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rax-writes · 3 years

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Fandom: MCU Pairing: Baron Helmut Zemo x Reader Warnings: Sexual intercourse with a female-identifying person with a vagina + a bit of sugar daddy Zemo vibes at the end Notes: Y’all... don’t judge me. I have a power kink, and Marvel did me dirty by randomly deciding that Zemo is fifthly rich royalty. And my girl @henrysmorgan did me even dirtier by actively encouraging my attraction to this fucker. So, blame Marvel, and blame her. // This is kind of really fucking long, and I didn’t edit it much, because I wanted to get it posted before episode 4, in case that episode flips the script. So, potentially some editing issues, and slightly rushed writing. Hopefully it’s alright, but please let me know if I screwed up anywhere. // Lots and lots of TFAWS ep. 3 spoilers

When Bucky texted you to ask that you meet him in some dusty, old, abandoned-looking car garage, you certainly didn’t know what to expect. All you knew was that an old friend needed your help, so you intended to be there.

It had been a few months since you’d last seen him, and even longer since you’d participated in any sort of mission, but you suspected that was what you were walking into. Being exposed to the Mind Stone had granted you the power of telepathy, which meant that SHIELD was quite keen on persuading you to work for them. They trained you in martial arts and hand-to-hand combat, and you went on miscellaneous missions a handful of times. They put in a lot of effort to convince you that it was your moral obligation as an “enhanced individual” to help them with these missions, but you ultimately decided that that simply wasn’t the kind of life you wanted. Instead, after the Blip, you began working a desk job for SHIELD, which is when you crossed paths with Bucky, helping him with paperwork associated with his pardon, and the two of you formed a friendship. But SHIELD kept trying to coerce you to get back into the field, constantly badgering you about it and making it clear that you weren’t wanted if all you were doing was paperwork.

The truth is, you weren’t cut out to be a superhero, and you had no desire to be. It didn’t help that your entire country had been reduced to rubble several years prior, leaving you with a bottomless pit of homelessness in your heart. So, you left SHIELD, and started a life in Berlin, where you were content to live out your days as the owner of a small bakery, residing in the small apartment above your shop.

That is, until Bucky Barnes dragged you into a particularly sticky situation, with a certain Baron Helmut Zemo.

You knew that helping Bucky and Sam would throw a colossal wrench in the life you’d created for yourself in Berlin, but after they explained the situation with the super soldiers, coupled with Bucky’s puppy dog eyes, you found yourself refraining from storming out of the building the second you saw Helmut fucking Zemo.

“We need you to keep an eye on him. You don’t have to tap into his mind 24/7, we just want a heads up if he’s going to screw us over,” Bucky explained.

"Look, we really need him. We’re obviously scraping the bottom of the barrel here, otherwise he'd still be in that cell. And neither of us want to be packing a criminal around like a rich bitch's chihuahua, so we need you here to make sure we're not gonna get bit," Sam explained.

"Fine. But you both owe me," you relented, and they both took sighs of relief. You glanced at Zemo, locking eyes with him for several tense moments. He gave you a polite smile, giving off the impression that he had nothing to hide – which he didn't, as his thoughts showed his intentions were pure at the moment. "We're good for now. He just genuinely wants the opportunity to take down these new super soldiers."

Sam and Bucky nodded, visibly releasing tension from their shoulders as they moved to head out, now reassured that Zemo was truly on their side. Meanwhile, Zemo eyed you with curiosity and awe, murmuring, "Fascinating."

The four of you walked on the landing strip toward a private jet, owned by Zemo.

"So all this time you've been rich?"

"I was a Baron, Sam. My family was royalty before your friends destroyed my country," Zemo explained, before glancing at you with a small smile. "But you knew that already."

"Wait, how did she know that?" Sam asked, then turned to you. "How did you know that?"

"I am Sokovian myself. I was certainly not royalty, but I lived there for my entire life, until it was destroyed," you explained, stopping outside the jet as Zemo greeted the elderly butler, Oeznik, in your native language. It made you smile to yourself; it had been years since you'd heard it spoken. Zemo shot you a grin when he noticed, and when you took a peek into his mind, you saw that he understood exactly how you felt.

As the butler handed Zemo a flute of champagne after you all boarded the jet, the Baron smiled politely as Oeznik stated, “Apologies if that's a little warm. The fridge is out, but I will see if there is some good food in the galley.”

Zemo glanced as you sat across from him, then in Sokovian, Zemo told Oeznik, "Another flute for the lady, please. And if the food does not pass the smell test, give it to the gentlemen."

"It's good to have you back, sir!"

As the man retreated to the cockpit, also in Sokovian, you noted, "You are a mischievous man, even more so than in your infamously criminal ways."

"You will find that there is more to me than meets the eye, angel," he responded coolly, the Sokovian language rolling off his tongue like honey. Before you could respond, admittedly enjoying speaking Sokovian, Sam grew tired of everyone speaking a language he couldn't understand.

"Why don't you tell us about where we're going?"

After a tense exchange between Bucky and Zemo, followed by a discussion about Marvin Gaye, Zemo finally got to the point: Madripoor. You exhaled slowly, resting your forehead in your palm in exasperation.

“You couldn’t have invited me on a mission to Cancun? Or Paris? Why must it be Madripoor?” you asked Bucky, who shot you a tight-lipped, pitying smile, silently apologizing for what he was dragging you into.

“What’s up with Madripoor? You guys talk about it like it’s Skull Island.”

“It’s an island nation in the Indonesian archipelago. It was a pirate sanctuary back in the 1800s,” Bucky explained.

“And upon seeing it, you would see that times there haven’t changed one bit since then,” you added.

“It’s kept its lawless ways. But we cannot exactly walk in as ourselves. James, you will have to become someone you claim is gone,” Zemo said.

You frowned as you caught a glimpse of Bucky’s thoughts as he went silent. Fear. Anxiety. Disdain. Apprehension. You reached across to rest your hand on his shoulder and give it a reassuring squeeze. He shot you a small smile, then looked out the window.

Upon landing in Madripoor, one of Zemo’s contacts met you on the landing strip with a new wardrobe for you, Bucky, and Sam, and Zemo explained that each outfit was per his instruction, carefully chosen to fit the role each of you would be playing in Madripoor. One by one, you took the covered clothes hanger to the bathroom of the jet and changed. Bucky was first, stepping out in some sort of leather number, looking eerily similar to the Winter Soldier you’d seen in photos. Sam was next, donning a three-piece suit of burgundy and gold. He looked sharp, although he was immediately complaining about how ostentatious it was. And finally, you stepped into the room and closed the door behind you, unzipping the covering on the hanger and revealing your “carefully chosen” outfit.

“Ich werde dir im Schlaf die Eier abreißen, Zemo!”

Bucky choked on his water and Zemo chuckled under his breath, while Sam looked between the two in confusion.

“I don’t know what she said, but she sounded pissed,” he observed, eyeing Zemo suspiciously.

“She informed me that she intends to remove my testicles in my sleep.”

“And why is that?”

“Perhaps because he’s chosen to parade me around Madripoor like a cheap whore,” you said angrily, stepping out of the bathroom with your hands on your hips, glaring at Zemo.

“That dress is by Armani Prive, and your shoes are Louboutins – far from ‘cheap.’ And you do not look like a whore, the dress is merely more revealing than what you are used to,” Zemo argued, standing and walking over to survey your outfit. He seemed to be enjoying what he saw, judging from the way his eyes raked up and down your body, but you didn’t dare check his thoughts to confirm or deny it.

If you were honest with yourself, he was right. It was a very nice dress; plum purple, matching the color of Zemo’s turtleneck, with long, fitted sleeves, all of it made of the softest silk you had ever touched. It was fitted at the top but flowy from the hips down, with a low balconette-style neckline, showing more of your chest than you were accustomed to, although you pulled it off quite nicely. It ended just above your knees, which was fine, as you sometimes wore skirts of that length. Overall, the luxury of it and the low-cut neckline ensured that you were out of your comfort zone, but you looked stunning – and expensive, despite your spite-fueled initial claim.

“I thought the color would look nice on you, and I was right. And I knew that the flow of the fabric at the bottom would allow for this,” Zemo said, his hand gingerly trailing from your waist to your thigh, where he pulled up the hem of your dress slightly to reveal the edge of the Glock strapped into your thigh holster. He smirked as his suspicion was confirmed. He knew you’d find a way to arm yourself, regardless of what you wore.

In hindsight, the way Zemo touched your side and lifted your skirt was all far more intimate than you should have allowed, and yet… you couldn’t deny the way your breath caught in your throat when he touched you, or how his close proximity made your body temperature rise, as he gazed down at you with those intense brown eyes.

Christ, you needed to get laid. Soon. Before you further entertained the idea of jumping the bones of a highly wanted criminal.

“Touch me like that again, and I will kill you where you stand,” you informed him sternly, and Zemo immediately took a step backwards, looking apologetic. From the corner of your eye, you saw both Sam and Bucky visibly relax, tension leaving their shoulders. You had read their thoughts briefly, and they were both wondering why the hell you were so calm about getting cozy with Zemo. The absolute last thing you wanted was for them to know that you were, in fact, inexplicably drawn to being that close to the Baron.

As the four of you walked along a bridge in Madripoor, Sam was quick to resume his complaining.

“We have to do something about this. I’m the only one who looks like a pimp.”

“Only an American would assume a fashion-forward Black man looks like a pimp. You look exactly like the man you’re supposed to be playing. The sophisticated, charming African rake named Conrad Mack, aka the Smiling Tiger.”

“He even has a bad nickname,” Sam grumbled, then looked at the phone Zemo handed him. “Hell, he does look like me, though.”

“And who am I supposed to be?” you inquired, glancing down at your clothing to see if you could guess who you were meant to be portraying. An heiress or socialite, perhaps.

“My fiancée,” Zemo answered simply, the faintest smile on his lips.

You barked out a crude laugh, “Oh, I think not.”

“There is no one involved with Madripoor who looks like you. And it is rare that there are newcomers to the island, especially not in the place we’re going. Pretending you are someone random would raise concerns about the intentions of your presence; you would be perceived as a potential threat, which would jeopardize our mission. It is far easier to simply pretend we are engaged, I assure you.”

You hesitated a moment, before arguing, “No one will believe that we are engaged.”

Zemo pulled something from the inside pocket of his jacket, took your left hand, and slipped it onto your ring finger. It was a solitaire diamond ring; not large enough to be gaudy, but enough to catch anyone’s eye.

“They will if you play your part well,” he told you, then addressed the rest of your party when he added, “No matter what happens, we have to stay in character. Our lives depend on it. There is no margin for error.”

The four of you reached a sleek black car, and climbed in, you in the back between Sam and Bucky. The ride to Low Town was tense and silent, as each of you mentally prepared for what lay ahead. When you arrived, Zemo offered you his hand as you exited the car, and the pointed look in his eyes told you that it was time to begin playing your part. You took his hand, and as you began walking into the heart of Low Town, he laced his fingers with yours. As the crowd drew near, Zemo wrapped his arm around your shoulders, gloved fingers brushing against the exposed skin of your shoulder. After reading his mind, you realized that it was both for the sake of protecting you, and showing possessiveness to make it believable that you were his girl – and because he simply enjoyed having your body close, although you suspected that he’d rather you have not known that.

Despite the fact that you had been on a few missions for SHIELD, you were not exactly incapable of fear; you did not possess nerves of steel. All of the missions you’d been on were low-profile, and you were mostly just there for the sake of gathering information from those reluctant to share it. Sure, you’d been in danger before, you’d had to fight your way out of several sticky situations, but this… this was different. You were in the crime capital of the world, a lawless place filled to the brim with crooks, thieves, and murderers. More than likely, any given person around could slit your throat and never bat an eye or give you a second thought. Swallowing your own pride in the face of fear prompted you to return Zemo’s gesture, wrapping your arm around his waist and sticking close to him, which earned a smile from the man.

When you arrived at your destination, Zemo approached the bar and leaned against it confidently on one arm, the other still wrapped firmly around your shoulders.

“Hello, gentleman,” the bartender greeted, before his eyes fell on you. “Who’s your new lady friend, Baron?”

“My fiancée,” Zemo answered, then turned to you and ran his finger along your jawline, as you looked at him in adoration. “Isn’t she lovely?”

“Very,” the bartender acknowledged, then turned to Sam. “Wasn’t expecting you, Smiling Tiger.”

“His plans changed. We have business to do with Selby,” Zemo responded.

The bartender made ‘Smiling Tiger’ his usual drink, which apparently consisted of… something he cut out of a snake, and dropped in a shot glass with a bit of liquor. You shared a look with Bucky before he turned away to survey the room, and when you read his thoughts, you found that you both desperately wanted to laugh out loud at Sam’s ‘short end of the stick’ situation, but didn’t want to risk everyone’s lives for the sake of a chuckle. You returned your attention to Zemo, opting to sell the whole “fiancée” thing a bit more by turning into him and tracing patterns on his chest as you gazed at him affectionately, while the bartender handed you and Zemo each a shot glass of your own – sans snake organs, thankfully. You both downed yours, while Sam understandably struggled a bit more with his, but still managed it.

A random man approached Zemo then, and as Zemo turned to face him, he protectively moved you behind him a bit.

“I got word from on high. You ain’t welcome here.”

“I have no business with the Power Broker, but if he insists, he can either come and talk to me…” Zemo countered, gesturing toward Bucky, who looked menacing as he pretended to be the Winter Soldier. “Or bring Selby for a chat.”

After a weary look in Bucky’s direction, the man walked away, and Zemo turned back around to face the bar, this time keeping you in between him in the bar, in case someone were to come up behind him – which they did a few moments later.

“Winter Soldier… attack,” Zemo commanded in Russian, as a different man came up and laid a hand on Zemo’s shoulder. With a pained look in his eye that quickly shifted to cold determination, Bucky grabbed the man’s hand with his vibranium arm, twisting it as he removed it from Zemo’s shoulder. Zemo took a step away from the bar to allow you room to turn and observe as Bucky beat the absolute shit out of various challengers. Zemo wrapped an arm around your waist, pulling you close to him as he noted, “Didn’t take much for him to fall back into form.”

The unmistakable sound of numerous guns cocking drew your attention away from the altercation, and Zemo gently pushed you behind him as he surveyed the room to note all the weapons drawn. Sam grabbed Bucky’s bionic arm to stop him, but Zemo whispered, “Stay in character or the whole bar turns on us.”

“Well done, soldier,” Zemo then said to Bucky in Russian, signaling for the ‘Winter Soldier’ to stop.

“Selby will see you now,” the bartender interjected, and Bucky released his grip on the random man’s throat.

“Thank you,” Zemo responded, walking off to find Selby, grabbing your hand to guide you, but not before you spared a sorrowful glance at Bucky as your friends followed closely behind.

As Zemo took a seat on a couch across from Selby, you sat close to him, crossing your legs gracefully as you leaned into him, your arm wrapped around his as he clasped his hands in his lap authoritatively. You watched his exchange with Selby in silence, as did Sam – and Bucky, of course, considering he was pretending to be the Winter Soldier.

“By the way, I thought you were rotting away in a German prison,” Selby told Zemo, then smiled as she looked you up and down, before her eyes found the diamond ring. “And not engaged – to a woman far out of your league, I might add.”

“People like us always find a way, don’t we?” Zemo answered calmly, then looked over at you, staring into your eyes with warmth and adoration, and you smiled lovingly at him. “My beautiful fiancée was a guard at the prison. We fell in love over the years, and she helped me escape. Anyway, I’m sure you have already figured out what I’m here for.”

The conversation went relatively smoothly after that, until Sam’s goddamn phone rang and screwed the entire operation. In the blink of an eye, Selby was shot dead, you had shot two of the guards with the gun strapped to your thigh, and Sam and Bucky had each knocked out one, before Zemo suggested sneaking out of the bar as best you could, without any weapons. You secured your gun back in its holster, not missing the way Zemo watched as you hiked your dress up to do so, before making a break for it with the three of them.

Once you were on the streets of Madripoor, bounty hunters began to come out of the woodwork, and when they began shooting at you, Zemo abruptly grabbed your hand and ran down a nearby alleyway. As you were running, the heel of your stiletto caught on a grate, and you’d have fallen flat on your face if Zemo hadn’t caught you.

“Are you alright?” he asked hurriedly, his arms wrapped tightly around your waist as he supported you, before standing you back onto your feet. You nodded, and he glanced over your shoulder as he noticed a few men looking down the alley. “Forgive me.”

You were about to ask what he was talking about, but then Zemo abruptly grabbed you by the backs of your thighs and lifted you up, pinned you against the wall behind you, and kissed you.

The men at the end of the alleyway muttered something about “freaks who do it in public,” then their footsteps faded as they walked off, clearly thinking the two of you were some overly horny couple, not two of the people with an insane bounty on their heads. But you were barely paying them any attention, a bit preoccupied with the fact that Zemo was fucking kissing you, and much to your chagrin, you really fucking liked it.

Once there were no more voices and no more footsteps, Zemo broke the kiss and sat you down. The two of you stared at each other for a moment, before you heard more gunshots, and you broke into a run in the direction Bucky and Sam had gone, desperate to find your friends, and no time to process what the hell just happened.

As soon as you caught up with them, the two bounty hunters nearby were shot dead, and the four of you turned to see Sharon Carter emerging from the shadows.

An hour later, you found yourself in her swanky home in High Town, in a change of clothes, since the brick wall Zemo had held you up against ripped the back of your silk dress. You lied to Sam and Bucky, saying that it happened because you fell while running in your heels, and thankfully, they believed you. Sharon commanded the four of you to lay low and enjoy the party, which Sam and Bucky left her living room to go do, entrusting you with ‘Zemo watch.’

It seemed as though he was merely nursing his brandy in lieu of abandoning it for the party prior to finishing it off, but his eyes were on you most of the time. You didn't necessarily believe he could be plotting to overpower you and run off, but there is always that possibility, so you delved into his mind to check.

Expecting to find thoughts of strategy about how to defeat the super soldiers or travel plans, or even plots to escape you, Bucky, and Sam, you were astounded to find nothing but thoughts of you.

The way it felt to kiss you in that alleyway, and how he had monetarily debated just staying there, having his way with you against the brick wall before Sam and Bucky could locate you. The dress from the bar, and how it rested on your thighs, revealing just enough to have his mouth watering without being revealing to the point of immodesty. The way your necklace currently rested against your bare collarbone, and how desperately he craved to litter the area with love bites. The delicate skin of your throat, thinking of how it would look with his hand wrapped around it, just enough to cut off a bit of air but not enough harm you. How alluring your voice is, and how much he'd like to know what it would sound like to hear you scream his name. The softness and warmness of your skin when he had his arm around you in the bar, and when he held your hand as you fled the scene, and he wondered how soft and warm you were elsewhere.

"Your thoughts are filthy."

He bristled immediately, sitting straighter in his seat and eyes going slightly wide, either forgetting you can read minds or not realizing you'd be doing it right then. It only took a moment for him to regain his composure, before he took one long, last drink of his brandy and set the glass on the table in front of him. He turned his whole body to the side to face you, as you sat on the opposite end of the couch, wearing a small, somewhat mischievous smile.

"I suppose there is no sense in denying it, is there?"

"What game are you playing, Zemo?" you snapped. He was rattling you. As much as you hated to admit it, he was. For the entirety of the time you'd been around him, this wanted criminal had been flustering you, and goddammit it, you wanted to know if it was accidental, or for nefarious purposes. He could be using it as a tactic to throw you off your game, so that he could get away when it was just the two of you – like right now.

"There is no game, Liebling," he stated softly and sincerely, sensing your discomfort. Slowly, he scooted closer to you on the couch, so that the arm he had laid across the back of it was now behind you, as he stared intently into your eyes. "Merely the natural response of a man who has been widowed and then locked in a prison cell, and therefore has not known the touch of a woman in many years, sitting next to a woman of absolute ethereal beauty."

You said nothing, merely stared at him, sizing him up to see if he was toying with you or telling the truth. Zemo sensed your lack of belief in his words.

"If you doubt my true intentions, you are welcome to delve as deep into my mind as you'd like to find the truth."

In all honesty, you'd have done that already if you weren't trying to avoid being even more flustered by his thoughts about you – but you couldn't tell him that. So, you did as he bade you, and searched his mind to find any shred of malevolence towards you, but you came out empty-handed. Zemo genuinely just wanted you, craved you, like a starved man sitting in front of an endless buffet. He watched you carefully as you came to this conclusion, and although you said nothing further, he knew that you had found what you needed to know.

"Just say the word, and I will never approach the topic again, as well as attempt to quiet my thoughts about you. But if there is any part of you... deep inside you," Zemo paused, eyes grazing you up and down purposefully, before continuing, "that has any interest in being with me... I will do anything to bring that to fruition."

The ball was in your court now. You could tell him to get bent and never speak to you like this again… or you could get your rocks off, and maybe even get something more in return.

"Such as?"

"Name it, Schätzchen. Anything you want. A car, a mansion, jewels – say it and it's yours, if you will be mine," Zemo proposed earnestly, licking his lips quickly as he looked at you, visibly thrilled that he was getting somewhere with you.

You weren't the type to accept gifts from men you barely know, but… this was Zemo. A man who had done a great many terrible things, which soothed your guilty conscience. So, you said the first thing that came to mind.

"A car," you blurted out, then explained, "Mine broke down a week ago, and it's beyond repair, so… a car."

"Tell me the make and model of your preference and I'll have it delivered to your home within a week's time," Zemo said calmly, then brushed a lock of hair away from your face, before allowing his fingers to trail delicately along your cheek and jawline. "Is that all, Kätzchen?"

"No. One more thing," you replied, then looked at him sternly. "You must agree to never speak of this to Bucky or Sam."

"You have my word," he assured you, smiling in amusement.

"Then I'm yours."

Zemo's smile faded slowly, and he merely stared at you for a split second, before cupping your face in his hands and pulled you into a searing kiss, full of ferocity and sheer desperation. It shouldn't have been this easy, to kiss a man who's done such terrible things – yet here you were, melting into his embrace, allowing him to pull you into his lap and straddle him, your hands resting on his shoulders and gripping the black fabric of his turtleneck. His hands laid flat against your back as he kissed you in this new position, slowly gliding down, down your sides and to your hips. He kissed you in a way that was feverish and fast and hungry, as his fingers dug into your skin, holding you firmly against him as if he were fearful that this was all a dream and you'd disappear at any moment. Upon taking a peek into his mind, you realized that was actually exactly what he was thinking. Additionally, he mentally spoke to you directly, somehow knowing you were reading his thoughts at that moment.

"Tell me if I do anything that you do not like, and know that you have absolute freedom to end this at any given moment."

You pulled away slightly to nod in confirmation that you received his message, before resuming the kiss. Mind hazy and instincts taking over, you found yourself tugging his bottom lip between your teeth, earning a low groan from Zemo. One of his hands darted upwards to grab a fistful of your hair, right against your scalp at the base of your neck, and he pulled on it harshly, causing you to let out a wonton moan. He then laid that hand flat against the back of your neck, holding your lips firmly against his as he kissed you with even more fervor, and the other vacated its position on your hip to slide slowly up your torso, until he began palming your beast through your shirt. You moaned softly against his lips, but not as loudly as a moment ago.

Zemo wanted more, needed more; he longed to hear you loud and desperate. So he delved that hand at your neck back into your hair, gripping it tightly once more, and used it to pull your head backwards a bit, so that he could have better access to your neck. The action itself, and the tightness of his grip, earned an embarrassingly loud moan to escape your lips, and you felt him smile against your skin. He moved his hand to the middle of your back, supporting you as you leaned back a bit to grant him better access. As he littered your neck and décolletage with kisses, you felt him pull the neckline of your blouse down a little, then felt the sharp pain of a bite on your chest, above your breast. When you looked at him with narrowed eyes, he wore a cocky little grin.

"You should not be surprised, Liebling. I know you saw that I've been wanting to do that all day when you read my mind," he noted. "Wear a high neckline tomorrow, it will be fine."

Before you could respond, Zemo pulled you flush against his chest with that hand behind your back, and into another heated kiss. You wrapped your arms around his shoulders, and without thinking, you ground your hips down on the bulge resting against your core beneath your skirt. He groaned, both hands flying to your hips to push them down again, guiding them as you repeated the action. It only took a minute or two of this before Zemo had enough, abruptly grabbing you by the throat and throwing you down onto the couch beside him. He then loomed over you, one hand propping himself up and the other applying slight pressure to your throat, gazing at you with admiration in those searing eyes, pupils blown wide from lust. You looked right back at him, pupils undoubtedly dilated as well, eyes half-lidded, panting a little, and hair a bit of a mess.

"You are an absolute vision," Zemo praised softly, to which you smiled, then he released his grip on your neck to lean down and kiss you again. That only lasted a moment, before he broke the kiss to pull your blouse up and over your head, tossing it carelessly to the side. Your bra joined it shortly after, then he moved to your skirt, fussing with the zipper for a moment, but it seemed to be caught on something, as it wouldn't budge. Before you could interject and state that you'd get the zipper yourself, Zemo ripped the seam apart with his hands, before tearing the article from your body and tossing it like he had with the blouse. A gasp escaped you, but you had no time to think much about his actions, before he was pulling off your panties and bra as well, dropping them somewhere beside the couch.

He was then looming over you again, kissing you breathless as he rested on one elbow while the other hand toyed with your nipple, his knee coming up to rest between your legs as he laid between your body and the back of the couch. You tangled your fingers in Zemo's hair, moaning against his lips as you sought friction against his leg. He smiled softly against your lips, before your hands wandered, finding the hem of his shirt and tugging it off of him. You had just managed to get his belt off before his hand left your breast, trailing downwards across your torso as he moved his knee further away from you, before delving between your hips and expertly locating your clit.

No longer capable of focusing on ridding Zemo of his clothes, your hands gripped his shoulders, and he hissed deliciously as your nails dug into his skin when he began rubbing small, methodical circles on your clit. Small moans fell from your lips as he watched the way your mouth hung open slightly, face relaxed and eyes closed as you enjoyed his work. But again, he wanted more, needed more. Still observing you, he delved his middle and ring fingers into your core, causing you to let out a loud gasp that faded into a long, low moan. Zemo smiled to himself. That was the reaction he was dying for.

He kissed you senseless, drinking in your moans and gasps of pleasure like wine, his free hand cradling the back of your head as your arms wrapped around his neck. It didn't take Zemo long to find that sweet spot, deep inside you – as he'd subtly alluded to earlier – that longed for his attention the most.

You couldn't help but moan loudly and cry out, "Fuck! Baron!" Zemo growled low in your ear, clearly a fan of your usage of his title as he picked up the pace, fucking you with his fingers with expert precision and speed, sending you hurtling over the edge with a string of curses in both Sokovian and English. By the time he removed his fingers from you and stood, you were seeing stars, breathing heavily as you laid flat against the couch. When your dazed gaze found him, he was naked from the waist down, and was just finishing rolling a condom over his length. You had no idea where he got it from, but you were way beyond giving a shit at this point. Zemo then rejoined you on the couch, roughly spreading your legs apart as he kneeled between them, looking at you with a primal, deep hunger in his eyes.

"You are certain that you want this?"

"Yes, please – fuck," you cut yourself off as he began rubbing your clit again.

"Yes please, what?" His voice was low, teasing, as he continued his work below. "I want to hear you say it again, Kätzchen."

"Yes, please, Baron."

"Good girl."

Zemo took your leg and rested your calf on his shoulder, before easing himself into you, agonizingly slow. You watched through half-lidded eyes as his brows furrowed together, his jaw went slack, and his eyes squeezed shut as he bottomed out. He was silent, but you very much preferred it when he was a bit vocal. So, you flexed your muscles down there, and he groaned, letting his forehead fall against your shoulder.

"Do not do that if you want this to last long," Zemo suggested through clenched teeth. You smiled to yourself, then said the magic word that you knew would get him going.

"Yes, Baron."

He growled again, right in your ear, then sat more upright to begin a harsh, quick pace of thrusting. His hips collided with your body each time, causing a delicious sort of pain, and he leaned down to lock you in a messy, deep kiss.

A few minutes later, Zemo moved your other calf to his shoulder as well, and the new position enabled him to get delectably deep inside you. You raked your nails down his chest, watching as a shudder ran down his spine, all the while releasing small, breathless moans and whimpers. When he opened his eyes again to gaze down at you, he licked his lips before delving both hands under your head and into your hair, and forcefully gripped two fitfuls of it at the base of your skull. The moan that tore its way from your throat was animalistic, as your nails dug into his forearms as you desperately gripped them from their positions on either side of your head. Just then, he hit a spot deep inside of you, and that familiar, tight coil in your lower belly began to form.

"Fuck! Right there, Baron, please, right there!"

"As you wish, Schätzchen."

Zemo began to thrust even faster, careful to maintain the same angle as he released his grip on your hair and leaned up a bit, so that he could resume rubbing your clit. Moans began to fall from your lips practically endlessly, and somehow, you still needed more. More, more, more. You took his free hand and laid it on your neck, and he instinctively wrapped his fingers around your throat, careful to apply pressure on the sides but not the front, as to avoid harming you. When he opened his eyes once again and looked down at you, he couldn't stop the moan that escaped him.

"You will be the death of me, mein Engel," Zemo whispered, seemingly more to himself. All you could do was moan in response.

"Baron, I'm going to – fuck – I'm —"

"Yes, come for me, Kätzchen. I want to feel you."

That was all the encouragement it took. Well, that plus how perfectly he was rubbing your bundle of nerves, and how his pace nor angle had faltered once since you had requested exactly that. You came undone again, legs shaking as your nails clawed at his shoulder blades, earning a series of groans from him. As you came down from your high, Zemo's hips began to falter, enthralled by the waterfall you had become, soaking the base of his cock as your walls squeezed around him. His hand at your wet heat abruptly moved to grip your hip, at the same moment his hand around your throat clutched at your hair again, and he met his end with a loud, gruff moan as he spoke a mantra of nonsensical praises and your name.

Zemo rested on his arms on either side of your head, and he let your legs fall to the sides of him, breathing hard against your neck as he occasionally peppered kisses there. He remained inside you for a few moments, savoring the feeling, before you chose to have a bit of extra fun by flexing your lower muscles and squeezing yourself around him again. With a sharp intake of breath, he pulled out of you, shooting you a glare.

In Sokovian, he murmured, "You are a naughty little thing."

"You adore it."

"That I do," Zemo conceded, then stood and walked off to the restroom. You heard the tap run, and a few moments later, he returned with a glass of water for you, sitting beside your feet on the couch and resting his heels on the coffee table. He was exceptionally handsome like this; still catching his breath, sweat glistening on his forehead and chest, a content look upon his face. You spent a minute or two admiring him, before he looked over to you, and a smile blossomed on his lips.

"I cannot thank you enough for that. I must admit, I spent countless nights alone in my cell, dreaming about getting to touch a woman like that again. Especially considering the fall of our country, I never could have imagined I would be lucky enough to lay with a stunning, intelligent Sokovian woman."

"In the spirit of confessions, it's been a while for me, too. My last boyfriend was about two years ago. And I'm not the one-night-stand type. So, do with that what you will," you stated, earning a small chuckle from Zemo. You sat up so that you were sitting beside him, instead of laying down, as you continued. "I fantasized about it a lot myself, but I never even dared to think my next time would be as good as this was."

Zemo smiled, a mix of pride and joy, then his smile softened as he leaned toward you, brushing a lock of hair away from your face. "This doesn't have to be our last time, you know. I would be honored to have you as often as you'd allow me to. And I assure you, I would make it worth your while. I will give you whichever vehicles your heart desires, more jewelry than you know what to do with, take you to the most beautiful places in the world, dine at only the finest restaurants – and above all, treat you like my queen. Take care of me, and I will take care of you, Liebling."

You allowed your curiosity to get the better of you, as usual when you feared that someone was lying to you. You searched his mind for any fraction of false pretenses, but there were none. The man simply found you intoxicating, and would do whatever it takes to keep drinking you in.

The arrangement wouldn't exactly be an easy one, nor would it be all that wise – nor morally correct, in all honesty. But he was undeniably sexy, and the danger and reprehensibility of it all made it that much more alluring. And besides all that – the way his power and wealth turned you on, how good he was capable of making you feel – most Sokovians were dead, and you missed home. Getting to speak your native tongue with him, chat about your country – it made you feel at home with him.

But you wouldn't give Zemo the satisfaction of agreeing to him that quickly.

“We'll see.”

—————

Part Two

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druigswhores · 3 years

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something more

(originally posted by alpha-bug)

summary: where pietro confesses his feelings to you without actually confessing them to you, through a necklace. inspired by this prompt list.

content warning: pietro maximoff x fem!reader (i’ll try to write more gender neutral fics in the future!) obviously set in a world where he survives and civil war doesn’t happen. (friends to lovers, mutual pining and pietro being a sap.)

note: okay so this is my first fic in a while so i’m sorry if this sucks </3 i want to write more pietro/peter fics so please send requests ! (also lemme know if you can guess the movie bucky was confused about !)

REQUESTS ARE OPEN!

masterlist

"You're staring." Wanda points out, idly watching the older twin stare at the person who clouded his thoughts, not that Wanda needed to read his mind to know that.

"Don't you have something better to do?" Pietro scoffed, unwillingly looking away to glance at his sister. She chuckled, turning away from her brother to check on the pot on the stove, before continuing to chop the vegetables scattered on the chopping board.

"Don't you?" She simply asked, humming to the song playing out loud from her phone, Pietro's eyes were drawn back to you.

You were explaining the plot of a movie to Bucky who stared at the screen in pure confusion. "I don't get it? He killed her but he loved her?" Bucky asked you, in response you shook your head exasperated. "You saw her give birth right after, how could she be dead if she was naming her kids Buck?" You asked, glancing up when you heard the footsteps of someone approaching you.

"You're not replacing me with this old man, right?" Pietro teased, moving to sit next to you, reclining back on the couch, arm around your waist. You rolled your eyes at what he said, automatically leaning into him as the three of you continued to watch the movie playing on the big screen in front of you. The two of you barely noticed when Bucky decided to leave, too caught up with one another to bother caring about what's going on in your surroundings. You pushed him away from you when he tried to steal the m&ms you were currently snacking on only for him to pour most of the packet into his mouth.

"You disgust me Maximoff." You scoffed, biting back the smile forcing its way up. "And you love it Prinţesă." Pietro retorts, his eyes meeting yours. You opened your mouth to say something but nothing could come to mind, it was common for Pietro to randomly call you nicknames but that doesn't mean you were used to it, especially when he'd use pet-names.

Your friendship with Pietro came as a surprise to the rest of the Avengers years ago due to the differences in your personality but if you asked any of them what they thought about your friendship now they'd complain about how clueless the two of you are to the other person's feelings.

Somehow in the chaos that the two of you called your 'friendship', the line between platonic feelings and romantic feelings blurred. Pietro isn't the type of guy to steer away from romance but this situation was entirely different to anything he experienced. He cant just tell his closest friend that he loved you, he couldn't tell you how when he holds you in his arms it pains him to let go. How could he tell you that? After everything that happened to him in the past, the wall he built around his emotions to protect himself began to crumble and you were the cause of it. Pietro always struggled to talk about his feelings, his past. He felt the urge to protect himself and his twin from anything that could hurt them, he didn't want to make the same mistake again.

The unintentional movie night led to the two of you continuing to hanging out in Pietro's room hours later. It was your nightly ritual to watch an episode or two of a show that Pietro usually wouldn't want to watch before the two of you go to bed. Pietro was in the far end of his room, fumbling with something in the palm of his hand while you sat comfortably in the middle of his bed, head resting on one of his pillows as you set up the show on the laptop.

"For someone as quick as you, you sure are taking your sweet time doing whatever it is you're doing."

Pietro glanced back at you in surprise, almost like he forgot what he was supposed to be doing, too busy staring at the dainty chain tangled in the palm of his hands, with a small engagement ring at the end, in place of a pendant capturing all of Pietro's attention. It was fit for a petite woman. The silver was slightly scratched. Two slightly larger silver stones surrounded a slightly larger stone, although quite dull at first glance the engraving on the inside showed was still noticeable.

"I'm in no rush, dragoste mea." He chuckles, shoving the necklace into his pocket before moving to take his shirt off to put on a different one while continuing to speak. Your eyes followed his movements, subtly admiring his body as his muscles unintentionally flexed which resulted in you feeling your cheeks heat up, quickly looking away to not get caught checking out one of your best friends.

"You know I still don't know how I feel about Vision hanging around my sister." Pietro confesses, his overprotectiveness towards his younger sister evident as he continues to replay what occurred during dinner hours ago, Wanda confessing she wouldn't mind moving to a rural neighbourhood with Vision instead of staying at the Avengers Headquarters.

"People can't control who they fall in love with Pietro." You sighed tiredly not realising the irony behind your words, it wasn't the first time Pietro mentioned his hesitation towards the Android.

"People can't, robots can." He scoffed, walking to the dresser to put away his shirt, now wearing a pale blue shirt instead of the charcoal grey T-shirt he was previously wearing.

He moved to the bed, sitting beside you before shifting around to get comfortable. Your hand reaches out to the laptop to begin the episode only for Pietro's hand to place his above yours, stopping you.

"Since we're on this subject..." he paused to pull the necklace from his pockets before holding the necklace out towards you, letting the ring dangle from the chain between the two of you, twisting and turning because of the sudden movements.

You glanced at Pietro in confusion, eyebrows furrowed. He then pulls the hand that was covered by his own and turning it so your palm faced upwards, dropping the necklace in your hand. You held the necklace between your fingers, admiring the gems on the ring before noticing the engraving etched on the inside of the engagement band.

"I+O?" You read out the engraving in confusion, eyes meeting Pietro's soft gaze. He paused for a bit, struggling to put together a sentence that wouldn't cause the wall he created to completely collapse.

"Irina and Oleg, my parents. This was my mother's engagement ring. It was apart of the few belongings they've managed to find after what happened." He gently takes the necklace from you, signalling you to turn away from him so he can put it around your neck. Gently pushing all your hair to the side you felt goosebumps rise wherever Pietro's fingers grazed on your skin, the familiar heat rising in your cheeks once again.

You were secretly relieved that he couldn't see your reaction, the unspoken tension between the two of you currently was unbearable. You looked down at the ring, twirling it around with ur fingers while Pietro continued to speak.

"We decided that Wanda should keep our father's ring since he barely acknowledged me as his son, let alone a person." Pietro chuckles dryly.

Pietro turns you to face him, palm resting on your left cheek. "It looks good on you Draga Mea." He compliments you, eyes glancing down to your lips ever so often. "Why did you decide to give it to me?" You whispered, struggling to find your own voice.

Pietro's mouth curved into a smile, his thumb gently stroking your face

"Can't you tell?" He asked.

"Hmmm i think I'm going to have to hear you say it." You teased, smiling up at him, arms sliding around his neck pulling him closer towards you. He rolled his eyes feigning annoyance before telling you what you wanted to hear.

The next morning Wanda lightly knocked on her brother's door, wondering why he wasn't at breakfast. Waiting a couple moments for a response Wanda slowly opened the door only to be met with with the two of you lying in bed in each other’s arms, the laptop ended up at the edge of the bed as you completely forgot about it after the events of last night. Pietro had his arms tightly wrapped around your waist while your head rested on his chest, the two of you smiling contently.

"They're good for each-other." Wanda whispers to her partner who stood beside her.

"They are indeed."

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misplacedgamer · 3 years

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Tsuyu Can (Not) Be Trusted: A UA Traitor Theory

So when BnHA 320 dropped a couple days ago, @redblossxmm wrote a very interesting meta post that immediately grabbed my attention. In it, she goes over the chapter cover and the possible symbolism that might be at play. At first when I read it I was like "oh, that's kind of funny, wouldn't it be wild if Tsu was the UA traitor all along". But then I got to talking it over with @rikusoma on Discord and...yeah guys, Tsu might actually be the traitor.

I would just like to say before we get started that all of this is conjecture and based on a lot of admittedly circumstantial evidence. There has not been a lot of heavy handed evidence one way or the other on who the traitor even is (and if we’re being 100% honest, my primary traitor suspect isn’t even a student), but there’s still some fun stuff we can look at that could at least be considered setup against Tsu if that trigger gets pulled.

First off, I want to talk about how weirdly...in focus Tsu has been, especially in the early arcs. So far Horikoshi has only written two bonus chapters for MHA: a 5 page omake included in the character guide that highlights Bakugo's feelings after the 1st semester final exams, and a chapter completely about Tsuyu, her family, and the only friend she had growing up in middle school. Unlike the other bonus chapter though, this one was actually included in Shonen Jump with one of the chapters, and it later reappears in Volume 10.

What’s weird about this is that we ONLY see her family in this little bonus chapter. We actually do get to see a lot of the other families of class 1-A, but we DON’T see Tsu’s family. Horikoshi could have given us Tsu’s backstory and family organically in the story (or in a one page omake, he’s done a few of those, mostly notably in the chapter right before DvK2), but no, she gets a whole short chapter all to herself.

Tsu also gets a whole anime episode to herself (the first filler episode as well) in the vs Stain arc in season 2. What’s weird is that the episode opens with checking in on the other students and seeing how their internships are going, so that momentum could have been continued if they needed to fill time, but instead the entire back half is all Tsu. This should have some payoff later on, or it will have just been wasted narrative space (although since its filler, it could be argued that its empty space being wasted anyway, so it’s not as big a deal).

Now let’s get into some specific things I noticed that we can chalk up to “there are no coincidences”. First, Tsu getting dumped into the water during the USJ attack. Deku attributes this up to the LoV not knowing their power sets, but honestly Tsu is the only one who comes out on top here, compared to the other kids. Deku himself is stuck on a boat, so there’s not a lot of room for him to get going and fight, Bakugo gets blown into the ruins so there’s not a lot of room for him to do things without accidentally blowing himself up, Ojiro is surrounded by fire so he’s also going to have maneuverability issues, Tokoyami’s in the dark so Dark Shadow can’t be used effectively, etc. The low level thugs probably did not know the students' quirks because of how they reacted to Mineta’s goo balls, but if the traitor is a student and told the LoV about the class, then Kurogiri would definitely know. This would be a good opportunity to convince the rest of the class that Tsu was on their side, especially if she was able to be in her element and work as a team player.

Tsu also spends this arc adamantly trying to convince her classmates to call her “Tsu” instead of Asui, a cutesy diminutive of her full first name (like Deku using “Kacchan” for Bakugo, a shortening of Katsuki-chan). It’s interesting that she’s trying to get the boys to call her this too. While it’s fairly common for high school girls to give each other cute names, asking male classmates to also do it is honestly a little bit weird. She also calls everyone “-chan” throughout the story, which is interesting considering she’s once again lumping in the boys and the girls. You could interpret this as her trying to force a connection with the class, trying to be cute to create an air of friendship and intimacy quickly, along with getting them to drop their guard.

Next, let’s look at the Bakugo kidnapping arc. Tsu is not the only person who thinks it's a bad idea to go, but she is the one that most vehemently opposes it, comparing the mission to acting like a villain because you’re working outside of the rules. This is an extremely harsh thing to say, especially to Deku, who just broke both of his arms saving Kota and STILL pushed himself to try and rescue Bakugo and Tokoyami from Mr Compress. Seems to me like she’s very desperate to keep Deku and the rest home, enough to go for the freaking jugular like that. I could also bring up Tsuyu keeping Bakugo away from Deku in chapter 303 (because I’m convinced that if Bakugo had been able to talk to Deku he wouldn’t have run away), but the whole class was on board for that so whatever.

And now let’s get to the big one: Tsu has had two different near misses with the LoV so far. Shigaraki almost grabbed her face during the USJ attack, but it took just long enough that Aizawa was able to save her. Later on, during the Camp Training arc, Toga has her pinned to a freaking tree, but she talks JUST ENOUGH for Ochako to get the drop on her. As a counterpoint, Toga does NOT hesitate at all while trying to go for Ochako’s blood, immediately sticking her and grabbing some before making her retreat. Both times Tsu was put in enough plausible danger to make it seem like she was being threatened, but she wasn’t actually harmed in a significant way.

There are a couple other things we could point to (like how she’s on the cover for chapter 320, along with how weird it is that the chapter just randomly ends on her face, when a more dramatic ending would have probably been when Todoroki encased Deku in the wall of ice), but I think we’ve covered most of everything. To summarize: Tsuyu gets a lot of narrative space given to her despite not really being a relevant character. She is often getting put into danger without actually getting hurt, and Horikoshi has put a lot of effort into making her seem like a gungho team player that will do anything for her friends. Having Tsu be the traitor would make a lot of seemingly unconnected things make a lot more sense, and I think it would be a really good gut punch to have that rug pulled out from under us by her.

Now of course, we have the shakiest part of this theory: what would be Tsu’s motive? Well what little we know about her family is that her parents are often working and therefore she’s responsible for taking care of her younger siblings. It’s possible that she somehow got into some kind of vigilante/mercenary work in the underground in order to support her family. That would go a long way in explaining why she’s always so level headed under pressure (a lot like Bakugo, who also has a lot of experience in fighting, since he used to both bully and get bullied). Alternatively, AFO or the LoV has her family somehow, and she’s being coerced into it. Either way, I definitely think her family would be her motive here.

So in short, Tsuyu is 100% the traitor and clearly this is undeniable. Thank you to Blossxm for making my brain start turning, and thank you Riku for being my springboard the past couple days while I rambled about this ridiculous idea. More meta/theories are incoming, so if you enjoyed my shit post, please stick around and ramble with me about how crazy the last few chapters have been!

#bnha #mha #bnha theories #bnha meta #bnha spoilers #froppy #ua traitor #i wrote this instead of sleeping #please don't take this seriously #just connecting some dots #i am the buzzfeed unsolved #tsuyu asui #asui tsuyu #tsuyu asai #asai tsuyu

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mofieroll · 4 years

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You Too (Jotaro Kujo x Fem!Reader)

Inspired from my in-character interaction with @mistaeq! Dedicated to them for motivating me to write! 💛

A Post!SDC Jotaro x Reader one shot where you bond with Holly, who you call Seiko, and pamper your man Jotaro.

Trigger Warning: Mentions of Trauma

Word Count: 3k

Two years have passed since the events of the Crusaders' trip to Egypt to save the life of Holly Kujo from being taken by her own Stand. To say that the trip was memorable is an understatement. It was too memorable. The memories of built friendships and increased attachments in just a span of fifty days were unbearable, for fate made the surviving comrades of the group pay for all the joyous moments with the pain of death and eternal separation.

It was hard. Painful. Frightening. Heartbreaking.

It was excruciatingly traumatizing, that even the boy who appeared to be unbothered and distant, the boy who put an end to the cold-blooded century old vampire's curse, couldn't deny it.

Jotaro Kujo couldn't get away from the memories of his dying friends, and so, the supposed flashbacks became inescapable nightmares.

But fortunately, that was until you came.

You met Jotaro a month after he came back from his trip. The meeting was a mere coincidence as you were a year lower than him, you personally did not and had no intentions of getting to know him. It just so happened that Holly or Seiko, his mother, came across your small shop that sold self-designed accessories made from recycled materials. You had told her you search and pick the materials —mostly trash— yourself, which certainly piqued the woman's interest and told you, “Is that right? I have a son, and don't tell him I told you this, but he loves marine animals! It seems you are both fond of nature so I'm sure you'll get along— Oh! I'm sorry dear, we haven't introduced ourselves! I'm Holly Kujo, but you can call me Seiko~”. She was a sweetheart, so you saw no harm in accepting her offer that led you to become a close acquaintance of the Kujo Family.

Much to the matchmaker's Seiko's dismay, it took a year for you and Jotaro to confess that your platonic feelings are in need of a level up. She is Jotaro's mother and your first Kujo friend, of course she'd notice if something was up between you and Jotaro that you both refused to talk about! When you finally re-introduced yourself as Jotaro's.. cough.. girlfriend, Seiko was delighted and decided to treat her second favorite couple (next to her parents Joseph and Suzie) to a nice romantic dinner! The unplanned date embarrassed Jotaro, but he endured it as it gave a good start for the new level of your relationship with him.

Until then, Jotaro became more and more protective. You found it sweet knowing that your boyfriend, former acquaintance, cares about you and shows affection in ways you quite expected for a forbearing man like him. He's not a man of words nor materialistic gifts but a man of straightforward actions— yet he remained mysterious.

Jotaro has been avoiding you since the week has started. He distanced himself yet guarded you as you walked home after class everyday. Everytime you tried to catch him, he's nowhere to be seen. You started to get frustrated, and you know you wouldn't get any explanation even if you corner him and face him alone.

Seiko called you today and asked if you could have dinner wih them, which you excitedly agreed to because you were actually on the way to the Kujo household, a paper bag —which contained your newly designed rings and necklace— in hand.

With Seiko greeting you outside their gates, you entered their traditional mansion and told her about the happenings from the previous days. Even with the mention of Jotaro's sudden actions, Seiko chatted with you nonchalantly.

“Dear, you know my boy would do things that can be a little too unexpected even for me,” Seiko stated, “But if there's one thing or two that I can assure of, is that he means no harm..” You stopped in your tracks as she faced you and tucked your hair behind your ear, smiling, “And he cares for you, [Y/N]. I think, that may be his way of showing it!” Seiko spoke with softness, hopeful that her words would reach you and get rid of any confusion that would spark a misunderstanding on her stoic son's intentions.

You smiled back at Seiko with teary eyes, touched by her comfort. You pulled out the necklace from your paper bag and showed it to her, quietly telling her that it's your gift, only to receive an enthusiastic squeal and hug before you locked the accessory around her neck.

“It looks perfect on you Seiko! I wonder if I'd be as beautiful as you when I reach your age..” You sighed and pouted at Seiko, holding the paper bag on your middle.

“Oh, you!” Seiko playfully hit you as you both giggled, “You shouldn't say such things to a middle aged woman, [Y/N]! I might believe you!” Seiko joked while you insisted that you're sincere about your compliment.

Your chat continued on until she told you to run along and check on her boy, not forgetting to tease that Jotaro misses you. You face warmed in pink, which Seiko found so cute that she had to pinch your cheeks. With her positive and welcoming presence, your determination to face Jotaro fueled.

Seiko informed you that she'll be preparing dinner. You replied, “Mhm! I'll drag Jotaro and we'll meet you here at the dining room! Is that okay?”

“Okay~!”

—

Meanwhile Jotaro, who hasn't come out of his room the whole day, heard you and Seiko pass by. He was sitting in the far corner of his room but the combined voices of yours and his mother's particularly blasted through his ears. He's.. happy.. that you're both safe and sound.. but— why are you here? You should be at home! Did something happen? Did someone bother you? Wait.. did you come here alone? Didn't he tell you even before that you shouldn't go out at night? What if.. what if something happened to you? What if someone showed up and.. and took you away? Took you somewhere.. he can't reach.. What if his dreams were to happen? What if—

Knock! Knock!

Jotaro's sweating face turned to look at his door as his breathing became more unsteady. His eyes widened, brows clashed, and his mouth was agape, gasping for more air. His fists were clenched and he was trembling, who's knocking? Who's trying to get him again?

“Kujo?”

Jotaro stopped breathing for a second while his body still trembled. The voice that called him held sweetness and concern in it but he was still in a dark trance. What if someone's trying to deceive him?

“Seiko called me, may I come in?”

His widened eyes calmed, turning his tormented expression into one of those longingness. His shuddering arm reached out as he subconsciously stood and walked towards his shut door. His cold hand gripped the handle.. but he didn't have the slightest strength to pull it himself. What is he doing? He can't face anyone like this, especially..

On the other side of Jotaro's door was you, with a hand that also gripped the cold handle, waiting for the right timing to enter. Your heartbeat has increased its pace, indicating your uptight feeling of facing him after not seeing him for over a week. You were nervous and a short flashback of your first meeting with Jotaro popped up in your mind. Has it really been two years?

Jotaro never directly told you of his.. episodes. But, there were times where you just happened to observe that whenever you were late on your meeting, he immediately scoops you in a hug while he trembles; or whenever you randomly visit him on weekends and you enter his room only with a knock, he abruptly charges at you with his folded fist stopping inches from your worried face. He didn't tell you about what's haunting him, not even once. Yes, you were undeniably frustrated by him avoiding you, but you love him well enough to have the willingness to act up whilst having patience.

You waited for more minutes before speaking again, “I'm gonna enter now, alright?” You assured, carefully sliding the door behind you and turning on the light switch after you entered.

Your eyes wandered after it adjusted to the lit room, locking on the form of a slouched man in the corner, sitting with a knee up that had his arm and head resting on it while his other knee was folded. You quietly sighed and walked close to him, hiding the impatience to throw yourself at him and pepper him with kisses, mumbling i missed yous. You would have done it, but that kind of affection.. goes for later.

You sat beside Jotaro and placed the paper bag on your side. You weren't too close nor too far from him, just enough to have your hand caress his messy dark hair. You loved seeing him without his hat, seeing his flawless face be shadowless. But if he took it off, the reason is either he's agitated or.. sleep. There was a time when you told him that he should take off his hat indoors and a time you tried to take it off yourself, but he completely ignored you at both and kept the hat on.

“How are you?” You asked without expecting a reply. It was to make him acknowledge your presence, and that is because you didn't know that he's been waiting for you to come in since the moment he heard your voice.

Jotaro wanted to answer. He wanted to lock you in his arms and.. say sorry. He wanted to apologize for neglecting you but— how is he going to do that without telling you too much?

“Why the f*ck did my mother call you? I don't need any help. That b*tch.”

There it is, his method of putting up a tough facade, the swearing that would prompt anybody to think that he needs no help. It worked on you once, but you're not just anybody to him now.

“Mhm. Seiko checked up on me while I was heading home from.. somewhere. She invited me for dinner,” You informed. You didn't want to tell him that you were on your way here even before Seiko called you, knowing full well that he's against you ‘roaming’ at night alone.

You continued to comb through his hair as he answered, “For real [Y/N], I'm fine. Leave. I don't need you to stay here— or.. or something.”

Your hand lowered to his upper back and started to rub circles, “Would you look at me and say that again, Kujo?” you asked in a slightly teasing tone, trying to light up the mood.

You started humming a soft melody, a melody that somehow always soothed Jotaro. The first time you hummed it was when you were cooking dinner for him and Seiko wasn't home. He got into a fight that day and he was abnormally quiet, not the usual, resulting to a tension between the two of you. You hummed the melody to ease the atmosphere, and when you were placing his plate on the table, he suddenly grabbed your wrist and muttered an apology before he told you to ‘keep doing’ what you were doing. The melody was just random, so you did your best to remember its tone and hum it whenever you both need comfort.

And this time, he was soothed again, but he isn't going to be swayed so easily even if he wants to.

“F*cking go away.” He huffs, “You're just like the annoying b*tch. Leave me alone.”

No, stay. He stated in his mind the complete opposite of what came out of his mouth. Of course you didn't leave and continued to hum and rub circles on his back. He may be one of the harshest men you've met, but you have a counter for that. Well.. you're stubborn.

He remembered what you said about heading home from.. somewhere. Where was that? “Where were you coming from?” He asked in a demanding tone.

“Doesn't matter where I was, Kujo. You're still not looking at me.” You retreated your hand from his back and crawled to sit in front of him in crossed legs before placing your hands on his large ones, “I wouldn't mind being like Seiko, although..” You squeezed the top of his hands, bowed your body and peeked at his face where your warm [E/C] eyes met his tired yet enchanting aquamarines. Your lips quirked into a small smile, “You wouldn't want your partner to be your second mother, would you?”

Partner?

Jotaro looked at you blankly, not realizing how close your faces were, “You're still worrying about me too much, I'm fine. I'm.. I'm just remembering..” You straightened and held his cheeks, gently pulling up his face before standing on your knees. You shifted your hand and cupped his face, delicately looking at him to encourage him to speak.

In that moment where he's putting his toughness down, you've completely set aside the issue from the past week. The thoughts that Jotaro might've had enough of you because he thinks you're oblivious to his personal issues— all gone. Holly's words echoed through your mind. Mother truly knows best.

“Egypt.. friends dyi—” Jotaro cut his words and sighed deeply, “..all of it is hitting hard. You won't understand.”

You bit your bottom lip and nodded. He's right, you would not be able to understand, but that's temporary. It'll take more time for him but you're willing to wait, “I.. dream of you..” He swallows the lump in his throat while you wipe the sweat forming on his temple, “I dream of you dying too.”

With that, you were able to catch on more of what happened before you came in his life. People close to him died. People who he probably traveled with.. might have died right before him.. or not. And now he's being haunted, probably by the guilt or by the experience itself. You're still skeptical, but it's considerably clear now.

Your eyes that looked at your hand which wiped his bead of sweat shifted to his eyes, and you saw fear. He was frightened, not only by the past, but also by the possibility that he might lose you too.

You retreated your hands and sat on your legs as you and Jotaro continued to communicate through your eyes. Your heart was thumping fast against your chest, now of sympathy.

“Jotaro, I..”

This time, you threw yourself at him. Arms snaking around his neck, your face buried on his shoulder. You wrapped him in a tight hug as it took him time to return the affection, wrapping his arms around your back and pulling you even closer as he closed his eyes and basked his head on yours. You and Jotaro savored the hug for a while, not thinking about anything else aside being in each other's arms.

“I'm here.. and I'm telling you that I'll be here to love you longer than that delinquent head of yours expected.”

You broke the hug gently, a hand shifting to cup his cheek while you also reached for the paper bag. Jotaro opened his eyes as he felt you fix his sitting position so you could sit —with crossed legs— on his thighs, laying your back on his chest.

“See this?” You lifted the paper bag with both hands, giving Jotaro the chance to once again wrap his arms around your waist. He doesn't mind giving in to your touch as of now.

Jotaro grunted, “Inside this lovely recycled and eco-friendly paper bag are things that.. uhm.. how do I introduce it..” You slowly placed your head on his shoulder, putting the bag down between your legs. You contemplated as you stared on the wooden ceiling, “I know! The things.. consider it as our promise to each other, Kujo. Am I clear? Yep, I'm clear!”

Jotaro clicked his tounge in annoyance as you lifted your head from his shoulder when he was about to rest his head against yours. Why can't he just cuddle you without you moving too much? Can't you and him just cuddle in peace?

You shifted again, now face to face with him. You acted surprise when you saw his furrowed brow, “Oh? Kujo is annoyed with the mighty [L/N]?”

“Just get it over with, woman.” Jotaro supported your back with an arm, watching you as you struggled to hold his free hand with one of yours. You had set aside the paper bag, the things in it now hidden in your other hand.

When you finally settled with wrapping your small hand around his palm so his fingers were loose, you smiled up at him and swiftly leaned in to kiss the tip of his nose. Jotaro turned away, snorting to at least lessen his flustered state. Where is his hat now that he practically needs it?

Jotaro felt a cold thing graze his skin, along with what seems to be two fingers pushing the thing on his. He glanced and saw you inserting a ring on his pinky with a serious face. You were glaring at his hand, your smile only returning when you successfully inserted the ring.

You let go of his hand and was about to wear the other ring yourself when he grabbed your wrist, snatched the ring and easily inserted the accessory on your pinky, all of it with only one hand as his other arm was still supporting you.

You were taken aback, ready to question him when he pulled you into a bridal position and locked your upper body with his arms within a second. You chuckled instead of saying a thing, wrapping your arms around his torso.

“Keen for a cuddle, huh, Kujo?”

“Good grief. You're one brave woman to challenge me.”

As you and Jotaro became ignorant to your surroundings, a flash of a camera resided from the slightly opened door, the sound being followed by a muffled kyaaah! which, with no doubt, came from the adorably giddy mother of the impatient man in your arms.

[End!]

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kinetic-elaboration · 3 years

Text

December 2: 1x26 Errand of Mercy

Errand of Mercy is truly a trip. I’m swiftly losing my ability to be coherent because I need to go to sleep but here are some attempts:

First of all this is, of course, a straight-up, pure, unfiltered Kirk/Spock episode with a tiny bit of unrequited Kor/Kirk on the side. Like, we’re not even going to pretend to find stuff for the rest of the crew today. I see you, Gene Coon.

This is the first Klingon ep. I just... the actual Klingon-centric episodes ARE good, but the Klingons in general are pretty boring and I legit don’t understand why they became the standard Star Trek villain. (DC Fontana apparently thought that it was because their make up was simpler v. the Romulans, acc. to Amazon trivia and....I’ll buy that.)

Is the “cultural scale” called the Richter cultural scale? I seem to recall another scale with the exact same name....

I get why there would be such a scale but they are dead wrong about where the Organians fall on it.

Anyway not to harp on this yet again but @ fanom this isn’t the military right?? Lol

Oh, no, it’s Code One! No idea what that means but the music tells me it’s a big deal and it’s bad!

“Curious how often you humans manage to obtain that which you do not want.” He’s talking about war but I can think of some other things that fall into this category.

I think it’s pretty funny that Kirk records his Captain’s logs in public.

CAPTAIN SULU.

“There’s a war happening, so Mr. Spock and I will just leave the ship... together.”

“You’ll get out of here, Sulu, and leave Spock and I... alone.”

“You’ll fall back to rendezvous with the rest of the Fleet in the Laurentian system.”

Why do these people show no interest in us beaming down into their village? Hmmm, I wonder. If the Organians really were what K and S think they are, beaming down in that way would be uh a bad idea.

Spock seems much less awkward at gesturing than Kirk does.

Finally, by the end of the season, they’ve figured out the context for the Enterprise: Starfleet, the Federation, etc.

I wish the Organians were our alien overlords and taylor.

So the Klingons are a military dictatorship.

Kirk finds them so frustrating. I feel like this ep falls into the genre “Kirk is frustrated by hippies.” All this generic peace talk and faultlessly chill attitudes are just not him.

“I’m a soldier, not a diplomat.” That’s why Spock likes him so much.

The Organians are trying to follow the Prime Directive but Kirk is making it SO HARD.

“Space vehicles.”

I know the Klingons are actually supposed to be in yellow face but you know what it looks like black face to me and I RE-ALLY wish they had not done that.

They look good in those Organian outfits. Love that they kept their command and science colors lol. I feel like this is the sort of outfit AOS Kirk wishes he had in that boring ass closet of his.

Mr. Spock does not look like an Organian.

I MUST know more about these “not uncommon” Vulcan merchants. “Dealing in kevas and trillium.”

KOR IS SO INTO KIRK. This flirting is the least subtle. “You’ll be taught to use your tongue.” “Where is your smile?” “You’re a ram among sheep.” “I need your obedience.” “You seem to be in command.” Is all of this supposed to sound sexual or...?

Right up there with “a stallion must first be broken.”

Whereas Kirk is so not into this. That expression says, “Don’t even think about talking about Spock’s tongue.”

The mind sifter is actually a crazy advanced sci fi machine and STID wanted us to think Klingons don’t have warp usdfsf go fuck yourself.

Kirk is so turned on by Spock’s mental strength.

Every spare moment of this ep is given over to K/S flirting. They legit act like an old married couple. “I thought you were going to fight that guy.” “I just might.” Or whatever.

I love that Kirk’s method of fighting is to literally launch his WHOLE BODY at enemies.

Whereas Spock’s there just running awkwardly in the background. He is Not coordinated friends.

Kirk’s speeches ARE admirable. He is lacking context here but in general if they WERE an oppressed people, this should be inspiring.

“For some reason, he feels as though he must destroy you.”

This Kor and Kirk scene... Kirk literally canNOT stop himself from flirting. His default smile is Charming. “Nothing...inconsequential [was destroyed] I hope...” Flirty smile, wink.

GO CLIMB A TREE I MEAN WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT.

We are the same species...tigers...hunters

Is this not the same cell they always use?

I feel an “and there was only one cell” fic coming on...

The Organians are actually kind of hilarious. They’ll basically let these rando aliens do whatever they want, as long as they do no violence. That’s it, that’s the one rule.”Your captors planned to do violence to you, and to that I said...naw.”

THIS is real Pacifism @ Commander Spock.

Kirk ready to go out in a blaze of fire for a bunch of annoying hippies like “I’m going to white savior you now, ungrateful Organians.”(I say this with love; I love him.)

Can you believe Kirk and Spock are about to die in an unwinnable fight of 2 against Lots of Klingons, and they’re using their last moments to FLIRT AGAIN?

Gene Coon loves writing dialogue in which Spock calculates statistics and Kirk is turned on.

Also can you BELIEVE he just pulls Spock along by the arm? Any excuse to touch him.

Okay the Organians are officially tired of your bullshit.

Too hot! Hot damn!

“We find interference in others’ affairs most disgusting.” Prime Directive! Like I said!

This is basically the plot of A Taste of Armageddon except in that ep Kirk was the Organians.

“People have the right to handle their own affairs.” Is he wrong though??

The Organians are like “okay, we all had our fun here, now get out. Seriously.”

Can you imagine how fucking weird it would be to just randomly see this alien dude materialize in the White House, or, like, Starfleet San Francisco HQ, or wherever the “home world” of the Federation is supposed to be? Just a little throwaway line in there.

By the end Kor is just straight up hilarious. He’s giving off real Ian McKellan in Vicious vibes when he says “I can handle them.”

“I guess that takes care of the war.” Yep! Very efficient!

The “it” in “It would have been glorious” is DEFINITELY not the war lol.

Good game, good game.

“I was furious with the Organians for stopping a war I didn’t want.” I’m sorry but could not THAT have been the plot of STID?

“Spock, your math was wrong the whole time.” And now Spock and Kirk can BOTH sulk lol.

Those were all of my liveblog thoughts and it’s late but.... I had so many additional thoughts on this episode... Like a lot more.

First, I love when humanoids turn out to not be humanoids, that’s one of the best things.

Second, I think this is a very gutsy episode to air at the time, and that it would still be a gutsy episode to air now. I feel like it’s one of the peanut gallery’s favorite criticisms of ST nowadays to say it’s “colonialist” but this ep makes it pretty clear it’s not--that’s the opposite of the lesson of this story.

To attempt to explain better: I completely and unironically love Kirk but I do recognize that like all 3 dimensional characters he has flaws. In this ep, I thought that while his speeches and general point of view and strategic plan were definitely right for situations a population is oppressed--that people do have the power to fight back against dictatorships, even when the odds are bad, and that it is worth it to have the courage to fight back against such oppression--he was ultimately shown to be wrong in this instance because he wasn’t actually coming into that situation. He didn’t understand as much as he thought he did. He thought he was going to be the savior here: taking control for peoples who didn't know better, saving them from oppression, and then gifting them with technology and advancement as he understood it. The Federation wouldn't have enslaved them, but the Federation did want to use them. But the Organians really truly didn't need help--the native people understood their own needs better than the outside people. That's the lesson I took from the episode. Your intentions can be good but if you're coming into a foreign situation looking to control it, without understanding the actual people involved, you’re not being a true friend or ally, and you're likely to do no more harm than good. Opposition to tyranny has to come from the source, the oppressed peoples themselves.

When he refers to “weak, innocent people” standing in the way of superpowers in the beginning--he’s not attempting to derogatory, but that is a pretty demeaning characterization.

I also thought it interesting that the Organians can take any form they want and put their society at any stage of "advancement" they want and they chose a basic agrarian aesthetic. Cottagecore rights.

Kirk really had a confirmation bias when it came to the Organians. He had an image of them--innocent, weak, oppressed--and he only took information that fit with that characterization, rather than listening to them and what they were saying.

My mom and I also discussed whether this was IC or OOC of Kirk. I’m of two minds, myself. I think Kirk at his best is much more open-minded than this. His core morality is good faith, peace, friendliness, and care for all life forms, and there are plenty of examples of this (Charlie X, Mud’s Women, and The Corbomite Maneuver all immediately come to mind.) But he does have a blind spot that I think comes up often enough to be canonically part of his character: if something is threatening or killing his crew, or his people more broadly (the Federation), then ALL he cares about is neutralizing the threat. Rare alien? Possible scientific discovery? Might not have the full details of the situation? Doesn’t matter. I’m thinking The Man Trap, The Devil in the Dark, Arena. He wants to protect aliens, but not if the alien is killing his crew. He wants to make overtures of friendship, but not if the new being has already been aggressive.

I mean like I said... a part of me is like "no he is better than this!" but another part is like... well he does have that 'soldier' side of him, he is intensely loyal to his people. The “evil” Kirk of The Enemy Within. I think he just sometimes gets these blinders in certain situations when he's just sure he's right, which is very human.

Also although he's between McCoy and Spock on the continuum of "an objective right thing exists for all people and in all situations and we should always follow that morality" and "morality itself is relative, we should be respectful of alien ways of living even when we don’t understand them" I think in general Kirk and the show is more like McCoy. There IS a right morality here. (I’m thinking of The Apple or even A Taste of Armageddon.)

I also maintain that to say in 1967 "the very personality trait of being warlike is a common denominator between enemies at war" is a dramatic statement.

My mother suggested that Kirk was “strangely appealing” in his desire to save the Organians, with or without their help, and I do agree... I think that’s the complexity of the episode. The overall thrust of the plot is that Kirk was wrong--he’s left embarrassed at the end. I stand by what I said above. And they certainly go out of their way to show that the Klingons and Federation have something in common--namely, as I said, their very capacity to wage war, and interest in waging war.

BUT, as much as I get the point that they have certain similarities with the Federation--and I think this concept of 'these war-worthy disagreements seem trivial to an advanced and neutral species' is interesting, and even more so in comparison with A Taste of Armageddon which, as I said, is this same scenario from the Organians' POV essentially--at the same time it's a bit irritating to hear the democratic Federation compared to the oppressive dictatorship of the Klingons. Like yeah, okay, none of them are light beings and they both wanted to destroy each other--point taken. But would the Federation park itself on a random planet and kill 200 people the first day? I think not. So in this sense Kirk IS right. The Klingons are an adversary worth fighting, just not over the Organians.

I don’t know what I would think of his position if the Organians were being harmed but were also just...actually sheep. Like I guess I would say "well they have to have a reason.” And in fact they did--their bodies cannot be harmed, so they really don't care if the Klingons pretend to harm them. But I just can't comprehend people being like really honestly okay with that level of oppression, as opposed to too scared or too beaten down or too brainwashed to fight it, which is different.

...And from there we went into a discussion of curative v transformative fandom and yet more on what’s wrong with AOS sdfasfjsaldf it’s past 1 am I can’t be stopped BUT I SHOULD BE STOPPED.

#star trek tos #the year 2020 #2020: fandom thoughts #2020: star trek #omg this is long

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residentanchor · 6 years

Text

A Lesson in Practicality 10

<<Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Summary: Virgil and Logan try to mend their friendship a bit. Word count: 5214

Both Logan and Virgil had an earlier shift and had spent their time since arriving back home dancing around and avoiding one another. Logan had read through his book and even finished the puzzle from the other day before packing it away, not even feeling the sense of accomplishment when he had finished. Eventually, Logan grew restless and got up, knocking on Virgil's door. He stood there, hoping the other had heard when the door cracked open a bit.

He cleared his throat and looked through the small crack at Virgil who had his headphones on underneath a hood. "I would like to extend an invitation to watch something together in the living area."

Virgil raised an eyebrow up at Logan before the creak of the door opening a bit more broke the awkwardness. "This you fulfilling some promise to Patton at trying to be nice?"

"No. Well, yes and no. I wish to restart our friendship from the beginning with a clean slate. I thought maybe we could watch something the other likes in an attempt to get to know each other better." Logan's awkward tick of fixing his glasses when not needed kicked in. "Despite us living together all these months, there still is not much I know about you."

"Yeah, wonder what you can learn when we don't hide away from one another," Virgil spoke with pure sarcasm. "I kind of get it, though. Ignorance is bliss and all that."

"No." Logan shook his head. "As much as I hate to admit it, I should have thought of a way to mention something instead of keeping it all to myself."

"Like how? You shouldn't have done it in the first place, yeah, but I get why you tried to hide it." Virgil leaned against the door frame. "There really wasn't an easy way for you to tell us without the same thing happening anyway."

"Still, the absence of knowledge can do more harm than informing you all in some way could. Knowing and gaining more knowledge could never hurt, not like withholding it can."

"Doesn't really matter now, does it? Damage is done."

Logan tensed at the words and sighed. "Fair enough. If you would like the quiet instead..." Logan turned back towards his room. "I have been thinking I could perhaps share a bit of that journal then? I never shared it for fear of reaction when someone read it, but at this point, you have been informed of the biggest parts."

The door creaked again as Virgil opened it completely. "You don't have to do that if you're not ready to share."

"It's really not a big deal, the biggest secret it kept was that there was a fifth unknown person. Besides that, it's just observations and research. I was never one for 'diaries' as it were."

Virgil looked up and nodded, trying not to seem too eager. "Fine, and if we have time after, maybe we could watch Doctor Who?"

"You watch Doctor Who?"

Virgil shrugged and smirked a bit. "Trying to figure out how you can control time and space, yeah. Kind of figured I could look into it a bit. It has its charms, I guess."

"Fantastic."

"Is that a Nine reference?"

"Not important." Logan walked the few feet down to his door. "I'll get the things necessary and meet you there."

Virgil shook his head and went back to his room, removing his headphones and pulling down his hood before escaping back out into the kitchen.

He had only just reached for the remote when Logan walked in, carrying a few DVDs and the journal he had walked around with. He placed them down and slid the journal over before sitting. "Figured we can get this part over with first."

The journal was a little worn, but Logan had kept it in good condition. Virgil opened up the front and glanced down. "You really did start this out as a diary." He glanced down the front page of neat handwriting. "First page you just write to yourself because you just lost your memory." He flipped to the next page and grazed through everything quickly. "You talk about us, yadda yadda." He flipped to the next. "Oh?" Virgil looked up. "A whole page dedicated to Patton, huh?"

"I don't see why that's so important?"

"Oh, no reason. 'I do recall my first glance at Patton to be uninteresting until he spoke. He charmed everyone behind the counter rather quickly while-'"

"Yes, I know what I wrote, Virgil. Is that important?"

"Oh, I don't know." Virgil placed the journal in his lap and looked up at Logan. "Should I call Patton and start reading this to him? I'm sure he'd love it."

The smirk on Virgil's face grew at Logan grew more flush. "It is still my personal journal, Virgil."

Virgil couldn't help but throw his head back in laughter. "Yeah, I know. I get it, you're trusting me with this. I'm not gonna tell anyone, I promise." He glanced back down and flipped a few more pages until the format changed. "I'm kind of disappointed in you. This is kind of boring, I was expecting more, I guess." He glanced up. "You thought my power was teleportation?"

"The quick glance I got when I found you didn't reveal much because I was only looking, not prying. I did wish to respect your boundaries. My observations seemed that you could just randomly appear. To be honest, I still don't know how they quite work. You've only taken the other two through a demonstration once before."

Virgil flipped slowly through the rest of the journal. "Yeah, not really my style. Stopping time is nervewracking enough. Don't really want to go messing with it." He got to the end and closed the book before placing it on the table. "It's a lot of nonsense and theories, not what I was expecting. You could have just asked after we all found out."

"I have with Roman and we did that alcohol test on the roof. Patton has and we sorted out he was an empath. I've asked you and you declined my offer."

Virgil shrugged and picked up a DVD. "Don't know how things can change, right? I don't know what is and is not a fixed point. Things happen for a reason."

"That's rather counterproductive to your way of thinking." Virgil shot him a confused look and stopped reading the back of the DVD. "You don't believe in fate or destiny but you have been given the power to change and you feel it is not your place."

Virgil looked down at the table and placed the DVD down before leaning back. "Do you remember that episode where the Tenth Doctor goes to Mars? The Doctor changed a fixed point to save people even when he shouldn't and people still died. Then he realized he was in the wrong the whole time."

"That was not the point of the episode, Virgil. He saved people, yes, but he overstepped his bounds and abused his power." Logan leaned forward and laced his hands together. "I'm not saying go around and change everything you don't like. You let Roman go back and save someone and nothing bad came of it. Do you regret that?"

"No." Virgil sighed deeply and covered his face. "Of course not, but I can't guarantee it will always be like that."

"Of course not, but that is the same of everyday life is it not?" Logan stood and grabbed a case and opened it. "I'm merely pointing out a flaw in your logic, take from that what you will."

Silence fell until Virgil suddenly stood and strode into the kitchen, leaving Logan confused in his chair. He stood and placed down the disk case and followed. "Is everything alright?"

Virgil spun around and looked up at him. "I'm being an idiot."

"False, I'm sure whatever you are or were thinking is valid, Virgil."

"No, like..." Virgil rubbed the side of his nose and looked away. "I forgive you a bit about what happened, I guess. I can understand why you did it, even if I can't completely trust you. It's just..." He looked up and shifted uncomfortably. "Trust goes two ways and I've never tried reaching out towards you. Now that I have, you make sense, but I'm still anxious about the idea..."

"Virgil." Logan held his hands up as a sign of peace. "Whatever it is, we can just talk about it. I understand you keep people away. We can sit down and talk about this while watching tv if that helps."

Virgil spun around to face the wall and Logan let his arms drop. He saw Virgil glance over his shoulder and shake his head, muttering to himself. "Don't make me regret this, pocket protector."

"Regret what, may I ask?"

"Think of a happy place." Virgil suddenly slammed his eyes shut as Logan looked on confused.

Then stumbled forward, catching himself as Virgil held him up. "Welcome, nerd."

Logan blinked and stood up, noticing the distinct lack of sound. "Did you stop time?" Logan turned and saw the spot where he broke free. "Oh. Is that the portal you've spoken about?" He walked passed and stopped in the living room, glancing at the clock. "Oh, this is fascinating!" He turned to Virgil who tried not looking too terribly smug. "You didn't have to do this."

"Just a quick trip wouldn't hurt." He shrugged and motioned back toward the kitchen. "I don't like freezing time too long, we still age and everything."

"We do? How old are you really then?" Virgil shrugged and walked away. "How long have you spent in stopped time?"

"You really expect me to be able to measure time when time is frozen?" Virgil stopped in front of the portal Logan had made. "I have a terrible sense of time, I set alarms on my phone for absolutely everything." He slowly raised his hand. "So, where did you think of when we stopped time, hmm?"

Virgil stuck a hand through and saw it didn't come out the other side. "Is that how the portal dictates where to go? I'm not sure what I was thinking of."

"I said think of your happy place." Virgil carefully took a step and leaned forward before pulling himself out with the biggest smile Logan had ever seen on him. "Oh, Logan. How interesting."

Confused, Logan approached the ripple and Virgil stepped through, causing him to follow. He blinked and looked around, recognizing the area immediately. "The library? True, I guess the quiet atmosphere mixed with the access to knowledge is a happy place for me."

Virgil nudged Logan and pointed across the room, where Patton could be seen sorting through books, frozen in time. "The staff is friendly too, I hear."

"A coincidence, I assure you. If I was here for Patton, would we not have appeared closer to him?"

"I don't believe in coincidences."

Logan looked over at Virgil as a smile spread across his face. "I suggest you stop this senseless taunting or I'll have to return it," Logan teased.

Letting out a snort, Virgil looked back towards Patton without a second thought. "What can you do?" Virgil shot back in a lighthearted challenging tone.

"Virgil, you can't really be daring me to..." He turned and saw Logan standing there, eyes wide with confusion. "This doesn't make sense."

"Think of it as a thank you for letting me read that journal. I want to trust you, so take the chance while I'm offering. Just don't go digging around in there."

Logan stared down Virgil, looking for any sign of a trick before he blinked and his eye lit up. "I swear he better hurry, I'm not a patient person. Oh, he actually did it. Wait, don't think about anything embarrassing." Logan blinked and his eyes returned to normal. "That was only surface level, I can go deeper."

Surprisingly, Virgil let out a laugh and shoved Logan back, watching him disappear into nothingness that was the other side of the portal before following through. "I never outright said you could read my thoughts."

"You certainly implied it! Surface level thoughts are nothing. Now, if I wanted to find out if you had a secret or what you truly felt about someone, I could. However, I did not."

"Better not or I'll tell Patton about the love letter in your diary."

"There is no love letter."

"Exactly," Virgil smirked and laughed in an evil tone. "The damage would have already been done."

"You are insufferable sometimes."

Virgil squeezed his eyes shut. "Prepare yourself, the Earth is going to start rotating again."

Without a second to respond, time started up again and Logan stumbled back, barely catching himself. Logan stood up and pushed back the frames of his glasses as they threatened to slide off. "That certainly is a jolt."

Virgil walked away as if nothing had happened. "So, you still up for some Doctor Who?"

Patton returned home and saw Logan and Virgil sitting on the couch together. Virgil looked up and smiled, reaching for the remote and pausing whatever they had been watching. "How was work, Pat?"

"It was fine. Lots of organizing, lots of books. Same old." He crossed his arms and smiled. "You two seem to be getting along better."

"Virgil realized that he hadn't been as open as he should have been after my apologies and we tried making amends."

"Still not completely sold but I get it, at least." Virgil elbowed the other in the side. "We have made a wonderful discovery today."

"Oh?" Patton perked up. "What did you learn?"

"The uncanny resemblance of Roman to one Captain Jack at times."

Virgil snorted out a laugh and hunched over chuckling. "They're both so dramatic and flirt with everything."

"You could say they are both 'extra'."

Virgil laughed harder and playfully pushed Logan away. "Don't try and be 'hip', it sounds wrong coming from you."

"Well, I for one am excited you two got along!" Patton clapped happily.

"We should stop here." Virgil stood up from the couch. "I believe it's my night for dinner, so I should get started."

"I would be more than happy to help." Logan shut off the tv. "I am rather enjoying your company." They walked into the kitchen and Logan leaned forward to whisper. "The other two can be a bit carefree, it's nice to be able to talk to someone more grounded."

Roman arrived home and announced his presence as he walked into the kitchen. Logan froze from placing a plate down as Virgil spun around from the stove. Suddenly, Virgil took a step back and covered his mouth, snickering. Logan soon joined and both burst out laughing.

"What is so funny?" Logan was the first to stifle his laughter as Virgil took a breath to calm down.

"Nothing. Nothing at all." Virgil spun back around and continued cooking.

Roman huffed and looked over at Logan, shooting him a confused glance that went unanswered. "I'm not the mind reader here, but if everything is going okay, then I'm not one to complain."

"Ohh!" Patton walked in and clapped his hands together. "That's a nifty idea! Roman, if you could have any superpower-"

"Patton." Roman placed a hand on Patton's shoulder, holding him down in place. "You need to relax and remember that we actually have superpowers."

"I know that, silly! What would you do if you could swap yours with any of ours, though?"

Roman looked back at Logan and Virgil with a thoughtful look. "Huh. Guess I hadn't thought about it."

"Can not having a power be an option?" Virgil turned off the stove. "It's too stressful, I'd honestly rather not."

"That is a rather interesting idea." Logan looked around with a thoughtful look, hand on his chin. "Either one of yours holds benefits I wouldn't mind having."

"Psh, you'd take Virgil's powers and run off to explore the world." Roman shot him a knowing look. "All the time and none of the travel sounds perfect, wouldn't mind it myself."

"This is why I'm thankful neither of you has my powers." Virgil shoved his hands in his pockets. "You're too reckless, the world would burn."

"You can just stop time, think of Paris, and walk through. How is that dangerous?"

Virgil rolled his eyes at Roman. "Exactly. How could showing up in the middle of another country with no proof of how I got there to be dangerous?" Roman make a face at Virgil who just stuck his tongue out as a response.

"I like my power, but I wouldn't mind swapping with Logan!" Patton pointed over to the other. "I'd be able to make friends with everyone and no shelf would be too high!" His face fell a bit. "Dunno if I'd like peeking at everyone's thoughts, though."

"It's a lot better after you learn how to turn it off." Logan looked over at Roman. "Yours would be useful, seeing as you seem to generate a source of energy. I find that to be quite useful."

"Yeah, I-wait! I am not just a battery, excuse you!"

"If I had no choice and had to choose..." Virgil glanced around the room before he pointed. "Patton."

"Aww, can you imagine more than one Virgil? That would be the best!"

Virgil huffed and tried hiding in his hoodie while looking away. Roman made a noise of disgust. "One is enough, Patton, thank you."

"Aww, and here I thought I was your Alfred." Virgil headed down the hall. "I even sketched out ideas for your costume. Just need the go-ahead to start working on it."

Roman was practically bouncing when Virgil walked back with a notepad in his hands, flipping through until he stopped and turned it around. Roman reached out and grabbed it, gasping in excitement. "Oh wow, you... can really draw! This is magnificent!"

"It's nothing, focus on the design."

"It's even more princely than before! I look like you plucked me from a Disney Studio!"

Virgil shrugged off the compliments as nonchalant as he could. "Yeah, well, a bit of cleverly placed cording and a little touching up, easy work."

"I can not wait, thank you, Virgil! I can get it for you right away."

"AFTER we eat, you two!" Patton perked up. "Food is important!"

Roman handed back the notepad and they eagerly set the table, not nearly as silent or awkward as the night before.

Virgil hopped off the bus and tucked his hands back into his pockets to hide from the chill of the morning. Making his way down to the little shop tucked away, he had awoken on edge after his relaxing night and couldn't quite figure out why. He shook it off and drank his coffee, knowing it wouldn't help his mood but he found it necessary for his early morning shifts. The wind picked up and he continued his pace, holding back the shiver that tried to overcome him. It wasn't too terribly cold, but he felt like he was waiting for something bad to happen.

Some days were like this and it was best to take them in stride. When he turned the corner and saw a cop car lit up just down the road, he could practically hear the sound of something falling in his head.

He picked up the pace and jogged down the street, the sense of dread increasing a bit before he saw the officer talking to the owners turn around and look up at him.

"Virgil! I didn't realize it had gotten to be so late." The man looked up at the officer and sighed. "I'm afraid we're closed for the day."

"W-what happened?"

"Break in." The officer spoke, turning his attention to Virgil. "Late last night. Alarm when off around 3 am, you know anything about this?"

"No, he works here. He's a great kid." The man spoke again to the officer. "I haven't called to tell him not to show, sorry."

"Is everyone okay?"

His boss nodded and let out a sigh. "We have to assess the damage inside and see where we stand financially. I'll call and let you know when you can come back to work. I'm sorry."

"No." Virgil shook his head, looking into the poorly lit shop. "It's not your fault. I hope it's not too bad."

"We can only hope, thank you."

Virgil nodded and said his goodbyes, turning and walking back towards the bus stop. He had a bit until the next one came through, causing him to think back. He needed this job, yeah, but who would break into a craft store in the middle of the night? The bus pulled up and he automatically approached and took a seat, still lost in thought. It was early and the bus was fairly empty. He grabbed a window seat at the front and watched the city fly by. He sat up, determined, and watched as his usual stop vanished, not tugging on the cord to alert the driver to stop. He had an idea, and he was going to need help.

Roman was shocked to see Virgil standing on the stage, standing tall with a look of determination cross his face. "Virgil? I thought you had work."

"I need a favor, Princey."

"Right now? I don't have the time, can it wait or is it important?"

Virgil shook his head. "Time isn't important right now."

Roman looked baffled and glanced around carefully. "Are you serious? What happened?" He walked up and grabbed Virgil's shoulder, directing him to the backstage. "Is everything okay?"

"My job got broken into last night." Roman gasped at the revelation. "They are good people, Roman. I need Princey to help them, they don't deserve this."

"You realize what you're asking me, right? You've been against this since the first time I mentioned it."

"I trust you." Virgil shuffled his feet and glanced away. "I'm trying to trust people more, but I know that when it comes down to it, I trust you, Ro."

"Ro?" Roman smirked devilishly at the other. "You're warming up to me, Virge. Better be careful, people might think we're friends."

"Shut it." Virgil smiled and playfully pushed Roman. "So, you up for it or not?"

"Of course I am! I'm not one to ignore a cry for help!"

"I didn't cry-"

"Just lead the way and let's get me suited up!" Virgil turned to walk away before Roman grabbed his shoulder once more. "Wait! You were fixing up my costume, I don't have it!"

"Roman. Portals. I can get it from my room, though it's not done. I did stop at a good spot last night with it."

Roman brought them to an empty spot in the theater and hid them from view. "Okay. I need you to think of my bedroom while I think about the crime scene, it's the fastest way to do this, alright?"

"Oh, Virgil." Roman placed a hand on his chest and fanned himself with the other. "Us in your room so soon?"

"What?" Virgil felt the blood rush to his face. "No, shut up." Roman laughed at him. "Now focus."

"Alright, alright, I promise." Virgil took a deep breath and Roman shouted. "Wait!"

"Gah, warn a guy, Princey. What's wrong?"

Roman bit his lip and looked away. "Could we perhaps do this later today, not right now?"

"Wha- but... you just promised!"

Roman looked over his shoulder to see if they had gained any unwanted attention. "Look, I still will do this, it's just... it doesn't feel right." He looked back down at Virgil with a sincere look. "I want to make sure that this is what you want. You just found out what happened and this is the first thing you did, right? You need to think it through more."

Virgil got ready to shout before shaking his head and sighing. "Fine! Meet me back home and we'll do this if you're so sure."

In an instant, Virgil disappeared, causing Roman to flinch. He reached for his phone and pulled it out, sending a quick text.

'I promise.'

Virgil was pacing the apartment when Logan returned from work. "Are you quite alright?"

"No." Virgil stopped and spun around. "My job got broken into and in a rash decision I asked Roman to go back in time to stop it and he said yes but wanted me to think about it more so now I'm just anxious and worried-"

"Virgil!" Logan raced forward and grabbed the other's arm loosely. "Breathe, take it slow."

Virgil took a few shallow breaths before one decent one, nodding his head. "Sorry, I got lost in my thoughts there. Kind of like a downward spiral."

"I understand, Virgil. I also understand what you were saying if a bit rushed. How do you feel now?"

Virgil shrugged and pulled his arm back, hugging himself a bit. "I'm glad he told me to think about it, but I kind of... still want him to? Like you said, I can take a risk and that doesn't mean the end of the world."

"Only do what you are comfortable with, you don't have to push yourself." Logan waited for a response but got a nod before smiling. "Good. I'll be in the kitchen with a crossword puzzle, feel free to come and talk if you need."

Virgil walked off into his room and played music to distract himself, working more on Roman's costume. He was altering the sash a bit when the door cracked open, bringing his attention off of his project. Roman's meticulously flawless head of hair popped in and he smiled, motioning him to remove his headphones.

"You still mad at me?"

Virgil finished what he was doing and flattened out the sash. "I'm not mad, you had a point. I wasn't thinking it through."

Roman nodded and kept a straight face. "So, you feeling more like yourself?"

Virgil got off the bed and stood up, tossing the jacket over to Roman. "We're doing this, Princey."

Roman caught it and perked up, running off to change. Virgil exited his room and saw Logan sitting at the table engrossed in a crossword. He looked up and saw Roman re-enter, masquerade mask covering his face and costume fully on in record time.

Logan stood up and walked into the living room. "I want no part in this."

"You're just jealous because I'm beautiful." Roman mocked and puffed out his chest, turning towards the darker dressed roommate. "I can tell you're not done but it's coming along nicely! I like the new shoulders, I should definitely get a logo though."

"You're still a dork, but I appreciate this, Roman. I don't know too much other than it was late last night, some time close to three in the morning according to the cop. I can bring you around the corner but don't make me wait too long. If nothing happens or it's too late, just come back."

"Got it!"

Logan shook his head and took a spot on the chair and glanced back down at his crossword. The front door creaked open and he glanced down at the entrance as a head poked through.

"Psst, Logan. Have I left yet?" Logan looked down at Roman as he peeked in, mask removed and hair more disheveled then he could ever recall. Logan leaned back in the chair and turned to look into the kitchen, seeing a more energetic and put together Roman talking to Virgil. He turned back and quietly shook his head. "Am I leaving yet?"

"Good luck, Princey." Logan looked back to see Virgil close his eyes, and Roman disappeared. Suddenly, Virgil was pacing frantically, hands running through his hair. "Damn it, Roman!"

Logan stood up and looked over at Roman confused as he entered the apartment. "Virgil?"

"Logan!" Virgil practically ran at the other. "I screwed up, Roman never came back. This is all my fault."

"It is not, Virgil, calm yourself." Roman approached, keeping his voice quiet. "I am afraid I must apologize."

"Roman!" Virgil ran forward, hugging the other. Before Roman could react, he pulled back and punched him hard in the arm. "You jackass! Do you know how long I waited for you? Oh wait, I don't, because time was stopped!"

Roman rubbed his arm. "Ow, that hurt! Last time I was punched it didn't hurt nearly that bad, what do you eat?"

"You've been punched before?" Logan inquired.

Virgil grit his teeth. "Roman!"

"Alright, sorry!" He walked over the couch and practically collapsed. "It was my fault, I found the culprit and stopped them before they got too far in and took anything. I chased them out and down the street, but I got lost. When I got back, the cops were there and I couldn't find the portal."

"So you've been doing what exactly since I've waited for you? Walked around? Couldn't tell me you were okay?"

Roman threw his hands into the air. "You're always talking about keeping safe and not messing with the flow of things, so I kept my distance and waited for the moment I disappeared to come back." Roman leaned forward and sighed, lowering his voice. "Virgil, I'm sorry, I really am. I know you trusted me with this and I blew it." He looked up and Virgil huffed. "I have good news, though."

"Oh yeah?"

"Guess who found the fifth mysterious person while walking around town today?"

"You know who it is?" Logan tensed up at the exclamation.

"What? No, I said I found him, not that I knew him. Total accident mind you, but perhaps we should wait for Patton before discussing all this?"

Virgil walked over and punched Roman's arm once more. "Don't freak me out like that, Princey."

"Ow!" Roman rubbed his arm. "Aw, you do care. I knew you liked me."

"Shut it!" Virgil stormed out of the room. "Let me know when Patton gets back. I need to be alone right now."

Roman looked out towards the entryway and turned to Logan. "He's cute when he's angry." Logan raised an eyebrow at the statement. "Not like that! Like an angry declawed kitten or something!" Logan made no comment and Roman huffed in annoyance. "Whatever, shut it!"

"Of course, whatever you say Roman."

Chapter 11>> Tag list: @cyberpunkjinx @phlying-squirrel @equipodeleo @ace-anx

#sanders sides #sander sides au #sanders sides fic #sanders sides fanfic #sander sides #superpower au #slice of life au #practicality fic

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save-the-cronch · 6 years

Text

Flowers and Tattoos

Merry Christmas to @trans-space-prince !! I really hope you enjoy this!

This is for the DEH Secret Santa from @dearevanhansensecretsanta

Evan wiped his brow with his sleeve, as soon as he had placed the final load of flowers for a wedding in the buyer’s truck. It had taken all day yesterday to find all the needed flowers and sort them in the order that the bride and groom had asked for. It had only taken half an hour to load the truck.

Once the truck had driven away, Evan walked back inside his mother’s shop and went to the counter to sit on the stool behind the cash register. He didn’t have any orders he needed to work on, so he pulled out his phone and waited for anyone to walk through the doors with any last minute arrangement.

About ten minutes later, Evan looked up at the sound of the bell on top of the door ringing. In walked a tall, lanky boy, around the same age as Evan, twenty-three. He has long brown hair and wore ripped, black, skinny jeans, and a black hoodie with the sleeves rolled up, revealing a few tattoos littering the boy’s arms.

“Hi! W-welcome to Hansen’s Flowers, how, um, how can I he-help you?” Evan asked, placing his phone into his apron pocket.

“Oh, I was just wondering if I could look at your flowers for references? I work at the tattoo shop two shops down, and I realized that I didn’t have any flowers in my reference book.”

“O-oh! Yes! That’s to-totally fine!” Evan said, beaming at the man in front of him.

“Thanks…”

“Evan.”

“Thanks, Evan. I’m Connor by the way.”

Evan nods at Connor, as the tattooed man makes his way over to the flowers placed on display at the window.

Connor stays in Evan’s shop for half an hour, before he stands up, gives Evan a small wave, and exits the shop. The whole time that Connor was drawing, Evan couldn’t take his eyes off of the long-haired boy. Evan liked how Connor pulled his hair back into a messy bun right before opening his sketchbook. He thought that the tattoos on Connor’s body were beautiful. He admired how Connor was able to concentrate so intensely on his drawing. To Evan, Connor seemed to be that kind of person that had a lot of secrets, and he just needed someone to share those secrets with. For some reason, Evan wanted to be that person.

Two days later Connor showed up in the shop just as Evan was walking out of the back room.

“Hey, Evan, what’s the best way to say ‘congrats on your engagement, I’m sorry for being a bitch when we were in high school, you and Alana totally deserve each other.”

Evan blinks, not completely sure where that came from. “Uh, ye-yeah, one second.” Evan heads off, in search of the perfect flowers for Connor. Five minutes, he returns with plenty of different flowers in his hands. “Okay, so we have red carnations for love and pride, a bunch of daffodils for joy and happiness, yellow roses for a new beginning, and goldenrod for good fortune.”

“Thanks, Evan, these look fantastic.”

Evan smiles at that and goes to wrap the flowers up. “I-if you don’t, um, don’t mind. Who are the-they for?”

“My sister, her wedding is tomorrow, and the rehearsal dinner is tonight, she’s marrying her college roommate, super cheesy, but they are good for each other.”

“That’s ni-nice,” Evan finishes tying a bow around the flowers and then hands them to Connor, “Ten fifty please.”

Connor hands over the money, gives Evan another smile and then leaves with the bouquet in hand.

For the next two months, Connor continuously comes into Evan’s shop. They’ve developed a sort of routine, Evan brings them both drinks in the morning, coffee for Connor and tea for Evan, then during lunch, Connor comes into Evan’s shop to eat with him in the break room, sometimes they go out though. Their shops close at the same time, so occasionally they will grab dinner together, on Wednesdays, Connor comes up to Evan’s apartment, which is just above the shop and where his mother lived before she moved in with her boyfriend, well fiancé now, Kyle Heere. They watch the episode of Survivor that airs, while eating a bunch of stove popped popcorn.

On Saturdays, Evan goes with Connor to his apartment to do a movie night. They order out, and share a pint of ice cream, while watching whatever movie they had randomly selected that night. Usually, Wednesday nights end up with Connor’s head in Evan’s lap, while Evan mindlessly rakes his fingers through Connor’s long hair. On Saturdays, Evan is usually asleep before the movie is even over, his head resting in Connor’s lap, or on his shoulder. Connor always wakes him about ten minutes after the movie ends, prolonging the feeling of Evan sleeping on him.

Both boys wished that this could happen every night. Both boys wish that their friendship was more than that. Both boys wished they could have the courage to tell the other this. Both boys knew it would be awhile before they did.

Six months after they had first met, Connor was sitting on the counter, next to the cash register in the flower shop, when a guy, most likely around his and Evan’s age, walked in the door. He was shorter than Connor, defiantly taller than Evan. He wore glasses, and his hair was a dark brown.

“Yo, Evan!” The guy shouts, completely ignoring Connor, as Connor openly stared at him.

Evan hurried out of the back room, wiping the dirt on his hand, onto his jeans. “Jared, you’re early.”

“I got bored, my class was canceled because the professor is sick. So, I decided to come here early! Obviously, I’m better than just sitting here alone.”

“Jar-Jared, I’m not alone, remember whe-when I mentioned Con-Connor?”

“Yeah? So?”

“That’s Connor.” Evan points to Connor, who was still sitting next to the cash register.

“Oh, hey man,” Jared greets, giving a small wave. “Evan has told me a lot about you, is your hair really as soft as Evan says it is?”

At that comment Evan sends a glare to Jared, as Connor laughs, a light blush dusting his cheeks.

“I believe it is, my sister gave me dove shampoo as a joke one year for Christmas, and I liked how it made my hair feel, so I kept buying the stuff.” Connor shrugs his shoulders as he hops off the counter. “Anyway, I should be getting home, Zoe and Alana are coming over for dinner, and since Zoe is pregnant now, she has really weird cravings. I’ve gotta get prepared for that.”

“Al-alright! I’ll see you tomorrow morning, right?” Evan asks, twisting his hands in the hem of his shirt.

“Course Ev.” Connor pulls Evan into a hug, waves at Jared, then leaves the store.

One minute of silence later, Jared turns to the nervous blond haired boy. “Dude, he is so into you. When are you planning on turning those movie nights of yours into date nights?”

“Shut, shut up Jared. He isn’t in-into me.”

“I dunno what planet you’re living on, but Connor is totally in love with you. The way he looked at you is the way my Dad looks at my mom when she’s babbling on about whatever story she’s currently writing.” At Jared’s words, Evan’s face gets as red as a rose. “Look, man, all I’m saying is, if you don’t ask him out soon. You might miss your chance.”

“But How am I su-suppose to do that!” Evan cries out. He’s never asked anyone out, and has only gone on a grand total of three dates. He doesn’t know how he should ask Connor out, much less how to proceed with the date if he even says yes.

“Relax dude, I know exactly how to handle this. Connor seems to be exactly like my sister’s boyfriend, and she asked him out so, we’ll base it off of what she did.”

“Bu-but Jenny is a lot mo-more comfortable around people!”

“And you’re comfortable around Connor. Please Evan, just trust me.”

Evan thinks for a moment. Honestly, he really does want to ask Connor out, and since he has no idea how to do that, Jared could help. He just hopes this doesn’t ruin what he already has with the tattooed-covered boy.

Two days later, as Connor walks into the flower shop, he notices that Evan is in the back room. Connor, deciding that he should sneak up on his friend, quietly walks around the counter, and goes to push open the half-cracked door when he hears Evan on the phone. Initially, he wasn’t going to listen in, but that was before he heard Evan mention his name.

“-Okay, but I’m still nervous. I always am! What if Connor doesn’t like me as more than a friend, and he thinks I’m really creepy, and never wants to talk to me again!”

Connor is a surprised at hearing that Evan likes him, but his happiness soon takes over that surprise, as he shoves the door open, and runs towards a shocked Evan.

“Trust me Ev, if I thought you liking me was creepy, I’d be a huge hypocrite.” Connor pulls back from the hug, smiling down at Evan.

“I, uh, you heard that?”

“Yeah, sorry about that, I didn’t mean to listen in, but I’m glad I did. What do you say we go out to dinner tonight? It’ll be like normal, except this time we call it a date, yeah?”

“Yeah, that sounds perfect.”

“Perfect,” Connor repeats, as he places a soft kiss on Evan’s cheek.

“And that is how I met your papa.” Connor finishes, placing a soft kiss on Evan’s head, hugging him from behind.”

“Damn dad, why didn’t you wait to see how papa was going to ask you out?” Their daughter, Vivian, asks.

“Well, Viv, I was just too overjoyed by the fact that someone as amazing as your papa liked me, that I just couldn’t wait. Plus, who knows if Ev would have actually followed through with it.”

Vivian and Danny laugh, knowing all too well how nervous their papa can get.

“Hey, I would have asked you out! Eventually, probably with Jared doing most of the work, but it would have happened.” Evan counter reacts, swatting at his husband’s hands that were still placed around his waist. “Now come on, your first day of finals are tomorrow, you need to rest up. Junior year is important.

The teens grumble as they walk down the hall to their respective rooms.

“We did good with them, didn’t we.”

“Yeah, we did.”

Connor turns Evan around in his arms, and leans down to give Evan a slow and soft kiss. Even after being together for twenty years, Evan still feels like a teenager, in lover for the first time, when kissing Connor. He never wants this feeling to go away.

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hwarangbangbang · 7 years

Text

mark tuan » better. much better.

i got the idea of doing this from reading a bed sharing AU i found on Tumblr, you can find it here. i take no credit for these prompts or gifs, however i do take credit for writing these stories.

title - better. much better. prompt - “we've had this tradition as besties to have a sleepover once a year but ths year... it feels different... were your pajamas always this cute?? did I always have butterflies???” pairing: mark tuan/fem!reader tags - hella fluff cause it's what I do, kissing, hickies, friends-to-lovers, angst I guess?? JFC just read it. pls be nice bc im soft af, who doesn't love frazier, and forgetting sarah marshall coME ON, ask me about me weiner, sry not sry word count - 3,012 words author's note - this is one of the longest oneshots i've ever written, it's just barely over three thousand words I know I'm weak I'm sORRY. enjoy!

Four years. Four years was how long you'd gone without seeing your best friend. Four years since he moved to South Korea from his home in Los Angeles to become a trainee under the JYP Ent. corporation and become an idol. Four years since you two last hugged, last physically saw or touched each other face to face.

But more importantly, four years since you'd had your annual best friend sleepover.

On those nights for the first two years, the third weekend in the month of July, you two would FaceTime and Skype as much as you could, with Mark's apologies that he couldn't be there, and you two just talking and catching up. However these past two years, he never called. And when you would attempt to get in touch with him, he'd either be too busy with schedules to pick up, or too tired to answer.

Either way, you got nothing.

Sure, he'd text you an 'I'm sorry,' but after that and a few hours of messages, you wouldn't hear anything. And it's not like he didn't care. He was busy -- and you understood that. And as that third weekend in July began to come up, you weren't surprised to hear your phone ding while you were in the middle of grocery shopping. However what you were surprised to see was that it was a text message from Mark.

I have a surprise for you, (Y/N)~

Your brows furrowed in confusion, sending a quick message back before you began to pile your groceries onto an aisle's conveyor belt so you could pay and go home.

You somehow managed to get me a date with Gong Yoo? Ooh, no! Wait, let me guess, Park Hyung Sik?

A small smile graced your features and you had to remind yourself that he was your best friend. Your best friend who you totally weren't crushing on at all. You planned to tell him before he left for Korea, but considering it was so sudden, you hadn't mustered up the courage when his parents drove you both to the airport so you could say goodbye to him with them.

His parents shipped you two more than all of the Aghases in the world shipped MarkBam. His mother would constantly ask you when you would be giving her grand children, when you two were going to finally get together, it was rather endearing, but it always had to come to a stop when you realized you couldn't actually do that. Because you didn't want to fuck things up in the end. The only thing it did was get your hopes up.

You didn't tell him because you didn't want him to feel like he had obligations to you. Because you wanted him to go live his life and enjoy it without worrying about you. Because you didn't want to fuck up the one good friendship you'd had since you guys were four years old. Because you were scared of the rejection you knew you'd face.

You pulled out your money and paid for your groceries, giving a small smile to the bag boy and told him to have a nice day, before rolling the cart out to your vehicle. It was dark outside, very dark, it was almost ten at night, but you had gotten caught up late at work so you had a late start getting groceries. After you got all of them in, you got in your car and put on your seatbelt, starting the engine.

And there goes your phone again, dinging from where it sat in the passenger seat.

Better. Much better.

Ominous. Very, very ominous. You didn't know whether to be excited or scared. Regardless, you put your phone back down after replying and began your drive home.

You're scaring me, Tuan. Should I be worried?

Your phone dinged once more as you were driving, but given that you can barely walk and chew gum at the same time, it wasn't wise to try and read a text message while piloting a huge piece of machinery. As you pulled into your driveway, you picked up your phone, killing the engine.

However, just as you were about to reply, a FaceTime request with Mark popped up. You tilted your head slightly in confusion but clicked accept.

"(Y/N)! Are you ready to see your surprise?"

You could barely see him apart from the streetlights on the small screen of your phone, and his did little to illuminate his own face.

"I'm a little nervous... But su-"

The reason you didn't finish your sentence was because you let out an earth shattering scream.

Because there was a knock at your window, which startled you. And peering closer, you saw that none other than your best friend, Mark Yi En Tuan was the one knocking on said window.

It took you a good few minutes to process it. But then you were ecstatic. You threw open the car door, at risk of ripping it off it's hinges, and you embraced Mark in the biggest and tightest hug you ever thought imaginable. You buried your face in his neck, small squeals of surprise and happiness overtaking you as he lifted you off the ground and spun you a bit, hugging you just as tight as you did him.

And you felt your heart ache a little when you two parted.

"What the hell are you doing here?! I thought you were still waiting for your comeback in Korea?"

A beautiful smile graced his face. "This tour is spread to the U.S. as well, and our second concert is in a few days here in L.A."

Your eyes grew rather big as you thought it over. "So does that mean... d-does that mean we can have our amazing spectacular best friend sleep over this year?"

Mark gestured to a miniature suitcase that was on the ground next to him that you assumed had clothes and other necessities in it.

"Yes. This means we can have our amazing spectacular best friend sleep over that I've missed the past four years."

~*~*~*~*~

Mark helped you bring in the groceries and you put them away while he got changed into his pajamas for the night. You couldn't believe this... Your best friend after four years finally comes back -- he remembered and he didn't forget about you and it made your heart swell with contentment. After putting away the groceries, you pulled out a few bags of popcorn and set them in the microwave one by one, filling the huge bowl you had stuffed away in storage, used only once a year at the sleepover. It definitely was dusty, but a good wash had it clean in no time.

You hadn't heard Mark walk in until he came over and rested his chin on your shoulder, a small gesture that you had completely forgotten about and it made you jump slightly. "Popcorn smells good." Mark commented, rubbing his hands up and down your arms, trying to warm them up since externally you were freezing.

However having him this close, with how much he'd grown up and how long you'd been apart, was making your cheeks warm in no time.

"Would you mind watching it for a minute? I'm gonna go change." You told him and he nodded, rubbing your back in a small departure gesture before you scampered off to your room to go change.

This kid was gonna be the death of you eventually.

You decided on a pair of black shorts and a white tank top with a pair of fuzzy grey socks, appropriate sleep over attire, making sure nothing important was on display before you walked out to see him pouring the last of the popcorn in the bowl, filling it to the brim.

You watched him as he did it. He certainly had matured from the awkward, cute kid you knew him as... He had gotten much taller, and thankfully they had let his brown hair live to see another day. It was slightly long, not too much, and his skin was tanner though only by a little. His shoulders were more broad, his shirt leaving little to the imagination as it clung to his body. He wasn't muscular, but lean -- and the veins in his forearms were definitely not helping with your act of playing cool around him.

"(Y/N)?"

You snapped out of your daze, just in time to see him throwing a few pieces of popcorn into his mouth, sucking off the butter and salt from his fingers and dear god that wasn't helping. You tried to ignore the smirk on his face, walking up to him and grabbing a few pieces of popcorn for yourself. Opening the fridge, you grabbed a few sodas and walked out to the living room, setting down the sodas on the entertainment center before going to pull out the futon.

"So-" Mark began, putting down the popcorn and nudging you aside so he could do it for you -- though not that you were complaining, it gave you ample time to lowkey watch his physique. "What are we watching tonight?" He said with slight strain to his voice as he pulled it out, grabbing the pillows off the floor and tossed them on the bed, plopping down with the bowl of popcorn in hands.

"Well, as much as I wish to torture you with romance films and chick flicks-" you started, sitting up at the far right corner of the bed, grabbing the blanket as you were cold, "I think I need a few laughs. You up for a comedy?" You asked and he grinned brightly. "When am I ever not up for comedy?"

You two ended up watching White Chicks, followed by Anchor Man, and then binged on a few episodes of Fraizer. You missed it. Laughing with him until your sides hurt, throwing popcorn at one another, poking each other randomly just because -- you missed the friendship, the closeness, you missed him. God, it'd been four years since you'd seen him and it felt good to laugh out the frustration you had the past few years without him.

"(Y/N)? Wanna play a game?"

This caught your attention. Games with Mark were dangerous.. Mainly due to the fact that it was typically truth or dare, and the last time you played that with Mark you nearly broke your ankle after running around outside in nothing but a BatMan onsie, yelling "ASK ME ABOUT MY WEINER" at four in the morning four a solid minute.

That was when you were thirteen and ''Forgetting Sarah Marshall'' was the shit.

But for some reason, you always agreed.

And here you were, six truths in from either side, and two dares from his side. You found out what kind of girls he dated in Korea if any, he found out that you watched the same K-Dramas Yugyeom did. They were all normal and not as mean as you knew Mark out to be in these types of games.

Which was suspicious as all hell.

"Alright, Mark. Truth or dare?" You had an overly dramatic tone to your voice, and he chuckled lowly, his eyes never leaving yours from where he sat on the opposite side of the bed before answering just as dramatically. "Dare."

Well that was a change.

You thought for a minute before a small smirk came over your face. He'd been playing with you all night, at least it felt that way in your head, with lingering stares and touches, so now it was time for a little teasing in return.

"Mr. Tuan, I dare you to tell me your kinks."

Mark pinked sightly, but brushed it off easily. "And here I thought you were going hard on me-" he laughed and you thought you'd caught a glimpse of silver, but you just nudged it away as he responded.

"Well, it's definitely been a while...Almost too long since I've gotten any with schedules. But my kinks definitely revolve around," Mark licked his lips and you saw it. The two silver barbells just underneath his tongue. "Using my tongue." Fuck, if that didn't have your panties flooded by now, you didn't know what else would. You often imagined what it'd be like to kiss Mark, but after seeing those it brought a whole new perspective into light.

You shook your head slightly, running a hand through your hair. "Y-Your t-turn."

Mark pretended to think for a minute before biting his lower lip, looking down at you. "Dare or Dare?" You scoffed, "it's truth or dare!" You protested and he shook his head. "No, you've been picking truths all this time! Come on, (Y/N) live a little!"

With a groan, you planted your face into your palms. "Fine, dare." You grumbled.

"I dare you to give me a hickey."

Your head shot up, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape.

"I-I beg your p-pardon?"

"Give."

"Me."

"A hickey."

"You know, those marks you leave on someone's neck or chest or hi-"

You squeaked at his teasing words, scrambling to shove your hands over his mouth. "H-Hey, I know what it is! I don't need an explanation!" You yelled and he laughed, grabbing your wrist and pulling you fully to sit on his lap, your legs wrapped around his hips and your faces dangerously close.

"If you're not comfortable, we don't ha-"

Mustering up what little courage you had, you cut him off mid sentence.

"I'll do it."

That certainly got his attention. A big smirk spread across his face, and he bit his lip before slightly lifting his head so you got more access. "Do your worst, (Y/N)." And you were more than happy to. All the teasing from his end was about to get handed back to him, and you couldn't be more enthralled.

So, you got to work. You made little kitten licks up the side of his jugular, blowing cool air on his skin to which you saw goosebumps forming already. You placed a small open-mouthed kiss just at his pulse point, feeling him shudder and he could feel you smile against his skin as he gripped your thighs slightly.

"Someone's enjoying themselves."

He scoffed, "don't make me laugh, (Y/N)-"

To cut him off, you bit down into the skin, just hard enough to get his attention, you sucked lightly at the skin until a small red and purple mark formed, and you pulled back after a small kiss of apology to the blooming bruise on his neck. He was breathing heavy, his lower lip worried in between his teeth so badly you were fearing he'd draw blood. He wouldn't let go of your thighs either, his grip having hardened throughout the ordeal.

"Are you satis-"

Then he attacked. His lips clashed with yours, one hand moving up from grabbing at your thighs to grip the back of your neck, pushing your lips closer together if that was even possible, the other still massaging his own set of bruises into your thigh. He lightly pushed you down towards the bed, and you felt two small, cold steel balls at your bottom lip, asking for entrance.

He had his tongue pierced, as you previously suspected. That was fucking hot.

You allowed him entrance, and the two of you kissed languidly, your hands curling in his hair and when you pulled away, he was still chasing your lips for more. His hands were halfway up your shirt, dancing along your ribs and pulling it up but not all the way to where you'd be entirely exposed to him.

"D-Does this m-mean that-"

"Yes, (Y/N), it means I like you back. And it also means I'd very much like to stop being your best friend and start being your boyfriend."

A small flush of pink dusts your cheeks as you looked up at him in awe. "You knew I liked you? All this time?"

He smiled brightly, a small laugh leaving his throat. "I had the suspicion when I left for Korea. You only confirmed it just now with that hickey. No person I know would give their best friends a hickey that well if they were just best friends-" He brushed a strand of hair away from your face. You sighed, opening your mouth to make a smart ass retort when he leaned down and gave you another kiss that took your breath away in seconds.

He let his lips trail further until they were at the top of your sternum, just between your breasts and he sucked a dark mark into the skin, doing the same to the spot where your neck met your shoulder. Oh, your friends were never going to let you live that down. But then again, you were almost positive that you didn't mind it with how he was making you feel right now. It blew your mind to think that your best friend of so long could make a fire erupt in the pit of your stomach in mere seconds.

However, he stopped and pulled back, a concerned look on his face. "So is that a yes?"

With a huge grin, you nodded in response.

"But that makes me better than Gong Yoo and Park Hyung Sik, right?"

With a chortle, you rolled the two of you over so you were straddling his waist, you leaned down and kissed him sensually, your knew-found knowledge of making out servicing you well. When you pulled away, you dismissed his worries.

"You're better. Much better."

general masterlist

#mark tuan #got7 #got7 scenarios #got7 imagines

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all-sortsa-stuff · 7 years

Text

Just a kiss

Pairing: Tom Hiddleston x Reader

Word Count: 1710

Warning: None

A/N: Request from anonymous: Could you do a Tom Hiddleston imagine based on the Graham Norton show? (If you haven't seen it you should look it up on YouTube. It's amazing) one where the reader and Tom are co-workers on an upcoming movie and things escalate on the red couch. Sometime on the show people will just randomly kiss each other or make innuendos with other actors/comedians. (Sorry this took so long to write)

You stood backstage as you finished the last touches on your lipstick. The bustle of people around you did not phase you, as they all prepared for the start of the show. That month your new movie had premiered with Tom Hiddleston and James Woods. Now you and Tom had been invited to the Graham Norton show to talk about the movie and have a good time. Tom had been on the show several times, but this was your first time. You were quite nervous but Tom insisted it would be fun and to just relax. Watching several of the episodes prior to coming on the show helped to prepare you for what may be asked during the course of the show. You saw that Graham was not rude or a jerk to those who were on his show and many laughs were a guarantee.

“Miss [Y/L/N] five minutes until show time. Is there anything else I can do for you?” One of the directing assistants stood behind you with the official headset and clipboard in hand.

“Umm, no I think I am good. I will be ready to go in a moment.” The woman smiled, nodding before walking off.

“Don’t you look lovely tonight. I see you went with the longer skirt.” That deep English accent never failed to cause your heart to skip a beat before pounding in your chest. Tom smiled at you through the mirror.

“Thank you. Yes, that camera angle is too low for my comfort. I refuse to be on the front page of any of the rags tomorrow because I flashed the world on the Graham Norton Show.” Turning to look at him you grinned.

“Good choice. Give me a hug I think they are about to call us.” The hug was familiar, warm and something you missed. Since the completion of filming and the crazy schedule from the press tours there had been little time to see Tom for more than a few minutes at a time. Tonight would probably be the longest you had been in his company since filming. You missed him and the friendship that had developed. Granted you texted daily and spoke on the phone a few times a week. However, that was nothing compared to being in his company. “I’ve missed you. We should try and get together before we have to head our separate ways again.”

Before you could respond, you heard your name called as Graham Norton introduced you. “Welcome [Y/N] [Y/L/N] to the show tonight.” Straightening your blouse and skirt, you walked out into the bright lights of the stage smiling and waving to the audience. You kissed Graham on the cheek before taking a seat on the long red couch. Tom followed behind seconds later, then Chris Pine to finish the trio of guests for the start of the show.

“It’s just wonderful to have the three of you here tonight. Some of Hollywood’s brightest and sexiest stars.” The crowd cheered at this loudly. The three of you all laughing, and thinking it ridiculous but smiled nonetheless. “Now, [Y/N], you and Tom just did a movie together. It’s out now in theaters.”

“Yes we did. What Choices just premiered a few weeks ago, so that has kept things busy.” Of course, he would start with you. Your nerves were going crazy as your grabbed the vodka/orange juice mixture from the table in front of you, sipping before holding onto the glass for dear life.

“In this movie you two play brother and sister, right?” Graham had his cards in hand with that cheeky grin of his.

“We do! We play a really screwed up brother and sister. It’s a bit different than other movies I’ve done.” Everyone laughed as you grinned; maybe you were not going to die now.

“I watched the film that first week it came out and [Y/N]… your character is something else.” She is quite…” You knew what was coming and your cheeks pinked.

“Her character is friendly.” Chris piped up from his side of the couch. The crowd roared with laughter as you covered your face.

“Oh Chris you saw it too?” He nodded looking over at you for a moment with a smirk then looking back to Graham.

“Yeah I saw it with a few friends. She was very friendly in the movie.” Tom laughed harder next to you as you, finally, were able to look back to Graham.

“Yes my character was friendly. She enjoyed a whole lot of fun.” Downing half your glass, you set it on the table before leaning back on the couch crossing your legs.

“Oh we all saw that!” Graham straightened his coat as he looked keenly at you. “It didn’t matter race, gender, age. You were all over the place. I’m pretty sure you kissed everyone in that film.” That merely caused the volume in the room to raise higher.

“My character enjoyed herself quite a bit. But…” You held a finger up to make a point. “I did not kiss everyone in the film. My character did have boundaries. There was no action with her brother or her father.” There was another collective laugh.

“That is true. No, Game of Thrones action had in the film. Tom was that disappointing? That you were the only one that didn’t get to kiss [Y/N]? I mean this beautiful woman is kissing everyone else but you.” Tom laughed showing that big smile of his as he leaned back on the couch resting, his arm on the back of it.

“Hell man, I’ve even to kissed her!” Chris added as he sipped his beer. Your cheeks were on fire again as you shook your head.

“You kissed her too?” Graham feigned shock.

“Oh yeah. [Y/N] and I did a movie a few years back when I was a newer actor. I had this small part in the start of the film as a guy that dumped her after they had sex.” You were going to have to kill Chris after the show for bringing that up.

“Tom that has to be killing you now.” It felt like Graham was trying to goad Tom into something inappropriate.

“Well I got a kiss on the cheek as we finished up the film and said our goodbyes. So I got a bit of one out of it.” The audience gave an “Aww” at the sweetness of it.

“Oh come on, [Y/N]! Give the man a real kiss. Come on now.” This incited a completely new reaction from the audience as they cheered. Many were chanting ‘kiss kiss kiss’.

Tom looked over at you with a smirk and a raised brow. No words because you could read his face. You pretended to huff and rolled your eyes, throwing up your arms in a mock defeat. Internally you were trying not to hyperventilate. When you found out Tom was going to play your brother and not one of your love interests it was difficult to hide your severe disappointment. He had been one of your crushes for quite some time.

“All right fine.” Everyone cheered including, Graham who was having a good time with it all. You should have known kissing would come into play on this show. Tom sat up straight looking at you and you him. He canted his head leaning slowly in before pulling back to pretend to check his breath first. This earned another laugh from all.

He tried to make it look all dramatic and took his time to lean in before you grew tired of the anticipation. You grabbed his jacket pulling him to you quickly and kissed him. Graham screamed louder than the audience. The heat from Tom’s lips seared against yours for the moment and you were more than tempted to deepen it. Nevertheless, not here, on television for the world to see. Pushing him back, Tom looked in awe for a moment as you wiped your lips, ensuring your lipstick had not smeared on your face. Then you checked and wiped the bit that had been left on Tom’s lips.

It was mayhem in the studio with all of the cheers and screams. It took some time for everyone to calm down. When they did, Graham spoke up. “I hope that was worth the wait because damn if we didn’t all feel it.”

Tom did not answer but grinned bright as he wiped his lips with his fingers. The rest of the show went well with many more laughs and another vodka/orange juice for you. When the cameras stopped rolling, you had a good conversation with Graham before heading backstage to pick up your purse to return to the hotel. Tom stopped you, as you had not said anything to him since ending of the show.

“[Y/N]! Wait. I wanted to talk to you.” He looked far more serious than he did on stage.

“I hope that was all right with you. I know it was all in the moment but… I don’t want you to be upset about it.” Squeezing his forearm, you smiled up at him.

“It was fine. Don’t worry about it. I had a good time tonight. I am glad you told me to relax and have fun.” The smile he gave you was not the typical Tom smile. It was on the sad side.

“Just fine?”

“Oh! No, I didn’t mean the kiss. That was wonderful. I meant the show and being there.” He perked up slightly.

“I thought so too. I wanted to do that from the first day we started filming.” Did he just really say that?

“You did?” He nodded slowly taking one of your hands in his.

“Very much so. [Y/N] may I please take you out tomorrow for dinner? I’ve been going mad to ask you since I last saw you.” The pause for you to consider felt very long as your mind was trying to understand that this whole conversation was actually taking place.

“Umm… yes I would love to. I would really like to kiss you again when the whole world isn’t watching too.” He laughed quietly taking a step towards you. Cupping your cheek, he leaned down to press his lips lightly against yours.

“Me too.”

Tags: @feelmyroarrrr @bolontiku @aquabrie @malindacath @almondbuttercups @cute-mirei @ex-bookjunky @frenchfrostpudding @saraholdtheh972

#tom hiddleston #tom hiddleston x reader #tom hiddleston fanfiction #tom hiddleston fanfic #reader x tom hiddleston #fanfiction #fanfic #tom hiddleston fandom

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dougcook · 7 years

Text

I wrote words and created sentences to review a game that came out months ago!

“He will remember that.”

Well, I goddamn hope so.

I’ve never played a Telltale game before. I’ve heard they’re great. A lot of people talk about THE WALKING DEAD (Seasons 1 and 2), but I passed because I don’t much care for THE WALKING DEAD. It took me too long to realize GAME OF THRONES was a Telltale game and not a cheap tie-in, and by the time I did I learned the big ending and wasn’t particularly interested anymore. I’ve never played BORDERLANDS so TALES FROM THE BORDERLANDS was never really considered. I’m always intrigued by games that have a shifting plot based off of your choices – HEAVY RAIN got a shot years ago because of this, I fell in love with MASS EFFECT partially due to how skillfully it builds on your choices over three games [1], and I randomly took up LIFE IS STRANGE to see how they did it, even though it was an unknown to me.

But I know Batman. And in the wake of an uncertain future for Batman video games following Rocksteady bowing out after ARKHAM KNIGHT, I was eager to try BATMAN: THE TELLTALE SERIES.

Alright, so I’m not such a big gamer that I can talk about gameplay for long, and it’s not a huge factor for me. I mean, I need the gameplay to work and be fun, but beyond that there’s not a huge difference. And while I think there’s a lot BATMAN: THE TELLTALE SERIES has going for it that the Rocksteady games don’t, the gameplay is nowhere near as fun or engaging. The QuickTime event nature of its action makes them tedious to me, and anytime I had to move Bruce or Batman around is was mostly frustrating. And I despise the game forcing me to highlight circles when investigating things with the right joystick, it feels so damn awkward, like being asked to write with my non-dominant hand.

Thankfully, the game’s real interest to me was its story, and how it developed behind my choices. And this is clearly Telltale’s bread and butter. There’s a lot of spoilery stuff to unpack here, so probably stop reading if you haven’t played and want to remain spoiler free. Or don’t. I don’t care, do what you want.

So the game’s real strength is its use of Batman lore against the player. And it’s undoing as well. It starts off well enough, by introducing Oswald Cobblepot as a handsome, thin young man around Bruce’s age, and an international criminal. It takes a canon idea (the Cobblepots and Wayne’s as rival families, until the Cobblepots crumbled, leaving Oswald bitter), and takes it in a fresh direction of establishing Wayne’s equal and inversion in all ways. It’s fun!

This even applies to the big thing I presume people being pissed about: Bruce learns that Thomas and Martha Wayne were in league with Carmine Falcone and corrupt Mayor Hill, and that specifically Thomas is the brutal evil mastermind, committing enemies to Arkham Asylum for petty reasons, such as Esther Cobblepot simply to gain her land for the construction of Wayne Tower. Guys what a great idea! By casting the shadow on the memory of Bruce’s parents, it forces the idea of Batman to be analyzed: why does Bruce do this then, if his memory of his parent’s morality was a lie? (This gets compounded when it comes out that Thomas and Martha’s deaths were a hit ordered by Hill, and not a random mugging). Where does Bruce’s moral code come from, and does it remain afterwards? This is, of course, not really a chance for Bruce Wayne to grapple with these thoughts, but a chance for us, the player, as we dictate what kind of a man Bruce/Batman is.

This takes me back to a memory of a coworker and I discussing THE DARK KNIGHT RETURNS. I really love the book, I do, but I’m not blind to the unfortunate fascistic implications of the book’s portrayal of Batman. He has power and takes more because only he can be trusted with, etc etc. My coworker didn’t see this as troubling – he’s Batman, he is the only person that can be trusted with power. He couldn’t see that, while the fictional character as written by a person is pure and always makes the right choice, that’s not a lesson we as people can take and use in our lives. Superheroes work best as Aesops, and too much Batman fiction gives into the power trip of the character. It comes from the base root of everything, this intrinsic idea: the trauma instilled Bruce with a hardline moral code that makes him incorruptible. BATMAN: THE TELLTALE SERIES forces us to reconcile how that moral code can remain intact when the cause is shown to be even more impure. I find it interesting so many players make choices as Batman that are more merciful when faced with this.

It’s a shame the things we don’t control are borderline too much. Like the Rocksteady games, it’s a pretty tough sell that Batman doesn’t accidentally kill anyone with his roughness. Batarangs enter eyes; heads slam against walls. I want to applaud the game’s desire to show violence as brutal, I just don’t know if I have it in me to go through anymore crime scenes where people’s eyes are gouged out.

Oh yeah, and the game seems to have an obsession with eyes. Batman gives Catwoman a black left eye after punching her; the lens on the goggle on that same eye is broken in the next episode, along with Batman’s left eye. Alfred’s glasses are found with the left lens broken, and he can possibly lose that eye by the end of the game [2]. Penguin at one point dons a…um, thingy that looks like a monocle, leaving his left eye open. Falcone is shot (oh yeah, he gets offed so much earlier than one would expect) with a shot to the left eye. So does Thomas Wayne when we finally get the required Wayne’s death scene. And of course, there’s the Harvey Dent scarring, a major part leaving his left eye uncovered, ala THE DARK KNIGHT [3]. The game’s central focus seems to be on secrets; everyone’s got ‘em, and nobody’s what they appear. Except Gordon. Fucker’s a rock in Batman fiction.

The first three episodes of the game move at a breakneck pace, with things getting wilder until the third episode’s climax, which reveals you were being played the whole time by…Vikki Vale? Um, cool? It’s not that it breaks canon (I’ve shown a fondness for that so far), it’s not that it’s left field (it’s foreshadowed very well in retrospect), but…like, how the fuck does somebody become Gotham’s Lois Lane while secretly planning…huh, not super sure what her end goal was besides screwing with Bruce Wayne. The fourth and fifth episodes continue to fly by, with fun cameos [4], explosive moments, and some heartfelt scenes. But ultimately, the climax falls short due to Lady Arkham/Vikki Vale just…not being interesting. It works, story and theme wise, to fight her as Bruce Wayne, but it’s so muddled what motivates her and what she really wants. It’ so unclear she comes across more like throwing a tantrum. And to have an interesting version of the Penguin as her number two, and even a Two-Face who’s betrayal stings so much due to a strongly developed friendship with Bruce both playing second fiddle to Lady Arkham, well, it’s disappointing.

The game starts strong, and ends with a bit of a dud. But its highs, man they’re really high. A quick-hit of amazing stuff in this games: Bruce throwing down the Batman cowl and yelling at Alfred, accusing him of lying about his parents; Bruce and Selina Kyle fight off Penguin’s goons in a bar to, well, jaunty bar music; Bruce pulling off the “I’m about to be caught as the other man in a love triangle so I’ll tip-toe away carrying my clothes to hide” move while carrying the friggin’ batsuit; Batman and Two-Face have a showdown in Wayne Manor; Bruce reassuring a despondent Alfred he’s not to blame for the game’s events.

BATMAN: THE TELLTALE SERIES can delight and make you weep, but only when the villains aren’t around. Rating: 14 out of 17 Stolen Waynetech Grapplers

[1] – There’s a handful of series in fiction that are so tightly wound together that I never engage with a single installment out of context – I begin the series at its start and I go until it ends. HARRY POTTER, THE LORD OF THE RINGS films, and MASS EFFECT are the three examples I can name without hesitation. I’ve played through the three MASS EFFECT games straight three times. [2] – I confess, this didn’t happen in my play through, I simply read about it after. [3] – I consider it a true delight that I could’ve avoided Harvey getting scarred, but that’s another “armed with canon” moment for you. I assumed it was gonna happen, thus I was complicit. [4] – Let’s talk Joker down here briefly. I liked him, mostly, interpreted as like, that awkward, nerdy guy you knew in college with the weird sense of humor. His knowledge of everything Lady Arkham comes across as 80% “get out of jail free” card, but it does kinda fit. He’s…aight.

#batman #the telltale series #spoilers

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