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whumble-beeee · 1 month

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The Man in the Sweater Vest

The (Un)Official Guide to Hero-Keeping | Cont'd from Part 7

Content: attempted noncon, threatened mouth whump, disabled whumpee, trans whumpee, scissors, tied up/handcuffs, noncon unshirtening, noncon touch, past captivity references, graphic threats, blood, crapton of whump. As a treat :)

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Excerpt from: The (Un)Official Guide to Hero-Keeping; a self-help guide for villains and bounty-hunters

[Inevitably, there will be disagreements on how you should treat your captured hero. One villain might want to just hold the hero hostage long enough to finish their dastardly plans. Another will want to break the hero’s will entirely! Or anything else in between!

But when working together with other villains, bounty hunters, henchmen, etc, it is crucial that everyone is on the same page about how your captured hero is to be treated, lest your hero end up with a few less limbs than you meant them too, or your months of breaking down the hero's fragile mind is undone by a single nice gesture.

Always communicate effectively, your hero will thank you for it (or curse the day you were born)!]

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Sweater-vest stumbled back, reeling from the punch and clutching his face before pulling his hands down and gawking at the blood staining his hands.

“STAY AWAY FROM ME!!” Stan screamed.

An intense elation washed through his chest despite the surprisingly sharp exploding pain that crackled up the very bones of his arm when he punched the man, and the now freshly ripped open scabs and bruises from where he’d forgotten to account for the handcuffs and yanked on them violently, streaming new ruby red over dried light brown that already carved down his arms;

Because he'd got him. He'd got him! Punched him, made him back off! Stan did that! He'd finally managed to actually do something about the atrocities being committed against him and it was so, so sweet.

Relatively short-lived, though.

Vaughn, the sweater vest man, started to giggle to himself as he wiped the blood streaming from his nose onto his sleeve. Elation gave way to tentative confusion. Then a sinister seed started to take root in Stan's gut, the roots already reaching out and tightening around his body.

“You-...” Vaughn giggled some more. “You– you think–?...”

He started fully laughing, speech overtaken by an apparent hilarity that Stan must’ve just been too shocked by the sudden mood change to understand. He was cackling. Then practically shrieking, crazy, loud, heaving laughs.

He must be crazy.

Insane.

Well and truly insane, the way he was shriek laughing into his shining red-stained hands.

His gaze snapped up to Stan, and Stan could practically hear the horror movie crackling effect with how fast it snapped up, crazy maniacal shudders still overtaking his body, piercing gaze turned wide, animalistic.

“You think you can HURT ME?! HURT ME?! AHAHAHAHA!!”

Suddenly Stan slammed into the wall, cuffed wrists pinned above his head, chest to chest with the crazy man and staring up into his crazy bloodshot eyes.

“You can't hurt me,” he growled into Stan’s ear through gritted teeth. ”I don't feel pain. I carved that weakness out a long time ago, my brain doesn’t register it anymore! And I did it so I could deal with horrible little brats like you–” he slammed Stan's wrists into the wall, “--however I see fit! So I could do whatever I wanted to them. So that even if they fight back, they always, always, always lose.”

He pulled back and leaned into Stan's face, staring the captive directly in his glaringly defiant, wide and shining eyes. Hot shaking breaths misted surprisingly minty breath onto Stan’s cheeks, nearly overpowered by the metallic tang of blood that still poured down his face.

“Always submit. Just like you're going to.”

Stan pulled down hard against Vaughn's grasp, struggling and wiggling and tugging and screaming and kicking and doing every single little thing he could to, if not escape, at least make this as difficult as possible.

“Get away from me!" He cried. "GET AWAY FROM ME, get OFF of me, I’m not gonna let you do this you sadist, you can’t do this to me!! LET GO–!”

A punch to the gut. Stan tried to double over and wheezed as much as he could with his arms pinned up, which delivered him right into another punch to the face.

Then something cool and sharp stabbed into the soft underside of his chin, straining his neck with how far his head pushed back into the wall.

“This is why I like to keep my victims gagged,” Vaughn gritted. “That bounty hunter of yours never does it, no matter how I tell him to. Always has to do stuff his own way, never listens. All he does is talk talk talk, always has a retort for everything. So defiant, and so is every single subject he brings in.”

A dull aching throb emanated from where Stan’s head pressed into the wall. Black spots dotted his vision.

“You–... y-you can't–”

The scissors pulled back and dove toward Stan's mouth, eliciting a loud cut-off scream of revolt as he cowered and squeezed his eyes shut from some vain, animalistic instinct to protect himself.

Then he pried open his eyes again, confused when no cutting metallic pain ripped through the fragile flesh of his face.

The handle of the scissors were fuzzy, too close for his eyes to focus.

They weren’t that far into his mouth.

Just enough that if Stan tried to close it, his teeth would clip on the tip of the metal blades instead.

The scissors lifted slowly, tapping on his top teeth, tilting his head up until he stared into Vaughn’s metallic blue eyes once more.

“I could always prep your throat with these if you like,” he drawled softly, letting go of Stan’s cuff chain and instead lightly grasping his thumb and forefinger under Stan’s chin, forcing his mouth open further. A small sob crackled out from Stan’s throat.

“It would be so easy… I could just–”

The scissors lurched further into Stan’s mouth, and Stan let out another involuntary squeak and an open-mouthed, unintelligible pleading of “no, no, no, no…” as tears started to sting at his eyes.

But he let him do it.

He even still held his arms up, because surely if he tried to fight back now, with the scissors in his mouth quite literally pinning him to the wall… He didn’t even want to think of the consequences.

“Careful, dropje. Wouldn’t want to cut yourself. Be quiet, be still, be good for me, right? You can be good for me? You can finally shut the hell up. No more fighting.”

He let go of Stan's chin and let his hands wander lower, caressing Stan’s sides, the curve of his waist, making his entire body tense and shudder. His breathing turning loud and shallow as he cringed away.

Vaughn just giggled.

“See? Isn’t this better? You’re not getting hurt, you’re doing what I say…” His fingers slipped under the waistband of Stan’s pants again. Slower this time. More deliberate.

It took all of Stan's willpower to not start hyperventilating at what he knew was about to happen. He knew. It was always this, wasn’t it?

Vaughn’s voice lowered as he leaned closer, pressing his body into Stan’s. He could feel the fibers of the stupid damn sweater vest against his stomach, deceptively soft, almost pleasant. The hard blade of the scissors tapped on the tip of his nose. “Because you physically have no other–”

BANG!!

Stan screamed.

Vaughn screamed.

The ghost of the gunshot echoed off the cinderblock walls.

Vaughn also nearly fell backward, pushing off of Stan just in time for Stan to fall to the floor in a duck-and-cover position and pray to whatever gods would listen that his last day on earth wouldn't have been spent dealing with two of the worst people he'd ever had the displeasure of being kidnapped by.

Wait, scratch that, his knee reminded him. He'd had worse.

His heart threatened to jump out of his chest completely, but he finally realized that in fact, he was still alive. So he opened his eyes to what he never thought to be one of the most beautiful sights in the world;

Deeby.

Gun pointed to the sky and streaming a light grey smoke into a small puff of explosion that hadn't had time yet to dissipate.

“What in the ever-loving SHIT are you doing?!” he shouted.

He was completely maskless, face now on full display, fiery eyes matching his equally fiery sneer. The sudden absence of the mask almost scared Stan more than the gunshot, the sight making his heart beat in his throat.

Then, for just a split second, Deeby's enraged eyes met Stan's stare. His eyes scanned down his body, looking him up and down, his face changing ever so slightly when his gaze caught in Stan’s chest. A slight crinkle of the eyebrows, a small tilt of the head. Then his eyes widened in some sort of realization, and Stan felt his heart turn to ice.

Recognition.

No.

He couldn't have realized who he was.

Just because of the binder?!

Stan choked on his own throat as the collar suddenly constricted once more and he was dragged violently forward to his knees.

“Your fucking dog punched me in the face!” Vaughn shouted, jangling Stan around enough that he had to grab the collar just to gain back his breath.

“Just because–!”

Vaughn jolted Stan's collar back hard and cut him off with a violent gag.

“I was disciplining him.” Vaughn narrowed his eyes at the mercenary. “Like we're supposed to.”

Deeby’s jaw set. And still, he managed to find a slight smug smile within his fury. “That why your face is gushing blood, then? Disciplined him too hard?”

Stan didn't even realize when they started, but tears were practically streaming down his cheeks now, chest heaving in panic. “Deeby, Deeby, he was gonna–”

“Shut up!”

A kick this time, straight to the back of his spine, and Stan's throat strained hard into the collar before breaking free of Vaughn's grasp and nearly face-planting into cold concrete. He scrambled to get up, but the same foot planted on his back and slammed his chest right back to the floor, grinding the heel of its shoe into the captive’s spine. Stan clutched at the ground, screams barely bit back by force of sheer willpower.

“Christ, man! Stop it, get off!” Deeby yelled with uncharacteristic urgency.

The force pinning him down suddenly released, followed by the scattered footfalls of someone catching themself from nearly falling over.

Stan just lay there limp. Heaving and shivering. He couldn't move. His limbs felt like heavyweights, the world tilted on it’s axis, and he was sure that if he lifted his head up, he would lose every last morsel of that protein bar he'd shoved down earlier.

But at least now no one was methodically turning him into a fine red mist anymore.

Deeby stood between the two of them like an impenetrable stone wall, hand resting on the unlatched holster of his gun and pointedly ignoring Vaughn’s stuttering disbelief as he patted at the pockets of his jacket, pulling various probably very sharp things out and shoving them into his pants pockets.

Protecting him.

“You– You just–...” Vaughn finally composed himself. “You pushed me off! You're saving him? He needs to be taught a lesson!”

Stan tried to push up despite the dizziness. “Only–... D-Deeby, he was trying–”

“Shut up, Stan, I know, let me handle it! Here.” Deeby slid his jacket off and dropped it practically on top of his captive’s head, never once letting his gaze slip from Vaughn. Stan shakily pulled the brown leather of the jacket over his shoulders before he had time to think better of it, doing his best to just enjoy the show and not think about the implications of what was currently happening.

“Because he wouldn't let you put your dick in him without a fight, right?” The bounty hunter said sarcastically. “Or– or– or because he wasn’t gonna let you mouth-gore him without complaint? Let you ‘teach him a lesson?’ Yeah, I am stopping you. Piece of shit.” The bounty hunter grabbed the scissors off the floor where they landed when Vaughn dropped them after the gunshot. Then he used them to point sharply at the door.

“Get out.”

Vaughn scoffed and melodramatically rolled his eyes.

“You got the message from Lana then? Is that why you're acting like such a belligerent wittle babeee?” Vaughn posited in his most obnoxious baby voice.

Deeby bristled. Stan could've sworn for a moment he could see the man shaking.

“Yes,” he said, slowly. “I talked to Lana. Your useless job is done. You can go back to being an even more useless sidepiece now.”

Vaughn’s shoulders tensed, and he laughed.

“Good! And I’ll make sure to tell Lana all about you taking the side of the disobedient dog of a test subject–”

“Yeah, go cry to your girlfriend about it, he's under my jurisdiction and I'm not gonna let you fuck that up because you feel the need to live out your perverse power fantasy with the helpless people you kidnap and torture. As if it isn’t torture enough to have to be in the same room with you at all.”

Vaughn clenched his fists at his side and forced on the worst imitation of a smile Stan had ever borne witness to.

“You better watch your tone, Deathberry,” he said, sickly sweet voice doing nothing to mask the hissing rage. “I could have you in the same spot as him in ten seconds. Don't ever–” he jabbed Deeby in the chest. “–forget that. You're only allowed to be out here roaming around with your fancy gun and your fancy cowboy boots because you're useful, otherwise you'd be locked up with the rest–”

Vaughn had just started to reach for the holster on Deeby's belt when, faster than Stan could perceive, a flurry of movement between the two men, a cry of surprised fear, the shuffling of feet and spinning of bodies and suddenly Vaughn was pinned back first to Deeby's chest, a wire that Deeby pulled from somewhere stretched taut between his fists and pressing a hard line directly under into the skin of Vaughn's throat.

Vaughn's hands quickly flew up to the wire to try and pull it off his throat, then just as quickly let go when he realized the wire would sooner cut through his hands before it would be pried off.

Stan couldn't help but stare.

“You're just about at the end of my rope, Verhulst,” Deeby growled, accent fully presiding now as he stepped backward and pulled Vaughn toward the door. “Don't you ever put your filthy hands on my gun.”

A slight rasp to Vaughn's voice was the only thing that denoted anything was amiss. “You sure this is about the gun, Deebs? Sure you're not taking your frustrations at Lana out on me?”

“Trust me, if I was takin’ my frustrations at Lana out on you, bud, you'd be dead.”

Vaughn's eyes shot to Stan, and his smile broadened.

“Ohhhh, I see. So what then, you are falling for the captive? I'm sure Lana would love to hear about how you're going soft, how you miss her, and how spectacularly you're failing at finding someone better so you have to–”

A small gurk finding its way from Vaughn's throat as he was pulled to a sudden stop.

“You know what, maybe I am. And maybe you should use your mouth to do something not completely useless for once.” He spun the both of them around to face Stan again.

“Apologize to ‘im.”

What?

Vaughn stared at Stan, apparently more stunned by the notion of apologizing than the motion of having a garot wire to his throat. Stan… honestly had to agree.

“Come again?”

“Apologize to Stan. For tryin’ to rape him. It's the least you could do.”

“You want me to… apologize?? To the test subject? You really are losing it, Deathberry, let me go.”

The wire dug into his throat more. “Say sorry, doctor.”

Vaughn glared at Stan. Stan glared back as well as he could.

“I can't feel the pain of this, you know,” Vaughn's voice came, even raspier. “You're not doing anything.”

“You can still bleed out from a slit throat. Still drown to death in your own blood as it slowly fills your lungs,” Deeby dismissed lightly. “Still bleed out. Very quickly. I wonder what would happen if I hit your carotid–

“And I wonder how Lana would feel about you slitting her head scientist and boyfriend’s throat.”

“Probably call you a little bitch boy for invoking her name every time you need to defend yourself like a spoiled toddler ‘steada bein’ a man about it and defending yourself. Or maybe not. You’d never know, you’d be dead.”

“You wouldn't–”

Deeby twitched the wire across Vaughn's throat and a line of red bloomed across the light tan of his neck. Vaughn's face grew just a little bit paler. He brought his hands up to graze across the wire and felt the warm wetness smear across his fingertips.

“Apologize.” Deeby growled. “Now.”

Vaughn's eyes flitted back to Stan, fully appraising the wonderfully wide-eyed mess he'd had pinned against the wall only moments before.

He narrowed his eyes.

Took a deep breath.

Stared daggers directly into Stan's soul.

“Sorry.”

Oh you bastard.

“Go jump off a cliff!” Stan yelled, erratically reaching into the jacket pocket he'd seen Deeby pull the protein bar out of earlier and luckily finding many more, one of which was immediately thrown directly at Vaughn. He couldn't even attempt to dodge it, and it hit him directly in the chest.

The mercenary let out a singular loud laugh and spun Vaughn back around, letting the wire retract into what Stan now realized was a little housing box on his weird arm sleeve thing and shoving Vaughn at the door as hard as he could.

“Guess he doesn't forgive you. Better luck next time!” he laughed. Stan genuinely thought (and hoped) Sweater-vest would fall flat on his face, but he managed to grab the door and right himself before that happened. Shame.

“Now get out.” Deeby said.

Vaughn glared with a literal snarl, jaw half a second away from cracking in two. Right before he took a slow, deep breath and reset his features to a forced neutral. Then an easy smile. “As you wish, my liege.”

He bowed exaggeratedly low in a show of mock respect, retrieving his scissors from the ground in a surprisingly graceful sweeping motion as he went. Deeby just rolled his eyes.

“Oh, and Stanny?” He drawled, peeking back from the door as he left and pointing his scissors directly at Stan's face with a flourish. “I look forward to seeing you soon~.”

“Get outta here!” Deeby yelled with a threatening stomp toward the door, at the same time Stan stuttered out a very surprised and agitated “In hell!”

The door slammed shut.

Stan could swear he could still hear Vaughn's deranged laugh echoing through the room even as an eerie silence fell over them.

He was finally gone. Finally.

See you soon.

He didn't completely understand why his breath continued to quicken. He'd won that encounter, right? Or… well, Deeby had. But still.

I look forward to seeing you soon.

He felt dizzy. More than the concussion could have caused. This was different, made him feel like he was suffocating, even though Vaughn was no longer here to strain the collar against his throat. Yet he could still feel the knuckles digging into the back of his neck.

I look forward to seeing you soon. In hell.

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#whump #heroes and villains #whump writing #whumper #whumpee #hero whump #defiant whumpee #kidnapping whump #captivity whump #trans whumpee #disabled whumpee #(un)official guide #attempted noncon #noncon undressing #IT'S BACK BABYYYY #GAH I've been so excited to post this #I missed this so much #extra long and extra whumpy for all your waiting #whos idea was it to let me go on an accidental month long hiatus #WHO WAS IT #anyway I'm going into tech week irl for the musical i'm in #so I might not get to the next chapter next weekend #I'll definitely try to tho #I genuinely missed writing and posting this story too. I've got so much more of it to tell #anyway I hope you like this chapter it was a bitch to wring it out of me but I did it #and its glorious #Also vaughn is such a cringefail I love him so much #and we've got some secret hidden Deeby lore sprinkled in there!#making this like an easter egg hunt #did you find it?

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vamprisms · 5 days

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i love the temporary knockout mechanic in bg3 wish every rpg had that as an option forever

#obvs there are other games where you can choose non lethal takedowns but i love how characters you knocked out will turn up later #love that they wrote extra stuff for if you toggle that option #wish they'd done that more but i get why it's not super fleshed out in such a massive game with a billion outcomes #using it as an example because i've got it on the brain right now but imagine that option in a fallout game #imagine the consequences it could have. writing wise. hmm many thoughts #hidden trophy for a pacifist run in a fallout story. todd would never allow it #war never changes but im going to try todd

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chibishortdeath · 3 months

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I redrew something from 2022 :3! Yippie, now you guys get to see the old one and the new one next to each other heck yeah.

I’m gonna rant like absolutely bonkers length about Simon’s Quest and the endings and story under a cut for anyone interested:

The original version (the last image) had this like long rant about how I see the endings of the game, but it wasn’t as comprehensive cause I was still kinda new to things and well instagram character limit lol.

The endings of the game are a really really cool topic to me because of how ominous and vague they all are. They’re all left pretty open! But I’ve always gotten some sinking dread even when getting the fastest “red sky” ending. The game really sets up the ending with a lot of empty areas and suspense beforehand, especially with the still present but now more pressing clock still ticking ya know, and the final battle is kinda just there, but it ends off all this tense build up with

A eulogy. One definitely written for Simon too. In every ending.

The first ending (grey sky) is really vague, just a general statement that “Simon you will always be remembered for your bravery and courage” and that “Peace and serenity have been restored to Transylvania and the people are free of Dracula’s curse”. Which is really odd for what would be assumed to be a “bad ending”. This generally sounds like a pretty good outcome and it’s primarily the same in the Japanese version just slightly worded differently. Heck, it’s not even stated in the text outright if he died. But the visuals, oh man. Dreary greyscale and Simon doesn’t even appear on screen in front of Dracula’s grave. Did Dracula even get reburried? It’s some really bleak imagery compared to the otherwise pretty unsuspecting text.

And second ending (blue sky) is very interesting. Simon appears on screen with some nice bright generally cheery colors, but the text deliberately mentions his death in both versions. The English version however says something the Japanese version doesn’t: it says the curse wasn’t broken. The original text says “until a young man to fight against evils like him comes again to this world, Transylvanians will keep praying forever.” Which I guess you could assume means that something went wrong and the curse still exists, but it could also be taken as a general “there’s no cool badass vampire hunter guy to kill any other general threats, so we hope another one comes along”. So, again, it’s so extremely vague.

So far the first and the second don’t really have all that much different as far as implications go: Simon beat Dracula but he died.

So what about the third ending (red sky)? Would it shock you if I said there’s not much difference from the text of the first ending? It’s essentially just another eulogy text with nice things to say about him. It says “Simmon Belmont put an eternal period to the legend of Dracula” (yes the Japanese version says Simmon lol it happens), which is something we know isn’t true because well more games got made later. Also because Dracula’s hand pops out of the ground afterwards! Which is hard to say the meaning of, is it just a teaser like “to be continued” or is it actually meaning that Dracula wasn’t put down properly and will be back really soon? Because that still is in line with things since yeah Drac did kinda sorta come back early in Harmony of Dissonance. Anyway— But it’s just another way of saying “he killed Dracula” and probably “he ended the curse”. The last section is just “his blood and sweat have penetrated into the ground of Transylvania and will bring us full-blown flowers with happiness in next spring”. Which is, again, just a really pretty, poetic way of saying “we’re never gonna forget this guy”. And again, this ending never outright says if he lives or dies!

Which is so!!!!! Weird!!!!!!!!!!! Why have multiple endings in a game if they’re all so vague that they’re almost completely interchangeable and can all be argued to be the ending of the game? You could genuinely make an argument for each of the endings being the canon ending and it would affect essentially nothing. They’re so vague to the point that a lot of people assume that they were mixed up at some point in development, which I find unlikely coming from the dev team of the guy said to want his games to be a cinematic experience. But it’s so strange! Why!?!?!

But I think that this vagueness and sense of idk how to put it— um ya know when something builds something up to get you all excited and convinced it’ll go one way and then it pulls the rug out from under you? Like when it’s set up to where it feels like the protagonist is finally going to get something and then it just doesn’t happen completely unceremoniously? Like a hope crushing twist?

Idk what I mean is, to me, it feels completely intentional. It feels to me like the game is just ramping up the tension and the suspense and the dread just to cut it off with vague, bittersweet endings that just seem to imply sad things and don’t sit right. It’s like as if the game wants you to get the first ending, see that it’s really gloomy, try to figure out the game more and get the second ending, see that that one outright says he’s dead, then try to get something better only to run into another awkward seemingly negative ending and a realization that you can’t do anything about it.

And I was thinking about this again a bit ago and realized that it really fits with the rest of Simon’s story. Simon kinda has this general “hero goes to save the day” plot in the first one with some slight mention of Christopher before him and the fact that this is a clan and a repeating 100 year Dracula cycle right? But things go wrong and he gets cursed and presumably either struggles to figure out what to do or just puts it off for like 6 ish years. Add the general vibes of “will I ever be as good as my ancestors?” and repeating themes of being alone and then compare that with Dracula’s Curse that comes out not long later and this game is suddenly the most “power of friendship” “seeing the good in people” “together we can overcome this” kind of story in the whole series and it hit me: Simon feels like a subversion of the lone hero trope. Like this super uplifting, unlikely band of heroes story coming out right after the solitude if it were personified as a 1600s vampire hunter story feels so so so so important to me. And then The Adventure and Belmont’s Revenge come out and what are they about? Christopher goes into the castle alone and something goes wrong! And I’ve noticed how other Belmonts and protagonists in later games get companions or friends or helpers or somebody else, and oh boy does that make how alone Simon is that much more noticeable.

It just all comes together in a messed up way. I really feel like Simon dies in all of these endings. And I didn’t even get into weird symbolism discussion lol—

And maybe this is just me looking too hard into an old game from a modern used to stories in games being detailed perspective, but idk man, I love the Simon’s Quest because it never fails to baffle me. Honestly so much of Simon’s Quest genuinely haunts me (affectionate), like I’ll just be sitting around and think of another possible answer to something and it’ll end up just as vague and full of holes as any other speculation, it’s wild. This game will have you sitting around looking for answers only to consistently run into dead ends with sad or nonexistent implications. I hope any of this makes sense, this game drives me insane I love it debating replaying and overthinking it again hmmmmmmm—

#castlevania #castlevania games #Castlevania Simon’s quest #simon’s quest #castlevania ii #castlevania ii: simon's quest #akumajou dracula #simon belmont #castlevania fanart #art post #my art #art #fanart #redraw #ahfkshakfjsga i love u Simon’s Quest never change #Simon’s story is such a tragedy man somebody get this guy a friend #shout out to that midnight energy that suddenly compelled me to write multiple pages about an NES game again 💀💀💀💀💀💀#also hehehehe flower symbolism in this one >:3c #have fun piecing the meanings of things together hehe it was fun researching for it #the flowers included are roses marigolds anemones and some teeny tiny forgetmenots hidden in there #also the symbolism surrounding Simon I’ve noticed seems to generally lead back to martyrdom and sacrifice which is hmmmm interesting #the thorns and colors Ayami uses for him in her art of him #the hanging skeletons in the hanged man positions being a reference to him #there’s more I’m just getting sleepy and can’t think of them rn #I made a post about it a loooong time ago tho #anyway that’s just adding on to the other ominous implications of what might have happened to him aaaaa #anyway Simon is one of the characters ever #hopefully this gives somber but ethereal vibes beautiful but tragic ya know #bro puts the slay in vampire slayer like it’s giving dead but he killed it anyway—#incoherent rambling

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ladywaterfall · 1 year

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it's spring, and I want to see it in the world of my childhood toy ponies.

the ponies are enjoying the first rays of sun. the winter is always so dark here. the ponies, just like me, take a few moments to just feel the spring sun on our faces.

three ponies are gathered. two of them are the birthday themed ones I got for my own birthday one year - they celebrate each day like birthdays. the excitedly tell me about the spring masquerade ball at the castle later today. the third pony there - dark pink and adorned with a moon and stars - is quietly listening. I know her, of course. I know she secretly is a thief who goes to the royal balls in disguise to steal precious gemstones, and she is planning her heist for today. I know she is, because I made her so. of course, I say nothing; her role is to bring some excitement.

I join them to the ball. before entering, I visit the castle garden, where I spot the unicorn with the dark red hair, tinkering with her latest invention. she often tries to mix her mechanic inventions with magic, to varying degrees of success.

in another corner further back, I see her. she has marker stains and scratches, or scars of her adventures, let's say. because she always grew into a villain. the others don't know yet, but she is plotting to betray them right now, and will soon leave for the mountains, where she will unleash evil magic. there will be fights and daring heroism and discoveries of magical artifacts deep in the secret parts of the ancient castles.

I smile, turn around, and walk into the castle. a playful jester pony hands me a masquerade mask. I know she will have her role to play, and will be granted the title of princess after this adventure. she will have to face a great quest first, though.

the ballroom is filled with beautiful decorations of suns and spring flowers, the daylight filling the room through the windows, stretching all the way up to the ceiling. the Queen enters, and everyone falls silent, waiting for her to welcome them, to welcome spring.

I smile. the adventure is about to start.

#if this is confusing I meant this to be about how I would play out some of the same story beats as a child #nostalgia #ellen talks #ellen writes #idk if i manage to convey what I want but I hope others find this enjoyable #the ponies are all g2s #birthday version sundance and light heart #the thief is moon shadow and the inventor is copper glow #the villain is sweet berry actually cause I never liked her design #the jester is trixiebelle and the queen is sunsparkle #my little pony #mlp g2 #g2 my little pony #my little pony g2 #this is just an exercise in writing my own nostalgia #btw I LOVED the concept of hidden passages and rooms in castles it was such a key feauture of my playing #still love the concept Im a sucker for it

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onewholivesinloops · 8 months

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one of the things that makes the umineko cast work so well is that they're very tightly written in terms of how they parallel each other but also how they parallel yasu first and foremost and i've always felt like that's an approach sotsugou tried to replicate with the higurashi cast and satoko

#it's obviously not as competent as umineko and it'd be crazy to suggest this #but it's also unfair to pit them against each other in terms of quality when one is ~100h sound novel and the other is an anime #anyway the most obvious and interesting is satoko and rika being narrative foils #but besides that the takano focus in the last episode of gou is all about drawing parallels between her and satoko #it's satoko inheriting the takano role so this exists to emphasize how similar they truly are #there's oniakashi rena and wataakashi mion which are all about drawing parallels with satoko's character arc albeit in different ways #even teppei in tatariakashi isn't meant to be seen as a character as much as he's a symbol #there's so much nuance in terms of what teppei stands for in terms of being the fantasy of the father figure she wishes she could've had #but he's also a mirror of her 'worst' self #even hanyuu's focus in the beginning of kagurashi can be drawn back to satoko's motives #i think sotsugou makes the most sense when you parse it as being the satoko show before anything else #i think this is something the original does with rika too but it's also a little different #the original isn't as rika centric #even if she's the hidden protagonist and the true heart it's still an ensemble story #but sotsugou feels like it's a love letter for satoko in the same way umineko is one for beatrice #not that this means the other characters don't matter it's just that everything is kinda about them?#not sure if this makes sense but it does in my head and i can write so many words about all the parallels #gamo.txt

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universestreasures · 1 month

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That Haunting Emptiness (Drabble)

Prequel Drabble To This Thread With @shacchou

Looking back, he should have said more. Mokuba was well aware of how important this entire endeavor, this entire search for Atem, was his to Seto. He...He needed to find him; to have that final duel and resolve the rivalry they had developed over the years. It was just something his brother wouldn't just 'get over'. When his brother was obsessed with something, he was obsessed with it till it was seen through. This Mokuba knew well by now.

But...he still can't help but feel regret deep down in his soul for not trying harder to stop this. The chance of success with an untested prototype, no matter how brilliant the design, was not certain. Mokuba knew that. Seto knew that, and yet...his brother still went and did it anyway, left this realm for the world of the afterlife to see his rival again.

This left Mokuba on his own truly for the first time since his brother's coma. Sure, they had times they were separated, such as when they had that confrontation regarding their past where he sought aid from his friends, but...Seto was always there. He was always in the same realm as him. That wasn't the case here, for the two brothers were whole realms apart, separated by the barrier between life and death.

And despite his best efforts to run Kaiba Corporation in his brother's absence on top of his work at school, he...he wasn't handling it well. As the days turned into weeks and the weeks turned into months, Mokuba's condition physically and mentally worsened. He was barely eating, barely able to sleep, barely able to live. How could he...when his brother, his other half in many ways, his major reason for living, was not with him right now with no guarantee of a return?

Regardless of the circumstances, however, the young boy remained hopeful. His faith in his brother was unmatched, stronger now than it had been years before. His brother would come back. He had to. He couldn't...

He couldn't abandon him...not again...

Mokuba found himself in Seto's office, having taken residence there in his temporary role as acting president. Mochi was in his lap as he stared aimlessly at the computer screen, sitting comfortably there as he petted the soft fur of her back. Normally he wouldn't bring his therapy cat to work daily, but it had become a necessity. Having her around gave him a sense of company when his friends, such as his Buddyfighter crew or the Blue-Eyed Maiden herself Kisara Utahara, could not be present. It was company he desperately needed during these times.

In addition to his feline companion, Mokuba had other items with him. On top of his and Seto's pendents that he wore hidden one of Seto's old blue ties, he also had been given the responsibility of holding onto Seto's physical deck, considering his new Duel Disk system used virtual cards. This included his three trusted Blue Eyes White Dragons, cards Mokuba had always loved. Having those mementos, along with bringing his scrapbooks to work, made things both easier and harder for him. He missed his big brother so much, more than he ever has in his entire life.

Why wasn't he back yet?!

Mokuba's purple hues are then widened as he hears the sound of panicked footsteps from outside the office door, soon enough glancing upon Isano who appeared to look distressed. His face was pale, sweat dripping down his face. Something was wrong, very wrong.

"Master Mokuba! You're needed at the Space Station! Mr. Kaiba...Mr. Kaiba is...!"

The vice president doesn't even let him finish. He's out the door as soon as he hears his brother's name, leaving Mochi in his care. He is pushing through every person in his way, not caring about anything more than being quick. He had one goal in mind: seeing his brother.

"Where is he?! Where is my big brother?!" Mokuba demands as he arrived at the control center for the station, his voice not sounding too unlike the CEO's.

"H-He's up there still, M-Master Mokuba, b-but you should-"

"Then send me up there right away!" He says as he makes his way to the elevator, slipping through the coated scientists who were attempting to block the entrance.

"B-But sir! There is something-"

"I said send me up there, now!!!"

His voice, one akin to a dragon's roar, silenced the workers, all of them moving silently as Mokuba sits down and prepares himself for the ascension into space. Truth be told, he's never actually been up here himself. The elevator only had a single seat, after all. Not only that, he had been wanting to wait for a special occasion to see it for the first time, like his fourteenth birthday that wasn't too far away from now. Seems like that plan would have to be thrown away, for the current situation was more pressing.

As he is locked in and the chair starts moving up towards the stars, his heart raced out of his chest. He isn't sure what he's feeling right now other than the adrenaline. He should be joyful, happy that his brother was back, but Isano and the staff's expressions made him doubt. The boy shakes his head, suppressing all of those thoughts as he approaches the top, the top of the elevator his brother had created.

Upon reaching the station, he jumps out to head to the room where his brother's prototype should be. Despite never having step foot in here, Mokuba had been present during the entire design process. He knew the entire layout by heart. It's why it doesn't take him long to find the room, the doors slowly opening with no sound in the room other than the sounds of the computers humming.

And that's when he sees it, before his very eyes, his brother's prototype...and the person that was inside of it.

"Seto!!!!" The name escapes his lips easily as breathing as soon as the sight of his brother reaches his now watery eyes. Mokuba wastes no time running to his side, pressing the buttons on the side to open the pod. "Thank goodness you're back! I knew you'd come back, Seto! After all, we promised that we would always stay to-"

It is at that moment when the boy's blood runs cold, the euphoria he felt due to his relief all but drying up in an instant. For before him was indeed his brother, but...not in the way the younger brother had hoped. Seto's body was in a rough shape, his clothes torn and covered in a red liquid that Mokuba soon saw coming from the corner of his brother's mouth. The smell of the iron from the blood hit his nose, confirming that what he was seeing was...

"No, no, no! Big Brother? Big Brother!?" On instinct he holds his brother's hands, feeling their coldness immediately upon contact. The tears from his eyes flow into streams, flowing down his cheeks like a river. This...This wasn't...

"HQ? HQ?!" He calls out to the monitor in the room, praying that someone can hear him. "Someone...Someone send a doctor! A doctor up here, now! Seto...Seto needs help! The transport must have been too intense for his body! Hurry, or else he...!"

"Master Mokuba. There is something...we've been trying to tell you."

It is then that Isano, holding Mochi in his arms, appears on the screen, his signature sunglasses having been removed as the other Kaiba Corp employees behind him hung their heads low. Never had Mokuba seen his brother's right hand man without those glasses on, an unpredicted sight that made the pit in his stomach grow larger by the second.

"Master Seto...His..."

"Don't...Don't..." His grip on his brother's hands tightens as his gaze shift's to Seto, his eyes shut and unable to look back at him.

"His heart rate was... non-existent the second we saw him re-enter the station. I...I am sorry, sir. There is...nothing we can-"

"Shut up..."

"But Master Mokuba-"

"Just shut up!!!! My brother isn't...My brother isn't dead!!! He...He can't!!!! He promised!!!! He promised me we would always stay together! Always!!! That he'd come back to me after his stupid duel with a dead man!!! He'll...He'll prove you all wrong!!! Just watch!!!"

His arms then move to hug his brother, not caring that his off-white suit was to be stained with the color of red roses. Tears fall from his eyes and onto his brother's face, his breathing heavy and his body shakes. This...This couldn't be...

"Seto...Come on...Wake...Wake up...Show them that you're gonna be okay...Wake up...Wake up!!!"

But...his pleas went unanswered, no matter how much or how long he cried next to his brother's empty husk. Nothing he nor Kaiba Corporation's resources could do could change the situation. Nothing could change the reality...that Seto Kaiba was...was...

"Seto!!!!!!!!!"

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

Mokuba screams awake, scaring his feline companion who had been attempting to wake him up the moment he started talking and yelling in his sleep. He was not up in the space station, not next to his brother's corpse, but instead back at home...in Seto's bedroom. He had taken to sleeping in there since his brother left, a way to feel closer to the person he wished was at his side.

Mochi finds her way closer to Mokuba, performing her usual repertoire of soothing behaviors to try and help him calm such as kneading his palm. His breath was heavy, his body was shaking, and he felt like sick to his stomach. A hand was over his mouth, as if trying to prevent himself from throwing up as the flashes of what he witnessed replayed in his mind over and over.

He couldn't get the image of his brother, cold and covered in blood, out of his head...

The ever-resourceful kid moves to his phone, checking if any correspondence or updates about his brother's status had been made. Thankfully, or unthankfully depending on how one might see it, there was nothing. His brother...was still missing, but he wasn't...

He drops the phone then to instead open the pair of lockets around his neck, staring at the pictures of himself and his brother intensely, the pictures he clung to during desperate times like this. Seeing Seto's smile, the smile he cherishes, does a bit to help quell his panic. Though, that sight nor Mochi's assistance could do little to fix the fear that had surged through him, the fear for the future that had manifested in the form of this night's nightmare.

A future where Seto...broke his promise. A future where he...died and left him all alone...just like his mother and father did so many years ago...That's what he feared more than anything, and the current situation only made that fear he's had for years...worse...for it seemed more probable now than ever before.

But...Mokuba, despite his struggles and traumatic experiences, was a strong kid, a strong kid because his brother had allowed him to become one through his guidance and selfless protection. It was because of Seto that Mokuba was still able to have hope, still able to believe in the impossible. And it was that feeling, one that slowly was coming to the surface, that guided him to stand up from the bed with Mochi in his arms. He goes to open the curtain in Seto's room, purple hues staring at the stars he could see through the city's skyline.

"Big Brother...I believe...I believe that you're still alive...I don't know when but...we will be together again...I...I just know it..." Despite the shakiness of his words, his conviction is clear. "And I'll wait for you Seto...I'll wait for you...forever if I have to...Just...Just please come home...someday. I...I need you here, just like...I know you need me, too."

It is at that moment, without the boy's knowledge, that a supernatural phenomenon occurred. The boy's strong feelings for his brother, ones of familial love and hope, seemed to have awakened someone. Or more accurately, the parts of the soul of someone who cared for Seto as much as he did.

For inside his brother's deck, sealed protectively in the suitcase on the other side of the room, his three dragons began...to faintly glow, a glow that would soon...light the way for these two brothers to....be reunited.

#💎 Crystalized Hidden Gems (Drabble)#💎 Vice Treasure (Mokuba Kaiba)#💎 President With A Blue-Eyed Lighting (Shacchou)#💎 Vice's Dark Side Story (Mokuba DSOD Verse)#tw long post #tw character death #tw nightmares #tw ptsd #tw blood #(THIS WAS...A DOOZY TO WRITE NGL #(BUT OH I HOPE I PROTRAYED IT WELL CAUSE IM ACTUALLY HAPPY WITH HOW THIS TURNED OUT #(AND HOW I CONNECTED IT TO ME AND ANI'S PRIEST SETO THREAD #(THIS IS A SCENARIO THAT...I NEVER WANT MOKUBA TO EXPERIENCE OUTSIDE OF A DREAM BECAUSE...GOD #(LETS LET THIS KID BE HAPPY #(But him having nightmares about this fear of his makes total sense #(considering what the kids gone through and knowing seto almost died in transcended game as well ;;;;#(anyway y'all send mokuba some hugs and love he needs it after i put him through this ;;;;;;

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opens-up-4-nobody · 7 months

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...

#ever sit like a corpse in your own body?#im doing a job i wasnt designed for. theres this funny thing we do in academia where we beg for money. write in consise phrasing why we #deserve funding. what it is about our project what it is about our personhood that makes us deserving. what we're doing in our present to #give back and ensure a better future. and i can pull together a description of a nervous kid who couldn't read but loved to learn anyway.#who didnt kno how to hold proper a conversation until college and so tried and got better at ppl. who wouldnt let a language problem get in #the way of information gain. who cares about making complicated info visually digestible. and that's a nice story. but it falls apart when #projected into the future. what r u doing for the future? im just trying to continue existing #dont u want to help other ppl like u? sure but i dont have anything nice to say to them. does it ever get easier? no. it probably never will #ur brain was not built for reading. sometimes things r just terrible and u have to accept that. develop a crippling mental disorder or do #something where u dont have to read. see. not helpful. bad attitude. im just too full of blood and broken glass. all my achievements r #stained red and it hurts to look at them. to get myself to function i have to squeeze so tight i can feel the strain in my head. and even #then its not enough. do u kno what its like to spend ur whole life building something only to watch it burn to ashes in front of u? just a #broken machine rotting away underground where no one will see it. but dont let things fester. speak up if somethings wrong. and say what?#lmao i wrote this last night and then today when my advisor was like: hows it going? do u feel like u have enough time to get everything #done? and i had the gall to be like *voice strained high to prevent crying* its alright i think ive got enough time. bc yea technically i #think there r enough hours in yhr day that if i really tried i could get it all done. but that doesn't count the time i spend laying with #thr absolute desolation of my mind. so no. there isnt enough time bc im not doing well. but there's nothing he can do abt it so ya kno #whats the point in talking abt it except to say ya sorry im such a wretched miserable person. i dont kno how to fix it. my enthusiasm is #hidden under layer upon layer of pain. i burnef out before even getting here and im only making it worse #but whatever ill see my therapist Tuesday #unrelated

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maymemoria · 8 months

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Underlined by Ana May, a collection of memorable quotes & segments

Book Title: Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss, Love, and the Hidden Order of Life

Author: Lulu Miller

Quotes:

“Chaos was our only ruler. This massive swirl of dumb forces was that made us, accidentally, and would destroy us, imminently.”

“You don’t matter (...) so live as you please (...) While other people don’t matter, either, treat them like they do.”

“Nowhere is the sky so blue, the grass so green, the sunshine so bright, the shade so welcome, as right here, now, today.”

“It is the will of man that shapes the fates.”

“It’s a hard lot being a human (...) You walk around with the knowledge that the world is fundamentally uncaring, that no matter how hard you work there is no promise of success, that you are competing against billions, that you are vulnerable to the elements, and that everything you ever love will eventually be destroyed.”

“A category is at best a proxy, at worst, a shackle.”

“We barely know the world around us, even the simplest things under our feet. That we have been wrong before and we will be wrong. That the true path to progress is paved not with certainty but doubt, with being “open to revision.”

“Out there, encoded in the cold math of Chaos, there is a sort of cosmic justice after all.”

“People will never exchange comfort for truth.”

“In every organism at which you gaze, there is complexity you will never comprehend.”

“Was not reluctant to use a cannon to swat a fly.”

“Ignorance is the most delightful science in the world because it is acquired without labor or pains and keeps the mind from melancholy.”

“To wonder about the reality waiting behind our assumptions”

Segments:

• There was one called “The Eagle and the Blue-Tailed Skink” (don’t think skunk, it’s a lizard), in which an eagle swoops down and nips off the tail of a blue-tailed skink. The wounded skink, in vengeance, scurries up to the eagle’s nest and devours a bunch of her eggs, thinking, ‘There is just enough meat in these eggs to make me a new tail.’ And on they go. The eagle swooping down bite off a new tail, the lizard scurrying up to gobble more eggs, on and on, neither opponent ever truly vanquished, for there was always “meat enough in the tail to make… more eggs, and meat enough in the eggs to make another blue tail.” It seems to me like a meditation on the futility of revenge, or perhaps a gory illustration of the most damning laws of physics, the law of conservation of mass: mass can neither be created nor destroyed.

• A statement in a National Institute of Mental Health report that “considerable evidence suggests positive psychological benefits for people who believe their future will be rosier than they have any right to expect. Such optimism keeps people in a positive mood, motivates them to work towards future goals, fosters creative, productive work, and gives them a sense of being in control of their destiny.”

• The Dandelion Principle: in some contexts a dandelion might be considered a weed to be culled; in others it’s a valuable medicinal herb to be cultivated. (...) To some people a dandelion might look like a weed, but to others that same plant can be so much more. To a herbalist, it’s medicine - a way of detoxifying the liver, clearing the skin, and strengthening the eyes. To a painter it’s a pigment; to a hippie, a crown; a child, a wish. To a butterfly, it’s sustenance; to a bee, a mating bed; to an ant, one point in a vast olfactory atlas.

———————

available on google docs:

#Why Fish Don't Exist: A Story of Loss Love and the Hidden Order of Life #Lulu Miller #Why Fish Don't Exist #quotes #writings #reading recommendations #underlined by ana may #bymm

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angstyandromanticwriting · 6 months

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Margot Robbie X Fem!Reader Hidden Feelings + Confession Imagine Prompt with light(?) angst and cute moments

!TW: Implied suffering from depression, mention of having poor past experience with family + being abused, self-doubt, self put-downs, anxious thinking, swearing, mention of previously having a nightmare, hint of social anxiety, hint of separation anxiety!

“You know you can call me whenever you want, right?” Margot reminded you, and you nodded, remembering; you’d just been afraid of getting in her way, feeling as if you had done enough of that already. “Then why are you apologising so much?” She pried, and you winced, bowing your head, clearly embarrassed, prompting her to smile softly; she found your reaction cute.

“I don’t know,” you answered, your voice barely audible, “I just.. I don’t want to be - to be a burden on you.”

She realised, and her smile faltered; she didn’t want you to ever think that you were a burden on her, especially when she was happy to spend her time on you, and to do all she could to make you happy, after everything you’d had to go through, before, with your family that had always treated you incredibly harshly, and with your father who’d used to abuse you, before, whenever he was drunk. “You could never be a burden on me, Y/n,” she reassured, a hurt look on her face, “don’t ever think that you could, because I like spending time with you; I always have, ever since I first met you - c’mere.” She then wrapped her arms around you, easing you closer to her, and you felt a little better already, smiling warmly, whilst you returned the hug, burying your face into her right shoulder. “And when I say you can call me whenever you want,” she continued, now holding you at arm’s length, so her stunning icy blue eyes could meet your’s, “I mean whenever you want - Even if you don’t have a reason to, and just wanna talk.”

You nodded, managing a faint smile over at her, and she smiled back, making your heart skip a beat, as well as prompting you to forget how to breathe for a moment; you found everything she did, as well as everything about her magical, and simply perfect, and wondered why she was wasting her time on the likes of you; you believed yourself to be nothing compared to her, and the reminder of who you were disheartened you, but you tried to hide it from her, not wanting to upset her. “W-When I do - Sometimes want to talk, I - Well, half the time I get too embarrassed at myself to even say anything,” you mused, “a-and.. I don’t know.. Maybe I’m just - Pathetic, I guess.”

Margot shook her head, wishing you’d stop saying things like that about yourself - If it pained her to hear you saying them, it must pain you even more, and it did; it was excruciating, but you were used to doing it, so naturally continued, as if it were normal. “You’re not pathetic, Y/n,” she contradicted, “don’t ever say that about yourself, because it’s not true; you’re amazing, and so much stronger than you think you are; you always have been, and always will be, I promise. All that crap your father spewed about you before was just - Well, crap; none of it was, or could ever be true. Wanna know something?” You would be intrigued, nodding, whilst trying to hide that you were blushing, knowing she’d tease you if she saw, and that would only make you go even more red, which you didn’t want to happen. “I think you’re perfect, Y/n,” she admitted, and you faltered, your eyes beginning to glisten, whilst you looked up at her again, your heart racing, but you still doubted that she would ever feel the same way for you that you did, for her. She grinned when she could see, now, that you were blushing, and you winced when you remembered, quickly looking away again, though it was too late; she’d already seen. “You’re adorable, you know that, right?” She remarked, and you whined quietly, before leaning forward to bury your face into her right shoulder again. “I don’t think there’s ever been a time that you’ve not blushed when it’s just us,” she continued, “are you not telling me something?”

You wouldn’t know what to say for a moment, trying not to panic as you began to stammer, until you managed to muster up a response. “I - I don’t know what it is,” you answered, your voice briefly trembling, “you just - you just make me blush so damn much, a-and - Sometimes when I really just wanna talk to you, o-or just wanna say ‘hi’ when we aren’t in the same place, I argue with myself over if I should c-call or text you, but I’ve always been bad at texting first, so I just end up hoping you will, and end up not being able to think about anything else-” You then stopped yourself, a pained expression on your face; you were worried about what she’d say, or now think about you, and were terrified of possibly losing her. “I - I’m so sorry, I don’t know where that came from, I just..”

You bowed your head, your voice faltering whilst you did, and she shook her head, whilst smiling warmly over at you, and wondering if she should tell you about how she’d been feeling the same way, but she was worried about how you might react if she admitted that she’d been harbouring feelings for you for a while now; she even suspected that she’d had them ever since you both were a little smaller, when you were best friends in college together. “It’s okay,” she cooed, “it’s good to vent - N-Now, wanna watch a movie, or something? Take your mind off of that nightmare?”

You nodded, and her smile seemed to grow after you looked up at her again, making your eyes glint, and heart skip a beat. “I - I have one in mind, and you might think it’s crazy,” you stated, and she appeared intrigued, tilting her head partially, “but-.. it’s a new horror film I bought, recently - Annabelle Comes Home.”

Margot looked surprised; she couldn’t believe you were suggesting a horror film, after you’d had a nightmare not too long ago. “You think it’s a good idea to watch a horror film, after you had a nightmare?” She mused, and you winced, appearing embarrassed again, but she quickly shook her head, not wanting to upset you. “You’re so cool,” she stated, and you glanced up at her again, your eyes widening a little, “c’mon, let’s put it on.” You nodded, before timidly following her into the living room, and locating the dvd.

🜚

It wasn’t long into the film, that you were terrified, and trying not to hide your face behind a pillow, though you often got the urge to; you didn’t want her to think that you couldn’t take it, whilst she seemed to be laughing more than being scared, like you were. You subconsciously snuggled up to her left side, and she smiled softly when she noticed, finding your action cute, whilst thinking about how she wished you both could do stuff like this more often. “You okay-?” She inquired, her voice soft, and you jumped, prompting her to giggle, amused by your reaction.

You winced, quickly hiding your face from her. “I - I’m fine,” you assured, “not scared at all, a-actually.”

She lifted a skeptical eyebrow, whilst a mischievous glint formed in her stunning icy blue eyes. “Sure,” she replied, “you’re not gonna sleep after this, are you?”

“I m-might,” you answered, your voice close to a whisper, but you both doubted it, unbeknownst to one another, “I mean - I’ll try; you don’t have to stay, if you don’t want to.”

She shook her head quickly, before wrapping her arms around you, and you found yourself forgetting how to breathe for a moment, whilst you returned the hug, blood rushing to your cheeks. “I wanna stay,” she reassured, “I love spending time with you, whether we’re asleep, or not. If you can’t sleep, then there’s no way I’m gonna let myself sleep whilst you can’t-”

“N-No,” you whined, not wanting her to feel as if she had to do that for you, “Boo-”

“You won’t convince me to do otherwise,” she assured, vowing to stay awake with you, “so don’t try, Nugget.” You groaned, knowing she was right; she wouldn’t change her mind. “You look so cute in that sweater, by the way,” she complimented, swiftly changing the subject, before you could protest any further, though you had no intentions to.

“You.. You really think so?” You asked, whilst she held you at arm’s length, smiling warmly over at you.

“Of course,” she answered, “you look adorable in everything you wear, honestly.”

You wouldn’t know what to say, not expecting her to think that, and cursed yourself whilst tears began to threaten to escape your eyes, making you feel even more pathetic. “Y-You do, too,” you returned, your voice briefly trembling, “I’m so sorry, I don’t know why - why I’m crying, I just-.. I don’t deserve someone as good as you in my life.”

Margot frowned, a pained expression on her face, before she wrapped her arms around you and eased you close to her. “What are you talking about? Of course you do, Y/n,” she contradicted, “and I’m always gonna be here for you, I promise, you’ll just have to put up with me.”

“I - It’s not hard to put up with someone as amazing as you are,” you expressed thoughtfully, and she smiled softly, flattered. Before she could withdraw from the hug, you whimpered, subconsciously clinging to the black jacket that she was wearing. “W-Wait,” you mustered, and she stopped, surprised, but found it cute that you wanted to stay within her embrace, “don’t pull away, n-not yet.”

“I won’t,” she reassured, and tried not to giggle when she noticed that you were beginning to fall asleep on her right shoulder. She carefully took up the television remote to turn the film off, not wanting to wake you up, after you’d already been sleeping poorly. She then rested her head a little on top of your’s, and let her eyes close, in an attempt to fall asleep with you, since you were sleeping, now, and managed to, after a little while.

🜸🜚🜸

Just the next day, she’d had to leave early for an interview, and you would feel empty when you remembered, wishing you’d at least told her about how you were feeling, yesterday, and about how you’d believed yourself to be falling in love with her ever since you’d both met at the college you’d both gone to, before. Whilst she wasn’t there with you, you found yourself thinking about what you should do, and about how you should tell her, and when; you were just terrified of how she might react, if you tried, and tried to tell yourself that she could only reject you, if things went wrong, but even that possibility set you on edge, as well as disheartened you. When you were sure that she would be back home, you decided to ask her via text if she was, and smiled when she replied saying that she was, and that you could come over to her house, if you wanted to. With that, you hastily put on your coat, and rushed outside to your car.

You would be surprised to find that, when you’d gotten to her house, that she wasn’t alone - Her friend, Emma Watson, was also there, and you felt guilty, feeling as if you were intruding. “S-Sorry-!” You squeaked, embarrassed. “I-.. I didn’t realise, I’ll go if I’m interrupting-”

“No,” Margot interjected gently, not wanting you to leave, “you aren’t interrupting anything, Y/n - Come in, if you want - Have you met Emma? I think you would get on well with her, c’mon-”

“I - I don’t know if I should,” you replied, evidently nervous, “no, it’s fine - I can wait until you’re done talking to her, I really don’t wanna intrude on anything.”

“You aren’t intruding on anything, I promise,” she insisted, “c’mon, Y/n - She’s nice, you’ll like her, I’m sure you will.”

“M-Maybe another time,” you suggested, “I just-.. Sorry, I-.. I’m trying to get better, it’s just-.. I feel like I can’t..”

You’d never been very good socially, especially whilst you were still living with your family, and had always been paranoid about doing, or saying something wrong, which she understood, and had been trying to help you with, ever since you’d both been in college together. “It’s okay,” she reassured, smiling warmly over at you, before she wrapped her arms around you, and you smiled subconsciously, leaning into her embrace, before returning the hug when you felt able to, “we’ll get there, I promise; I won’t force you to do anything you don’t want to do. Anyway, can I get you anything, or do you just wanna talk for a bit? I’m sure Emma wouldn’t mind.”

“I was just - just wondering if - M-Maybe you’d come over again, later?” You claimed, whilst hiding your face from her, and cursing yourself for backing out of telling her about your feelings for her, again.

“Sure,” she chimed, “I’d love to - I’ll bring over a surprise I have for you.”

“Surprise?” You mused, glancing up at her; you weren’t expecting that, clearly.

Margot nodded, grinning; she was excited to see your reaction. “Something I’ve been working on for a little while,” she informed, “you’re gonna love it; you were a big piece of inspiration for it, honestly, and also I wanted to do it because I felt bad for missing your birthday party.”

You would be surprised, shaking your head. “You’re still feeling guilty over that? It was ages ago, now,” you reminded her, and she nodded gravely, “it’s fine, honestly - You were busy, a-and it wasn’t great, anyway; I wouldn’t have recommended wasting anyone’s time with it.”

She frowned, shaking her head quickly; she didn’t want you to think that. “It sounded like it was fun,” she contradicted, “and I, personally, think that everything’s fun when it’s with you.” You managed a faint smile up at her, before looking away again, and trying to hide from her that you were upset with yourself again, not wanting to worry her. “Are you sure you don’t wanna join us?” She pried, and you hesitated, considering it for a moment; you didn’t want to have to be away from her again, but didn’t want to ruin anything for her, either, so you shook your head, forcing a reassuring smile over at her. “Okay, well, I’ll see you later, with the surprise,” she concluded, before pulling you into a final hug, and you returned the hug when you felt able, your smile becoming genuine again, like it always did whenever you were with her.

“S-See you later,” you returned, before dragging yourself away, whilst smiling and waving back at her whilst she did the same, until you disappeared from view, and she suddenly felt empty, wishing you’d stayed. She sighed, before closing the door, and walking back into her living room, where Emma was waiting, smirking up at her, with a mischievous glint in her eyes.

“So-?” She spoke up, and Margot appeared puzzled, as well as nervous, for a moment, looking anywhere, but in her direction.

“S-So?” She inquired, playing dumb, though she guessed that maybe Emma had picked up on something about the way you both had been acting with one another, less than a minute ago.

“C’mon, don’t give me that,” she replied, “how are you both not together yet?”

“W-What do you mean? We’re just - just friends,” Margot responded quietly, whilst beginning to feel flustered, and as if she should have tried to tell you about her feelings for you, yesterday, when it seemed like it would be the perfect time to.

“That’s what they all say,” Emma pointed out, whilst Margot awkwardly sat opposite her, a pained expression on her face, which she was trying to hide from her; she just wished she could tell you, without being scared of what might happen, if she did, “when they look at one another as if they’re so much more; that’s what both you and her were doing, and don’t think I didn’t notice how you both lit up when you saw one another. C’mon, tell me all about it, and we can figure this out, together; I think you’ll find I’m somewhat of a Cupid.”

“I can’t believe you’d do something like this, for me,” you mused, whilst admiring the drawing she’d done of both you and her, “it’s amazing, Boo, t-thank you so much!” You then carefully laid it out on the table, before throwing your arms around her, and she smiled warmly, glad that you liked it, whilst returning the hug, and appearing a little nervous; she intended to try and tell you that she had feelings for you, not wanting to have to try and hide it from you anymore. “You’re too good to me,” you whined, “I don’t deserve you, I - I’ll try and do a drawing for you-”

“No, Nugget, it’s fine - You don’t have to do that for me,” she reassured, whilst holding you at arm’s length, and frowned when she noticed that your eyes were glistening; you were trying not to cry, “being with you is more than enough for me; you make me so happy, please tell me you know that.”

You hesitated, a pained expression on your face, and she faltered, feeling her heart sinking after she’d picked up on your hesitation. “W-Why? How does-.. does someone like me make you happy? Why do you always - always d-do stuff for me, and waste your time on me?” You questioned, your voice briefly trembling whilst you did, making her feel worse; she hated seeing you upset, like you were, now, and to hear you putting yourself down.

“B-Because I-..” She fell quiet for a moment, whilst your eyes began to glint; you couldn’t believe it, and wondered if she were actually about to say what you thought she might say. “I’m in love with you, Y/n,” she confessed, “a-and I have been, ever since I first met you; you’re everything to me, a-and I’m sorry, if you don’t feel the same way for me, I just-.. I couldn’t take hiding it anymore, I - I love you so much.”

“I - I love you, too,” you admitted, before shyly leaning forward to connect your lips to her’s, and she melted into the kiss, holding you close to her. Once the kiss had sadly ended, you both started giggling breathlessly, whilst she connected her forehead to your’s, feeling whole, warm, and fuzzy inside, like you did, too, at the same time, your heart racing alongside her’s. She then delicately kissed you again, once you’d both recovered, and it wasn’t long before she gradually began to deepen it, and ease you down onto your back.

🜸🜚🜸

Though she’d been busier recently, Margot made sure to spend as much time with you as she possibly could, and found it much easier to do that after you’d agreed to move into her house with her. “I like the way your hand fits in mine,” you mused, whilst you both were walking down the quiet pathway within the park not too far from her house; you both tended to use this exact pathway whenever you were trying to avoid attention, just wanting to spend some quiet time with one another.

“Oh, yeah?” She replied, grinning toothily over at you, and you smiled lovingly back at her, whilst your heart began to beat faster against your rib cage, as if it wanted to jump out, and into her arms. “Well, I like how you look in my shirt,” she returned, prompting you to giggle; she’d leant you her shirt, knowing you’d look good in it, and wanting to see how right she believed she was.

Like she’d given you her shirt, you’d offered her your coat upon noticing that she was shivering, which she refused, at first, not wanting you to be cold, too, but you wouldn’t stop offering, until she gave in, and accepted your coat from you. “I still can’t believe you’re actually wearing my coat,” you admitted, and she would tilt her head partially, lifting a skeptical eyebrow whilst she did, and you hastily continued, worried that you’d upset her, “j-just because - w-well-..” You frowned, bowing your head. “I’m a nobody, compared to you,” you murmured, “and I can’t believe you’re still with me, and p-putting up with me.”

Margot faltered, stopping in her tracks, and you reluctantly followed, not daring to look back at her; you knew you’d break down if you did, and didn’t want that to happen again. “You’re not a nobody, Y/n, and you know why I’m still here with you,” she responded, a hurt look on her face, before she stepped closer to you, until she was beside you, and could intertwine the fingers of her left hand with the fingers of your right, “I love you, m-more than anything; you’re everything to me - You always have been, and always will be, I promise.” She then checked her watch, noticing that it was quickly getting dark due to the arrival of Winter, before smiling softly over at you, cheering you up instantly; her smile, and presence beside you always seemed to have that effect on you. “It’s almost time, Nugget, c’mon,” she encouraged, leading you up the hill, and you giggled whilst you both ran up it, intending to catch the fireworks the council had been planning on doing for a little while now, and as soon as you had both gotten to the top, you both sat down side-by-side, waiting for them to start. “They’re gonna be great,” she stated, “when was the last time you saw fireworks?” She inquired, and you winced; you couldn’t actually remember, as your family had never really used them for anything.

“I-.. Don’t actually - Know,” you admitted, a pained expression on your face, and she smiled sadly over at you, before intertwining the fingers of her right hand with the fingers of your left, “I’ve missed a lot, I guess..”

“Not anymore,” she responded, before resting her head on your left shoulder, and smiling lovingly up at you, “I’m gonna make sure you’ve seen everything you missed, and we’re gonna do everything together, I promise.”

You smiled warmly back at her, whilst your eyes began to glint, and you began to wonder what you’d done to deserve someone as perfect, kind and funny as her. “I - I love you so much,” you expressed, “I honestly don’t know what I’d do without you, b-but you don’t have to do that for me; you - you have enough going on already-”

“I don’t care,” she assured, “I’m not gonna let it get in the way, or stop me from making you happy, because that’s all I wanna do; I love you, Y/n, I always have, and I always will. Now c’mon, lay back with me; it’s more comfortable, and I think fireworks are better witnessed like that.”

You would be surprised, as well as intrigued, whilst you lowered yourself down onto your back beside her, staring up at the gradually darkening blue sky. “They aren’t - scary, are they?” You asked, a little nervous, but would be embarrassed when you noticed Margot grinning over at you.

“They’re loud,” she answered, “when you’re quite close to them, which we are, but - I wouldn’t say they’re scary, they’re more - beautiful, like you.”

You would be easily flustered, quickly hiding your face from her; you could feel that your cheeks were beginning to heat up, meaning you were blushing. “Stop,” you whined, and she giggled, amused by your reaction, before she shuffled closer to you, and propped herself up onto her right elbow, trying to see your face; she wanted to see that you were blushing, and tease you, clearly.

“Never,” she replied, “because you are beautiful, like they are, and I’m always gonna remind you, not just because I love making you blush, but because it’s true.”

You then shyly looked back up at her, whilst your heart was racing, and she smiled softly down at you, making it skip a couple of beats, overwhelming you, as well as prompting you to forget how to breathe, for a moment. “You - You think I’m beautiful?” You mused, your voice close to a whisper, and she nodded, before affectionately booping your nose with the tip of her’s, and connecting her forehead to your’s lovingly.

“More than that, actually,” she stated, “I think you’re everything.” She then delicately connected her lips to your’s, and you melted into the kiss, before subconsciously wrapping your arms around her, wanting to be as close to her as you possibly could be. You would then be startled by a high-pitched whistling sound nearby, whilst Margot seemed unperturbed, cradling you close to her to provide comfort to you. You found yourself burying your face into the crook of her neck, at first, whilst clinging to her, terrified; the loud whistling and explosions reminded you, in some ways, of how your father would come home drunk, shouting, before beating you. “It’s okay,” she cooed, whilst rubbing your back, and frowning when she noticed that you were trembling, “I’m here; everything’s okay, it’s just the fireworks, I promise.”

You gradually began to calm down, and would bring yourself, after a little while, to look up at the sky, and the colours spreading across it in pretty, as well as unique patterns. Soon, you found yourself mesmerised by them, your eyes widening and glinting whilst you watched, and Margot couldn’t help, but smile, when she noticed that you were clearly enjoying watching them. “They’re - Amazing,” you mustered, “how come I’ve never - seen them, before?”

“You’ll see them a lot more now,” she responded, and you looked over at her, your eyes immediately locking with her stunning icy blue ones, and you felt as if everything had suddenly stopped moving, for a moment; it was just you and her, and you smiled back at her, whilst trying not to let the fast pacing of your heart overwhelm you, in what felt like this perfect moment. She then looked as if she were trying to fight back a grin, whilst partially sitting up. “You have something in your hair,” she pointed out, and you winced, embarrassed again, “do you want me to get it out? Here-” She carefully untangled whatever it was, and you would be surprised when you noticed it was a pretty little daisy; she’d managed to sneak it into your hair whilst you were distracted by the fireworks. She then offered it to you, and you wouldn’t know what to say, for a moment, wondering why she was so good to you, all the time; despite her telling you otherwise often, you still believed she deserved better than you, and you tried to hide that the thought had disheartened you, not wanting to upset her. “It’s for you, Nugget,” she encouraged, “I just wanted to remind you that I love you, more than anything, and that I’ll always be here for you - always, I mean it.”

“I - I love you, too,” you returned, your voice briefly trembling, before accepting the daisy from her, and holding it close to you subconsciously, “a-and I’ll always be here for you, too, I promise.”

“C’mere,” she cooed, when she noticed that you were trying not to cry, and you leaned forward to wrap your arms around her, before she could, and she eased you closer, whilst returning the hug, resting her head on your right shoulder, “please tell me they’re happy tears.”

“Of course they are,” you replied, “I could only ever cry happy tears when I’m with you.”

“Good,” she whispered, glad, as well as relieved, that they were, and that you weren’t upset, “w-wanna lay back, again? Or we could go back home, if you wanted to? I don’t mind-”

“N-No,” you interjected gently, “let’s - let’s stay, for the rest of the fireworks, I wanna keep snuggling up with you under them.” She giggled softly, before nodding, and laying back down beside you, so you could both continue to snuggle up together, whilst watching them, until they were, sadly, brought to a conclusion.

🜚

Though you’d managed to get a few hours of peaceful sleep, it wasn’t long before it had been plagued by a nightmare, which prompted you to wake up crying, and trembling in Margot’s arms. “He - He was trying to hurt me again,” you whined, referring to your father, who you’d seen in the nightmare, and she frowned, a pained expression on her face; she hated seeing you like this, and being reminded of what you’d had to go through, before, whilst you both had been going to college together.

“He can’t,” she reassured gently, “I promise; I’ll never let anyone hurt you ever again.”

You gradually began to relax, burying your face into the crook of her neck, and she expressed relief, feeling that you weren’t shaking anymore, and were beginning, evidently, to feel safer, like you always did, whenever she was holding you like she was, now. “It’s - It’s nice that - that your voice was the first thing I heard today,” you mused, your voice close to a whisper, and she smiled warmly, whilst tears began to blur her vision.

“It’s nice that your’s was the first thing I heard today, too,” she returned, before connecting her forehead to your’s, “I love you so much.”

“I - I love you, too,” you mustered, whilst trying not to cry again, “you - you’ve made me so much happier than I used to be, and I owe you everything for that.”

“No, you don’t,” she contradicted, “you’ve already given me everything by deciding to stay with me, silly - Without you, I honestly think I wouldn’t be able to cope; I wouldn’t have been able to get where I am, now, if you weren’t by my side-”

You scoffed, before shaking your head, and holding her at arm’s length. “T-That’s not true,” you whined, not wanting her to think that she wouldn’t have been able to make it, if you weren’t with her, “you would have been fine, without me; you don’t need someone like me to get where you are, now-”

“N-No,” she interrupted, a hurt look on her face, “don’t - don’t do that to yourself, again, Y/n - Don’t say stuff like ‘someone like me’ like that; you’re amazing, a-and stronger than you think you are, p-please tell me you know that.” You faltered, and a strained sob managed to escape her lips; she just wanted you to be happy, and to see you like this hurt her more than she ever thought it could. “Please-”

You then began to break down alongside her, crying whilst she held you closer, and you subconsciously clung to the material of her pyjamas, afraid that she’d disappear if you let go. “I - I know,” you claimed, not wanting to upset her any further, and she expressed relief again, hoping you meant it, “it’s just-.. It’s so - It’s so hard, after everything, to think that - that I-.. could ever be more than I was, before.”

“You’ve always been strong,” she assured, “you weren’t anything less than perfect before, either; they just made you feel like you were.” You nodded gravely, trying to hide that you doubted that; you would never stop believing that everything that your parents had told you before about you being ‘pathetic’, ‘weak’, and ‘ugly’ wasn’t true. “You’re amazing, Y/n, you really are; they were just jealous of you,” she continued, “please remember that, and I’m gonna make sure to remind you as much as I possibly can, until you really do know, if you don’t, now.”

“No,” you protested, “I - I don’t want you to feel like you have to do that for me-”

“G-Good, because I know I don’t,” she stated, “but I want to, b-because I love you, Y/n, and I want you to be happy.”

You nodded gravely, forcing a smile back at her. “I - I love you, too,” you replied, before resting the right side of your head on her chest, close to her left shoulder, “please tell me we can stay like this for a little while longer.”

“Of course we can,” she cooed, “could be a good opportunity for you to try and get some more sleep, too.”

“I’d rather stay awake, a-and just lie with you, like I am, now,” you admitted, and she would be surprised, as well as flattered, smiling lovingly down at you, “I love getting lost in your eyes.”

She grinned over at you, glad, whilst wondering, also, what she’d done to deserve you. “That’s good,” she remarked, “because I love getting lost in your’s.” You smiled sheepishly back at her, wishing you both could be like this, every day, and get to spend more time together, like you could on the weekends. Though you’d vowed silently to stay awake, you found yourself struggling with every passing minute, and even drifted off shortly after, but Margot didn’t mind, simply finding it cute, and she even found herself drifting off back to sleep alongside you after a little while, whilst thinking about how she planned to prepare something special for you over the weekend, wanting to constantly remind you about how she felt for you, even after you finally started believing her about how your parents had always been wrong about you, and believing that she had always loved you, and always would.

~~~~~

Hope you enjoyed it! ❤️

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