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the-obnoxious-sibling · 4 months

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in which lunch is had, old stories are told, and a misunderstanding is cleared up.

part five of the post-marineford portion of the near miss fics! (1, 2, 3, 4) if you have no idea what i'm talking about but would like to read a shanks/buggy story about kissing in disguise and then having to deal with the emotional fallout of doing that, click on this link, that's the tag for the whole thing in chronological order. (plus some complaining about writing, one inspirational improvised musical number, and a snippet of shanks pov) if you do know what i'm talking about: my intense examination of the cover to chapter 581 and frustrated googling of phrases like “oden cart curtain name” has finally paid off! also, i’d apologize for where this part ends, but that would be an enormous lie, i’ve been planning on ending this part on that line from the very beginning. >:3c enjoy!

With heavier topics taken off the table, the flow of conversation became smooth and easy. Shanks asked about Buggy’s crew, his recent travels, his plans for the future; Buggy asked about the best places Shanks had been, who he’d met. At Buggy’s request, Shanks devoted a full twenty minutes to a detailed description of his meeting with Rayleigh; to Buggy’s delight, it turned out Rayleigh was in Sabaody because Shakuyaku, the former Amazon empress, lived there. Buggy had always been impressed by her, if a little privately judgy of her taste in men, so hearing that the two of them had semi-retired together made him smile.

As did the revelation that Shanks had first seen a wanted poster for Buggy the Clown—his earliest one, actually, before he’d perfected the crossbones and had still been experimenting with lip tints—when Rayleigh pulled a copy out that day. “He keeps an eye on all the newspapers, from the four big seas and the Grand Line alike,” Shanks explained, digging his toes into the sand. (Buggy had gotten tired of his push-pull relationship with the tides and insisted they move further up the beach.) “I think he’s found and kept a copy of every one of our bounties.”

Buggy tried not to be obvious about how much that meant, but he had never been good at holding back the waterworks when he got emotional. Sniffing thickly, he said, “That stupid old man… your bounty’s gone up so many times over the years without the picture ever looking different! What a waste of his space.”

One of Shanks’ eyebrows went up—probably, Buggy realized a moment later, at the implication that Buggy had also been keeping track of Shanks’ bounties. Ah, well, in for a penny… “Seriously! It’s bad design!” Buggy insisted. “If the only changes someone like me ever noticed are that you grew that shitty little beard—”

“Shitty?” Shanks pouted, running his thumb along his jawline. “It’s not that bad, is it?”

“It’s worse without the mustache,” Buggy said bluntly. Shanks played up his shock, gasping and grabbing at his heart like an elderly man.

Buggy rolled his eyes. “As I was saying: if all I ever noticed was the beard and that your hat disappeared at some point, your average citizen’s not going to realize the Marines have released a new poster and the bounty went up!” Jabbing a thumb brazenly at his own face, Buggy said, “At least I had something new going on each time.”

Shanks cocked his head at Buggy. “About that… do you change your makeup style so often for fun, or are you still searching for the perfect look?”

Buggy scoffed. “There’s no such thing as perfection when it comes to art, or fashion,” he said. “There’s just advancing your craft. Every time I change my look up, I’m incorporating newer and flashier techniques, and better supplies. The makeup I had access to fifteen, even ten years ago would never have lasted a day in Impel Down, let alone weeks.”

“That’s true,” Shanks said thoughtfully, hand on his chin. “The stuff you have these days is much—” He cut himself off, glancing over Buggy’s shoulder. Buggy turned to see a cluster of men in ragged prison uniforms standing maybe forty feet away, staring at them and then glancing away awkwardly when they met Buggy’s eye.

“I told them not to bother me today,” Buggy grumbled, giving the group a half-hearted glare. They visibly quaked, knees knocking, but neither moved nor explained themselves.

“I guess our presence is interfering with their shore leave,” Shanks said, slipping back into his sandals.

Looking past the men revealed the beach had gotten crowded while Buggy wasn’t paying attention—save for a fifty-foot ring of emptiness centered on him and Shanks. These men had only approached them because there wasn’t anywhere else to be. Sighing, Buggy stood up, brushing sand off the seat of his pants.

“Lead the way, then,” he said grimly.

With a polite smile and a wave to the former prisoners, Shanks walked back up the beach. Buggy gave them a glare, and a threatening slice-your-throat gesture (made more emphatic by the way Buggy separated his neck as he sliced) to encourage their silence before following Shanks further inland.

The terrain got a bit jungle-like as they went on, but there were neatly trodden paths between the trees. It was a civilized corner of nature, and Buggy found he didn’t mind walking through it with just Shanks and his questions for company, even when those questions started getting a bit specific for Buggy’s tastes. (What did Shanks need to know about his plans after he found Captain John’s treasure, anyway? Was he trying to go after Buggy’s next prize while he was still busy with the current one?)

It was the middle of the lunch hour by the time their jungle path led them back into town, which was almost suspiciously convenient timing. Buggy glanced at Shanks, trying to figure out if he’d planned this or was just aimlessly wandering. Well, either way he’d better lead them somewhere soon—Buggy was hungry! He wanted to eat the kind of food he couldn’t get back on the ship—nothing a typical chef in a typical kitchen could manage. He wanted something that involved a deep fryer, or another equally specialized device. Something that would be too much of a hassle to make on a ship. Something…

“Hey!” Shanks turned to grab Buggy’s attention, pointing at a yatai on the opposite street corner. “What about that?”

Buggy spotted the word written in bold white letters on slate gray cloth and started to laugh. “What are we, on a themed vacation or something?”

“You’re the one who put the idea in my head!” Shanks said defensively, grinning. “I know it’s out of season, but…”

“No, you’re right, we have to,” Buggy said, and led them to the oden-ya. “I’m just going to look like I’m obsessed, is all.”

Ducking under the bamboo noren curtains, they found themselves in a cozy space, with three stools set up along a polished wooden table the same length as the cooktop. A gorilla mink stood behind the partitioned oden pot, rotating skewers of fishcake in their niches within the steaming broth. He glanced up at their entrance, a friendly customer service smile spreading across his face.

“Welcome! Looking for oden this afternoon, or just something to drink?” He gestured to one side, where beautiful little sake flasks and other bottles of alcohol were arranged on shelves that took up the whole side wall of the cart. “I’d be happy to warm a flask of sake up for you on the stove if you’d like.”

“We’re looking for both, thanks,” Shanks said warmly, stepping up to the counter. “I don’t suppose any of your sake is sourced from Wano?”

The mink wrinkled his nose thoughtfully. “I may have some in storage, but that stuff tend to run a little pricier, given… well, if you’re asking for it, you must know.”

“Of course you have expensive tastes in booze and nothing else,” Buggy said with a smirk, bent down to inspect the sake that was actually meant for sale. “Come on, look, they’ve got some West Blue stuff, you were always a sucker for your home ocean.”

“Oh?” Shanks leaned over Buggy to get a better look at the stock, and a prickle of heat went up Buggy’s spine. “Ooh, I do like that stuff. But I really had my heart set on something from Wano…” Turning back to the mink, he said, “Sorry to trouble you, but can you bring out what you have from Wano? I promise the price isn’t an issue, and I won’t have any problem drinking a flask of each.” The mink ducked around back without complaint.

“More like a couple flasks of each,” Buggy muttered, but he didn’t mean it cruelly. Shanks liked a drink, he always had—and rumor said the last time he saw Whitebeard before all this he’d matched him cup for cup. Whitebeard-sized cups, too, which meant he had to have a crazy tolerance these days. Good for him. Buggy wasn’t quite as capable, but he could hold his liquor. He wouldn’t be any kind of ex-Roger Pirate if he couldn’t.

“Guilty,” Shanks said, sing-songy, reaching over Buggy’s shoulder to snatch one of the larger bottles of shochu. “Can you grab a flask or two of the West Blue sake for me?”

Buggy rolled his eyes, grabbing two. “One of them’s for me.”

“We can share,” Shanks said mildly.

Buggy snorted. “If by ‘share’ you mean I get one cup and by the time I’ve finished it the flask is empty, sure, we can share.”

Shanks laughed. “Am I that bad?”

“You’re just too fast about it is all. I like to linger over a drink, really savor it.”

“Oh, you like to take your time, do you?” Shanks’ smile, already suggestively wide, spread wider still when this comment flustered Buggy.

“I didn’t mean it like that!” he snapped.

“No?”

Why do you sound disappointed, Buggy was tempted to ask—except no, no he wasn’t, he did not want to know why Shanks might be disappointed Buggy hadn’t intended to be suggestive. He had already decided he wasn’t going there. “I just mean you rush things a bit.”

“…do I?”

Once again feeling like Shanks was reading things into what he was saying, but this time not at all sure what deeper meaning Shanks was taking from his words, Buggy averted his eyes, setting the pair of sake flasks down in front of the stove top. “Yeah, I know you like getting drunk, but there’s such a thing as pacing yourself, you know?”

Before Shanks could respond to this—with who knows what kind of misinterpretation of Buggy’s words this time—the mink returned, a crate of sake in flasks and jugs of various sizes in hand.

“Here we are!” With a soft grunt of effort, the mink set the crate down in front of Shanks. “Let me know if anything catches your eye.” He spotted the flasks of West Blue sake Buggy had set down and quickly made room in a pot of steaming water for them to sit and warm up. “Now, were any items looking especially appealing today?”

Buggy glanced sideways; Shanks was occupied with intently inspecting the sake. Well, if he wanted something specific he could ask for it later. “Two bowlfuls of whatever the chef recommends, for now.”

The gorilla nodded. “Coming right up!” And he was as good as his word, quickly throwing together a wide, shallow bowl of savory golden-brown broth with a skewer of fishcakes, an egg, and a few slices of daikon for each of them. It looked wonderful, warm and familiar, and it smelled even better.

Before Buggy could take a sip, Shanks had flung his arm across Buggy’s chest, blocking the spoonful of broth from reaching his mouth.

“Hang on,” Shanks said, weirdly serious. “You have to have this first.” He held out a small flask of Wano sake, tilted just far enough to encourage Buggy to grab a cup and accept the pour.

“Not warmed up?” Shanks expression didn’t so much as twitch. Buggy huffed. “Fine, fine... you and your expensive tastes.” He accepted the cup, swirled it for a moment to breathe in the aroma—they really did make it different in Wano; was it something in the water, or the rice?—and took a sip. Then blinked, goggled at the half-drunk cup, and slung back the rest with a warm floaty feeling in his chest.

Setting the cup down, he breathed, “Is that...?”

Shanks grinned. “Special pure rice brew.” He spun the flask around to reveal the maker’s mark. “From the Kuri region of Wano.”

Buggy snatched the flask away. Looking it over, he said, “Seriously?! From the same brewery?”

“And you wondered why I was so insistent.”

Buggy shook his head, laughing a little in disbelief, and poured Shanks a cup of the stuff. He glanced up at their host, politely not bothering them even though he had to be confused, and said, “This exact same sake was the first drink the two of us had, back when we were—what, eleven? Twelve?”

“Something like that,” Shanks said, watching Buggy with a pleased smile. “Stolen out of Oden’s rooms on a dare—”

“—you’re the one who dared me!” Buggy snapped. Thinking back, he added, “And he must have let us take it, we weren’t sneaky enough at twelve to get past Oden—”

“—oh, definitely,” Shanks agreed. “Bet he thought of it as a rite of passage, stealing your first drink from under the nose of your honored elders.”

Buggy snorted. “Definitely,” he echoed. Giving Shanks a look, he passed this flask along to the mink as well. “This stuff isn’t so fancy heating it will ruin the taste, right? Might as well try it the way it was meant to be had.”

“Of course,” the mink said with a gracious smile, adding the flask to the steaming pot on his stove. He watched the two of them dig into their bowls—delicious, of course—without comment, but as he carefully retrieved the first of the West Blue flasks from its bath he said, “Now, I haven’t thought about this in a long time, so I’m afraid I can’t quite recall… which of you is Shanks and which is Buggy?”

Buggy blinked dumbly up at the gorilla, his mouth full of radish. Next to him, Shanks was pulling a similar face.

Hastily swallowing his mouthful, Buggy cleared his throat and said, “You know… both of us by name? But not well enough to know which is which on sight?”

The gorilla smiled sheepishly. “I wasn’t sure until you brought up Oden. That’s Kozuki Oden, isn’t it? Which means the two of you must be Shanks and Buggy, they were the only other young people on the boat in all the stories I heard.”

“What stories?”

“‘The only other young people’…” Shanks lit up. “Do you know Dogstorm and Cat Viper?”

Buggy nearly smacked Shanks. “Seriously?! Not every mink knows each other, Shanks!”

“Heh, actually...” Buggy stared up at the gorilla mink in disbelief as he shrugged, making an embarrassed expression. “The truth is, I only learned how to prepare oden at Duke Dogstorm’s request.”

“Duke Dogstorm?” Shanks whistled. “Somebody’s moved up in the world.”

Buggy jabbed him in the side with a free-floating elbow. “I don’t want to hear that from you, Emperor Shanks!”

Shanks winced—an exaggerated gesture for the benefit of their audience—and leaned away from Buggy. “Oh, come on,” he whined, “it’s not like I meant to become an emperor or anything.”

“Oh, of course not,” Buggy said, rolling his eyes and shoving a piece of tsukune in his mouth. Eyes shut, he declared, “I’ll bet I can tell you exactly how it happened, too. You had a meal with some mediocre pirate crew and made friends. Then some shitty Marines started beating the hell out of them; they could’ve just arrested the crew, but they decided to torture them for their own amusement. Well, you could hardly let this abuse go unchallenged, could you? So naturally you had to step in, and sent the Marines running with their tails between their legs. And it was only natural that the pirate crew was thankful to you, but you never dreamed they’d all vow to follow you forever, forswearing their own flag in favor of yours. Not daring to call themselves true Red-Haired Pirates, of course, but Red-Haired Pirates adjacent.” Rolling his wrist, Buggy concluded, “And then that happened another twenty or thirty times, because you never learn.”

Opening one eye a crack, he glanced at Shanks. “How’d I do?”

Shanks, red-faced, his fist pressed to his mouth to hold back laughter, nodded weakly. “Well, uh... you’re not wrong,” he wheezed out. Taking a drink to clear his throat and calm down, he sighed. “Though you make it sound like far more of a foregone conclusion than it felt like when it was first happening.”

“That’s the benefit of an outside perspective,” Buggy said snippily. “And also hindsight.” Waving a hand in Shanks’ face, he said, “But enough about you!” Jabbing the pointer finger of that same hand at their host, Buggy said, “What’s this about you learning to make oden for Dogstorm?”

The gorilla mink smiled, his eyes wide, and Buggy suddenly remembered hearing once that gorillas didn’t actually smile, but instead bared their teeth as a threat against potential enemies. He pulled back his hand as casually as he could manage it.

“Do you really want to hear the story? I’m told I can be a bit long-winded,” the mink said, fishing one of the Wano flasks out of its water bath and offering it up.

“Yeah, let’s hear it!” Buggy said, pouring a cup for Shanks, then handing over the flask so Shanks could do the same for him. “I don’t know about Shanks but I haven’t heard anything from Zou in years, I’m dying to hear what those two have gotten up to.”

Closing his eyes, Buggy took a sip of the warmed Wano sake, not knowing Shanks was doing the same thing at the same time. They set down their cups and sighed in unpracticed unison. Suddenly aware of their double act, Buggy scowled at Shanks, who ignored him and made an encouraging gesture to their chef. “Please, go ahead. I’d love to hear news of Dogstorm and Cat Viper.”

A sad expression washed over the gorilla’s face. “I’m afraid I can only give you news of Duke Dogstorm.” At the looks on his guests’ faces, the gorilla threw out a hand and said, “Not to say—please don’t misunderstand! Lord Cat Viper still lives! It’s just that I have not met with him since he and Duke Dogstorm first returned to Zou. They... keep separate courts, and hours, and my service has always been to the day.”

A wrinkle appeared in Shanks’ brow. “They don’t talk anymore?”

“It always turns into a fight. Often one with devastating consequences for their surroundings.”

Buggy frowned. That didn’t sound right. Well, not the destruction—that sounded like those two—but fighting so badly they couldn’t even share waking hours... “What happened?”

The gorilla sighed. “As I understand it? Kozuki Oden died, and neither could forgive the other for failing to save him.” A moment later, he gave Buggy a concerned look. “Oh, are you hurt?”

Buggy blinked. Staring down at his hands, he realized he’d snapped his chopsticks in half. “I... no, I’m okay.” The gorilla carefully plucked the broken shards of wood out of Buggy’s grasp, along with a splinter or two that had tried to wedge their way into his palms. Thankfully the Chop-Chop fruit could handle any kind of stabbing, from needles up to legendary meito, so Buggy really was fine.

While the gorilla disposed of the pieces of wood, Buggy clenched his jaw, feeling Shanks’ eyes on him. “I can hear you thinking.”

“…it makes sense,” he said quietly. “What else could come between those two but the loss of someone who was as important to them as Oden?”

Buggy shot Shanks a narrow look out of the corner of his eye. “Pretty sure I told you this morning that I was done talking about sad shit,” he warned, and Shanks raised his hand in a placating gesture. The gorilla confirmed that Buggy wasn’t hurt, pointed out the extra chopsticks sitting in a cup to his left, and at their insistence told his story while they returned to their meal.

Dogstorm’s court sounded like a sight worth seeing. Minks of countless animal forms, musketeers and attendants! To think Oden’s retainer had retainers of his own now! And to think that he acted like a guy with such noble dignity, after the way he used to behave.

As the gorilla reached the end of his story—having made the closest thing to oden as could be produced with ingredients native to Zou, with Dogstorm pleased by the effort but quietly unsatisfied by the taste, the gorilla had left the court making a vow to learn the secrets of the oden-preparing arts, promising not to return until he was confident he would be able to put a true smile on the duke’s face—Buggy nudged Shanks in the side. He glanced at Buggy, a half-eaten skewer of fishcakes sticking out of the corner of his mouth.

“Can you believe,” Buggy said with a shit-eating grin, “that the noble, wounded Dogstorm this guy is talking about is the same one who tarred and feathered Mr. Rayleigh?”

Shanks nearly choked before starting to laugh. “How did I forget about that?!”

“I’m sorry, Duke Dogstorm did what?” the gorilla said incredulously, staring between the two of them.

“Wait, wait,” Shanks said, before Buggy could start to tell the story. “If we’re sharing stories of mutual friends, you have to share a drink with us too.” He grabbed a clean cup from a stack to one side and handed it over to the mink. Shanks gave Buggy a pleading look, and with a magnanimous smirk Buggy chop-chopped a hand to swipe another sake flask from the water bath and pour for both of them. “So—”

“Don’t you tell it!” Buggy snapped. With a grin and a wave of his hand, Shanks metaphorically turned over the reins to Buggy, and took the opportunity to return to his sake and his meal. “So,” Buggy said to the mink, “the first thing you need to understand about Dogstorm and Cat Viper is that they acted like respectful little attendants when Oden was around, but when it was just the four of us?” Glancing at Shanks, who was grinning around the skewer in his mouth, Buggy cackled. “They were just as bad as we were.”

Buggy went on to describe the prank in loving detail, alternating bites of fishcake with the reactions of the crew (mostly hysteria, especially from Roger) and the multiple attempts to blame the prank on someone else (Dogstorm nearly succeeded in pinning it all on Buggy, but forgot himself and corrected Rayleigh on where the tar had come from). Shanks followed this up with a reminder of another time the four of them had been absolute nightmares to the crew of the Oro Jackson, and the story Buggy told about that day brought their host to literal tears of laughter.

They went around like this for over an hour, topping off their bowls and drinks all the while, recalling old times with the golden burnish of nostalgia softening the edges, easing the hurts and offenses of youth. Gradually, the last of the fear Buggy had been clinging to all day faded. It was hard to think that your childhood dread mattered much when looked at from so far off, in so fond a way. It was easy to smile at someone who so readily smiled back.

Eventually the broth pooling at the bottom of their bowls grew cold, and the flasks of sake they’d bought ran dry. Not a soul had tried to enter the yatai while they were present, and Buggy felt a fleeting burst of pity for the gorilla’s business… until he saw how well Shanks tipped. With a light heart, Buggy waved a slightly drunken farewell to the mink—he’d paced himself pretty well, but a half-dozen bottles of sake split between two men were still going to have an effect—and ducked back out into the wider world.

The air outside was not exactly cold, but it lacked the cozy warmth of the oden-ya’s atmosphere. It set something within Buggy out of alignment—or maybe back into place? He stood just outside the noren with a hand pressed to his chest, trying to place the feeling, when Shanks made his own exit and nearly ran into him.

The proximity of Shanks at his back, with the last traces of that soup-warmed air drifting in his wake, sent a burst of longing down Buggy’s spine so intense his knees went weak.

Shanks’ hand went to his shoulder. “Careful,” Shanks said, hoisting Buggy fully upright, the flat of his arm firm along the breadth of his back. “You alright, Buggy?”

Fuck. Even though it was the wrong arm, something about Shanks putting an arm over Buggy’s shoulder made his stomach flip and his heart kick into high gear. Stupid, loyal organs didn’t have the sense Buggy’s brain had been given, to recognize that feeling feelings for Shanks was a very bad idea.

“Fine,” Buggy croaked out, taking a few careful steps away from Shanks to confirm he was steady enough to make that lie truth. He shook himself off.

“Your tolerance not what it used to be?” Shanks teased.

“My tolerance is normal,” Buggy insisted, not looking back at Shanks. “Yours, on the other hand...”

“Yeah, unlike you I’m actually fine,” Shanks said, picking up his pace to match Buggy’s stride. Glancing around, his back straightened involuntarily with recognition. Nudging Buggy’s shoulder with his own, he said, “Here, there’s a park nearby where we won’t be bothered. We can sit down, let you sober up a little before heading back to the ship.”

Buggy drifted in Shanks’ wake on some old instinct. It was only mid-afternoon. “There wasn’t anything else you wanted to do?”

Shanks glanced at Buggy over his shoulder. “What?”

“I dunno, some... sight you thought I should see, or a shop you like or something?”

Shanks blinked. “Buggy, I’ve never been to this island before. I asked the locals for recommendations yesterday so I could have a good time with you.”

Buggy’s face went hot. “You—stop saying shit like that! Don’t you know how that sounds?”

“How it sounds?” Shanks echoed. He led Buggy through a tall, metal gate, into a walled-off plot of land with very little to it, just rock-paved paths, plaques underneath oddly colored trees, and the occasional bench. Closing the gate behind them, he spun on Buggy. “How does it sound?”

Buggy scowled and stormed past him. Like Shanks didn’t know.

“If it sounds like I’ve missed you—well, sorry, Buggy, but I have. I thought I’d been pretty obvious about that.” When Buggy turned an incredulous look on Shanks, the corner of his mouth turned up, amused. “Obvious to everyone but you, I guess.”

“You—you didn’t miss me,” Buggy said, insistent. “You missed—” he gestured vaguely between the two of them. “—someone knowing you, without you having to say anything. You missed having a history with someone.”

Shanks shook his head. “I would love to see many people from back then again, but I’ve never missed any of them like I did you.”

“Oh, come on!” Buggy spat, “what was there to miss? A greedy little brat who couldn’t decide if he hated you more than he was jealous of you? A coward who ran and hid from every fight?” The memory of Shanks leaning in close, a hand on his face, shot through Buggy. Resisting another stab of longing, he blurted out, “Some stranger’s pretty face?”

“I missed my best—” Shanks’ face screwed up in confusion. “A pretty face?”

Buggy hadn’t meant to say that. He grimaced. “You know.” Swiping a hand across his face, he chop-chopped his nose off for a moment, hiding the gap behind his free hand. “This one, that you liked so much that time.”

Understanding lit up Shanks’ face. “Oh, the gorgeous stranger with stunning eyes.” A sheepish expression coming over him, Shanks looked away, askance. “Can I tell you something embarrassing?”

Buggy blinked. Not the response he’d expected. “Uh, sure?”

“I only thought those eyes were so stunning because they reminded me of yours.”

Buggy’s jaw dropped. “The hell they did!”

“They did!” Shoving his hand over his eyes, Shanks smiled self-consciously. “Oh, I felt so ridiculous later. That poor guy, I thought, was deserving of more than my secondhand affections.” Dropping his hand to look at Buggy, he said, “Though that’s nothing compared to how ridiculous I felt the other day.”

Buggy swallowed, mouth dry.

“I’m sorry, Buggy,” Shanks said after a long, silent moment. “If I’d known it was you, I wouldn’t have kissed you like that.”

Buggy blinked.

Well. Of course he wouldn’t have. That went without saying.

He stepped back. “I know that.”

“You do?” Shanks frowned. “I… good.” Shoulders hunched, he turned to peer down at a plaque mounted beneath a pink-leafed bush. “That’s good. I don’t want there to be any more misunderstandings between us.”

“What’s there to misunderstand?” Buggy spotted a bench and sat down. He immediately felt clearer-headed. Maybe Shanks was right about his tolerance. “I get it. You kiss strangers, not old friends.”

Shanks paused mid-step. “Are you…” He spun to frown at Buggy. “Are you deliberately misunderstanding me?”

“Hm?” Buggy had just gotten comfortable, hiking one knee over the bench’s arm. What was Shanks talking about now?

“Buggy.”

Buggy craned his head back to look up at Shanks. He looked tall from this angle, and taller still when he leaned over Buggy, resting his hand on the back of the bench. Shanks’ expression was unreadable, but intense. Buggy’s mouth felt dry again. Oh, this was bad.

“I was not apologizing for kissing you. I was apologizing for kissing you wrong.”

“Kissing me wrong?” Buggy echoed bewilderedly.

“If I’d known that stranger was you, I still would have kissed you, if you’d let me,” Shanks said bluntly. “I’d kiss you now, if you’d let me. But it wouldn’t be like that kiss, it would be different.”

Buggy blinked, dumbfounded.

Shanks… wanted to kiss him.

Not the stranger he’d taken him for back then, but Buggy himself.

Had wanted to kiss Buggy then.

Still wanted to kiss Buggy now.

Would kiss him in a different way from a stranger.

“Different how?” Buggy croaked out.

For a long, agonizing moment, Shanks stared blankly at Buggy. A furious heat rushed into Buggy’s face—there was no way to take a sentence like that back. He couldn’t pretend it was simple curiosity. He couldn’t pretend he wasn’t eager to be kissed.

Slowly, Shanks grinned, infuriatingly smug. “Would you like me to show you?”

#notfic #the near miss fics #one piece #shuggy #shanks #buggy #cackling to myself as i hit post on this bad boy

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bullet-prooflove · 4 months

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Lake Tahoe!Series Part Three: Goodbye - Manny x Reader

Tagging: @darqchilddaydreamz @theesirenteller @crazy4chickennuggets @kmc1989 @withakindheartx @wnbweasley @bonni-98 @skyesthebomb @yezzyyae @delightfulbelieverwerewolf @redpool

Part One: Black Bear Lodge - Your life changes when you meet Manny at Black Bear Lodge.

Part Two: Something Special (NSFW) - Manny gives you a night like no other.

You spend three days with Manny.

Whiskey tasting in Westland Distillery, comparing notes and swapping glasses when you found one he loved and you hated. You come back to his suite a little tipsy, a little playful, nipping at his lower lip as he fucks you on the couch. You fall asleep, entwined with him, blanket strewn over your naked bodies as his fingers comb through your hair.

You hit the Golden Nugget casino, where you discover you’re terrible at Poker but half decent at Blackjack. You win some, you lose some, but it doesn’t really matter because you haven’t smiled like this for a long time. When the band starts to play, Manny pulls you onto the dance floor. He’s a good dancer, better than you but he doesn’t seem to care, he just likes the feel of holding you close, of the music rushing through his veins as dances with a beautiful woman.

On the last night, you sneak into the outdoor hot tub after hours, both conveniently forgetting your swimsuits. He makes love to you with the jets running, his fingers running through your damp hair as you climax so hard you see stars.

Those three days, it’s the most fun you’ve had in forever.

You’re packing your things when he enters your room, propping his suitcase up alongside of the door. He watches you for a second before he picks up one of your shirts, folding it neatly before placing it inside your go-bag.

“Where are you off to next?” He asks, before he picks up the next item of clothing.

“Thailand.” You tell him, a small smile crossing your features. “I’m writing an article about the metal tube technique and how it ties in with the culture there. It’s a very spiritual practice, I’d like to learn more about it.”

The thing he’s learned about you over the past few days is that you have an affinity for spirituality and culture. When you talk about your experiences, the rituals you’ve viewed, the knowledge you’ve gained it’s always with respect and reverence. It comes across in your writing. He’s read a few of your articles online whilst you were in the shower, and you were talented. You'd won an award a few years back for your photography showcase called ‘The Ancient Art’ documenting different tattoo methods throughout the world.

“You should send me a postcard.” He says, the edges of his mouth twitching up.

“Where to?” You laugh and that sound it resonates right through him. “Manny at the Black Bear Lodge, I don’t even know your last name.”

Manny reaches over to the nightstand; picking up the pen and paper residing there before he scribbles something down and hands it to you.

“Now you do.”

He sees the expression on your face. He understands your reservations. You’ve been burned before. The man before him wanted a partner, someone to share his life with. You aren’t that woman, you need independence, freedom because at the heart of it you’re a nomad, seeking out adventure and living for new experiences. Trying to stifle that would be like caging a bird, it needs to be set free, to fly.

“I’m not asking for anything from you.” He tells you resolutely. “I’ve got my own shit going on. Between my kid and the Presidency, I don’t have time for anything else, but it would be nice to get something in the mail that isn’t a bill, maybe see the world a little too.”

You smile at that. He thinks you understand it in your own way. The responsibilities you free yourself from are the ones he willingly accepts. His daughter, his club, his community. He’ll never be able to break away, but he doesn’t want to. He’s in the exact place he’s supposed to be.

“I’ll see what I can do.” You tell him before zipping up your go-bag.

“I’ll hold you to it.” He teases, picking up your bag and slinging it over his shoulder.

His fingers link with yours, his thumb smoothing over the apex of your hand as the two of you walk down to your car, shoulders and hips bumping. He’s not ready to be out of your proximity just yet. He usually doesn’t have a problem with leaving but you, you’re different. He hasn’t felt this content in a while.

“Hit me up next time you’re in town.” He whispers as he tips your chin up with his fingertips so he can look into your eyes. “You’re a lot of fun to be around.”

You’re going to miss him; you realise in the moment. His easy-going nature, his humour, there’s something about this man that’s gotten under your skin, and you just can’t seem to shake it.

“I will.” You promise him, your lips brushing over his. “You’re a lot of fun too.”

Love Manny? Don’t miss any of his stories by joining the taglist here.

Like My Work? - Why Not Buy Me A Coffee

#manny montana #mayans #mayans mc #mayans imagine #mayans fanfic #mayans fx #manny x reader #manny x you

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chee-shep · 8 months

Note

S/o leaving lipstick kiss marks on the boys faces? You can chose both or one. I don't mind

I have come to the conclusion that ‘my boys’ are Kaigaku and Genya. I’ve been feeding the Kaigaku fans, now I’ll start feeding the Genya fans too!

Leaving lipstick stains on Genya is actually pretty hard to do

It’s not that Genya doesn’t like kissing you, trust me

He actually likes you giving him little kisses all over his face as well

Sometimes it feels a bit too much though, or maybe he’s just learned what your trying to do from past experience, and he’ll pull his face away a bit

Genya has a habit of smoothing back his mohawk throughout the day, so sometimes he’ll see the lipstick smudge from a mark on his forehead when he does that

The only other ways he’d know is looking in a mirror, the reflection on his sword or the worst… Other core members mention it!

It’s very embarrassing for the poor boy

And Gyomei can’t tell him about it if he’s training with him

At least if it’s someone like Tanjiro who points it out, he won’t feel so embarrassed

One time Inosuke asked, “What the hell happened to your face?” and it was mortifying

Of course, he won’t tell you to not do it though

You might be able to leave one mark on his cheek, but you probably can’t get more than that

You’d have to find a way to sneak it on him too, it takes planning

The first time you left kiss marks on him, he didn’t realize what you were doing until there were several on his face.

He went into his grumpy, quiet pouting as he tried to get it off his face before he’d see Master Jigoro and Zenitsu

Zenitsu avoided him that day since they don’t get alone, but Master Jigoro could still see some of it

Now you have to try and leave on by kissing him on the cheek when saying ‘goodbye’

He’ll check by rubbing his cheek, and usually that’ll help him catching

But feeling isn’t the same as looking

Sometimes it’ll take the quiet chuckles and giggling of other core members for him to realize he missed it

You know how he’d punch the other core member’s for just mentioning his breathing techniques?

He’ll punch them for this too… very hard…

Very, VERY hard to leave a lipstick mark on him

Not only because he prefers kisses on the lips, but he’s just very aware

One time when you were ‘having fun’ you left multiple marks on his face, but he found out that they were hard to wash off

Ever since then he’s made sure you aren’t trying to do that again

One time he was in a rush, and all you could get in was a kiss on his cheek

To be fair, he should have suspected something but he was to stressed about missing the first ‘Upper Moon’ meeting he’d be a a part of

Waiting for Muzan was… interesting…

Akaza gave him an odd look

Douma was laughing a bit

Kokushibou was the one to point it out in the end

He rubbed his cheek vigorously, trying to get rid of it before Muzan arrived

Oh, he was gonna get you back for this

#demon slayer #kimetsu no yaiba #kaigaku x you #kaigakuxreader #kaigaku imagine #kaigaku x y/n #kaigaku x reader #kaigaku #kaigaku inadama #genya x reader #genya shinazugawa x reader #genya x y/n #genya x you #genya head cannons #kaigaku head cannons #genya fluff

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cbedfordart · 8 months

Note

Hey! I’ve been following you for a while and I really love your art, it’s absolutely stunning and I love the way you paint and capture anatomy. I know this is a bit of a broad question but I was wondering if you had any tips on getting better at painting digitally and studying anatomy, maybe more specifically blending, colour picking, and structuring anatomy in a way that looks somewhat realistic?

Thanks and I'm glad you enjoy my work long enough to be following me for this long! I definitely love drawing a naked body that's for sure haha. In terms of tips for getting better there's a few things I can mention but it's going to fall broadly in the general answer of "study", because this is the most sure fire way to be able to understand what it is you're trying to emulate in your art. There are different ways to study, and they teach something slightly different. For example, doing studies from life (live drawing classes) help me understand movement in a way studying from a photograph cant, simply because you're seeing the same model in different poses in real time, you can see how the fat and muscle moves around as they shift to different positions. So they're not technically moving the whole time, but you're still seeing some movement there, and understanding what sticks to what while it rotates and bends. Studying from photographs can help give you time to do some real deep dives and investigate where different bones/muscles sit while someone is in a particular position. There's also the opportunity for understanding how shadows may be formed by the body as typically photographers are more conscious of how the subject may be lit than what may be available in a live drawing class. Beware though, as more things are photoshopped than you realise, not all photos represent reality. Especially glam and fashion photos. It doesn't mean its bad to want to have these effects on your work but just be conscious they might not always be anatomy accurate if that's what you're striving for. I sometimes make a conscious decision to go against what is anatomically correct for a certain effect myself. A book I have been recommending for years for anatomy is Dr. Paul RIcher's "Artistic Anatomy". It's great for understanding muscle structure intimately - it's designed specifically for artists, but with the idea of trying to stylise the diagrams as little as possible for the sake of understanding the human form. There's a lot of great info and detail in here, but beware, there is not a lot of variety in body structure (at least not in the edition I have which is missing female anatomy I think already so I'm not sure what else I don't have in here). So you'll be able to understand function a lot from here but you wont be able to learn a lot about fatter body types sadly.

Colour picking is probably the most difficult for me to explain easily, as I have spent a long time winging it, then studying it, then being really experimental with it. I could write a lot a lot about this but to spare making this post any longer I'll refer to another fun book just for getting started on some frequent and common terms called "Color and Light" by James Gurney.

I also love that he uses like, dinosaurs for everything in here lol. It's a great starting point that can give you some go to ideas that you can then experiment from there. It's not very authoritarian (or at least that's what I feel), and doesn't push anything forward as a hard and fast rule, just showing what affects some colour combinations might instil in someone.

As a whole, I've gotten better at painting digitally by studying traditional painting techniques. They theories are basically transferrable one to one with some few exceptions. I tend to blend my colours by simply using a soft round brush in Photoshop with a low opacity. Much the same way I would with a real canvas, with a large round brush and diluted colour. I hope this answers your questions in some way. I tried to be not too specific only because this answer would be at least another 30k words lol because this is something i think a lot about! I love technique! If I ever stream again, feel free to pop in and ask more questions where I might be able to show some stuff in real time! Not sure when that will happen though!

Also the way i do stuff isn't a "correct" way either. I like painting from imagination so this is how I make that work. Some people like to only work with references for every piece, and that is a completely legit way to create stunning art as well. Good luck!

#asks

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shanksxbuggy · 9 months

Note

PLSOLSPLSSS share more of ur shuggy headcanons the last one was so good that it has been my lil entertainment in the head cuz i cant write for shitttt

Ask and you shall receive c: I didn’t know if my headcanons would be very interesting, so I’m glad to hear you enjoy it.

I started this out thinking hmm do I even have any more headcanons, but now I’ve written all this…

Sometimes I imagine them as cis, but sometimes I like to headcanon them as trans. Shanks as a transman, Buggy as nonbinary or trans or genderfluid or like a drag queen. However they are, they’re hanging with Ivankov and the rest of queer community because they just fit there.

Buggy used to be insecure about his hair and hid it under a beanie. He used to want a more ‘normal’ hair color like the other crewmembers.

Shanks is the better liar when he wants to be. He doesn’t lie as often, but he’s better at controlling and hiding his emotions.

Buggy first became interested in the circus by seeing street performers as a kid, and somehow felt the circus lights calling out to him. His heart longs for the stage, to be at the center of attention before a huge crowd. But he also hates being made fun of and isn’t very good at dealing with criticism. He became inspired to include circus techniques and magician’s tricks in his fighting style, light and airy and impossible to predict.

Buggy didn’t come up with being called the clown, the Marines did. He just begrudgingly went with it.

Shanks is a lot more touchy-feely. He likes casually having an arm around Buggy, having their thighs touching, resting his head on his shoulder. Buggy is generally fine with it in front of people he knows, but he’s not one for overly public displays of affection. He has a reputation to uphold.

After Buggy got his powers, whenever he used to get annoyed or mad at Shanks, he’d detach his body and float away where Shanks couldn’t reach him.

Buggy knows sign language, because it’s useful for subtle communication and even better when you’re someone who can detach their hands.

Shanks used to show his affection by teasing Buggy a lot, who’d take it the wrong way and thought Shanks was just being an ass for no reason to Buggy. It’s classic pigtail-pulling behavior.

Buggy was real upset about not being able to swim anymore, so Shanks promised to take Buggy out into the water whenever he felt like it, so he could experience the seas without fear of drowning.

One of Shanks’ favorite foods is lobster, which is hard for him to eat unless someone cracks open the shell for him. Buggy is always the one who unshells it for him.

Shanks is a morning person, Buggy is more of a night owl who consumes multiple cups of coffee to function.

Shanks doesn’t like sleeping by himself so he shares sleeping quarters with the crew. After Elegia, he started getting nightmares more frequently. Sleeping with a room full of people he can trust helps put him at ease.

When Shanks can’t sleep, he’ll drink a lot of alcohol until he just knocks himself out.

Same as Luffy, Buggy also has the special ability to turn people into allies, just in a slightly different way.

All the Red-Haired Pirates already know about Buggy because of Shanks’ tendency to ramble while he’s drunk. At first they expected Buggy to be this exotic beauty, they were shocked when they found out the love of Shanks’ life was a literal clown. But then again, Shanks always had…questionable tastes, so they should have expected it.

Shanks really loves Buggy’s red lipstick. He especially loves it when Buggy leaves red lipstick marks on his clothes and skin. Buggy does it as a way of staking his claim.

Despite his good looks, Shanks is bad at posing for photos. He’s not the type to try and utilize his looks, so he’s more awkward in photos than in real life. Buggy is the one who knows how to work the camera and loves showing off in front of it.

Shanks definitely isn’t the type to whine or complain about pointless things…except he will with Buggy, just as a way to get his attention or be pampered. Shanks turns into a big, immature baby around Buggy, but it’s because he feels comfortable enough to do so.

Shanks likes summer islands, Buggy prefers winter islands (his nose gets sunburned easily lol)

They used to swap clothes a lot when they were kids. As adults they don’t do it that much anymore, but when they do, usually it’s Buggy stealing Shanks’ things.

Shanks wears the same damn outfit all the time unless someone forces him into something else (usually it’s Buggy who does). Shanks also sleeps naked or just in his underwear most of the time.

Buggy trains Uta in the circus trade and teaches her tricks so she can include them in her performances. The Buggy Pirates and Uta do collaborations on the stage. It’s like an idol concert meets Cirque du Soleil and the result is mind-blowing. Shanks is not talented enough in that area to be an entertainer, but he is their biggest fan.

#one piece headcanons #shuggy #shanks x buggy #buggy x shanks #ask #anon

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noodyl-blasstal · 6 months

Text

I'll grab your balls if you grab mine (TAZNC day 3)

It's day 3 of @taznovembercelebration and today's card was "coworkers AU." Prepare to, once again, get your stupid on - it's gay chicken but also there's an aligator. You can read today's below or on Ao3, and read yesterday's here.

Kravitz starts the slow sideways shuffle towards the lake. "C'mon, Taako. I know that Artemis is probably here, but he might leave us alone today." Kravitz doesn’t really believe himself, but they have to go, they’ve been putting off the lake by hole number 8 for weeks and it’s a particularly lucrative spot.

"He won't." Taako says, resigned. "He never does. Smug bastard. He knows we're just doing our job and he doesn't give a shit. I’ve explained it to him, I’ve asked Garyl to as well. Nothing helps. He’s a bastard."

"I'm not sure he considers it that much, he's an alligator, he's not exactly au fait with the concept of people jobs." Kravitz has long vowed to stop trying to convince Taako that Artemis is just being an animal and not holding some specific grudge against them. The resolve always lasts until Taako started talking about it, at which point he forgets said vow until it’s far too late.

"What? You think he thinks we do this for fun? Just pop down to put a sight on nothing because you can see fuck all down there? Absolutely not. He knows this is work stuff, Krav. If he was angry about capitalism he could go chomp the bosses, nuh uh, this is about us taking his balls."

"You have to stop referring to our job as..."

"We're ball collectors, Krav, ball connoisseurs, ball grabbers, ball appreciators. Don't be embarrassed, I don't judge you, we’re good at it."

Kravitz wonders absently if putting on his mask early will make Taako stop. It won’t, he knows it won't, it wouldn't be the first time he'd tried it, but today could be his lucky day? Maybe if he shuffles faster into the lake it’ll stop him? But no, it's not safe to go down without Taako, they've got to set their watches and do all the health and safety stuff. Kravitz knows from experience that Taako can happily talk through it.

"It's absolutely fine to make a career of grabbing balls with your good friend Taako. Sometimes you even grab my balls."

"Taako!" Kravitz is going to expire, he was going to burst into dust and float away on the wind, and fucking Artemis would probably try and eat him anyway because he is a complete bastard, but Kravitz can't admit that to Taako because it'll only encourage him more. It wouldn’t be so bad if he could just hate Taako, go to Sloane’s after a hard day and complain about his awful coworker. No no, he had to find it charming.

"It's okay, you can admit it. You grab my balls and, honestly, I like it. Saves me a job." Taako's grinning his stupid big grin and there's pond weed tangling around Kravitz's fins, and he wishes more than anything that he was somewhere in Australia or something right now, clear water, a delightful reef, he could go murder the invasive starfish or something. Starfish assassin was a better job than ball grabber.

"Well, shall we get started then?" A valiant effort, he can keep them on track probably.

"Of course, I wouldn't want to keep you from all the balls you have to touch."

"Look, you're running out of material, if we dive now you can go out on a high."

"Fondle? I didn't say fondle yet."

"If you're fondling them then you're wasting time. There's a reason I always get the most."

"It's certainly not skill if you're rushing it." Taako wiggles his eyebrows suggestively. "Want me to talk you through the finer points of the process sometime?"

"I don't need to seduce the golf balls and my bedroom technique is fantastic thanks. Now get in the lake, Taako."

There's a loud splashing noise as Taako falls into the shallows cackling. Great. It takes him an age to calm down when he gets like this. "Fantastic... bedroom technique... Bedroom technique!" Is all Kravitz can hear repeated between the mirthful snorts. Kravitz thinks it might just be easier to let Artemis have his way with him at this point. If he dies in the line of duty then Taako will have to be nice about him, well, in public at least, he can say what he wants in private. They might build a statue too! It’d be in the middle of the lake or something, that's about the level of sensitivity he'd expect from their employers, but his Mums would probably appreciate it.

"You'll..." Taako throws a bit of pond weed off his stupid handsome face. "...have to show me that technique sometime, stud."

Kravitz freezes, not just because of the cold biting at his knees. He wishes the dry suits were warmer. "Did you just offer to go fuck me?"

"I offered to let you fuck me, actually. You can't go showing off and not being willing to back it up." Taako looks wildly unruffled, as if he hasn't just propositioned a co-worker on a Tuesday morning. Not that the day should matter, but honestly, it's Friday behaviour if anything.

"I... You..." Kravitz stands there like a particular stupid penguin. Maybe if he doesn't move Taako won't be able to see him... In his brightly coloured BCD with an oxygen tank strapped to his back... Fuck.

"Come on then Kravitz, we haven't got all day." Taako says breezily, finally back on his feet and crab stepping past Kravitz with a smug smile.

Fine. Fine! If Taako wants to be like this then Kravitz can match his energy. No problem. He can be fun, he can be playful. "Certainly not. Apparently we have plans tonight." He pushes forward into the lake, smiles as Taako coughs a surprised laugh behind him but doesn't give him time to reply. "Turn round, I forgot to tug your weight pouches on land."

Taako shuffles in what’s probably meant to be an alluring semicircle, he seems to be looking at Kravitz more intently than usual.

“Is that everything done, ‘cause Breathing Water Really Ain’t Fun!” Taako asks as Kravitz double checks his kit.

“We’re good, unless you need to inspect me?”

“Apparently Taako gets to do that later.” Taako says, then quickly launches himself into the water, splashing Kravitz in the face. Taako scrambles for his mask. “Get in loser, it’s lovely and warm!”

It is not lovely and warm. It’s cold and miserable. Kravitz's face however, is toasty warm from the blush burning there. He's surely not going to fuck Taako just to try and out fluster him… is he? Kravitz would like to. It’s not that he hasn’t thought about fucking Taako before, but Taako won't go along with it… will he? He hasn’t expressed any interest before now.

They do the last checks for loose straps or hoses and, satisfied, head down into the murk. Kravitz wonders, not for the first time, if his past self thought he'd be diving crystal clear waters somewhere fabulous by this point in his life, not using his scuba qualification to retrieve golf balls from gross man made lakes.

It's important to be relatively methodical, so they set off on their usual route, a slow backwards and forwards sweep of the lake bed. They can only see 15 feet in any direction , so it's slow going. They save the drop off for the end - the inexplicably deep portion attracts balls like a magnet. Why have an easy retrieval when you could have a hard one?

The bottom is so goopy, Kravitz truly detests it. Taako jokingly stuck a fin in one time and Kravitz still isn't convinced all the gunk came off. He hates having to reach in and grab the balls nestled in it - sinking so slowly that they always get to them before they're submerged (one time the bosses made them dig into the muck with a horrible plastic sieve to check, nothing seemed to penetrate the choking layer.)

There's still no sign of trouble when they're mid way through the ascent and Kravitz is starting to hope Artemis had decided to leave them alone today, miracles can happen. Maybe he has finally remembered that he's supposed to be nocturnal? Sadly, instead, Artemis has remembered he's supposed to lurk in the shallows.

Kravitz feels Taako yanking him violently before he even sees Artemis. His jaws snap at the space Kravitz left behind. A chunk of bubbles escape Taako and Kravitz can almost hear the swearing. Kravitz forces himself to breathe instead of holding it, the last thing he needs is to explode his lungs. He just has to not die in the next 10 minutes and he's getting laid apparently? Maybe Taako forgot, but either way, living would be good.

They look frantically around, stuck at their last levelling stop until the watches tell them they can move on. Artemis swoops back on Taako's side this time, but Taako is ready, jabs him in the side of the head where you're supposed to. Kravitz hates that management thought that the "how to fight an alligator" leaflet was more appropriate than safely relocating him to protect staff. It's not like they asked for them all to be moved, the others were fine. Garyl let Taako scritch his belly! It was just that Artemis was 'uniquely shit'. Kravitz is fairly sure that's the exact phrase Taako put in the latest complaint (to no avail).

Artemis disappears briefly, they hang in the water, waiting on the watches. Any minute now, surely? Kravitz looks hard into the murky waters trying to anticipate Artemis' next move. The watch beeps just as he strikes again, heading for Taako’s ankle this time. Kravitz stamps down as hard as he can (water and fins making this ‘not particularly hard’), it’s enough to distract Artemis though. He turns to snap at Kravitz instead, but Taako’s grabbing Kravitz’s arm and pulling him upwards. They finally break the surface and run, inelegant and flappy, hands tangled, laughing while pondweed snares their ankles and they tug each other along. Taako’s stood flamingo-like in the shallows, one hand on Kravitz’s shoulder for balance, the other trying to remove his fins, when Artemis surfaces again. They’re so close, so close to getting out. Kravitz refuses to let Taako getting eaten get in the way of whatever is going on between them right now. Fuck it. He grabs Taako and slings him over his shoulder - grateful for the fire evacuation training they did, there’s no way he could carry him any other way right now. Okay, so maybe he forgot to factor in the extra weight they’re both wearing and how fucking awkward the tanks make this, but it’s fine, he doesn’t have to go far. He keeps his knees high, makes sure he gets enough clearance on his fins and runs as fast (very slowly) as possible.

Taako whoops in delight and Kravitz is nearly 100% certain he’s giving Artemis the finger behind his back. “Fuck you, Fartemis! Taako lives to ride another day!” There’s a pause, Kravitz swears he hears a muttered… “Or maybe tonight.”

Kravitz deposits Taako much less elegantly than he hoped, but far enough away from the lake that he’s fairly sure they’re safe. “You saved my life!”

“I saved your ankle, at best.”

“You saved Taako’s favourite ankle!”

“You have a favourite ankle?” Kravitz asks, incredulous. Of course Taako has a favourite ankle, he probably has a favourite ear too. Why wouldn’t he?

“It’s weirder not to, ask anyone.” Taako skrunkles up his nose in distaste.

“I’ll do that.” Kravitz says, already deciding Sloane will probably agree. Maybe Kraivtz is wrong?

As the adrenaline fades Kravitz has a creeping awareness that he’s still holding Taako’s hand. It’s awkward, suddenly. He can’t tell if he should let go or cling on. No idea if Taako has been joking this whole time and he’s missing it. He doesn’t want to end up in a HR meeting. They’re dripping onto the golf course, bags of balls secured at their waists, pond weed stuck to their legs, Kravitz has no idea what to say, no idea what to do. He should probably apologise for unceremoniously grabbing Taako, but honestly, Taako seemed to enjoy it.

“So your place or mine tonight, handsome?” Taako pulls off his mask and snorkel properly to allow him to wink at Kravitz. There’s a dribble of muddy water running down his cheek. For a brief second Kravitz debates licking it off.

Kravitz takes a moment to consider Taako’s question. He’s seen the state of Taako’s locker, he’s not sure he can take that on a grander scale. “Mine.” He says definitively. He changed the sheets yesterday and they can stop and get supplies on the way, he’s not exactly set up for this. Maybe he needs to declare that actually. “I… er… I, I don’t really do this, Taako.”

“Do what, exactly, Kraveroo?”

“You know.” Kravitz flaps his hand. Surely Taako has caught his very obvious drift.

Taako looks at him blankly. “Interpretive dance?”

“One night stands!” Kravitz says, louder than he means to. Glances furtively around to ensure none of the customers are zipping by on their golf trollies just waiting to put in a complaint about lewd language being used on the course.

“Well Taako wasn’t planning on this being a one time thing, he’s heard there’s a ‘fantastic bedroom technique’ on offer and he plans to test it out thoroughly.”

Kravitz smiles, he can flirt with Taako, he can take Taako home, he can impress him. “We’ll figure out a rubric while we shower - we can do some extensive testing. I look forward to your feedback.”

I hope you enjoyed! Find the next day here.

#taz november celebration #taznc #The adventure zone #You'll be pleased to hear that after this they fuck nasty and fall in love #Stop being such a dick Artemis #Taakitz #Noodyl Writes #Taako #Kravitz #TAZ balance

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dialovers-translations · 11 months

Text

DIABOLIK LOVERS Para-Selene Vol.5 Sakamaki Laito Animate Tokuten CD

Original title: DIABOLIK LOVERS Para-Selene Vol. 5 逆巻ライトアニメイト各巻購入特典ドラ

Source: Diabolik Lovers Para-Selene Vol. 5 Animate Tokuten CD

Audio: Here

Seiyuu: Hirakawa Daisuke

Translator’s note: Bowling master Laito kind of threw me for a loop, but it also makes sense? Like he strikes me as the type of guy who would be unexpected skilled at a bunch of random things. In general, I’ve been really enjoying these ‘date scenario’ CDs. They actually did a good job making every one of them unique and choosing fun locations for each boy. I know the chances of us getting another DL anime are really slim, but if they do decide to make one, I really hope it’s not a season 3 based on DF or LE but a bunch of OVAs instead based on the drama CDs.

“...What’s this? There’s quite a lot of people here despite it being so late at night. I guess bowling is pretty popular. I thought I’d be able to do all sorts of fun things with my Bitch-chan, such a shame! ーー Ah! Our lane is over here. Ah! Check out the monitor over there! It actually displays our names as ‘Laito’ and ‘Bitch’! I love your name. It really stands out amongst the others! I would have loved to be able to input ‘Bitch-chan’ instead, honestly. I felt pretty bummed when they told me that I could only input up to five characters. Right, Bitch-chan?”

You frown.

“...? You’ve been quiet this whole time. What’s wrong? Did you want me to add the ‘-chan’ as well?”

You shake your head.

“Then what’s the matter?”

You complain about him wanting to come here.

“Eeh~? Is it really that strange? Even I feel like playing a game of bowling every now and then. There’s no ulterior motive behind it!”

You squint your eyes.

“Oh dear. You’re still suspicious of me? ...Fine. I’ll fess up the truth. ーー We actually gave here today because I wanted to do you a favor.”

You tilt your head to the side.

“Mmh. We’re usually active at night, so most places where high schoolers like to hang out are closed by that hour, no? So we’re limited in the things we can do, right? Well, you might be fine with that, but you’re still a blossoming high school girl, so I figured that you might fantasize about the kind of cute dates depicted in shoujo manga and such. ーー I thought it wouldn’t hurt to go on a typical high schoolers’ date for once, so I started looking around for places which are open 24/7, which brings us here today. How’s that? Do you understand now?”

You nod.

“Nfu~ I’m glad. With that misunderstanding lifted...Now that we’re here anyway, why don’t we get started? I’m up first, aren’t I? Let me think...Which ball should I pick? ーー Ah. This one will do.”

*Thud*

“It has the same color as your hair. I’ll throw it as hard as I can, imagining its your head instead~”

You protest.

“Nfu~ Oh come on, you may say that, but I know you’re happy deep down! You love to get pushed around by me, don’t you? ...Ah! When it’s your turn, why don’t you pick a ball in the same color as my hair? I don’t dislike the idea of being at your mercy either~”

You refuse.

“Geez...You’d be able to get so much more of of life if you just enjoy it as one of many fetishes. You’re so easily embarrassed. Fine. ...I’ll throw the ball, okay?”

Laito faces towards the lane.

“Let me think...I’m supposed to throw it leaning down...or from up top?

You seem surprised he has never bowled before.

“Eh!? Bitch-chan...Do you really think I’ve come to this sorta place before? Today’s obviously my first bowling experience!”

*Rustle*

“But don’t worry! Experience isn’t what matters...It’s all about chemistry...!”

Laito throws his ball.

*Clatter clatter*

“Huh? I knocked all of them over. Is this what you’d call a ‘strike’?”

You seem very impressed.

“...Nfu~ I got praised~ Anyway, is this really so amazing?”

You nod.

“Heeh...I wonder if I am a natural at bowling? Control is key, so it might be the perfect game some someone who is very technique-minded such as myself. In that case, I’m quite curious what you are capable of, Bitch-chan~”

You frown.

“Now, now, no need to be so modest. Show me what you’re made of. Go give it a shot! ...Nfu~ I’m very much looking forward to this.”

You walk towards the lane.

“Break a leg, Bitch-chan~! Throw it with everything you’ve got!”

You throw the ball.

*Thud thud*

“Nfu~ Ah-ahー I guess the excitement ended up being her downfall. What a shame. ...They call this a ‘gutter’, don’t they? I can’t believe you didn’t even manage to knock over one of them. ...Ah, come on. One more try, no?”

*Thud*

You try once more.

*THUD*

“Ahー You really suck at this, don’t you?”

You seem disappointed.

“No need to be so sad. My strike might have been just a fluke. I’ll go next, so watch me, okay?”

Laito walks up to the lane again.

“...Hah!”

*CLATTER*

“Aah~ I guess it wasn’t just beginner’s luck! I might have a knack for bowling after all! ...In that case, Bitch-chan, why don’t you come over here with your ball?”

You pick up your ball and approach him.

“Okay! Let’s practice how to hold the ball!”

*Rustle*

“Geez, no need to be so surprised. We came here to treat you to a good time today, so I’ll teach you very gently~ Come on, hold the ball.”

*Rustle*

“Hmー That won’t do.”

*Rustle rustle*

“You need to stretch your arm a little more.”

You try to scoot away from him, asking why he is touching you.

“What are you saying? I’m fixing your posture! I think I proved earlier that my bowling skills far exceed yours, so don’t you think it’s in your best interest to take my advice?”

You frown.

“I mean, it’d be kind of difficult to tell you what to do without clinging to you like this, is it? I’m positive that it’d be so much easier to teach you good posture through direct touch!”

*Rustle*

“Come on, lean back against me and stand straight.”

*Rustle*

“Don’t move! You want to be able to throw the ball properly don’t you?”

You tell him to move away.

“How mean, telling me to back off! I’m only trying to show my good heart by teaching you! I mean, if you lose this duel against me, you’ll get punished, remember?”

You seem surprised by that.

“I mean, duh? Didn’t I tell you? All games have some kind of punishment game attached to it, don’t they? You have to expect those kind of things! By the way, now that you’ve already thrown once, you’re part of the game, so there’s no backing out~”

You ask him if he would punish you right here in public.

“Fufu~ Why would you ask that? ーー I get it. You’re curious about what this punishment would entail, aren’t you~? Were you perhaps hoping that I’d suck your blood~?”

You deny it.

“Nfu~ No point in trying to deny it~ I bet you imagined my fangs sinking deeply into your fair nape, didn’t you? Aah~ I suppose I have no other choice. That wasn’t the plan, but I’ll live up to your expectations and make the punishment something deliciously painful~ Please look forward to this punishment...which will turn both your body and soul to putty~”

You try to make a run for it.

*Rustle rustle*

“Ahaha~ Oh come on, hold up! I told you that there’s no way out, didn’t you? You better behave...or I’ll do it right here, right now.”

You immediately stop resisting.

“Nfu~ Good girl. Besides, there’s only a 50% chance that you’ll get punished, so just remember that you could always win and try to make the best out of it!”

You sigh in defeat.

“Well then, let’s continue your lesson. Now, where’s your spine?”

*Rustle*

“Nfu~ Found it~ Mm~

*Rustle rustle*

“What are you saying? I’m helping you straighten your back! By tracing my fingers across your spine like this...See? You pushed out your chest which improved your stance! Try to hold this proper posture, okay?”

You ask him if he knows what hte proper posture for bowling is.

“Eh? No idea! How am I supposed to know what is the ‘right posture’ for bowling when I’m still a newbie at the game myself.”

You ask him what he has been teaching you then.

“You’re just so terrible at this, I’ve just been giving you random points and then it was up to you whether or not you’d take my words for granted. ...Anyway, ahaha~ They’re really hard to miss when you’re standing looking straight ahead like that.”

You tilt your head to side.

“Over here. These bite marks on・your・neck~”

You squeak.

“They’re the proof of the love we share with each other every night~ It’s too bad you can’t really see them unless you move this close. I promise I’ll make them stand out even more by biting you nice and hard when we get back home, so rest assured~”

You complain.

“You’re adorable when you pretend to dislike something. However, no losing on purpose because you want to get bitten ,okay?”

You insist that you would never do that.

“I wonder~? You’re a naughty girl who seduces other by feigning discomfort. You want me to completely overpower you, run away with the victory and inflict pain upon you as a result, don’t you? And then you’d try to play innocent by saying ‘Oh I don’t actually want this, but it can’t be helped because I lost the game~', won’t you? ...Sure. Two can play that game. I like that sort of thing as well after all. I’ll make sure to slowly drive you into a corner...and then tease the living hell out・of・you~”

Your cheeks grow hot.

“Oh? What’s wrong? ...Nfu~ You’re flustered, aren’t you? Oh come, you are so shy~ ...Anyway, let’s get this game going! Try throwing the ball following my tips from earlier.”

You nod and throw the ball.

*CLATTER CLATTER*

“Wow~ You actually knocked them all over! I’m shocked!”

You rejoice.

“Nfu~ Congratulations, Bitch-chan. Judging from your sheer excitement, could it be that this is the first time you’ve ever hit a strike?”

You nod.

“Mmh, mmh~ I’m happy for you! In that case, why don’t we end on a positive note and wrap up the match right here? It’s obvious you’ll lose after all.”

You protest.

“I mean, even if continue to bowl one strike after the other now, you already threw a gutter once, so you have no chance at getting ahead of me.There’s no way I’d give away the win now.”

You shake your head.

“Ah~ We can keep going until I have a slip-up if you want, but in return, your punishment will get more and more severe, the longer the game lasts. I believe you’d be much better off admitting defeat right now and simply heading home with me.

I’m fine with either scenario. We’re here on a date today for you after all. You can choose whether you want to call it a day right now and quickly get your punishment, or if you’d rather have me tend to you thoroughly after I’ve messed with you a little longer.”

You call him out on being unreasonable.

“Nfu~ Exactly. I might be messed up. But you love this crazy guy, don’t you? In which case, you have no other choice but to play along with me and slowly become insane as well.”

You sigh.

“Fufu~ Since you sighed in defeat, does that mean you’ve made your choice?”

You choose to go home.

“Nfu~ Sure. As you wish. Well then...Shall we head home, Bitch-chan~? I’ll treat you to plenty of the good stuff which you love oh-so much~”

ーー THE END ーー

#diabolik lovers #dialovers #laito sakamaki #diabolik lovers translation #diabolik lovers drama cd #drama cd

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yuurei20 · 9 months

Text

Ortho Info Compilation part 18: Riddle, Film Club and Vil

During Fairy Gala IF, Riddle compliments Ortho on his technological prowess and Ortho says, “If I solve this problem, I’ll basically be a campus hero!,” possibly tying back to book 6 and original-Ortho and Idia’s childhood appreciation for heroes and adventures.

Ortho confides in Riddle that the Fairy Gala IF event is the first time that anyone has ever needed him instead of his brother: “I came to this school as one of Idia’s technomatic gadgets. I was no different than a PC or a blastcycle. And I was going to leave with Idia once he graduated…I didn’t think there was anywhere else I should be. I believed the best place for me was wherever my brother was. I had it in my head that being with Idia was the best possible option—or rather, it was the ONLY option. It’s different now, though. I’ve been recognized as a person rather than a gadget.”

Ortho explains how he finds things like “meaningless chitchat” with the other students, getting yelled at by a teacher for cutting class (“nobody ever cared when I was in class or not before”) and scolded by Riddle to be engaging and novel.

“I never knew it would be so nice to be treated as Ortho Shroud—an individual person. Happiness, delight, pride…I’ve known what those words meant for years, but now I think I finally understand them.”

Riddle responds, “I’m sure your housewarden is proud to have another exceptional student in his dorm. And I’m glad to study alongside you, Ortho Shroud.”

Ortho explains that he first started watching movies in order “to study human emotions. I had trouble conducting myself in human-like ways when my brother first built me. I didn’t really understand when it was appropriate to get mad, or to laugh. Movies helped me solve that problem, though.”

He says that, “Nowadays, watching movies is more or less something I just do for fun.”

During Book 6 Vil comments,“Ortho’s been putting on quite the villainous performance. It seems to me he could drop all this nonsense about resetting the world and start an acting career.”

Rook asks Vil about Ortho joining the Film Club and Vil responds, “I think you might be onto something there.

We see Ortho trying to decide on a club during a vignette (the other first-year students are in sports clubs, and Ortho says he is more interested in new experiences than improving his performance), reflecting on how he would watch films “to acquire proper emotive capabilities.”

Before Vil has the chance to extend an invitation for him to join the Film Research Club, Ortho asks to be allowed in himself.

Vil grants him membership without an audition as he has “already seen more than enough of your acting back on the Island of Woe.”

Riddle and Leona call in Vil and Crewel to assist with Fairy Gala IF and Vil and Crewel invite Ortho, with Vil saying, “Ortho is essential for your success at the fashion show. No one is more fitting for the theme of evolution that Ortho Shroud.”

Book 5 is Ortho's first appearance in the main story, where fails the audition for the VDC when Vil reacts to his performance with, “I’ve heard of genreless, but this is ridiculous.”

Despite this, Vil seems fond of Ortho.

Vil refuses to teach him make up techniques for Halloween as his costume uses a mask, but when Ortho is disappointed in the loss of a learning opportunity Vil follows with, “I jest…I will pick out some skincare products for you.”

When asked what dorm (besides Ignihyde) he would like to join, Ortho responds: Pomefiore.

#twstortho #Orthofacts #twstfacts #Ortho Shroud #twisted wonderland

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calboniferous · 1 year

Photo

Binding of the phenomenal That I Should Wedded Be by @moorishflower!

Summary:

'Would that we were married,' Hob thinks unkindly. 'If we were married I could give you a shake and not have to worry about chasing you off for another century.'

Captivating, electrifying, and beautifully surreal all in a delicious 26K words of vintage Dreamling that I cannot recommend enough, and which topped out at 74 pages. It is by far the smallest volume I’ve ever bound and figuring out how to handle the flat-back binding was a bit of fun. Endpapers are hand-marbled and the bookcloth is starch-filled cotton (no paper-backing) which is something I’ve been experimenting with lately. The cover art was designed by @artworkofolivia and painted on through a stencil - also a new-ish technique I’ve been enamoured with. (dear author, if you would like a copy, please let me know! I would love to send one over <3) (edit: thanks to the folks over at the @renegadepublishing discord for all the inspiration and resources :) )

#bookbinding #fanbinding #the sandman

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addictedtostorytelling · 6 months

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Still loving the newest addition to the Happy Accidents series & your last chapter got me thinking about a potential scene I would love to hear from your perspective (or maybe you’ve already written it & I’ve just got to be patient…)

In the last chapter you mentioned Sara’s PTSD & Grissom was so sweet. Particularly this part “She knows why he is worried: Over the years, he has learned to associate nerviness in her with periods when her mental health is poor. She isn’t usually quick to startle, but during the times when her PTSD is bad—around anniversaries—she can be. She gets so in her own head that anything happening outside has the potential to shock.”

It got me thinking about how in this alternate universe, Sara would be about 6-7 months pregnant when the anniversary of her abduction came & I would love to read her thoughts on that & how Grissom helps her deal with it. Does it cause her to reflect on how different her life looks now than a year ago? Does she think about all the reasons she didn’t give up in the desert? Does she feel the baby kick & is brought out of her thoughts, grateful for how her life looks?

And if you’ve already written a scene like this…I’ll sit over here (im)patiently waiting.

hi, @chelsshearman!

good to hear from you again! i'm so glad to know you're enjoying the story so far.

i've taken a while to come up with an answer to your (very thoughtful) question, and though i can't show any prose from that part of the story just yet without revealing some major accidentsverse spoilers, i can offer you a more pared down answer after the "keep reading," if you're interested.

note: in order to avoid major accidentsverse spoilers, i purposefully use ambiguous language surrounding sara's pregnancy in this answer.

sara knows from experience: trauma doesn't adhere to a strict calendar.

sometimes exact anniversaries are bad, but other times the days and weeks surrounding are when the cptsd symptoms really hit.

november has historically been a crapshoot for her, any day—not just the exact anniversary of her father's murder—liable to be a bad one, the whole month something of a slog.

though she is hopeful: now that her wedding anniversary falls mid-month, maybe she'll have better associations going forward.

she is well-aware of this temporal idiosyncrasy in her brain, and so is her therapist, which is why he starts counseling with her in mid-april about what to anticipate come may, for what will be the first anniversary of her abduction by natalie davis.

admittedly, she is, at this point, distracted. not only is there a lot going on in her life pregnancy-wise, but things are busier than ever at work. by now, she is no longer in the field and has instead become the de facto "point person" for her teammates at the lab, which, contrary to what she had expected, has somehow upped her caseload. still, she tries her best to complete her therapy assignments with what few spare hours she has. is diligent about going in for sessions. practices all of the self-care techniques her therapist recommends. stays on top of taking her meds. makes sure to look after herself as well as she can.

—and especially because grissom is so obviously worried about her.

not only does he admit as much outright, sans prompting, but he also is so careful with her. he had already been wonderfully attentive, but now she hardly even has to think she might want something before he appears to offer it. she swears to god: the man is telepathic. also, far too sweet.

thankfully, as the calendar turns over into may, there are some fun, new pregnancy developments to help to take her mind off the impending anniversary: grissom is finally able to feel kicking. (for a long time, she had felt fetal movements internally, but they hadn't been detectable in any external way.) also, a first instance of fetal hiccups, which is just about the weirdest, coolest sensation she has ever experienced.

that said, about two weeks before the big anniversary™, she does start experiencing some "trauma residuals" from her abduction. she's not having flashbacks or nightmares or full-on panic attacks, per se; she just feels off. spacey. emotionally unbalanced. like everything in her head has just been shifted two inches to the left of where it should be.

she keeps expecting to have some kind of big breakdown at some point, but the catharsis doesn't ever come.

and, honestly, the lack of punctuation is what bothers her more than anything.

she confides in grissom: she's scared. she tried to get out ahead of her trauma by "doing all the right things," but she is still being affected, not in any obvious, dramatic way but enough so that her trauma is inarguably impacting her behavior. coworkers keep asking her if she’s okay. looking like they don’t fully believe her when she says she is. she can’t help but be concerned: what if the same thing happens a few years on from now? the last thing in the world she would ever want to do to her child(ren) is make them feel like mommy's sad or upset for no reason.

so she and grissom talk the issue through: they both agree that trauma is a fickle thing—particularly as trauma reactions can't always be pinned down to one day or easily predicted in terms of how they'll manifest. show great variance in intensity, duration, form, etc. also can't be totally prevented, even if one tries to account for them as much as possible. chances are, she will be dealing with after effects—from her childhood, from her abduction—for the rest of her life.

sara explains: logically, she knows all of these things. but she still doesn't want their child(ren) to suffer for having a traumatized parent. she has experience that way with her own mother. remembers how helpless she felt when she was little, watching her mother struggle; how much she internalized her mother's sadness and anger. though as an adult, she (mostly) knows better now, back then, she wondered if she caused or exacerbated her mother’s misery and questioned why she wasn't enough to make her mother happier.

here, grissom digs in: "and did your mother ever answer those questions for you?"

her silence tells him no.

grissom offers his postulate: the truth might have helped—not by making sara’s mother “magically better” but by allowing sara, even as a child, to contextualize the situation and understand her mother's mental health conditions existed independent of anything having to do with her. just hearing, in no uncertain terms, that her mother wasn’t sad for any reason having to do with her may have alleviated some of her misplaced guilt.

sara agrees: they should be honest with their child(ren) and explain things at a level they can understand.

but she still worries: it will be a long time yet before they can have those kinds of honest conversations. what will happen in the meanwhile? babies pick up on their caretakers' cues and moods, after all. she doesn’t want to do damage by exuding sadness or fear in their child(ren)’s presence.

grissom reassures her: in all the time they've been together, even during periods when her mental health has been at its poorest ("even in november"), he has always felt loved by and safe with her. he has not been oblivious to her sadness and fear. but he also has never felt that those reactions in her negated her affections. he suspects their child(ren) will feel the same.

still, she makes him promise: if she ever gets to the point where she can't be a good caretaker of their child(ren), he'll intervene. "that was part of the problem," she explains, "with my parents. no matter how miserable things got, no one said anything or did anything about it. no one asked for help. we all just sat there with it."

grissom agrees: they'll ask for help if they need it. offer help when they see it's needed, even if it hasn't been asked for. and neither one of them will give up.

the promise does make sara feel somewhat better.

—though, of course, it doesn’t fully alleviate her cptsd symptoms.

may proves to be a hard month, not only because of the trauma but for other reasons, too.

[insert major accidentsverse spoilers here]

but it also is not without happy moments—sometimes impossibly happy, like the first time they see a footprint, clearly discernible for what it is, show through the skin of her belly—and, most importantly, never without love.

she reflects: one year ago, she was alone in a desert, sure she was going to die. now, she is never alone, and she has never been surer of what she has to live for. lying in bed with grissom, his hand over the footprint protruding slightly below her navel, she feels a kind of peace she could never have imagined she would feel, just one year on from that day. she knows: what happened to her will stay with her for the rest of her life—will sometimes rear up in unaccountable ways—but it won’t be what defines her. won’t be the main throughline in her story. she’s writing that one herself, here, now. and she loves where her story is headed.

thanks for the question! please feel welcome to send another any time.

#answered #chelsshearman #accidentsverse #csiverse #my fic #**

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