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llycaons · 1 year

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Section Six: Lower your standards

XVI: Just a bit eh: fics that are fine, but that I didn’t like enough to rec in the sections above

XVII: Put on some horse blinders: fics for which I have to list particularly egregious author issues (rape porn, incest)

XVIII: The shame corner for naughty fanfiction: fics with issues within the actual work

XVI. Just a bit eh: fics that are fine, but that I didn’t like enough to rec in the sections above. this isn’t based on quality so much as my personal interest in it. I just find them a bit dull and/or not in-character enough to enjoy as much as the others

An Ache Like This by sofriel

summary: t4t wangxian! fic starts with lwj mourning his mother and follows him through his childhood and young adulthood. it skips through years and arcs and ends at a really tender postcanon get-together scene

work issues: none

author issues: none

love at every s(word f)ight by glitteringmoonlight

summary: a cute little postcanon fic where wwx has secretly developed his core to the point that he can hold his own against lwj, so he sets up a re-creation of their rooftop swordfight. it’s joyful and romantic, but imo a bit bland

work issues: none really, except it’s novel canon so there’s this reference to ‘oh of course I always want to fuck" which. ehh don’t love but it’s not like it ruined the work for me

author issues: emperor/concubine stuff, warprize AU

Gentian Seeds by yuyu_finale

summary: lwj, while traveling post-nightless, stumbles upon his mother’s hometown. it’s sweet; he meets some family. the writing was a bit amateurish tho

work issues: none, but I skimmed the final chapter because I found their wwx annoying so I can’t say for certain

author issues: none

another name for ghosts by seularen

summary: postcanon, a still-estranged jin ling visits wwx at CR, and lwj tries to keep it from being a disaster for everyone involved. I didn’t really like the lwj in this one, because he’s firmly his novel self and I don’t like novel lwj much as a person, but he was well-written and the way the work teased out jl and wwx’s respective issues and traumas was really something. novel canon

work issues: none

author issues: incredibly weird about sex scenes outside of this work. a lot of cnc-adjacent stuff. xiyao also

varied my velocities by fantasiavii

summary: ballet dancer lwj and soccer player wwx. lwj is gnc and works through internalized homophobia exacerbated by other members of the ballet community. emotionally powerful and clearly written out of personal experience, so I both cried and learned a lot about ballet as an art form lwj’s issues here are rather specific to ballet, so he feels somewhat disconnected from his canon character. and wwx isn’t quite ooc, but he’s rather generic and nothing jumps out about him that the reader would recognize as wwx without being told. it read almost as original fiction, and therefore I found the chemistry rather lacking because I didn’t feel like I knew the characters. but it’s a good story nonetheless lwj is a sub in this and it’s actually explored quite thoughtfully and beautifully as an important part of his identity work issues: none author issues: none

back for you by detectorist

summary: I almost didn’t read this because it came off as boring, but I powered through the first section and found a very nice little work and a relationship with some of the most tangible chemistry I’ve found in fic. I also like the lwj and jyl friendship here. short, sweet, and funny

work issues: none

author issues: has written genderbends

You’ve placed all of the smiles in the world in my hands by Must_have_been_the_wind

summary: a very cute work where little a-yuan thinks about how much he loves lwj and his home in CR. fairly simplistic

work issues: none

author issues: none

For a Good Time, Call by ScarlettStorm

summary: honestly I kind of hate this fic and the sequel is in my trash heap but like. here goes. so modern AU wwx has an OnlyFans and lwj (his irl friend who is in love with him) stumbles upon it and immediately, hornily, guiltily subscribes to it, which is exactly as contrived and cringey as it sounds, but it has so many kudos I went “FINE I‘ll read it” and I found a surprisingly funny and easy to read fic grounded in legitimately gripping drama, decent politics (author seems to also be a sex worker), and emotional sincerity. the fashion in this fic is really fun, the interpersonal drama and building tension had me losing my shit, and it has a life and personality all its own. I adore jyl in this one, and jc is extremely funny otherwise the wx itself is empty of true romance and chemistry, the porn (both in-universe and in the fic) is painfully generic, the characters are clearly written by a white person, everyone talks like they were raised in therapy, and the wwx and lwj characterizations are very dull. wq and jc are together, but at least they’re funny about it (wq just constantly criticizes his behavior, which, she should). for a better version of a similar setting, see to dwell inside a body by typefortydeductions. it does have some issues so check the tags, but it’s higher in quality. it also has a full entry in category xviii further down this page reclaimed q slur is used very frequently work issues: while wwx is upset that lwj subscribed without telling him, they still fuck immediately and then only later have a conversation about it, the convo is fairly short and lets lwj off pretty easy. I would have liked to see more of lwj building that trust back up. otherwise there’s no big issues I can point to in this work author issues: somewhat infamous for femme-leaning pansexual yoga pants-wearing nhs, which given that they’re white is really iffy. they’ve also done some really weird things with feminizing wwx (he’s genderfluid and in the second work in this series he says he wants to be a stay-at-home wife??) and they refer to wwx as a f*mboy in the title of another fic, which given that they’re definitely not a trans woman is super shitty. don’t read the rest of this series, it’s absolutely horrible. however, for this work, most of those issues are not present and everyone is treated fairly normally

never love an anchor by tardigradeschool

summary: ah, the classic selkie and fisherman love story. this fic is not super high quality but I found the style and the romance quite lovely, and I was excited to find out what happened. good for a nice time but don’t expect it to have the strongest plot or the most dramatic scenes. ending was a bit weak as well, though sweet

in this fic lwj is kept prisoner by his family away from the sea, suspected of harboring the same mental illness that they thought led his mother to her suicide. they threaten his autonomy throughout the work, and it was quite distressing in some scenes

work issues: none

author issues: xiyao, niyao, 3zun, jl/lsz

XVII. put on some horse blinders: fics written by authors who have also written rape porn or sibling incest. personally I’m pretty good at compartmentalizing. but I know everyone has different tolerance levels so I’m putting them in their own section

I still draw a hard line for authors of adult-child smut or csa porn, so anyone writing that shouldn’t be on any of my pages at all.

*A Lot of Edges Called Perhaps* by hansbekhart

summary: a postcanon getting together work: legitimately one of the best fics I have ever read, and one of my personal favorites. mature and beautifully written and atmospheric and satisfying. they just know each other. their mutual interest in justice is important! I love how neither of them have any patience for the juniors’ overinterest in their relationship - it’s not their business and it’s not a joke. a lovely and satisfying conclusion, close to perfect imo. cql canon

work issues: none, unless you have a problem with reading a whole lot of edging

author issues: it pains me to say this because this fic is so good but the author has written a work tagged ‘noncon somnophilia’ so it’s been kicked down here

*Out of the darkness, into the day by ilip13

summary: a substantial postcanon getting-together work. the way the emotion in this is rendered is stunning, and the characterizations are excellent. realistic as well as appropriately dramatic. I don’t like the beginning so much because it’s really depressing, and they take SO long to get together I was ready to start crying, but the story becomes so joyful and it’s a real pleasure to go from one extreme to the other. it’s right there in the title. cql canon work issues: um their first kiss is a little iffy since one of them is half-asleep but he’s the one who initiates…it didn’t really bother me it was just a bit odd also the notes say things like ‘no spoken consent….their love transcends words’ which is a weird way to phrase it but everything IS consensual they just communicate nonverbally a lot (and consent is verbally explicit in most intimate scenes) author issues: dubcon, cnc, rape fantasy, sex pollen, noncon/noncon somnophilia (in something tagged with ‘noncon dual cultivation’ 🤮)

he comes in colors by ilip13

summary: modern cultivation AU, an lwj-centric work beginning when he lost his mother and following him through the years as he grows up in the still-traditional cloud recesses. it explores his relationship to the rules, his grief, his connection to music, and the powerful synesthesia he shares with his mother. a story about family, identity, maturity, and self-discovery. I like the unique twist on the madam lan situation, and the way that lwj’s musical prodigy was explored.

the characterizations aren’t bad but they’re a little…lackluster? lwj wasn’t as intense and weird as I think of him as. wwx was way more considerate and less mischievous than even in canon, and the romance in here was nice…almost too sweet and low-drama honestly, but I’ll take that over contrived miscommunication any day. lwj is a sub too, and that’s a significant part of the work

work issues: none

author issues: same as above. shame this author is so talented and keeps writing fics that really speak to me because ugh. dubcon, cnc, rape fantasy, sex pollen, noncon/noncon somnophilia

*best laid plans* by ilip13

summary: modern AU wangxian try changing up their roles, to mixed results. great politics about topping/bottoming - this fic said switch RIGHTS. I loved the writing style of this, the romance was so tender and lovely, the drama clipped right along and there was so much communication and maturity. dramatic without being corny or overwrought. love it. either canon but I was feeling cql-verse work issues: none author issues: see above - dubcon, cnc, rape fantasy, sex pollen, ‘noncon dual cultivation’

Let the Crows Fly by eak_a_mouse

summary: sunshot AU where lwj and wwx are taken hostage by the wens after defeating the xuanwu of slaughter, and wwx is coerced into helping the wens develop demonic cultivation techniques. the politics in this are engaging, the characterizations are all excellent, the style and atmosphere were just gripping, the ending was hopeful, and the romance, while understated, was tangibly present in every single scene with them, even if they were apart

firmly cql canon, and I think the author just nailed the atmosphere of the show and the tension of a very young wwx and lwj under duress and trying to keep each other safe

work issues: none

author issues: jc/wwx mpreg smut…also lwj/nmj hookup but they’re both of age at least

*all the depths of us* by northofallmusic (tofsla)

summary: wwx and lwj get together while still solving the mystery postres, a little earlier than in canon. the characterizations and atmosphere are excellent, and I love how the romance and relationship is developed. I am reccing both the main fic and the secondary one. cql canon.

work issues: none

author issues: implied jc/wwx, noncon somnophilia, dubcon, sex pollen, and cnc

*here’s to upright men by isozyme

summary: an incredibly compelling and well-crafted work about nhs, five years after canon, encountering lxc for the first time since guanyin temple. excellent characterizations, darkly humorous, dramatic, and giving us unpredictable and satisfying interactions between characters who really should have had more screentime together. bit sad because jc and wwx haven’t reconciled, but it feels right for them

this is the closest any fic on here will get to sangcheng, and it’s not even really there if you don’t squint. but IF I was into sangcheng, this is the kind of dynamic I could get behind

work issues: none

author issues: jc/wwx smut…also genderbends, xiyao, and niyao but honestly that stuff just seems so trite in comparison

Restraint and Revelation: or, The Necromancer of Yiling by Lirelyn

summary: a story-within-a-story regency AU loosely based off the popularity of gothic romance novels a la northanger abbey. a shallow and vaguely set genre pastiche rather than an actual AU that would place them in regency england (and whitewash them). the writing is impressively austenian, and the emotional journeys the characters canonically go on suit the format beautifully, so everything feels quite well translated. I’ve always fondly headcanoned lwj as being into shlocky romance novels, so this was a treat

work issues: none, which is weird because the tags say ‘3zun if you squint’ but imo there is nothing to imply that jgy was involved with either lxc or mnj. iirc he barely was present in the fic at all so *shrug*

author issues: wwx/lwj/jc and wwx/jc smut 💀 also xxc/sl/xy, niyao, and xiyao. there’s a ton of shit in there just don’t go to their page at all

The Good That Won’t Come Out by raisedbyhyenas

summary: postcanon casefic where lwj and wwx solve a mystery and confront some truths about their past and their relationship. healing, grief, and comfort. I like how much chemistry wwx and lwj have, and lwj is funnier than he is in most fics that claim he’s funny. wwx’s fierce protectiveness and vengeful rage at seeing lwj threatened was nice. novel verse.

work issues: none…it’s sad tho. not for wwx and lwj, but for the victims

author issues: jc/wwx, nhs/jgy, xiyao, genderbends, jl/lsz

*Vagabond by xantissa

summary: postcanon, wwx returns from a year of travels to a mysterious illness plaguing the region. he, lwj, and another investigator work to solve it while he and lwj navigate their feelings. I liked the oc a lot - lwj has a friend! I don’t want to give more detail because the mystery is so compelling and the plot twist was a genuine surprise.

there were a lot of little details that didn’t make sense, but I loved how sweet wwx was with wen ning, and the romance was so satisfying

it’s kind of up to interpretation but there is arguably in-universe homophobia and consent to sex under a false identity

also, one lan has romantic feelings for another one, but based on how it’s treated I really don’t think they’re related

work issues: PM mountain kiss is talked about and it’s not made a big deal of 🙄

author issues: lxc/lwj is the big one, but they’re both of age. also nhs/nzh, niyao, xiyao, 3zun, dubcon

Art in Life by northofallmusic (tofsla)

summary: a three-part introspective series on modern AU wwx reuniting with lwj in france, years after wwx has a breakdown and leaves the classical music scene. atmospheric and satisfying and tender. the chemistry and their dynamic was so natural and lovely. it was gratifying to see an older wwx remark on how much better and calmer he is now, similar to his canon postres peace. I thought it was going to be boring and it wasn’t. no knowledge of art required

work issues: none

author issues: implied jc/wwx, dubcon, sex pollen, noncon somnophilia

*让我留在你身边 // let me stay by your side by howodd5ever

summary: just a ‘what if’ scenario for the month in between yi city and the meeting at jinlintai. there’s no big confession, but they do hook up and and it’s pretty sweet? except a few throwaway lines, the characterization is really good

work issues: none

author issues: lwj/lxc, 3zun, sl/xxc/xy, dubcon, lsz/ljy

Mostly Figurative Ducks by northofallmusic (tofsla)

summary: a very sweet little fic about wwx and jyl comforting each other throughout the years

work issues: it’s literally too short to even fit anything bad

author issues: insane to write this under the summary of this fic, but this author has written noncon, implied jc/wwx, noncon somnophilia, dubcon, sex pollen, and cnc

XVIII. the shame corner for naughty fanfiction: fics with issues within the actual work. mostly background 3zun, hints of jl/lsz, and some weird gender and/or sex stuff. I put the better ones first and the worst ones after them. still read the author notes and everything but I genuinely think these are good quality besides their issues. funnily enough most of the author issues here are actually less serious than they were in the previous section

*grave goods* by luckymarrow

summary: a modern AU work exploring mortality and grief, set in NYC. wwx is a mortician and lwj is a lawyer advocating for trafficked women and undocumented immigrants. this was a very realistic and kind look at death from both a professional and personal standpoint in ways that I found very cathartic and personally meaningful. the way lwj’s mother was discussed made me really emotional and his arc regarding her came full circle so beautifully towards the end. and a-yuan was REALLY cute, I think they captured him so well. it has a hopeful finale, but it really puts you through the ringer. it did get a little corny towards the end tho. either canon but more novel in the sex scenes check author notes for warnings pertaining to death and grieving, child death, domestic violence, family death, femicide (though not named as such), and suicide

some of the sex scenes are really hardcore bdsm so just keep that in mind but everything is clearly consensual and safe work issues: one of the sex scenes has a hint of cnc? it's like two lines and like I said above it's all clearly consensual and they check in with each other and all author issues: has written genderbends

*paired wings soaring by typefortydeductions

summary: in this modern british AU, lwj (poetry translator) and wwx (artist) move in with lwj’s aging mother (a poet in exile from china) after she has a fall. the tenderness and heart and romance of this was so beautiful, especially with how it tied into wwx’s art pieces

subtle references to domestic violence/abuse re: mama lan situation. nothing is gratuitous or even spelled out explicitly

work issues: there was a short scene of (consensual-after-the-fact) somnophilia and some…weird things in some of the sex scenes. the bdsm was written better than in most fics, and I did like that they focused more on trust, but some of them still skeeved me out.

lxc is with jgy in this, and he does not turn out to be evil or betray him or anything and it ends with 3zun so ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

also when wwx proposed to lwj he went down on both knees because he’s a sub 😭 aneeway

author issues: has written cnc, dubcon, genderbends, A/B/O and 3zun

The Shape of Your Love (is Horny) by Vamillepudding

summary: demon influencer wwx meets and then tries to romance a mortal lwj without knowing much about how humans work, despite having lived on earth for years and watching a lot of demon porn about humans. just really silly and off the wall. they nail lwj being a weirdo and this makes him really compatible with non-human wwx. the way they had instant chemistry and fell right into a relationship was so low-drama and sweet.

based on the title you'd think there are weird sex things going on but it's actually rated just T. nhs is great and there's a ton of really funny lan family moments and jc stuff too.

work issues: unfortunately the other main couple is jgy/lxc

author issues: see above - xiyao

*happy not knowing* by plonk

summary: this bold author dared to ask the question: what if lxc was incredibly stupid? what if he didn’t realize his brother was gay? what if he was offensively, hilariously, absurdly oblivious to the fact that wwx and lwj were together in a romantic and sexual sense? while they all lived together in CR? for years? the result is a very funny multi-POV tale lasting five+ years that at the end reached heights of heteronormative nonsense so extreme that it was genuinely hurtful. but I love that lxc is the butt of every joke and mocked at every turn, presented as foolishly oblivious while everyone else knows the truth. I adore qin su in this, and the rest of the story actually goes quite well for everyone compared to canon, so it’s a lot more lighthearted

wq and jc is a background pair (that lxc is equally oblivious to), but they showed up only once or twice and jc doesn’t abandon her clan to death in this AU so I don’t mind too much

if lxc’s inability to see wx’s relationship as romantic is upsetting instead of humorous to you, this may be a fic to skip. the other characters do see and support wx even when lxc doesn’t

work issues: although not treated as important, the line that established wx were sleeping together stated that their first time was when wwx was drunk. wwx refers to himself once as a wife. there’s a scene of somnophilia (sort of?), which I found very uncomfortable even if it was consensual. it also leans into wx having loud and aggressive sex everywhere in CR, and it’s implied they have sex outside where juniors saw them so 😬

author issues: has written genderbends and A/B/O, along with *gestures to the above*

remember how the morning will arrive by remiges

summary: a three-part series focused on lqr, who postcanon continues to grapple with his history of child sexual abuse at the hands of his older brother. this is an intense work, but not graphic or gratuitous, and it has a hopeful ending. it incorporates an interesting and unique backstory for lqr and madam lan, and the way it handles trauma and evokes emotion is incredibly powerful and cathartic despite lqr's very bleak and painful personal backstory, and lqr shares moments of solidarity with other survivors of sexual abuse. the novel-leaning characterizations were overall quite good

work issues: I really liked the first two parts of this series, but the third one disappointed me. lqr stumbles upon a (non-graphic) cnc roleplay scene with wx and, understandably, loses his shit. it's handled about as well as it could be by the characters, lqr is immediately told that what's happening in consensual, and once he has a few days to process he’s like ‘yeah that’s your business it’s fine,’ which felt like a slap in the face. the finale of this series does wrap up the story in a really satisfying way, I just wish the author hasn't been so faithful to the novel wx dynamics and then go a step further by having their fictional survivor of csa validate rape roleplay too

author issues: cnc

kick at the darkness ‘til it bleeds daylight by AlfAlfAlfAlfAlf, tardigradeschool

summary: *deep breath* canon divergent parent trap AU where a-yuan had a twin brother, and in the confusion of nightless city, wwx and lwj are both injured in ways that lead them to believe the other AND one of the twins is dead. afterwards, they each raise one twin, lwj in CR and wwx as a rogue cultivator hiding his identity, neither realizing the truth. 16 years later, the twins meet on a night hunt, figure out who they are, and switch places to figure out the story and get their parents together.

the style for this fic was super fun, and I thought the humor, characterizations, and relationship writing were just excellent. jyl is alive, and lxc plays a much different role in wx’s relationship; the darker elements juxtapose the lighter ones quite nicely. while the relationships between all of the 'good guys' lacked the drama and tension of canon, flashback-era wx were just devastatingly romantic and tender, and their post-reunion relationship is very sweet. there’s a surprise f/f ship we see towards the end! the finale gives some quieter characters a chance to shine, though I did find it a bit silly and melodramatic

personally there was way too much kid content compared to wx content, but that's just a preference on my end. if you like the juniors you'll probably enjoy that part more than I did. just see the notes about it, because...

work issues: you know how fucking mad I am that this fic started hinting that jl had a crush on lsz. here they’re closer in age and technically only family friends since wwx isn’t in the picture, but there’s no excuse for ljy to then start crushing on wwx’s kid who switches spots with lsz. like, obvs I still consider it incest but ig in-universe it’s only not incest by the barest of technicalities 🙄

none of the kids actually get together in the fic itself, but it was just SO annoying and gross and then the author had to be like ‘lol they start dating’ in the notes after the last chapter. shut UP!

author issues: see above, but also xiyao, niyao, and 3zun

oh, these are real things by typefortydeductions

summary: the first work of a modern AU where newly-together wwx and lwj deal with wwx’s depersonalization issues and negotiate having sex that ramps up in kinkiness. I really liked all the communication happening and I thought it was a neat translation of wwx’s issues to a non-magical setting

I don’t like the rest of the series as much but here’s a rundown: it follows them as they continue managing their issues, adopt kids, and handle becoming parents. there's some gender stuff that gets weird later bc they really lean into wwx’s breeding kink and make him genderfluid so they call him a wife and mom. the characterizations were...decent.

I do like the maturity, realism, and emotional honesty in the rest of the series. the bdsm scenes can be really intense because they legit do hardcore sadism and masochism, but because they communicate so thoroughly about it, I didn’t dislike it in the way I dislike most bdsm in fic. but I still skimmed a lot of the sex scenes. and overall I don’t like it enough to rec

work issues: for this first fic, really nothing.

for the rest of the series, lwj is a bit possessive, there’s some emphasis on wwx being skinny/lwj’s big hands, and 3zun is a background couple. xxc/sl/xy is also mentioned as a poly relationship. wwx is not cis in this one (undefined but akin to genderfluid, and occasionally calls himself a girl, wife, and mother) and it gets a little weird? however none of this shows up in the first work.

author issues: same author as above - cnc, dubcon, A/B/O, genderbends

Back to Start || Section Seven

#ficblogging #fic recs #recs-6

1 note · View note

its-deputy-caleb · 3 years

Note

hellllooooo amigo

so I was wondering if you could write a lil fic about Micah mentioning his birthday is soon but not expecting anyone to care about it but then the reader surprises him with a present and Micah’s like :O

I’ve had this idea stuck in my head for the past week lmao but if it ain’t your thing or if you’ve done something similar before then don’t worry about it my g :)

howdyy amigo <33 so i had all these good ideas and then i was writing and the creative block hit HARD so i high key hate this and its a mess but i hope i pulled through in the end and i kinda went a little off topic but oops enjoy anyway :0

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You never really gave a thought to Micah’s birthday. Not because you didn’t want to celebrate it but simply because he never mentioned it to you. It wasn’t really a tradition to celebrate a gang members birthday although the group would never pass up a chance for drinking. Mostly those celebrations were reserved for big scores.

For some of the special members of the gang however, there were celebrations. On Dutch’s the whole gang would practically feast and party for the entire week and for Miss Grimshaw Javier would perform while Sean gave a right old toast. Dutch even insisted on a party for Molly and you laughed at Karen and Mary Beth who whined the entire night about “Miss fancy pants needing her own royal party”.

Of course even for the other members you’d notice when it was their birthday. You’d seen when close friends of Arthur leave gifts beside your own at his tent and for Jack’s birthday John and Abigail tolerated each other enough to spoil the boy with gifts surrounded by family.

That’s why you thought it was rather odd when Micah, your sweetheart never told you about his birthday. You thought he may have damn well forgot it when you overheard him one night with Bill.

He was mumbling into a bottle of whiskey, half on his way to passing out when he mentioned he was getting too old with another birthday coming up in a few days. Of course the bastard wouldn’t tell you, for all his boasting he’d never been one for parties or celebrating.

So with that in mind you spent the rest of the night formulating a plan to at least celebrate his birthday between the two of you.

You’d learnt from Bill the next morning, who wasn’t nearly half as drunk (or hungover) as Micah that his birthday was in exactly three days.

So that left you with three days to formulate just how you’d surprise the man you’d come to love so dearly for his birthday.

Coming up with a celebration was relatively easy— he wasn’t one for crowds, he enjoyed your company and only yours alone and he loved a good whiskey so naturally you’d take him away from the gang’s camp and head down to the Dakota river for the night.

It was finding a good gift that had you tearing your hair out. It was hard trying to find something that would be personal enough for Micah to appreciate when the man in question held few personal belongings, and naturally a new revolver was completely out of the question.

You decided to give up on your mission to find him a gift after nearly chewing Swanson’s ear off for singing while you were trying to think and rethink your gift.

So with a new formed headache you headed into valentine to purchase a nice and rather expensive whiskey for tomorrow night.

On your way out of the general store you noticed a beautiful Dutch Warmblood horse trot into the stable behind his owner. The horse had a large white spot over his leg and it couldn’t’ help but remind you of Baylock.

Bingo.

Smiling to yourself you put the whiskey in your saddle bag and walked into the stables to buy Micah his birthday gift, one you’re sure he’s going to love more over any new jacket or gunbelt.

Micah’s day went about relatively normally for the most part, waking up together with a kiss and a coffee but you couldn’t help be slightly more affectionate than usual.

You’d spent most of the day together, Micah talking with you while you did chores and you talking with him while he (reluctantly) sat on guard duty. All the normal things about the day went on and you kept your secret until the sun was just about to dip over the mountain.

Micah was leaning against a tree, sharpening his knife when you came up to him and wrapped your arms around his neck. You played with the ends of his hair, taking in the sight of him as he holstered the knife and wrapped his arms around you.

“I’ve got something for you.”

You leant forward and placed a soft kiss to his cheek, smiling against his skin at the curious sound he made.

“Hmm? You sure that something isn’t right here in front of me sweetheart?”

You giggle softly as Micah tries to pull you in closer for a proper kiss, deciding to indulge in his wishes for once. It was his birthday after all.

Pulling away from the surprisingly tender kiss, you give him a gentle smile as you untangle yourself from his arms.

“Common, let me show you.”

You take Micah by the hand, almost dragging him to the other side of camp by the horses which drew the attention from a few of the gang members but you didn’t have a care in the world as anticipation grew.

Leading him over to Baylock who is newly saddled, you watched as Micah stared blankly at it before tentatively bringing a hand up to feel over the soft premium leather.

The saddle was all black to match Baylock’s coat with white inlay in the seat and silver on the horn. All of it was the finest quality at your request and even the bedroll was a finer cotton than most.

Micah couldn’t help the smile that broke out onto his face and he turned to you looking like a kid on Christmas.

“You get this for little old me?”

Your own smile matched his as you wrapped your arms back around his neck once more.

“Well I thought since you’d never ever want another revolver and there isn’t much more you love than those guns and Baylock that you’d want a new saddle for him.”

Micah brought you in for a tight hug after that, managing to lift you slightly as you clung to him for dear life. He looked up at you from your new position.

“Sweetheart there ain’t nothing I love more than I do you—“

He sets you back on the ground, leaning in for a kiss but letting your noses bump and your foreheads touch.

“—worth more to me than any ol’ revolver, I love you.”

You close the gap between the two of you, melting into each other as you feel just how much Micah is in love with you.

“I love you too Mikey, and happy birthday— do you like it?”

The look you give him is one of hope and he can’t help but nod and wrap his arms tighter around your waist.

“Course I like it, but yer didn’t need to pay for this. Looks real fancy.”

Micah looked over the saddle once more, his eyes beaming as he saw how well it complemented Baylock’s coat. He was impressed, of course by the gift but because you had cared enough to get it for him and it only confirmed the feelings he had for you.

“Who says I paid for it?”

You saw Micah smirk at your comment and give a low evil laugh.

“That’s my sweetheart I know and love.”

Of course this time you had paid for the saddle, one of the few items you were willing to pay for but that didn’t mean the two of you didn’t steal practically everything else.

You pull away from Micah and hoist yourself up onto Baylock’s saddle, holding your hand out to a very confused looking Micah.

“Common you, I’ve got a nice bottle of whiskey and two glasses waiting for us.”

Down by the river you and Micah were perched up on a large rock that was floating in some shallow water by the river bank. You’d hidden the glasses and whiskey in a tree and the two of you were now laughing together as you drank through it slowly.

Your head was resting under his chin while his arm that wasn’t holding his glass was draped over your shoulder. The moonlight reflecting off the water was more than enough for the two of you to see as he topped up your glass for you.

“Gosh so how old are you now?”

Your words were light and charismatic, the two of you giggling about all sorts of things that night. Micah looked up in contemplation, humming as if he was trying to remember.

“Ehh must be close to forty now— thirty nine I think.”

You whistled, only to cut yourself off with a small laugh as you raised the glass to your mouth.

“You are getting old Mr.Bell, the next thing you know I’ll be able to outshoot you.”

“Sweetheart you can already outshoot me…”

Despite the lighthearted tone of the conversation, you noticed how Micah got uncharacteristically quiet.

“Micah? Are you alright?”

You sit up to face Micah, noticing the flush on his cheeks which wasn’t the fault of the whiskey and the way his attention was on sloshing the liquid in the glass.

“I am gettin’ old sweetheart, at least in terms o’ outlaws—“

“Micah what are you saying?”

You stare at him confused, completely unprepared for what he says next.

“— ‘m saying that i love you and yer the only one I’d ever wanna grow old with.”

Your eyes widen, in fear? in hope? You weren’t quite sure, maybe it was shock at the fact Micah Bell had said he wants to spend the rest of his life with you.

“B-but I thought you didn’t want redemption!? I thought you never wanted to leave the gang, this life!”

Micah shakes his head, putting down your glasses and taking his hands in yours as he squeezes them to reassure himself more than anything.

“I didn’t— I don’t. Oh hell I don’t know what I want but I would throw it all away for you, if its what you wanted.”

He seems to regain some of his confidence after a deep breath and he waves his hands in front of you as he tries to formulate what he wants to say.

“Ya’know have a house and all that…”

You smile gently, your heart melting at the thought that Micah would give up everything for you. You lean forward, taking his hands and threading your fingers before kissing him.

The kiss depends as you momentarily forget where you are and you both start to let your hands wander lower over each other until Micah knocks the glass of whiskey over.

Pulling back from where you’d almost crawled on top of him, you smile sheepishly and sit back down on the rock. This time you sit between Micah’s legs so his arms can rest in your lap and his head can rest on your shoulder.

“Well a house and all that can wait since I’m perfectly happy growing old with you robbing and thieving our way across the plains.”

Your head rests against his own as you feel him litter soft kisses over your shoulder and neck.

“Sounds like something I could get used to.”

Micah whispers his words against your skin and the two of you enjoy the peace and each other’s company. Your hand gives his own a reassuring squeeze, letting your eyes close as you relax and listen to the sound of the river flowing.

“As long as I have you and get to celebrate a hundred more birthdays with you, I’ll be the happiest person in the world.”

Micah squeezes your hand back, sitting up so you could get comfortable against his chest as he rests his chin on top of your head.

“Not sure ‘bout a hundred but you have me for as long as this world lets me darlin’”

You hum sleepily, getting closer and closer to sleep as you listen to his gravelly voice.

“Promise?”

“I Promise”

#i dont even know what this is #warning: unedited af #micah bell #micah bell x reader #micah bell imagine #gn!reader #rdr2 #rdr2 writing #rdr2 headcanons #red dead redemption 2 #THE WRITERS BLOCK HITTT #😩😩😩

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sondepoch · 4 years

Text

A Sleepover of the Ages (Simeon x Reader x Asmodeus)

When Diavolo's retreat gets extended, you want to relive your favorite human tradition: a sleepover! But you quickly learn that there's a difference between a human sleepover and one with an angel and a demon. Still, that won't stop you from enjoying the night with these two precious boys.

~Oneshot

MASTERLIST

Three days and two nights.

That's how long this retreat was supposed to be.

And you've (miraculously) managed to survive three days and two nights. So why is it that you're still in Diavolo's castle?!

"I can't believe the retreat got extended," Asmodeus murmurs, groaning. "I would have brought even more luggage if I'd known this would happen!"

"Don't worry too much," Simeon responds with a light smile as he opens the door to your room. He pulls it open and sighs at the bareness of it. Each of you have already packed up and prepared to leave, but it seems that you'll all be needing to unload your things once more. "At least, Lucifer will be making sure that there won't be any other pillow fights."

You let out a light laugh at that, remembering the Avatar of Pride's hour-long assault from the night before. It had resulted in everyone collapsing on the floor somewhere or the other, knocked out by one of his many pillow throws of death. Even Solomon's protective spells ended up useless, the white-haired mage just another body on the floor after Lucifer's anger was unleashed. (Though you suspect that the elder demon was also doing it to have fun.)

But this retreat hasn't been all that bad.

You've managed to secure another pact altogether, with Asmodeus—but now that you'll be spending an entire night in the same room as him, you can't help but think that it might end up being a curse in disguise.

"Hey, MC~" He coos, using his demonlike strength to pull you into his bed. "Now that Mammon isn't here to disturb us, how would you like to sleep with me?" You feel your face heat up at the words. The demon made it sound innocent enough, as if all you'd be doing was sharing a bed, but you can already tell that his intentions are far from pure.

"Asmodeus, don't disturb MC." Simeon's disapproving gaze flits over the demon as he pulls you from his grasp, and you're forced to remember that while demons are of unimaginable strength, angels seem to also share in those superhuman qualities. You have to avert your eyes from Simeon's toned muscles when he unclasps the white cloak around his shoulders.

"Oh my~" Asmodeus teases, at Simeon's side in an instant. "Is this what you've been hiding from us these past three days?"

Asmodeus wraps Simeon in a strange embrace from behind, not hugging the angel as much as he's feeling up his muscles. "Don't worry, I could treat you instead."

"Asmo, stop flirting with him," You murmur, flopping onto your bed. You toss a glance toward your luggage which Barbatos had magicked back up here before turning your gaze away. Nope. You're not going through the hassle of unpacking all over again.

"Thank you, MC," Simeon murmurs with a sigh, his usual smile back on his face. He flashes you a look-what-we-have-to-deal-with look, and you can't help but wonder how he manages to stay in such good nature all the time, especially when he's constantly in the presence of his natural enemies. "Anyway, I was planning on sleeping now. This whole retreat has been rather exhausting, wouldn't you agree?"

"Wait!" You murmur, startling the two men. You let an eager smile spread across your face, silently praying that your human charms will be able to convince them of what you're about to suggest. "Why don't we all stay up?"

"Oh~?" Asmodeus coos, clapping his hands together. "A three-way! I didn't know you were confident enough to take us both at once, but if you're up to it then—"

"I don't think that's what MC was trying to imply." Simeon shakes his head and you can't help but think that he's like a chaperone for Asmodeus. He turns to you. "We should stay up doing what?"

"Just stay up! We do it all the time in the human world!" You let your smile widen, memories of your time with friends in the human world flashing through your mind. "It's called a sleepover! If you have a few friends gathered together and you're all supposed to be sleeping in the same room, you just stay up the whole night and watch movies or talk and have fun and stuff. They're awesome!"

Simeon brings a gloved hand up to his face, considering the idea. "I suppose Diavolo's objective with this retreat was to bring the three realms closer together. Trying this human tradition may not be such a bad idea."

Next to him, though, Asmodeus pouts. "Ehh? But if I don't sleep my face will be all puffy in the morning!" He brings two hands to his cheeks, feeling his soft skin. "And my skin is already suffering from Lucifer's pillow attack last night..."

"Nope!" You jump off the bed, suddenly refreshed. When you proposed the idea of a sleepover, you were really only trying to get Simeon to agree. With his consent, you have no hesitations about forcing Asmodeus to play along irrespective of how the demon feels about it. "You're staying up! It's decided! We're having a sleepover!"

You clap your hands eagerly, and the two men in front of you seem to let go of their final doubts after seeing how happy it makes you.

"So how does this 'sleepover' begin? A traditional ritual? A prayer for a fulfilling night? A sacred chant?" Simeon's gaze is serious, and you have to stifle your laughter.

"Um, most of the sleepovers I've been to have started off as a pool party. But that doesn't matter!" You pinch the fabric of the bed you've spent the past two nights sleeping on. It's a bit on the thicker side, but it should work. "Let's start by building a fort!"

You started off eager, beyond optimistic about the idea of having a sleepover when you haven't had one since leaving the human world...but you quickly find that there are some differences between your normal human friends, and the demon and angel sitting in front of you.

"A fort? You want us to cast a fortification?" Simeon asks with concerned eyes, uncertainty creeping in. He glances around the bedroom, wondering how you plan to turn it into a protected stronghold.

It takes all your power not to facepalm then and there.

At Asmodeus's next words, you can only stare in disbelief. "No! MC means a military fort! It'll be tough, but we should be able to transform these walls with some high-level sorcery."

After you manage to explain that what you meant was a blanket fort, though, both Simeon and Asmodeus end up being shockingly helpful. Apparently, living for thousands of years gives you a pretty deep understanding of how to manipulate fabrics, and within minutes the two of them have suspended your bed-sheet in the air, somehow managing to tie the four corners to the three bedposts that are closest to the center of the room.

From there on, you all work together to double up two quilts on the ground as a makeshift carpet, and after the skeleton of the blanket fort is completed, everything becomes about the aesthetic.

You and Simeon creep around on your knees inside the fort, straightening out corners and tightening knots that need to be tightened. Outside, Asmodeus dances around, tossing additional blankets on top of the fort to create velvety walls to the structure. He spends nearly five whole minutes fiddling with the two blankets closest to the door, attempting to get them to match the shape of an opening curtain before you finally pull him inside.

"This is perfect!" You exclaim as you gaze around the fort. The bedposts that support the blanketed ceiling are fairly high up, so you're able to lean your back against the bedframe and sit upright with no problems. Simeon, on the other hand, is struggling.

"It's...low," He murmurs, craning his neck down. He keeps a hand on top of his head, earnestly trying his best not to disturb the ceiling of this fort, but you can tell that it's a struggle.

"No problem!" Asmodeus exclaims, extending a hand outward. He's more energetic than usual, which is surprising, given how mopey he originally was about the idea of staying up the whole night. He closes his hand into a fist and instantly, the entire fort begins to glow a faint purple, a mirror of the magenta hue radiating off Asmodeus's body.

You glance at Simeon, wondering whether the angel is as concerned over Asmodeus's actions as you are, but he seems nonchalant as the demon continues casting his magic.

And after the spell is complete, you understand why.

"Woah!" You exclaim, glancing around wildly. "I had no clue you could do that! Why didn't you tell me? This blanket fort looks amazing now!"

You glance upward, unable to even close your mouth in awe of how brilliant the fort looks. In truth, the fact that the three of you had managed to erect a ceiling for the fort already put it above all the blanket forts you'd built with your human friends, but this? Asmodeus's spell completely reworked all the blankets in the fortress: the fabrics move on their own, straightening and reknotting themselves until the structure has completely shifted. For starters, the ceiling is now a dome, the topmost part of the blanket knotted around the chandelier in your quarters. And the way the rest of the quilts draped down from the top truly makes your fort look like a princess's room, the most brilliant fort you've ever seen.

"A job well done, Asmodeus," Simeon compliments, now able to sit upright.

"Call me Asmo," The demon says with a wink. Asmodeus—or Asmo, rather—then turns his gaze to you, where you still have your mouth dropped open in awe of how beautiful this whole setup is. "Oh my, MC~ You certainly seem impressed. If you want, I have something even more remarkable in my pants that I could show you. I'm sure you'd love it~"

Yep.

Moment ruined.

Congrats, Asmo.

You flash the demon a dirty look, but even you can't hold up the facade for long before your frown turns into a laugh. You flop down on the soft floor, spreading your limbs out like a starfish while Simeon stretches next to you. "This is the best fort I've ever seen."

"I'm glad. This was...surprisingly fun, given that all we did was rearrange blankets." Simeon ruffles your hair, his smile bright as he gazes down at you. "What's next on the sleepover agenda?"

"Ehhhh?" You let your mouth drop in mock disbelief, ignoring how much your whine sounds like Asmo's. "You don't want to savor how awesome this is? Lie down on your back! It feels so good to appreciate all our hard work!" You pat the empty spaces next to you, inviting both Simeon and Asmo to lean back with you.

You know that they're only doing it to humor you, but they finally lean back by your side. "Oh," Simeon murmurs softly when his back presses into the ground. Asmo makes a similar sound, and you can't help but smile.

It's something you've done in every sleepover.

People always live such rushed lives. Even in their relaxation, it's hard to fully lie back and just chill, which is why you always make your friends do this. It doesn't even matter if the blanket fort attempted was successful or not—there's something about just leaning back and looking up, letting every muscle in your body loose and simply bathing in repose, that nothing else can replicate.

And while your human friends didn't always appreciate it, the sounds of contentment coming from Asmo and Simeon are more than enough to tell you that they understand you.

They get it.

"I could stay like this for the rest of the night," Asmo murmurs with a content sigh.

"Do that and you'll fall asleep," You respond. "And that breaks rule number three of all sleepovers!"

"Rule number three?" Simeon asks. "There are rules to sleepovers?"

"Of course," You stretch your hand up above your hand, shifting it with one eye closed until your palm is centered in the blanket fort's dome. You extend one finger up. "Rule number one: What happens in a sleepover stays in a sleepover."

Next to you, you hear Asmo smirk at that rule. You can already hear the flirtatious comment on his tongue before you raise a second finger and continue, not even giving the demon a chance. "Rule number two: No secrets! Whether you're playing truth-or-dare or FMK, you have to be completely honest! And you don't need to worry about any secrets getting out, because rule number one prevents that!"

"What's truth-or-dare?"

"And what's FMK?"

"Um...on second thought, it's best not to play either of those games when Asmo is here." You chuckle lightly, holding back a shudder at all the lewd innuendos that he would throw your way if you were to introduce either game to him. "And the third rule, the last rule, is to stay up as late as possible! That means no sleep!"

"Eh?" Asmo whines. "But it's called a sleep-over!"

You let your hand drop to the blanket you're on top of.

"Hm," Simeon says, thinking out loud. "So how do we bind ourselves to these rules? Do you swear on your lives? Or perform rituals? Or is it just that you're subject to God's wrath if you fail to properly adhere to them?"

You twist your head to the left, staring straight into Simeon's emerald eyes at his question. He's not serious, is he?

And as usual, Asmo somehow manages to top his comment, suggesting something even more outrageous.

"Oh, you angels are so uncreative. Humans obviously make blood pacts."

You sigh helplessly, unable to do anything but shake your head at the ridiculous propositions tossed forth by Simeon and Asmo as they continue to debate how humans ensure that these rules are followed through with, each idea worse and more unrealistic than the last.

"It's an honor system," You finally say, when their debate comes to a standstill. "A sleepover is all about trust. Trusting the people you're spending the night with, and letting them see a new side to you, no matter how vulnerable. You just have to trust that everyone will stay true to the rules."

"I had no clue you trusted us so much~" Asmo teases, rolling over so that he's on his side and staring straight at you. He tilts your chin up toward him and leans in dangerously close. "Is it truly wise to trust a demon?"

You stiffen.

Asmodeus's eyes are bright with the fire of his namesake. Lust, his eyes spell out as he looks at you, gaze unwavering with that devilish smirk on his face.

You're frozen. And as Asmo's lips draw closer, you feel a smidgen of fear seep in.

Simeon is the one to snap you both out of it, placing a tender hand on your shoulder and a more admonishing squeeze on Asmo's. It's subtle, but the protective gesture means more than words can say.

Next to you, Asmo laughs, sitting up to face Simeon. "You two are no fun~" He teases, the normal flirtatious grin back on his face.

Simeon sighs for the umpteenth time. It suddenly dawns on you that it was no coincidence that Diavolo placed you in the same room as a demon and an angel. There's no doubt that Solomon can hold his own against his roommates, but Simeon's purpose here isn't just to rest in the same room. He's here to protect you, the only other human in the entire Devildom. So that his angelic qualities can negate whatever demonic attributes Asmodeus may have brought with him into the room.

But still, your words from barely thirty seconds ago flash through your mind.

A sleepover is all about trust. Trusting the people you're spending the night with.

You drag your hand forward, hesitating for a moment before you place it on top of Asmo's. His hand is larger than yours, but you give it a squeeze. "I do trust you, Asmo." You flash him a smile and turn toward Simeon, lacing your fingers with his when his palm is under yours. "And I trust you, too."

Your smile is dazzling as you grin at them, all fears of angel and demon alike vanishing. That alone is enough to melt all the tension in the room, and within seconds both of the men and your sides are relaxed once more.

"What's next, hm?" Simeon asks. He'd started out hesitant about this whole idea, but he now seems eager to see what plans you have in store for them.

"We should tell scary stories to each other and cuddle up when one of us gets scared~" Asmo exclaims with a chuckle. He says it as a joke, but his guess is spot-on.

"Actually, Asmo's right."

"Whoa! Does that mean you'll reward me, MC~"

"No, Asmo." You smack Asmo's arm before he can protest, giving it a gentle whack to tell him to tone it down. Given that he's one of the strongest demons in the entire Devildom, you probably had no reason to hold back on him, but your more docile instincts from being surrounded by non-indestructible humans always prevail. "But you can start us off!"

You flash the demon an expectant grin, pulling yourself into a seated position. In truth, you have high hopes for this story. Back in your days in the human world, the scary stories used to be your favorite part of every sleepover—but none of the tales ever really measured up. (Except for that one time your best friend read off a horror story about clowns and your other friend then barged into the room in full horror-clown makeup, laughing like a maniac. Yeah, that was terrifying. Short-lived, but utterly terrifying.)

"Get ready to be scared," Asmo warns as he lets his body glow purple again while he casts another spell, and when the purple light has faded it's so dark that you can't even see Simeon's face. You wrap your hand around his, the eagerness you were feeling one second ago now turned into a queer mix of both dread and excitement.

A horror story from a real demon. That's the dream, isn't it?

And so Asmo begins.

And so Asmo also fails.

By the time he's complete, you're left more confused than anything else.

"Asmo...what was the scary part?" Simeon asks, voicing your every thought. You think back to the plot of the story Asmo just shared, from the beginning where there was only the princess in the castle guarded by the dragon to the end, where she and the prince who saved her lived happily ever after, and the middle which was mostly about her falling in love.

"Yeah," You agree with Simeon after another moment's deliberation. "Was the fight scene between the dragon and the prince supposed to be the 'horror' part?"

"Eh?" Asmo exclaims, using his magic to turn all the lights back on. He turns to you with his mouth wide open. "The entire story was terrifying! The dragon was the most handsome in the entire kingdom of dragons—he was protecting the princess! But then the prince came and saved her, and he wasn't even super attractive. And the princess chose the average prince over the beautiful dragon just because she was raised to believe that the dragon was a monster! How terrifying is that?"

You stare at Asmo in disbelief. A part of you should have expected this from the demon; it might have been scarier if he'd actually come out with a true horror story.

"Oh, Asmo. Did you find this story scary because you're afraid that you'll be the dragon and that some prince will steal the princess MC away?" Simeon murmurs with a twinkle in his eye, a slight smirk on his face. "Oh my, does that make me the prince?"

For the first time, you see Simeon teasing and Asmo sulking as the latter pouts and crosses his arms. "Dragons are cooler! Right, MC? Aren't demons better than angels?"

You smile, pressing a quick kiss to the cheeks of both Asmo and Simeon. You had hesitated before doing it, but the look of surprise and wild blush on their faces makes it worth it.

"They're equally cool. Now, Simeon! Your turn!"

You and Asmo give the angel a moment to collect his thoughts before he takes his turn to regale you with a brilliant story. To his credit, he really tries to include horror. You can tell by his use of the "evil clown" and "omniscient witch" that he's trying his best. Unfortunately, his angelic spin on the entire plot makes the story sound like a kid's movie.

Impressive, but not quite what you're looking for.

"That...wasn't scary, was it?" Simeon drops his head when he's done. You pat him on the shoulder, comforting him by saying 'at least it wasn't like Asmo's' and then it's your turn.

And if there's one thing you're good at, it's telling horror stories.

It takes you a moment to pick one, but you finally settle on the tale of Bloody Mary.

By the time you finish, ending with an ominous warning about mirrors (more directed to Asmo then anything else) you're satisfied, and you can feel how stiff Simeon is. The uncomfortable look on his face lets you know that you did a good job with your telling, but you can't help but feel a pang in your heart when he quietly asks why you had to make it so scary.

But if your horror story was bad, Asmo makes it even worse.

"Hey, guys..." He trails off, and for the first time, you hear what must be Asmo's completely serious voice. You and Simeon look at each other worriedly, probably wondering the same thing. Did we break Asmo? But the demon's next words are truly chilling. "The human tale of Bloody Mary is true. She's a demon. I met her four thousand years ago. And...I think we should summon her."

Asmo pulls out a mirror—you momentarily wonder how he managed to pull one out so quickly before realizing that this is the narcissistic Asmo himself—and he begins to recite a demonic chant.

In seconds, you and Simeon are wrapped in each other's arms in a meek sort of protection, screaming together and at Asmo to stop and not summon the terrifying woman you just spent the past half hour depicting as the scariest entity in the world, before Asmo finally drops the mirror.

The pin-drop silence that follows is deafening, and you cling to Simeon tighter, quietly thinking that if Bloody Mary really does appear, then you'll sacrifice both men in the room and make a run for Lucifer's quarters before anything can happen to you.

But Asmo is the one to break the silence.

"Just kidding~"

Cue the next round of screaming.

You and Simeon team up to throw every pillow in sight at the demon, snatching them back as soon as they hit him to leave him with nothing to defend himself. "Ah!" Asmo exclaims, covering his face. "Not my face!" You suddenly wish for Lucifer, furious at Asmo for being such a little devil. You were actually scared for a moment there.

"Enough, enough!" Asmo groans out after what feels like an eternity of whacking him with feather-stuffed pillows. He breathlessly crawls next to Simeon and leans his back on one of the only spots in the entire blanket fort with a bed. "If I'd known you two were such scaredy-cats, I would have been a little less convincing," He murmurs with a wink, snuggling up against Simeon. "But this angel here looks so cute when he's scared~"

Simeon makes no motion to shake Asmo off, only leaning back on the bedpost.

"What time is it?" He asks with a yawn, and you can tell that the sudden exercise of assaulting Asmo via pillows tired him out.

You check your D.D.D. and are surprised to find that it's already well past four in the morning, telling him as much.

"But we can sleep now if you like," You murmur when a wave of drowsiness hits you. Like it's contagious, you can tell that even Asmo seems tired.

"B-but rule three!" Simeon exclaims, surprised.

"Rules are meant to be broken," You smirk, stretching yourself out across Asmo and Simeon. All the pillows in the room have been tossed to the corners of the room courtesy of Asmo, so these two boys' laps would have to suffice for your slumber. "That's why we don't have any stupid blood oaths to bind ourselves to them. Humans need sleep, hm?" Your words tumble out in more of a mumble than anything else, and you can feel the smile on Simeon's and Asmo's faces as they watch you drift off in their laps.

Vaguely, you hear them continue to talk. For how long? You can't be sure. But by the end of the hour, the room is dark and silent once more, the three of you separated only by the thin veil of dreams.

***

"I'm sorry, Diavolo," Lucifer mumbles in a huff, crossing his arms. The demon is worked up, Diavolo can tell, but he's unsure of how to comfort his friend so he simply lets Lucifer continue to rant. "All three of them were down on time these past three days, so I just assumed that they'd wake up on their own today as well."

"Do not fret, Lucifer!" Diavolo exclaims with a pleasant grin. His walk is brisk as he makes his way to the room where he knows you, Asmo, and Simeon are to be staying in, and he's almost excited to hear what excuse the three of you will throw his way.

In fact, that's the one thing he loves about the members of the House of Lamentations.

The seven brothers are each exotic in their own way, only Lucifer being responsible enough to give him full honesty and transparency. The other six are reliable, no doubt, but their methods are always entertaining.

Diavolo opens the door with a master key, entering the room with Lucifer hot on his heels. But the sight that greets him is beyond strange.

"What did they do?" Lucifer asks. Diavolo can sense his anger, and a small part of it finds it amusing.��Truly. Lucifer's anger exists for my lack thereof.

He glances around the room, wondering how much time it took to do all this tampering. Every single blanket in the room has been stripped off the bed, likely stuffed inside the large dome-like structure (which, in turn, is also made of blankets) in the center of the room.

"Why, they've created their own castle in my castle," Diavolo jokes, pulling back the makeshift curtain that forms the entrance. He's about to enter when his eyes catch sight of the three people he's been looking for.

Next to him, Lucifer's breath catches in his throat.

For the first time in four hundred years, both men are stunned into silence.

All three of you are sleeping on top of one another, the first union Diavolo has ever seen of the human world, Celestial Realm, and Devildom.

"What are they..." Lucifer mumbles, but Diavolo places a quick finger to his lips. He doesn't want to disturb this.

His eyes skit over the three of you, taking in the image so that he can perhaps describe it to a demon painter. It's...truly inspiring.

For the first time, demon and angel are slumbering together in peace, with both Simeon and Asmodeus sleeping in upright seating positions. Their backs are pressed against the bed, and while Simeon rests his head against the pillar in what seems like a somewhat uncomfortable position, Asmo has made himself cozy, resting his head delicately on Simeon's shoulder with a hand wrapped around the angel's muscular arm.

You, on the other hand, must have been reluctant to sleep sitting up. You lie on the floor, lower body stretched out with Simeon's white cloak draped across your legs, upper body thrown across Asmo's lap. Your head rests on Simeon's upper thigh, arms wrapped around his waist while you bury your head in his stomach in what looks like an awfully human, childlike pose.

And the two men both have their arms resting on your body, one of Simeon's gloved hands nestled in your (h/c) locks with Asmo's free arm tossed over your body in a quiet pull to get you closer to him.

It's a sleepover of the ages: the first of its kind in thousands of years.

All of you rest with smiles on your faces, and the way Diavolo's face brightens up at the sight of you is enough for anyone to know that this is what he's been seeking in his journey to unite the three realms.

The future ruler of the Devildom pulls Lucifer out of the room, giving the younger demon no chance to disturb the three of you in what Diavolo hopes is the first of many more nights of happiness and union.

I'll extend the retreat even longer! He thinks joyously, a grin spreading across his features as he recalls the sight of the three of you once more.

It's the first time that a demon, an angel, and a human have all been so content with one another. The first time that a demon, an angel, and a human have been comfortable with each other enough to sleep without any protections. The first time that a demon, an angel, and a human have placed enough trust in each other to slumber so vulnerably.

Diavolo grins.

His plan to unite the three great realms of the world has finally begun to piece together.

The content, trusting smiles on your faces as you, Simeon, and Asmodeus slumber are Diavolo's testimony to that fact.

MASTERLIST

Word count: 5.1k

Notes: If you guys are interested, I might consider adding a second chapter that's a bit more adult, but for now ill leave this as just some wholesome fluff~ aghhh Simeon is too precious x3 ALSO YEY IVE FINALLY ENTERED THE OBEY ME FANDOM

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I do not own the rights to Obey Me! or any of the characters within it.

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charlemange1 · 4 years

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Ranking adaptations of Victor Frankenstein from least to most evil

The character Victor Frankenstein has been adapted many times over the years. Sometimes he’s a heroic YA protagonist while others have him using his clone army to wipe out humanity and take over the world. But which Victor is truly the worse?

After reading several adaptations, I’ve decided to rank Victor’s morality in each one and find out! The gothic lit community doesn’t talk about these adaptations much, so hopefully this list can introduce the fandom to some of the lesser-known interpretations out there!

This is part one, which ranks printed retellings only. If people enjoy it, I’ll do a part two and merge the films into the mix!

Disclaimers (please read):

SPOILERS! Victor’s actions in these adaptations will be thoroughly analyzed with no regard for the spoiler tag.

Some of the more evil Victor’s get into dark territory, and while I will not go into extensive detail (lest I go insane) if mentions of abuse, sexual themes, possessive behavior and murder bother you, don’t make my mistake and turn back! (I will leave an additional reminder when said parts come up)

This list centers on Victor’s actions and NOT the quality of the books themselves—so if you see your favorite title getting a low score it’s not because it’s a bad book—it’s because Victor is a jerk.

This list is by no means complete, just the ones I’ve read personally.

These are my silly personal opinions and if you disagree with my ranking that’s perfectly fine!

Ranking: On a 1-10 scale, with 10 being fantastic and 0 being “run if you see this man in a dark alley.”

10/10 Perfect Sunbeam. Overall great, wholesome guy!

*crickets chirp in a serene backdrop of a Romantic field*

Good dude

Junji Ito’s Frankenstein: 8.5/10

Props to the master of manga monsters for making the twist be that Victor is not secretly evil/insane.

Not only does Victor pity the creature and agree to create a mate for him—but he keeps his word! This is especially touching when you consider how the creature treks alllllll the way to Switzerland to dig up Justine’s head as a face for the bride. (Henry says he probably didn’t know it was Justines, but come on, you just happened to pick up the head of the girl you framed and carried it for miles across land and sea to deliver it to Victor instead of stopping somewhere closer? I don't buy it.)

Victor even goes the extra mile, kindly stating:

Yet the bride rejects the creature (not Victor’s fault) and in revenge, the creature kills Henry, Elizabeth, and Alphonse. In retaliation, Victor follows him onto the ice and relates his tale to Walton before dying.

Victor's actions are nothing heroic, but what more could he have done? He didn’t break his promise and kill the bride like in the original novel and he clearly cared about reanimating “Justine” as shown in the above image.

And did I mention this manga was done by Junji Ito? Would YOU stay in the same room if you created a Junji Ito monster? Didn't think so! After the initial mistake of abandoning his monster, this Victor did the best he could to make amends and protect his family--making him an overall good person.

Decent guy

This Dark endeavor by Kenneth Oppel: 7/10

Serving as a prequel to the original novel, This Dark Endeavor tells the untold story of what leads young Victor Frankenstein to create his monster.

While Victor very much struggles with his angsty dark desires (bad), he tirelessly searches for the alchemic "Elixir of Life" to save his twin brother (good). A brother who is more talented than Victor, has the heart of his love interest, and Victor believes everyone prefers over himself.

Good on you, Victor, for letting the love for your brother override understandable sibling jealousy. If that wasn’t enough to make him decent, letting a few fingers be cut off to save his twin definitely does.

What brings Victor down to a 7 is his relationship with Elizabeth. It’s born out of jealousy from her loving his twin rather than genuine affection. Even if this retelling makes Elizabeth a feisty, pants-wearing independent female (to lessen the possessive undertones Victor exhibits, I presume? Read it and judge for yourself), the relationship does nothing positive for his character. Tricking someone into kissing you is a jerk move, bro.

Ok I guess….

Such Wicked Intent by Kenneth Oppel 6/10

The sequel to This Dark Endeavor loses Victor’s careful balance of good and bad traits its predecessor boasted. Victor wasn’t perfect in TDE, but the majority of his negative actions stemmed from trying to save his ill brother and were mostly forgivable. In Such Wicked Intent, his understandable sibling jealously now comes off as petty since Victor’s twin is already dead.

Victor trying to bring his brother back to life (good) is undermined by his growing reliance on supernatural butterflies that increase his abilities despite other characters pointing out the obvious danger. Victor is also not the greatest parent to Twin 2.0 and the previous issues with him and Elizabeth from book 1 don’t improve. He’s the same Victor from TDE, but the plot focusing on his selfish desires makes him more flawed as a result.

Frankenstein by Mary Shelley (the original novel): 6/10

Depending on how you interpret the events of the original novel, Victor is either a college Dad in over his head and trying his best after an initial mistake, or a misogynistic, irresponsible jerk only capable of thinking of himself. There are enough professional articles to support both interpretations, and I’m not the person to pick one over the other.

However, if the narrative he tells Walton is to be taken as truth (and the creature not correcting Victor's account tells me it is), Victor spent most of the novel trying to fix his mistake (intentions may vary)—and isn’t too bad as a result.

Pride and Prometheus by John Kessel: 5/10

Despite being a crossover with Pride and Prejudice, Kessel tries to be as faithful to the original Frankenstein as possible. However, the few changes he makes hurts Victor from a moral standpoint.

Victor’s not the greatest guy when handling the romantic gestures of both Mary Bennet and Henry. Also, murdering his creature's mate with poison right before they leave to start their happily ever after is awful, but understandable from his point of view.

Then there's P&P's ending, where Walton describes meeting Victor on the ice. It’s revealed that Victor left killing the creature's mate and the Bennet’s out of his narrative. While this is probably Kessel justifying why Jane Austen’s characters and his changes weren’t mentioned in the original text (and who can blame him?) it does make Victor a liar. In the original, the creature never called Victor out for omitting anything—so altering the story on his deathbed places P&P’s Victor a rung lower than his original counterpart.

Ehh….

Frankenstein According to Spike Milligan: 4/10

As a nearly-word-for-word retelling with minor, humorous changes by the comedian Spike Milligan, Victor is more pathetic than anything. He’s a harmless, pathetic, hilarious jerk.

Some quotes:

"I bounded along with feelings of unbridled joy and hilarity. From a great distance my family could see me bounding with unbridled joy and hilarity." (53)

"'I tell you,’ I said, ‘that murderer had his trousers down, was eating fish paste sandwiches and traveling 100 miles per hour.’" (59)

"‘I can offer you no consolation,’ said he.

‘Then piss off.’ said I." (54)

Here’s his jail visit with Justine in animatic form (and me shamelessly plugging my other creative endeavors)

Monster by Neal Bell 3.5/10

Warning: contains mentions of animal abuse

On one hand, Victor wants to conquer death to save his family and is clearly disturbed over Justine's and his mother’s death. However, the man expresses little concern at the possibility of William getting struck by lightning with his kite in front of his mother who had already lost 9 children.

He can also talk to dogs and cats (for…some reason?) who are portrayed as intelligent beings with feelings—yet that doesn’t stop him from eating said dogs in the Arctic and killing said cat after threatening her with a knife. He also flings around Bible verses while being painfully egotistical about “being God”.

Using Henry’s romantic affections toward him to his advantage, briefly forcing himself on Elizabeth, and tenderly caring for his monster only to abandon him after the creature expresses a want to die just makes him an awful person all around. The fact he doesn’t do these things with clear malicious intent saves him from being any lower.

Quotes:

ELIZABETH: A bone. A brittle bit of skin. A tooth—

VICTOR: Would you not be womanish now?

Be useful. Here—hold the Leyden jar,

While I attach the string…

VICTOR: A satisfactory morning, then, Mister Puss—tormenting the dogs?

CAT: God gave me a duty. I fulfill it.

VICTOR: Papa says there is no God.

(He takes out a knife)

Pretty bad dude

WARNING: Please note that some of these Victors get into unsavory territory. If the mention of sexual themes/abuse/murder bothers you turn back:

The Casebook of Victor Frankenstein by Peter Ackroyd: 3/10

This one was tricky. The narrative chugs along with Victor being an intelligent, thoughtful guy with only a few obsessive tendencies. He’s chilling with the Shelleys, talking to the poor in the streets and financially supporting Fred’s family along with giving out generous tips. He’s a cool guy. He’s a great dude! He’s….revealed in the final 2 pages to be recounting everything from a mental asylum, the monster was in his head, and he’s actually the one that committed the murders.

Alrighty then. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Having his insanity revealed in the final pages, it’s hard to judge whether there was genuine malicious intent or if Victor truly thought he created the creature and believed he was doing good in trying to “stop” it. No matter his intentions though, the body count remains and a child strangler has no place being anything higher than a 3.

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Kiersten White: 1/10

We all knew this one would make the list. Elizabeth’s first flashback sets up Victor as having serious issues—the question becomes how low will he go? Turns out pretty low.

He’s the one who killed William and framed Justine along with murdering his father, brother Robert and various people at Ingolstadt.

What really makes him despicable is that Elizabeth is the novel's main POV character who only sticks with Victor so she’s not thrown out on the streets. He’s abusive, controlling, dominating, and so possessive that he’ll perfect reanimation so that not even death can take her away from him! Yikes. I can’t stress enough how being in Elizabeth’s POV makes these actions all the more menacing.

Quote:

“There was never another path for you. Consider how much worse it has all been for me. How much I have had to suffer. And how much of that suffering has been caused directly by you!” His face twitched, and his fingers tightened on the pistol. Then he sighed. “It does not do to dwell on it. There is no point in fighting. This is your fate, Elizabeth Frankenstein. I will let no other claim you—not man, not death, not even God.” (279)

Nice guy.

Despite his terrible actions, Victor is trying to "save" Elizabeth from death. In his mind, he wants what’s best for her. It’s a crazy mind that mixed up domination and love, but the fact that his evil actions come from wanting to keep someone he wants to control cares about safe vs. other versions where his crimes stem from wanting to rival god and rule the world, this version isn’t THAT bad. At least his hearts in the right place—even if his mentality is utter garbage.

The Memoirs of Elizabeth Frankenstein by Theodore Roszak 0/10

*insert my screams of insurmountable anguish here*

Caroline: Hey son, you should do NSFW things.

Victor: Sure. I will now do NSFW things.

Victor: *proceeds to do NSFW things*

The reprint of this novel mentions on the cover it’s erotica, but the copy I bought (and to this day have not finished) had no such disclaimer. I’ll break my rule and speak on the quality of this book: there is none. For an alleged “pro-feminism” novel everyone is terrible—and Victor is no exception.

Literally Satan.

Dean Koontz’s Frankenstein Series: -∞/10

So you’ve read far enough to join me in Hell.

Where do even I start? This is a Victor who extended his life to the present day. Who worked with Hitler, Stalin, Castro and regretted the fall of the Third Reich. Who created an army of emotionally deprived “new race” creations to kill people and assume their identities so he could ascend the ranks of politics. Who, once he has enough of his new race integrated into society, desires to commit mass genocide on humanity and establish himself as supreme ruler of the world—only then can he conquer the cosmos as well because why the hell not?

Oh, and he’s a wife-beater/murderer too! Which isn’t a problem, considering he can create a new wife whenever he sees fit (he was on Erika 5 by book 3). The sheer lack of any positive traits in this man is laughable. Koontz really, REALLY wants to get across that Victor is a bad guy.

And if you’re somehow not convinced by the above description, here are some quotes I pulled from the first 3 novels as a bonus to reeeeeally sell how despicable this clown is:

Regarding Elizabeth:

“Victor had not loved Elizabeth. Love and God were myths he rejected with equal contempt. But Elizabeth had belonged to him. Even after more than 200 years, he still bitterly resented the loss of her, as he would have resented losing an exquisite antique porcelain vase if [his creature] had smashed that instead of the bride,” (3.97).

Regarding Mary Shelley:

“When Mary Shelley took a local legend based on truth and crafted fiction from it, she made Victor a tragic figure and killed him off. He understood her dramatic purpose for giving him a death scene, but he loathed her for portraying him as tragic and as a failure. Her judgment of his work was arrogant. What else of consequence did she ever write? And of the two, who was dead—and who was not?” (1.79-80)

(Author Note: For your information, Victor, The Last Man is considered by some to be the first dystopian novel)

His…ah…"friends”:

“Fire was featured in some of his less pleasant memories. The great windmill. The bombing of Dresden. The Israeli Mossad attack on the secret Venezuelan research complex that he had shared with Mengele in the years after World War Two. Nevertheless, he liked to read to the accompaniment of a cozy crackling fire,” (1.76).

“Victor admired Hitler. The Führer knew talent when he saw it.

In the 1930s and 40s, Victor had worked with Mengele and others in Hitler's privileged scientific class. He made considerable progress in his work before the regrettable allied victory…the problem with the Führer had been that his roots were in art and politics…The future did not belong either to artists or to politicians,” (2.24-25).

Dat ego tho:

“When I die, those cells will be capped descend a signal that will be relayed by satellite to everyone made of new race flesh, to every meat machine that walks. And you will fall down dead,’…Victor smiled, anticipating triumph in spite of their silence. ‘Did you think a God would die alone?’” (3.345).

Civilization would not be remade or sustained by Christianity or by Islam. Neither by Scientologists nor by the bright-eyed adherence of the deliciously solipsistic paranoid new religion encouraged by The Da Vinci Code. Tomorrow belonged to scientism. The priests of scientism were not merely robed clerics performing rituals, they were gods, with the power of gods. Victor himself was their Messiah,” (2.25).

“With Victor's unstoppable drive for power, with his singular intellect, with his cold materialism and his ruthless practicality, and now with synchronicity on his side, he had become untouchable, immortal.

He was immortal,” (3.329).

“How they goggled at him, abashed by his wisdom and knowledge, mortified by their ignorance, over-awed by his godlike power,” (3.330).

“’Murder,’ said the caller. ‘murder…excites me.’

Victor kept the growing concern out of his voice. ‘No, your mind is fine. I don't make mistakes.’” (1.156)

Oh yeah, he has a wife, doesn't he:

“This is why Victor requires …the cruel humiliation of his partner. He has long ago transcended the guilt that committing acts of cruelty might spawn in others...the exercise of raw power thrills him,” (1.244).

“I have given you a life…remember that. I have given you a life, and I will choose what you do with it,” (1.464).

Wives view of him:

“She owned literally hundreds of outfits. Having been created to his ideal measurements, Victor had purchased everything…She hoped that someday she would be allowed to shop for herself. When Victor allowed that, she would know she had at last met his standards and earned his trust. Briefly, she wondered what it would be like not to care what Victor—or anyone—thought of her. To be herself. Independent. Those were dangerous thoughts. She must repress them.” (1.107)

And those are just the PG bits, he does much, much worse.

In conclusion:

So yes, Spike Milligan made Victor a pathetic jerk, Casebook made Victor a madman, Memoirs made him an erotic predator, Dark Descent had him as an abusive boyfriend ruthless in possessing “his Elizabeth”, but nearly succeeding at worldwide genocide while abusing/murdering/manipulating people to achieve his goals makes Dean Koontz’s Victor Frankenstein the worse, more morally despicable Victor Frankenstein of them all. At least from what I’ve read.

Annnnd that’s it! If you want me to make a part 2 and add in the films/plays let me know! Hopefully at least one of these peeked your interest as something to check out during spooky season.

Shameless plug-in: here’s my own Frankenstein adaptation

Bonus!

Ranking the books on how much I liked them personally!

Great:

The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein: Nice to see Victor’s villainy stem from family relations and not ego and wanting to defy God for a change.

Junji Ito’s Frankenstein: Phenomenal artwork, fairly faithful adaptation, and the changes serve to put Victor in a better light—which I love! The master of manga monsters himself made the right choice in keeping the creature more monstrous in this version instead of focusing on his humanity.

This Dark Endeavor: Frankenstein characters go on a Harry Potter styled adventure. Need I say more?

Average:

Such Wicked Intent: Victor’s character takes a dip, and pit monsters/life-absorbing butterflies don’t quite fit in a Frankenstein prequel.

Frankenstein According to Spike Milligan: It’s a silly, stupid comedy. Got a few chuckles out of me.

Pride and Prometheus: The concept works way better than it should. However, it follows the original text to a fault and can be boring at points.

Bad:

Warning: contains mentions of suicide

Monster: Victor’s character was far too inconsistent to be likable. He can talk to animals why, exactly?

Casebook of Victor Frankenstein: So, Victor is revealed to be crazy in the final 3 pages? So, the monster was in his head? Alright. But other characters throughout the book SAW the monster and described him like Victor did. So, there’s no way to separate Victor’s POV from reality and that kills the reread value and makes this a waste of time. Don’t get me wrong, the creature being symbolic for Victor’s inner demons is a fascinating direction if done well—and I recommend the essay “Frankenstein: The Man and the Monster” by Arthur Belefant if you want a much shorter exploration of this concept. It’s not perfect, but beats Casebook by a longshot!

Also, taking the real-life suicide of Percy’s wife Harriet and turning it into Victor murdering her and framing it on someone else to mimic Frankenstein’s Justine/William scene is just wrong. You made a woman’s suicide a cheap plot point in your fanfic of the mistress’s novel. That is what you did, author.

Dean Koontz Frankenstein: It starts out good and has great suspense—too bad the actual plot is awful. Victor’s so painfully evil it comes off as comical, the characters are bad/bland, plot holes abound (they state Mary Shelley’s novel is canon, then mention the windmill which was only in the films—so who even IS this Victor? Book or film?). The conclusion in book 3 is one of the most underwhelming finals I’ve ever read, and the creature “cures” a kid of Autism in the final chapter. No really. How this is a book series/comic series/movie is beyond me.

So atrocious I couldn’t bring myself to finish:

Warning: contains mentions of sexual themes

The Memoirs of Elizabeth Frankenstein: It claims to be pro-feminist, but the women “good guys” blatantly state they are grooming children for sexual rituals and Victor and Elizabeth are coerced into doing NSFW things by Victor’s mother in the name of “women’s rights”. Here’s the kicker: these awful actions are framed as being positive. I—a woman—loath this novel. Maybe things got better by the end (and if there was some plot twist that changed the entire setup, I apologize for ranting about nothing) but I’m not reading to that point to find out! This will forever stay both my first and last experience with erotic literature. Thank goodness The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein exists to give us a decent feminist take on Frankenstein!

#THIS TOOK OVER 5 YEARS AND I'M FINALLY DONE!#victor frankenstein #frankenstein #halloween #gothic literature #classic literature #frankenstein adaptations #frankenstien au #frankenstein memes #the casebook of victor frankenstein #the dark descent of elizabeth frankenstein #frankenstein according to spike milligan #dean koontz frankenstein #Monster neal bell #this dark endeavor #such wicked intent #pride and prometheus #charlemagne1

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takoyakitenchou · 3 years

Text

You and I, a takumegu story

joy is meant to be fleeting. and yet.

Morning

“Takumi-kun,” Megumi yawned as she approached him bearing onigiri and a stainless steel HydroFlask filled to the brim with piping hot jujube tea.

The Italian greeted her with a steaming mug of coffee from his espresso machine in his kitchenette. “I wish I could say good morning, but I’m rather averse to the notion at this point.”

Megumi laughed. It was nearing 5 AM in Tokyo, and they’d been in Takumi’s office at Legislation with a veritable cityscape of the first and second seats’ paperwork organized by importance for the last ten hours. It was tragic that they had agreed to finish all their work a night early so they could enjoy each other’s presence, but this quality time had been relegated to the stupid office.

“Shall we continue?” Megumi asked, her words lacking any and all traces of conviction.

Takumi heaved a sigh. “I’ve signed so many documents today I can’t tell if I’m writing in Japanese or Italian.”

“To be honest, I’ve probably not even been signing my own name,” she mused. Then she blanched. “O-oh no! W-what if I sent t-the—”

“Relax, Tadokoro-san,” Takumi said, sensing an impending panic attack. “I’m sure Arato-san reviewed the documents before we sent them to New York.”

“I was the one reviewing them!”

Takumi put his hand over hers and gave it a reassuring squeeze. His eyes widened slightly as he realized what he was doing, but he brushed the feeling aside. “It’ll be alright, Tadokoro-san. It won’t matter too much.”

It looked for a second as if she were about to implode, but then she sighed, “I don’t have enough energy to hyperventilate.”

“I understood that on so many different levels.” Takumi took one of the onigiri and felt rejuvenated with the first bite, reveling in the warmth of the honey dressed pork. “This is a masterpiece,” he told her. “I feel better than I’ve been the rest of the month collectively.”

She smiled, a faint blush rising to her cheeks. “I’m glad you think so.”

Takumi’s eyebrows drew together. “Tadokoro-san, now that we’re both functional, do you want to visit the noodle festival in Dotonbori?”

She dropped her onigiri. “T-that’s in Osaka, Takumi-kun.”

“Well, Nakiri Alice told me we’re free to take the jet whenever we want as long as it’s not in use.” Takumi lifted his hand. Dangling from his fingers was a lanyard with a small gold key. “Shall we?”

“It’s five in the morning…” But they both knew she was already more than convinced.

When they landed in Osaka, the festival was already underway.

The sun was slipping past the horizon by the time they realized they’d been gone the entire day and probably caused pandemonium at Legislation — tragic, how they were the sole pillar keeping the Elite Ten from falling to pieces — but neither seemed to mind.

They were sitting on a bench, watching the passersby, content with all the noodles they’d consumed.

Takumi furrowed his brows. “Tadokoro-san?”

“Yes, Takumi-kun.”

“How would you feel if we called this a date?”

Megumi’s eyes widened. “E-ehh?”

Takumi’s face turned red as he attempted to contrive a respectable excuse, but his panic was cut short when Megumi took hold of his hand with an uncharacteristically calm air.

“I would love that, Takumi-kun,” she smiled, and with one look, Takumi figured that not even the urban atmosphere around them could compare to the cosmopolitan vibrancy in her gold eyes.

Sunset

There has always been some vague concept of balance. Everything comes with a counterpart; there is no exception to this, and there never will be. It is a universal truth, as constant as the laws of motion, as flexible as time. Balance is often unseen, and yet it is there. Joy is countered with anguish, laughter with tears; neither can exist without the other.

And yet, every time Takumi Aldini’s electric blue eyes fell upon that sweet cinnamon roll of a girl — one hell of a chef when she was provoked, though — he realized that no law was absolute, because he had never experienced anything but exhilaration when he was with her.

Love was fleeting; that was another supposed aphorism he’d learned from the wise.

But loving Tadokoro Megumi was something he could do once, twice, twice eternity.

“It says in Nakiri-san’s memo that we’re supposed to be providing a lunch service for the jury of the Bocuse d’Or,” Megumi frowned, reading the post-it note stuck on the inside cover of the manila folder Alice had provided for this particular task.

Takumi finished off his espresso. They were watching the sunset in Vienna, drinking Melange and sharing a slice of Sachertorte with the sun descending beyond the Wiener Musikverein in the gentle Saturday backdrop. “For a second there I was going to ask you which Nakiri you’re talking about. Isn’t the Bocuse d’Or in France?”

“Lyon,” Megumi confirmed. “I’m betting Nakiri-san sent us here on purpose. Bocuse d’Or won’t even happen this year. Ah, look. She left us a note on the back of the post-it.” Megumi cleared her throat before reading, “Happy one year, lovebirds. You have twelve hours before Erina goes berserk and calls NATO to send troops to find you guys, so enjoy them. Call me when you want the jet to come pick you up from VIE.”

“Well, Tadokoro-san, I guess we can relax for the rest of the task period. Happy one year, by the way.”

Megumi gave him a bright smile and replied, “Happy one year, Takumi-kun.”

The sky was soft, an endless canvas streaked with muted shades of orange and pink, everything blending into a gorgeous view highlighted by the spectacular architecture — and yet Takumi couldn’t seem to register anything other than the remarkable girl blushing nervously across from him.

To think it had been a whole year. It was too good to be true. This was the type of love most men searched for their entire lives without once catching a glimpse of; this was the type of love in fantasy, romance novels — everything an illusion. And yet this was real, as real as the warmth of her heart beating against his when she pressed her nose to his neck.

Takumi knew even he, with all his virtues, didn’t deserve her. But maybe she’d be willing to take him along for the ride; wherever Tadokoro Megumi went, he would follow.

It was just then that Takumi’s phone rang, snapping both out of their shared reverie.

The Italian sighed as he read the caller ID: Nakiri Erina.

“Do I pick this up?” he mused aloud, but he already had his answer.

“Y-you have to, Takumi-kun! She’s the first seat!”

“What do you say we don’t go back to school?” Takumi said, turning his phone on silent and flipping it face down.

Megumi gave him a horrified look. “You just ghosted Nakiri Erina!”

“I mean, she’s probably too busy dealing with Yukihira’s chaos to care, right?”

“Chaos is a severe understatement,” Megumi admitted. “B-but what if she kicks us off the council?”

Takumi grinned. “It’ll be alright, Tadokoro-san. We have a whole week to ourselves.”

With a sigh, Megumi relented. “So… we’re in Vienna.”

“Right.”

“There’s this restaurant I really want to try… but there’s another place down the street that Ryo-kun said had really good rainbow trout. And while we’re in Europe… have you been to Budapest?”

Takumi clapped his hands together. “Say less. We’re taking a sabbatical for the rest of the month.”

Megumi gave a nervous chuckle. “For research purposes, right? Otherwise Nakiri-san is going to kick us over the Pacific Ocean when we get back.”

At this, Takumi burst out laughing. He managed to choke out, “You are truly one in a million, Tadokoro-san.”

And he meant it.

Dawn

To say Takumi Aldini was known for his elegant calisthenics would be a stretch, but when that chaotically graceful blessing was around him, swinging up onto the rooftop of the trattoria with a picnic basket perched precariously on his fingertips was most definitely not a problem.

Megumi was waiting for him with a fleece blanket around her shoulders and a gentle smile that warmed her gold eyes brighter than the Italian sunrise. “Hi, honey,” she said sweetly, as if she hadn’t prodded him awake ten minutes ago and told him to bring breakfast up to the roof in five. He’d never be able to catch up to her hopping hare speed, but he figured he’d gotten the basics of Tadokoro Time down. To be early was to be on time and to be on time was to be late. Considering he was five minutes past the downbeat, his girlfriend had probably been waiting for him since before the dinosaurs.

“Good morning, amore,” he replied as he sat beside her and opened the basket. Takumi produced a loaf of brioche and began cutting with expert precision, trying to keep his pulse steady as he felt her eyes on him. The small velvet box in his pocket was doing nothing to help this endeavor.

Megumi regarded the two identical 1.8-centimeter slices in awe before thanking him and lifting the first bite to her lips.

“This is delicious,” she said once the tranquil hum of the autumn pond had faded to the back of her mind. “The rosemary completes the ensemble really well.” He was truly amazing; they’d been cooking love confessions for each other for the last seven years and he could still make her heart skip beats. His love was unconditional, more pastel than anything.

“Grazie, amore,” he said. “It means the world coming from you.”

“I’m only telling you the truth,” she blushed. “If I have to, I’ll say it every day to make sure you know that.”

It was now or never.

“Listen, Megumi. There’s something you need to know.”

She gazed up at him curiously over her brioche.

Takumi took a deep breath. To hell with the speech he’d parsed out in his head last night — that kind of thing never worked anyhow.

Loving Tadokoro Megumi was about elements and worlds that weren’t in their dimension or maybe even in their universe; it was something beyond time and space that his mind couldn’t process, much less put into words, but maybe this dawn would help transmit this, somehow.

But it was highly probable that Takumi had been ready for this simple statement since the moment he first laid eyes on her. A night’s worth of drafting could not possibly hope to serve justice to everything he needed to say. It was the pinnacle of all his emotions that would do more than enough, right here, right now.

“If I said I knew exactly when I fell in love with you, I’d be lying, but if anyone asks I’ll tell them I love you now, and that is all that matters. Tadokoro Megumi, you are the most insanely talented, beautiful girl I have ever known, and I am the luckiest man in the world to stand by your side, so thank you for that. I know I’m far from perfect; I have my flaws, and you have yours, but you need to know that every little part of you is absolutely everything to me, and nothing in this universe could ever change that. With your hand in mine we will turn this wasteland into paradise. You and I, no… us. I promise that I will always be with you. Forever is finite. But my love for you is beyond that.”

At this point, Megumi closely resembled something similar to a red train — Takumi swore he could see the smoke venting from her ears — but he’d waded too far in to step back out.

“I have one question for you.” Takumi got down on one knee, reached into his pocket, and pulled out the Verragio box. The ring was elegant to the point where it possessed an ethereal quality. Diamonds seamlessly fused with rose gold on a platinum band; it was definitely flashier than anything either had ever dreamt of before, much less purchased, and yet it was heartfelt and deliberate. And, perhaps most importantly, it spoke volumes — more words and confessions captured within the metal than Takumi could ever express.

It was a promise of the unbridled love he had for her, the promise of a sterling future he wanted to build with her.

“It is a privilege and an honor to love you. Will you make me not only the luckiest, but also the happiest man in the world and marry me?”

She nodded, doing her utmost to fight back the tears. And as dawn broke in the sky above them, the girl that brought onigiri to his office at five in the morning, the girl that laughed at him over hiyamugi and squeaked whenever he wrapped his arms around her, the beautiful girl that always made him wonder what he had done to deserve her, said two words, and that was enough.

“I will.”

soooo um hi @taku-megu i was your secret santa this year! writing a takumegu fic is something i haven’t done before, so i’m really glad i was given the opportunity to write for you. i hope you have a safe and wonderful holiday with your loved ones!

and of course, thanks to @shokugeki-secretsanta for organizing this event :)

- reina

#shokugeki no soma #shokugeki no soma secret santa #takumi aldini #tadokoro megumi #takumegu #merry frickin chriSTmaS

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fe-semi-decent-scenarios · 4 years

Note

Could I ask headcanons of Black Eagles flirting and crushing on Byleth (professor?)?

[Ask and you shall receive lol. Lately I’ve been busying myself with long reports, so I needed something cutsey to recharge.(Sorry if it’s complete rubbish lol) It’s not much but I hope you like it!]

Edelgard:

Ehh. She won’t be a student much longer anyways.

Byleth will always be her professor...but maybe another title can be ticked onto that list? She hopes so.

However, she doesn’t go too overboard. Just a few teasing gestures and quips every once in a while to sedate the budding sentiment in her heart

With more pressing issues over love, Edelgard can’t afford to play the role of lovesick schoolgirl

She sets side her personal feelings for the professor when around others. Instead they are treated as a good friend and adored instructor. Alongside the present given on Byleth’s birthday are a few other trinkets Edelgard picked up herself, you know, because she’s extra

When alone her thoughts often drift. There are many occasions where work ends up procrastinated

She keeps everything bottled up inside and doesn’t even hint at the idea of a crush to anyone. To love is to be compromised, to be compromised is to be weak, and to be weak is to fail

This is something she firmly believes until the support of her peers and affection from her professor begin to challenge it

Perhaps there is room for love in her future

“My teacher, you are an important companion to everyone here and to myself. You must never forget that”

Hubert:

Oh he is smooooth.

Yet subtle

He knows that he shouldn’t become too attached considering what’s to come in the future. His mind and body are her highness’ to command

....well, all good things come in moderation anyways. What’s a little meaningless flirting?

His flirting methods follow the ‘attack of opportunity’ plan. Meaning that he tosses in his quips when the time seems fitting

He knows what he is doing. Never assume otherwise

Obviously such conduct towards a teacher is unrefined. Does he care? The guy couldn’t give less of a sh*t

He has 100% commented on their dancing attire at least once

People should mind their own business lest they want to lose their tongue. Can’t gossip when you can’t speak, right?

If the professor doesn’t seem to mind then why should he stop? If they recuperate then that’s even better

It’s no fun when prey doesn’t fight back once in a while.

“Oh do go on. The droll behind your ever so taunting tone is intoxicating. It almost makes this insufferable lecture mildly entertaining” -shots fired. Professor or not, ‘love interest’ or enemy, Hubert does not tone down the sarcasm

No one even suspects that he has an interest in Byleth. He downright makes it appear that they are his sworn enemy (whether this is intentional or not? You decide)

Caspar:

‘Flirt’? ‘Caspar’? That’s funny

It’s not that he can’t do it. Caspar can be very charming when he wants to be, but why bother?

They’re his professor. If he starts kissing up to them then the others might start to think he’s pegging for special treatment

He also doesn’t want them to like a facade. He wants them to like him

Not that he would turn said special treatment down if offered. He d o e s want to get stronger, and the extra time with his “favorite”*wink* professor is a lucky bonus

He tends to have a ‘lingering eye’ that’s easy to pick up on if you catch my drift

he is not pure hearted, just a dunce. There is a difference

The boy blushes at every little action without even noticing

He loves to watch them train, both to better his own moves and to admire them without it seeming weird

Literally everyone knows that Caspar has a thing for Byleth before he knows it himself. He’s the kind that mistakes a crush for admiration

He’s also a big baby when it comes to them giving other people attention.

He justifies his interruptions as: “The professor doesn’t have time to do __ for __! They have enough to do as it is!”

Now what does that translate to in Caspar language?: “The time the professor spends doing __ is time they could spend with our class me”

Someone help him. He’s so thick headed it’s actually sad

Petra:

“My apologies. I will be returning after the clearing of my head”

She’s unfamiliar with the courting methods in Fodlan. Are they the same as in Bridgid?

Thoughts of the professor occasionally will interfere with her study time

Also her appetite. Normally she eats plenty at meals since she hates waste, but the professor makes her nervous about her etiquette

let’s just ignore that Byleth eats like a ravenous boar

She wants to take them to see Bridgid. It’s only natural to want to share the things you love with those you care about

She embraces the affection she feels. Byleth is a truly wonderful person and the royal family would gladly accept them if Petra expressed her feelings

When she returns she wants to ask them to accompany her

For now she will remain at their side both in battle, in leisure, and in spirit

Petra also isn’t one to approach with caution. The way she flirts is through honesty

If they do something she likes then she says so. If they look nice or are trying something new then she’ll comment on it. If she sees something in the shop that they might like, then she buys it

Petra is simple. She does for Byleth what she thinks will make them happy and doesn’t overthink it in the slightest

Dorothea:

The newfound feelings aren’t discouraged nor appreciated. It is a battle between practicality and love for her

Not because of them being a professor, but everything else

Mercenary, teacher, reincarnate, solider, tactician, etc.

Such a dangerous profession with so much blood on their hands. Are those the ones she wants to hold for the rest of their days?

Will they even live long enough to grow old with her?

She wants a reliable partner to take care of her and not give her a heart attack on a daily basis. So far only one box is checked

She will not be a widow at such a young age. She refuses

When these thoughts emerge Dorothea retracts from Byleth. There’s still the open friendliness that was there before, but now an extra barrier has been put up

She won’t go out of her way to give Byleth special treatment. Her search for a partner other than them will continue on

Maybe she’ll find someone else to smash these feelings so that there will be no need to confront them

Only after they ‘die’ will she stop suppressing them.

“To think that it took such a disaster for me to see the light. Why do people realize such things when it’s too late?” - she focuses on personal growth until the reunion. Relying on another person to prevent the past from reappearing is not what she wants.

Ferdinand:

The best way that Ferdinand can communicate his feelings is through words

He tries. He really tries to come across as a potential life partner for the professor. He can only be a student for so long, and they’re close in age. Logically there is nothing wrong with the possibility of a courtship

but because speaking ‘frilly’ is a normality the effect is not like how he hoped

When Ferdinand falls, he falls hard. Yes, he is a flirt. Yes, he stretches himself thin trying to please everyone. Yes, he has his quirks that make him extremely confrontational

So when he finds someone with the ability to make him both strengthen his morals, question the bigger picture, and grow as an individual (after the whole ‘noble’ mine-bomb) it’s a big deal

Therefore he will not relent in his pursuit of Byleth unless they explicitly tell him to stop. If words don’t work then he instantly pegs for quality time and acts of affirmation

Greets them every morning, carries their supplies, invites them to tea, delivers lost items, etc. People really do peg him as a kiss ass.

He doesn’t get the ‘heart flutters’ that people talk about. When he’s beside the professor he just feels energized. Like he could actually beat Edelgard ‘could’ is the key word in that scentence

“Good morning Professor! If your schedule allows it, would you care to join me for tea later this afternoon? Your company would make it the perfect level of sweetness”

Linhardt:

A firm believer of “age is but a number”

It’s more of his personal beliefs that tone down any pursuit of the professor. They are currently in a position of power over him that halts any relationship progression at a professional level.

So as any healthy person does: he vents any growing affection into his studies

He h a t e s how they make him restless.He’ll be feeling drowsy one moment but then their face will pop into his mind

He can’t even sleep through class. Not with them there

Actually works in the class’ favor since he starts contributing to the lectures. If you can’t beat them then might as well join them

This is how it is during pre-timeskip for the most part. Occasionally he will let his thoughts slip but never any action

He has crests to research and Byleth has students that seemingly want to die by the hour. There is literally no time to flirt

Now AFTER the timeskip, things are different. Linhardt is a blunt person which sometimes works in his favor. Just so happens that flirting comes naturally to him

most of the time it doesn’t though

“Could you refrain from doing that? It’s distracting” “Linhardt, i’m stretching. How is that distracting?” “You are an attractive individual. Need I say more?”

Life is short. He has no filter

Bernadetta:

“HI PROFESSOR!” “Afternoon Bernadetta. I see you’re out of your room today” “W-what? OH! Yes. Y-y-yEs i aM IM SORRY I’LL GO BACK PLEASE DON’T PATRONIZE MEEEEE”

She’s scared. What’s new?

The girl never expected to have these feelings. One night she was painting when what was supposed to be a cloud began to resemble her professor

It was downhill from there.

Her behavior is exactly the same as prior to her feelings. Being a naturally jittery person works to her advantage, no one suspects a thing!

Compared to simply being friends it will take longer for her to be comfortable

She will avoid Byleth at all times outside of lessons. It’s just too hard to communicate anymore

Eventually her outer shell will crack. The once new feelings will begin to feel normal and the old bernie will be back. Jittery, hyperactive, kind, lovable bernie

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vera-simik · 3 years

Text

About my witcher kiddo

I was tagged by @lenkalost and @edenorisshitposting & I want to apologize this took me forever to complete 😅

LAYER ONE : THE OUTSIDE

Eye Color: Golden (sky-blue before mutation)

Name: Weron

Hair Style/Color: honey blonde, usually worn in a low bun, sometimes in a high ponytail

Height: Cca 170 cm

Clothing Style: Anything that’s practical and comfortable

Best Physical Feature: Freckles, eyes, and hair

LAYER TWO: THE INSIDE

Fears: Losing those who are dear to her. Already happened a few times, though...

Ambition for the Future: To live as happy life as possible, to help those who need it, never giving up on trying to find a way to "repair" her damaged memory... And she's also open to a possibility of settling down somewhere in the future, with someone who would like to share it with her (preferably someone with pointy ears... come on, a girl can dream)

Guilty Pleasure: Colorful and patterned mugs and socks/shawls/blankets... She knows she already has too many of them, but... one more CAN'T hurt, right?

Biggest Pet Peeve: Ignorant people & know-it-alls

LAYER THREE: THOUGHTS

First Thoughts Waking Up: “Five more minutes...”

What They Think About the Most: Her thoughts are usually all over the place, but mostly it's reminding herself to do [the thing which is important at the moment], not forget to eat/go to sleep already, what would her grandpa/uncles do [at this situation], oh, this blanket is really pretty...

What They Think About Before Bed: "If dopplers' clothing is part of their body, can they... get undressed...?"

What They Think Their Best Quality Is: She can get along with almost anyone easily.

LAYER FOUR: WHAT’S BETTER?

Single or Group Dates: "Single, of course. I like to talk with the other person without being interrupted by someone else."

To be Loved or Respected: “It certainly isn’t bad to be respected... but I’d prefer to be loved, thank you.”

Beauty or Brains: “Brains, I already AM beautiful... haha... ha... am I the only one laughing? Ok...”

Dogs or Cats: “I don’t like dogs and cats don’t like me. Well... this is a though one...”

LAYER FIVE: DO YOU?

Lie: “I’m trying to lie as little as possible. It’s easier when you don’t have to remember what you said.”

Believe in Yourself: “Sure I do. You know, someone has to...”

Believe in Love: “It certainly isn’t bad to be respected... but I’d prefer to be loved, thank you.”

Want Someone: "Uhh... NEXT QUESTION, PLEASE?"

LAYER SIX: HAVE YOU EVER?

Been on Stage: “Nah, never. I don’t think I could memorize my lines, hah.”

Done Drugs: Never

Changed Who You Were to Fit In: She tries to be true to herself most of the time (although, if the situation calls for it because of tactical reasons...)

LAYER SEVEN: WHAT’S THEIR…

Favourite colours: Dark blue, yellow, lavender purple, crimson and cherry red...

Favourite animal: Owls

Favourite book: Various bestiaries and history books (as well as some cheap romance novels, but that’s a secret)

Favourite game: Gwent. She's not good at it, but enjoys it nonetheless

LAYER EIGHT: AGE

DOB: She doesn’t know, in fact no one knows (but the Creator says it’s more or less half a year after Ciri was born)

How Old Will You Be: 20/21 during the events of TW3

Age You Lost Your Virginity: 17 (it was in Wyzima, with an elf... and it was kinda nice, even if a bit awkward)

Does Age Matter: "Ehh... this really depends on context. Is it about old people finding love? Then the age doesn't matter. Is it about someone making disgusting suggestions to a person several decades younger than them? Then it does & die by my sword, creep."

LAYER NINE: FINISH THE SENTENCE

I love: “My friends and my family... and warm blankets... and that special coffee uncle Eskel makes... and...”

I feel: “Constant curiosity”

I hide: “My diaries. It really ISN’T funny when someone reads them OUT LOUD, right, uncle Lambert AND Ciri?!”

I miss: “Uncle Coen... and all those days everything used to be a lot easier...”

I wish: “All the best to those who are dear to me.”

I should tag someone, right? Well... it's been so long since I was tagged, so I don't know who already did this...

Ok, enough of this, I'm tagging... @akishito & @wackylurker (if you want to, of course 😄)

#weron #witcher oc #the witcher #my ocs #my art #tagged

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aqoursseiyuuheadcanons · 3 years

Text

Strawberry Shortcake (Kyanrika)

Two anonymous have requested a Kyanrika thing so here goes:

It all started one day, in an average studio the members of the idol group Aqours were getting ready for their niconama, one however stood out among the rest. Rikako Aida, the voice of Riko Sakurauchi, a very talented woman who was not afraid to express herself in any situation, she’s also not afraid to tease her teammates when things get heated but in the end she cares a lot for them.

Those qualities would make anyone adore her or in today’s case, swoon..

Enter our protagonist Aika Kobayashi. Voice of Yoshiko Tsushima, a silly, energetic and beautiful young woman with a great sense of humor, a fantastic singing voice and a pure heart.

Aika has had feelings for Rikako for a long time but she never found the confidence to confess, lucky for her she had her two loyal friends Kanako and Ai who suggested a very interesting idea..

KIN: You should definitely invite her to a café, it’s a bit cliché but it makes for a beautiful setting for a confession

AI: I agree

AIKYAN: Thank you guys, I’ll tell her tomorrow now let’s go, the niconama is about to start

*the next day during training*

AIKYAN: Hey Rikyako..?

RKK: Hey kyan! What’s up?

AIKYAN: Well, I was wondering if.. if...

RKK: Eh?

AIKYAN: If you could go to the local café after we’re done, there’s s-something I need to tell you

RKK: Sure! I’m free

From a distance Aika could see both Kanako and Ai giving her a thumbs up, things were looking good and she knew it. “This should work! I see it” she said to herself as she continued practicing.

Later that day the moment finally arrived, Aikyan was already in the café waiting for her beloved Rikyako, what she didn’t know however was that her friends were already inside, watching her from a distance.

KIN (whispering): This is it Furirin, is everything ready?

AI: Yep, I even brought some flowers so that she can give them to Rikyako

KIN: Perfect! Ohhh this is gonna be great! Oh speaking of the angel

As she said that Rikako went inside the café heading to were Aika is, needless to say Aika was excited and anxious at the same time, she could not formulate any words at all not when she saw her partner wearing a cute outfit and had the most innocent smile in her face, but the admiration would have to wait, it was time for her to make a move.

AIKYAN: Hello Rikyako, you look beautiful

RKK: Oh.. hehe thanks, I wanted to wear something for the occasion

AIKYAN: Yeah I can see that haha

Waitress: Sorry for the interruption, would you like something to drink or eat? You can check the menu over there

AIKYAN: Ah yes, I’ll have a strawberry shortcake and a cup of coffee thanks

RKK: I’d like a cup of coffee too

Waitress: Understood, I’ll be back with your orders in a second

After that they talked about their future plans, their singing careers and other random stuff, a few minutes later the waitress came back with the shortcake and coffee, it was time for Aika to take the next step and so she did.

RKK: So yeah, what is it you wanted to tell me?

AIKYAN: Well, uhh how do I put this, ehhh

Meanwhile...

KIN: Oh my god she’s gonna do it! Quick Aiai!

AI: On it! *starts recording*

KIN: Do it Aikyan! We’re cheering for ya

Back with the other duo..

AIKYAN: Ehh.. the thing is.. uhh Rikyako I have uhh

RKK: Kyan? What is it? Spit it out

AIKYAN: Rikyako.. i have feelings for you.. you know what I mean right? I’ve always liked you more than a friend you know? I mean you’re beautiful, talented, considerate, you helped me trough hard times, you gave me advice on how to improve my singing and the likes, I’m truly grateful for that and.. and... I LOVE YOU AIDA RIKAKO-SAN! I LOVE YOU LOTS!!

RKK: Aikyan...

AIKYAN: I WANT TO BE MORE THAN A FRIEND TO YOU RIKYAKO! I want to be with you, always.. I love you..

RKK: oh....

KIN(whispering): She did it

AI: yes!

RKK: Aikyan.. I never knew you felt like this, in fact I also have a confession to make. I love you too, I dressed up like this because I wanted to impress you, I wanted to confess to you for a long time but I never found a good moment to do so.. I’m really glad you feel the same my dear Kobayashi hehe~

AIKYAN: Oh, Rikyako...

Soon after they kissed, it was a kiss filled with passion and love, her confession reached everyone in the café and soon enough everyone else started clapping, it was certainly a magical moment, then suddenly..

KIN: Nice job Aikyan!

AIKYAN: Wait what?? Kinchan? Aiai?

RKK: What are you two doing here??

AI: isn’t it obvious? We wanted to see our little child

KIN: It was beautiful *sniff* Aiai the flowers

AI: Oh right! Aikyan here, you know what to do

AIKYAN: Are these flowers?

RKK: Wait, you got this for me Aikyan?

AIKYAN: Ahhh, yes! Beautiful flowers for my beautiful girlfriend

RKK: Aww, you are so lovely~

“Thank you guys, thanks a lot” she thought to herself as she kissed Rikako once again.

AIKYAN: I love you Rikyako

RKK: Me too~ Are you going to eat that shortcake by yourself?

AIKYAN: You want some? Of course, after all you are as sweet as one

After that they ate the shortcake together, though it was not enough for the two of them it still made for a very romantic scene..

Who knew? That love could taste so sweet, just like a strawberry shortcake.

That’s all, I hope you liked it. Thanks and see you next time! Peace （￣︶￣）↗　

#love live headcanons #aqours #aqours seiyuu #kyanrika #rikako aida #aika kobayashi

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chiaki-translation · 4 years

Text

A3! SR Tasuku [One Who Blocks The Way] Backstory

Next one is Tasuku~ Actually I’m very amused by this backstory, Winter Troupe is really making a ruckus for no reason and it’s very interesting to see.

Summary:

Tasuku’s having difficulty trying to think of a role study for his upcoming role, when Winter Troupe suggests something, chaos ensues......

Anyway, as always, I’m referring to this card:

Disclaimer:

A3! is owned by Liber entertainment

Devil’s Tamagoyaki

Translator’s note: Wankosoba is a Japanese style soba eating competition.

Tasuku

--a soul without divine protection, it is the best nourishment for devils.

Fyuh……

Tsumugi

Tasuku, dinner is ready.

Tasuku

Yeah, I’ll come over soon.

Tsumugi

As usual, you are very motivated.

Tasuku

I have to be able to show it with a different expression from you.

That line still has a lot of room for improvement.

Tsumugi

Haha, soon you will have a lot of scribbles in your script again.

*shifts to dining room*

Azuma

Here, jajaan!

Guy

…. Munch munch

Homare

Guy-san, that’s the way.

Look, even Hisoka-kun is waking up. Come and look at Guy-san’s performance and eat marshmallow.

Hisoka

……I

Guy, do your best.

Tsumugi

Wankosoba?

Tasuku

Why are you guys doing wankosoba?

Azuma

It’s a part of role study for Guy.

Homare

That’s because this time, Guy’s role is a devil who likes to eat.

When we’re talking about eating a lot, it can only be wankosoba.

Tsumugi

Ah, so that’s it.

Azuma

How is it, Guy?

Can you still go on?

Guy

Yeah, no problem.

Homare

Honestly, you did a good job in eating those.

Ah, an inspiration for another poet has struck me!

You who has been slurping noodles, looks more like a poodle than an idol.

Listen to the sound of the soba, let’s slurp it all~!

Hisoka

Alice….. You’re noisy.

Azuma

Guy, good work.

Is your stomach alright?

Guy

Yesh, that was a good role study.

I’m grateful, Yukishiro.

Director

Eh, what’s Winter Troupe doing gathering around here?

Azuma

Welcome back, director.

We were helping Guy to study his role.

Director

Role study?

Guy

Yeah, Yukishiro offered to help me and I just did wankosoba.

Homare

Guy-san’s eating is truly splendid.

It was enough to struck me with a lot of inspiration for my poem!

Director

Sounds interesting. I wished I had seen it earlier.

Homare

Then why not we challenged it with everyone this time and kantoku-kun can help to serve the food! Of course, Hisoka-kun will also join.

Hisoka

……No way.

I’ll participate if it’s wanko-marshmallow.

Tasuku

Isn’t that just the usual thing.

Azuma

Fufu, then Hisoka will start first.

Guy

By the way, what are you doing for your role study, Takato?

Director

Tasuku-san has a role as a passionate devil right.

Tasuku

Yeah.

I have thought of some things, but I haven’t done any serious role study.

Homare

Hmm. A being driven by passion……

Then, how about making a switch with passion?

Tasuku

Switch with passion?

Azuma

Maybe it’s the kind when you switch your personality when you do something special?

Tsumugi

I see, that sounds nice.

For example, this leftover tamagoyaki from dinner……

If you eat this, you might be able to feel the passionate emotion and awaken the devil inside you.

Tasuku

What kind of setting is that.

Azuma

It might actually be a good role study it seems.

Tsumugi

Since we’re here already, why don’t we try it?

Tasuku

Ah…. I guess I have no choice.

--Munch munch.

……

Ugh--!

Director

Ta, Tasuku san……?

Tasuku

…… Hoo, interesting.

It looks like there are a lot of delicious looking humans over here.

Guy

I took him an instant to get into his role.

Hisoka

…… as expected from the theatre-idiot.

Tasuku

Then, who will be the first among you?

….. You over there.

Your soul looks delightful.

Director

Eh, me!?

Choice 1: I’m not delightful in any way!

Choice 2: Wake up and open your eyes!

[

Choice 1:

Director

I, I’m not delightful in any way even if you eat me!

Tasuku

I can tell that you have the scent of a high-quality goods.

Director

Scent of a high-quality goods…?

Tasuku

Your heart that believed in your comrades, the strength to stick to your will…

What you have is, such a pure and noble soul…

Director

(What is this, the way he said it is pretty scary, but I’m somehow happy…)

Tasuku

You’re so scared that you can’t say anything huh?

Then, just stay right there and give your soul to me.

]

[

Choice 2:

Director

Please wake up and open your eyes, Tasuku san!

Tasuku

Who is this Tasuku guy?

--- My name is Satan and there is no one that can stop the overflowing passion inside of me.

Director

(Ah, it’s pointless, there’s no way I can reach him when he’s in this state.)

Tasuku

I can’t get enough of that fearful look.

Human, let’s see you beg for your life.

Well, no matter how much you cry, I won’t let you run away.

]

Tsumugi

Director!

Please remember the sister’s power that’s sleeping inside of you!

Director

Eh, si, sister…?

Azuma

This is the time to release your power.

Director

(I think I just gets roped into this etude……!

If, if it’s like that then I have not other choice……!)

Dear Satan, calm down!

Tasuku

Ugh……

Guy

Did we get him?

Tasuku

--- That won’t work.

Do you think you can beat me with that measly power of yours?

Director

(It’s no use……! Then at this point, maybe Tsumugi san who were acting as exorcist can……!)

Tsu, Tsumugi san--!

Tsumugi

You finally showed yourself, you devil.

By calling the power of the exorcist, I will eliminate you.

Disappear! Hah!

Tasuku

Ugh, uwaaaghh!

Damn you, exorcist……

But this body is nothing but a vessel. I just need to find another suitable vessel for my soul to enter.

---You over there, that’s just nice

Azuma

Me?

Tasuku

I cannot die. I will be resurrected from the new vessel.

Azuma

Yareyare. I have no choice but to join this now.

Ugh…..!

Kuh, haa, haa….

So this is the new vessel, not bad at all.

I have received new power.

My comrades, let’s gather together and die for me--!

Tsumugi

What--!?

Th, this is……!

Hisoka

Who is it who summons and calls my name……

You exorcist who has brought my anger, I’ll let you pay with your death.

Homare

Hahahahahaha, you weak exorcists, can you stop this magnificent self?

Guy

Playtime is over. I’m hungry.

I wonder who will fill this hunger of mine.

Tsumugi

Ugh…… If it continues like this--!

Lend me your power, my fellow exorcist.

Tasuku

Geez…… You only called me out during a pinch.

Do you really need me to lend my power once more?

Director

(Why is Tasuku san suddenly resurrected as an exorcist……!

Somehow this situation has become very amazing…….)

Muku

We’re home!

Kumon

--n?

Tenma

What are you guys doing?

Tasuku

Run away! Humans like you guys will just become the devil’s food!

Tenma

Hah?

What do you mean by that, Tasuku-san?

Yuki

What’s this situation.

Muku

Ehh!? I don’t know what’s happening but, everyone’s atmosphere here are scary……!

Director

When you eat a tamagoyaki, you awaken the devil inside you.

Well, this is that kind of etude……

Kumon

Devil!?

Sounds cool-, I’ll do it as well!

Can thou hear me?

Your soul is already mine.

Tsumugi

Ugh, against this many devils, if only I can take one down……!

Tasuku

Don’t just give in to numbers, I will just do what I can.

Prepare yourself, devils.

Yuki

Hah…… What are you guys doing, please behave like a good adult.

Director

But this etude, how are we going to end this!?

#a3!#a3! act! addict! actors!#a3! backstory #takato tasuku #a3! translation

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curry-planet · 4 years

Text

Painting Flowers | Tsumugi Tsukioka

in which [name] [last name] painted tsumugi tsukioka’s favorite flowers until that day where one of them suddenly left. (song used.)

warning: angst

Tsumugi Tsukioka buried himself under a pile of blankets when he heard the news that [Name] [Last Name] is back in town. His roommate, Tasuku was getting slightly annoyed.

"You're worrying the kids." Tasuku said from his bunk bed.

Tsumugi tossed and turned trying to find a comfortable hiding place under his blankets.

"Please tell them I'm not feeling well. Also please DM Itaru-san to take over for tonight." Tsumugi uncharacteristically grumbled under his breath, groaning as he turned over again on his bed.

"She's in town, isn't she?" Tasuku asked as he fiddled with his phone, opening the messaging app.

"Yeah. She almost saw me in the cafe earlier..." Tsumugi groaned and buried his face into his pillow.

"Just apologize." Tasuku said with a shrug as he climbed down his bunk bed. Exasperated, Tsumugi gasped.

"I-I can't just do that!" he exclaimed as he sat up and accidentally hit his head on the ceiling.

"A sorry isn't going to fix my mistakes." Tsumugi added, caressing the bump on his forehead. Was he always this clumsy?

"You could at least try." Tasuku said as he hung a towel around his neck and left the room, possibly going on another afternoon run with Sakuya.

Tsumugi stared into the painting of a narcissus flower that was hung up on his wall.

Is she still painting flowers for him?

Strange maze, what is this place? I hear voices over my shoulder,

[Name] [Last Name] looked around cafes and flower shops around Veludo Way. To no avail she couldn't find her ex-boyfriend. Tsumugi Tsukioka, to be precise.

Nothing's making sense at all

It has been months since he suddenly disappeared and left her. He didn't even return her messages or calls. Not even an explanation on why.

Wonder, why do we race? When everyday we're runnin' in circles

Now she's in Veludo Way, the town where Tsumugi would most probably be at. He grew up around here after all. All she wants for now is closure.

Such a funny way to fall

Clutching her heavy satchel in her hand, she took another step forward. All she wants is to find Tsumugi and maybe even talk to him, for the last time.

Tried to open up my eyes, I'm hopin' for a chance to make it alright

Tsumugi Tsukioka finally gathered himself enough to go outside of his dorm room and into the kitchen.

"Eh? Tsumugi-kun? How are you feeling?" Muku asked the winter troupe leader.

"Tasuku-san DM'd us, saying that you weren't feeling well." Muku added.

"Ahahah... I just hit my head." Tsumugi said as he pointed to the bump on his head.

"Good luck on studying, Muku-kun." Tsumugi said and walked to the fridge. He filled up the ice bag with ice and placed it on his forehead.

"Ah, is that so? Get well soon, Tsumugi-kun!" Muku said as he took his leave.

When I wake up, the dream isn't done I wanna see your face and know I've made it home.

[Name] [Last Name] felt like an idiot. Her mind is telling her to 'Give it up! He left you, remember?' yet her heart seems to scream the opposite.

She just can't give it up. She knew Tsumugi was someone special in her life when she met him at a cafe. Tsumugi brought back her will to continue painting.

The days they spent together lounging in her apartment. She just can't throw them out of the window no matter how much they hurt.

If nothing is true, what more can I do? I am still painting flowers for you

[Name] clenched her fists. She'll find him no matter what. She'll find him and give him the last painting she did.

Shown my cards, give you my heart wish we could start all over

There was nothing [Name] loved more than sunny afternoons with Tsumugi in her apartment. Sunlight illuminated his face as he tended to [Name]'s dying houseplants. His tongue stuck out of his mouth in sheer concentration.

"...Even I don't understand how they lasted this long." Tsumugi commented.

The plants were watered seldom, never even given appropriate portions of fertilizers or good quality soils.

"Hah, Tsumu give me a break. Even i don't tend to myself when I paint." [Name] responded as she dipped her brush in the cup that. She whirled it around a couple of times, cleaning it from paint.

"...Tsumu?" Tsumugi asked.

"Huh? Is there a problem?" [Name] asked as she pried her eyes off of the canvas for a second.

Tsumu... Tachan- er, Tasuku used to call him Tsumu when they were younger. How is he right now? Tsumugi hopes he's doing well. He hopes Tasuku isn't too mad at him for quitting theater and leaving town. But who is he kidding? of course he would be mad-

"Tsumugi?" [Name] asked snapping him out of his internal conflict.

"Oh, yeah. You can call me Tsumu, it's... cute, I guess?" Tsumugi said with a smile. Unfortunately for him, [Name] wasn't fooled with his smile despite being an actor.

Nothing's making sense at all Try to open up my eyes I'm hoping for a chance to make it all right

"Excuse me, miss?" Someone tapped on her shoulder, getting her attention.

"Uh, me?" [Name] asked as she turned around.

A tall man around 6'0 feet with dark hair gave her a slip of paper and then quickly took his leave. He was with a much shorter teen with red hair, both clad in sportwear. The note read "If you're looking for Tsumugi, find him at xx xxxxxx road, Veludo Way. xx:xx this evening."

...To come and think of it, that man oddly resembles the 'Tachan' Tsumugi has talked about.

"You're sure it's her right?" Tasuku asked Sakuya.

"Yeah!" Sakuya huffed. "She's the girl in the picture you showed me." Sakuya added in between breaths.

Tasuku knows Tsumugi too well, he knows that the latter needs a push when it comes to things like this. As his closest friend, it is his duty.

When I wake up the dream isn't done I wanna see your face and know I've made it home

After a long, exhausting day, [Name] was at her last resort. She stared up at the building in front of her. On her way here, she heard that this was the dorm the actors of Mankai Company live in. Actors, huh? She must be at the right place after all.

She rang the doorbell once. She can hear the ruckus inside the building. The sun was starting to set too. She rang the doorbell twice this time. Within a minute a girl around her age was at the front door.

"Uhm, hi. What can I do for you?" A girl with chocolate colored hair and pinkish eyes asked her.

"My name is Izumi Tachibana, the director of the company." She introduced herself. [Name] cleared her throat. Go big or go home it is. This is the moment she has worked hard for.

"Ah, yes. I'm [Name] [Last Name]. I'm actually looking for Tsumugi Tsukioka. Is he here?" [Name] asked.

"Ah! Tsumugi-san? Please follow me inside. I will tell him you're here to see him." Izumi said as she let [Name] inside the dorm.

"Ahahah... That would be very nice. Thank you. I feel bad but, can I ask a favor? Please don't tell him my name..." The girl with [Eye Color] eyes trailed off.

"So, kinda like a surprise for him? Got it." Izumi said then smiled mischievously.

"Ahahah, kinda like that." [Name]laughed nervously. It may be a surprise but not a pleasant one.

"Tsumugi-san laughs like that too..." Izumi said to herself without realizing she spoke out loud, making [Name]'s face flush.

"Please wait here on the lounge." Izumi said as she left to find Tsumugi.

On the lounge were a group of teenagers sitting on a circle with another man around her age. He has brown hair that were dyed with blonde highlights. It seems like he was helping the kids while he was fumbling with his phone. [Name] spotted a familiar shade of red hair among the teens that the man was tutoring.

"Ano,, excuse me?" [Name] poked Sakuya on his shoulder.

"Ah! You're here! Tasuku-san would be glad to know you're here. Unfortunately he had to go on a quick errand." Sakuya informed her.

"Eh? Who is she?" Yuki asked.

"It's the girl Tasuku-san was looking for!" Sakuya answered with his usual enthusiasm.

"Oooh! Man, even Tasuku-san has found someone!" Taichi-said. "I'll be popular with the ladies too!" He exclaimed.

"Er, does this Tasuku happen to be Tachan? Or like Takato if I recall correctly?" [Name] asked.

"Ehh? You don't know Tasuku-kun?" Muku asked, confused.

'And so the plot thickens. It's like an otome game.' Itaru thinks to himself.

"I think I heard Tsumugi-san call Tasuku-san 'Tachan' sometimes." Tenma comments.

"Ah, that's right. I'm actually here for Tsumugi." [Name] said with a smile.

If nothing is true, what more can I do? I am still painting flowers for you

"[NAME]?!" Tsumugi exclaimed.

The group in the lounge was quite in shock. They didn't know how or why but the timid, subtle and gentle Tsumugi they came to know could be loud. They could practically feel Tsumugi's shock. If this was a cartoon, Muku was sure Tsumugi's eyeballs would've fallen off by now.

"Uh, hi Tsuki-chan. Surprise?" [Name] said with a smile that didn't quite reached her eyes.

They were now both on the courtyard of the dorm, viewing the flower beds Tsumugi religiously takes care of.

"This is a nice place to paint." [Name] comments as she opened her bag to take out her sketch book.

"...I'm sorry." Tsumugi apologized, not daring to lift his head to see her expression.

Is she mad? Perhaps she's hurt. Very hurt. What he did could never be justified. He left her in the middle of their relationship just because he felt the need to go back to Veludo Way to act again. He didn't leave her anything. Not even a message. Tsumugi knows that he should at least contact her yet he couldn't. He felt like a coward. Ever since he left he put it off for tomorrow, until it turned to days, weeks and months.

"I'm not mad anymore." [Name] confessed.

"I'm very hurt, still. I hate how you just left everything." She added.

"I hate what you did, really really hate it. I despise what you did. Somehow, I can't tell hate you. Even after you pulled that. Even after you hurt me." [Name] said.

Tsumugi felt his heart break into a million pieces. Of course he hurt her. There wasn't a day that passed where she didn't cross his mind. He couldn't count the days where he longingly gazed at the flowers she painted for him.

"I can't hate you because I love you too much to do that! E-even after you left..." [Name] felt her voice crack. She was holding back tears she didn't know she had. She choked back a sob as she said.

"Even after you left, I am still painting flowers for you." She whispered, loud enough for Tsumugi to hear.

I heard everything you said, I don't wanna lose my head,

"I kept the painting you gave me for my birthday..." Tsumugi said truthfully.

"I wanted to reach out to you but I was so scared." He continued.

"You could've just told me. I would've supported you along the way..." [Name] replied,

"[Name]...:" Tsumugi said. He felt so much worse after hearing those words. If he just told her, everything would be much easier. If only he did...

"I wanted to give this to you." [Name] said as she pulled out a framed painting from her satchel.

"Sagiso, meaning my thoughts will reach you in your dreams." Tsumugi said once he laid his eyes on the artwork.

"I'll always think of you, even if you don't love me in the same way." [Name] said before closing her eyes and embracing Tsumugi in a hug.

Tsumugi froze up as he felt tears through his clothes and unto his shoulders.

"Who said I don't feel the same as you do?" Tsumugi replied. He felt tears prick his eyes.

"I'm sorry." He said. "I'm sorry, love. I'm sorry." He repeated through his tears.

When I wake up, the dream isn't done,

Tsumugi wiped his tears on the sleeves of his coat, to no avail, tears flowed freely from his eyes again.

The room was littered in paintings, paintings made by [Name]. They were mostly paintings of flowers both she and Tsumugi loved.

Today, there was nothing Tsumugi hated more than waking up in the morning. He felt very contented in his dreams, thank you very much.

Tsumugi hated it but he has to face the truth. When he woke up, the dream was indeed, done.

I wanna see your face and know I've made it home

He only truly felt home when he saw you. A picture could never replicate those feelings, specially the picture in front of the room.

If nothing is true what more can I do?

Tsumugi has one thing to do. That one thing is to accept the truth, yet he can't do it. This isn't true. It must be one of his extreme dreams. Like the one where the scene of him leaving you was on repeat.

Deep down, he knows he has to face the truth. He has to face [Name] in her casket. He has to say his speech for her eulogy. He has to face the truth that she's gone.

There's nothing he can do when her heart stopped beating. What can he do now?

There was nothing he can do to stop the incoming car that hit her. What can he do now? Wipe his tears?

Tsumugi closed his eyes, in an attempt to sleep. Maybe if he did, he'll dream again.

Maybe he'll dream again of that time you looked for him and gave him a painting of sagiso flowers.

"I am still painting flowers for you."

___

unedited.

#a3!#a3! game #a3! act addict actors #A3! Actor Training Game #act addict actors #a3! oneshots #a3! x reader #a3! angst #angst #tsumugi tsukioka #a3! tsumugi #tsumugi x reader #tsumugi tsukioka x reader

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uweiy · 4 years

Note

Can you do Xingchen with Sentence 38?

Soooo I’m assuming you meant Xicheng ?? If you meant Xiao Xingchen just tell me I’ll try to think of smth with him !

From this prompt list

38 - “You just feel really good. Soft and warm…”

His head is throbbing.

Lan Xichen squints his eyes, tring to bring his blurry vision back in focus.

He doesn’t know where he– wait. This luminous square, no, window, surrounded by curtains, seems familiar. He is lying on a red sofa covered by a blanket.A basin and a glass of water are waiting on the table next to him.

This is his home.

He has no idea how he got back. And he has no clothes on, save for a pair of briefs.

What in the world happened last night ?

“Did you just swear ?”

Lan Xichen’s muddled mind stutters.

1. He had no idea he had spoken out loud.

2. Jiang Cheng is here. Why is Jiang Cheng here, shirtless and freshly showered, holding a cup of tea. The hot water must’ve brought out the veins running along his forerarms, and his hair is mussed and Lan Xichen is dying.

He hasn’t gotten his composure and his manners back yet and looking like this is just unfair.

Jiang Chengs’s voice snaps him out of his thoughts, as if reading his mind.

“There is a basin next to your sofa because you kept throwing up. You’re on your sofa because at least I could watch stuff while I kept an eye on you.

“As for why I’m here and what happened last night well…” Jiang Cheng trails off.

Lan Xichen swallows.

Jiang Cheng continues “… Are you sure you want to know ?”

Lan Xichen nods.

Jiang Cheng sighs and pulls out his phone. “I did warn you.”

The video is low quality but Lan Xichen can recognize the people on it.

“my head is so heavyy …

He sees himself giggle.

“If it’s so heavy, why don’t you let someone else carry it ?” The voice holding the phone says.

Probably Wei Wuxian.

“Ooh good idea !”

And Lan Xichen in the video drops down on the floor.

Present Lan Xichen is mortified. But the video goes on and he hears himself speak.

“Ooh Jiang Cheng … You just feel really good… Soft and warmmmm.”

The camera turns to Jiang Cheng who is looking exasperated. “That. Lan Xichen, is Fairy.”

“You’re the fairy ! “Lan Xichen giggles

“Hey wanna know a secret ? I really like– ”

“Okay that’s it. stop filming you arse”. Jiang Cheng says to the camera.“

The video ends.

Jiang Cheng puts his phone back in his pocket.

"Wei Wuxian has some more, but ‘blackmailing a representative of another faculty is a once-in-a lifetime opportunity hahahaha’ he said.”

“I really can’t hold alcohol” Lan Xichen says in a small voice. “and your brother is… a…a scoundrel.”

Jiang Cheng sighs. “That’s putting it lightly. And yeah, you were pretty hammered.

"After that I decided you had had enough to drink, so I took you home. Also you were insisting that I carry you so…

"Then on the way to my car, you tried to dance with a street pole, and when it didn’t answer you said ‘sorry for bothering you sir’ and almost started crying.”

“Oh my” Lan Xichen says. He had thought this couldn’t get any worse.

“And THEN when we got here, you threw up. On my shirt.” Jiang Cheng sounds positively pissed “ So yes, I used your shower.”

Then the murderous glance disappears and Jiang Cheng finishes matter of factly

“So I took off your clothes so you wouldn’t puke all over them, put you on the sofa, basin, glass of water, and voilà.”

Lan Xichen wishes the floor would swallow him up whole. But he has to ask

“So we didn't–”

“No you idiot, have you seen the state you were in ? Of course we didn’t DO anything.”

“Did I… Did I say something ?” Lan Xichen presses on.

Jiang Wanyin looks at him flatly. “As you just saw, you said a lot of things. What else would you have said ?”

Well that’s a relief.

Lan Xichen slumps back against his pillow. “Nevermind. Thank you for bringing me home.”

Jiang Cheng nods"You should be thankful we had so many gatherings for the student committee I won’t ever be able to forget where you live.

“Since you seem alright now I’ll get going. I have a T-shirt to wash.” He adds.

“Take one of mine.” Lan Xichen says before he can think, because he’s absolutely positive the sight of Jiang Cheng in one of his shirts would kill him. “It’s the least I can do to repay you.”

Jiang Cheng considers it.

“Okay.”

___

Wei Wuxian calls out to him when they run into each other at University.

“Heyy, class president, did you and my dear little brother sort things out ?”

Lan Xichen’s brows furrow in confusion. “I thanked him for bringing me home.”

“So he didn’t tell you ? You said some pretty … Meaningful things.”

Lan Xichen’s blood runs cold.

Wei Wuxian sighs “He’s going to murder me.”

“Oh well.” Wei Wuxian shrugs, resigned “Jiang Cheng said you told him you liked him and tried to kiss him like, multiple times.”

“Oh.” Lan Xichen manages to articulate, despite the knot in his throat.

“But it seems like he hasn’t gotten the memo.” Wei Wuxian adds. His gaze bores into Lan Xichen’s.

“So man up and tell him properly, Lan Xichen.”

___

“Here’s your Tee.” Jiang Cheng says as he stands by Lan Xichen’s doorframe. “Try to be easier to find at Uni, I had to drive all the way over here. ”

“I’ll… Try ?” Lan Xichen answers. Not very eloquent, but the visit caught him by surprise.

“Goodnight then.” Jiang Cheng says as he turns on his heels.

“Wait !” Lan Xichen just has the time to grab Jiang Cheng’s wrist.

“I’m sorry for… what I said the other night. When I was… When I was drunk.”

Jiang Cheng’s eyes widen and he clenches his fist “That little– I am going to have a word with him.”

Then Jiang Cheng pinches his eyebrows. “Look, I know you were drunk, and I was there and It was convenient. I won’t hold it against you. Good Night.”

“Please wait. Jiang Wanyin.”

That Jiang Cheng could believe Lan Xichen would have said that to just anyone, that he would use Jiang Cheng in such a way makes Lan Xichen’s stomach churn with revulsion.

He can’t let Jiang Cheng believe this one second longer. Even if it involves losing him.

“I meant it when I told you I liked you.”

Jiang Cheng instantly grabs Lan Xichen by the collar. “Don’t. fuck with me.” He snarls. But his voice is strangled.

“I’m not.”

“You said you’re fucking sorry. What are you sorry for if not for telling me… that, and not meaning it.”

This is horribly horribly wrong, Lan Xichen thinks. How can Jiang Cheng be so unaware of his own worth he can’t believe someone genuinely likes him.

Lan Xichen gently wraps his hand over Jiang Chengs’s clenched fist.

“I was sorry for possibly making you uncomfortable. I was sorry that I told you this way. And now I’m sorry this is what you were thinking all along. ”

Jiang Cheng shook his head. “You were drunk. There were a lot of people you could have–”

“And yet I didn’t tell any of them, I told you.” Lan Xichen insists. “Alcohol doesn’t make me … horny, it makes me honest.”

Jiang Cheng exhales sharply.

Lan Xichen needs him to understand. Needs with every fiber of his being. So he continues.

“There is no one else I wish to eat with at lunch. There is no one else with whom I turn meetings into movie nights. There is no one else I would tell ”I like you“ to. ”

Jiang Cheng’s fist finally loosens.

“You… Like me ?” He says, disbelieving.

“Yes.” Lan Xichen repeats.

“You –!” there was the fist again and Jiang Cheng sounds furious. He is going to walk away, Lan Xichen thinks. Walk away and never come back.

Instead, Jiang Cheng’s head hits Lan Xichen’s chest and he murmurs

“Do you know how hard I… I tried to stay away because I thought… ” His voice breaks “I thought I couldn’t have you.”

Oh, Lan Xichen thinks. Oh.

He doesn’t know what to say, but he has one last thing to confess.

“I was avoiding you at University because I would have combusted on the spot, had I seen you in my shirt.”

Jiang Cheng lets out something like a a half-laugh, half-sob.

Lan Xichen tilts Jiang Cheng’s head up. “I’m going to kiss you now, If that’s alright with you.”

Jiang Cheng’s voice is thick when he answers

“Okay.”

Lan Xichen inches closer and, very softly presses his lips to Jiang Cheng’s. His hand slides to the back of Jiang Cheng’s neck as he increases the pressure, capturing Jiang Cheng’s top lip.

A needy moan escapes Jiang Cheng’s lips and Lan Xichen takes advantage of the slight opening of his mouth to deepen the kiss.

When they break apart, they stare at each other, breathless.

“Would you mind pursuing this inside, I have a couch much more comfortable than my front door.” Lan Xichen suggests.

“wouldn’t you know.” Jiang Cheng rolls his eyes. “But sure.”

___

“So,” Lan Xichen starts, as they are comfortably sprawled against each other on the couch “you’re still as ’,soft and warm’ as I recall– ”

Jiang Cheng elbows him “please do not confuse me with a fucking dog.”

Then he gets up and Lan Xichen misses the contact immensely.

Jiang Cheng comes out of the shower wearing a pair of briefs and Lan Xichen’s sweater and Lan Xichen’s heart just jumps our of his chest.

This is definitely vengeance. He’s not that pained.

A.N : I just watched Fullmetal Alchemist so my characterisation is all over the place. Ed kept popping in my head at random moments but ehh

I don’t know how universities work so hope the depiction of the student body elements isn’t too out of place hahaha

#xicheng #the untamed #lan xichen #jiang cheng #modern AU #university #AU

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bpro-cardstories · 5 years

Text

Goshi Kaneshiro SSR

2019 ー The New World [The New World]

“If something happens, contact me as soon as possible. Understood?”

Part 1

It’s morning. THRIVE are in their hotel room.

‘Fuaah…’

‘Ah, Gochin, good morning!’

‘Yeah’

‘Finally, the last day in Singapore ー Kenken, what will you do during the free time?’

‘I will go to a spa. I want to relax for myself’, Kento tells Yuta, looking forward to it.

‘Spa! How cool! I’m going shopping with Mikarin and Momochin ~ ♪ What’s your plan, Gochin?’

‘Who knows. I’ll just talk a walk and spend my time as I want’.

‘Eeh! Then let’s go shopping together!’

‘Ha?’

‘Because it’s a big shopping mall, Gochin’s favourite music shop is there. It’s on your way, isn’t it!’, Yuta tries to make him come along with his group.

‘No, thanks. You are too noisy.’

‘Eeh ー how cold! Let’s go together!’

‘What the, stop that! Let go of my arm!’

‘Let’s go, let’s go! Please, please?’

‘Give up, Goshi. You think Yuta will let up?’, Kento advices him.

‘Tch… geez, how troublesome.’

‘Yes!’, Yuta is overjoyed seeing his whining was successful.

‘Haha’, Kento chuckles at the scene.

‘Oi, don’t laugh!’

‘Yes, yes ~’, Yuta laughs.

In that moment Tsubasa comes in.

‘Excuse me.’

‘Oh, Tsubasa. Good morning’, she is greeted by Kento.

‘Good morning. I am sorry that it’s so early in the morning but… I need to talk with Kaneshiro-san.’

‘With me?’

‘Yes. It seems the writers of the music magazine closely related to Gandara are in Singapore. They got in touch not too long ago to ask if Kaneshiro-san wouldn’t do an interview. For that, it will be held in a famous music studio’, Tsubasa explains her concern.

‘Could it be 69Studio?’, Goshi asks incredulously.

‘Are you familiar with it?’

‘Of course. The artists I look up to often is recording at that studio. Are we going already?’

‘Y-Yes! If Kaneshiro-san is fine with it…’

‘No problem. I will be ready in a minute, wait a bit.’

‘Thank you very much!’

‘Fu. Aren’t you lucky, you could escape, Goshi’, Kento teases him.

‘Meeh ー, what’s the meaning of this?’, Yuta clearly is disappointed at the change of plans.

‘Escape?’, Tsubasa is puzzled.

‘Ignore them’, Goshi waves them off with a sigh.

‘Uwaah! So mean, Gochin!!’

Part 2

Goshi and Tsubasa are on their way to the studio.

‘You have your long-awaited free time, and yet there is work. I am sorry.’

‘There is nothing to apologize for. I was going to do a walk anyways. If I can go to the studio, then doing work is much better.’

‘In the first place, I can see the city like this… Right now, I get plenty of rest.’, he explains further.

‘It’s a big help if you say so. The weather today is nice as well, isn’t it.’

‘Yeah. Come to think of it, Singapore’s rainy season seems to be from November to February. Well, with the rainy season also comes lots of squall though, it seems.’

‘That’s true…! But if it had squalled, the award ceremony probably would have proved to be difficult, so we came at a good time.’

‘I think so too.’

There is a short moment of silence while they are walking to their destination.

‘... Somehow, when walking like this, you once again realize that you are overseas, right.’, Tsubasa is the first to speak again.

‘Hm. To be honest, it still feels weird.’

‘Weird, you say?’

‘No, it’s more correct to say that it feels unreal? I was thinking of doing work abroad someday, but I didn’t expect it to happen so soon. Really, you never know what awaits you in the future, right.’

‘Kaneshiro-san… Fufu, you are right. But I feel that with this stage’s success your horizon has surely broaden. Both the range of work and the place where it happens will become wider from now on… Or perhaps I should say, this is the kind of future I could clearly picture in my mind.’, Tsubasa shares her ambitious thoughts.

‘... Haha’

‘Eh?’, she replies a bit puzzled at his small smile.

‘No, it’s nothing. Leaving that aside, isn’t that studio over there?’

‘Ah… It seems so!’

‘We came earlier than expected. Is it alright to go in?’

‘Yes, that should be fine. As planned, when I introduced myself to the writer, I will leave afterwards.’

‘Eh? You have another work to do?’

‘That’s right. I have to go to various places, it’s work Yashamaru-san asked me to do.’

‘He.. Are you going alone?’

‘Yes, it’s only me.’, Tsubasa replies without thinking too much about it.

‘.....’

‘Kaneshiro-san?’

‘No matter how good the security is, it’s different from Japan. Do you know your way around here?’

‘It will be fine! Because it’s still bright right now and I will only go to places with many people.’

‘Tch… You are too careless. Bad guys are everywhere.’, Goshi shakes his head at her naivety.

‘Geez, listen well.’

‘Y-Yes.’

‘Because your luggage can be stolen easily when left unwatched, be careful. If you order a drink in a shop, leave. The guys that pass by and bump into one usually are pickpocketing. Don’t walk around mindlessly. And if something happens, contact me immediately. Got it?’, Goshi ends his security briefing.

‘Ehm… to be so worried…’, Tsubasa is slightly perplexed at the short lecture.

‘Understood?’, Goshi asks again for a reply.

‘Y-Yes!’

Part 3

Yuta, Kento, Kazuna and Tsubasa met up with each other. Goshi just came back from work.

‘Ah, Goshi is back.’

‘You’re back! Gochin!’, he is greeted by Kazuna and Yuta.

‘Yeah. My bad, am I on time?’

‘Yes, there is still some time until the meeting, so you are not late at all.’, Tsubasa reassures him that he made it back in time.

‘Goshi, you went to 69Studio, right. How was it?’, Kazuna asks him.

‘Yeah, the equipment was of high quality. It’s huge inside, staying one day is not enough, I think.’

‘Hee… It looks like you liked it?’

‘You could say so. Besides… A musician I met during my overseas stay worked there.’

‘Eh?’, both Yuta and Kazuna are baffled to hear this information.

‘Though he wasn’t in the studio today’, Goshi adds nonchalantly.

‘It seems he is now affiliated with the studio. I recognized the name… I got to call and talk with him.’

‘What an amazing coincidence! What did you talk about!?’, Yuta dies to know.

‘Well, things such as how we are doing… And to work together in the near future.’

‘Waah! That’s super cool!’, Yuta genuinely is happy for Goshi.

‘I don’t know how this is cool but… It makes me happy knowing that we are in the same industry and doing our best. I also have a new dream’, Goshi says with a smile.

‘Meeh ~.... How exciting! But vexing too!’

‘Ah?’

‘Because we are left out!!’’, Yuta voices his frustration.

‘Ne, Kenken you feel the same, right?’

‘No, I don’t really care.’

‘Liar! I know you are!’

‘.... Ah. Speaking of them, they said they want to meet you two as well.’

‘Ehh?’, that statement comes as big surprise for Yuta.

‘When we talked, he got interested in how we always interact together. They got strangely interested.’

‘...!’

‘Ah? What’s with this weird expression, Ashu.’

‘Gochin, you talked about THRIVE, right....? Love! It’s love!’, Yuta states very happily.

‘Aah?’

‘Haha. Well, if Goshi says so, a meeting should be fine, huh’, Kento agrees with a chuckle.

‘... As expected, you are no good‘, Goshi sighs.

‘Ha?’, Kento doesn’t understand where this is coming from.

‘Wah, wait! It has to be us three! Right!?’, Yuta panics at Goshi’s sudden remark.

‘In the end, it turns into a fight, it seems’, Kazuna watches the scene, half-smiling, half-sighing.

‘Ahaha…. Doesn’t it show that they are close to each other?’, Tsubasa assumes, already used to THRIVE’s banters.

‘Don’t you know that rebellious men are disliked?’, Kento comments with a sigh.

‘I don’t want to hear that from you!’, Goshi yells back exasperated.

END

#b project #b-project #goshi kaneshiro #thrive #myps #card:2019

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fic-xation · 5 years

Text

Spicing It Up

Sam proposes something a little unorthodox for his and Max’s night off. But is it too much for even Max to handle? Archive of our Own

"Uh-huh? ... Yeah. Oh, yeah. Absolutely... Ah, Mahzeltov! ... Well, give her my best. Goodbye, sir."

"Well?" Max asked, anxiously popping his head out from the crowded confines of their office trash can. Their usual scuffle over the phone always landed him in the strangest of places... "What'd the commissioner say?"

Sam, shaking his head, hung up the receiver.

"Sorry, lil' buddy. No aliens, demons, mutants, or some unholy amalgamation of the three."

"What about a ponzi scheme?!" Max rocketed himself from the trashcan, snagging at Sam's collar in a panicked frenzy. "Embezzlement?! ... Hell, I'll even settle for mild insurance fraud, jut gimme SOMETHING, man! Anything!"

With the air of one casually removing a tick, Sam snagged at Max's ears, and plucked him from his lapel.

"Nothin' doin', Max. There isn't even so much as a WHISPER of crime tonight."

Tossing his friend to one side, Sam crossed over towards the open window, his hands comfortably nestled in their respective pockets.

"Seems as if the city that never sleeps is taking a much needed power nap." he said thoughtfully.

His partner, however, was far from thoughtful.

"... AaaaaAAAHHHH, I CAN'T TAKE THE SILENCE, SAM!! I need chaos! I need mayhem! I need some sense of superiority as I beat the snot out of some slimy smuggler!"

With a faintly groan, Max collapsed, face-first, against the floor. Sam, meanwhile, merely observed him, scratching at his doggish ear with a contemplative sort of expression.

"... Well..." Sam slid the window shut. "If you're REALLY eager for something to do... We could, uh..." he cleared his throat, awkwardly straightening his tie. "Y'know... Spend some 'quality' time together..."

Max's despair seemed to vanish as quickly as it'd appeared. Scrambling to his feet, he race over towards Sam, leaping into his unsuspecting arms like a bride readying to cross the threshold.

"Why SAMMY, you dirty dog..." Max cooed, snuggling up to his partner's broad chest. "Why didn't you just SAY so?"

He gave a saccharine giggle of mock, girlish delight, coyly tracing little circles against the fabric of Sam's tie.

"What did you have in mind? ... Ooh! Why don't we break into the aquarium again and have a brief make-out sesh in the shark tank?"

"Ehh," Sam shrugged. "I don't think so... I always get the feeling those great whites are enjoying it far more than they should..."

"Fair enough... Oh! How's about a game of ~French Maid Shooting the Balls Off a Nazi Officer?~" Max's smile then faded slightly. "Wait, no, I tore up my fishnet stockings after that caper in Reno last week... Ooh, I got it! How about you leave me handcuffed to the bed, forcing me to relive my mysterious childhood trauma as I desperately struggle for survival?" Max seemed to salivate at the very idea. "Oh my god... HOT..."

"... Actually..." Sam gave a sheepish little smile. "I was thinking we could try something... Different."

"Oooh!" Max flashed a carnivorous grin. "Spicing it up, I see! Do tell!"

Sam opened his mouth to speak, before snapping it shut with a bashful whine. Whatever this idea was, it was evidently too embarrassing to speak aloud. Chewing his lower lip, Sam gestured for Max to come closer. Max, kicking his elongated feet excitedly, happily obliged, gleefully leaning in as Sam finally mustered the courage to whisper his proposal.

Max's smile melted like an ice cube on a frying pan. Mouth agape, he suddenly drew back from Sam's embrace.

"... Y-you're... You're not SERIOUS, right?"

"We don't have to try it if you don't want to!" Sam said hurriedly, waving his hands. "I-it was just a thought!"

"... Yeah, but... Why THAT?" Max seemed repulsed by the very notion. "It's just... It's so... Ugh! I can't even SAY it!"

"I know it's a little... out of the norm for us-" Sam said, settling himself onto a chair as he shyly rubbed the back of his neck. "I just... y'know..."

"... Are you bored with our usual shtick?" Max looked almost hurt by the idea.

Sam's ears pricked up almost at once.

"No! No, buddy, far from it! ... I was only thinkin'... Maybe if we TRIED it, we might wind up likin' it... We wouldn't make a habit of it, of course, but..." he trailed off, lowering the brim of his hat down over his eyes. "... Nothing. Forget I even-"

"Do YOU wanna try it?"

... A surprisingly straightforward question, considering it was Max.

With a sputter of surprise, Sam felt the heat rise against his muzzle. Squaring his shoulders, he hurriedly glanced away.

"... Th-that... That's not really impor-"

"Up-up-up!" Max swatted a finger against Sam's lip. "Shut it, Sam, I've heard enough. Look, if you REALLY wanna give this... THING a shot, I'm in."

Sam finally returned his gaze to Max, eyes wide.

"But... But I thought-"

"Well, QUIT thinkin', or you'll work yourself into a freakin' tizzy! And mind you, I don't use the word 'tizzy' that often." Max reached up, readjusting Sam's hat to its proper angle. "... At the risk of sounding like some pouty-faced teen in a bad chick-flick, I..." he glanced down, fidgeting with his hands. "... Well, I trust you. You wanna do something, so I'll try it. If I like it, great. If I don't, I get to take a baseball bat to your kneecaps. Win-win!"

"... When did a baseball bat enter into the equation?" Sam smiled slightly.

"It's called 'incentive,' Sam." Max huffed, folding his arms. "So, we got a deal?" Sam's chuckled lightly, patting a gentle paw to the crown of Sam's head.

"Okay, lil' buddy... If you insist."

Two hours later, Max found himself in the desolate hallway of their building, just outside their office door, feeling increasingly foolish with every passing second. Swallowing hard, he tugged at the faux pearls lining his throat. In spite of his bravado earlier, the whole ordeal made him uncharacteristically nervous... THIS was new territory for him and Sam... Sure, they'd been married almost eleven times, did the horizontal bop practically every hour, and fooled around with everything from jumper cables to piggy banks... but THIS...

This wasn't just spicing things up, this was dousing it in tabasco sauce before lighting it on fire...

"Saaa-aaaam-" he whined aloud, hurriedly glancing over his shoulders. "C'mon, aren't you ready YET?"

God forbid any of their neighbors, (least of all Flint Paper) should see him like this... Not that he didn't look amazing. All these years later, and he could STILL rock his old prom dress like an absolute queen... It was just the context of the outfit that made it feel... weird...

And the cheap Taiwanese plastic of the jewelry rubbing up against his fur probably didn't help either.

"Just one more sec, pal!" Sam called back, and suddenly, there came the muffled noise of a clattering misstep, followed by a hefty THUMP.

Curious, Max raised a brow.

"... Ya still alive in there?"

"... J-just lost my footing!" Sam hollered, and Max, with a faint giggle, could hear the embarrassment in his voice.

'... Clumsy goof...' He thought fondly, straightening the candy-colored lace of his hem. Just then, the door swung open, and Max, glancing up, barely troubled to suppress his laughter.

A holdover from their 25th anniversary at the Inventory, Sam was all dolled up in his best, (and probably ONLY) tux; all in black, with a prominent bowtie and tophat replacing their casual counterparts.

"... Look, I didn't have the time OR the money for a new suit, okay?" Sam grumbled, scowling at Max's derisive mirth.

"H-hey! It's important to recycle!" chuckled Max, wiping away a tear as he strolled across the threshold. As soon as the door closed behind him, however, he suddenly took stock of Sam's... 'renovation.'

It quickly became clear why the whole elaborate set-up took close to two hours. The office was cleaner than Max'd ever seen it, (though, admittedly, most of the clutter had just been shoved up against the walls.) In the center stood their rarely used ping-pong table, made only somewhat classier by a red sheet posing as a tablecloth. The lights'd been dimmed, and the shudders drawn, leaving only the rust-stained candelabra as the main source of illumination. Max's nostrils twitched, and he caught a familiar blend of tomatoes, diced onions, and oregano.

Spaghetti sauce.

... Romantic spaghetti sauce... Romantic spaghetti sauce with romantic outfits and romantic mood lighting... How could it get any worse?

"Oh, I hope you don't mind-" Sam's voice cut through Max's train of thought. "I found one of my Sinatra CDs while I was cleaning. Would it be alright if I...?" he trailed off, smiling all too hopefully.

Sinatra. Of course. The perfect soundtrack for any romantic setting.

Max did his best to smile in spite of the anxiety twisting his stomach.

"Sinatra? Sure! Put him on! Ol' blue eyes! Swoonatra! Chairman of the board! After all, the guy's been married four times! Who better to serenade our... d... d-d.." the very word seem to swell Max's tongue. Dry-heaving, he promptly struck his own gut.

"D-DATE! OUR DATE!" he finally choked, gasping for air as he pressed his hands to his knees.

... The relief of finally verbalizing it was dampened slightly by the palpably awkward silence that followed.

"... You good, buddy?" asked Sam, worryingly. Max hurriedly straightened up, forcing a smile with such manic intensity that his left eye began to twitch.

"You betcha! I'm great! I'm better than great! I'm about to have a romantic candle-lit dinner with my... s... s-sweetheart..." Max felt the blood rush to his face, but he bared his teeth, determined to persist. People used cutesy terminology during these things, right? Sam was probably expecting it by this point.

"... I-isn't that right? ... My little... Er... Sh-shumbly... w-wubbles?"

... Max would've given six of his own ribs to crawl under that table and never be seen by anyone ever again.

"... Y'know-" Sam smiled, though not unkindly, as he placed a gentle hand to Max's rigid shoulder. "You don't have to talk like that if it makes you uncomfortable... Heck-" he shrugged, scratching the back of his neck. "It's kinda makin' ME uncomfortable..."

Max exhaled, his body going limp.

"Oh, thank GOD... No offense, Sam, but I just can't do the cutesy-wutesy crap... At least NOT unironically."

"I'd have to agree," nodded Sam, pulling out a chair for his partner. "Watching you trying to be purposefully adorable is like pulling teeth."

"Um, I beg to differ, Sam." Max hopped up onto the chair, the length of his legs barely making it past the edge of the seat. "Pulling teeth is both exhilarating and vaguely erotic. What I did a moment ago was just..." he gave a faint shudder. "Creepy..."

Sam chuckled, shaking his head as he carefully pushed Max in.

"Well, that aside, I DO appreciate your willingness to give this a shot, Max. Just remember, if it gets to be too much, you can tap out at any time." He fetched a comforting smile, playfully tussling the space between Max's ears. "Don't forget, our safeword is 'subvert.'"

"Aaah, subvert." mused Max, settling back against his chair. "My favorite variety of 'vert,' second only to 'per.'"

"Noodle-head." Sam chortled. Leaning over, he planted a soft kiss to Max's cheek, briefly savoring the familiarly fluffy texture against his lips. Max, with a sigh, contentedly leaned into it, a slow smile stretching across his face.

... Maybe this 'conventional' date night wouldn't be so bad...

"Oh, speaking of which-" Sam straightened up, breaking the kiss almost as soon as it'd begun. "I better check on the pasta before it burns."

"Ohhhh," groaned Max, reaching his arms out like a needy toddler. "Can't we just skip the food and play tonsil-hockey for an hour?"

"Your vividly grotesque idioms for making out are strangely winsome, Max." Sam commented, crossing through into the next room.

While his partner made himself busy, Max tried his best to occupy his sporadic attention, absent-mindedly studying the slender prongs of his laid-out fork.

'... I wonder how far I could get this up my nose...' he pondered, before hurriedly shaking his head. 'No, no... No zaniness... Sam wants a nice, romantic evening, and by God's left nipple, I WILL DELIVER!'

... But there was that word again... Romantic... There was just something to it, some sense of unease that dangled from the phrase like a booger. But then again, maybe it wasn't the word, but rather the aesthetic that came with it. Hearts, flowers, naked cherubs and giggling waifs and long walks on the beach... It was just all so...

'Disgusting? Stupid? Flagrantly artificial?'

... Embarrassing....

Maybe it was just because he and Sam never had to experience the awkwardness of a first date. They'd grown up together, and once they finally took their relationship to the next level, their lives just became one long, uninterrupted honeymoon phase. There was never any anxiety over impressing the other, no charade of exemplary manners.

Now, they were on a REAL date...

And Max had to suffer all the emotional torment that came with it.

"Hot stuff, comin' through!"

Max gave a slight start. Quickly setting down the fork, he watched as Sam reentered the office, a saucer of steaming spaghetti on each hand.

"I'll say you are." Max smirked, disguising his surprise behind a snide little wink.

"Aw, hush." scoffed Sam, smiling modestly as he placed their dinner towards their respective ends. Moving over towards the CD player atop his desk, Sam carefully slid the Sinatra disk into place, before hurriedly switching to his favorite track.

"~Every kiss, every hug

seems to act just like a drug.

You're getting to be a habit with me.

Let me stay in your arms,

I'm addicted to your charms.

You're getting to be a habit with me.~"

"How apropos," sneered Max, as the honey voice filled the space.

"Eh, what can I say?" Sam winked in return. "I'm a sucker for theming."

Briefly retreating under the table, Sam soon withdrew a small ice bucket housing a bottle of something pink and bubbly. Holding it at arm's length, Sam popped off the cork, taking care not to spill too much froth.

"... Champagne, eh?" Max smiled, a little uneasily, as Sam poured out their glasses. "... Gee, you, uh... Ya really went all out, huh?"

"Well, go big or go home, right?" Sam said, sounding somewhat unsure. Sliding the bottle back into the bucket, he took his seat opposite Max, suddenly looking around as if having noticed something.

"... Did I overdo it?"

"What? ... Oh, no! No!" Max shook his head. "No, I didn't mean that in a bad way! I'm just..." 'Intimidated?' "... Flattered that you went to so much trouble, that's all!"

Sam relaxed, taking a small sip from his drink, before chuckling. "... Heh... Well, I guess this is what you'd call a childhood fantasy."

"... Really?" Max raised an eyebrow.

"Sure," Sam bowed his head bashfully, his muzzle shifting from brown to red. "I'm only a little ashamed to say so, but ever since my blossoming adolescence, it's been a secret dream of mine to treat my special someone to a hand-crafted night of atmospheric intimacy."

Max pressed a hand to his chest. That was.. surprisingly kind of touching...

"... What are you, a girl? Who refers to themselves as blossoming?"

Much like any knee jerk reaction, the quip was out before he even had a chance to think. Ears standing on end, he clenched his fists so hard against the table that the cloth began to bunch under his fingers. This wasn't right, this wasn't romantic... If the circumstances had been different, it would've been fine. Hell, it would've been expected... But this was a DATE, people aren't supposed to make fun of their dates!

"But I DID blossom," continued Sam, completely unfazed. "I blossomed like a beanstalk. What's YOUR excuse, pint-size?"

Max heaved a sigh, releasing his snag on the wrinkled cloth.

'I've served as the racket for games of tennis that were less stressful than this...' he thought, snatching at his glass, and downing the drink in one quick-fire gulp.

"... You doin' okay, buddy?" Sam said, and all at once, Max felt as if his hand were encased in an oversized catcher's mitt. Max looked up, and saw Sam's platter-sized paw gently caressing his apple-sized fist.

All at once, inspiration took hold; a chance for redemption.

... Or further mortification, depending on how you looked at it. For Max, the odds were pretty split.

Nevertheless, Max screwed up his courage, clutching at Sam's hand with both of his own, he yanked at his partner's arm, drawing the knuckles to his mouth...

... And kissing them.

It was light, clumsy, and about as awkward as a grade school play, but he managed, hurriedly throwing Sam's hand aside like a used snot rag before slumping back against his seat.

Sam, meanwhile, just sat like an open-mouthed totem pole, slowly glancing between Max, and his hand.

Was that a good reaction?

... Then, quite out of the blue, Sam was chuckling. That special husky, back-of-the-throat sort of chortle that Max typically adored, but was NOW making him feel about as hot as a steamed vegetable, and just as stupid.

"Don't laugh!" he snapped, though something in him was grateful for the sound breaking the tension.

"S... sorry, Max..." Sam snickered. "I-it's just... I haven't seen you blush like that since our ninth honeymoon."

Max's beady eyes narrowed. "... What're you talking about?"

"Oh, come on..." Sam smirked, leaning against his elbow. "You remember."

Max's eyes suddenly went wide.

"... Oh, good Lord Sam-" he whimpered, ears drooped. "Not that, please-"

"Now what WAS it?" Sam playfully pondered, scratching at his chin. "What WAS that little word...?"

"Sam, I beg you-" Max slid further into his seat, his aforementioned blush only deepening. "Please, no!"

"That magic little four syllable phrase-"

"Sam-"

"That rarely used pet name that makes you crumble like a Jenga tower-"

"SAM!"

"Hm?" Sam finally looked towards Max, still smiling his complacent little smile. "Something amiss, my little Lago-Muffin?"

... As soon as it was out in the open, Max wasted no time, slamming his face into the plate of spaghetti with a low, muffled groan. Sauce went flying in all directions, but he didn't care.

He hated Sam.

He hated that stupid nickname.

And he hated how much he loved both of them and how weak they ultimately made him...

"... So you DO remember." Sam piped up, evidently proud of himself. He slid a noodle from Max's scalp, before slurping it up with a satisfied gulp. "I know I remember. You and I had just nabbed the infamous Pinwheel Purloiner, and were celebrating over a chocolate malt. The whole set up was so beautifully Rockwellian that I called you that as a joke... But, low and behold, you purred like James Dean's motorcycle makin' sweet love to Martha Stewart's blender."

"... Done in by a lousy play on words." Max mumbled into the pasta. "... How humiliating..."

"Nah," beamed Sam, raising Max's head up by his ears. "On the contrary, I find it rather endearing." Taking a moment to observe his partner, he added, "Sheesh, Max... ya look like a tomato..."

"Don't remind me," Max grumbled, eyes downcast. Sam shook his head.

"No, I mean ya got sauce all over your face. Here-"

Lifting him up and across the table, Sam drew Max into his lap. Plucking at a napkin, he then began to smother it against Max's unwitting cheek.

"Agh-! S-Sam!" Max sputtered, writhing like a dug-up grub. "Quit it!"

Sam paused.

"Lago-Muffin."

‘... God dammit.’

Max's eyes turned to comical spirals as he slumped against Sam's stomach in a love-struck daze. Satisfied, Sam was able to finish his cleaning before Max came to.

"... That nickname NEVER leaves this room, understood?" Max growled, still red-faced despite the lack of pasta sauce. Sam gave a soft guffaw,

"Whatever you say, Max. Do ya want me to put you ba-"

"No." said Max stoutly, folding his arms. "I live on your lap now."

"... For all intents and purposes, that may as well be true." Sam considered, spooling a strand on pasta onto his fork, before passing it along to Max. Max happily obliged, snaring the fork between his razor-like teeth like a shark.

Just then, Sam's CD reached the final track of the album.

"~I won't dance.

Don't ask me.

I won't dance.

Don't ask me.

I won't dance,

Madame, with you.~"

And once again, Max was granted an idea.

This time, however, with more confidence.

Leaping to the floor, he bowed slightly, offering out his hand in an all-too romantic fashion.

"Sinatra may not dance, but I'd like to." He grinned. "... Care to join me?"

The outright coolness of the gesture was enough to surprise them both. But while Max kept his composure, it was Sam's turn to look flustered. Blushing, he nervously tugged at his bowtie.

"... W-what, uh... what brought this on?"

"Eh," Max shrugged. "I've already been humiliated beyond belief... Twice now, in fact! So, I figure... third time's the charm, right? ... Besides..." He gently threaded their fingers together, urging Sam onto his feet. "... I'm a sucker for theming."

... Maybe the awkwardness of a first date wasn't so bad. Heck, maybe Max was even better at this romance thing than he thought! He'd just have to keep at it if he wanted to get any better.

But that was alright. After all...

Max didn't mind spicing things up every once in a while.

An entire fanfic inspired by a single throwaway line of @supermary64‘s marvelously charming prom comic!

Hope you lovelies enjoyed it!

#sam and max #sam and max freelance police #freelance husbands #I might have gone a little insane writing this #but I'd like to write more #not just Sam and Max but for other media I enjoy #we'll just have to wait and see #<3 #fanfic #fanfiction

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