploding, they can’t breathe, they’ve lost their eyesight. This is how they die. 
Noah catches their wrist inches from his face before Lee even realizes they’ve swung.
They let out a hysterical laugh, ripping their arm from his like it’s a third-degree burn, backpedaling so fast from his advance they nearly trip over their own legs. 
He’s all, “hey, whoa,” he’s all, “hey, Leanne,” but they’re too busy contending with the fact that each breath feels like a leaf blower full of nails tearing their windpipe. “Leanne, what -” he says, but they knew this wasn’t normal the moment Noah started grabbing at their shoulders, at their face, the moment they couldn’t hear him pleading for them to get themself together. “Leanne, c’mon, Leanne, please,” he’s begging somewhere, but they can’t stop fucking laughing.
God, but doesn’t he sound so tender, so pretty when he pleads?
This isn’t normal, right? Like, what’s that saying about doing the same thing over and over? Right?????? And now there’s godforsaken tears pricking at their eyes and they can’t stop and - 
They need him to stop. They need him to shut up, and they need him out of their field of vision. But he keeps getting in front of them, putting his hands on them and Lee wants them off but they can’t feel their hands - 
Someone’s released an anguished, animalistic scream somewhere. Everything’s too tight. There’s arms caging them in, they need out, they need escape why are there arms fucking everywhere - 
“Fucking, ow!” Noah’s left hand flies up to nurse his jaw where they’d managed to catch him, but the right finds purchase in their hair immediately, like it’s an instinct, like it belongs there. He yanks, hard, forcing their face to his as he crowds them against the sink. 
There’s something grounding, calming in the pain at the back of their head, something reassuring in the way he’d tear their hair out at a moment’s notice. He’s so close they can smell the spearmint of the gum he’d been chewing under the liquor and smoke, nose nearly pressed to theirs. His hair tickles their cheekbones like a balm, like a promise.
He’s a vision of fury, all tightly clenched jaw and steely eyes, scrunched nose and furrowed brows. “What the fuck is your problem?” he sternly asks, voice quiet, chillingly flat.
An involuntary, scornful bark of a laugh escapes Lee’s throat. “You wanna know my problem? YOU’RE my fucking problem! I haven’t known a moment of peace since I met you!” they shout through their sob-torn throat. The dam bursts, there’s no stopping this train now, whichever metaphor you prefer. “You’re absolutely insufferable! No regard for anyone but yourself! You wanna know why people leave you in the dust and never look back? Because you’re the fucking worst! You’re a fucking mistake!”
Noah’s mouth twists that smirk again, the one Lee has been on the receiving end of too many times tonight, but there’s no joy behind it; his eyes are empty and cold and tinged red, omnipotent in the weight of his gaze. He doesn’t even need to say it. That cruel twist of his mouth is enough. Takes one to know one.
His lips are on Lee’s in an instant, barely connected for a second before he forces his tongue past their teeth, his free hand wandering anywhere he can reach. His hips push them into the porcelain, fingers brushing up the exposed skin of their belly, hand sliding overtop their binder. A harsh breath huffs out his nose as he passes a thumb over their hard nipple through the thick fabric, pulling a tiny, pathetic whine from Lee’s throat. 
There’s a beat when he pulls their head an inch back, hovering by their ear once more, hips giving a miniscule, barely there roll. Then, in a movement so quick Lee can barely acknowledge it happened, he rips their arm round their back, flipping them so fast they’d faceplant into the mirror were it not for the grip he keeps steady on their head, fingers tangled in their hair, nails digging at their scalp. Hips press them into the edge of the sink, fingers pull their head to his shoulder, the arch lighting a tight burn in their spine. 
Mirror Lee looks like roadkill, and Mirror Noah looks like the vulture circling round their corpse, towering over them voraciously.
He rolls his hard, clothed cock into the small of their back. “Look at what you do to me,” he croons. A hand trailing fingers dangerously slow up their bare leg. “Look at what a mess you are.” His hand trails lazily from their hair to their throat, nestling there like a puzzle piece fit into place, forcing their gaze on the mirror. “Look at you.” He trails kisses behind Lee’s ear, down their neck, the trail of saliva he leaves behind chilling in the stale air. “Look at you.” His fingers brush their belly. “Look at you.” A kiss on their pulse point. Lee lets out an anxious shudder at the fingers dipping below the waistband of their shorts.
His eyes snap to meet theirs in the mirror, and Lee’s screwed because Noah’s just caught them soaking wet. They can’t force themself to blink, to look away from Noah’s piercing gaze as he slowly, predatorily brings his mouth to their ear. Punctuated by a single flick of their clit, through barely-parted kiss-bruised lips, he whispers: “Slut.”
It’s then their mind catches up to their body, and as their face hits the cold, wet porcelain of the sink bowl, they realize they hadn’t fully caught their breath. They heave as the stoneware digs into the bottom of their ribs, muscles spasming over their whole body as they consciously force them to relax. 
The heel of his palm pushes at the base of their skull, his fingers tangling tight in their hair once more, and a single, foreboding finger whispers assurance as it runs down their spine. Cold air on their bare ass as he unceremoniously tears down their shorts and underwear in one fell swoop. His cock prods at their hole and they, body before mind, back against him. 
For the warmth, of course.
Nothing more. 
That’s definitely not their whine when he slides home with a single snap of his hips, when he pulls out nearly completely, when he snaps back home again with twice the force. 
Mercy. What a silly thought to entertain, what a silly plea to beg when you’re begging Noah. Noah doesn’t do mercy. That’s not his modus operandi. Noah winds you up, then puts you down. Like Lee is now. Down. Face down in the sink bowl. Like the stupid, stupid slut they are, in Noah’s own words. 
They’ll never get used to the stretch, they think, no matter how many times they fuck Noah. It might be the size of him (though they’ll never admit it to his face, lest it make him grow a second head for sheer lack of space from his already overly-inflated ego), or maybe it’s that he’s just there to get his, and no matter how he fucks - slow, fast, hard, gentle - he’s never thinking about them. And despite that, despite that he’s just jackhammering, shoving their face into the porcelain with force which will surely leave a bruise, the roll of his hips tells them someone cooked here.
There’s no tenderness in the dig of his short, blunt nails into the flesh of their inner thigh, woefully close to where they need him, nor in sticky snap of his hips against their ass, and certainly not in the merciless drag of his heavy cock against that rough patch in them which serves to topple them like a Jenga tower, slowly, shakily, then all at once. They’re so full. So empty. They’re a coin-operated doll, helpless to be broken down and sold for parts on the whim of a single man. 
They’re a wet mess, clit so swollen they think it might burst, hands a mess of numb pins and needles. They’re gonna be covered in bruises tomorrow, they’re gonna be so fucking sore when they pee, and for what it’s worth, this shouldn’t feel good at all, but Lee is so fucking close.
Embarrassing. 
When Noah’s hips stutter, when his grip releases their head just enough for them to turn their head, he’s got his bottom lip in his teeth and his eyes are squeezed shut and he looks so, so gone (or maybe it’s Lee who’s gone) in the flush of pink running from his cheeks down into his shirt. 
That’s not Lee moaning. They’re just trying to catch a breath. But, god, they’re right there, they just need something, they just need more - 
Noah freezes, collapsing on them with a short, quiet groan, burying his face in their neck. 
His breath is hot, wet, the weight of his heaving chest pressing their ribcage into the porcelain. There's barely a moment of peace before the fingers in their hair tighten once more, pulling their face up to meet his eyes in the mirror. 
All it takes is a miniscule shake of Lee’s head for his blissed out gaze to turn stormy once more, for him to drop to his knees.
It’s a race to the finish line the second Noah’s tongue touches Lee’s neglected clit. Quite possibly all their synapses fire at once, all their focus single-mindedly on the way he sucks them, on the calluses on his fingertips as he pads at their hole, on the vibration of a moan they can’t hear. 
Lee is jelly. They don’t need to be held down any longer, compliantly staying slumped in the sink, but the soothing scrape of Noah’s nails on their scalp as he presses two fingers in grounds them, turning any distracting thoughts to a static hum tuned to the note of fuck, Noah. 
All it takes is a single curl of his fingers, like the press of a button before they’re falling, trembling on an overdose of oxytocin into oblivion. 
With a final suck, Noah rises to his feet, bringing a deer-legged Lee with him. They’re dizzy, vision blurred as he turns them gently in his arms. Arousal-coated fingers pry their jaw open, and Noah comes into focus when his hand settles at their throat in an inky-fingered necklace. He forces Lee’s jaw open wider and spits, using the same hand to then cover their mouth. His eyes are wide and wild, rapt as he soothes the saltybitter spend down Lee’s throat. “Look at you, look at that dirty mouth,” he’s mumbling feverishly, voice still deep with arousal. “Look at you swallow that cum. Who else does it for you like this, hm? That’s right. Nobody. Only me.”
Lee chokes out a heaving breath, willing the tears that prick their eyes to not fucking fall, and he deflates, collapsing into their shoulder, arms dropping to circle their waist. “God damn, Leanne,” he sighs after a beat, dulcet and spent.
They glance down uncomfortably. His face is calm, unmarred by the everpresent lines and tension it usually carries, nose buried in their neck. “It’s Lee,” they say. 
At least he has the sense to look embarrassed. “Right. Lee.”  
They don’t clean themself up, they haven’t the energy. They let Noah pull up their shorts, shuffle them out the bathroom and out the back door, and walk them home. 
The streets are quiet, streetlights haloing the street corners in gold, everyone with any sense of decency long-retired to their homes. Lee wonders what they look like from a bird’s eye view, or from outer space, alone together in a grid of light. What do the stars think - would they shame Lee? Would they judge them? 
They stroll lazily, Noah’s arm draped round Lee’s shoulder. He looks so at peace, between the half-smile playing at his lips and the way the streetlights illuminate the lashes of his half-closed eyes. Something acrid bubbles in Lee’s chest. At least they get him like this, blissed out and pleasant before they never speak to him again. Before they never - 
No. They won’t think about that. Just remember this. 
Lee is halfway up the porch stairs before Noah yanks them back by the wrist, catching them from their awkward tumble into his chest. “Give me a call sometime, alright?” he mumbles, grazing the exposed skin between their shorts and shirt. “Don’t be a stranger.” 
Their heart stutters. It’s too sweet. It’s too nice. This isn’t right. “Whatever, asshole,” they say. Weakly. Unconvincingly. With the weakest push they’ve got, with no resistance from Noah, they start again on the stairs. 
He doesn’t pursue. 
“Call me whatever you like,” he laughs. “‘Long as you call me.” 
In the morning, through a blinding headache and a metric fuckton of hangxiety, Lee rushes to check their phone the second they pull their face from the pillow. 
Among the sea of texts from Noor and Mike, work emails, and bullshit app notifications, there it is: Stupid Silly Man: hey, asshole. My number is still the same, btw.
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pawberri · 11 months
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Prank
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perotovar · 3 months
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“Iron Maiden, huh?” They teased. “What, I don’t look like I listen to Iron Maiden?” Frankie smiled, a little of his confidence coming back now that River was here. All of the comfort and teasing was still there from their texts. River hummed thoughtfully, one ring-clad finger running over the side of Eddie’s face on Frankie’s torso. “I didn’t say that. Just thought it was an interesting choice,” they grinned, looking back up at him. Frankie blinked down at them, following their finger that had yet to leave. “Interesting?” he squeaked, swallowing around another lump in his throat. River chuckled and took their hand away, shaking their head in amusement. “Don’t worry about it. C’mon, you promised me a dance, remember?” — into the beat of the night (ch 2) "fear of the dark"
art of river/frankie commissioned by the insanely talented @lights-on-the-ridge !!!! thank you so much, reid, i couldn't be happier with this outcome 🥹
if you ever wanted to properly see river, and with their man, look no further friends, for i have been gifted a FEAST to share!!
and for those of you that haven't yet read their story, you can find it right here -> into the beat of the night (18+)
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itzsassha · 6 months
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ROH - they/them
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magpie-murder · 6 months
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the best thing about drawing personal art is that if i get sick of overpainting i can literally just stop and post it anyway
anyway here's famine's redesign
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toyhouse + artfight
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scribbles-dream · 6 months
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Fic for @monstrifex-art! Enjoy! (I really wasn’t sure which of your characters to take from, so I kinda mashed some visual traits together!)
A Witch in the Dark
Veil quietly handed a small vial to Elise, shaking the greenish liquid experimentally. They adjusted their glasses, fidgeting nervously. Shoulder-length black hair waved and bobbed as they looked around the room, eyes never settling on Elise, who stood a good foot taller than them. She smiled softly, patting their head and taking the vial from their outstretched hands. Veil turned to leave their wife to her scholarly pursuits, but she drew closer to them, whispering in their ear with a soft sigh. “Check the table. Your birthday gift is there!”
They kept their face straight and composed, only nodding slowly before walking out of the room. Elise blew them a kiss as Veil closed the door behind them, walking through the small, unlit house to the dining table. A window was open in the kitchen, and moths congregated around a small lantern outside. Cool air flew in, whispering the concept of winter to no-one and everyone. Veil ignored the sheaf of letters from the Ministry calling for transcriptions of their spellbooks—of which, Elise and Veil had already sent dozens to the government. The small box on the tiny, circular table was what interested them. It was a stark contrast to the worn but polished wood of the furniture, the soft couches and ornate cabinets. The material was of a sparkling black stone, and the cuboidal shape had the sharpest edges Veil had seen on anything.
A scrap of paper with Elise’s carefree, gentle script was on the top. For you, my sweetling. And only you. Inside, the velvet interior held a small choker with a pale blue gemstone. Jewelry? For me? A wave of emotion came over Veil. It’s so beautiful. Mother and Father never spoiled me like that. Images of an austere home came over them. Stiff ritualisms and noble, chaste idealism to the nation. Baroque, almost garish ceremonial uniforms and trinkets—but none of it belonged to them. Veil’s only job was to be married off to the Royal College of the Arcane’s Headmistress. They had expected that same level of abuse. Their expectations had been shattered rapidly, and they hadn’t been happier.
Veil knew very well what sorts of jewelry and trinkets their wife was enthralled into buying. They also knew that it had to be magical. A strange, almost taboo thrill came over them as they touched the soft black strip of fabric, then the precisely cut gem, its blue layers melting into a swirl caged by the geometric diamond shape. A long scroll was attached to the pantry’s wall, written over with years of black, blue, and red ink. It was a sort of calendar—if such chaotically complex scribbling could be called such—and it recorded everything Elise planned. Today, however, the event was covered with a magical shroud, blurring and causing a small headache whenever Veil lay their eyes upon it.
The object and the event had to be connected. Even that curious vial, contents unclear, had come in directly on the hour. Veil looked at the stone clock, etched with glowing sigils and floating hands of slender stone. Directly on the hour. Six o-clock.
Behind Veil, the small door leading to Elise’s laboratory started to shudder.
II
Elise drank another vial. The first one had gone down so smoothly. Why not another? In front of her was the checklist for her transformation, a three-stage-process that was supposed to only mildly modify the personality, in sharp contrast to the near total transformation of the body.
A familiar warmth grew inside her. Bone and flesh split and reformed, but she felt no pain—just a longing joy. Her darling would see her in a truly different light. She’d have the form to be their perfect mistress, for ever and ever. And what a perfect darling they were! So obedient, so gracious. Another pang of heat formed on her back. Wings split with a loud crack, unfurling with a whoosh of wind. Heat turned to a spike of pleasure. Her skin turned a strange shade of white, eyes bright blue. Sweat dripped from Elise’s face as her ears melted away, reforming into sharply pointed ones. They tingled with sensations unseen by human minds.
Elise felt her thighs shiver and twitch, growing wider and with small, imperceptible sparkling hairs. Her body as a whole grew taller and larger, bosom expanding. Her flesh continued to shed and remove hair as a whole, leaving that slender, gossamer coating only on her thighs and speckled on her back, near where the patterned, ethereal wings pumped to life. Such warmth! Such a strange, seductive siren call that was transformation! Horns grew, a deep black shade, smooth and bone-like, from her long, silver hair. A tongue emerged, pink, newly born, viscerally coated. It twitched with a dexterity Elise was unused to, and she curled it around experimentally, seeing how it automatically retracted.
She took a breath, and her nose breathed in a maddening amount of sensations. Elise struggled to keep track of herself, and looked sharply at the door. It hadn’t opened yet. She could smell Veil, their soft, warm scent. Why could she do that?
Her mind filled with new concepts, new ideas, new, more animalistic reasonings. She felt a twinge of terror at the contemplation of this new—temporary—freedom. Elise grasped for something else, and landed upon her original motivation. A gift. A love-gift, for Veil. I simply have to restrain myself.
A ping emanated from a nearby wand, adorned with a less refined version of the small diamond stone on the choker she had bought them earlier. Yes! They put it on! That wild passion threatened to overtake them again, and Elise took a small step back, feeling a wave of fear. I don’t want them to see me like this. What would they think of me?
To their credit, Veil didn’t barge in. They knocked on the door. Fear, worry, confusion—she could sense it mingling in the air around them. It was delicious. “Are you all right, Mistress?” There was no response. Veil opened the door.
III
“Don’t come in! I didn’t want you to see…” Elise halted as Veil looked on with a slight hint of confusion before averting their eyes downwards. They simply nodded slightly, and stood a respectful distance away.
“You told me to expect a change, Mistress.” Veil said evenly, not taking their eyes from the floor. Elise could sense heat rising from their face. She nodded, regaining her composure—and keeping that animalistic part of her persona in check.
Her voice was sharp and clear. “Darling. My personality is becoming more.. inhuman. Not by much, but just enough. It might be—“ Her breath caught in her throat. Veil was looking at her with those rounded spectacles, looking with the sharpest possible gaze.
Their voice was so soft, a drifting feather she could take and grasp. “Why would it matter? You’re still you. You can be free with me, Mistress.” Slender hands slightly brushed the choker. “I know what you have planned.” Veil’s voice was louder now, on the edge of breaking down into a slight snicker. It was accented by their reddening face.
That singular chuckle broke any tension, and Elise found herself snickering loudly. “It was because I was bored! Can you imagine?” She held out the glowing wand, her voice dropping down to that sultry bass that held terrible power over her servant. “You don’t have to imagine.”
Veil chuckled, and moved closer to her, falling into her grasp. Elise had to gently stoop to get out of the doorway, as she now towered over Veil completely. They spun and twisted, dancing perfectly close in a rotating circle as the small bedroom was approached.
Elise tore apart their thin clothes, feeling that same form of animalistic hunger draw over her. She pinned Veil to the bed, long tongue reaching out to lick and curl around their ears, eliciting a soft gasp. She kissed them there, tongue enveloping the inside of their mouth and leaving them in a dazed, gasping state.
She tapped the wand impatiently, causing them to moan and cry out, spasming gently. Such hunger! Such desire! A surge of overprotectiveness came over her, and her wings snapped to life, drawing a canopy of darkness over the two of them with her bright eyes providing dim light.
Elise’s voice was quiet and commanding, holding haughty elegance by the hand and slaving it to her will. “Are you a good puppy?” Veil’s soft, shuddering moans came back with a mumbled affirmative. The beating of their heart rang in her improved ears.
Elise gently took her strap, taking great care to be as soft as possible. They had done this time and time again—but never like this. She lifted Veil up, an act that was equivalent to lifting a feather, and turned them around. “Good puppy.” She patted their head gently. “Mistress has to just break you a little bit, okay?” The words came out sultry, with a high and haughty resonance. That was new.
Veil tapped on the mattress, the sonic vibrations beating in her heart like a drumbeat. “Yes, darling. I’m going to go very slowly. Whatever you want, I’ll provide.” A thumbs up, with an associated moaned affirmation.
Elise had the sudden notion to look at her slender hands, now even thinner and more.. moth-like. They were secreting a bluish oil, and the glowing residue was all over Veil. Oh. She continued, slowly moving inwards. Veil moaned and gasped, babbling meaningless things that spoke of carnal desire, thirst and love. Elise put a single hand on their lips, then a finger in their mouth, silencing them gently.
She moved in slowly, and pulled away, taking care to be as slow as possible, touching their shaking flesh and licking with that long tongue. Then, she moved in, faster and faster. Veil gasped and cried as she moved back and forth until they collapsed, shuddering and mumbling.
Another (impatient?) tap on the mattress. More? Elise complied, tapping the wand. She had programmed the choker to obey her every thought. Veil’s entire body stiffened and twisted on edge, and the queenly moth folded back her wings, smirking.
Elise tapped the wand again. Her breasts swelled greatly, and she hummed with the warmth coalescing inside of them. More. More! Her breathing grew heavy and strained, and she halted, huffing with effort. Meanwhile, Veil continued to squirm, caught in that terrible state of denial one might call enjoyable.
She wrapped her wings around them again, licking their ears and whispering. “Is my puppy trying their best? Of course you are, puppy. Let it out for your Mistress now.” She pinned their twitching hips to the bed, and went down on them quickly—slowly drawing outwards to give them the slightest bit of release before repeating. Again, and again, until her stomach felt warm, and she felt rather sleepy.
Slowly, Elise cradled her long arms around the slowly exhaling Veil, drawing their mouth up close to suckle the shimmering “milk” that came out. Their eyes rolled back in response, and they moaned again before latching on with a vicious carnal neediness she easily matched.
“Good puppy. Sleep now, okay? I’ll see you in the morning.” They crumpled into her warm embrace, and Elise found the grasping claws of sleep scratching at her mind all the same, so she let them cling to her. It gave the experience such a precious feeling, protecting someone.
End.
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aceghosts · 28 days
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Rooney Shepard (They/Them): RELIC AU
There are stranger things I've learned on the outside Separated by an open door I find it hard to reach the end of my timeline Salivating 'cause I wanted more Is this the end or is this the beginning? -Too Close/Too Late by Spiritbox
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