#I know it comes off as haughty but I work hard to get my art to look ya know

[novicecomics-personal]

Sometimes I feel like if I made art and art videos for a smaller Fandom I would get more recognition

#sammy speaks #shut up sammy #I know it comes off as haughty but I work hard to get my art to look ya know #kinda good(?) #idk i know there are so many amazing artists out there and my stuff lacks a lot #but damn #getting more than 20 interactions on a piece regularly would be nice

[sir-yeehaw-paws]

🍉💌

(Sending good vibes 🔆🌻)

Real Writer Asks

Aww how sweet. Right back at you Anon!

🍉in what ways has writing helped you process trauma and/or navigate through your own life?

Interesting ask this one is. Because I feel like I'm the kind of person who hasn't used fic for trauma processing. Yet I know that isn't fully true, either. I definitely incorporate some of my own life experiences into my fics, and as a reader, have sought out media with topics I find too difficult to take to a table IRL. But I also spent over 20 years in therapy so I was lucky enough to have that space. I could say that, much like when I'm a player character in a video game, writing men in particular has helped me tremendously with the long, uphill battle of being trans. But I don't actually write trans characters that much. I feel as if perhaps I prefer the point where all the negotiating aspect is gone, and I can just fully embrace the final package. Fully-formed men or, whatever you want to call it. I am an incredibly intense daydreamer, for instance. I talk to myself regularly, I am constantly finding myself in a daze. Fantasizing. Looking at things in reality and being reminded of the media I enjoy. I am a creative, but I can struggle to stay consistent. Writing is a constant in my life. And one that has provided an outlet in so many ways. I've made brief mentions of the incident before. How in a huge fit of mental breakdown I wiped all my creative works (My original AO3 works, my tumblr, live journal etc) from the world. I did this all within days of my inpatient admission to the hospital, and when I came out of it realized I'd just dumped a huge portion of things I'd created over years of hard work and friend interaction out the door. I erased a large part of myself when I did that. And have promised myself no matter how bad it gets, I am never-ever doing that again. It is not worth it. But I acknowledge I wasn't thinking clearly, either. That I was in a place where my head was nowhere on earth; and the decisions I made that night. Offline and online, were a sign of something bigger. Beyond me. Art, creativity, outlets. These are so important in our world. But everyone gets something different out of it. I have been writing fanfic since I was 17. I'm now 32. Huge parts of my personal growth have come with writing, and some of my life events took place around it. That's crazy to think about sometimes.

💌share something with us about an up-and-coming work (WIP) that has you excited!

Sure! You can have some snippets of this BBKaz fic I'm writing right now that is from BB's POV. I almost never write BB, and never his point of view because I find him so hard to write. So I feel like, for once, I'm developing some confidence about doing so. Which is exciting. He feels almost obtainable to write out for me and I'm excited to see how I do and how it comes across.

Tidbit's Below Cut:

“An enemy, a friend. Incapacitate, when possible, Jack. Just because we have strengths does not mean we need to abuse them.” But she was wrong, wasn’t she? She was the deadliest force he’d ever known.  How true. How easy. They’d have turned on him. Against the pile, the thick cloy of blood, John listens for the kick of weak feet up ahead. The tallest man of the lots sagging hard. From his vantage point, glancing down his smoldering barrel, John can make out that bright blonde hair. Matted, sticking to his scalp from blood, mud, and trickles of tissue from a comrade or two. His men. The ones John slaughtered in the counted heartbeats charging up his lungs. Three broken fingers scramble for a nearby machete, John takes a leisurely stride. “You’re lost, Commander.” He knows the man speaks English. The contract hinted at it. Aviators, cracked with John’s own wild-mane hair, blood-stained cheeks in their reflection slip down a haughty nose. “Then kill me!” such an odd voice. High pitched, scratchy. Incredibly, the man continues to make demands, “The machete, take it. Cut off my head!” Intrigued, John wanders towards it. Steps over the crumpled form of the man’s deceased second in command. Feels the strong heft and weight in his calloused palm. One of the man’s hands is defiantly held under his back, John only manages to catch a tell-tale grip on something round and solid, clearly bumpy in that fumbling grip. Complete, utter defiance. A trick up his sleeve. Bastardized hope reaches into the deep crevice in his hollow heart. A sudden burst of CPR adrenaline thick. Water in his desert. Light in his tunnel. “I don’t think so.” John thrusts the machete up, pushing the flat of the blade hard against the man’s side. Sends those shattered frames to ground as he rolls him to brace on his hip. Pins his wrist with that threatening edge, digs into those fine, tender bones and new blood coats it’s shiny-dented steel. His captive thrashes, whines with angry fear when John leans over him, wiggling the grenade he wrenches free of his palm in his face. Face to face with a cracked skull inches away, the Commander sneers, sputters. “It was a good try.” John’s breath stumbles as he wraps an arm about the captive’s throat, imagines a man with such fire. Such pride. Clever and desperate.

#real writer asks #asks #answered asks #ask games #fanfic asks

[leaderpinhead]

Jack - Scream

The scream was what sent Jack sprinting down the hallway. Aggressive shouts and confrontational yelling were the norm after class hours, especially on the halls the professors patrolled less. This scream sounded much higher in pitch than normal. Jack's instincts pictured only one person capable of making that sound on campus. 

He turned the corner of the hall and scanned the area. He rushed to where Yuu stood just outside class 1-D. “Yuu! Are you—?” 

The scream sounded again at the exact same moment Yuu turned to him. He blinked in confusion when it became obvious the sound hadn’t come from her. Yuu blinked back at him. “What’s up, Jack?” 

Jack rubbed the back of his ear. “Uh. Well. Who’s that screaming?” 

Yuu’s face lit up in obvious amusement. “You heard that? It’s nothing serious. Just Sebek—.” 

“It’s beautiful!” 

Sebek’s voice was unmistakable. Yuu stepped aside to give Jack room to lean around the doorframe. Sebek circled one of the desks at the back of the classroom. Asher stood a little off to the side, his face flushed with genuine pleasure. “You really think so? I wasn’t so sure I could get all the tiny details you wanted, but I did my best!” 

Sebek straightened, and a haughty smirk spread across his face. “Of course, nothing can fully live up to the majesty and grace of the real Malleus, but your art has merit. I can see why Malleus commissioned you to refurbish the glass vases throughout Diasomnia Dorm. Malleus wouldn’t trust just anyone to fulfill a task for him.” 

Asher kept beaming. He shot a quick glance at the doorway and shot them a thumbs up. Yuu returned the gesture, leading Jack to assume Asher had asked Yuu to stop by his classroom. “Asher worked really hard on the sculpture, Sebek. You should recommend him around the dorm for more commissions.” 

Asher’s eyes slightly widened like he hadn’t expected Yuu to market him in such a way. Sebek chuckled, completely missing Asher’s sudden nervousness. “Of course! I would recommend anyone who Malleus approves. Everyone in the dorm would be beside themselves to have such a faithful replica of Malleus’s greatness!” 

Sebek very carefully picked up the small statue from the desk. Each step he took towards the door was carefully calculated. Jack's ears flared when he got his first good view of the sculpture. It looked almost like crystal with wisps of neon green in the center that made it easy for his eyes to identify the translucent figure. 

Jack shot a wide grin at Asher. “That’s pretty good work, Ash! I didn’t know you could shape glass to look like that.” 

Asher beamed, his pleasure returning. “You should come see some of my other sculptures then! I keep them in the art room where I usually host the Glass Art Club.” 

Jack nodded, liking the idea. Sebek made a shooing motion with his chin while he protectively clutched his new art piece. “Move aside! I must show this masterpiece to—.” 

“Out of the way!” 

“Get back here, Grim!” 

Grim sprinted through Sebek’s legs with a howl of laughter. Ace shouted moments before his shoulder rammed into Sebek’s arm. Sebek fumbled to protect the glass sculpture in his arms. It slipped beneath his elbow. 

The shatter of glass against the floor was almost as piercing as the scream that emitted from Sebek. Jack covered his ears, eyes wide at the decibel Sebek managed to reach. Even Yuu winced. “Oh, no...” 

“HOW DARE YOU DESTROY MY MASTERPIECE OF MALLEUS!” 

Ace noticeably winced, but there was an unmistakable scowl on his face. “Maybe if you had watched where you were stepping, it wouldn’t have happened.” 

“I SHOULD WATCH WHERE I AM STEPPING? RUNNING IN THE HALLS IS EXPRESSLY FORBIDDEN!” 

Seeing he wasn’t going to outdo Sebek, Ace wisely started in the direction Grim had disappeared. “People in the hallway have the right of way!” 

“I WILL SHOW YOU THE RIGHT OF WAY!” 

Ace’s eyes widened before he took off down the hall. Sebek began chasing him even after scolding Ace for running in the halls. Yuu sighed but didn’t make a move to stop them. She crouched and reached out as if to gather the glass. She thought better of it after carefully picking up one of the larger pieces between her fingers. “I’m sorry, Asher. You spent so long on this.” 

Asher sighed and joined them to crouch beside Yuu. “It’s fine. That’s the biggest downside to glass art: there’s always a chance of it shattering. I guess I’m more upset for Sebek. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him look that happy except around the real Malleus.” 

Jack rubbed the back of his neck. “Maybe you can make it again?” 

“I probably could,” Asher agreed. He recited a simple spell and gathered the glass shards into a small ball to hover over his hand. Him and Yuu stood. “It won’t be exactly the same though.” 

“I don’t think it needs to be the same,” Yuu argued. She pointed at the ball of glass. “I think now that you know you can do that, you should push yourself to keep doing it. Sebek is the only one who cares if it’s perfect, and you’ve already gotten his approval.” 

Asher nodded. “You’re right! I’m going to take this back to the art classroom, so I can work on it later. Thanks, Yuu!” 

Yuu waved after Asher when he left them. She waited until he completely vanished before releasing a heavy sigh. “Well, I guess I better track down Grim and figure out what he’s in trouble for now.” 

Jack scoffed. “What about Ace?” 

“He dug his own hole.” Jack scoffed again but couldn’t hide his grin. Yuu squinted up at him. “By the way, we need to talk about you thinking it was me screaming earlier.” 

Jack rubbed the back of his neck and glanced all around them. “I don’t know what you mean.” 

“My scream isn’t that loud.” 

“I never said I thought it was you.” 

Yuu huffed but didn’t push him. Jack made a mental note to pay more attention to Yuu’s vocal range. Despite her being the only girl on campus, it didn’t mean she was the only one who’s voice could pitch so high.

#twisted wonderland #twstober #jack howl #day 15 scream #protective big brother Jack is my favorite :3

[carlatsukinamistolemyhamsandwich]

Fiction - Shin x Reader drabble

I know one popular imagine (or at least I’ve certainly seen it come up a lot) is some sort of reverse AU where your favourite character is the one that lives in the real world while you’re fictional and they’re left fangirling over you. 

It’s something that doesn’t work quite so well with the diaboys, Shin in particular because I really don’t see him as the type to get fictional crushes, but I definitely see the appeal, and recently I felt inspired to have a go at writing it. Because leaving Shin as a first blood but trying to make him fall in love with a video game character would have genuinely broken my brain, this is set a modern AU I talked about in this ask (in other words it is a true reverse AU).

Possible trigger warnings only really include some vague mentions of disease + treatment. If anyone needs me to add any warnings then please let me know!

***

The first time Shin sees you it’s on the cover of a magazine—one of the one’s the nerdy guys who look like they could use less time on their parent’s couches tend to drool over—that he’s stacking on the racks at the convenience store, one of the many part-time jobs he’d had to pick up when the money dwindled along with his older brother’s health. There’s no reason why the cover should catch his attention—the title it’s advertising is called Diabolik Lovers of all thingsーand he wouldn’t have said you’re particularly his type, but for some reason, his gaze lingers on it as he works on shelving some of the other magazines. 

Maybe it’s just that after spending so much time around his brother, he’s started to pick up something of an eye for art. Whatever, he has more shit to do before his shift ends and no matter how hard he’s working himself, he’s still far above becoming one of those weird otaku types. So he turns his back on you and gets back to work.

He watches the screen out of the corner of his eye for a bit, waiting for the perfect time to catch him out. It’s not at the right angle to let him read the text, but he can make you out well enough. There’s something about you that seems familiar but he’d never play these sorts of games himself so he writes it off as nothing more than some weird déjà vu. At least whoever was in charge of your character design had a halfway decent sense of style—your hair frames your face nicely, unlike the characters plastered all over the adverts on the trains that he’s forced to look at on the way to and from the café. Your figure... isn’t terrible per say and your outfit definitely flatters it. 

The second time he sees you, it’s on the screen of a co-worker's portable games console—hidden under the counter during a particularly slow shift at the coffee shop. Shin has half a mind to bark at the guy—Tanaka or Tamura or something—to put it away, but it’s been a long week; a bad week, with Carla’s doctor’s bills wracking up even though none of the drugs they give him seem to do a damn thing. As it is, Shin himself feels like he’s about to go out of his mind with boredom so he might as well wind the guy up to get some sort of a kick.

The screen changes then, switching from a sprite of you pulling some sort of haughty expression to something that looks much more like embarrassment, your eyes no longer looking at the player and instead off to the side as you bite your lip.

Cute, Shin thinks, unbidden, before catching himself. The stress and exhaustion of the past week must be catching up to him more than he’d thought if he’s seriously eyeing up a bunch of pixels. Then his attention is snatched by the sound of the café door opening, a bunch of tourists bundling in to escape the faint autumn chill in the air, and he snaps at Takada(?) to put the damn game away and get back to work, your face shoved to the back of his mind and forgotten about. 

It stays that way for the next couple of months as autumn turns into winter proper, the outside temperature going from slightly chilly to downright uncomfortable. It’s on a day when the weather is particularly bad that Shin finds himself stuck in the same café. He has the job of closing up for the night, and is about to be on his way when his phone buzzes with a message from his brother notifying him that apparently there's been some sort of major fault with the trainline and the service has been cancelled for the rest of the evening so he’ll have to find another way home.

Shin lets out a particularly foul curse as he tosses his coat and scarf onto a nearby chair and sunk down into one opposite. He doesn’t have the money for a cab—well, he does, but if he uses it then he can kiss that new pair of glasses goodbye, a pair he sorely needs given how scratched the lenses of his current ones have gotten despite his best efforts. The last bus is long gone and there's sure as hell no way he's going to try to walk home—not with the snow that's coming down in thick flakes and starting to pile up outside the door. In fact with what's quickly starting to look like a blizzard sweeping through the city, Shin isn’t sure he’d be able to get a cab even if he was prepared to fork out for one.

He shoots off a quick message to his manager explaining the situation and asking if he's alright to stay the night. By the time the reply comes through, the scene outside the window looks actively hostile and Shin’s already decided that he’s staying no matter how much trouble it gets him into. Fortunately that’s not something he has to worry about, as his manager not only gives him the clear to stay the night, but also to help himself to some food so he doesn’t starve. 

He’s halfway through his second sandwich when he notices the battery on his phone is in the red. Crap, without it he’s stuck in here all night with fuck all to do. Abandoning the sandwich, he goes to search the employees' room to see if anyone’s left a phone charger he can borrow lying around. It’s as he’s hunting around the space that he spots it, Tadaka something or other’s game console. Huh, he must have forgotten it when he’d left earlier. Shin looks at it for a moment, it would be something to pass the time at least but there’s no case lying around so he’d be stuck with whatever the idiot was last playing. 

Shaking his head, Shin resumes his search for a phone charger, borderline turning the whole room upside down, only to come up short. How can his colleagues have left behind everything from a college text book to spare—he hopes—underwear, but not a phone charger? Cursing his luck, he grabs the game console as he stomps back to the main space of the café, throwing himself into a seat and taking a vicious bite of his sandwich as he powers up the handheld.

He pauses when he reads the name of the highlighted game icon—the one that’s actually loaded in the console—Diabolik Lovers, why did that ring a bell? Whatever, he’s probably just seen some poster for it around town he thinks as he taps through the various company logos and the opening movie. It’s only when he gets to the title screen and your sprite shows up next to the title, your voice playing through the speakers as you say the name of the game, that he realises what game this is. 

Now that he’s actually got a good look at the screen, Shin thinks he was right in his initial evaluation of you—you’re not really his type, but you’re not exactly bad to look at either. He chooses the new game option, leaning back in his chair and he selects to keep the default protagonists name and quickly reads through the prologue. God the premise for this game is even worse than he’d been expecting, what sort of weirdo wanted to play through a game where they were trapped in a mansion with a bunch of sadistic vampires? 

Still, at least it might give him something to laugh at. He’s just thinking how much he already dislikes the stupid and meek protagonist when he gets to the route selection screen. There’s no real reason why he chooses you—if anyone asked he’d say it’s because the other love interests all seem likely to irritate him to death before he could even get past their prologues. 

As it is, the game is even more corny than he'd imagined. There's no real plot to speak of, just a series of scenes where you find some reason or another to harass the feeble protagonist.

He's at the point where he's about to turn the damn game off and try to get some sleep when the audio changes slightly, so that it sounds as though your voice is coming more from one speaker than it is the other. For a moment he knocks the console against the surface of the table, thinking the stupid thing must be on the fritz. The audio still sounds janked and Shin frowns at it before an idea strikes him. He plugs his headphones in and tries playing the next voice line andーOh.

It sounds like you're speaking right in his ear, your voice is low as you deliver a threat to the protagonist about just what will happen if he disobeys you. In spite of himself, Shin feels a faint burn start to spread across his cheeks. It's really really stupid that he's being even the slightest bit affected by such a cheap gimmick but your voice is nice and it's definitely doing something for him whether he wants it to or not. He clicks through the next lines of dialogue, a shudder running through him when your voice drops to a whisper. Shin swears he will never ever admit to anyone the heat that pools in him when you call the protagonist a good boy for nodding along with your orders.

When you pull away and the audio goes back to normal, Shin sits there for a moment. There's no way he can just lie his head on the table and go to sleep now, not when he feels far more awake than he had before he'd picked up the gameーfar more than he has for a long while now in fact.

The snow has long stopped falling by the time the low battery icon starts to blink, the sky having lightened to a now a mid-tone gray against the otherwise white outdoors. Shin blearily squints at the time on the console and sees that the store is due to open in just a couple of hoursーhe's somehow spent nearly the entire night playing some dumb video game. 

He finally turns handheld off, stretching out in his chair and cursing at himself for not noticing the time earlier. Taking off his glasses, he folds his arm to make a rudimentary pillow and rests his head on them. And when he finally sinks deep into the clutches of sleep, he dreams of you.

A couple of weeks pass. Shin doesn't buy the game or make any effort to play it again but he does think about it more than he'd likeーfor some reason he just can't quite shake the sound of your voice in his ears and it keeps him awake at night. There's no way he can straight up ask to borrow it, not with the hit it'd be to his already thoroughly dented pride, and he can't justify spending the money on it either. So he tries his best to put you out of his head and get on with his frustratingly tedious life.

That is, at least, until he walks past a second hand shop on the way back from the supermarket and spots a CD with you emblazoned on the cover on one of the racks outside. He quickly checks to make sure there's no one around before stepping closer, taking the CD in his hand and turning it over. Shin hadn't known there were drama CDs too一seriously how many freaks had to be into this stuff for there to be this much material for it?一and as he looks from the case in his hand to those still on the rack, he realises that it's not just one set of CDs either. There must be nearly two dozen volumes from the franchise at least, many from different series boasting increasingly stupid titles. 

The CD he's holding is the only one featuring youーwhich means you're either one of the most popular characters or no one was even willing to buy your volumes first-handーand it's only two hundred yen. He shouldn't buy it, really, listening to this sort of stuff is beneath him. 

Minutes later he exits the store with a small plastic bag and his wallet slightly lighter for it.

The CD ends up being about what Shin had expected, a solid hour of you degrading the witless protagonist from the games interspersed with the obscene noises of you drinking his blood. He listens to it just before he goes to sleep, and then again the next evening and once more while he's closing up the coffee shop.

A few weeks later, he spies another one of your CDs in the same second hand shop for four hundred yen. He buys that too.

Shin still doesn't buy any of the games, but as it turns out, he doesn't need to. Some losers with far too much time on their hands have translated nearly every single one of your routes into English, so he reads through those instead, the years spent at that private bordering school in England before his family had fallen apart finally coming into use. 

That’s not all though, there are a whole bunch of stories about you on various blogging sites, clearly written by shut-ins who spend too much time hunched over their laptops to have any hope of being in a real relationship. That doesn’t stop him from reading them all though—the good, the bad, and the ones that are far more depraved than anything in the actual games. He learns to stop reading the latter in public after an incident in which he misses his train stop due to being preoccupied by trying to cover his crotch with his bag.

It takes a while for him to notice how deep he’s getting, that the new earring he’d bought the other week with a small amount of extra cash just happens to have a crystal in it the same colour as your eyes. That most nights he falls asleep to the sound of your voice being played through his shitty headphones, which he justifies to himself by the fact it distracts from the noise the upstairs neighbours usually inflict on him. That some of his limited free time has been spent arguing with idiots online, who clearly don’t know anything about you at all but like to pretend they do. 

It’s only when he 's walking through the street, the summer sunlight warming his skin, and he catches sight of a poster plastered over a nearby building that it really hits him. The poster is big, full of all of the different love interests from the game franchise dressed in fancy outfits as part of some limited edition campaign thing. You’re there, front and centre—and fuck you’re beautiful.

Something in his chest aches as he looks as you—actually aches—and if he weren’t so preoccupied with the sight of you, he’d be more than a little disgusted with himself. As it is, Shin’s not prepared to admit how long he stands there, staring. And if he drops by the event to pick up the free postcard of you in your event outfit then that’s nobody’s business but his.

#my writing #what is this??? #why did I write it? #and why did I feel sad as I wrote it? #also please note that Shin's POV obviously doesn't match mine when it comes to fanfic authors and translators lol #in fact did I write this just to have Shin drag me? #You know what maybe #anyway lol enjoy

[thenonconformistcurmudgeon]

Breukelen

I was born and grew up on the cement sidewalks and playgrounds of Brooklyn in a multiethnic/multiracial blue-collar neighborhood but it was not to be my ultimate destination. Although there was so much to love about my surroundings, I knew it was not where I wanted to end up.  Watching my father and the other fathers trudge home from the subways and buses from jobs they despised, I wanted something poles apart for myself.  I knew education was my way out to achieve my goals of not being a slave to the weekly paycheck, to be able to travel, to be in nature, to experience beauty.  

The sweaty men coming home from their factory jobs appeared so beaten down. There was great honor in what they did.  Providing for their family, giving their children the opportunities for something more, knowing they themselves would never be able to have it. Their pride in their children was their joy and their blessings.  The mothers had dinner just about ready when the fathers walked through the door. Their lives were about home, children, and subjugating desires in the hopes for a better life for their children. From the mothers and fathers, I learned hard work and persistence were necessary to achieve goals even if the goals were discrepant.

In the summer, the pavement would heat up and you could feel the hot steam radiating off the sidewalk. There was the heat of the summer sun with limited tree canopy, and becoming quickly drenched with perspiration from the unbearable humidity. In the month of June, school was oppressive from the heat and little academic work was attempted. In the winter, little heat from the furnace was used at night, and I’d shiver in bed from the cold.  My views of Brooklyn run hot and cold as well.

In some ways it was a magical place full of freedom and reckless abandon. The corner candy store with penny candies such as dots, bazooka bubble gum and licorice. Baseball cards could be bought for a think a dime with 5 cards and the rock hardest piece of gum. The endless games on the street and in the cement playgrounds. With a simple rubber ball, you could play stickball, box ball, stoop ball, hit the penny, punch ball, handball, and likely others that I can’t recall. You could walk around the block to see friends, even if it was to just hang out on the stoop.

I learned teamwork from the ceaseless playground sports, a lifelong skill that came in handy no matter the setting.  Being such a diverse neighborhood, I learned to read people well, so one could get along. Being Brooklyn, you also learned how to playfully harass each other and accept being chided.  An important aptitude was knowing how far you could go and the boundaries. Certainly, no one would get away with being haughty and were quickly put in their place.

There was a time my father came home with a coat for me.  It was a cheap knockoff fake leather coat and I surely knew that my friends would give me hell for wearing it.  Despite knowing what would happen, to please my father I wore it once or twice, and sure enough my friends wasted no time making fun of me and the coat. I stopped wearing it and my father didn’t understand why I wouldn’t wear it while my friends would also question why I wasn’t wearing it but their interests were not so benevolent.

However, like the heat, the community could be stifling. There was not a lot in the way of beauty, art, nature and intellectual curiosity. The palette was bland in many ways. All were economically struggling families so in that way there was not much diversity in lifestyle.  You had to go into Manhattan (the city), to see folks leading a more varied cultural and economic journeys.

I loved the bohemia of Greenwich village.  The varied ways people dressed, acted, sexual orientations, and the freedoms it encouraged. The museums of the city allowed me to see art, beauty, culture, and have a greater anthropological understanding of the animal kingdom and humanity.  The talent at a Broadway play was astounding.   The music, dance, acting, singing, costumes, set designs are all awe-inspiring.  I’d walk down fifth avenue and watch wealthy people shop and wonder how did all those people get so much money as I personally didn’t know anyone like that. I’d go into Saks Fifth Avenue to use the bathroom but would wander the fur department and be transported into a different civilization.

Although as a teen and a young man, I thought I’d end up in Greenwich Village as my escape from Brooklyn, it was not to be. My friends foresaw my future better than I could. I guess they were good at reading people too.  My friends had a nickname for me, nature boy, as I would take girls to prospect park, the botanic gardens, and any green space I could find.  I guess it is no surprise I spent over 30 years living in the forest in Maine surrounded by greens turning to yellows, reds, oranges, browns in the autumn.

Although I made my break from Brooklyn at age 18, Brooklyn is deeply ingrained in my character, nature, soul. I can still be the fast talking, wise cracking guttersnipe who doesn’t let a friend or associate get away with being snooty. For nature boy also likes taking down myself or someone else a peg or two.  Brooklyn has never been politically correct but within its historical diversity you accept we are all alike, no better nor worse than each other. I’ve been told I can come across very self-assured and confident in my proclamations, but I too am just that guy in the fake leather vinyl coat. Go ahead, take a swipe at me, the kid from Brooklyn can take it.

#Breukelen

[oh-for-fic-sake]

The Deal Pt 2

Masterlist

Summary: Clark take you to august to finish the deal.

Warnings: Adult Situations +18, Smut, Dub Con, BDSM, Toys

A/N: second part to @wolfieash​ ask which is here

Taglist: in reblog.

Smut below the cut.

"NO IM NOT GOING ! AND YOU CAN FUCK OFF!" You yelled chasing Clark into the living room arms cross and lips pulled into a snarl.

He rolled his eyes at you, you'd been throwing a fit all day.

"Sweetheart, you made a deal, gave him your word... you cant go back on it" he insisted once more trying to convince you.

"Yes I can it was my word! Not yours, I can do what I want!" You huffed blowing some hair out of your face it was hard trying to be serious when your hair seemed to want to stick in your mouth.

"No poppet I'm not letting you break you word , now get dressed we leave in a hour" he said quickly spinning you around pressing you to the bedroom door.

"Fuck you, I'm not going anywhere!" You grunted pulling away from him.

"Tonight love I promise, now go get ready august is expecting us..." he said grinning almost sweetly at you.

"I don't give a flying fuck! I'm not going" you stomped a foot at him finally making his brow twitch, jaw tightening in irritation.

He stood taller and let his frame seem to devour the space on the hall making you shrink, shivering as you watched your sweet fiancé become a great predator. A loin or bear?

"Sweetheart enough! Now go get dressed...I laid out your outfit" he ground out severely finally having enough. A deal was a deal... and he wanted your ass!

"Out fit? What outfit-OH MY GOD WHAT THE FUCK IS THAT!?" You cried entering your room seeing the shear fabric

"That? Its a little body stocking~" Clark said leaning on the door frame arms crossed wearing a huge grin.

"IM NOT WEARING A FUCKING BODYSTOCKING!"

"Well I would if I were you because if not there will be images of your naked ass being flown about on the front pages tomorrow~" he quipped with a smirk.

"Yo-you wouldn't dare!" You said voice loosing its bite as he stared at you.

"Wouldn't I? I mean come on love anal's on the line~" he teased and moved up behind you and slapped your bottom hard enough to make you yip and jerk away.

"Now hop to it... You've got 50 minuets~" he called over his shoulder as he exited the room.

In the end Clarks threat of having you mooney metropolis was too much of a threat and you'd showered and slipped into the body stocking...

But you didn't shave! If they were gonna push through with your whole sex for silence deal then they would live with the consequences! No bare pussy for either of them!

Fuck'em.... or don't? Which was preferable

It wasn't that you didn't enjoy it, it was that you did... a little more then you should have! It frightened you the way you'd enjoyed being used and fought over.

"Oh come on why the long face angel?" August hummed as he opened the glass doors on his rooftop home, the penthouse was shiny sleek and as dark as the man himself.

"Fuck off august!" you grumbled walking right passed him as soon as Clark put you down

"Oh such a foul mouth! We will have to teach you some manners~" the agent quipped as you entered the bare but masculine space, everything was harsh lines and fucked up art pieces of splotching blocky shades of black, red and deep violet.

"Yes she's very snippy today... has been all week, pouting" Clark huffed shrugging. Taking the offered crystal glass with amber liquid.

"Ah we have a brat on our hands then?" August chuckled and walked through the home quickly snagging one of your elbows and directed you to the playroom, not wasting any time.

"Yeah, she doesn't want me to fuck her ass" Clark summarized with a shrug.

"Aww Why not sweety? You loved me fucking your ass? You cried and withered moaning so beautifully~" august hummed into your ear as he pressed you over the threshold into a large windowless room, strip lighting igniting the room in a light red. The devils den so to speak.

"Sh-shut up you prick" you snarled.

Augusts reply was a tsk and he pressed you over to a padded sawhorse and looked to Clark nodding to the ankle and wrist cuffs.

Clark breezed past him quickly securing you down making you curse him, but by this point it was a formality as you had already soaked yourself through.

"Oh would you look at that? Our little brat is eager~" august said with a chuckle and a warm hand probed you lightly making you jolt and try to squirm away.

"Yes I know, she likes denying herself, its strange she knows we will win but Continues to fight?" He said coming around your side ghosting his fingers over your ribs making you shudder.

"Well lets not waste time shall we? I have a few things out ready but first lets get this fitted shall we?" August said menacingly walking around you brandishing a very large O ring gag.

"After all if she's going to throw a tantrum I don't trust her not to bite" he uttered moving towards you.

"I've never thought of using one of those before... it wont hurt her will it?"

"Only her pride Clark trust me even she needs a... dressing down every once in a while" august reassured him.

Your eyes grew wide as the agent approached with the large gag that looked both threatening and enticing, things had been kinky with august but you hadn't ever gone this far into bdsm before. You were scared and still fighting but not as hard? You were curious and being dominated by them last week had... changed you. It had been thrilling to be so out of control.

"Should we... give her a signal or something? Incase it gets to much?" Clark quizzed, he was still all for it but wanted to be mindful of you. He didn't want to hurt you.

"Trust me she's going to love it, but in the case of something going wrong" august directed his attention to you befo4e continuing.

"There is a small desk bell one the inside of the left leg on the saw horse... if thing get too much hit it three times fast and we will get you down" he said seriously.

You frowned as his gaze bored into you, for a second you believed you saw actual concern in his eyes.

It unsettled you, August couldn't really have any feelings towards you could he? I mean this was blackmail!

You nodded quickly to him letting him know you understood.

Then just like that August was haughty again and quickly fixed the gag in your mouth, setting your teeth in the small grooves that was semi comfortable.

"Shes ready when you are~" the agent hummed and stood back.

Clark darted behind you and helped himself to you and august disappeared from sight.

You moaned into the room as your fiancé roamed your folds as if exploring them for the first time.

He was rougher then usual prodding and impaling you fast and hard before slowing and drawing your own arousal over your presented ass.

You withered as Clark used you body, pressing you higher and higher making you teeter on then edge then back away letting you calm down only to work you up again.

"I thought we could... try something... a little bonus for all of us tonight~" you heard august but couldn't see him.

"I'm listening" Clark said as he plunged his fingers back into you harder throwing off your concentration making you cry out.

"I have this" you tried seeing what August had but was too preoccupied with the maddening strokes of clark's fingers as he pounded away at your g-spot forcing you to try and rock on him chasing a high he had already cruely denied you twice.

"What even is that thing?" Cark said not paying attention to you as your body twisted and pulled trying to cum like a desperate whore.

"Here ill show you~" august said and Clarks fingers disappeared from you making you cry out and moan, your pussy tried holding him but it was to drenched to actually grip him.

Then something was pressed into you, large wide and very short.

"Oh-oh fuck?!AH!" You yelped  awkwardly around the gag as the toy settled, curved forward and down pressing on your gspot without being held. There was a large flat expanse resting outside of you to, the toy curved in a large C shape.

"Does that go up her?"

"No no, we just pop her little clit in here~ and press the button!" You jerked as august moved you, thick fingers prodding your clit and sat the engorged nub into a small round dip and pressed a button.

You squealed tensing all at once as you felt a suction on your clit and roared.

"Holy shit?" Clark said in awe watching as you keened and tried throwing you weight around on the toy that was held in place by your muscles clenching to it so tightly... It was bittersweet in a way, your own body holding the sweet torturous device on your clit.

"And it gets better, press that one" you hear a small click and arched moaning out as the egg like shape inside of you came to life vibrating against your insides.

Clark watched entranced as you withered this is what he'd been missing out on? Fuck!

August darted around you and strokes you hair watching as Clark stripped behind you unable to wait any longer as you thrashed about trying to rock into the toy.

"Shh shh thats a girl, now deep breath your wonderboy may be a little too enthusiastic if your doing all that squirming~"

You froze feeling Clark poise himself at your well lubed ass then grunted as he thrust forward splitting you open.

Clark hissed and moaned loudly as the vibrating egg not only made you quiver and tense around him already threatening to flood the place but it also rubbed his cock as he rutted you.

"Oh fuck- thats amazing! I cant- I shit babe!?" Clark didn't wait he immediately began pounding in to the tight quivering body before him.

August chuckled once more before releasing his own belt buckle. Not wanting to let your wails and monas go to waste.

They would work wonders on his cock, offering the sweetest of releases as you screamed onto his cock as he lodged it into your throat.

August was never into men, but he could develop a thing for corrupting this huge perfect man.

For now August would let you and Clark think you were in control of the deal. Let this one final night play out.

But the seed was sewn and before long he knew Superman would return wanting to explore more and more of this little sex dungeon. And then he will strike another deal.

Because August wasn't opposed to making a little compromise to get decent pussy. If he had to share with Supes so be it, it looked like he could teach the kid a thing or two and he would gladly, because he had many more toys to tease you both with~

If things went to plan he'd have not one but two desperate little subs. And he couldn't wait!

#henry cavill #clark kent imagine #august walker x reader #clark kent smut #august walker smut #superman smut #superman imagine

[onlydreamofmysoul]

Cardigan (Wolfstar)

I sat down to write a teeny drabble with two lines from the song Cardigan by Taylor Swift. It quickly spiralled into this. (I really love it though).

Set in the cannon universe, cw for mentions of death, injuries and scars. (Nothing graphic though).

I knew you, dancing in your Levi’s drunk under a streetlight. 

“Shh! Pads. you’re gonna get us caught!” Remus half-whispered, his own voice a tad too loud for his own liking but his slightly tipsy state didn’t allow for a lower volume. Sirius spun into him smushing his fingers right up against Remus’ lips, both of them chest to chest under James’ cloak. It was hard to believe the four of them mused to fit under this - now it only just about covered Remus and Sirius even with Remus ducking down to Sirius’ height. 

“Come on Moony, you’re ‘Perfect Mister Prefect’,” He said, punctuating each word of the grand title with his index finger poking into Remus; chest. “Even if we do get caught, you can charm our way out of it.”

Remus rolled his eyes, but followed. The passage was dim and the ground was uneven and to be perfectly honest, they hadn’t yet discovered if this particular passage way had been caved in since they last explored it the previous year, but Sirius seemed sure of himself and that was enough for Remus. If Sirius was the one leading, he’d always follow. 

“Alright, but I’m late on a transfiguration essay, so if Minnie catches us, you’re on your own. I need to save my charm for that.” He said, his tone stern, but all his reserve melted when Sirius smiled up at him and pressed a victorious kiss to his cheek. 

“I take back your title.” Sirius said dramatically, looking at Remus with a smug righteousness. “Apparently ‘Perfect Mister Prefect’ isn’t so perfect after all.”

He pressed his mouth right up next to Remus’ ear just as they stepped out the little secret entrance, ducking under the ivy trellis that hid their little passageway. “It’s a good thing I like bad boys.” Sirius breathed, and Remus couldn’t wait any more, not caring whether the cloak revealed their ankles or not when he pulled Sirius in for a blazing kiss. 

“I love you, you know that, right?”

Sirius smirked and kissed him again. “That seems to be the general consensus.”

Remus laughed and took off walking again, tugging the cloak off as soon as they were far enough away from the school, catching hands and spinning under the soft glow of the lamplights illuminating the path to Hogsmeade. Sirius tilted his head back, still spinning, their hands acting as the axis that centred the entire universe. 

“I love you too.”

I knew you, hands under my sweatshirt, baby kiss it better. 

“Sirius, if you don’t start being more careful, I’m gonna-”

“What?” Sirius teased, wriggling his eyebrows suggestively, looking far too haughty for a man sitting on a countertop, his legs dangling in the air. “What’re you gonna do Re? You gonna punish me?”

Remus pursed his lips to try hide his smile, but gave in, kissing Sirius once briefly.

“No,” He said, pulling up Sirius’ jumper to get a proper look at the gash he had acquired after climbing a tree. Then subsequently falling out of said tree. “But I will send you to Madam Pomfrey and have you try to explain to her that you thought you’d be able to pull off a levitation charm if there was a ‘more extreme sense of urgency’.” He finished, mocking Sirius’ words from earlier. 

Sirius just scrunched up his face playfully in retaliation, before breathing in shakily as Remus coated the cut with a liberal amount of salve, watching in fascination as the skin knitted back together.

“There.” He said, straightening up to stand between Sirius’ legs, pulling down his jumper again. “Good as new.”

“Nah ah.” Sirius countered, shaking his head as his legs locked behind Remus’ back, binding them together. “Gotta kiss it better.”

Remus wet his lips, shaking his head in fond disbelief, but leaned in willingly, feeling the hot slide of Sirius’ mouth against his own cooler one. 

“All better?” Remus asked, panting slightly as they rested their foreheads together. 

Sirius shrugged, hooking his arm more firmly around Remus’ neck. “Close, but not quite better yet.”

Remus huffed a laugh through his nose, but gladly locked their lips together again, the pair fully intertwined as if they had been made for each other. 

(And maybe they had. For what else was the moon to do but love the stars?)

And when I felt like I was an old cardigan, under someone’s bed, you put me on and said I was your favourite. 

“Sirius?” Re said softly, pushing the door to their dorm open slowly. “Are you here?”

“Yeah,” Came a muffled reply. “I’m here.”

Remus stepped into the room, looking first to Sirius’ bed to find it empty. Remus frowned, looking around to find Sirius curled up on Remus’ own bed, his favourite cardigan folded gently around him.

“Hi sweetheart,” Remus said, voice hushed as he climbed onto the bed next to the other boy, noting the red stained eyes and puffed lips. “What do you need?”

At the words, anything that seemed to be holding Sirius together until that point shattered, the raven haired boy collapsing into Sirius’ arms. 

“Re,” He gasped, between his sobs as Remus just pulled him closer. “Why is it possible to love someone who hates you? Isn’t love supposed to be good? If it’s so great, then why the fuck does it hurt so much?”

Remus’ heart clenched. Regulus. 

“I don’t know sweetheart,” He murmured, holding Sirius close. “But it makes us who we are.” He cupped Sirius’ face so he could meet the raging stormy eyes. “It’s better to have loved and have lost than to never have loved at all.”

Sirius just blinked at him. 

“But for the record,” Remus said, touching their heads together. “I don’t think you’ve lost him. He’s just lost right now. But he’ll find his way back to you.”

Sirius nodded, and slumped against Remus’ chest, no longer crying, just breathing deeply. 

“You know Remus Lupin,” He whispered after a while. “I don’t care how long it takes, but I’m gonna marry you someday.”

To kiss in cars, and downtown bars, was all we needed.

“Oh Merlin, they’re snogging again.” Peter commented as he turned his head to spot James and Lily, leaning in for a kiss. Remus, currently with his tongue in Sirius’ mouth heard this, but let Peter discover the other couple in his own time.

“Christ, the pair of you are too. You’re all fuckin at it.” He grumbled. If Remus’ mouth wasn’t already a little preoccupied, he would have laughed. There it was.

“Right, I’m off to find humans capable of holding decent conversation.” Peter muttered and he might have left. He could have stayed and done a jig on the table for all Remus cared, but in this moment, he noticed none of it. What was the poem he had read somewhere? Stars and moths and rinds slanting around fruit. This moment.

You drew stars around my scars and now I’m bleeding. 

“Hey, look at this.” Sirius said somewhat excitedly, rolling away from Remus momentarily and returning with a quill and a jar of ink. 

Remus eyed him skeptically, his arm tucked under his head as they lounged on his bed, the curtains drawn to create the illusion of their own little oasis. 

“I bet I could draw stars on your chest and then your scars could connect them, like in astronomy.”

Remus bit his lip, looking at Sirius’ appraised expression. “I feel like I should say no,” He said slowly, even as he unscrewed the ink. “But go for it.”

Sirius grinned triumphantly and studied Remus for a minute, brushing the quill over his lips as he concentrated. Remus couldn’t help but muse that if Sirius put half as much effort into his schoolwork as he was doing here, he would be top of the class. Finally, Sirius ditched the quill, dipping a finger into the ink directly. 

“I don’t want the point of the quill to scratch you.” He explained, after noticing Remus’ raised eyebrow. Something warmed inside Remus’ chest while something cold trickled over the outside. Remus closed his eyes and let himself focus on the slightly ticklish, but mostly soothing sensation of Sirius tracing patterns over his skin. 

“Done.” Sirius muttered after a while and Remus opened his eyes, raising his head a little to peer down at himself. He looked like some abstract piece of art, covered in black and blue and red and green, scars shining silver between it all. 

“Woah,” He breathed, “That’s pretty cool.”

Sirius grinned, then pointed to a star just over Remus; appendix. “That’s Sirius right there.”

Remus hummed, pursing his lips together, then grabbed a jar of ink, tracing a star a little messily, right over his heart. 

“Nah,” He countered, “Sirius is there.”

Sirius rolled his eyes, but came up to press their lips together. In the morning, they both looked like works of art.

But I knew you, stepping on the last train, marked me like a blood stain. 

“I can’t believe this is the last time we’ll be taking this train.” James said, the four of them standing in a row on the platform, not yet ready to get on. 

“We’ll be back.” Remus said. “Someday, we’ll be back.”

Sirius linked their fingers together. As one, the marauders stepped onto the train. 

Mischief Managed.

I knew you, tried to change the ending, Peter losing Wendy.

Remus just stared at the auror. 

“Mr Lupin,” The man said gently, playing his hand tenderly on Remus’ arm. Remus didn’t know what his name was. It was probable the man had said it but Remus wasn’t listening. Everything had gone dark. “I realise this must come as a shock.”

Remus wrenched his arm back, shaking his head. “A shock?” He laughed a little manically. “No, you’re wrong.”

“Mr Lupin, we have evidence that Sirius Black was the one to-”

“Well you’re wrong!” Remus yelled. Or maybe he had whispered. It was possible he hadn’t even spoken at all, but the words swirled around and around in his head. “I don’t know how, but you’re wrong. You’re wrong, this isn’t right, you have it all wrong, he would never-”

Remus gasped, pressing a hand to his cracking heart as if it would hold him together. “He would never.” He repeated, his voice breaking, tears streaming down his cheeks. When they had gotten there, he didn’t know, but their presence was suddenly noticeable with the cold rush against Remus’ skin. 

“I’m so sorry.” The auror said and then he was gone. And Remus was alone. 

Had it always been this way? Remus alone. Remus with friends. Remus with Sirius. Remus alone. 

Maybe he had made the entire thing up. 

But dreams didn’t leave you feeling like the last kiss you’d ever had was from a  dementor, not your true love. 

It is better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all. He had said that to Sirius once. 

What a fool he had been. 

I knew you, leaving like a father, running like water, when you are young they assume you know nothing. 

“It is believed this was a plan Mr Black had been staging for quite some time now.” A newspaper read. Remus snorted and threw it in the fire. Sirius couldn’t even plan a week in advance. What they fuck did these people know. 

But then, what did Remus know? His love was long lost, Rapunzel in a tower. Remus was no knight. 

But he knew in his heart, none of this was true. He knew. He didn't care what anyone else said, they may have known his thoughts, but Remus knew his heart. 

But I knew you’d linger like a tattoo kiss. 

Sirius’ leather jacket still hung in the cupboard under the stairs. His hair potion, still in the shower. Remus couldn’t bear to see them. He could never throw them away. 

I knew you’d haunt all of my what if’s.

Remus should have fought harder for Harry. 

He should have, he should have, he should have, he should have. 

He should have known better.

What if.

A smirking smile and stormy eyes. Hair held up with a wand. Those same dark strands coiled around Remus’ fingers. 

The smell of smoke would hang around this long. Cause I knew everything when I was young. 

Remus woke up to James’ scream. Except it couldn’t be James. Unless… Had this all been a dream?

James opened his eyes and suddenly there was Lily. Lily and James and they didn’t know who Remus was. 

(Remus had been the first one to hold baby Harry. Before even Sirius. And now he didn’t even know him)

I knew I’d curse you for the longest time. 

Remus hated Sirius. Not for being the notorious mass murderer Sirius Black. But for leaving him alone.

Why is it possible to love someone who hates you? Remus wanted to laugh. His question to Sirius now would be this; Why couldn’t he stop loving someone he should hate.

Chasing shadows in the grocery line.

The students all murmured about the Grimm. The paintings gossiped about little else. Even the staff room had a few words on the subject matter. Remus tried not to let his heart flutter. 

(But his boy was free. And there was a grim on the loose).

I knew you’d miss me once the thrill expired.

Walking down to Hagrid's hut, Remus thought he saw something rustle in the bushes. He stepped off the path and looked closer, barely even breathing as his heart thundered, but the shadows that had lurked were gone. 

And you’d be standing in my front porch light.

“Lie low at Lupins.”

For the first time in twelve years, amber met grey. 

“Re,” Sirius croaked, and Remus shattered. He pulled Sirius inside the door quickly, shutting it and reinforcing all of the charms around his little cottage, drawing all the blinds shut and placing a charm around the area so he would know if anyone approached the house before he finally turned, and there he was. 

And I knew you’d come back to me.

Not Mass Murderer Sirius Black. 

Not even Padfoot. 

But Sirius. Remus’ Sirius. 

“Re,” Sirius said again, “It’s not true, it’s not true.” He said, repeating the words as he shook his head, eyes filling. “It’s not true, I would never.”

He would never.

Remus shook his head too, pulling Sirius into the tightest hug they ever might have shared. 

“I know.” He whispered. “I know.”

You’d come back to me.

Sirius after a few weeks of good food and warmth looked a lot more like the boy Remus had once known, but there was no denying the person with his was now a man. Remus supposed they both were. 

You’d come back.

“I love you.” Sirius whispered one night as they were curled under a blanket, Remus reading as Sirius lay on his chest, the position comforting and oh so familiar. 

“Do you think you could ever love me again?”

Remus’ heart cracked as he set down his book and curled his fingers gently around Sirius’ jaw, tilting his head so Remus could look into that swirling sea. 

“Love you again?” He said, his voice nearly cracking in disbelief. “Pads, how could I love you again when I never stopped?”

And when I felt like I was an old cardigan, under someone’s bed, you put me on and said I was your favourite. 

“I can’t believe you still have this.” Sirius whispered, pulling the same cardigan he always stole out of the back of Remus’ drawer. 

“It used to smell like you.” Remus admitted. “But I wore it too much, I missed you too much.”

Sirius smiled, shrugging it on, it curling around his shoulders the way he curled into Remus, tilting his head up and pressing his lips against Remus’. 

“I can fix that.” He whispered and Remus held him close, taking his time. 

(For what else was the moon to do but love the stars?)

#wolfstar #Remus Lupin #Sirius Black #wolfstar oneshot #Marauders #marauders era fanfiction #cannon compliant #wolfstar fic #James Potter #peter pettigrew #Lily Evans #harry potter #cardigan taylor swift #ao3 OpeningMyEyes #wolfstar angst

[we-love-imagines]

Collector

Valentine’s Event: Day One

Prompt: Dio + First Sight

Ao3 Link

Author’s Note: Hi everyone! Welcome, Welcome! Thank you for all your fun suggestions and prompts- I got some REALLY interesting combos that I’m super excited to write! I believe the only warning for this one would be some yandere themes? So, without further ado....

Dio considered himself a collector. He only wanted to outfit his mansion with the finest of paintings, the most detailed sculptures, and the finest pieces of literature he could get his claw-like hands on. 

Through his immense wealth, he acquired many of these artworks through bribery or under-the-table sales, but he also wasn’t opposed to adding to his collection in more unsavory ways. He had a couple of his minions steal pieces that weren’t for sale, a few coming from some of the most renowned and high-security museums and galleries around the world. Dio fancied the idea of being the sole owner to a famous piece of art, having such priceless pieces hanging around his mansion for his eyes only.

However, the thrill always died rather quickly for Dio- while he appreciated fine art, he couldn’t spend all his time admiring his newest acquisition. This led to a bad habit of his, a never-ending cycle of needing more pieces decorating his home to satisfy his cravings. The high he got from knowing he held world-famous treasures between the walls of his mansion was too powerful to ignore.

This often led to frequent visits to the few art galleries in Cairo, searching for something to expand his ever-growing collection. Tonight had been slow, as usual, nothing catching his eye as he stalked past piece by piece. He found Modern art truly revolting, the artists and sculptors at these exhibitions always arrogant and pompous as they spoke on their simple works. Their meager attempts at art were nothing compared to the brilliant, detailed masterpieces that decorated the Joestar mansion in his youth. 

Dio was ready to end his search, a bitter taste in his mouth from the lack of talent that surrounded him, when his weary eyes fell on something truly beautiful.

You, standing there proudly in front of your art, an ecstatic smile on your face as you wore your best formal wear. This was your first time being featured at an exhibition like this, and the excitement you felt practically radiated off of you. Dio caught onto your energy, watching you humbly discuss your paintings with a few onlookers, as he found himself strutting over to your section of the gallery. 

Most of the other artists were haughty in their discussions of the ‘meaning’ behind their works, but you didn’t seem to rave about your painting’s depth. You let the art speak for itself, the intricate details and abundance of vibrant colors pulling all eyes in. 

However, Dio hadn’t gotten a chance to glance at your artwork, yet- he was so thoroughly entranced by you. The way your voice sounded, smooth and serene, as you answered questions, how your eyes lit up when you received a compliment or someone asked to buy one of your works. Dio nearly collapsed when you made eye contact with him as he approached, a soft smile painting your face as you greeted him.

“Hello, I’m (Y/n),” you introduced yourself, stepping to the side so he could get a better view of the art behind you. For the first time, he looked up to give your work his full attention. Despite how hard it was to impress him, he found himself lost in the thin brushstrokes of your art, wondering how you looked as you placed them on the canvas.

“(Y/n)...” whispered Dio, committing the name to memory before turning to you, “Did you make these paintings?”

“Yes, I did!” You beamed, the vampire taking notice of how your eyes twinkled and cheeks pinkened as he smiled at you.

“You’re quite talented. I’m very picky with my artwork,” he drawled, slowly reviewing each painting one by one as he spoke, “How long have you been painting, (Y/n)?”

“Thank you for the compliments, sir,” you grinned, “I’ve been painting for sometime now. I always loved to draw as a kid, and my passion for it kept on growing as I got older.”

You both paused for a moment, your eyes glued to his as he continued to stare at you. It was a little strange- you were used to people staring at the artwork and not the artist- but oddly, you didn’t mind. 

“Do you have a favorite, sir?” you asked up at him. He turned, albeit momentarily, to the paintings, giving each a glance before responding.

“I’d like to buy them all.”

“R-really sir?” You gasped, reaching for the paperwork needed for such a transaction with shaky hands. Your mind short-circuited, going purely off of reflex as your stomach did backflips. This was it- this was all the money you’d need to open your own studio. For your dream to come true.

“Yes.”

His reply was simple, but it was all you needed to hand over the clipboard. Why question a man who was just throwing money at you? Jittering with excitement, you stood there as he filled everything out. What a lucky break!

However, you spied a malicious glint in his eyes- something ancient, possessive, and evil. If you weren’t so caught up in your excitement, it probably would’ve scared you. 

You see, you’d never get to build your studio, or sell another painting. 

That night, Dio whisked you and all your art off to his mansion; he thought you would come to be the prized jewel of his collection.

#jjba #jjba x reader #dio x reader #dio brando x reader #dio #part 3 dio #dio brando #jojos bizarre adventure #JoJo no Kimyō na Bōken #Valentines Day event

[lubdubsworld]

Falling for you( Falling from grace) Jungkook

Falling for you ( Falling from grace) Jungkook

Read Chapter 1 here

Read Chapter 2 here

Read Chapter 3 here

Rated : 18 +

Warning : . Fuck buddies? Or rather enemies that have sex. They just really hate each other but also can’t keep their hands off each other. Fair warning this has no plot. its just them being idiots .

Chapter warning : a little bit of plot just to keep things interesting yeah? 

Chapter 4

The washroom on the seventeenth floor was the unofficial gossip hub and normally I would steer clear of that place but desperate times called for desperate measures. I was pretty sure I looked like I’d been dragged backwards through a hedgerow and I had to get it fixed before I got written up . 

Willing myself not to openly flinch with every step, I tried to curb the trembling in my thighs, almost painfully sensitive to how wet and messy my lower half as. What the fuck had I been thinking. 

When I entered the restroom, I moved to the huge ornate mirror in the center and took a nice long look at myself. 

 I felt my throat seize up in shock.

Good God. 

I looked ten times worse than I felt. The hair in the back of my head was sticking up , four even gaps from where he’d gripped my hair too tight. Yelping, I pulled on the dozen hairpins holding my hair up in a messy bun, letting my hair fall around my shoulders. Panicking , I threaded my fingers through the strands, wincing when I touched my jaw. What the fuck...

I leaned closer, peering at the small abrasion near my chin. It was a bruise, shaped exactly like Jungkook’s thumb. And it was already turning into an ugly shade of puce. 

Slightly hysterical because, Hoseok was so incredibly unbending when it came to office etiquette and  I did not want to get fired, I flipped at the fancy taps, sticking my hand underneath the cold water and splashing it all over my face. 

The door opened behind me and I flinched.

“Oh, hey Areum....” Three of my colleagues walked in . I recognized two of them , Jieun and Hana . The third one looked new.

“Hey...” I croaked out, trying hard not to look like I’d just been fucked to an inch of my life in a supply closet by the boss’ son. 

Oh fuck, what the hell was I thinking? 

The girls moved to the mirror , spreading out across the long counter and pulling out their compacts and lipsticks . I kept my head down, still trying to calm my pounding heart. 

“So let me get this straight, he called you at eleven in the night yesterday and wanted to meet you ? At your apartment?” Hana was saying. 

The new girl was blushing as red as a tomato.

“Yeah...he uh... he told me he was just returning from his training. He’s a boxer.” There’s a shy sort of admiration in her voice and I felt an odd sense of foreboding. 

“Booty call.... He wanted to fuck you for sure.” Jieun said firmly. “ You’re a lucky bitch, Sana... ”

Sana.....

My fingers started trembling when I heard the familiar name. I tried to calm myself down but it was impossible . A red hot sort of rage began licking its way up my spine. It wasn’t new. I knew he fucked other people. We both did. 

but I’d never stood within two feet of one of his conquests. 

“ Yeah...but then he called me like an hour later and said he wasn’t coming around.” Her voice was tinged with disappointment and I felt a sick sort of satisfaction. 

Jungkook had cancelled because of the pic I’d sent him. 

“Maybe he thought he wanted more.... like you told me he asked you to come meet him at practice tomorrow right? To get coffee afterwards... ? Maybe he wants to do this properly....take you out on dates...get to know you....”

I couldn’t stay there a second longer. 

“Ladies...” I bowed quickly and they offered me cheerful smiles. I all but ran out of the restroom, hating the sharp sting of tears somewhere near my lashes. 

I stumbled to the back stairwell, which was mostly unused and usually deserted. Gripping the walls, I slid down to sit on the floor, drawing my knees up to bury my face in. 

There was a reason I didn’t do public sex, I thought, shaking. Despite the way I mouthed off at Jungkook, sex with him always took a toll and I had always, always made sure I had space and time to recover from it. Gripping my thighs and trying to fight the urge to whine, I fumbled with my phone. 

“Areum?”

“Can I have the day off?” I whispered, shaking a little. 

“You alright?” Hoseok’s voice sounded genuinely worried and I hummed.

“ Got my period.” I said blankly. 

“ Gotchu. I’ll fill up the form and get one of the interns to pack your stuff up. You need to get some meds or something? Need a ride home?”

I felt warmth bloom in my chest. This is why Hoseok was such a great HR manager. He genuinely cared. 

“ I don’t need a ride. Or anything else.” I said quickly, “I’ll take a cab...”

There was a slight shuffling and then, an altogether familiar and unwelcome voice in the background went.

“Who’s that?”

Oh fuck. What the hell was he doing there? 

“Areum...hang on, Jungkook’s here....he wants to talk to you...” Hoseok said quickly and before I could protest , I heard Jungkook’s low raspy exhale against my ears.

“Where are you?” He said shortly. 

I considered protesting but remembered that Hoseok was still there. 

“ The back stairwell... I... I’ll come there , I...”

“Stay right there. I’ll come get you.” 

Before I could respond, he had hung up. I stayed on the floor, staring stright at the opposite wall. I forced myself not to think, trying to take deep breaths. The truth was I was exhausted. Physically and otherwise. 

Letting my head fall back against the wall, I closed my eyes, trying not to think about what Id’ heard in the restroom. Was Jungkook interested in Sana? Meeting him at practice? Coffee? 

That just screamed dating to me. I’d always assumed that Jungkook wasn’t into dating. That he just enjoyed quick fucks because that’s all he had ever offered me. So maybe, it wasn’t because Jungkook didn’t want to date. It was because Jungkook didn’t want to date  me. 

 Which was fine. I didn’t want to date him either. I really didn’t . 

“Hey....you okay?”

I had to inhale shakily, just to bring myself to look at him. I felt my heart ache something fierce because he was kneeling in front of me, strands of hair falling into doe back eyes. Eyes that fairly glistened with genuine concern. There was no infuriating smirk or haughty smile....instead his lips were parted in genuine concern, eyebrows furrowed in worry and one hand resting on my knee , fingers just so unfamiliarly gentle. 

I stared at him for another second and smiled evenly.

“Guess I’m gonna be needing that wheelchair after all.” I quipped. 

He stared at me for a second before his face split in a wide grin, a genuine bark of laughter spilling out of him. He looked so carefree and unabashed that I bit my lips, staring at him some more. 

“Let’s get you home , yeah?”

I nodded, letting him grip my arm to help me up. 

“It’s okay. I can walk... “ I said softly and he hummed, but still kept an arm around me and I noticed that he had my handbag slung on the other shoulder.

We reached the elevator and rode down in silence .

I followed him to the basement parking and he fumbled with the smart key to his car , pointing in the direction of the multitude of cars and I watched one of the flashy red ones blink. 

“Let’s go to my place...., yeah?” He said casually and I groaned.

“Jungkook, I know this going to make your ego swell but I’m not joking when I say that I cannot physically take your dick at least for another couple of days.” 

He rolled his eyes. 

“I don’t want to fuck you, God. I’m working on a project for the Art Fest down at the Museum and I’m staying home. You can rest there....” He said casually, moving to put his seat belt on. He fixed the mirrors by prodding a few buttons and I watched the tattoos on his arm flex as he gripped the steering wheel, one arm coming around the headrest of my seat so he could turn and back out of the lot carefully. 

I frowned at the broad shoulders near my face. .

“Why would I rest there? I have a home....” I protested , watching him hold the door open for me. 

“Because I know for a fact that , it being Monday, both your sister and your mother are supposed to be coming over today to cook and clean for you because you have no life skills, “ He grinned and I glared at him, “ . They’ll probably notice the limp and I just thought I’d spare you the humiliation.” 

I didn’t respond because he was right. My mom and sister were home and it would be impossible to get any rest with them around. The fact that Jungkook somehow knew this made me feel jittery and nervous though. 

“You have a fight this weekend?” I blurted out before I could stop myself. 

He kept his eyes on the road, sparing me just one questioning glance.

“How’d you know?” He asked curiously and I bit my lips.

 I’ve been following your boxing career for a three years.

 “ Just heard someone say something at the office...” I said vaguely. 

“You aren’t invited.” He said sharply and I gripped the seats, annoyed.

“I don’t want to be there anyway.” I snapped back. 

He huffed.

“I’m serious about what I do Areum... I don’t want you interfering in that part of my life, alright? We’ve been through this before.”

I sneered at that.

“I know....isn’t that why you literally banned me from your gym. “ 

He didn’t reply and I stared at my hands. 

He had invited that girl, though, my mind supplied helpfully. 

He invited her not only to the gym, to watch him practice, but also for coffee afterwards...you know...to get to know her better....probably because she’s not the kind of girl who would spread her legs as easily as you do.....

 I stared out of the window, remembering how pretty and put together Sana had looked. The dainty walk, the perfect make up and the long hair, styled perfectly. 

I was beautiful too. Of course I was and I knew it. 

Men like Jungkook didn’t go for unattractive women even if it was for a quick lay. But, there’s beauty and then there’s actual charm? I wasn’t charming in any sense of the word. But then, did I have to be charming and attractive and perfect to go see him fight? 

Why?

What about the other people there? If literally anyone could go watch him fight, why wasn’t I allowed? 

“I want to come watch you train....” I said impulsively, my anger getting the better of me. 

Jungkook turned to give me a shocked stare. 

“What? Why?” His eyes narrowed in suspicion and I shrugged.

“No reason.” I said shortly. I could physically feel his irritation build. 

“Areum....” He began , voice holding a note of warning but I refused to back down.

“Literally anyone can visit your gym. You own the thing and you love offering discounts to everyone you meet...and yet somehow, I’m ‘ banned’. Why?” I demanded.

“Because I don’t want you there...That’s a good enough reason for me.” He snapped back and I clenched my fists harder. 

“Well, sucks for you. I’m gonna be there. On the front row. Let me see what’s so great about Jeon Jungkook in the ring that drives women wild...” I scoffed.

He stared at me for a second and then chuckled.

“Ahh..... so you just wanna watch me get wet and sweaty.... ? Understandable.”

I sneered. 

“You have been wet and sweaty on top of me enough times and trust me the novelty has long worn off.”  

He groaned.

“It genuinely feels like anytime I try to be halfway decent human being to you, you repay me by being as annoying as you can....” He said thoughtfully and I couldn’t say anything to that. 

i flinched when his hand reached out, moving to my knees and squeezing /lightly.

“What are you doing?” I frowned slapping at his fingers and he merely moved his hand higher up my thigh. I flinched when he squeezed again.  

“The only time you’re remotely bearable is when I’m touching you....So I’m gonna keep my hand here...” He gave me a smug grin, eyes practically dancing with mirth and I grimaced. 

“I’m still going to come. I want to.” I said firmly. 

He didn’t argue further.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Much to my surprise , I slept away the better part of the day, buried in Jungkook’s soft white sheets , head pillowed in the dozen fluffy throws he kept around. It was vaguely arousing that someone so intensely masculine like Jungkook preferred a comfortable , soft toned bedroom. The sheets smelled exactly like him, a fresh citrusy scent that managed to be soothing and sweet and yet somehow seductively warm as well. 

I woke up to fingers in my hair, lightly stroking. The room was dim, a little bit of light from the streets spilling in through the gaps between the curtains. 

“Areum.... It’s almost eight.... I’m gonna order us something for dinner... You wanna wake up now?” 

His voice. Fuck. 

I rolled over , groggy and disoriented. My eyes took in the splendor that was Jeon Jungkook, taking in the fact that he was only wearing grey sweatpants . I stared at the smooth expanse of his chest, feeling arousal bloom , slow and steady all over me. 

“I wanna suck you off...” I croaked out before I could fully filter my own thoughts.

Jungkook chuckled a bit at that. 

“I’m not gonna say no to that, but why don’t you take a shower and wake up fully.

I shook my head.

“ Let’s get messy first..... we can shower later...” I whined, still blinking and he groaned, slipping into the bed with me, under the covers, grabbing me by the waist and lifting me up till I was on him, my chin resting on his chest as I stared at his beautiful face. 

 What am I doing here? Where is this leading?

“I’ve never seen you like this. “ He commented mildly.

“Like what?”

“Sleepy and horny....Usually you‘re just angry and horny.” 

I shook my head. 

 “I should go.” I said hesitantly.. Jungkook didn’t respond for a few seconds, merely staring at me with a blank look on his face. Then he gave me a slight squeeze around my waist and moved out from under me. .

“I can call you a cab...” He said simply, moving to get up off the bed again. I felt something jump in my throat . It was unlike him to acquiesce so fast, and it was unlike us to just.... hang out without mutual orgasms thrown in the mix and somehow that felt like a change I wasn’t ready for. A bit of panic flashed through and I reached out blindly when he stood up, grabbing his waist and yanking him closer.

I looked up at him, scooting to the edge of the bed and kneeling till I was right in front of him. 

Eager to get things back to normal, I smiled and casually, pressed both my hands behind my back, looping my fingers together at the base of my spine. 

“Get those handcuffs.” 

Jungkook’s dick literally twitched in his pants and he swore.

“Fuck baby....” He grabbed my face roughly, crashing his lips over mine. I kissed back, almost desperate, trying to remember all the reasons why he annoyed me, why this was all we were to each other. A quick fuck, a quick lay, fuck buddies. that's what we were......

“Stay here. Stay right here...Don’t fucking move.” He pulled back and dove for his bed stand. I watched as he pulled out a silky black tie. 

I grinned when he nearly fell, scrambling up on the bed and pushing up behind me. He grabbed the hem of my blouse, yanking it up over my head before grabbing my wrists together again , tying them swiftly behind me. 

“Only you...” He whispered against the back of my neck. “ Only you can do this to me. Drive me wild with want just by fucking existing....” 

And then he was lying down near me, grabbing my waist and jostling me around till I was straddling his waist. It took me a second to orient myself I managed to steady myself, staring down at him in surprise. 

“ Seeing as you said you needed a break from my dick, how about you come sit on my face, today?” He smirked. 

I tested the give on my hands, before carefully leaning down to him

“Sure you have the lung capacity for this , Jeon?” I whispered, lips brushing his as I spoke. 

He responded by gripping my waist hard, easily lifting me up till i was straddling his shoulders. 

“I’m ready to drown in that sweet sweet honeypot, baby...” He winked and it was such a ridiculously bad joke that the laughter got wrenched out of me. 

And just like that , we were back to being us again. Or at least, that's what I convinced myself of. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

AUTHOR’S NOTE : TELL ME WHAT YOU GUYS THOUGHT ....I WANTED THIS TO BE JUST PORN BUT APPARTENTLY I CANT WRITE ANYTHING WITHOUT ANGST FML. 

Also requests open :) 

#bts fanfics #bts smut #bts #jungkook #bts fics #jungkook smut #jeon jungkook #jungkook fics

[badass-at-fandoming]

Just Little Ventrue Things ~

I finished a Camarilla Ventrue run of VTMB. Mostly, the only thing Ventrue these days know how to do is Dominate, run screaming, eat hot chip, and lie, and [high falsetto voice] here’s a list of other nonsense I discovered:

PC’s name is Christina; she’s a Dominatrix because I’m bi. Her sire was one of her clients, and she’s actually very, very angry about his death. She doesn’t mind being a vampire. She’s Wiccan and part of a coven

In this Camarilla run, I decided I would only do quests given by Camarilla members. My justification was that, while Christina is intelligent and curious about lore, she focuses on tasks that immediately relate to her and her goals. She’s not curious about others; won’t go out of her way to talk to them. She’s not a bleeding heart, like my other PCs, and she believes in the Camarilla’s laws. She just hates LaCroix for killing her sire. Her plan during the game is to curry as much favor within the Cam as possible and cozy up to LaCroix so she can stab him.

Enough backstory

Nonsense time

Smiling Jack laughs at you if you don’t eat a rat in the tutorial. LOL. The Ventrue dialog is like “I could barely choke down the homeless man: please don’t make me eat a rat!”

The blood in the Santa Monica haven’s fridge is now blue blood. Does regular blood make Ventrue sick? I was too scared to experiment.

[spots Mercurio] I am going to steal that ghoul

Rosa: The people you’re looking for are up there. Christina, assuming Rosa is a Cam agent: Okay, thanks, bye

Never spoke to the Thin-Bloods again (sorry Lily baby ;-;)

Everyone except Julius still leaves when the PC reaches Hollywood

If you try to feed on Julius, he WILL kick you in the head and you WILL glitch into the fire, be on fire; run away screaming in Prada

You can skip the whole basement of the Ocean House Hotel if you manage to jump over the hole in the staircase???? Like?? You mean the spookiest fucking level has been optional this whole time I”M

[ghost appears] [Christina smacks it with an axe] None of that.

Club girls speak to Christina and I’m on the FLOOR

Therese “kills” Jeanette, even though I had enough oompa to make that not happen.

Therese joins the Camarilla and says she’s in good position to be the next Prince??? Hello??? Where is our Prince Voerman ending????

Went straight to LaCroix, called him “sir,” and he name-dropped Napoleon.

LaCroix tells Christina to go visit the Anarchs. She blows the Anarchs off (Nines made a growly face, Damsel dialog yowl-exited out after I asked if she wanted to join the Cam; Skelter threatened to murder me twice). When LaCroix told Christina that, while he admired her Cam loyalty, she must listen to her enemies to understand what they wanted, it felt like he was actually being a good sire and mentor.

That’s weird.

When Christina asked for his history, he very carefully explained his lineage, like the important part of Ventrue culture it is.

Overall, I found LaCroix-being-nice-to-me extremely unsettling.

Sir. Stop smiling at me, sir. Stop being impressed I don’t ask for money. STOP MAKING ME UNDERSTAND WHY PEOPLE LIKE YOU, SIR.

In contrast, LaCroix sounded genuinely betrayed at the end

Also made it more obvious when he started to lose track of his marbles

Ventrue PC seems juuuuuuust tall enough for her forehead to glitch into the ceiling of literally any confined space

The dirty Elizabeth Dane policeman didn’t psspspspsp at Christina so the whole ship was 15 white-knuckled minutes of making police dance and scuttling about

There is!!! A lot less!!! Talking in this game!!! Than I remember!!! She is only good at talking and ordering people around i am bEGGING

All EXP goes to Dominate and making Christina extremely charismatic and buff.

Ventrue himbo????

Beckett un-himbo-ifies her

She insults Beckett on their first meeting, spitting out “What do you want, wolfie?!” I thought this was appropriate because she died like, 4 times on that warehouse mission and was Extremely Stressed And Under Duress

Beckett’s response of “Oh, you’re too young to have mouthed off to the truly old ones yet.” makes his later snide remark of “the young ones are so temperamental” 900% funnier. Yeah, LaCroix! Beckett thinks I’ve grown and am now more mature than you! XD

Missions involving sex workers hit different when you’re a sex worker.

Christina was incandescent with rage at the Brotherhood

Grout’s mansion mission was a lot of “I have no interest in this nonsense.”

For the first time ever, I didn’t kill anyone during the Museum quest! This is because Christina ran very fast and Dominated every guard as quickly as possible. Every single fucking guard knew she was there, but could do nothing about it, because they were dancing. The door to the sarcophagus locked (it will do this if too many guards are agro), but locked doors are no match for noclip hack.

Entertaining image of a tall woman absolutely blasting into this museum room and Beckett tackling her to the floor like wait! I must snark at you! You are legally obligated to speak with me!

Isaac is still somehow a pretty chill guy to work with if you’re Camarilla.

Christina didn’t visit VV or Ash. Interestingly, Ash didn’t show up at the hunter monastery later. Did he just die in his club? Is he still there, waiting, deciding?

Christina @ Andrei: what the fuck is this shit

“I don’t care. It’s ugly. Clean it up.”

SEWERS.

Not as bad as I was expecting

Did take shortcut, run away from fights, ducked out in the middle for a snack, and bring 7 blue blood packs tho

Gary threatened to shred her face with a cheese grater, which I thought was Toreador only dialog?? It must be connected to the Appearance Stat. Which Christina has maxed out.

When Heather became Christina’s ghoul, I was delighted because I thought this meant Christina would always have fresh blood.

No

If you ask to feed on her too soon after the last time, Heather says she feels light headed and wants to lie down. The dialog exits out

I love you, Heather bb

Perfected the art of nudging NPCs into corners

Mitnick’s quests now feature Enforced Nap Time for all guards

Seriously, Dominate is ridiculously powerful, hooooly shit. I get why people like it. I also like it when people do things I ask them to do.

Christina can’t sneak, but she CAN strongly encourage everyone to choke on their own tongues.

Very high contrast in the beginning of the game: 2 punches would knock her over, but anyone she spoke to would obey immediately and without question

Chinatown goes by ridiculously fast if you can’t sneak and don’t do any sidequests besides Mitnick’s.

For the first time ever, Zhao survived! This is because Christina made him take a nap.

He just told her to leave

You’re welcome, my good dude

IDK if it’s a game glitch, but Christina would vocalize? In battle, she grunts with effort and pain.

Got to the point where I kept expecting Dominate dialog in every interaction and would get disappointed if it didn’t show up. What do you mean I have to actually convince people? That’s lame.

Christina was polite and charming to Ming Xiao, who also conveyed a deeper betrayal than normal at the end. ;-;

I promise to give you a Ventrue boy toy soon, Xiao

Finale arc quests went by VERY FAST because Christina can’t sneak for shit. Just run in, Dominate blazing

You can skip the outside bit of the Hallowbrook Hotel if you find the open door on the top level what the fuuuuuuuuuCK

[“A Little Party Never Killed Nobody” plays while Christina wipes out the Sabbat in 10 minutes]

Andrei disappeared mid-fight and didn’t come back until I complained that only I was allowed to run away from boss fights

I’m categorizing “triggering the interaction to save Heather” as something quite difficult to do. The timing has to be just right. I’ve missed it twice now. BUT hacking into the game to save her is easy.

I love you, Heather bb

Final Beckett talk had the vibe of “You’re a very different person than me, but you’re also High Humanity and trying to do good. You don’t deserve to die.”

Damsel threatens to kick the shit out of Christina and is extremely reluctant to tell her where Nines is

“Out of all people, they send you? All right, let’s just talk terms.” - Nines because Christina was short with him one (1) time

WEREWOLF HARD

You can just?? Walk out of your haven?? Without speaking to Jack at all???

I didn’t do that

But I could have

[”Dust in the Wind” plays while Christina kills entire Camarilla hit squad in 3 minutes]

You can visit Mercurio and Trip on your way out of Santa Monica??

Mercurio makes no comment on the blood hunt. Business as usual with him. This is fine.

Christina: I’m SO going to adopt that ghoul. And perhaps Isaac can be convinced to part with Romero...

(For the first time ever, my PC boinked Romero. Twice, to receive the break up email)

This is definitely a glitch, but Christina brushed up against Caine, and a worried voice said, “Are you all right?” It sounded like the same voice actor, but a higher pitch?

Always nice to think about Caine demonstrating care

Christina asked Caine who he is, and Caine replied that he “gets people where they’re going. [He’s] a driver,”  which is a nice nod (lol) to both his literal job as a driver and as a shepherd/creator/god to Kindred. Caine creates and makes fate.

Caine triple checks with Christina that she’s sure Strauss won’t betray her. Thanks, Vampire Dad. :’D

For some reason, only other Ventrue guarded LaCroix’s tower. I wonder if this is intentional. Like all the other Camarilla Clans backed Strauss and left? So only LaCroix’s Ventrue lackeys remain? Anyway, it created some weird moments where Christina fought her double.

KILL YOUR DOUBLE

Sheriff laughed in haughty joy that he was to kill Christina. I don’t remember him laughing in other playthroughs.

Christina ruining Caine and Jack’s prank oh noes

#vampire the masquerade #vtm #vtmb #ventrue #Vampire The Masquerade Bloodlines #camarilla #smiling jack #sebastian lacroix #vtm mercurio #vtm caine #max strauss #heather poe #nines rodriguez #vtm damsel #vtm skelter #therese voerman #gary golden #vtm mitnick #vtm romero #cuthbert beckett #ming xiao #andrei the defiler #text post

[snoffyy]

@zhaozaipalooza

Heyyyyy wow why am I not surprised my first post on tumblr already contains problematic content ANYWAY I’ve tried to write something beautiful and eloquent and flowy but this is all my brain has spat out oof -

Filling the modern au prompt with TA!Zhao in an introductory maths course. Started out as Zuko/Zhao, turned into Yue/Zhao (I believe the ship has been coined fried fish??) and then for some reason settled on Hakoda/Zhao (at least, the setup for it). It’s a little hastily put together (could it be??? My word counts somewhat under control???) and I have no idea what I’m doing so I’m keeping it on tumblr. I’m so sorry for being horrendously late, but a huge thank you to the mods for all their time and effort!!

.

Despite the many grievances that came with being a TA, Zhao did find the job rather fulfilling in some respects. Tearing through assignments, breathing down people’s necks while invigilating exams, getting paid to answer algebraic questions he could do in his sleep…

And then, out of the blue, he would be reminded that there were a few but significant downsides.

Such as now.

Sometimes, students thought they could waltz into his office and expect him to bend rules to their whim.

“Sokka…” Zhao said carefully, sliding his pen down the enrolment list. “I thought this would be the first time I received everyone’s assignments on time, but it looks like I’m still waiting for that day to come. So, what’s your excuse?”

“It’s done!” Sokka yelped, waving his hands about in a flurry of panic. “I swear it is, I’ve got it in my bag right now. Just, uh, could you possibly, pretty please with cherries on top, let the late penalty slide? Please?”

Zhao arched an eyebrow. “And pray tell, why should I do that? The guidelines clearly state that a penalty will be applied for late submission, increased in increments of five percent for each day that it is late until it reaches a total deduction of forty percent, in which case you will receive a zero instead. You’re six hours past the deadline. If it were six minutes, I may have been more inclined to let it slide.”

“Please,” Sokka begged, clasping his hands together. “I’ve been doing so well in this course! But today was super busy and I tried, I really tried to get it in on time.”

“Look,” Zhao sighed, scrubbing at his face. “If I let this one go, there’ll inevitably be a next time. Not for you maybe, but someone else. That’s just how these things work and –”

“I swear I won’t let anyone know,” Sokka promised. “And… and…” his eyes sidled to the empty coffee cup on his desk. “I’ll get you a coffee! As a token of my appreciation.”

“That sounds more like bribery than appreciation.” Zhao scoffed, flinging the paper cup into the bin. “Just give me your assignment so we can call it a day.”

“And a cookie.” Sokka tacked on, evidently refusing to go down without a fight.

“… A cookie.” Zhao repeated flatly. “You’re trying to bribe me with a coffee and a cookie.”

“Is it working?”

“No.”

“But…” Sokka said, a crafty look in his eye. Zhao would be more impressed if he hadn’t seen that exact expression for most of his upbringing. “I know for a fact that you’re a crazy fast marker. You always get our results back to us within a week. No one can do that without binging coffee and sugar… aren’t you in need of a fix?”

He was a fast marker because there were only two teaching assistants in this course, and Jee was woefully slow-paced, so obviously someone needed to pick up the slack. What usually happened was that Zhao would tackle the stack of assignments nearly solo and leave grading input and moderation to Jee, before happily returning to other pressing matters.

“Actually,” Zhao said, picking up a second, smaller stack of papers on the other side of the desk, holding it up for Sokka to see. “I’ve already graded these, and I’m doing just fine.”

The horror on Sokka’s face nearly made Zhao smile. Nearly.

“But…” Sokka protested feebly. “How… how are you nearly halfway done?”

“Trade secret. Now, assignment. Gimme.” Zhao held out a waiting hand.

“Large coffee.” Sokka pleaded once more with newfound desperation. “Anything you want. And a cookie. One of those massive ones.”

“Not that interested.” Zhao said. “Come on, come on. I’m planning on getting these done by tomorrow.”

“And,” Sokka pitched forward. “In the next tutorial, I’ll answer all your questions if no one else puts their hand up.”

Oh. Now they were talking.

“Next three tutorials.” Zhao leaned forward, a sharklike smile spreading across his face. “And I want that coffee and cookie.”

“Done.”

“Very good,” Zhao grinned, “you can give me your assignment now. No penalty will be applied. I’ll mark it now while you get the goods, and once you’ve come back, I’ll input your grade into the system.”

The relief was palpable in Sokka’s face. “Yeah, yes. I’ll do that. What kind of coffee and cookie do you want?”

Zhao hummed, taking the assignment out of Sokka’s hands. He got started on marking immediately, red pen working furiously as he tore through the questions. The answers have practically been imprinted behind his eyelids at this point and thankfully, Sokka almost always got full marks, which meant he didn’t need to spend time picking through the working. “The coffee? Surprise me. I want an oatmeal raisin cookie, though.”

Zhao decidedly ignored the muttered incredulity under Sokka’s breath about his taste in cookies, and pointedly flipped the next page to spur him into fetching his bribe.

By the time Sokka scurried back into his office, Zhao had already made another dent in the pile of marking. He lifted his head at the sound of the door opening, and the sight of Sokka’s triumphant face tempted him into changing his mind about accepting the bribe, if only to pour cold water over his excitement.

But, as Jee had pointed out earlier this morning, he’d already reached his maximum quota for assholery today.

“Here,” Sokka presented the cup and a small, brown bag that smelled heavily of baked goods.

“What did you end up ordering?” Zhao asked, taking both items from his hands.

“I asked my dad to make something for my grumpy TA,” Sokka grinned cheekily.

“Need I remind you that your grade’s fate is currently held in the hands of said grumpy TA?”

“Right, yes. Sorry, sir.”

Something else about the statement had caught his attention, though. Zhao examined the logo on the cup, tilting his head as he asked, “Your dad made this?”

“Oh, right, yeah.” Sokka scratched his head sheepishly. “My dad co-owns a café with his best friend. Anyway, uh, he says he’d like to apologize on my behalf for annoying you and that he hopes you’ll enjoy the coffee and cookie. He said it’ll knock your socks off.” Sokka puffed his chest up with pride.

“I’m hard to impress.” Zhao drawled, a bit derisively, but he reckoned he was entitled to a little haughtiness.

“That’s what I said, but Dad’s confident you’ll like it.” Sokka shrugged. “Said you’re welcome to stop by the café anytime. He’ll hook you up with a treat.”

Zhao rolled his eyes and shifted his attention back to his end of the deal. He turned his desktop around so the screen was facing Sokka and pointed out his name. “There. Ninety-seven percent. Congrats.”

And before the fool could do something intolerably annoying like celebrate in his office, Zhao growled out a dismissal, pointedly picking up his cup as Sokka waltzed out the doors.

Alone again, Zhao popped off the lid, peering down with slight confusion when he caught sight of latte art. A classic heart, which he barely managed to rein in another scoff at. At least it tasted… decent. Surprisingly strong notes of espresso, none of that flavoured syrup shit he couldn’t stand.

The cookie wasn’t bad, either.

Well. Colour him slightly impressed. Slightly.

Making a note to stop by the café sometime, Zhao turned back to his marking, mood lighter for some strange, inconceivable reason.

#zhaozai palooza 2021 #hakoda/zhao #what is their ship name #my writing #zhao only has 2 moods #caffeinated and uncaffeinated

[itstittycitybaby]

 A/N: thank you @darlingimmafangirl for this request! I really enjoyed writing it :)) also reader is semi pro equalist. not really but she can understand amon’s pov even though he took it to the extreme of things. curious about yall’s stance on amon’s whole revolution thing. feel free to flood my inbox about it ;))

You could hear the whispers and feel the stares. You weren’t ignorant; being the girlfriend of the beloved chief in Republic City caught a lot of attention. Lin Beifong wasn’t one to make friendships, let alone have a girlfriend. From bystanders eyes she was cold but determined. It was the age gap they whispered about.

Normally, the two of you would eat in after work. Lin was exahausted from the long days of her job. Something about more reports to file and sign (that’s what you got from her grumbling anyway). It had been another boring day at the studio and you wanted to go out. Your art was coming along great, but you were tired of being cooped up all day. Now, however, you regretted it.

 Lin was older;her hair had grayed and the crows feet around her eyes told a story. However, she was still gorgeous with her green eyes as they glittered underneath the light of the booth the two of you sat at. She was incredibly strong both physically and mentally. Lin was in her early fifties, while you were in your mid twenties. 

Your relationship was difficult to even start. Lin already had trouble with relationships as a whole, but to be with someone more than a decade younger than her? That was another problem in itself. 

“You’re doing it again,” Lin murmured as she took a sip from her drink. “Hm?” “Thinking. Getting lost in your thoughts.” “Oh,” you replied softly, trying to forget about the waiter’s surprised expression after you squeezed Lin’s hand over the table. “Just...a bit nervous is all.” She shot a brow in response. “Everyone’s staring,” you mumbled, folding your hands into your lap. Lin hummed, “I suppose we make an odd couple.” “Doesn’t matter,” you said, shaking it off. “I’d rather be here with you.” She smiled softly, yet you could tell her gaze wavered. “You shouldn’t care so much about what everyone thinks,” she murmured, cutting her fork into her food. “I know,” you replied, “I just need to be here in the present.” “Atta girl.”

There was a ceremony for the avatar after Amon’s defeat. Your joints and limbs ached from protecting the people from the equalists. Even the fire in your blood weakened but Katara assured you you’d be back in no time. All the fighting and all the emotional drainage took a toll on you. Though, you couldn’t say much. At least you were fortunate enough to protect your bending. You sat at the bar of the ballroom, swinging your legs as you waited for Lin to join you. She had to stay with councilman Tenzin and Korra while the reporters flocked around them. The red dress clung to your figure tightly and stopped mid thigh. You swirled a wine glass absentmindedly, mulling over the past couple of months you had been through. The disappearance of Amon took a huge burden off of Korra and Lin, but you still couldn’t help but feel unhappy. Amon wanted everyone to be equal, and yes he took it to the extreme of things, but he strived for balance. He was right about the haughtiness in benders and how they carried themselves. Even you had trouble with the ego of bending. Even though Amon had escaped, your bones felt heavy. Something told you that he was dead. It didn’t matter anymore did it? “Mind if I buy you a drink?” Glancing over, a man around your age slid in the stool next to you. You raised a brow taking a sip before replying. “I’m fine thank you.” 

“C’mon don’t be so uptight sweetheart.” You shot him a glare, your jaw clenched together. “I said. I’m fine.” The man snorted. His brown eyes glanced to your ears and his glance became curious. The gold earrings you wore twinkled in the light. They were an anniversary gift Lin had given you for occasions such as these. Two precious rubies dripped from each earring along with the necklace you wore.

“There you are.” The anger in your veins dissipated from the voice you’ve been waiting to hear all night. You smiled, turning to Lin. Sliding out of the barstool you sighed,“Finally, I’ve been waiting for a while now.” Lin hummed, “I was kept up by the reporters.” You giggled at the annoyance in her tone. She wanted to go home and rest while everyone else danced the night away. You couldn’t really blame her. 

Glancing back, you noticed the man’s eyes bulging out of his head. He looked like a toad as he stared at that two of you. Lin’s eyes narrowed, holding his stare. “Is there a problem,” she snapped, crossing her arms. The man shook his head quickly, “N-no.” “Carry on then.” He turned quickly and you giggled as he stared down into his drink.

He muttered the words “gold digger” as the two of you left the bar.

“You’re dating?” Lin could feel the headache already starting to form. For god’s sake the two of you just got here. “Yes, we’re dating,” Lin confirmed, albeit a bit harshly. Tenzin’s brows raised in surprise while his kids squawked around him. Lin’s distaste for children didn’t lessen slightly. You stood next to her fumbling over your words and twiddling with your fingers. Your cheeks were pink in contrast to Lin’s tugging frown. ‘So much for secrecy,’ you thought. Tenzin gaped like a fish and closed his mouth. This proceeded to continue for several seconds until eventually he kept it shut. “Out with it,” Lin huffed. Her posture was rigid and she seethed with anger. It was supposed to be a nice picnic with just the two of you. Tenzin and his family seemed to have other plans, however. “I-I’m not trying to be rude,” he sputtered. “But Lin you’re definitely much older.” These types of conversations were nothing new. However, Lin seemed to be very upset. “Councilman Tenzin,” you murmured sharply, “With all do respect, it is none of your business.” He deflated at your response. You were known for keeping your cool, going against the stigma of firebenders. “Now if you’ll excuse me, my girlfriend and I will be going home. Have a lovely day.” Grabbing the supplies you and Lin trekked back home.

Lin groaned as she flopped on the couch. The picnic’s failure soured her mood. “It seems like we can’t go anywhere these days,” she grumbled. “I take one day off from work.” You sighed as you finished putting away the uneaten packed food. “I know dear, I know.”

Lin huffed in reply. “Getting called a gold digger, or being told “I could take care of you soooo much better” gets really tiring after awhile,” you said through gritted teeth. Lin’s eyes softened. Slowly she made her way into the kitchen where you unpacked the basket. “I didn’t know you were being called that.” You sighed, “It’s fine really, I shouldn’t let it get to me.” Her hand gently grasped your arm. “It’s not fine, you should have told me.” “I know,” you muttered, turning to face her, “but every time I commented about it, it seemed to make you feel bad.”

Lin’s hands grasped your cheeks softly. She gently kissed your lips. “They’ll get used to it,” you said once you both pulled away. “I’m sorry if I made you upset.” Her brows furrowed. “What?” “Yknow, how I handled Tenzin. I didn’t mean to blow up like that. But I guess that’s what’s expected, being a firebender and all. You chuckled humorlessly. Lin laughed, “You handled it perfectly. It was rude to comment on it.” “Besides,” Lin continued, “You’re the calmest firebender I’ve met. Better than that Mako guy.” You giggled as you wrapped your arms around her neck.

“He can be a pain,” you agreed. Lin’s arms wrapped around your lower back.  “It’s hard with the stigma firebenders have. They think we’re all hot headed and destructive. “Nonsense my dear,” Lin replied, leaning down to kiss your head. “You’re the best damn one out there.” You grinned at her response. “And you’re the most hot headed earth bender Republic City’s ever seen.” Lin snorted, “Alright moments over.” You laughed, squeezing her tightly. “Ohhh come on Lin, you know it’s true.” She rolled her eyes and scoffed but you could see the smile on her lips.

#legend of korra #legend of korra x reader #legend of korra fanfic #lin beifong x reader #lin beifong

[sethrine-writes]

Anxiously Waiting, Wanting

Fandom:  JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure (JJBA)

Pairing:  Jotaro Kujo x Reader

Words:  3113

Warnings:  Angst, Happy-hopeful ending, Feelings are hard

Summary:  You startled abruptly at the large mass of warmth that encased your knee, eyes darting down to the point of contact. There, a hand grasped gently at the joint and pressed firmly, carefully, downward, stopping the unconscious, rhythmic jumping of your leg. Following the arm upward led you to the sharp gaze of Jotaro, who had seated himself to your immediate left and seemed just as guarded as ever.

For a brief second, your breath caught at the intensity of his stare.

A/N:  I have dipped my toes into the JoJo universe! First time writing for it, and I gotta say, it was a bit daunting, but thanks to my lovely friends who cheered me on through it all! I hope to be writing more for these characters in the future, so we shall see how it all goes!

A super, special thanks and shout-out to my lovely friend, @kyarymell​, who was so sweet and drew a lovely work of art to go along with the fic! If you haven’t checked out her stuff, please go have a gander at it! She does art and writing for multiple fandoms, so you have a nice selection to peruse!

Enjoy, you guys!

------

Focusing on anything but the impending battles ahead during the downtime of your journey was next to impossible.

With every mile closer to Egypt your group made it, the more dangerous it was quickly becoming with equally more challenging Stands attempting to thwart your advancement along the way. Danger was literally lurking in the shadows and could be present at any moment, meaning everyone had to remain highly vigilant at all times.

Even then, you could tell that Polnareff, sitting across from you at the table of some restaurant Joseph had led everyone to, seemed a little stiffer than normal, more aware of his surroundings. The others were just a bit better at hiding their awareness, but the relative quiet of the group within the noisy atmosphere surrounding you was very telling.

Despite the tense feeling in the air, you were more than grateful to have these men there beside you that knew when to take things seriously, knew how and when to watch one another's backs without a second thought.

All the better, seeing as how you just couldn't keep yourself from worrying about what dangers were ahead of you and could barely focus on what was happening several feet in front of you. They kept you anxious, the thoughts running through your head, all the what-if scenarios and imaginings of how the fight in Egypt would play out.

Would you make it in time to stop this Dio guy? Would you all even be enough to defeat him? How many more people would have to get hurt or die just because the sick, petty bastard with a century-old grudge against an entire family lineage-

You startled abruptly at the large mass of warmth that encased your knee, eyes darting down to the point of contact. There, a hand grasped gently at the joint and pressed firmly, carefully, downward, stopping the unconscious, rhythmic jumping of your leg. Following the arm upward led you to the sharp gaze of Jotaro, who had seated himself to your immediate left and seemed just as guarded as ever.

For a brief second, your breath caught at the intensity of his stare.

"Your leg keeps moving," he groused after a pause, "it's annoying."

A little glimmer of annoyance at his own words found its way inside you, a tiny zing of petulance that shot through your body and disappeared just as quickly. It was a defensive reaction, one that couldn't be helped when you felt as if you were being belittled or berated in some way, though you knew that you were not.

It was just the way Jotaro was, or at least how he presented himself, when he spoke.

He was all surface-level bastard with a calm and collected facade, for the most part, haughty words meant to burn only hiding just how well and truly pissed he was at the time. When facing enemies or those who sought to provoke him, that perceived anger of his could reach bone-deep and became a dangerous boon to his fists as well as his Stand.

Through all of that, however, you had come to realize that he really had a lot of care, even if he seemed less than capable. He had a heart bigger than most people you knew, one that was carefully guarded and only shined through to those who truly got the chance to understand him, to know him on a more personal level.

You may not have been there completely, just yet, but you were getting the gist of how he worked, most times.

It was because of this knowledge that you were able to keep your cool, knowing full well that even though his words sounded harsh on the surface, there was no real sting to them.

You were almost tempted to think that he was worried about you.

"Sorry, I'll try to stop," you answered, leaning up a little straighter in your chair with a small smile, "but no promises."

His eyes, so perceptibly observant, remained locked onto yours for only a moment longer before he looked away.

"Gimme a break," he muttered under his breath, the familiar sigh nearly making you chuckle.

A waiter came by not a moment later, and everyone began listing off their preferred meals for the night, conversation finally beginning to flow after the tension in the air had been broken.

Jotaro's hand remained on your knee for a long while, an almost absent reminder to keep still, a secret reminder of his care. It grounded you in a way you couldn't explain. You didn't dare pull away; you didn't want him to pull away, either.

---

The entirety of the group was lucky enough to have their hotel rooms on the same floor, for once, if a bit dispersed. With things becoming more dangerous, everyone was paired up to ensure no one was left alone and vulnerable. Jotaro just so happened to be your lucky partner for the night, which meant a quiet room and the possibility of better sleep.

Unfortunately for you, your mind was still restless with looming thoughts, unsettling scenarios playing out wildly in your head without end. The night was still early, barely past ten, but you were too tense to fully calm down, and with each passing minute, it felt as if the anxiety welling within was full to bursting, and you were dangerously on the verge of giving yourself a full-blown mental breakdown.

You had cherished the idea of a quiet room, beforehand. At that moment, however, the silence was cloying, suffocating.

Subconsciously, your fingers began to drum against the small desk table you were sat at, eyes glossed over as you stared out the window. You were only vaguely aware of the sound against the wooden surface, mutely aware in a way that became your sole focus, and for several long minutes, the gentle noise kept you from completely drowning in your hectic thoughts.

Something touched the back of your hand, a single point of contact that immediately broke you out of your self-induced trance. Your fingers stopped their drumming, made to lay flat by the gentle yet insistent pressure being applied from a lone finger that was not your own. Following the line of a darkly-clad arm  had you nearly straining to meet the eyes of your room partner.

Jotaro loomed over you, his stare as sharp as ever as he glowered from above. You stared back, watching as his eyes narrowed the longer you kept the contact. After a few seconds, you shied away from the intimidating lock of his eyes and down at your now flat hand against the table, his finger still pressing against your skin.

"Oh, right! Annoying, got it," you said, nearly stammering in your embarrassment.

You pulled away from his touch with ease, placing your hands in your lap and clasping them together to lessen the urge of putting them back on the table. Jotaro moved to cross his arms over his chest, hovering a moment longer before stepping back until he was leaning against the wall.

Though you had looked away, you could still feel his gaze on you as if he were still touching you, the intensity nearly making you shiver. Why you had his utmost focus was beyond you at that moment, but his silence was starting to get to you.

Already, you could feel the need to move something, your leg giving a couple half-hearted bounces before you willed it back into submission. You began picking at your fingernails next, trying your best to keep the restless energy within contained. It wasn't enough, not nearly enough, and it was driving you crazy to be in a space that was so damn quiet.

"I'm going for a walk," you mumbled out abruptly, standing just as quickly and having to physically slow yourself from making a mad dash to the door. You passed by Jotaro, keeping your eyes locked ahead of you with every step closer to the outside, fingers just touching the handle of the doorknob…

Fast as lightning, you turned on your heel, nearly yelling out your surprise at the large hand coming out and all but slamming against the door beside your head. Your Stand's arm popped out reflexively, elongated nails dripping with poison primed and at the ready for an attack, pressing warningly against the muscular purple arm caging you in.

In front of you stood Jotaro, arms still crossed against his chest as he used his own Stand to keep you in place, Star Platinum's upper body hovering just to the side of him. His eyes still held their narrowed stance, though he seemed angrier than he had mere moments ago.

Had you actually done something to piss him off?

No, no, that wasn't quite right. He wasn't angry, despite the scowl that presented itself on his face. If anything, he looked more on the side of extremely frustrated, though that had a penchant for quickly turning into anger if the situation turned for the worse.

"Jesus, Jotaro, don't do that," you gasped out, feeling as if your heart would leap out of your chest at any moment. "I could have poisoned you without a second thought!"

"Why did you hesitate?"

You startled when Jotaro stepped closer, bewilderment turning into confusion at his question.

"Why did I-? Because it was you! I wouldn't just actively attack you like that, even on a bad day."

If anything, your answer seemed to deepen the frown marring his features.

"What is wrong with you?"

"I could ask you the same thing," he countered.

"What do you even mean by that? I haven't done anything wrong!"

"You're being careless. It's starting to piss me off."

"Excuse me?" you questioned, beginning to feel angry, yourself.

"Don't make me repeat myself."

The absolute nerve!

"If you've got a problem with me, then say it instead of trying to intimidate me into doing something brash. You nearly bashed my head in, and you want to talk to me about being careless-!"

"Shut up! You're not listening!"

His sudden exclamation had you pausing, despite wanting to reflexively retaliate in a similarly heated fashion. You took that moment to look him over, doing your best to read between the lines of the serious facade Jotaro tended to keep.

There was something there, hidden in the present frustration and the steel of his gaze. Jotaro's immediate response when all hot and bothered was to fight, of course, but there were no enemies to be seen, nothing that should have set him off into using Star Platinum in the way he had. He wasn't angry, not at you, at least, and yet he felt it necessary to provoke you - no, not provoke; he was trying to gain your attention through the use of his Stand.

His expression bore annoyance, yet his eyes...

"Talk to me," he finally spoke, words surprisingly gentle for how worked up he had gotten, and it absolutely floored you just how quickly his demeanor had changed.

Your eyes widened before looking away, once more feeling embarrassed, though for an entirely different reason. You finally called back your Stand, taking a slow breath in before letting it out in a huff.

"I'm-"

You hesitated, looking back up at Jotaro's serious visage, realizing the longer you looked at him that he was, in his own rough way, trying to help. With another sigh, you visibly sank against the door

"I'm tired, Jotaro. God, I'm just so tired and afraid of what will happen in the next ten days, if we even have that much time left to find this bastard. I can't stop thinking about it, and it's driving me crazy!"

Your hands came up momentarily to rub against your face brusquely, dropping back to your sides to fiddle with the hemming if your shirt.

"I'm constantly worrying about every little thing, all the possibilities of good and bad outcomes in our future. To be honest, a small part of me wants nothing more than to give up, or give in, just end it and save myself from all this mess and heartache."

"Why are you still here, then?"

His voice was still gentle, if a bit rough. He wasn't trying to be accusing, just asking a simple question. Even so, you worried he thought of you as weak, now, perhaps unable to be counted on when the time would inevitably call for it. You couldn’t blame him for the thought.

"Because I believe in you," you answered with conviction. "Even if I'm scared, even if I'm still uncertain just how this is all gonna play out, I still believe we'll find a way through all this. You will find a way, and that's what keeps me here. You, Jotaro."

‘I stay because of you.’

The following silence was different from the suffocating one you had previously been trying to escape. It gave you time to reflect on your thoughts in a different light, having finally gotten out the summarized brunt of all your worries.

You hadn't quite meant to express so much, especially with the sentiment of affection still being so new to form between you both. There was no time to explore the feeling, no time to ponder how different things could have been, would have been, had you not stumbled your way, quite literally at the time, into Kujo, Jotaro's life.

And yet, you couldn't bring yourself to despise a single moment of the trip so far, of the newfound relationships you had made and of the growing strength within yourself. Everyone would agree, you were sure of it, even with the perils that had come and gone and the dangers still present on the horizon.

Despite all your warring thoughts, you couldn't deny that you were the happiest you had ever been, spending the last nearly month and a half with the eccentric group of Stand users you had come to call your friends.

And it was all thanks to Jotaro.

"You're right."

You blinked as the silence was broken, unable to comprehend the almost-there smile suddenly making its appearance on Jotaro's face.

From your peripheral, you could see Star Platinum's hand pulling away from the door, gasping as gentle fingers just barely grazed the side of your cheek as they passed by before disappearing altogether. It was barely any pressure at all, and you were almost sure it had been an accidental thing...almost.

The room felt much warmer, all of a sudden.

"We will find a way," he continued, arms uncrossing as his hands found purchase within his coat pockets, stance becoming that of assured confidence. "Dio won't know what fucking hit him."

He took a small step back, giving you a little more room to breathe, but still keeping close as if he had more to say.

"For what it's worth to you, you have my trust."

'I believe in you, too.'

Your breath hitched at his confession, your mind finally being able to piece together the things he wasn't saying. As you had always suspected, there was care in his actions, always present if one were to read between the lines.

He was a difficult one, but you felt that you were starting to really get it.

With a sudden boost from your Stand, you became a little taller, even closer to Jotaro's face than you had ever been. His gaze seemed to widen by a fraction at your unexpected closeness, something you wouldn't have noticed had you not met him eye-to-eye, but it was a reaction you hadn't anticipated. Even more surprising was how incredibly still he had become in your immediate presence.

If he truly wanted to, he could push you away with ease by either his own hand or Star's, say a harsh word or two to get you to back off. Instead, he allowed you into his space, a choice solely based on his trust in you, his care for you, and it was nearly as overwhelming a feeling as your warring anxiousness.

You smiled, soft and sweet, before leaning in steadily closer, closer, closer still, emboldened by Jotaro's words and his acceptance.

It was a quick thing, the small kiss you planted at the corner of his mouth, a gentle press of your lips transparently branding his skin with a promise you hoped beyond all hope you could keep. It was the only reassurance you could give at that moment, and you were almost certain it was all he would truly need to understand.

Pulling away, you were lowered back to the floor by your Stand, of which dispersed immediately after. Your smile was still soft, small as it was, as you gazed into the vibrant blue of Jotaro's intense stare.

"When we win this whole thing," you murmured with intent, "when that bastard is finally good and gone, I'm gonna need that back, got it?"

'If we make it out of this alive, I'm going to kiss you properly.'

The silence that followed was only a few seconds, but reality felt almost slowed, tense in a way that would make or break the moment.

Jotaro sighed as he adjusted the brim of his hat, hiding his eyes behind its dark shadow. Had you still been closer, you would almost certainly have seen the barest color of heat against his skin.

"Gimme a break," he muttered, but the promise in his actions held steadfast and concrete. The tension released, and the air between you both felt clearer than it had in weeks.

'Looking forward to it.'

"I'm still going for that walk, by the way," you mentioned while reaching for the door handle, hand pausing only a moment as the cold metal touched your palm, almost expecting for Star to make his appearance again. To your relief, all was still.

You followed through with the motion, stepping out into the hotel hallway without any further obstructions. When you made to turn and shut the door, however, Jotaro was right behind you, taking up the frame with his solid, semi-crouched form.

Truly, the Joestar men were absolute giants.

"You're coming too, then?" you questioned, knowing full well he would follow you, regardless if you protested.

"Not leaving you by yourself," he responded while shutting the door, taking the initiative and leading you towards the elevators.

"Gonna leave me in the dust, though, that's for sure," you playfully mused as you made to catch up with his long stride, smiling to yourself.

Jotaro offered only a hum of acknowledgement to your bantering, which, in itself, was his own smile shining through.

Maybe this time, the anxious feelings wouldn't linger quite as long as before.

#jojo's bizarre adventure #jjba #jojo part 3 #stardust crusaders #jotaro kujo x reader #jotaro kujo #reader #reader-insert #gn!reader

[ofbvtterflies]

♡𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐢𝐥 𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐛𝐞𝐥 𝐜𝐡𝐨𝐢♡

( adeline rudolph, 24, she/her ) * hey, i’m looking for the office of soleil choi. they’re the employee who’s known around the office as the go-getter, if that helps ? not to be a gossip, but i’ve heard that they're zealous but cunning, is that true ? i also heard that they’re the one who spoiled the office yogurt supply. anyways, here’s the coffee they ordered.

hello my sweet sweet ppl!! i’m yari and this is my not so sweet daughter soleil!! like i said in my tag, like this for some luv, or hit me up on discord @ yari thee jawn#5331

𝐁𝐀𝐒𝐈𝐂𝐒

name: soleil isabel choi

faceclaim: adeline rudolph

occupation: in-house lawyer @ masters international

sexuality: bisexual

pronouns: she/her/hers

date of birth: august 29th, 1996

big three: virgo ☀, sagittarius ☽, leo ↑

+ traits: zealous, independent, witty, analytical, creative, meticulous

- traits: cunning, spiteful, haughty, self-indulgent, cynical, devious

character inspo: azula (tlab), vivienne kensington (legally blonde), lucrecia montesinos (elite), jade west (victorious), beatrix (winx)

aesthetics: highlighted dossiers, the clicking of penny loafers on marble flooring, the smell of baccarat rogue lingering as she passes by, pastels, pearls, and fluttering eyelashes

education: political science b.s | columbia university  ||  j.d. | yale law school

𝐁𝐈𝐎𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐏𝐇𝐘

- soleil always had a knack for getting what she wanted– this dates back to before she was even earth side, making her poor mother crave all the sweets in the world knowing damn well she’d have the poor woman head first in the toilet bowl. she was finally welcomed earth side on los angeles county’s hottest summer day recorded to date, but her parents and older brother were truly in love with all the warmth she brought already. soleil was a very particular child, her rice couldn’t touch her bulgogi, and her bulgogi couldn’t touch her kimchi. naturally she excelled in most things she was presented with, language, arts, science, math, you name it she was probably annoyingly good at it.

- despite their natural ability to excel, her parents were hard on both her and her brother which brought on lots of tension in their parents marriage. soleil can recall on many occasions her brother whisking her away when their parents would start with one of their fights. her brother is probably one of the only people she’ll go to war for, she really wants all the smoke behind him. through the span of her life she witnessed the rise and fall, and ultimately the demise of her parents' marriage– and man oh man was it an ugly divorce all of which soleil was convinced was derivative of the fact that they cut her brother off because he was set on pursuing a different career path. soleil was impartial to it all because she truly believed her parents should’ve never been married to begin with– two career-driven people + children≠ happily ever after. seeing the demise of that relationship still weighs heavy on her conscious *cue trust issues by drake*

- soleil’s father was given primary custody over her, and he moved her from los angeles to san diego– this was when something was unlocked inside of her. soleil knew she was the only one who could carry out and eventually take on the family business, with that very simple piece of information she had her father exactly where she wanted him, and she still does now. there wasn’t a fight when she insisted on applying to school across the country, because why would she want to be anywhere near her father? before leaving for school her mother reached out and they reconnected after not communicating for almost 3 years– (tw: car accident, her mother tragically succumbed to her injuries from a really bad car accident three months after they reconnected).

- when it comes to miss ma’ams personality, she is literally the summer walker song white tee, (anybody: treat me like white tees, don't get me dirty || soleil: mess up your white tee, i’ll do you dirty ya) so there's that. she knows what she wants and she knows how to get it. she is generally nice when you really get to know her, but she knows how to keep it professional in the work setting. outside of work and a different storrrry though c:

𝐖𝐀𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐂𝐎𝐍𝐍𝐄𝐂𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒

- friends for sure, because honestly if u can get along with her she needs u in her corner

- enemies!!!! hehehehee this is self explanatory, give her someone to spat with on twitter after hours

- she has a tragic ass ex, but u can hmu to plot this one out bc soleil did them dirty lmao

- her “rose-colored boy”, this plot is solely based on the paramore song- someone whomst she cares for dearly who has a v sunny demeanor (possible romantic connection)

- im the brainstorm queen so licherully whatevs luvs

#masters.intro #𝐬𝐨𝐥𝐞𝐢𝐥: intro #give this sum love for sum plots #tw: car accident #tw: death

[kiatheinsomniac]

Number 28 with Arno, please?

Versailles Tryst

NSFW CONTENT BELOW CUT

28: “Not so loud, baby.”

The romantic tune of a string quartet and a harpsichord faded into the distance, echoing off the walls around her as (Y/n) found herself wandering away from the party, making her way through the corridors of the grandest palace in France. It wasn't all that rare for her to come to Versailles with her father - him being a foreign ambassador and needing to visit to discuss affairs with the King - but it was rare for her to get the chance to actually admire the place (including the architecture and art it had to offer) instead of stuck-up party guests.

Her baby blue dress twirled around her as she made her way around the corner, the flared cuffs that flowed like waterfalls down her wrists being decorated with lace and the front of the dress being white and frilled at the skirt, the front portion of the bodice being adorned by intricate white lace and golden buttons. She still had the last bite of a strawberry tart in her hand, bringing it up to her mouth when she was suddenly stopped and almost dropped it, gasping as she quickly caught it in her hand, looking up to whomever she had just walked directly into.

"Arno Dorian." She smiled in both thrill and surprise, meeting those warm and unmistakably mischievous eyes as well as his charming smile that sparkled brighter than the crystals at her neck.

"(Y/n) (L/n)." He replied, taking her hand for a kiss, layers of satin and lace from her sleeves falling to the bend in her arm, only for him to find the last bite of the tart in her hand. He quickly took it from her fingers so that he could plant a delicate kiss to her knuckles, lips lingering on her skin, grinning as he pulled back to eat the last of her snack, making her jut her lips out in a pout and playfully hit his arm.

"Hey!” But he could tell she wasn’t too angry by the smile on her lips, “I heard from Élise that you weren't invited, what changed?" She raised a brow and he offered the young woman his arm in order to guide her through the palace as they spoke, beginning to continue his route to the ballroom. Though, she seemed to have other plans: guiding him away while uttering about the haughtiness of the guests already working on her last few nerves.

"I stole her father's clothes and lied about my identity." He winked as he followed her lead towards the gardens, watching her throw her head back with a hearty laugh, putting a hand over her chest, giving him some time to admire her smile while her laughter died down as they exited the palace towards the gardens. It only made him happier, prouder, to know that he was the source of such melodious laughter from her.

"I just can't believe they kept you from your own step-sister's returning party, it's been so long since she's been here in Versailles and they won't even let her own step-brother see her. How ridiculous!" She rolled her (e/c) eyes.

"Exactly!" Arno agreed, "And she'll be leaving for Paris before I get to see her. This party is my only chance but I have all the guards looking out for me." He let out a sigh and cast an angry glance towards the palace

"Then I'll try not to take up too much of your time." She flashed a wink and a smile as she leaned into his side, sighing as the warm summer breeze hit their skin, crickets chirping in the distance and still able to faintly hear the music along with the trickling of fountains.

"We have plenty of time here. Laying low for a while will likely be better in terms of the guard situation anyway." He shrugged before tilting his head and raising a brow when (Y/n) ducked down to lace his arm over her shoulders, glancing up to him before resting her head against his warm body.

"It's been too long since I've last seen you. . . Olivier always keeping you busy and too eager to go out gambling instead of visiting me. . ." She pouted.

"We have some time now." He leaned down to press a kiss to the top of her head, "I'll come by yours later this evening, likely when you're asleep. I'll wake you up and we can spend some time together, how does that sound?" He hummed, taking one of her hands in his and rubbing his thumb over the back of her palm.

"After you've seen Élise?" She murmured, eyes falling to the gravel under their feet.

"If I get to see her at all, yes." He replied, sighing, missing what little family he had left, not knowing anyone else other than the De La Serre's who had taken him on as a boy. This only made her feel guilty, deciding to make the most of what time they would have together this night.

(Y/n) took the lead of their walk once more, taking the two of them over to a sheltered red rose garden where she sat down on a stone bench and turned her body to look up to Arno, a hand reaching up to caress his stubbled face.

"I really have missed you." And he smiled at the softness that glimmered in her eyes, reflecting from the light which emitted from the palace, dimly illuminating their secluded area of the garden. A large hand went to rest against the side of her neck, bringing his face closer and closer until she reached up to close the small distance, sighing as her other hand fell against his broad chest. His lips moved gently but confidently against hers, freehand roaming up and down her side.

His kisses became more demanding, tongue darting out to coax her to allow him entrance, feeling her soft moan as she melted into his arms, now circling around her waist to pull her in closer. Her hand ran down his chest until she reached his pants, cupping his groin and earning a groan, feeling him grow firmer in her hold as she swayed with each dizzying kiss.

He leaned in, a hand on her breasts softly guiding her to lay back on the cold stone of the white bench, watching her shiver slightly at feeling it against the skin of her back that was exposed, eyes glancing up to him, dancing with teases of lust in them. He let out a low hum as his lips brushed over her jaw and got right to the creamy skin of her neck, pausing to deeply inhale her lavender perfume that was dappled there.

She gasped when she realised that his other hand had already bunched up the front of her skirts and hiked them well above her knees, going down to explore what laid under those torrents of creme and baby blue satin and lace, nimble fingers running over the thin fabric of her pants, hearing her moans that were muffled against his lips.

"Shh." He winked, flashing his pearly teeth in a grin as those pants were quickly pulled down her legs, one hand reaching down to stash them in his pocket while the other held her thigh against the side of his head, lips grazing over the soft skin there, tantalisingly making their way between her legs. (Y/n) threw her head back with a whine before glancing down at him, dark brown eyes alight with lust and admiration through those thick lashes of his.

Her lungs stuttered for a breath, raggedly gasping at the first hot lick at her sex, letting out a hum of desire as one hand went down to caress the side of his head softly, coaxing him on with her fingers gently carding through his hair, her other hand helping him to keep her layers of skirts and petticoats back.

"You're always far too good at- at this." She moaned lowly, fingertips caressing his cheek as he chuckled, one hand coming up to part her lips, giving his wet tongue direct access to her clit, hearing her small gasps and watching her breasts rise and fall with each pant, even from within the restrictions of her tight bodice.

"And you always taste so good when I do it." He sighed against her wet skin, kissing downwards until his tongue could poke at her entrance, hand having to push her hip down, watching her bring the back of her palm up to her mouth to muffle her moan when he licked upwards and wrapped his lips around her clit, sucking down hard and flicking his tongue over it. Her hips stuttered in time with her breaths as he continued, that hand from earlier now caressing her folds, sinking the tip of his middle finger inside of her and hearing the breathless 'please' that escaped her, taking it as the go-ahead for pushing it the rest of the way in. With another moan, now sharper than the last ones, her hand came back down to rest on the side of his face, cupping it, fingers tangling in his hair, messing it up slightly.

"I need-" But her words were cut short by another moan when he continued sucking at her clit after stopping to press kisses to her very inner thighs. He hummed, pulling away as that finger curled upwards and he started to pump it in and out, seeing her grip on her skirts turn her knuckles paler.

"I need more, need you, please. . ." And he smiled softly, licking along her slit a few times before pressing a wet kiss to her clit.

"Patience, mon amour. . ." He murmured before getting back to work, pushing his ring finger in too and hearing her moan his name, feeling her hot walls contract around him.

"Arno, please-" And she pushed him away by the shoulders, fingers delving even deeper into her as she sat up to kiss him, feeling her whine at the contact before she grabbed his wrist and guided it out from under her dress. Swinging her leg over him, she moved so that he was straddling his lap, reaching down to feel his hardened member straining against his pants which now seemed far too tight. He groaned when her trembling fingers eagerly fumbled with the buttons keeping them done up, a hand tangling in the hair at the back of her neck while he peppered her neck in kisses, biting down into the softness of her flesh and soothing each one with a hot lick. She opened her mouth to protest, not wanting marks to show up during her stay at the party but he softly shushed her, pushing her hair aside to leave more, making her give in to his temptation.

Her hand freed his erection from his pants, pumping her hand over it a few times to hear his breaths grow heavier, guiding it to press against her entrance, hands raking over his chest to his shoulders as she sank down onto him with a much louder moan at feeling her walls stretch around him, her head falling to rest against his shoulder, fingers digging down into his shoulders as his hands moved down to her waist, guiding her to start riding him, grinding her hips down into his, moans increasing at the pleasure of it all.

One strong arm remained wrapped around her waist while the other came up to trace the tops of her breasts, continuing upwards to her mouth, pressing his palm down over it and groaning at the look she gave him when her eyes opened, watching her melt under his touch.

"Not so loud, baby." He sighed, thrusting up into her until he threw his head back, then looking back at her. "So beautiful." His other arm staying wrapped around her waist but moving his hand downwards enough to grip her ass through her dress. She ground down on him to get her hips at a different angle, making him hit a spot inside her that had her fingers gripping the back of his hair while her thighs trembled violently, almost collapsing on him and feeling his hands continue to guide her hips over him.

Her cry of his name was muffled against his palm as she came around him, walls clenching and pushing him to his own release, spilling his hot seed inside her, bringing both arms around her waist to hold her close as she collapsed against him, head resting on his shoulder while both of them panted heavily. (Y/n) let out a long hum as her lips brushed against his neck, pressing a breathless kiss there as he eased her off his lap, slipping out of her.

"I've missed you." She smiled softly as he cupped her face, leaning in to press a loving kiss to her lips, thumb brushing over her cheek as he brought her legs onto his lap, pulling her pants up over her calves and letting her stand for a moment to pull them up entirely. He tugged softly at the skirts of her dress, organising them and arranging them to look as though nothing had happened at all, watching her press her thighs together at feeling his cum leaking out of her. She laughed softly as she leaned forwards, smoothing down his hair and pulling at the ribbon to tie it back together neatly. She set herself down on his lap and turned her body to wrap her arms around his neck.

"You should head back before someone notices that you're missing and I need to find Élise." He spoke with a hint of sadness in his voice at having to part with his lover.

"You promise that you'll come and visit me later, promise?" And her eyes bore into his, making sure he put a very part of his soul into the truth.

He pressed a quick kiss to the end of the nose and squeezed her waist a little when he replied:

"I promise."

#arno dorian #Arno Victor Dorian #arno dorian x reader #arno dorian imagine #assassins creed #assassins creed unity #assassins creed imagine #arno dorian/reader #the amount of times i had to edit out writing about his scar #because he doesnt have it yet

[skullsandwineglasses]

Arsenal Military Academy (First Impressions - Eps 1-13)

I’m about a quarter of the way through, but I’m really enjoying it so far. The premise is simple: a 19-year old young woman disguises herself as her deceased brother and enrolls in the military academy. Like most dramas that take place during the pre-modern republican era, the main conflict and antagonist is usually about the threat of Japanese occupation. 

But this drama is more light-hearted than serious. The Japanese plot line looms in the background, but the main focus (so far) is about the FL’s training at the academy and the missions that the students go on and their interactions with each other. There are some really good comedic moments, and the drama has good pacing. 

The Female Lead - Xie Xiang (played by Bai Lu)

I’m going to be making comparisons to The Legends because the reason why I started this drama was to see Bai Lu and Xu Kai again. I know these two dramas are completely difference so it’s not fair to compare them, but I’m going to be talking about these differences. 

Xie Xiang is a watchable FL, but I think she’s missing that spark that would make her a memorable FL. She’s not as physically capable as her male counterparts, but she has the perseverance, wits, and martial arts skills that many of her peers lack. It’s a really standard character profile for a cross-dressing FL in a military academy, and tbh, it’s kind of boring. I’m not sure what would help elevate her character more, but it just feels like something’s missing. 

In comparison, the second FL has that spark. She’s more layered. She comes from a middle-class, well-to-do family, but chooses to be an entertainer. She’s arrogant, demanding, high maintenance, but she’s also protective of her friends and doesn’t hesitate to stand up to things she thinks is wrong. She’s a haughty firecracker, but what makes her admirable is how she isn’t afraid to be herself. I think it’s an interesting balance for a character to be obnoxiously full of themselves, but to also care about others. She’s probably the first SFL that I actually enjoy watching (even if she might be a potential love rival to the FL). 

The Male Lead - Gu Yanzhen (played by Xu Kai)

Speaking of someone who is obnoxiously full of themselves but still has the capacity to care for others, the ML is exactly this. In this drama, Xu Kai plays a character who is nearly the opposite of the character he played in The Legends. Here, Gu Yanzhen is a cheeky, mischievous, spoiled rich kid who loves flirting with women and causing trouble. He’s like an overgrown child (like when he’s jealous and purposely gets himself sick so that Xie Xiang would take care of him), but when he wants to do, he’s also able to show high levels of competence, maturity, and bravery. 

Xu Kai really stands out in this drama. He’s quite charming and adorable because he’s allowed to be more expressive. He mopes, teases, complains, smirks, worries, and yearns. Despite playing a noble, self-sacrificing, and devoted ML in The Legends, Xu Kai didn’t completely win me over then. Mostly because his character was a bit flat and so overdone in the xianxia genre. But seeing a different side of his acting in AMA has made him grow on me. 

It’s almost as if Xu Kai and Bai Lu switched personalities in this drama where he’s more outgoing, while she’s more reserved. He’s now the loud and impulsive one, while she’s the more conscientious one who wants to do something meaningful. 

The Chemistry

So far it’s been very one-sided. Gu Yanzhen figures out that she’s a girl early on and falls for her, while she still finds him intolerably annoying and is instead crushing on the second male lead. Because she doesn’t want to have anything to do with him, the chemistry is kind of lacking. If I hadn’t watched The Legends beforehand, I’m not sure if I would be onboard with this ship. 

The story is currently purposely set up so that we see that the ML and SFL are more compatible, and the FL and SFL are more compatible. Gu Yanzhen and the SFL are practically the same person, and they have a lot of playful bantering, so it’s kind of hard not to ship them. But I’m curious to see when the switch happens. We see that Xie Xiang is starting to slightly warm up to Gu Yanzhen, but Gu Yanzhen needs to mature a bit more before she changes her opinion of him. 

I’m also living for these stories where he figures out her true identity before everyone else and tries to help her protect her secret, but she’s completely clueless to it. The same things happened in The Legends, and the dynamic repeats itself here. 

The second ML is portrayed as being a perfect character. Mature, clever, kind, caring, righteous. It’s hard not to like him. I’m wondering if he already knows that Xie Xiang is a girl because of his glances, or if that’s because the director was purposely trying to make it ambiguous. At least at this point, he seems to be the best match for the FL, even though he currently likes his former classmate, who is actually working for the Japanese. 

The Plot

I like how there are a lot of intersecting characters, which helps expands the fictional world. The peripheral characters all somehow relate back to the main leads, so you can’t really skip their scenes because their stories connect somehow. 

The colour-grading, costuming, sets, and OST also help immerse you into the era. 

Despite being have a simple and stereotypical premise, it’s not easy to predict the endgame of the drama. You know that at some point, Xie Xiang’s identity will be revealed, but then what? After that point, the plot is going to take a turn because it’ll need a new conflict, which will be probably related to the Japanese, but you’re not sure what yet. The drama feels refreshing so far, but I also haven’t watched too many republican era dramas, so it’s not hard to impress me. 

Other anachronistic observations

In episode 1, when Xie Xiang uses the women’s restroom while dressed as a man and runs into the second FL (Qu Manting), Manting accuses her of trying to take pictures of her and demands that Xie Xiang take out her camera and delete/destroy the photos. It’s a minor point, but cameras in those days were huge and thus hard to hide, so it should have been obvious that Xie Xiang didn’t have a camera on her. 

In a later episode, Xie Xiang struggles to complete the obstacle course because she’s unwell, and while it’s not explicitly stated, I think we’re supposed to assume that it’s because of period cramps, and I applaud the drama for implying this (but it would have been even better if they made the implication more explicit). But ever since the drama started, I wondered about this. Even if someone didn’t have period cramps, how would you hide menstruation while living in the same room with someone? TMI, but when I was living with 4 other girls during uni, the garbage can in our bathroom would be filled with sanitary products during the same week every month. Women back then didn’t have the same sanitary products as we do now, but they still had to scrub and change cloths, like my mom did when she was younger. So realistically, Xie Xiang would have had to spend long periods of time (no pun intended) in the washroom to scrub her cloths. And after she did so, where did she dry them? 

Anyway, those are minor points. Overall, this drama is a fun watch, and I’m thankful that Xu Kai and Bai Lu got to collaborate again before the fandoms made things awkward as they do with any rumoured CP (*cough cough* Deng Lun and Yang Zi, and Cheng Yi and Yuan Bingyan). It’s as though the more chemistry two people have together in a drama, the less likely they’ll collaborate again because the fandoms will start to hate each other due to some misunderstanding and/or company management. The irony. So I guess the goal is to have low, platonic chemistry so that you don’t become enemies so as to leave the door open for future collaboration opportunities. Sorry, so that was bitter and a bit off tangent. I just have a lot of thoughts about the toxicity of fandom culture. 

#arsenal military academy #烈火军校 #xu kai #bai lu #cdrama #白鹿 #许凯 #cdrama review #cdrama impressions #the legends