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chronically-ghosted · 7 months

Text

Bite Me

rating: T

pairing: dieter bravo x f!reader

word count: 1258

summary: before a Halloween party, you and Dieter show off your “communal” costumes.

warnings: bad jokes, some sexy make outs, this is just fluff and two idiots in love, this is not kinktober by any stretch of the imagination

a/n: i really wanted to get something Halloween-ish out before spooky season is over and when I saw that text post go around, I couldn’t not think of Dieter. I apologize deeply to Dan Harmon and the rest of the cast of Community for so shamelessly rifting, and honestly, if you haven’t watched Community, do yourself a favor and get on it. Like, now. Reader’s costume comes from Abed’s costume in season 1 and Dieter dresses like Troy in season 2.

On a different note, my computer’s been acting up so I wrote and posted this on my iPad. So if there’s funky formatting or anything, I apologize!

Happy Halloween!

🤍Masterlist

The tip of your nose itches from where the cheap cotton mask dangles from over your forehead. You adjust yourself on the bed, only to catch the cape under your butt and accidentally choke yourself. Scowling, you lift your hips and twist and yank, opting to toss the cape over your thigh like a sexy blanket. Finally in a good position, you lay down, elbow propping up your head, and you tug at the eyeholes of the mask to get the lycra out of your eyelashes.

“Babe, are you almost ready?” You call out, your gaze fixated on the walk-in closet where your boyfriend disappeared thirty minutes ago. Arguably you had the much more elaborate costume and you still beat him getting dressed. He had yet to see the culmination of two weeks of sewing, stuffing (because of course you had to include the fake muscles), and painting, and you fully intended to seduce him with your TV-accurate recreation of a costume from a truly iconic episode. “Dee, we’re gonna be late.”

“Yeah, and you’re gonna see it’s worth every minute,” came his cryptic reply. You roll your eyes. Although, you should hardly be surprised at his flair for the dramatics. “Alright, feast your eyes, babe.”

Dieter steps out of the closet, make-up brush and tanning powder in hand, grinning from ear to ear. The white toilet guard has been cut to (slightly) resemble a collar — obviously including the word “Dracula” just in case anyone could possibly miss the obvious reference. The toilet paper bracelets are taped down to prevent any further unraveling, but you inwardly cringe at what happened to the rest of the no-doubt wasted toilet paper.

His dark jeans are slung low on his hips, the black belt undone preemptively, but it’s the make up job that really sealed the deal. While having had his ass whooped off the couch for a new role has slimmed his waist, Dieter could hardly hope to obtain Troy-Barnes-level of abs.

So he drew them on himself.

“I gotta call Silvia,” he grins manically, twisting and showing you just how “cut” he is from every angle. “She’s gonna be so proud.”

Referring to his make-up stylist and the hour-long make-up tutorial where he paid her to show him the basics of contours and shading, Dieter seems thrilled to have been finally able to put his knowledge to use.

“You look fucking sexy, babe,” you tell him, sneaker rubbing a suggestive circle on the comforter.

“That’s because I’m a sexy dracula.” He winks with his tongue out and then his eyes snap open. “Oh, fuck, forgot something.”

He sprints back into the closet — you hear something fall over — and he returns, mouth full of . . . something . . .

Dieter spreads his lips and drool slides out the corner of his mouth to reveal off-white, plastic vampire fangs.

“Jush in cath no one geths it.”

You nod, sagely, while trying to fight off a howl of laughter. He slips the dripping teeth out of his mouth and wipes his lips with the back of his arm.

“Show me yours!”

Grinning, you leap up onto your knees, knuckles against your waist in your best superhero pose.

“Crime spits and dances on the grave of justice, to the hot beats and infectious rhythms of all that is wrong,” you quote, your voice deep and gravely. “The night beckons. Its black fingers curl and uncurl going like, ‘hey, come here.’”

“Oh my god, baby, use that voice the next time you peg me.” Dieter’s eyes flutter as he stumbles to the edge of the bed, grabbing your waist and pulling you close. You giggle, trying very carefully not to squish the “collar”.

Dieter taps your too-long bat ears with his palm. “You did such a good fucking job with this. Are you sure you still wanna direct? You could go into costuming.”

You wrinkle your nose. “And develop arthritis before I get my AARP card? No, thank you. My hands and wrists are still sore from all the sewing.”

“Hopefully not too sore.” Dieter raises an eyebrow at you, his hands under your cape and investigating your ass in spandex.

“I’m not getting cum on this black outfit—,”

His mouth bites into yours, cutting you off, as he chuckles. His roving hands drop low on your hips, around your ass, then to the back of your thighs. He squeezes and you both inhale.

“I’ll pay for the dry-cleaning. I don’t think I’ll be able to keep my hands off you.”

You bite your lip, glancing at the clock over your shoulder. If you left now, you’d get to the party on time, a first for anyone in a fifteen-foot radius of Dieter Bravo, the man whom needs a thirty minute head start for any event—

His lips press warmly into the arch of your neck, teasing up to your jaw, the mask guarding the soft skin below your earlobe that he knows turns you to putty in his hands. His hands, satisfied with their below-the-waist groping, map the curl of your spine, before smoothing over your ribs. He rubs the curve of your breasts with his thumbs and bites gently into the curve of your neck.

“Baby, please tell me this is not a one-piece suit.”

“But we’re going to be late.” Your voice is already a whine, arousal sinking in between your legs. Vaguely, you hope his “abs” haven’t rubbed off on your hips.

“I’m always late,” he murmurs distractedly as his fingers seek out a seam. Dieter Bravo has been, and never will be, above literally tearing your clothes apart to get to what he needs. “It’s bad luck to change tradition.”

His grip more insistent, you fear for the livelihood of your costume so you grab his hand and bring it to a zipper high on your back.

“There’s a clasp—,”

He pulls back, brown eyes heated and sweet. “Yeah? You’re gonna let me fuck you, pretty girl?”

“You’ve made a very compelling case.” You take him by the face and pull him into your mouth, tongue licking his bottom lip at first brush, as he tugs the zipper down your back. “Besides, we’re doing all the Troy and Abed shippers out there a favor right now.”

Dieter’s weight shifts forward as he crawls up the bed, cradling you to his chest with one arm as he lays you down between the pillows, his mouth sucking at yours and settles himself between your legs.

“So you’re saying you want to put this on the internet? You’re so hot,” he breathes on a long inhale.

“I’m saying we’re doing our due diligence to the characters.” He finally pushes that itchy mask over your head and you can feel the static pluck at your hair.

Dieter pauses, blinking, eyes wide and awe-struck.

And then he smiles.

“You make a sexy fucking Batman, you know that?”

With a grin, you rub your fingers against the thin collar.

“You make a pretty good sexy Dracula yourself.” You make a contemplative face. “Batman and Dracula. Bats fucking. There’s gotta be a porno for that.”

Dieter’s grin widens before dipping his head to kiss you again, hips slowly rolling into yours.

Oh yeah, you’re going to be very late to the party.

You lift your shoulder to peel your costume down when Dieter leans back into his knees and pulls something out of his back pocket.

It’s those hideous teeth.

He pops them into his mouth, immediately drooling again.

“The cheap vampire fangth thay ON during thex.”

#dieter bravo #dieter bravo x female reader #dieter bravo fanfiction #dieter bravo x you #dieter bravo x reader #the bubble film #the bubble fanfiction #Halloween fic #pedrotober #pedro pascal characters #pedro pascal character #pedro pascal

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sunsetandthemoon · 1 year

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saw in your tags you mentioned earthmix were in a serious fight while filming moonlight chicken? what's the story there? (ty in advance if you answer this and np if you don't :) )

Hii. Ok, so, while I do follow them on Instagram and Twitter, I never noticed anything until they talked about it during the MLC promo a few weeks ago, so I definitely don't know the full story, but here is a short summary of all the information that I’ve managed to gather from Twitter.

Apparently, there was a 4-5 month period last year where Earth and Mix were fighting (so-called their “divorce era”). It started with them going from constantly hanging out together to never interacting with each other anymore and fans quickly noticed something was up. Then this video from the MLC set was posted and it only further fueled all the speculations (it looks like a perfectly normal video to me tbh but to some, it looked like Mix was angry or like he was sulking 🤷)

They also had a few work events during that time and fans reported a noticeable tension between them. There was also a lot of subtweeting and indirecting on their social media including posts like this:

which is funny considering this is how they described each other in an interview once

("am I still your flower" is absolutely sending me 💀)

some more Mix retweets x/x

Earth even posted this on his insta story

and then, during the Oishi Magic Of Zero trip, they seemed to have finally gone back to their normal selves (x)

they even acknowledged the fight and said that they had made up and that everything was okay between them again (x/x)

and everyone was happy for them including P'Godji who posted this video (x)

Mix even posted this on his story

which may or may not have been a reference to this scene from ATOTS

then, during their interviews recently, they talked a bit more about their fight (x) (their poor manager 😭)

and P'Aof even teased them about it by saying "the hard part for me is, I wanna work with them when they aren’t fighting with each other" when EM were asked what were the easy/hard parts of working together on three different series (x)

speaking of P’Aof, I need to include this bit from MLC bts where he forgot Jim and Wen weren’t supposed to kiss each other during their sex scene in ep1 because it’s just so funny like dhfjhsdjkd

P‘Aof: *after watching them unnecessarily devour each other five takes in a row while knowing damn well they’re in the middle of their divorce era* “whoops my bad 🤭 please don’t kill me” 😂😂😂😂

(x)

anyway - TLDR - Moonlight Chicken was filmed during their divorce era and they were spending their days filming scenes like this

only to then go home and start subtweeting and shading each other online at the end of the day 😂

but they're making up for it now by being inseparable and constantly posting about each other. there are too many moments to link but here are some honorable mentions: x/x/x/x

including these posts from last night x/x

#anonymous #earthmix #moonlight chicken #oh man you should see my twitter search now after trying to find all these tweets dhfjkdshk #big shoutout to YILOVEY for always providing all the translations #i couldn't find more indirects but i know there are a lot more since i saw people talking about them #they really said yes we're having a fight and we'll make it everyone's problem lmaoo

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waterworks-sobs · 21 days

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Whoops forgot i had an account

Good day to all :)

This drawing is from like 3 weeks ago and its Luz!!!!!!! Cause i was going through an owl house rewatch phase hah

Ill post more soon ive done a bunch of new art i just forgot to post any of it 😭😭😭

#traditional art #luz noceda #sketch #original art #artists on tumblr #owl house #the owl house #toh luz

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okapiandpaste · 1 year

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So Letters from Watson sent out “The Dying Detective” a few weeks ago, and since it’s a favorite of mine I thought I’d talk about why I think it’s one of the most crucial stories for understanding Holmes and Watson as a characters. (This is late because I hesitated on posting and then promptly forgot about it. Whoops.)

What most people take away from “Dying Detective”, I assume, is that Holmes is a master of deception. While this is partially true, I don’t think Holmes’ illness being faked should be used to dismiss the vulnerability of the situation: that Holmes had starved himself for 3 days and needed Watson’s complete faith in him if he was to succeed in catching a murderer.

Holmes’ deception of Watson in this story is regarded by many as coldblooded. There’s a moment in his false delirium where, in a last ditch effort to keep Watson from realizing his illness is fake, he calls Watson a “general practitioner with very limited experience and mediocre qualifications”. At this, Watson describes being “bitterly hurt”.

After the reveal of the sickness being faked, Holmes could’ve easily excused himself of this cruel remark due to it being a part of his act (even Watson himself believed this to be the case), but chooses not to. Rather, after he makes the comment, he immediately backpedals for the rest of the story, complimenting Watson profusely even while still pretending to be delirious (“Don’t forget, Watson. You won’t fail me. You never did fail me.”). At the end, he openly admits that the reason for keeping Watson at a distance was that, contrary to his harsh remark, he actually believed him too astute a doctor to fool if he drew any closer.

Like with Holmes’ false death and disguise in “The Empty House”, the events of “Dying Detective” naturally add speculative elements of distrust and tension to the public interpretation of Holmes and Watson’s dynamic. Why should Watson trust Holmes after he upsets him like that? Despite all this, the actual text frames these moments as faith-restoring.

Although most of Watson’s narration in “Dying Detective” is punctuated with his distress, there’s a deep undercurrent of faith in his behavior. He expresses fear and doubt over Holmes’ ability to make decisions in such a state, but he decides to believe Holmes knows what’s best for himself and follows his instructions perfectly. This isn’t just blind trust on Watson’s part, it’s mutual, because if Holmes did not believe Watson would follow his instructions to a tee, the entire plan would’ve failed.

And this is all without mentioning the scene where Holmes shouts in terror when Watson reaches for the box, clearly fearing for Watson’s safety when we finally learn the context. They clearly care a lot about each other in this story, and even though it’s just from Watson’s perspective, it’s obvious Holmes is trying to be considerate despite the strange situation. (So, anyways, it kinda sucks that this story is read shallowly and used as proof towards the idea that Sherlock is a complete asshole.)

#text heavy #letters from watson #me posting crud #Sherlock Holmes #should he have done that to watson? no #but is he sorry and does watson forgive him? yes #analysis

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dynamic-k · 2 months

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How you doin'

I think I finally broke out of the Writer's Block!! Time to celebrate with a coffee!

I also started writing the next chapter of the Guessing Game, uhhhh, whoops, why has it taken me eleven days-

I am also making a lot of headway on the next Arc Two chapter, and I am so unbelievably excited to bring it to completion because more LOREEEE!! And more subtle things to decipher, hehehe

And other not-so-subtle things... Yeah...

And also, uhm, a certain mother of the Alcoholic Twins, *cough, cough* Mum Rum *cough, cough*

I need to keep my mouth shut, cursors...

Why do I let you all ask me things-

Next thing I know, I'll be explaining King's full motives in way too much detail... '= w =

ANYWAY

Yes, I am doing swell and well, and good mood. U v U

Even though the Alan Becker Minecraft server has been very captivating as of late, and I find myself not writing as much because I want to hang out with Alan Becker fandom people-

WHICH BY THE WAY

I am on that server a lot, as Dynamic_K, so feel so free to say Hi and whatnot, I love meeting you all. :D

And you may also call me Scarlett, I don't care a bit.

Golden Boy, I thiiiiink, is going to still take me a while, even though I've actually made really good headway for the first time since I made chapter 2. It's gonna be so long, lol. I wrote down the plot outline, for the most part, and I just need to fill in the actual words. (Some of which is already done, hence my prediction about the chapter being like 10,000+ words, lol)

Don't ask me about A Second's Tale just yet. That's still sitting on the backburner of my incredibly spacious Mind Stove, simmering every now and then as I slowly piece together how I want the plot to go. I NEVER HAD A SPECIFIC PLAN FOR THAT FIC, IT'S GETTING TRICKY-

I'll finish it all, eventually, though. I promise!! I never EVER abandon a fic.

That's like my motto at this point!

...besides the Second punnery, the "I don't believe I have the faintest notion what you're insinuating" and some other things I say often...

*cough*

Anyway!

Yeah, I think that's it for major updates.

Feel free to clarify more specific inquiries in mah Askity Boxity-

OH STICK

I JUST REALIZED I FORGOT TO POST MY "Idea Box"!!

I had an idea, hehe, about three weeks ago now, oops-

That I could-

OH, never mind, you'll see, I'll get that out soon.

SHUHHCE

I HAVE SO MANY THINGS TO DO, WHYYY

#Ask Scarlett #Super Sticks AU #Oh yeah I'm doing great /dead-serious

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kiliinstinct · 2 months

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The Forbidden Woods

A Genshin Impact Au Pairing: Aether/Xiao Urban Fantasy and Supernatural Romance Find on A03: [Here] Special Thanks to @genavere: My beta. Unsure how I forgot to update this by two chapters, but expect chapter 5 to also drop soon because I posted 4 over a week ago on a03. Whoops. Chapter 3: / Chapter 5:

---

Chapter 4: He Who Lingers

Aether's first conscious thoughts were of a memory. Or something resembling a memory, old and faded with time.

He had fought with Lumine over some small thing he didn't recall. Nothing life or death except to a seven year old. They shouted and smacked, tackled each other into the dirt and wrestled through a pile of multi-colored leaves until Lumine called him something that came out as white noise.

It had hurt, whatever the name had been. Nasty and crude, but he couldn’t remember it.

Rather than attack his sister further, he sprang up from their tussle and ran. Fat tears pricking his eyes. He thought he recalled her shouting for him, but chose not to hear it. He rushed to the altar stone, ignored the makeshift chairs they had painstakingly put together and went further still.

He ran and ran, towards the forest line separated by a wooden fence he clambered over with tears obscuring his vision. When he landed on the other side, the world felt as if it had taken a plaintive shift that made Aether dizzy.

Lumine’s shouting echoed mutely in the distance, and the skies above felt darker, casting everything to purple tones. He rubbed the tears from his eyes and hiccupped, still engulfed in emotion as he processed the world around him.

The woods were quiet; the sounds of his steps echoed as branches snapped beneath his feet. His thoughts of anger and hurt slowly bled away to nervous wonder as his fingers brushed along the leaves of a large fern. He inspected the moss covering the nearby flora, making careful note of the nearby tree covered in large thorns.

One glance behind him showed the fence still there, paces away, and he nodded. While his heart threatened to beat out of his chest, determination filled him as he took another step, then one more. He shouldn't be here. He knew this, but where else could he go to be alone? Maybe Lumine would feel so bad she'd be in tears once he returned, begging his forgiveness.

One more step passed those sharp trunks and he sucked in a watery breath, eyes still blurry from his earlier outburst.

“You shouldn't be here,” A voice, not unlike his own, whispered in his ear and he jumped, a surprised yelp echoed through the quiet wilderness.

When he tried to run, a hand smaller than his grabbed his wrist, holding it tight. He whirled around to face this stranger with an enraged, terrified shout-

“It's not safe,” the voice urged.

-Only to meet the gaze of a boy his age, bearing down on him with the brightest, piercing gold eyes he’d ever seen.

Aether's eyes shot open, the echoes of the dream-like memory fading as fast as they had hit. Bits and pieces of it faded away until all he could remember was the small fight with Lumine, running away and- he let out a pained sigh, feeling a headache behind his eyes. How long had it been since he'd thought about those old fights? Strange how he’d forgotten about them. Groaning, he rolled to the side in his small nest of blankets, gripping his head.

He felt hungover. And though he hadn’t drank a single alcoholic beverage the night before, it was on the fast track to being the worst he’d ever suffered before. With mouth feeling dry and full of cotton, Aether whined as he shook the last vestiges of the dream off his shoulders, refusing to think on it further.

Mechanically stretching his body until the sheets exposed his heated skin to the cool air, Aether shuddered and considered balling himself up to sleep a little longer. But another shiver ran down his spine at the thought, fearing more nameless memories coming to haunt him. Instead he reached for his phone to check what little notifications he could see, flinched at the brightness and quickly fought with the phone to lower its settings. After a few failed attempts, he cursed the demon bird for the umpteenth time and attempted to move on to Lumine’s messages.

Instead, the image gallery from the night before swam into focus, blaring that photo back at him in full brightness. Surprised, the phone slipped from tired fingers and smacked against his face.

“Ow! Son of a-”

Egregious curses filled the house, signaling the official start of his day.

After what felt like hours, he finally found him with a cup of coffee in hand, bags under his eyes, and a fierce stare at the phone which wounded him. More specifically, the image that had haunted him since the day before. As much as he wanted to call Lumine, the urge remained paralyzed in the back of his mind, quietly festering as his headache persisted.

Yellow eyes glared at him: narrowed, angry, judging. He sipped his coffee and glared back, as if that alone would solve the mysteries popping up in every corner of his life recently. When nothing obviously happened, he sighed and covered the offended eyes with his finger.

It still didn't make him feel any better hiding them, but it allowed him to try and piece together the rest of the image without being distracted by the intense gaze behind the broken glass.

Squinting, he tried to differentiate between dead pixels and the image. A second later, his cheeks turned red as he realized the man was very naked, legs bent in the perfect position to censor the bits that would have sent Aether into an embarrassed coughing fit. It was odd how long it took him to realize it, as if it took every ounce of focus to translate what his retinas were viewing.

He could have sworn there were clothes yesterday, but the sight of firm muscles and toned abs said otherwise, leaving Aether to quietly drool from the pixelated visual. The rest of the details were too grainy and glitched, making the man’s skin look off-colored in many places. And was that a tattoo on his shoulder? Not only there but along the hip bones and - He cleared his throat and forced his eyes back up the screen.

Lifting the phone to his face, nose practically pressed against the screen, he tried to visualize what he was missing. The hair was wild, unkempt and uneven, but the teal streaks practically glowed in the sunlight and the eyes-

Crap, when did he stop covering the face? The gaze was back and suddenly he felt exposed, dropping the phone back to the table in discomfort. What was wrong with him?

“It's just a photo,” he muttered in a vain attempt to console himself. “Nothing bad ever happened just looking at a photo. Even if there's a guy looking hotter than-”

He paused, nose scrunching at his train of thought before quickly squashing it. “Anyway, what I should be focusing on is the fact that there was a guy here and I completely missed it because of a damn bird!”

Yes, that's how he decided to explain it. Obviously, someone was trespassing and he just miraculously hadn't noticed because of a cute bird that he couldn't even see in the image. It made no sense, but the alternative made even less.

Because, if he didn't tell himself there was a strange hobo living in his backyard, that meant the bird wasn't a bird, and that was insane.

The throbbing in his temple reigned him back in as he slowly sipped his coffee, grimacing at the bitter taste. Somehow, he'd forgotten to bring cream and sugar and was suffering the consequences. That, or Paimon had decided to play a prank on him.

Rubbing his eyes, Aether muttered quiet curses beneath his breath, wondering just what he'd done to feel this horrendous. He wasn't getting sick, was he? Vowing to dig through his bags for excedrin later, he turned his attention back to the phone, gnawing on his lip.

He was on the verge of a realization, that he knew. Even from a distance, the eyes were still intense, but the face shape, the wild, silky-looking hair and downturned lips, all of it was familiar. Like an old friend he hadn't seen in years, or an old dream he'd long forgotten. The feeling he knew this person kept his attention drawn to the rectangular surface far longer than he wanted to admit.

“...Who...are you?” The question fell into the air.

He thought he heard a voice from his dreams calling back to him in answer. It echoed into his mind like a faded, distant memory.

‘It’s not safe. You have to leave.’

Where had he heard that before?

A feeling of nausea flooded through him like a wave and he covered his mouth. Bile and stomach acid rose into the back of his mouth as he knocked the chair over in his haste to rush to the bathroom, practically choking on his own spit.

He didn’t notice the gold eyes peering through the hall window, or the rustling of feathers as he ran past.

Retching and coughing up what little contents he had in his stomach, Aether quivered over the toilet bowl. Thankful he made it in time, shifting to his knees, he rested his head against the outer porcelain. A conscious part of him was disgusted by the action, but his quaking, overheated muscles refused to move an inch. Another wave shot through his body and his eyes watered from the strain.

He'd have to get more than headache medicine, he realized. When his stomach finally settled, enough time had passed for the sun to shine directly into the nearest window, heating his back as he shivered.

Slowly, Aether found the strength to open his eyes again and was stunned to realize the migraine had ebbed away. Even the dizziness that had assaulted his senses since he woke was gone.

Mumbling weakly, he quietly wished he'd let Lumine and Paimon come with him. Being alone in a large, empty house full of dead memories was eating away at him, and the lack of familiar support left him ungrounded. He missed their laughter, his twin's affectionate teasing and stubborn nature as she stayed by his side. Even Paimon's black hole of a stomach as she begged for a third breakfast.

He missed all of it, and the intensity of those feelings, coupled with his present confusion and sickness, broke through his calm exterior, leaving him sobbing on the floor. “...Why did I even come here?”

Why didn't he let Lumine sign those papers the day they were asked to sell? Why was he adamant in seeing this forsaken place one last time? What could have been so important? Lumine and Paimon were his family, his little sister had never set foot in this place, being born long after they had left.

Laying there, listless and exhausted, Aether considered returning early, the broken phone and mysterious image be damned. He could ask Draff to collect his new phone and ship it to him. He could arrange a flight and be back with his siblings in a matter of days.

With those thoughts forming a quick plan in his mind, Aether finally managed to stand, legs wobbly as he balanced by the sink and quickly began to wash his face and teeth. He flushed the toilet–even gave it a quick scrub for good measure, and sighed, staring into the bathroom mirror with an empty gaze.

The nausea was gone, but the dull tremors of his migraine threatened to return. The person looking back at him barely recognizable and pathetic looking.

Why was he so sick? No one he had met yesterday seemed ill, and nothing he ate seemed bad. “...I'll just ask Draff to drop me off some flu medicine.”

Now that he was thinking clearer, getting a plane ticket while sick was probably not the greatest plan. In fact, he could imagine the lecture Lumine would give him just for attempting it.

No, as much as he missed his family, it was better to wait it out and leave when he wasn't a possible contagion to those around him. Deciding to fill his stomach with toast in hopes it would stay down, he left the bathroom and steeled himself to suffer through the rest of the day.

Entering the kitchen with weak stumbles, he stopped when he noticed something on the counter that hadn’t been there before. Standing proud and alone was a blue pill bottle labeled for flu and day time colds.

When did-?

He looked around for signs of anyone having gone through the house. The bolt was still on the door and the windows were sealed. Once he was satisfied no one else was in the house, Aether approached the counter and examined the bottle.

“...did I just forget I had this?” No, surely that wasn't right, but what other explanation was there?

Instinct screamed to trust himself. Aether wasn’t crazy. Not for this. And who in their right mind would take suspicious medications they didn’t remember purchasing themselves? Under normal circumstances, he would have thrown the bottle out, but his mind circled back to the photo on his phone and realized he couldn’t call any of this normal. The bird. Draff’s ability to be oblivious to the strange things around them. The supposedly old Zhongli and Venti–the latter whom he’d yet to meet, and the weird sensations he’d had since approaching their home.

While he would have chalked all this up to a tv show he’d binge watch back with Lumine and Paimon. The reality, however, was much harder to process and Aether struggled to accept the facts: this wasn’t his imagination. No matter the kind of media he’d once consumed, this was real. He wasn’t imagining any of it. That realization would have probably concerned most people, but Aether realized he hadn’t felt unsafe once. Whatever was out in the woods, he was safe, welcome even. A feeling he quietly admitted he hadn’t felt in a long time. Which is the exact thought that led to him popping two of the pills into his mouth and swallowing without another thought.

As he cleared his throat and returned to his coffee, he thought he heard a familiar warble of a bird, but when he turned to the sound, nothing was there. He wiped his mouth and peered out the window a little longer, eyes narrowed in thought.

Maybe he really was crazy.

Or…

Setting the thought aside, he returned to his sleep space with coffee in one hand and the phone in the other. The screen was dark, but he knew what would be looking straight at him the moment it lit up once more. That could also wait until later. Instead, he nestled himself in his blankets and waited for the pills to kick in…or worse.

It would turn out, Aether was lucky. The worst case scenario failed to happen. In fact, the pill’s he’d taken worked better than he thought. When he next woke after a short rest, the nausea was nonexistent and the headache that once pounded behind his eyes was a distant memory. He stretched under his blankets and smiled, surprised his muscles weren’t sore from his earlier vomiting.

It was prudent to not expect to be a hundred percent so soon, but Aether felt closer to normal than he had in days.

The busted phone in his hand shined with a blue light around the edges, signifying a notification and he was more than happy to examine it. He smiled as a video message from Paimon and Lumine popped up on the cracked screen. “Let’s see how well you see us with a busted phone, Aether!” Paimon shouted, voice so shrill it pierced his ears even through the machine, “You really are hopeless without us, huh?”

“You haven’t answered your phone or called us back,” Lumine followed behind Paimon, her golden hair a stark difference from their younger sister's platinum, but both of their eyes reflected the same amber as his own, despite the worry.

“If it’s not too jacked up,” she said tersely, “can you call us back?”

“Yeah! We’re worried about you!”

How the sound of their voices put a song in his heart and lifted his spirits in an instant. It was almost enough to completely forget about the image still opened in the gallery. While the image played out across the screen, slightly chopped and glitched in parts, he smiled and studied their faces. He missed them dearly, but this seemed just enough to chase the looming loneliness from his mood.

Just when he was about to return the missed call, he heard the same warble of a bird from earlier. It called his attention, pulling him to glance out his window towards the branches of the large oak in the front yard. He almost expected nothing to be there like before, but was surprised to find the demon bird itself peering back at him from the thinnest limb. It was as if the fowl was trying to press itself directly against the window as its head tilted to the side. Another chirp and Aether lifted up his phone in response and waved it with a raised brow. “I got it back, you lil’ gremlin,” he boasted, but was surprised when the bird merely hopped to the outer ledge and pecked the glass in a gentle rat-a-tat-tat, and cocked its head yet again. Aether got the strange impression it was waiting on something. Trying to discern the gaze of a bird, Aether looked around and spied the pill bottle he’d brought with him. It couldn’t be…could it? Logic would suggest that an animal wouldn’t understand the point in a bottle of medication, but after the last few days he’d had, he was starting to run with whatever wild conclusion popped into his mind. He set the phone down, replacing it with the bottle and held it up, stunned to see the bird’s head moving about as it followed the movement, eyes zeroed in on the object. He shook it to the left, then the right, marveling as his little terror kept it in its sights at all times. When he tossed it into the air, attempting to see if the bird would also jump, it squawked indignantly and puffed out its feathers, eliciting a sharp laugh from Aether.

Too cute, he thought, feeling far less angry at the bird than he was the day before. How could he stay mad at something so adorable? “All right, I’ll stop making you dance. Are you checking in on me?”

How silly, he thought, of course it wasn’t. It’s a bird, Aether, he told himself, yet again, ignoring the quiet reminder towards the image suggesting otherwise. But if his instincts were correct, no matter how insane they might be, then he couldn’t resist testing the theory. “I’m feeling much better now…Thanks? I don’t know how it could have been you, but if it was, I appreciate the help.”

It was just an experiment. That’s all it was. That’s what Aether told himself. One to prove his logic correct once and for all. There was nothing truly weird happening. He didn’t receive medication from a bird and it certainly hadn’t defied physics to deliver it to him.

The man in his phone was a hacker of some sorts and not the actual bird, and whatever happened at Zhongli’s was just social jitters. This bird didn’t know what he was saying, it probably didn’t even know he was talking to it to begin with. Now that he’d said his piece, the bird would continue not reacting, just as a real bird would and he’d chalk it up to delusions caused by stress. Yes. That was it. Mission a complete suc-

The bird bobbed its head and flapped its wings, brandishing the beautiful golden flight feathers that gleamed in the light. It twirled in its spot, like an actual dance and nodded its head before it took flight, leaving behind a shaking branch as the only sign it had been there in the first place.

-failure. Mission failure. Aether stared, nonplussed at the window, jaw wide open as his mouth went dry. It looked as if the bird had celebrated the news. That’s exactly what that was, right? He wasn’t crazy? No. He was crazy. Had to be. “...what was in those pills?”

Fresh air, Aether decided, after staring at the window for a ridiculous amount of time, to pay attention to a bird that was no longer there. When he gathered his wits, he realized he must have been in the dusty old place for too long. It was messing with his brain. That had to explain it.

Making a mental note to google what connections there could be to dust and hallucinations later, he sprang from his makeshift bed and rushed himself out the back door.

His intention was clear. A fresh clear breeze would be just what he needed to battle the old dust of the house and give him a better outlook on the situation. When he stepped out, a gentle wind rustled through his hair, brushing along his face in a gentle caress and the immediate change in temperature eased the tension in his shoulders. The old wood of the porch groaned at every step, but he ignored it. He had more pressing matters to attend to.

Like the fact he had a perfect view of the stone altar along the border of his land, standing proud and clean and was not helping his train of thought.

Once upon a time, Aether believed in the concept of the unknown: Ghosts, Fairies, Magic and Demons. These weren't just stories to him or Lumine. In this backyard, all stories felt as if they could come alive at any moment. It made their home a wondrous place. And while that feeling of wonder had faded as they grew older, the two of them worked hard to keep that magical feeling alive in their little sister.

These memories, thoughts, and feelings, they warred with each other in his mind. Frivolous, childhood fantasies that were nothing more than a young boy's imagination–he thought he believed that, but now Aether wasn't so sure.

He wondered if his sense of nostalgia was causing him to see the world differently, but the more he dismissed his experiences as a flight of fancy, the more it churned in his stomach like a sickness. Maybe there was still a part of him that wanted the magic of childhood to be more than silly memories.

There was no sight of the bird. A fact that filled Aether with quiet disappointment. He had hoped its nest was nearby, giving him more opportunities to observe it. Inhaling deeply, he sat on the steps of the decaying wooden porch and frowned.

The fogginess that plagued his mind that morning was long gone, but he was no closer to escaping his muddied thoughts than he was before. Rather than continue to circle through each moment and consideration, he chose instead to lean against the rails, gazing between the runs as he enjoyed the evening air.

The sun was just starting its downward descent, a testament to the passage of time while Aether was lost in the clouds of his own mind. He shut his eyes, opened them again, and clenched them shut once more, as if expecting something to change with each blink.

Nothing did.

The backyard remained the same with the grass almost on the verge of being too high, the debris he cleared off still littered by the large oak, and the stone altar–a staunch difference from the modern world.

He remembered asking why it was there once, but his Father had merely shrugged and stated it had been there long before they were and would still be there after they left. Now older, it was clearly a fancy way to say, 'I don't know,' but Aether had enjoyed the reasoning regardless.

It sounded...mystical back then. And even now, with the stories and myths echoing in his skull, it still felt beyond the world he knew beyond Springvale.

Keeping his eyes closed for longer, he immersed himself in his senses. The wind was still gentle, a cool brush along the back of his neck in the late spring air while the scent of the nearby woods and wildflowers eased his nerves. Taking a deep breath, Aether basked and allowed himself to imagine the world as he did when younger.

While he knew the world would remain as it was, once he opened his eyes again, he enjoyed pretending it wouldn't. That there was truth in the old tales and that the stone altar was more than just an ancient relic of a culture long lost. It could be a place where birds, plants, and even the elements could appear more than they were. Where they could walk next to Aether just as any other person could.

It was a nice thought that was soon interrupted by the familiar, distant sound of flapping.

Another bird? Aether wouldn't be surprised if a whole flock made their nests somewhere nearby, but the lone flapping was gone as fast as he heard it, followed by the crunching of undergrowth and twigs in the distance.

His eyes shot open, startled by the sound as if it occurred beside him, but his gaze trailed further off towards the treeline. The world remained the same, but his earlier consideration towards an intruder slammed back into him like a bag of bricks. Someone was out there. In the woods. They were close. He heard it loud and clear, Aether was certain.

Not a bird. Not an animal. Human footsteps.

Aether jumped to his feet, ignoring the wave of dizziness it caused as he held fast to the railing and leaned forward, eyes narrowed in earnest.

“Who's out there?” he called fiercely, already planning his escape back into the house. And if that didn’t work? What other places would he hide? The options weighed heavily in his mind.

He had no weapons. If a hunter was poaching nearby, Aether was defenseless. He didn’t see the familiar orange vest of a hunter exploring through the thickets, nor did he see the silhouette of a gun or compound bow. In the past, these were the staple of all legal hunters in the area and the locals were good at following the hunting laws to the letter. Was it the same still? Aether squinted his eyes, attempting to see further into the wood.

Another step, quieter, and Aether realized everything was just as quiet. No birds sounded and the wind had stopped just as suddenly. As if the world had paused in an instant all around him and left him spying the tree line for anything.

Someone was there.

And finally, he saw them; Their yellow eyes pierced him through the distance. Just like the photo on his phone, the man that should have been a bird, stepped behind a collection of trees with only the hint of teal and black hair dispersing into the shadows. Aether felt his heart tighten as the air left his lungs.

He'd seen that before. Not in a photo or in the identical coloring of a bird dancing in the tree limbs, but from a dream that felt like a memory. He exhaled sharply, recalling the small boy that had once urged him to never enter the woods, and who often joined him and Lumine in their childhood games.

An imaginary friend, his Mom had called it, having never seen the boy for herself. Eventually, Aether had convinced himself the same, but the taller, older proof had slipped into the shadows of the darkwood as if he'd belonged there.

Aether's mouth ran dry, his fingers shook. A bit of fear bled into excitement as he launched himself off the railing and dashed off towards the fence. His bare feet smarted when he tripped over a root and stepped on a twig, but he hastily moved onward, wincing briefly as his earlier dizziness sprang upon him like a tsunami.

“Wait, wait-!” he called, desperately , eyes blurring once he'd slammed himself against the fencepost nearest the treeline. He glanced through every gap in the trees, desperately wanting to see what he was so sure he knew now.

It couldn't be real, and yet it was. That was the man in the photo–who was also a bird, who swam in his memories as a quiet, gentle reminder from an old friend, to never step into the forest.

Recklessly, he climbed over the fence and grunted when another twig snapped beneath his feet. Logic no longer bound Aether in place as he looked for the safest path into the trees. He didn't know just how far he planned to go, only that the intense need to see the truth up close spurred him onward.

Three steps forward, however, and the world flipped on its head. Aether toppled to the earth with grass and leaves filling his mouth and tickling his nostrils. Coughing, he pushed himself up, body shaking as a wave of illness struck him just as hard that morning, as if it had never left.

“...s-shit!” He cursed, weakly looking onward as the world grew hazy. A strange fog swam into his vision, tinting the world around him as he struggled to sit up.

Stupid. How could he have been so stupid!

'You can't come here,' the voice, Aether now recognized as an old, forgotten friend, whispered in his ears. 'Never again. Stay safe, alive and happy, far away from here- please.'

He thought he saw someone approach as his head hit the dirt, darkness covering his vision yet again.

In this new dream, he felt strong arms lift him securely and carry him out of the woods, voice muttering words he could not understand quietly in his ear.

When Aether woke up, he was back in his room, body sore from head to toe, and stomach feeling inside out. A cool rag sat atop his head and a fresh glass of water sat on the nightstand beside him.

Right beside it, the mysterious medicine, sitting atop a long, golden feather.

#xiaother #genshin impact #genshin impact fanfiction #xiao x aether #Xiao Genshin Impact #Aether Genshin Impact #fantasy #supernatural romance #gi fanfiction

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cheetahsprints · 5 months

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Prompt #1: Falling

Inspired by this post

Note: I may have... gotten carried away and did a ficlet for every prompt a week and a half ago... I was indecisive, and I'm a little unhinged about this ship rn. I'm new to this ship so these aren't gonna be anything like... novel, but I had fun with it.

Shadow would reflect much later... that falling to Earth... the whistle of the wind... the searing atmosphere that left rough patches in his fur and tore at his quills... it was nothing special, really... it was nothing...

Compared to what it felt like to fall... for someone. It was a simple moment. The race had ended. The blue hedgehog, the bane himself was whooping with joy and endorphins. A handsome smile lit his face. More or less, Shadow’s involvement had put it there.

The ground fell away. His entire body burned. He was swallowed, consumed, reduced to dust that was torn away by the wind. His heart sped. His heart forgot how to beat. His mind went quiet. It was all too loud. He huffed and maintained his cool, indifferent exterior in spite of it all.

Sonic had quills as blue as the ocean, if not moreso. His eyes were as green as so much flora and Shadow easily got lost in that jungle. His smile was the sun. Yet Shadow felt like the planet drifting in space, and Sonic was his satellite that pushed and pulled his tides whether their goals were in opposition or alignment. They both aspired to not let each other down, to not let the other fall to ruin. They were two indomitable celestial bodies caught in an exquisite balance.

Falling to Earth had been nothing compared to the moment he realized he had fallen for his one and only true rival, Sonic the Hedgehog. He couldn’t shake the orbit as it dragged him down. The force was relentless. As then, the fight left him.

He accepted his fate.

#sonadow #prompts #1-5 #more to come #:)c #Just me spinning the ship around in my brain-microwave mmmmm mmmmmmmmm #the first five are connected then it goes off the rails after that

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violet-fire-cat · 1 year

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Naruto AU Etho and Bdubs? Sure. I blame @doctorbethany for this! She gave me the idea! These were actually really fun to put together though and there might be more in future! I guess they’re the product of me watching way, way too much Naruto over the last month lol

These are also from like two weeks ago I just forgot to post them whoops

#hermitcraft #bdoubleo100 #ethoslab #hermitblr #hermitcraft fanart #mcyt #digital art #violetattemptsart #yes I'm a nerd and I don't care

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the-one-who-lambs · 5 months

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Whoops forgot an emoji

🦎

Hey AughtPunk!! You're so new to writing for the fandom, you just posted your first cotl fic a couple weeks ago, and you're already making waves because your writing is truly lovely. Your narilamb fic was breathtakingly adorable. Bitter enemies turned soft loves... ooh I'm always so weak for good reads like this.

And the Bishop family fic oh my god. The ease with which you are breaking my heart and mending it back together is astounding. To Forgive is Divine is a really sweet story so far and I'm excited to see where you go with it.

Thank you so much for sharing what you do, it's always a treat to read (and omg you sending me this ask reminded me that I forgot to leave kudos on Liddle Lamzy Divey I'm so sorry jkhfdgjkfdh).

#hannah's rambles

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canmom · 10 months

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I was tagged by @baeddel and charged with the following questions:

Last song: Mephisto by Queen Bee. This is the ED for Oshi no Ko, and that is indeed the context I first encountered it. But I've kind of become obsessed with Queen Bee ever since I saw this video of Avu-chan:

youtube

There is definitely an element of "I want to learn to sing but I cannot sound like a cis women no matter what so I have to figure out some other sort of voice to aspire towards". Not that I could ever have Avu-chan's ridiculous range lol. But they are sort of the coolest person I've ever seen.

After that I learned that I'd been hearing Avu-chan a whole bunch. For example, Avu-chan voices Inu-oh! All the fantastic songs I enjoyed in that film...

youtube

And that's not even the first time Avu-chan worked with Masaaki Yuasa. You remember that amazing version of Devilman no Uta from Devilman Crybaby?

youtube

Yeah, guess who.

But that's just focusing on the anime link. Queen Bee is the shit. Like check out this duet between Avu-chan and Avu-chan:

youtube

Or King Bitch with all the martial arts. Or Inu-hime which manages to pack a whole gory jidaigeki story into a three and a half minute music video. I'm still working my way back through Queen Bee's videos.

Forgive me, this is way more than one song ^^'

Currently watching: Besides Animation Night tonight? ^^

I recently finished Tengoku Daimakyou - which was imo strong right up to the end, and there's a bunch to write about it. But this says 'currently' so...

I'm presently catching up on Oshi no Ko. (Hence the Queen Bee listening.) Which is the one where the gynecologist is reincarnated as the son of an idol alongside one of his patients; said idol gets murdered, and then as a highschool student our boy's attempting to solve her murder while getting caught up in all sorts of showbiz drama. I've written a bit about Oshi no Ko before; two eps further on, the story continues to have some delightful swerves and I'm fascinated to see where they're going with all this. I can see it steadily orbiting certain themes - falsehood, performance, self-identity and so on - but what the ultimate thrust will be, remains to be seen.

I ended up rewatching a few episodes with @footsteps-on-the-dance-floor a couple weeks ago. On the rewatch, I was struck by how, in this show about acting, just how much attention is indeed paid to the acting of the characters. Not so much flashy sakuga, just lots of carefully observed interactions that I came to appreciate a lot as I understood the characters better.

Currently reading: [whoops, forgot this one, editing it in] Ghost in the Shell for fiction. Shirow's manga is fascinating. In some ways you can see all the material that made it out into Production IG's various adaptations, but in some ways the tone is so different, way less dry, way more unabashedly nerdy, the characters much more emotional. I'm fascinated by all the little asides and margin notes by Shirow.

For non fiction, I've got this book called "Queer British Art 1861-1967" by the Tate that I'm steadily reading. It's fascinating, I didn't know shit about most of the people they write about in here.

Current obsession: What do I do that can't be characterised as an obsession really ^^'

But besides work, and writing long posts on here, and drawing pictures, I've been trying to learn music. I mentioned singing, but the other strand is trying to learn the zhonghu. So let me tell you about zhonghus.

This is a Chinese musical instrument, a close sibling of the erhu. Like a violin, it's a bowed instrument; unlike a violin, it's held upright on your lap, it has only two strings, and the bow is held in between them.

The bowstrings are very loose compared to a violin bow, and you use your fingers to press them against one or other string. There is no fingerboard, let alone frets, so pitch depends on how hard you press the strings as well as where your fingers are positioned. Not to mention a million other variables to do with your specific instrument.

The zhonghu and the erhu are almost the same instrument; the zhonghu is tuned slightly lower, similar to a viola compared to a violin. Also? The soundbox is covered by snakeskin, so if you import an erhu (or zhonghu) from China, you have to go to some effort to certify that the snake in question was from a farm and not a wild snake. And you have to be really careful that the bowstring doesn't catch on the scales.

Why am I learning the zhonghu? Well. That's a long story but the tl;dr is my friend suggested I should be a zhonghu player and I was like you know what sure. So now I have her old zhonghu.

I used to play the violin, but I think the way I learned the violin left a lot to be desired in terms of actually understanding music. I could translate sheet music into finger positions, and fulfill my role in an orchestra for kids, but I lost the thread at uni, where I tried to play with the ceilidh band and found I was completely at sea in a more improvisational setting. Add like a decade of rust on top of that.

So it's safe to say that right now I'm really fucking bad at playing the zhonghu. Nevertheless, I'm trying to persevere. In the month or so since I started, with very irregular practice, I've gone from 'can only make a horrible scratching sound' to 'can play an open string' to 'never hitting a note first try' to 'can mostly hit notes until I try to move my hand', so I'm inching forwards. It's a long way until I can make the kind of beautiful music that the erhu is known for, and I don't have any belief I'll ever be notably good at it, but there's nothing to be lost in trying to learn a new thing, even if it's one that is not coming naturally to me at all. Better to struggle than to go my whole life never picking up an instrument again you know.

Tagging - uhhh let's say - @mogsk @schizsune @sisyphication @catnumbers @argyrocratie @centrally-unplanned @hamiltonianflow @sapeami-scalps-whites [if you'd like, in each case!] The questions are 'last song', 'currently watching', 'currently reading', 'current obsession', answer in as much or little detail as you like

#Youtube #ask meme #chain meme

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