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missbunnybunny · 1 year

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- I was never enough, huh?- Widow

This is how Widow came to be in 141 + how she got her name. Cws : toxic relationships, toxic household, trauma, broken and fixed relationships, depression, yelling, suicidal thoughts, manipulation, attempted suicide, many more that I’ll add later, if I don’t forget. If you're reading this and it’s really short, just know I accidentally posted this without finishing. 😅😅

“ Hey, how are ya feeling, kid?” Price asked. You didn’t say a word just blankly stared up at him. It had been a couple of weeks since the incident. At first, you were just telling everyone that you were fine.

But slowly, your mask was starting to slip off and crack. You no longer had your smile, your happy go lucky attitude, everything that made widow….well Widow.

Ghost had been trying to get you to talk or even crack a smile. Soap and Gaz had gotten you some of your favorite food and took you to your favorite places. The flower field you found in the woods, the river, and so on, but none of them worked.

Price had taken you on some walks, and König had tried to make you feel better. He even got you some stuff animals. But nothing worked. You just became a shell of your former self.

You felt like you were back home. One night, while ghost was walking to his room, he heard crying. He followed the sound and came to your room. He softly knocked at the door and waited. After some time, he heard some shuffling. Soon, the door opened. He stared down at a red-faced, teary-red eyes, shaking widow.

“ You wanna talk about it , lil lady” ghost asked. He was sincere, but it came out sounding sarcastic. You laughed a little to the shock of ghost. “ y-you haven’t called me that I-in a while.” In between hiccups and a hoarse voice. You invited him in, and he walked in and followed behind you. “ what’s troubling you?” He asked softly. You looked up at him.

You took a deep breath and exhaled, “ haven't really told you everything, have I?” You said. ghost shook his head, “ Well I’ll take it from the start, so take a seat. we gonna be here for a while.” You told ghost, he moved a little and got comfortable. “ am here. So, nothing you say will make me run.” He said with a chuckle.

“It all started when I was 5 or so. My parents had been arguing and fighting. I can’t remember why they even stared. My older brother took me and my little brother to his room.” Ghost nodded, telling me silently to carry on.

“ he was 8 at the time, I guess we were too young to understand. But Michael, being the oldest, took most of the hits for us. Mom was a frail lady. She would tell us to play hide and seek when dad got to drunk.”

“She would come into our rooms and would say hide and seek time. Find your best spot, and don’t come out until I find you. Alex and I would always hide together in the toy box in the closet, while Michael would hide under a pile of toy in the corner.” I laughed humorlessly. “ Being the only girl didn’t help either.

My father would come from work and yell at me. Why I wasn’t as smart as my brother, why I wasn’t as strong as him, why I was even born a girl. Mom would always come running, telling off my father and hugging my tightly to her chest.”

Ghost patted my back, giving me comfort the best he could. “ By the time Michael was 18, I was 15, and Alex was 13. Mom’s health took a turn for the worst. We had learned why we played hide and seek and why father had always hated me. He hated me for looking so much like mom. He hated me for being me, a kid.”

“ Michael moved out and got a job. He promised he would come back for use. But I guess a taste of freedom from our father, our home, was all he needed. He stopped calling, visiting, and soon we stopped seeing him. I was the oldest now, I was just a child. I became a mother to my little brother, a maid, a slave to my fathers cruel words. I lost my childhood.”

“ mom, got better after some treatment. She could walk on her own, and she told my father that enough was enough. She was going to divorce him. It was a hope for the future. But that was all cut short when, in the end, he became the death of her, all the beating, all the manipulation, finally came to get her. She died of stress. Her coworkers said she was calling out our names.” I started to cry. Mother was the light we looked to, our saving light at the end of the tunnel, but she was gone.

Ghost healed my hand, telling it was okay, “ You can take a break, you know?” He said. I shook my head “ I’ll never finish if I stop now.” Wiping the tears from my face. I took a breath and continued.

“ When I was turning 17, I had had enough. I wrote a letter to my father telling him how much I hated him, I wrote a letter to my brother, telling him how much I loved him. And that I’m sorry I wasn’t strong enough. Just when I had finished writing my letters, I took a bottle of pills and drowned them.”

“ I was slipping in and out, I felt light like I was floating. I had come to terms with my own demise, I thought, since my father didn’t love me, and my brother abandoned us, no one would care if I died. But I was wrong. Alex came into my room maybe 10 minutes after I had taken the pills. He told me he wanted to surprise me with the cake he managed to bring home, he thought I was sleeping until he saw the letter.”

“ he read the letter, and soon he started running to my side, shaking me. He saw the empty bottle and stared to panic even more. He managed to pump my stomach. He sat by my side the whole time, waiting until I woke up, and when I finally opened my eyes. He cried. He cried and beg me never to do it again he couldn’t live without me. I was his only family left, and he couldn’t lose me.”

“ I had felt like I didn’t matter like I was nothing, I had to grow up and be an adult instead of a kid. I guess I was naïve to believe that my brother wouldn’t notice. He gave me the cake while crying and singing happy birthday. And we came to the session to burn the letters, I was going to live, if not for myself, then for him.”

“ I got a part-time job, I managed to save enough money to buy myself a phone, and it was a few months or so later, when I received a message from an unknown number. It was Michael. At first, I didn’t want to respond.

I didn’t even want to speak to him. But Alex told me to hear him out, and so I reluctantly I did. He told me how father changed the houses phone number, how every time he tried to visit, father would threaten him. He couldn’t risk getting us hurt, so he decided to go away.”

“ it was the first time in years, I had heard the truth from my brother. He didn’t abandon us. Our father drove him away. He loved us. He actually tried to fight for custody, but father threatened that if he even took it to court, he was going to kill him.”

“ When Alex turned 16, I was 18, we packed our stuff, and in the middle of the night, we ran away. Michael was waiting for us outside the house. We ran and never looked back. You were finally free. Michael had decided to join the army. We keep in touch, but not as frequently. Last time, I heard he was stationed in Germany. Alex is in the Navy. He’s stationed in Korea, and I’m here.”

“ Do you remember when you met me?” I asked ghost. He nodded “ yea, you were close to dying.” He said.

“ yeah” I responded. “ hours before you found me, my ex fiancé had beaten me, took all my savings, and kicked me out. He had been cheating on me, so he decided that he had had enough of playing with me, with my feelings.

I actually thought you were death itself coming to collect my broken soul. You helped me up and took me back to my old apartment. ” You laugh as you remember this part. It was what made you start trusting the masked man.

“ You kicked down the door. Pulled my ex fiancé by his shirt and punch him in the face. You helped me pack up my stuff before we were leaving. You gave me the courage to speak up. Although in the end, I had so much pent-up anger that I gave him a blackeye. You were so taken aback that you told me-”

“Wow, there lil lady” ghost finished for you. You laughed, a laugh that was not forced but heartfelt. “ You took me back to the base, like I was a lost cat. told Captain Price that it was worth it to take me in, and you were the one who gave me my code name. 141 give me a new identity, a home, and a place to belong to.”

“ Well, we’re family kid. So don’t push your family away. Everyone has been very worried about you. And I see a certain lover boy has given you many gifts.” Ghost chuckled while looking at the pile of stuffed animals. Even in dimly lit room, he could notice how your face grew in color.

“ he’s just nice that way.” You hit ghost on the side. “ Yeah, right, that man asked me for your favorite colors and animals, none stop, and even asked me for recommendations.” Ghost spoke, pointing his finger at your face.

“ Alright, it's getting late, get some rest. You got some explaining to do.” Ghost said while walking out of your room. You closed your eyes and thought to yourself “ am not alone, I have my family right here”

The next morning, you came clean to the rest of the team. “ In short, I was just scared I would become a liability, that you would no longer need me and throw me away.”

you told them while keeping your head down. They were silent. The silence was becoming too much for you, so you looked up. The second you looked up, they hugged you. they told you that you could never become a viability! That you were what was keeping this team together.

you look back at ghost. He nodded towards you, and you cried. It finally hit you even after all your shortcomings. Even after you were broken, they still accepted you for who you were. this team was willing to sacrifice their lives to make you understand you were a part of them.

Soap joked “ No wonder ur still awful at cooking.” You laugh “ Well, I didn’t have anyone to teach me growing up.” I turned to ghost and gave him a big hug “ Thank you, if you hadn’t talked to me into telling them. I don’t know how it would have ended.”

Ghost hugged you back and told you “ see, i told you. You are enough”

“ widow! Come on i’ll teach ya how to cook!” Soap yelled. You gave Ghost one last hug and ran to soap and the rest of the squad, with ghost following after you. “coming!” You yelled at them, with a bright smile in your face.

- I was and still am enough - Widow

-Thank you to @seulgi-burgundy for the ideas and I hope that everyone liked this story. Sorry for any spelling errors, and I’ll start giving widow and König some love. Until next time! @seulgi-burgundy hope this lived up to your expectations!

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late-to-the-party-81 · 1 year

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Whatever you need

AN: Thank you to the anons who sent me asks about the boys looking after Cali when she’s having her period. I didn’t follow the suggestions to the letter, but hopefully you will still enjoy this fluff tinged with a small amount of smut.

Beta’d by @lfnr-blog-blog-blog

Dividers by @firefly-graphics and moodboard by me

Master list | Series Master list

Relationship: Engineer Bucky x Reader (Cali) x Artist Steve

Word Count: 1.2k

CW: Period fic, soft loving boyfriends, clothed thigh-riding/soft smut, lots of kissing, soft dirty talk - kinda.

You didn’t know why you were so surprised by your boys being so in tune with your body, but every month - or rather every 31-33 days - you were still taken offguard.

Initially you thought it would be difficult for the two men to understand the waxing and waning of your menstrual cycle, previous partners having never cared, but they’d proved you wrong.

“Darlin’ we know how to take you apart with the merest touch, what makes you think we don’t know what’s going on down there and how it all works?”

You lay on your side on the bed, Bucky pressed up behind you with his large warm hands splayed across your cramping abdomen. He’d found you here, in your baggy sweats and vest, not needing to ask what was the matter when a wave of pain made your features twist in discomfort. He’d just whipped out his phone, called Steve to tell him to bring home snacks and supplies, and then snuggled up behind you.

“Well, to be honest most men are either ignorant and/or don’t care.”

“And those guys are bozos. How can they not want to understand? If they have menstruating people in their lives who they love and care for, understanding it just makes sense.”

His right arm was moving, drawing slow circles on your stomach, soothing your aching body.

“I remember talking to my doctor once, about my periods. Before I’d even started he asked if they were still regularly every 28 days. Part of me wanted to tell him that I was the fricking moon, and that not all women are like that. When even health professionals can’t get it right…”

You trailed off. Sure, your guys knew a lot, but you would admit you hadn’t plumbed the depths of their knowledge on the subject.

“I know, sweetheart. I got three sisters. I know more than I ever thought I would. 17 year old me got my eyes opened wide the first month all three of them and Ma synched. My pa just came home, dumped a load of candy on the table and told Ma that he and I were going out for boys' night.”

You giggled at the mental image of young Bucky, eyes wide like a deer caught in headlights, not knowing what to say in the face of a multiple progesterone crash.

“‘N by extension, Stevie knew all about it cos he was always hanging out at mine when his ma had to work nights.”

You turned your head to look over your shoulder at him. His misty grey eyes looked back at you and his cheeks and chin was covered by a short layer of hair. Fuck, he looked delicious. You needed to distract yourself.

“So, here’s a test for you. Why are there different sizes of tampons?”

“Easy- different flow rates.”

“How often does a woman need to change her tampon?”

“About every 6 hours. Don’t leave it in for more than 8. Come on, give me a hard one here!”

You pondered for a moment.

“When does a woman grow her eggs.”

“Grow them? When she’s still in utero. Which means when your mom was pregnant with you, there were three generations in the same body. But your ovaries take turns maturing one each month.”

It was a bit awkward to press a kiss to his lips, but you didn’t care.

“My, you are clever.”

He smiled against your lips.

“I know…”

His lips roved gently over yours as his hand continued to stroke your stomach, slowly but surely stoking a fire within you. So much for distracting yourself. You always got horny on your period, your jumbled hormones doing a number on you, but you always felt a bit ‘wrong’ doing anything about it.

Reluctantly you pulled your lips away from Bucky’s, giggling as you felt his erection nudging your ass.

“Need me to help you out with that?”

Bucky turned you in his arms so he could look you in the face, brushing his nose against yours and cupping your face.

Let’s just focus on you, darlin’. Orgasms are good for cramps.” His voice was a purr, his lips brushing over yours before he sucked your lower lip into his mouth and ran his tongue over it. You pulled away with a laugh and smacked at his chest, but your doubts were crumbling.

“Bucky! You’re such a horn-dog!”

He chuckled and pulled you closer, slotting one of his thick thighs between your legs.

“Can you blame me, when you and Stevie are so god-damn sexy.”

“You’re not too bad yourself…”

“Flattery will get you everywhere and everything you like.”

You nipped at his jaw and heard him drag in a sharp breath.

“Didn’t think I needed to flatter you.”

“Okay. You got me.”

“And you got me.”

He kissed you again, his hands slipping inside your sweats to knead your ass and gently move you up and down his thigh. Okay, now all your doubts were gone. Vanished. Poof. There was only Bucky and how good he was making you feel. You wrapped your arms around his neck, fingers tangling in his hair as you breathed soft whimpers into his mouth.

Up here, in the top floor bedroom, you didn’t hear the front door open and close, but you did notice when the bed dipped behind you, and the smell of Steve’s cologne enveloped you.

His breath tickled your ear as his large hands, with their long, tapered fingers, slid up your vest and started to stroke over your sensitive breasts.

“Hey, baby. Bucky helping to soothe those pesky cramps? You nodded and let out a muffled mmm-hmm as Bucky continued to kiss you.

“Well, just enjoy it, Cali. Let us make you feel better.”

Steve’s thumbs brushed gently back and forth over your nipples and you gasped, throwing your head back. His mouth latched onto the side of your neck, while Bucky shifted to your collarbone, his hands still on your ass, rocking you.

You could feel the pleasure building in you as the friction across your clit sent shockwaves through your core, coupled with the gentle teasing of your breasts. You closed your eyes and just let yourself drift away on the rising tide, small whimpers and moans making their way past your lips

“Just let go, darlin’. That’s it.”

“So beautiful, baby.”

You were surrounded by your boys, being loved and cared for. You couldn’t believe how lucky you were.

Finally, you crested, a soft ecstasy filling your pores and surrounding you like a fuzzy blanket. Steve and Bucky continued to kiss you and pet you until you slowly relaxed into the mattress. When Bucky pulled away from you, leaving the bed, after a quick readjustment of his pants, you let out a little whine, not really to be dragged from your comfortable, warm spot, but Steve just wrapped his arms around you, a mirror of how you’d been lying with Bucky only 30 minutes ago.

“Ssshhh, Cali. He’s just gone to run you a bath. And you're gonna have candles, and wine, and candy and that relaxing music that you like. Sound good?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Nothing’s too good for you, sweetheart. I hope you know that. Now, you rest here, and have a little snooze, and I’ll wake you up when your bath’s ready.”

“Okay, Stevie.”

You drifted off, with a smile on your face and warmth in your heart.

Tag list: @jobean12-blog @tuiccim @yarnforbrains @sidepartskinnyjeans @flordeamatista @krissy25 @bodeckersdiamonddoll @goldylions @luxeavenger @wheezy-stucky @doasyoudesireandlive @chemtrails-club @seitmai @peaches1958 @pono-pura-vida @writing-for-marvel

#stucky x reader #stucky x you #late writes #an artist and an engineer #artist steve rogers #engineer bucky barnes #steve rogers x reader x bucky

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mattsobvimyfav · 28 days

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For Sport (Matthew Sturniolo & Chris Sturniolo) PT 11

A.n - hey yall so this is gonna be a very very very slow burn I already have some chapters written so I will probs rapid fire. It will be toxic, there will be angst , smut , everything you can possibly think of. It happens.

Very short one y'all I got homework

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y/n’s pov-

“I cant believe you two left me in biology alone!” Chris yelled dramatically as he climbed into the backseat “sorry Chris, I didn't feel good and asked Matt to bring me home” I said turning around to face him “I guess you can make it up to me sweetheart” he said winking at me, Nick rolled his eyes at Chris before speaking “Are you feeling better?” I nod at nick, “Yeah wanna read the heartfelt texts I got from Haylee today?” Nick was my go to when it came to stuff like this because he was blunt and straight up with me. I opened my phone, scrolling all the way up and handing it back to him and Chris.

“She is such a cunt y/n, stop making excuses and cut her ass off. She's mad she has close to no friends while you have us all the time” I looked back at Nick and I knew he was right it was just hard to pull through with “I know, maybe you can help me write up something to say to her'' Nick didn't even answer just immediately started typing. “Are we going home?” Chris asked “Yes, she wants to meet mom” Matt said answering Chris “YES! Finally, the two most important women in my life are meeting” Chris said, throwing his hands over his heart. I giggled ignoring him as Matt looked over at me smiling as I returned the same smile.

We pulled up in front of a two story house, it looked homey and it reminded me of my dads house. “Im almost done, Ill be inside, leave me the keys” Nick was going in on this text, Matt turned around dropping the keys into Nicks lap as Nick continued and us three got out of the car “Come on y/n'' Chris grabbed my wrist running up towards the house. “MOM! Come out we have a surprise for you” He yelled as soon as we made it through the doors Matt followed behind. A shorter lady came out around one of the corners “Oh! You must be y/n!” She said as a smile spread across her face and she opened her arms coming towards me, “Yes, it is so nice to meet you Mary-Lou!” I said, wrapping my arms back around her “The boys talk about you non-stop, are you staying for dinner?” I didn't think she'd ask but it seemed better than going home and eating alone. “If you will have me, I would love to” We separated and she continued “Oh of course! Where is your brother? Did you leave him at school again?” She asked looking around for Nick “I’m right here, here you go y/n proof read it before sending it” He handed me my phone back and hugged his mom “Well y/n make yourself right at home. I am going to get started on dinner. Jimmy should be home soon!” I smiled, thanking her sitting down on the couch before reading the message Nick had typed for me.

I've been thinking a lot lately, and I need to be straight with you. Things between us just aren't working out like they used to. It's been tough, but I've realized that our friendship isn't making either of us happy anymore.I've been feeling kind of down after we hang out, and I've noticed some stuff that's been bugging me. I don't want to feel this way, and I don't want you to feel bad either. So, I think it's time for us to take a step back and go our separate ways for a bit.I want you to know this isn't easy for me to say, but I gotta put my own mental health first. I hope you can understand where I'm coming from. I still care about you and wish you all the best, but I think it's best for both of us if we take a break from our friendship.

I could tell this is not how Nick wanted to go about it but he knew I would not want to be rude to her. I struggled for a minute before Chris reached over my shoulder behind the couch and pressed send. I threw my phone over to the other side of the couch “CHRISTOPHER” I yelled before getting up and chasing him around the couch till I finally caught him pushing him on the couch and getting on top of him hitting him “STOP PLEASE” He yelled. I got off as Matt ascended out of the bathroom, “lets watch some TV.” I nodded as Matt and Chris sat around me. We ended up watching some stupid reality tv show.

“Dinner!” Mary-Lou yelled from the kitchen, both the boys got up booking it to the kitchen as I walked in behind them “I forgot what it was like having someone POLITE in this house” She said referring to the boys already stuffing their face with the pasta around the table “Mom is it alright if y/n spends the night” She nodded her head back and forth “Of course she can, I like her much more than the Maddy girl you brought over here” I basically broke my neck looking at Matt as he stared down at his plate wide eyed “Oooooh shit mom, you don't even know what you just started” Chris said laughing “Why what did I do” She asked looking at me and the boys “Well Maddy is very rude to y/n because she thinks y/n likes Matt and at the party last week y/n bitched Maddy out it was GREAT!” Nick said, explaining the story I looked down in embarrassment as I didn't want her to think I was some mean girl “Good, she was very disrespectful. She tried to sit on Matthew right at the dinner table, strange girl” Matt now had his hands covering his face “How long ago was this?” I asked her with a cute smile “Oh Sunday night.” I felt gross, right at that moment I could've gotten sick, I literally just finished him off and now his mom is telling me how the girl I hate was on his lap. I don't know why I keep expecting anything different. Matt looked over at me across the table as I played with the food on my plate as my phone lit up with about ten texts from Haylee. This couldn't be the worst time.

Tag-

@worldlxvlys@iluvm4ttsturni0l0@larnieboox88 @orangeypepsi@maryx2xx

#chris sturniolo #matt sturniolo #matt sturniolo x reader #nick sturniolo #christopher sturniolo #nicolas sturniolo #chris sturniolo x reader #chris sturniolo x you #matt sturniolo x you

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mochiponadventures · 3 months

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Punishment

...

Juliana was busy helping her mother in the garden when she heard someone approaching. It was Kieran. He carried a small box in his hands and gave Juliana a big smile.

"Hey Juli, i brought you some cookies made by my sis. Believe it or not, she fell in love with that home ed class at your school and is now full on trying out everything they learn there" This amused Juliana quite a lot, seeing as Carmine didn´t really looked like she would engage in such things at all...

"Thank you, i really appreciate it!" She got up from her position and walked over to Kieran, hugging him. "So i take that you two enjoy Naranja Academy so far?"

The boy nodded, still smiling.

"Yeah, it´s really nice here and the teachers are certainly different from those at Blueberry Academy" Less strict and way more more lenient, Kieran mused, chuckling. "Let me put these cookies inside the house before the sun melts them. It´s quite hot today. Do you want something to drink?" Juliana asked, taking the box from her friend, carrying it inside. "Yes please!" He replied, looking around the lot he was standing on. The garden really was beautiful and certainly ripe with all kinds of fruits and vegetables.

Just as he wanted to follow Juliana inside, he saw Ogerpon swiping the patio with a broom, looking all but not pleased. When his friend came back, he gently nudged the girl, pointing towards the sweeping pokemon. "What´s up with Ogi? She looks really angry, did something happen?"

At that, Juliana sighed, giving Keiran his drink.

"It´s a punishment, she did something very bad and is now living through the consequences of it. Right Ogi?" She turned towards the young Pokemon, raising a brow. There was only an indignified huff as answer as she continued to sweep the ground.

"What did she do?" Kieran asked.

"Well, she sneaked up in the attic, got her Iron Cudgel, which by the way she is forbidden from using outside of battles, and decided to hit Momo on top of his head with it..."

Ogi only rolled with her eyes.

"Don´t give me that eyeroll, young lady! We don´t hit in this house and you know that!"

"POOOOOOOOOOON PON!" Ogi replied dramatically, it was amazing how close it sounded to a child, whining. Kieran chuckled, shaking his head. "Poor Momo, i bet that must have hurt!"

"He cried for hours afterwards. I even had to take him to the Pokemon Center! And you know how he likes going there..." Momo had a severe phobia of hospital settings and thus, every visit to the Pokemon Center or it´s sick bay, made the little Pokemon flew into a giant panic attack. "Don´t even get me started when its time for his shots...you don´t wanna see him there..."

Kieran nodded at that, feeling sorry for the little Peach.

"You know, Ogi and Momo are pretty much like Carmine and me when it comes to sibling quabbles. She used to hit me too when i was too annoying for her taste. Of course never so bad that i had to go to the hospital, but still." The memories of these events were still fresh inside his head, albeit it had been years by now that they happened.

"Speaking of Momo, where is he? Terapagos wanted to go play with him as soon he heard me talking about going to visit you!"

"Oh i laid him down for a nap. The heat is making him kind of drowsy and i don´t want him to get a sunburn or heatstroke either. He is in my room." Keiran mused at that for a moment, it was really hot he had to admit. No wonder even Pokemon got bothered by it.

"That´s a shame, but of course his health goes first. I hope he feels better after that nap." He took a sip from his lemonade by now and relished at the taste. "This is really good. Perfect for a hot summer day!" Juliana nodded eagerly. "Yeah, my mom makes the best lemonade around here. Nemona, Arven and Penny can testify to that!" She laughed, pulling Kieran over to her, nuzzling his cheek.

"That said, I am done with gardening for now, why don´t you come inside and we can watch a couple movies? We have an air conditioner too, so it´s nice and cool inside." Before going inside though, she called over Ogi, allowing her a break as well.

"You can take a break as well, Ogi. Take a glass of the lemonade and go inside, okay? I don´t want you to get overheated either...you can continue later!"

Ogerpon was first relieved to finally being able to stop sweeping but got hit by the word "break", which meant that she had to continue later on, which did not sit right with her at all. Pouting she listened to Juliana and went inside with a huff, throwing the broom on the ground, probably to make a point.

"She still has a long way to go..." Juliana sighed, taking Kierans hand, pulling him inside. "Then again, i can´t really blame her. She never had someone to tell her what is right and what is wrong..."

"I think you´re doing a pretty good job as her trainer so far, so don´t worry about it!" They kissed each other and went inside together, hand in hand.

Inside the house there was a commotion going on already, Momo seemingly had woken from his slumber and was now darting through the house, visibly full of energy. From what Juliana could see, he had cookie crumbs around his cheeks which only could mean one thing...he must have gotten in the cookies Kieran had brought and Momo now effectively had a bona fide sugar rush.

"I think someone gourged themselves on your sisters cookies, Kieran..." Juliana chuckled, watching her youngest charge zooming around the house, giggling like crazy. Ogi followed him, visibly annoyed but also with cookie crumbs around her mouth.

"Now that Momo´s awake, i can let out Terapagos as well, that´s what he wanted anyway!" Kieran exclaimed, calling out his friend from inside his ball. "Alright Tera, go have fun with Momo!"

The young Pokemon did not wasted a minute and quickly got a hold of both Momo and Ogi.

"You think they let us watch our movies in peace?" Kieran asked, looking at Juliana with an amused look. "We can try, let´s go before there is yet another incident caused by this trio in the back"

And with that, both Juliana and Kieran sat down and enjoyed a couple hours together, with the joyful and livid background noises of playing Pokemon.

#mochiponadventures: story time #i think i will make these small stories now and then #to sort of develope this little AU #ogerpon #pecharunt

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abeinginsand · 1 year

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The Silent Protagonist Meets Two Flames Continuation of the Silent Protagonist Au ( part 1 ) Dialogue and more story rambles below

1] Taylor:

Lost my voice. Don't remember the fight...and I missed an (anime) episode.

2] Nick Flame:

Aw, kid, you look so much like your mom! Dad…uh Glenn, used to say I looked a lot like my mom too. I couldn't really remember her face myself but he showed me sometimes. He kept a little photo album under the bed. I'd sneak under there alot to look at it when he was at work. Sneaking around is super cool! I hid a few things at home…your home I mean, I could show you--

3] Nicolas Flame:

Now's not the time for a trip down memory lane, Nick! Look at our baby boy's face… Are you okay, Taylor? My Dad--Jodie--always stressed that its okay to cry and to talk to him about what made me upset. So I'm sure Cass--your mom would listen to you. And I know I…well we haven't been around but I am here now. I want to be. And if necessary, I can give a stern talking to any person or creature who hurt your feelings. Simply say the word.

4] Taylor: Huh!? A-Are these flames talking to me? They sound like Dad...

5] Nicolas Flame:

That's because we are your dad…fractured parts of him anyways. Sometimes a demon's spirit leaves its body during body reformation. But with us…well its complicated, a short version is that your dad's spirit is unusual do to past circumstances. So, when his…our spirit left his body it fractured into two parts. I am known as Nicolas and they are…Nick. We represent two major parts of Nicky. But no matter what, one thing is clear…we felt we must return to you immediately. To watch over you…

-------- Story Notes for Part 2: This takes place a week or so after that original scene in part 1. Taylor still can't speak and wonders if it may be due to the very obvious signs of neck injury. However...only he and his mom seem to be able to see his scar, horns, and tail. Cass seems to think his horns and tail are accessories at first--until Taylor manages to convince her otherwise... The doctor that came to do an in-house check up appeared to not see any of those. Instead, the pediatrician comments on Taylor's abnormally high body temperature. The doctor gives some fever treatment recommendations and is on their way. Apparently, with the mayor's entourage running amok--much of the health workers in the city were helping at the nearby hospital. So lines were even longer than they usually were...fevers were lower priority unless stacked with other concerning symptoms. His mom wanted him to rest but Taylor...tensed at the idea of sleeping. Feared what memories might be lurking in his dreams. At least he was comforted by the fact that his mom was fine with him trying to sleep in her room or (in the living room). No space under her bedframe or the couch for eldritch horrors to be hiding under. On another side of things, he's been using the fever and lack of voice as a reason to avoid school. At first he thought it was weird school was still going on--surely the place shouldn't be running. The principal was gone. Surely a school would be closed for a few days or something...they wouldn't just act like its another Tuesday! Someone died! This was contradicted quickly when his mom showed him a voicemail from the school's main secretary--asking him about his attendance. In that moment, he got a dull headache as he recalled...everyone finding out Normal was still doing homework. They'd all known school was continuing this whole time, had been even after the principal died and had chosen to not do homework. Why had he forgotten that part? (Because it made him angry. Because it made him feel so.....)

Besides, Taylor couldn't remember what expression his...friend? ex-friend? made the last time they were near each other either. It was weird. But, there was the group chat and his phone was charged. He could try and reach out? Yet, the chat log only showed the part about Scary leaving the chat awhile ago. No messages had been sent after that. Maybe the group chat was pointless from the beginning. He's dad had destroyed his phone once after all. Told him to not bother with making long lasting connections. If he'd gotten another one and just never shared the new number with the others... Taylor wouldn't feel so defeated right now looking at the 'no new messages' notice. The teen tries to pass the time like he used too--with anime of course or hanging out with his mom when she's not busy. He gets better at hiding the terror that takes hold anytime his mom leaves the house. A fear that she won't return one day. It has yet to happen but what does--is that she asks him to bring over some of her paperwork. To a recording she's doing across town. He manages that just fine--at least on the way to the building. On his way back, he swears he sees someone familiar. He runs away, back into the taxi, refuses to look closer to figure out the identity. Surely, this was the safest decision and he refuses to dwell on it. Now back at home alone, he heads back to the his bedroom to watch whatever is coming on that day. But he missed it apparently--by a few hours. It wasn't even his favorite show.. His eyes and the neck scar burn anyway and Taylor tries really hard to remember how to breathe. It sorta works after a few very long minutes and he rubs at his eyes, stuck in his thoughts. Until he feels heat brushing against his hair and shoulder and a familiar voice crowding the air--two of the same voice. His dead dad's voice? My thought is that Nicky's flame spirits are now his son's temporary familiars. They'll end up helping him and his mom through the au adventure. Basically helping jog Taylor's memory on what happened during the fight and learning more about his dad in general? Other note, atleast in terms of this AU, pronouns are as follows: Nicky: he/they Nick: they/them Nicolas: he/him Taylor: he/him (questioning--might incorporate him trying out other pronouns at some point) Cass: she/her

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axewchao · 11 months

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Thanks for the birthday wishes, frens.

I would've replied to them the moment I got them, but I was on vacation with my folks and the WiFi provided was... shitty, for lack of better word. To the point where all I could do both here and on dA was lurk.

There's another reason as to why I've been quiet here, and that's because I recently had to say goodbye to my dog.

I'll stick the full story under a readmore.

~~~

I've been struggling with finding a way to say this without making it seem like I'm just... dumping it all on y'all. But it's not exactly something you can dance around, and it probably shouldn't be danced around.

And I didn't want to just pretend to be perfectly fine online, either. Even the idea of trying that just feels... wrong.

So... I will just say it.

I'm putting extra gaps here for emphasis that this is not pleasant talk. If you're uncomfortable with talk of lost pets, please scroll away/hit the back button/leave this post now. I'll add some squiggly lines to act as one last warning.

~~~

I know I haven't mentioned her very much online, but Zira, my beloved poodle and dearest friend for the last 14 years... was put to sleep the day before my birthday.

It broke my heart, but it had to be done; she was old, she had health problems, and the vet said she wouldn't make it by the time I came home.

I wasn't even able to say goodbye to her. Unless a "be good, doggo." counts as I dropped her off for boarding about an hour before I was given the... news.

I was left unresponsive for the rest of the 8th and most of the 9th. It wasn't until my aunt (who previously owned one of Zira's littermates and lost him to similar circumstances a few years prior) took a moment to talk to me that I finally cracked, letting out everything I was bottling up. Had it not been for her reaching out, I probably would still be in a silent state even now, unable to do anything other than lie down and cry because Zira was gone and it felt as though no one else gave a shit beyond obligatory "I'm sorry"s.

I soon learned how wrong I was in that last regard, as I eventually talked about it with my mother who, much like her daughter, isn't one for crying regularly. To actually see her upset to the point of tears over Zira's fate despite almost never interacting with her... it... I'm not sure how to put it, but it was relieving to know that my mom really did care, both about how I felt and about Zira in the end.

Zira was... well, I didn't call her my "fuzzy baby child" for nothing. She meant everything to me, and to think that starting today, I'll be coming home without her there to greet me, to lie at the end of my couch while I sleep, curl up beside me while I draw, or even so much as hear those cute little snores she made while napping... it just hurts. More than I've ever felt in my life.

I can feel myself tearing up as I type, so... I guess I should finish this off. I'm home now, and have already visited the animal hospital to retrieve the collar and bandanna Zira was wearing, which the vet was kind enough to hold onto per my request. Alongside those were a card with Zira's paw print, and a picture of my girl.

I don't know when I'll start posting again, but I'll try not to take too long. And I'll continue to lurk and talk here and there, if only sparingly.

To those who read this to end, I thank you for for your time.

And to those who still have fuzzy (or scaly/feathery) baby children of their own... Cherish them. Give them as great a life as you can, and when the time comes for them to leave... Do what my aunt told me to do; hold onto the memories of them while they were alive. It still hurts, especially since I lost Zira so recently...

But my aunt's not wrong. Because after I cry over seeing Zira's stuff, I find myself remembering my fuzzy baby child fondly, and smile when I thought I no longer could.

#axewchao chitchat

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cyberaxolotl · 4 months

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Oh The Blue, Blue Water: Chapter 2, Lover Of The Deep

Bugsnax Merpeople AU Fanfic

Warnings: N/A

See AO3 version for more specific tagging

Illustrations: 1

Words: 9.4k

Fic below the cut

“Alright, Imimi, are you ready to go back to mom and dad’s?” Wiggle called through her sandstone home, looking for her sister.

The young girl emerged from the guest bedroom with a kelp pouch slung over her shoulder. “I’m ready.” She answered, swimming up to her older sister.

“Don’t be so blue, sweetie, haven’t you been missing our parents?” She noticed the dull expression on the little seagrump’s face as they went to the lower level, trying to speak softly. It was early in the morning, earlier than either of them liked being awake, but they didn’t have much of a choice.

“I was, but I’m gonna miss you too, and Reefburg.” The two left the sandstone house, “Why couldn’t you keep living with us in Conchell?”

“There isn’t space for me in Conchell, Imimi. It was my home when I was growing up, but Reefburg is my home now.” She patted her sister’s head, then stopped to face each other. Fixing the young seagrump’s hair bow, “One day you’ll understand, sweetie.”

“I don’t think I’ll ever understand adults.” Imimi crossed her arms and pouted.

Wiggle glanced away, holding her sister’s paw as they approached the exit to Reefburg. “Is there anybody you’d like to say goodbye to?”

“No.” She said simply.

“Alright, then let’s find the current.” The two swam out into open waters, the sunrise beaming down on them, making the water look a vibrant orange. It would’ve been beautiful if the atmosphere around them wasn’t so moody.

When they saw a trail of fish being carried by the water, Wiggle held her sister closer, then pulled them both into the current. Imimi perked up as the water rustled through her fins, flicking her tail, and feeling the rush of water around her. The two watched the scenery outside of the current flow by, fish swimming in and out of the powerful force, scales glistening from the nearby sunlight.

“Mh.” The little girl grumbled sleepily. “Get me up when we’re home.” She wrapped her arms around her older sister, resting her head by her collarbones.

Wiggle chuckled, “I have NO idea how you’re able to sleep in currents like this.” She patted her sister’s back, looking over her shoulder. It was going to be a long trip.

~~~~~~

A small car pulled up to the Wildlife Restoration building, the early bird of the team stepping out of his car. Gramble might not have been the front desk person, but his dedication to checking the beaches thoroughly throughout the day meant he had to start early, and it made him the one to open the building.

He walked up to it, holding the keys tightly in his paw, and unlocking the door. The sunrise came through the large windows at the back of the building, lighting up what was an otherwise dark workplace. His first task was to go to the electrical closet and turn all of the lights on, and then it was time to check on the animals.

Wildlife Restoration of Newtport was responsible for authorizing and educating grumpuses before they explored the area, as well as keeping track of the local wildlife. It meant that they would take in any animal that seemed irregular or injured and bring them back to health, or study their status. A researcher from the Marine Center would usually come in for the studying part, though.

After he flicked on the lights, Gramble went up the stairs to the second floor of the building, where they kept various vivariums. Only three of them were occupied at the time, all being aquariums, and he could hear small tapping from one of them.

He went up to the first one, containing a bream. “Hey, little guy. Do feel like eatin’ today?” He poured a handful of dried prawns into his paw, opening the tank and dropping them into the water. He watched the fish swim curiously over, poke at the prawns… And then completely ignore them. He sighed in disappointment, picking up a notepad next to the tank. “10/6/87: Morning: Ignored food” He wrote down, then picked up a small bottle. He added a couple drops to the water, put the lid back on the tank, and then went on to the next one.

The next aquarium contained no animal, but instead, a cluster of eggs. He picked up the notepad next to it and checked a box, marking that they hadn’t hatched yesterday or during the night. The eggs were that of a fish that had recently been marked as endangered, and the Newtport team was one of the teams contributing to bringing them back.

And finally, the most significant tank of them all, one that had a notepad and a pager next to it. There was a lobster tapping on the glass, and had been for the past few minutes. “You’ll be fed in a minute now, hold on.” He bent over and picked up a smaller tank full of dead mussels, scooping up two and dropping them into the tank. “…What?” But the lobster completely ignored it, still tapping on the tank.

Checking the notepad, he didn’t see any past mention of the lobster ignoring food. Turning to the pager, he turned it on. “Howdy, this is Gramble Gigglefunny reportin’ from Wildlife Restoration of Newtport. The lobster you’ve got under study is refusin’ his food and keeps tappin’ on the glass, and I’m not sure what to do. I’d appreciate some help.” He turned the pager off, still watching the lobster in the tank. It was tapping the glass in an odd pattern, one that was familiar, but he couldn’t place why.

The pager quickly turned back on. “You have: One new-“ He hit the button to play an incoming message.

“Hi Gramble, this is Cora Seashell from Newtport Marine Center. We recently observed that the lobster picked up morse code during a light test done on it, as well as what some meant. Check on what it’s saying and if you can figure out what it wants, do it and page back. Nancia Drawboard will be there at noon to pick up the lobster for more tests and be back with it by six PM.”

Gramble was staring in confusion as the pager turned off. Shaking his head, he suspended his disbelief and picked up the notepad, marking down what the lobster was tapping.

-.-.

.-..

- -

And then it repeated again.

“…Clam-? Clam?!” His eyes widened. Turning to where they kept its food, he picked up a box of clams, picking one out. “You want this?”

It stopped tapping and stared at him.

“…And I thought Minette was losin’ her darn mind when she told me there was a hyper-intelligent lobster.” He shook his head, putting the clam into the tank.

He watched the lobster grab it, crack the shell open, and eat the insides. It paused for a moment before turning to the mussels and eating them as well. Gramble reached over and turned the pager on,

“This is Gramble back again, it was doin’ the morse code for clam because it wanted to eat a clam. Thanks for the help.” He turned off the pager and turned around, leaving the animals to rest again. His mind was still confused from dealing with the oddly smart lobster, but he tried to shake it off as he went downstairs, heading for storage.

Knock knock!

“Buh-?” His whiskers twitched as he looked over his shoulder and through the glass front door. There was an old man that he didn’t recognize behind it, dressed casually, and holding a paper in his paw.

Gramble turned around, walking up to the door. “Howdy, sorry, we ain’t open yet.” He said as he opened it up.

“I’m aware.” The man said bluntly. “Is Arinata Quizsparkle here?”

“Uh… No, she don’t come in for another couple hours.” He shook his head, glancing behind the man. There was no car besides his own, and he wasn’t sure where he had come from.

The man held out the paper, thrusting them into Gramble’s paws. “Make sure she gets this.” His voice was firm as he spoke, and without another word, turned around and walked away.

“…Alright then.” He muttered, shutting the door and walking over to the front desk. He put the paper down, but not before accidentally reading the heading.

“The board of Newtport marine activity formally invites Arinata Quizsparkle to a meeting at the town hall as a representative of local conservation.”

“A representative-? Arinata?” He said aloud, glancing back at the paper as he turned away. “It’s really none of my business, oughta give it to her when she comes in…”

With that over with, he got ready for his first scope of the beach.

~~~~~~

“Imimi, wake up. We’re almost at Conchell.” Wiggle said, patting her sister on the back.

“Mhf, hmmgh…” Imimi grumbled as her eyes blinked open, picking herself up. She could recognize the feeling of the cooler waters, and knew that she was almost back home. “Will you be saying hi and bye to mom and dad? She asked, letting go of her sister but staying in the current.

“Of course I will, I always stop by to talk to mom and dad and when I’ll be seeing you all next.” The popstar grabbed the girl’s paw, looking down the stream. “There’s our stop.” She brought them closer to the edge of the current.

The two of them pulled away from the current a few feet away from a carved stone arch, partially obscured by coral. The two swam through the coral and down into the arch, following a sandstone tunnel that brought them to another undersea town; Conchell.

It was so early that only one or two townspeople were awake and out. Their attention was immediately on the sisters, who turned away after realizing that it was just Imimi being returned. “I’m sure your friends will be happy that you’re back, sweetie.” Wiggle said, focused on looking around for her parents’ house.

“Ugh, seeing my friends means I have to go to school again.” The young girl crossed her arms, looking away.

“You’d be going to school whether you had friends or not.” They reached the sandstone home, and the older sister knocked on the door. “Emerthyst! Daminan!” She called up to her mother and father.

After a long period of silence, the front door opened. “Who- oh!” Their mother looked as tired as ever, with their father behind her looking similarly.

“Momma, dad, hello! Sorry to be showing up at five in the morning.” Wiggle greeted, keeping her sister in front of her.

“Oh, no, we understand, sweetie.” Their father came up behind their mother, “Imimi, how was Reefburg?”

“Reefburg was nice.” Imimi rubbed her eyes, “I wanna go back to bed.”

“Oh, don’t we all…” Emerthyst moved out of the doorway, letting the young girl into the house. “Will you be coming back for the holidays, Wiggle? I don’t think we have much time to talk now.”

“Imimi would be very upset with me if I didn’t. Are you staying in Conchell for the winter?” The popstar questioned.

“Heavens, no.” Her father laughed, “Emerthyst would turn to ice. We’re moving to Coral Peaks when it gets cold.”

“Daminan.” His wife groaned at him. “Ahem- where are the Reefburg grumpuses going this year?”

Wiggle chuckled at her parents’ interactions. “Most of us are going to Salt-Tide, but like always, Eggabell goes to Seahorse Hamlet to see her mother.”

“I think there’s a current connecting all of those southern villages, so we'll check the map.” Emerthyst flicked her paw. “Thank you for taking care of Imimi, sweetie, we’ll be back to bed now.”

The popstar nodded, giving a small wave. “It’s been nice seeing this place again, ta-ta~!” The door was closed as she turned around, going down the path through the sandstone city.

‘I do have some time before the current disappears, I wonder what the surface is like nowadays.’ She looked up as she exited the sandstone tunnels, seeing the sunlight through the water. She could see a cluster of rocks protruding out of shallower water nearby, and figured she’d use that as a hiding spot as she ascended to the surface.

Breaching the water, she felt the gentle morning waves splashing on her back, crashing on the rocky point. “Hmph- ah-!” She tried to pick herself up to look over the rocks, but struggled, groaning at her own physical weakness. Settling for the side instead, she peeked beyond the rocks.

There was a big shore with a tall cliff beside it, and a white-and-green building on top of the cliff. There were wooden stairs building to ease the descent from the top to the bottom, but more importantly to her, “A landgrump? At this hour?” She could see the form of a pink grumpus on the beach, wearing a vest and carrying around a bucket. She was only a few yards away from him, and once her eyes adjusted to the air, she saw what he was doing.

He was picking up trash, and very thoroughly too. He’d run his paw through patches of disturbed sand, picking up buried litter, and dumping it into the bucket. If there was one in a tidal pool, he’d bend down at the edge to get it, avoiding going into it. “Hm…” Wiggle watched intently as he went across the beach.

She noticed a stranded horseshoe crab before he did, her face dropping. “What’s he going to do with it..?” She mumbled, peeking further past the rock. She saw him perk up when he saw it, then carefully but hurriedly make his way over. He bent over by it, checked it over, and then carefully picked it up. Walking up to the water, he placed it in, and gave it a push off as it swam away.

She wasn’t sure what to think. The most she’d seen of landgrumps were them catching fish in big boats, or the aftermath of them, seeing fish with holes in their faces from being caught and released. She’d never seen a landgrump rescue one instead.

Hiding behind the rock barrier, she followed him down the beach, watching how he moved. Picking up litter, and a few times, he’d toss a moon jellyfish back into the ocean. Some of them were dead, but several were alive, being carried happily back into the ocean. A couple times, she saw him pick up crustaceans, do something that she couldn’t see with them, put something into a smaller bucket, and then put them back down. Whatever it was, it didn’t seem like it was hurting them.

After a long while of watching him, she watched him stop suddenly, hearing distant music. He pulled something out of his pocket, checked it, and then turned around and started heading back to where he came from. “That’s odd… He has to go? What time is it?” She looked up at the sky and the sun, trying to measure the time. “…Gyah! I need to get back to the current!” She squealed, a little louder than she meant to, and then headed back underwater.

But even as she descended, she couldn’t stop thinking about him. He was cleaning up and helping stranded animals, something that landgrumps either didn’t do often, or she’d just never seen before. She didn’t hear the others in Reefburg talk about that happening either, they only ever saw the boats going overhead or docking.

‘I wonder if I’ll ever see a landgrump doing that again…’ She thought, approaching the way home.

~~~~~~

As Gramble reached the building again, he could see a figure on a bike coming up the road. That one was one he recognized as his coworker’s, and so, he stopped by the front door to greet her.

“Hey, Gramble!” Arinata yelled, pulling up to a bike rack on the side of the road. She got off and locked it up, then walked up to the building. “How was today’s first go-around on the beach?”

“It went well, I got a couple of ‘em parasites we needed.” He held up a small tin bucket. “‘Even released a beached horseshoe crab, I don’t get to do that very often.”

“Sounds great, I’ll try to join you for the next one. How are the rescues?” She asked as the two entered the building, walking up to her desk.

“Eeeh… The bream refused to eat, the eggs haven’t hatched, and I’m… Real’ confused by that lobster.” He said, walking past her for the storage room.

“Sounds about right. Uh- hey, what’s this?” She noticed the paper on her front desk.

“Oh, yeah, a guy arrived before you got here, dropped that off.” He decided it’d be better to act like he hadn’t read it.

“The board of Newtport marine activity formally invites Arinata Quizsparkle to a meeting at the town hall as a… A- a representative-?! Of local conservation?!” She read aloud, looking further down. “After careful consideration we’ve decided that… What is this-?!”

“What’s wrong?” Gramble asked from the next room.

“What’s WRONG is that they’re calling for me!” She exclaimed, “I’m not a representative of conservation, I’m a receptionist. Why aren’t they calling for our manager, or Sunnie, or- or you!”

“Uh- me?” He leaned through the doorway.

“You get here early just to scope the beach in the morning, you’re studying this stuff in university, you’re WAY more qualified to talk about this than I am.” She put the paper down, “They gave a phone number to call, I have to decline it.”

“Ah- I think me still bein’ in university is why I’m NOT qualified.” He said, and then the two were distracted by the sound of a gravel driveway being rustled.

“Heeey, sea-crew, what’s the buzz?” A snow-white grumpus with a thick hodgepodge accent said as she walked into the building.

“Minette, would you believe this?” Arinata started, “I’m being called to a town meeting as a representative of conservation!”

“Oh!” Minette was surprised, “…Congratulations!” She smiled.

“No, not congratulations! I can’t do this!” The receptionist picked up the workplace phone, dialing the number. As the ringtone went off, the other two workers glanced between each other, sharing an unsure look. The room was so quiet that they could hear the other side as well.

“Hello, you’ve called the board of Newtport marine activity, this is Charlottie, how can I help you today?”

“Hi, this is Arinata Quizsparkle from Wildlife Restoration of Newtport, I’m calling about an upcoming meeting. I was invited as a representative of conservation?”

“Let me check that for you… Uh-huh, yup, we’ve got you marked as the representative of conservative.”

“Is it possible for me to decline the invitation or recommend any grumpuses who could take my place?”

“Declining the invite isn’t recommended but is entirely possible. If you want to recommend some replacements, please give us their names and numbers and we’ll put them in the system.”

“Thank you.” Arinata looked at her coworkers, who just gave her a shrug. “I’d like to recommend Tapiyoca Essenceforth, they’ve worked in marine sciences and conservation for thirty years, their number is… As well as Sunnie Thistleroot, she’s been in the field for fifteen years, her number… And also…” She looked at Gramble.

“Ah…” He squeaked out. After a pause, he shook his head.

“…Nobody else, thank you.”

“Alright, I’ve got all that written down, I’ll forward it to the boss and call you back later, have a nice day.”

The call hung up, and the girl flopped down over her desk, groaning.

“Why’d ya decline it, Ari?” Minette asked, walking up to the desk. “You've also been in conservation for years.”

“I don’t like serious conversations, meetings, or phone calls.” The receptionist fell into her chair, sitting down and pushing it over to the front of the desk. “I’m still calming down from my last social heart attack.”

“You mean the lady who came in yesterday lookin’ for a permit?” As the two got into conversation, Gramble went back into storage to sort his collected litter.

“No, no, she was lovely. But, I…” Arinata sighed, embarrassed, “I lost my grandma’s sewing kit at sea last weekend and she chewed me up for it. At least it was shut and no fish will be eating the needles or thread…”

“Oh, I know how old ladies are about their sewing kits.” He could hear the empathy in Minette’s voice, “Ey, maybe that diver will end up findin’ it! Where’d you lose it?”

“In the middle of the waters.”

“…I don’t think that diver’s gonna end up findin’ it. So, ah, got any plans for THIS weekend?”

“I don't think I do. I certainly won’t be going boating for a while after that…” Arinata had a guilty sadness in her voice.

“Ah, cheer up, girl! Howsabout I take you grumps out to lunch this weekend, I got a bonus at my other job for being a top employee, and there ain’t nobody for me to spend it on.” Minette turned to the storage room as Gramble exited with an empty bucket, “Ey, Gramble, lunch on me this weekend?”

“Um… What day? I wanna go boatin’ on saturday.” He asked after a quick glance away.

“Whatever works for you two. Ari?”

Arinata stared for a moment, then sighed. “I’m free on Sunday, but not for long. I take yoga classes in the afternoon.”

“Eeey, look atchu bein’ all fit! Does noon work?” Minette asked, getting nods. “Sounds like a plan! We can go to that one soup place, I’ve heard good things about it.” Stepping back from the counter, she turned to Gramble. “Want me to join you for your next go-around?”

“I’d appreciate it.” He gave her a small smile, handing her the bucket.

~~~~~~

Wiggle was still thinking when she arrived at the entrance to Reefburg, not paying attention to what was around her as she entered the town. Did the other landgrumps in that green-and-white building care for animals? If she asked, would a horseshoe crab or a sea turtle tell her that they were rescued by a landgrump? She had far more questions than she figured she’d ever have answers.

“A-wiggle-wiggle-wiggle!” A cheery greeting snapped her out of her thoughtful daze.

“Ah- Aloha, Filbo!” She smiled at him.

“Hiya, Wiggle! How are things in Conchell?” Filbo asked, swaying slightly. He tended to do that when he was near her, swaying in the same way she’d wiggle in place.

“Everything in Conchell is as big and grand as usual, darling. Apparently the seagrumps there will be moving to Coral Peaks for winter this year.”

“Oh, that’s exciting! I’ve heard big things about Coral Peaks.” He remarked, then watched her for a moment. “…Are you thinking about something?” He asked, watching her awkwardly shimmy and look around.

“Hm… I decided to do a little surface-watching while I was in the Conchell area, and would you believe it?” She started, putting her paws forward, “I saw a landgrump, and he was cleaning up the shore! VERY carefully too, he was making sure he got every last bit of it, and even crazier, he put a few beached animals back into the water! A horseshoe crab, and a few moon jellyfish!”

“Oh, wow, I didn’t know landgrumps did that!” The mayor exclaimed, then paused, his gaze turning suspicious. “Was he… keeping anything?”

“Just all of the waste, it was incredible.” She put her paws on her cheeks, looking dreamily upwards, “I wonder if there are more landgrumps like that…”

“Hey,” He tapped her arm, “Be careful land-watching that close to shore, Wiggle. We don’t know what they’ll do if they see us.”

“But surely there are some that we can trust, no? If he was protecting the animals, I’m sure he wouldn’t do anything bad to us.”

“I really don’t think it’s a good idea. I guess there are stories about us saving landgrumps when they’ve gotten stuck underwater, but they always did that when the landgrump couldn’t see them.”

“So, say that kind little landgrump gets stranded out here, I’m allowed to help him?”

“Wiggle…” He looked at her with sad eyes, “…Only if he’s unconscious, or can’t see you, or- something.”

“We SHOULD be helping the landgrumps that help us, shouldn’t we? It means they’ll still be around.” She swam around him, putting her paws together. “I LOVE a grump who cares about nature, but perhaps I’m just a romantic.”

“There's not a lotta grumps like that. Not landgrumps, anyway.” A new voice joined the conversation, making the two look over.

“Eavesdropping is rude, Beff.” Filbo squeaked weakly.

She swam over, “It’s hard not to when Wiggle’s a loudmouth-”

“Hey-!”

“BUT, I hate to say it, I think Filbo is right.” Crossing her arms, the orca rolled her eyes. “Landgrumps aren’t WORTH trusting. I heard that they capture animals and keep them in little tanks, and if they don’t do that, they rip their scales off and use them as decorations!”

Filbo looked fearful at the idea, while Wiggle turned doubtful. “Oh please, have you ever seen a landgrump doing that?” She asked, getting a glare back. “I saw a landgrump in person, and he was nice! So compared to all those stories about bad ones, I don’t think you have the right to say.”

“Sure, whatever. I’d think you’d have more self-preservation with a figure like yours.” Beffica crossed her arms, turning her head up.

“What is THAT supposed to mean?!” The popstar scoffed, putting her paw on her chest.

“I mean your tail! It’s big, bright, and extravagant, and it makes you the perfect target.”

“You DO tend to make yourself stand out a lot…” The mayor added quietly.

Wiggle rolled her eyes, “If you two don’t believe me, that’s fine. But he was cleaning up and saving animals, so I think that makes him better.”

“Then don’t come crying to me when he sees you, tells his friends, and then they all come hunting you down.” With that, Beffica turned and swam away.

Filbo also backed off, though tried to give the popstar a small smile before darting away. She sighed loudly, slumping over a bush of coral. With such harsh judging from those two, she felt like she needed a third- or, fourth- opinion. But it wasn’t judging that she needed; it was guidance.

“Shellsy!” Within a few minutes, she had traveled down the tunnel to the chapel. “Shellsy, darling- why do you always insist on being in the dark like this?” She took her star-glasses off, blinking a few times at the limited light.

“Hmm..?” She heard the hum of a much older woman. “Wiggle, how unexpected. I stay in the dark as it’s a much more comfortable place to me, more akin to the depths that I came from.”

“Yes, well, it’s very unwelcoming to the rest of us, but that’s not why I’m here.” Wiggle swam to the front of the chapel, stopping by the stone front made for prayer. “I need some guidance, darling.” She prompted, leaning against the rock wall.

“What answers do you seek, my child?” Shellsy looked a little bothered by the insult to her area, but accepted it as she floated down to be alongside the other.

“Have you ever seen or, maybe even, interacted with a landgrump?” She asked tiredly, looking down. “I saw one on a beach near Conchell, he was picking up litter and helping animals, but Beffica and Filbo chastised me when I hoped to trust him!”

“…” The elderly seagrump’s eyes had widened at that, looking a bit distantly. “…I’m sure you’ve heard the stories of us helping landgrumps, saving them from storms, or from the deep.” She started, “Those were around in my youth as well. It gave me a type of… Belief, that I don’t think I would’ve had otherwise. One that wasn’t in a god or goddess, but in my fellow grumpuses.”

“You think landgrumps can be good?” Wiggle prompted.

“I do.” Shellsy nodded, “I saved one myself.”

The popstar perked up, “You saved a landgrump?!”

“Quite a long time ago.” She looked up at the sandstone ceiling, seeing the reflections of the sea-glass that coated the ground. “I had to have been barely twenty-three… It was a treacherous storm on the surface, as though the sky was splitting in half, and it made the surface as dark as the depths. I hadn’t realized that I was close to the surface until I saw it, that… That boat, falling apart.”

Wiggle watched as the elderly landgrump pulled out a golden pendant. “I knew a boat meant landgrumps, and it was so big that I thought there would be many. I figured there’d be too many to save, and there’d be a great loss to the sea then… But I was wrong. It was only her.” She stared into her pendant, “A landgrump who was just my age, in a rather flowy outfit, struggling underwater. When she saw me, hah… She looked like she’d seen an angel, or a ghost. But what stood out to me was the golden pendant she was holding very close to her…” She held the pendant of her own up high.

The younger seagrump gasped, “Landgrumps worship Mother Naturae?”

“They do, or at least, she did.” Shellsy lowered the pendant. “Soon after she saw me, she had passed out, but I couldn’t leave her like that when it was her and only her. The land wasn’t too far away, so I brought her to shore, and left her pendant with her. Maybe she died on the surface, maybe she had already drowned when I got her there… But a landgrump who worships a deity of care is a landgrump worth saving, are they not?”

“I am SO glad to hear this, I’m not completely losing my mind for thinking a landgrump can be trusted!” Wiggle smiled.

“Now, child, do not get so ahead of yourself. That was a landgrump on the edge of her life.” The elder motioned her down, “If he is worth saving is very different to if he is worth trusting.”

With a sigh, she calmed down. “I suppose you’re right… I have no idea why I’ve gotten so worked up over that landgrump.” She looked up, unsure of herself.

“You were excited to see our sea being done a kindness, it’s only natural. Do not let that excitement blind you.” At that note, she swam a little away. “You’ve awakened some rather old memories in me… I’d like to meditate on them for a while.”

“Thank you, Shellsy~” Wiggle started on her way out. “That felt better than being insulted.” With that, she was on her way.

~~~~~~

With his home on the opposite side of Newtport to the shore, it always took Gramble a while to prepare, and he always wanted to take long trips because of it. His trips were uninvolved, peaceful, and he took them as a chance to do extra credit papers.

He was almost out of the house, with a bag of snacks in his paw and a work binder under his arm, when he was stopped. “Goin’ out on your fishin’ trip, boy?”

He turned around, meeting his mother’s disapproving gaze. His whiskers twitched at the sight of the cigarette in her paw. “I’ll be home in the evenin’, ma.”

Amaranth rolled her eyes. “Why can’t you just study in your room or a library like a normal student? It’s always out on that boat your father got you.”

“I don’t use it ‘cause dad got it, I use it ‘cause I like the ocean. It’s my major, ma…” He sighed.

“I don’t even know how you keep that thing running with Face out of the way.” With a grumble, she turned away, “Don’t drown.” At that, she walked off.

“…Ugh.” He grunted, turning and walking out of the house. He was only glad that his boat was kept at a storage unit and not home, because he was sure his mother would’ve gotten rid of it if it was near her. Getting into his car, he started on the trip to the seaside.

Within thirty minutes he was in a small wooden boat with only a folder and a compass, going through papers of extra credit work. “Let’s see here… Oh, Professor Astraheart wanted me to do this one.” He saw a page that was mostly space for writing.

“Contribute to psychology: The ocean’s mental and emotional benefits

Describe below how you feel while near, on, or in the sea. Write from the heart, include personal recountings if desired”

Gramble tapped his pencil to his cheek, looking down at the paper. “I suppose I don’t mind goin’ on about it…” He mumbled, leaning back to look at the sky. He wasn’t much of a writer artistically, but he was sure the words would come if he wrote the way he felt. He hoped they would, anyway.

Putting a pencil to paper, he began writing, listening to the settling water around him.

“I’ve always felt more natural around the seaside than inland. I don’t know whether it’s the waves, salty air, or something else, but it feels like I’m free and the air around me is fresh. It’s been my plan since I was a teenager to spend as much time around that feeling as possible, and I’m glad to say it’s a success.

My father gave me a boat when I was sixteen, and I use it most weekends, it’s never failed me. The waters feel like a place to relax, and it makes me feel focused, to the point where I’m writing this paper on the water. It’s hard for me to get anything done indoors.

Other than the effects of all that salt, I’ve never felt bothered by or been hurt by being out here. When you respect the wildlife, the wildlife respects you, and I couldn’t be happier with it that way. The ocean should be cared for.”

When he looked up from his paper and shook off the focused haze, he realized that he’d been writing for a long time. He could see the land, distantly, but he was now out on the open ocean. “Oh gosh, this ain’t good. Can't stray too far from the shore, even with this compass…” Carefully standing up, he turned around to pick up a paddle and turn the boat.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a cluster of rocks. He ignored it for a moment, but when he’d processed what he’d seen, he turned back. Bright orange, standing out on the rocks.

There was a woman, a conventionally pretty one at that, slung over a rock with her body out of view. She looked relaxed, like she was sunbathing, but when he looked around her, he had no idea how she’d gotten there. There was no boat or vehicle around, she wasn’t wearing any diving gear, and she was completely alone. Except for him.

At first, he didn’t know what to do. He stared at her for a long few seconds, struggling to understand the situation he was in, before reality struck. Was this woman in danger? With a bout of courage, or anxiety, he cleared his throat, “Hey-!” And called out to her.

She perked up at his voice, looking over at him. She looked surprised, and even a little scared, at the sight of him.

“Are you stranded, ma’am-? I don’t see any boats around here or nothin’, if you’re stuck, I can come over and try to get you.” He asked with a raised voice, hoping he could hear her from the few yards between them.

She continued to stare at him, but her expression relaxed a little more. She was making intense eye contact with him, something that was a bit uncomfortable, but it was flipping switches in his head. Could she have been inebriated, or just unwell? Was she injured?

He cleared his throat again. “Ma’am?”

Suddenly, her eyes widened, as though she realized she was staring. And then, with a push off of the rock, she disappeared with a splash.

“Wait- wait-!” He jumped at the sudden movement, grabbing the paddle. As quickly as he could, which wasn’t much, he found his way to her side of the rocks.

She was gone, there was nothing there but wet stains on the stone.

“…” He sat there, paddle tight in his paws, with an unchanging expression of desperate confusion. He’d seen some things out on the waters, but an entire other grumpus… That was new, and even more so, irrational. “I- I must be seein’ things…” Bending back to the storage compartment, he pulled out a metal canteen, drinking from it so fast that a little dribbled down his chin.

Must’ve been dehydration.

~~~~~~

“How in the sea did I mess that up?!” Wiggle moaned in embarrassment, rushing through the water to Reefburg. “What was he doing here? He was at the shore by Conchell, it’s so far away, how did he even get over here?!” She spoke to herself, frantic and with a glitter of blush across her cheeks. “And he was boating, in such a small boat too, but I didn’t see any of those- NASTY little rods or nets… Ah, he had a sweetness in his voice too, he must’ve been concerned, I must have scared him starless.”

Every thought in her head put her stomach into a knot and her heart into a tizzy, her feelings conflicting with the rules and causing a storm in her mind. She was still talking to herself when she found her way into Reefburg, working herself up.

“I want to know more, I have to, but I can’t risk getting seen while sunbathing again, I don’t want to make anybody think they’re crazy- Oh, just what can a lady do about this?” She turned dramatically, posing with her arm over her eyes.

When she pulled away, her eyes widened, remembering that she was home. “…Diiiid something happen-?” Eggabell asked from a few feet away, concerned, holding a small injured shark in her arms as though it was a baby.

“Eggabell, darling, I- uh- bh- gah-!” She spluttered, then paused. After a moment, she took a deep breath, and cleared her throat. “Sincerest apologies, darling, I’m just a bit worked up over that landgrump boy I saw.”

“You saw a landgrump?!” The doctor gasped, her whiskers twitching.

“Oh, right, you didn’t hear that conversation.” Wiggle quickly presented herself more calmly, bringing herself to more of a sitting-on-nothing position. “A couple days ago, when I was in Conchell to drop Imimi off, I saw a landgrump on the shore. Just one, some guy, and would you believe what he was doing~?”

Eggabell looked worried. “Was he… making a net? Fishing?” She asked, nervously stroking the shark in her arms.

“No, just the opposite! He was picking up trash and taking it away, and even throwing back some stranded animals! Like horseshoe crabs, or those precious little moon jellies!” She said with extravagant motions, “Safe to say, I was pleasantly surprised~”

“Oh, that’s… That is nice. I wonder why he was doing that.” She looked down at the ground, “I mean, landgrumps usually do the opposite of that. This little guy got his fin caught on a hook that someone left in the water.” She lightly tapped the shark’s bandaged appendage.

“Oh, I’m terribly sorry for him! But, as I was saying,” The popstar swam closer to her friend, “I saw him again today. He was out in a little wooden boat, no hooks, no nets, nothing. Just- out on the water! He saw me before I saw him, I was sunbathing, apparently I chose an active spot.”

Eggabell let in a small gasp. “What’d he do?”

“Nothing~! He asked if I needed help, he offered to come rescue me, bring me back to shore… He must’ve thought I was some poor landgrump. He had a soft, sweet little voice, and a bit of an accent that I’ve never heard before.”

“Gosh, Wiggle, you’re lucky he wasn’t a fisher. Imagine what would’ve happened.”

“Imagine what DID happen, darling! We’ve got a landgrump who really cares about the ocean!” Wiggle prompted, her face bright and happy. She noticed Eggabell continued to slink back, her face dulling. She sighed, “I know what happened to your para, darling, and I’m sorry. Perhaps you aren’t the seagrump to be telling this to…”

“No- no, I’m… Glad! I’m happy that you think that there’s a landgrump who cares. I just… I want you to be careful, too.” She gulped, “You shouldn’t sunbathe for that long either way, it’s bad for your scales.”

“Mh.” The popstar crossed her arms, “You know, I’m not the only one of us to have run into landgrumps. Shellsy did too, she saved one! A long time ago, that is.”

“I wouldn’t say Shellsy is the most, uh… Reliable?” The doctor looked away, “Why would she save a landgrump?”

“Because the landgrump was a follower of Mother Naturae, darling, and a follower of the mother should be worth saving!”

“That explains it,” She said as she adjusted the shark’s cast a little, “I don’t want to be pessimistic, but that’s not really a good reason..?”

“You’ve been being pessimistic this whole conversation.” Wiggle rolled her eyes, “If there’s any landgrump worth helping if they’re in trouble, it’s one that’s been helping us already. That's what Filbo and I got to when we talked about it… I think.”

“If they’re in trouble.” Eggabell echoed back, backing away. “If that happens, as a doctor, I’m willing to say that he should be rescued and helped. Every creature should, in most cases… But until then, take care of yourself, Wiggle. I don’t want to see you in my care next.” With that, she turned and swam away.

“Mh.” Turning as well, she started on her way home. “If he’s in trouble… Fine. I guess that, for his sake, I’ll be hoping that we don’t meet again…”

~~~~~~

A few weeks had passed since Gramble had seen the strange woman. It was in the back of his mind frequently, but with no explanation for it, he wasn’t going to make his friends or family think he was insane by talking about it. He had chalked it up to just… Dehydration.

Once again, he was the first one at the Wildlife Restoration building, and the first one checking on their fostered animals. He went upstairs and gazed at the room of vivariums, noting some sticky notes on the occupied tanks. ‘Was Sunnie here yesterday evening..?’ He thought as he walked up to the bream tank.

“Looks like this little guy has been eating consistently for a couple weeks! Whoever’s on morning duty, call the manager and see if it’s time to schedule a release for him.

- Sunnie”

“Oh!” He squeaked, pleasantly surprised. Picking up the notepad, he saw that the bream had been noted as eating consistently, even without medication. “Well, looks like it’s time for you to go.” He smiled at the fish, pouring dried prawns into his hand and dumping them into the tank. The bream was eager to eat, seeming completely healthy.

The eggs still hadn’t hatched, and the lobster was doing normal lobster things, leaving the bream as the only one being unique that day. Gramble went downstairs, went behind the receptionist’s desk, and picked up the phone. He hit the speed dial for his manager.

It rang for a few moments, then clicked. “Hi Arinata, is everything okay at the center?” A formal voice greeted him.

“This is Gramble, Mr. Gallonfling. Our rescued bream is ready for release.” He said softly, a little intimidated by his manager.

“Please, Gramble, all of the team should just call me Alliot. The bream rescue has been eating consistently without medication?” Alliot asked, getting a confirming hum back. “Sounds like it IS ready for release! Alright, if it’s you, Arinata, and Minette who have a shift together, then I’m sure you three are well off to do the release on your own.”

“B-but we usually have you or someone from the Marine Center with us?”

“I have a town meeting today. If you think the bream still needs to be tracked, then you can call the Marine Center and see if there’s someone who can come and put a monitor on it, but it really shouldn’t be necessary. I trust you three.”

Gramble took a deep breath. “Got it. I’ll tell the others when they get here, Alliot.”

“Make sure to tell me how it goes.” With that, the phone was hung up.

Without putting it down, he dialed another number. After a very short ring, it was picked up. “Arinata speaking.” He could hear the sound of rustling wind.

“Oh, you’re already on your way here… The manager wants us to release the rescue bream today. Apparently we’re gonna be doin’ it on our own.”

“On our own?” She echoed back. “Not even with someone from the Marine Center?” She questioned.

“We can call them if we want, but he said it can just be you, Minette, and me.” He lowered the phone. “Sorry for calling you when you’re biking.”

“No, it’s okay. I like getting things sooner, it makes being “in charge” a bit easier.” He heard her huff, “I’ll be there in a few minutes, we’ll talk with Minette about whether we want to call the Marine Center or not.”

“Goodbye.” With that, he put the phone down.

Ten minutes later, Minette and Gramble had gotten the bream into a transport bucket, and Arinata was on the computer checking the protocol. “Okay, so, there’s a kayak belonging to Tapiyoca hooked up on the beach, the combination is 6384. It’ll only fit one of us and the transport bucket.” She read off, turning to her colleagues. “Do you wanna do the honors, Gramble?”

“Me?” He raised an eyebrow.

“Of course!” Minnette nudged him, “You go on fishin’ trips all the time in that little boat-a yours, we’ll watch you from the shore. It’ll only take a few minutes, ya go out, ya dump the fish, ya come back.”

“And out of all of us, I’m sure you want to say goodbye to it the most.” Arinata added.

“Haha, how could you, uh, tell..?” He muttered, glancing into the bucket and back. “I just really like animals.”

“You talk to the tanks when you’re here alone, I see it on the cameras.” The receptionist stood up, walking out from behind the desk. “We’d best hurry up, being in the bucket probably isn’t comfortable.” She jingled her keys, opening the door for her colleagues. Gramble ignored the embarrassment from her previous statement as him and Minette carried the bucket outside, the door being locked behind them.

After a careful and unfortunately long trip down to the shore, as well as a struggle with a kayak rack, they were at the seaside and ready to go.

“Y’all are sure you want me to do this?” Gramble asked after putting the bucket in the kayak, holding the paddle.

“Don’t be so nervous, it’ll only take a few minutes.” Minette pawed his shoulder, “Give it a fishy little kiss goodbye, why don’tcha?”

They shared a sigh at her joke, the pink grumpus stepping into the boat and sitting down, clutching the paddle. “Get, maybe… a half of a mile out?” Arinata instructed, kneeling behind the boat. “We’ll be watching until you’re back.” She added, and then pushed the kayak away from shore.

Gramble took a deep breath of the salty air, starting to paddle in the way that came naturally to him. The waters were calm, but the wind pushed him away from shore, aiding in his way out. He wasn’t too sure about the way back, but he’d be able to make it back no matter what.

He could see the bream flipping around in the bucket, and also see the sky reflected in the water. It was covered in a thick layer of clouds, darker in some spots than others, typical autumn weather. Glancing away to look at the shore, he struggled to gauge how far out he was.

And then… water, falling from the sky.

“Eh-?” He held his paw out, drops of rain falling into his open palm. “Oh gosh… Better get this done quicker…” Taking a deep breath, he stopped rowing, resting his paddle. It might not have been half of a mile, but it was far out.

“Bye, little guy.” Picking the bucket up carefully, he rested it over the water, and then dumped it. The bream disappeared quickly, not looking back, just descending into the ocean. He sighed, relaxing, and putting the bucket back into the kayak.

“AH-!” He yelped, hopping in his seat from fear at nothing less than the crackle of thunder. It’d quickly started to rain harder, the clouds becoming a dark gray in the matter of seconds.

He turned to look at the shore. The blurry silhouettes of Arinata and Minette were waving their arms, calling him back in, and he listened closely for their voices.

“IT’S A STORM!” He heard Minette, very, very far away.

Another crack of thunder got his heart beating, lightning flashing distantly. The wind, now assisted by waves, continued to push him away from shore as he desperately tried to turn the kayak around.

The small kayak struggled to fight the water, tilting at unsteady angles, bringing an uneasiness to Gramble’s stomach. There was an extremely loud, long string of thunder, accompanied by the sky flashing, and he knew he was in one of the worst spots he could be caught in.

“Oh, my grump!” As deep as Reefburg was, they could still hear the sound of the storm. “Sounds like there’s a bad storm up there…” Filbo remarked, looking up at the top of the cave, with Beffica close by and looking up all the same.

Wiggle’s face brightened at the sound. “Oh, I love storms! They’re like an exotic, electric concert from the sky herself!” She held her paws together, smiling. “Would anybody like to go watch it with me~?” She asked, already going down the path out of town.

The mayor looked apprehensive. “Oh, I don’t know, I- Shellsy?” Surprised, the three turned to the end of town. The local sea angel was out of her cavern, shielding her eyes from the sharp bioluminescent lights.

“Yes, I’m here,” Shellsy greeted, joining them. “And I’ll be joining Wiggle in the dark, electrified waters. I find them to be much more comfortable than being in the light of day.”

“You think storms are better than clear weather?” Beffica crossed her arms and scoffed.

The elderly seagrump gave her a glare. “If that was unclear, then let me remind you that I live in a cavern lit only by jellyfish and myself.” With that, she swam ahead of Wiggle.

“Ah- I guess we’ll be going then~!” Giving the town a small wave, the popstar headed off.

“Stay safe!” She heard Filbo call to her.

Exiting the town and entering the open waters, Wiggle caught up to her older friend. “I didn’t think YOU’D be coming with me, of all seagrumps.”

“Storms are one of the only times I ever come out at all, my child.” Shellsy started, “I’m much more comfortable in the dark, as I always have been.”

The other hummed, “You mentioned that you saved that landgrump from a storm. Why?”

“It’s in my nature, child. The creatures that I rooted from are natural to the depths, and as such, I am as well.” The two had gotten closer to the surface by then. “Mh… It’s been a while since I was this close to the air.”

“Filbo, Beffica, and I go land-gazing sometimes, me more frequently than the others.” As she finished speaking, Wiggle broke through the water in stride, causing a splash. “Ah- GAH-!” But within the moment, she was pulled underwater again.

“Are the waves being unkind?” Shellsy asked, coming up to her side.

“Buh- I should’ve expected it, really.” She shook off the startled daze, then looked around.

“It would be foolish to do that again, child. These waves are dangerous, even to you or me.” The elderly seagrump fell a little lower, keeping distance between herself and the surface.

“I SWEAR there’s some kind of rocks around here, or something else… Uh…” Quickly, her eyes landed on a darkly colored mass. “…What is that?” She pointed at it.

Shellsy squinted at it for several seconds, getting a bit closer. “…Oh, mother.” She said under her breath, “It’s a boat- a very small one as well.”

“A boat-? There’s a landgrump out here, in this weather?!” Wiggle exclaimed, but the other seagrump was two swims ahead of her, heading for the surface. She followed in swift pursuit.

They breached the surface, catching it at a time where the waves had stopped for a moment. Looking to where the boat was, they could see it clearer, and the grumpus that was in it. His face was panic-stricken, clinging to the boat as it was ravaged by the waves.

“What a poor, unfortunate soul…” The elder mumbled quietly.

The popstar gasped. “That’s him-!” She said in a hushed, anxious voice, leaning closer to the grump with her. “That’s the boy I was telling you about, the one who was being nice and helping us, it’s him!”

“Is it?” Shellsy questioned, getting a nod. “So he’s a landgrump worth helping… With any other grump, I would’ve let the sea run its course.”

“What can we do?” Wiggle asked, anxiously flicking her tail and squirming.

“Hm…” With a small hum, the sea angel looked around. “…The nearest land isn’t for a while, it would seem the sea has pulled him very, VERY far away. We won’t be able to return him the way I have before.”

“Is there anything else-?” The betta started,

“GAH-AH-!” A scream from the landgrump interrupted her. A little bit away, they watched him struggle to stay on the boat, and then- it was capsized by the waves, bringing him under and the boat away.

“Is there anything we can do QUICKLY-?!” Wiggle added, going underwater.

“…Do you trust this landgrump enough for him to be one of us?” The elder turned to her, an intense look in her eye.

“Ah- I- huh-?” She stuttered.

“Do you trust him enough for him to be one of us?” She repeated.

“I- well, yes, but the others don’t, I-“ She felt a push on her back.

“I will go back to Reefburg and tell them that this is the only choice you had. Feel what is in your heart, in his, and the heart of the sea will come to both of you.” She said cryptically, and with not another word, she turned and descended.

With a pounding heart, Wiggle gulped, turning to where the man was. With a deep breath, she swam forward, finding the thrashing form of a landgrump stuck underwater. “I’m here!” She called out, getting closer to him.

Gramble turned to face her, horrified by the sound of such a clear voice. His eyes widened when he realized that that was the very woman he had passed off as a hallucination, and a new feeling of confusion and surprise filled him when he saw the flowy tail behind her.

“You’ll be alright-“ She said with a gentle, melodic voice, going up to him. “I’m going to help you.” She put her paws gently on his shoulders, and he twitched at the touch.

He didn’t know what to think. Half of his focus was on making sure he didn’t inhale water, but half of it was staring at this mysterious mermaid in front of him. Her expression strained in concern, leaning over him, her form much taller than his. “If I’m honest, I’m not sure how this works. I’ve never done it before.” She spoke calmly, bringing them closer together. “But if the love of the sea is with us, then you’ll be okay.”

Gramble felt… a wave of comfort. The crackling thunder above him was unable to make him twitch and startle, and he wasn’t sure why. Was this woman really so non-threatening that she was able to bring him comfort? No, it wasn’t that… It was his struggling mind as he ran out of air.

The last thing he heard was an anxious whimper as it all went to darkness around him; a big change quickly being made.

#bugsnax #tori’s writing tag #tori’s art tag #wiggle wigglebottom #gramble gigglefunny #filbo fiddlepie #beffica winklesnoot #eggabell batternugget

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julieeeeette · 5 months

Text

I don't know who needs to hear this, but I felt compelled to share.

TW: Homelessness; family drama

With tomorrow being Thanksgiving in the States, I've been asked a lot about what I'm grateful for.

I'm grateful for many things: my health, a job with benefits, the air I breathe, the food I eat, the fact that I have my health even if it isn't perfect.

But the thing I am most grateful for is having a home.

I was homeless for three years when I was 19. It was hard and scary. Very few people were sympathetic and saw me as being a drug addict, someone with anger issues, or with serious mental health issues like schizophrenia, or a thief. There were people who asked where my baby was. I must be an unwed mother because I was young and my family disowned me.

Well, they did disown me after my mother died after a long battle with cancer. My dad's next wife had a guilty conscious and hated that I look so much like my mom. So, he chose her over me and that was that.

There was so much drama that when my dad told me to either submit or leave, I left.

I was safer on the streets.

The homeless I came in contact with were so kind and caring. They'd tell me where to go for food and shelter. How to stay warm in the winter and cool in the summer. They let me know if someone was hiring. They'd protect me when people got aggressive.

They helped me find clothes when I went in for interviews. They cheered me up when nothing came of it and celebrated when I finally got one. They celebrated even more when I finally had enough to get an apartment.

I try to go back as often as I can and spread my good fortune with them. I bring food and water and clean clothes and blankets and first aid kids. Sometimes I can't find them and I mourn for the loss of their companionship. Sometimes, I feel guilty for having survived such an ordeal, but they tell me not to because everything happens exactly when it's supposed to.

Anyway, that's how I'll be celebrating my Thanksgiving, by sitting in a yellow tent listening to the stories of the people who have become closer to me than my own family and laughing with them.

Happy Thanksiving.

#happy thanksgiving #don't give up #stay strong #this too shall pass #don't make a permanent solution for a temporary problem #you are not alone

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capricornwriter5 · 1 year

Text

OUR SEESAW - Chapter 9

Pairing: Min Yoongi x female OC

Genre: idol au, Suga X female OC, smut, fluff, angst, college romance, friends to lovers, exes to lovers, happy ending. ⚠️Warning: mentions of mental health affections, drugs, explicit sex

Words: 6k

➳ Prev. Chapter

Chapter 9 - Stay

A few hours later, Yoongi was in front of his parents and older brother, who welcomed him with a warm hug. Meanwhile, his mother had been so moved to see her son again that she shed several tears.

“She doesn't look well…” Yoongi thought worriedly as the woman clutched him. He immediately looked at his brother, who nodded, understanding his concern, but that was not the time to talk about it.

His mother was so tired and her back was in so much pain that she quickly sat back down, and Yoongi was dismayed at how much it took her to find a position that didn't hurt. Instinctively, he looked at his father to make sure he was okay. Although he found the old man healthy enough, Yoongi did not see many traces of joy on his face; on the contrary, he perceived his father cold and even annoyed.

"Shit..." he thought with a sigh. "It's going to be a long night."

Fortunately for Yoongi, it was too late, his family had already had dinner and his parents needed to rest. Geumjae, on the other hand, didn't let him do anything when he already convinced the musician to go have a drink together at a small canteen near home.

“I still can't believe you're here! Why didn't you call earlier? I'd have gone to the station for you. Do you always have to be so mysterious about everything?”

Yoongi couldn't help but laugh at that comment, being mysterious was the last thing on his mind.

"I didn't want to bother you."

"You never do, remember you're my baby brother." Geumjae tried to tease him by pinching his cheeks, but Yoongi was faster and managed to dodge.

“Hyung, I told you many times that it wouldn't be a good idea to come. Dad looked awkward."

“Dad ALWAYS looks awkward. Don't take it personally. Besides, you came here to see mom."

"About that... I didn't see her well. It hurts her to walk, even to sit. She has lost weight. And not only her, dad's thinner."

“He's worried about her, although you know him, he doesn't talk too much. Besides…" Geumjae stopped talking, but his nervous gaze gave him away.

"Come on, say it. I already know what you're thinking. That I could call more, come more often. Despite having left home, I still worry them.”

“You're their youngest son, Yoongi, they know practically nothing about you.”

“It's better that way, my life choices are far from our parents' like, they hate music. Do you think that calling them every day and reminding them that I'm still chasing the same dream will do them any good?”

“Disappearing doesn't do them any good either. And not just them, you can't deny that this affects you."

Of course it affected him, and not just because of the nostalgia of thinking about home. He was terribly worried about letting them down and never being able to give them the life he thought they deserved. His pride also spoke, Yoongi couldn't just give up and return home defeated. The path had been brutally steep and full of obstacles, only once had he come close to fulfilling his dreams, but he lost everything. The work of years, song lyrics, and melodies to which he had dedicated sleepless nights had been taken away by people he blindly trusted. But that didn't matter, he had to prove to himself that he could achieve his dream. He also had to show his parents that he was not wrong with his decisions.

"Yoongi, what about the other thing? Are you feeling any better? You know what I mean."

Geumjae had witnessed a couple of anxiety attacks from his younger brother. Although Yoongi cleverly hid them from his parents, he hadn't had such luck with his brother. Naturally, knowing how serious they could be and the depression they brought, Geumjae worried about him. To make everything worse, Yoongi hardly talked about it or accepted help from anyone, so there was no way to offer him a hand.

“There are good days and others not so much.”

"You know that if you need to talk, I'm here, right?"

"I know it, hyung, but you don't have to worry, I'm fine."

"I'm glad to hear that."

"Regarding mom, I think I'll have the money for her operation very soon.”

“Yoongi, you don't have to do everything alone. When are you gonna understand it? I also work, I…”

"You took care of the first therapy sessions, in addition to all the medical appointments, leave the operation to me."

“You did see how much that operation costs, right? We need to ask for a loan. You CAN'T pay it yourself.”

"I have savings, I'll sell the motorcycle, I don't know, something will come to mind. I'm just finishing with several songs a band asked me to produce, that will help."

Yoongi's orderly nature had allowed him to take on numerous responsibilities from a very young age; however, he could not deny that as the years passed, everything was more complicated. His parents' allowance was minimal, plus they had mortgaged the house, and with the money they had left, they could barely buy food. That was how Geumjae and Yoongi split everything up without their parents knowing. The musician had forced his older brother to swear he would tell them that his job allowed him to help them. However, while Geumjae paid the mortgage, Yoongi took care of the couple's rent, as well as the rest of the bills. Fortunately, the money the janitor gave him covered several months of his parents' rent, but he still had to pay half the rent for his apartment and all the expenses of living alone.

It was still very awkward for him to accept the money from Emmy's classes, in fact, he hadn't wanted to touch any of it, he told himself that it was the savings for his mother's operation, and that made him feel a little less uncomfortable, if that was possible.

"Okay, let's change that face. Let's stop talking about money, you know I hate that topic. I guess you have a lot to tell me, I can't remember the last time we drank a beer together. How are Jin and Namjoon doing? Is there something new in your many jobs? How are you doing in college?”

“Well, honestly, I don't have much to tell you. Jin and Namjoon are fine, work's still the same…everything's the same.”

Everything's the same? Please.... he had agreed to tutor someone, he had gone out to a party, and he had danced! In the last few weeks, he had laughed more than he had ever laughed in his entire life. He had gone back to carving, and a few hours ago, he had kissed the girl who made him lose his mind. Definitely, nothing was like before, but he was too introverted and reserved to say it like that.

However, something in Yoongi's tone, perhaps the fact that he didn't sound as melancholy as usual, made Geumjae raise both eyebrows. Turning to his brother, he stood idly by, waiting for him to talk some more. He knew how to convince the musician to open up a little more, and even though it was especially difficult, he managed to get it. That night was no exception, as Yoongi let out a small, telltale smile.

"You know that I can stay here all night waiting for you to talk."

“Hyung, you're truly annoying.” He said with a sigh. "I met someone." Yoongi confessed without taking his gaze from the beer. "And, well... you know, I think she kind of likes me too." The more he spoke, his voice dropped in pitch, becoming barely perceptible to Geumjae. It was obvious that Yoongi was head over heels for her.

“Oh wow! That's not what I expected!" Geumjae commented getting excited, especially because he got to see Yoongi's ears turning red. "And well? Who is she, what's her name, how did you meet her? Is it something serious? When do you want me to come so you can introduce her to me?”

Geumjae's intensity made Yoongi laugh and think he was as intense as Jin. “Don't go so fast, not even Emmy and I have talked about it. I just told you that I MET someone.”

"Emmy? That's a cute name! Do you have a picture? I want to see your girlfriend."

"I already told you she's not my…"

"How long have you been dating her?"

Resigned to his brother wanting all kinds of details, Yoongi preferred to change the subject before it got worse. Of course, he didn't make it, and Geumjae insisted all night to find out more about Emm. Deep down, Yoongi was grateful that they could talk about something else, the whole issue of his parents and the money made him very tense. He had to enjoy the peace of that night, for he knew that the next day, things would not be so simple with his parents. His father would not miss an opportunity to ask about his work.

************

The next day, Emmy woke up, and for the first time in her life, she did not wish for Christmas Eve to end soon. The girl bathed early, got ready, and left the house. She wanted to prepare something to eat, not buy something already prepared. Yet, when she saw herself in the supermarket, she realized that it was the first time she had done something like that. The girl didn't even know how to look for things or what the hell she was looking for.

If she hadn't been so clueless, she would have called Hoseok to help her, or Nara, but she forgot her cell phone at home. Fortunately, her outgoing personality allowed her to approach a woman and ask for her help. Minutes later, she was leaving with numerous bags,

"Time to start..." She thought when she managed to get home and leave all the bags in the kitchen.

************

On the other hand, the atmosphere at Yoongi's house had gotten too edgy since breakfast, his father wasted no time in starting with his hostile comments. As long as he didn't give his mother a hard time, Yoongi remained silent, but as the day continued, it was impossible for him not to answer back. At first, he tried to do it in the most respectful way; however, his father's words were escalating too fast. The worst came when Yoongi was trying to help his mother with lunch.

“Mom, please go rest. I'll continue with the rest."

"Forget about it, you never come home, let me spoil you a bit and make your favorite food.”

"Let him cook, even let him work on that if he wants, anything's better than what he does." Yoongi's father commented loud enough for not only his wife and youngest son to hear, but also Geumjae and his girlfriend, who had come to visit.

"Let me do it," Yoongi asked barely audible to his mother, but his jaw was tense enough to express how furious he was.

"I already told you no."

When the woman tried to continue cooking, she made a movement that turned out to be a bit abrupt for her, and Yoongi clearly saw the grimace on her face.

"Mom... please."

"It's okay, it was nothing."

"You need to rest, you can't push yourself that much."

"Why not?"

Yoongi was not supposed to know anything about the therapies, much less about the operation, but it was so notorious that Geumjae told him, that it wasn't his father who got upset, but his mother. She was aware of how difficult her youngest son's life was, so she got extremely upset with Geumjae to add extra weight. Yet, Yoongi's mother's personality was as calm and kind as her son's, so it was no surprise that they were capable to handle the situation well and avoid an argument. Meanwhile, the old man did not stop and continued with the conversation related to Yoongi's life decisions.

“I'm telling you this because I'm worried you won't have a future, just like me! You think my word doesn't matter because I'm an old man with no education."

“Dad, that's not what it's about, I've never thought like that. I just want to give myself a chance and…”

"A chance? You have years chasing something that will NOT happen! Better go back home and take charge of the workshop, or study something else.”

“I'm not going to study anything else, and I'm NOT going back home.”

"Were you so unhappy here?"

"Dad, please. Today's not the day, it's the first time Yoongi has come in a long time.” Geumjae added, trying to calm things down a bit.

“Stop giving him hope where the's none, Geumjae! Don't you realize that he'll be a failure all his life? Someone has to make him see reason!"

"I won't be a failure, I've told you countless times. I know I can do it, I know I have what it takes."

“You're wasting your life. If you're going to continue with that stupid mentality, don't come home. You embarrass me."

"Dad!" Geumjae said. “How do you tell him that when it's Yoongi who..?”

"Don't, hyung," Yoongi ordered getting up from the chair.

“Your mother has always been silent and your brother continues to support you with ideas that do NOT make sense! Someone has to tell you to stop this foolishness."

“Yoongi knows what he's doing with his life, he has told you in many ways. He has been more than respectful, dad, but you also have to know how things are.”

"Geumjae." Yoongi warned with a gloomy look, not only did he feel how everything was escalating more and more, but his anxiety was already starting to appear, and all he wanted was to get out of there and never talk about it again. "I told you that it was enough."

“Yoongi's mature and responsible enough to have taken over the rent for this house, as well as the other bills.”

Geumjae was finishing saying that when Yoongi closed his eyes holding the doorknob. He had been so close to being able to leave before everything got worse...

************

The hours passed quickly and soon it was ten o'clock at night. Emmy was struggling with her oven, having been trying to figure out how to preheat it without causing another accident, when suddenly there was a knock on her door. Next, she heard how it opened slowly and when she turned her head, she could see Yoongi on the edge of the door. He had a few bags, in addition to the suitcase that she had seen before.

The musician's gaze slightly brightened up the moment he saw the girl's smile; however, there was still a trace of the consequences of the visit home. That was how Emmy ran towards him and opening the door even more, she hugged him tightly.

"I hope you don't mind that I took you at your word to come." He whispered in her ear and smiling gratefully to feel the warmth of Emmy's hug.

"The door was open for you." Emmy's response was accompanied by a caress on Yoongi's cheek.

"Can we close it now?"

"I promise you no one else will enter." She assured kissing his forehead and helping him with everything he brought.

Yoongi did no more than enter when the scene he saw moved him so much that it made him smile tenderly. Emmy had been waiting for him, so she had set the table for the two of them. Also, just by glancing around the kitchen, he knew that she had tried to cook, but hadn't succeeded, hence the chaos.

"Emm, did you get burned?" He asked sure of it due to the smell of burnt food.

"No, but I'm afraid to keep trying. I burned more than half of the things I bought." The girl laughed at how unskilled she was in the kitchen.

"Don't worry, we'll do it together."

That would be Emmy's first Christmas dinner in years, so she didn't stop smiling for a single moment. The illusion and emotion caused by having the musician there with her made Yoongi have to save her from more than one accident. If it wasn't with the knives, it was again the oven or even the kitchen. Even so, he didn't stop smiling either, besides that, his heart didn't give him a truce and kept beating fast.

Fortunately, Yoongi had brought ingredients; actually, he was able to replace everything Emmy burned. The first thing they did was to wash the vegetables, but when they were about to chop them, Yoongi immediately came up behind her to explain how to do it without losing a finger in the process.

“Keep a good grip on the knife and move your other hand away.” With the directions of Yoongi, Emmy could do everything without any difficulty. “Great, we're almost done. Can you chop the carrots while I finish preparing the meat?”

“Carrots? No, they're disgusting, I don't like them. Let's use more chives."

“We need the carrots. By the way, be careful because we haven't picked up those glasses from the ground yet. I'll finish with this and pick them up. DO NOT go near here. Emm, are you listening to me?" The girl had already set the carrots aside while she searched for more chives. “No more chives, it won't taste good.”

“Of course it will taste good! You want to put boring vegetables on it.”

“And what are the fun vegetables supposed to be? Because I can't remember the last time a potato told me a joke." Yoongi spoke with a frown and crossed arms. And his tone became even more serious when, according to him, he was explaining to Emmy all the properties carrots had and why it was important to eat them.

"You're an old man, old men like carrots."

"What? Are you listening to yourself? Nothing you say makes any sense. If you ate healthier, you would understand.” He said taking a bag of carrots and putting them in front of the girl.

"I'm sorry, grandpa, I can't chop your delicious carrots because I can't find the knife."

"I'm not a…forget it." He tried to find the knife they had been using among Emmy's mess. “Did you really lose it again? But I don't understand, a minute ago you had it in your hands."

Yoongi and Emmy lifted everything in the kitchen to find the knife; however, it seemed that it had disappeared. Emmy kept saying that Yoongi had moved it, while he said that she had hidden it so as not to chop the carrots, no one had noticed that it was under the chopping board.

"Maybe it's around here." She tried to lift a pot heavy enough that Yoongi had to help her. The couple tried to push some things away; however, the only thing they got was that the carrots ended up falling on the glass.

“You did it on purpose, right? All because of your senseless hatred of carrots."

"You did it on purpose, right?" She imitated Yoongi talking like an old man and when Yoongi realized that he actually sounded like that, he let out a laugh that rang throughout the kitchen.

Also, it was the first time he had seen Emmy slightly upset and Yoongi had no idea that she could fight like a little girl, she even gently pushed him to pick up the mess of carrots and glass, but she kept repeating that it had been an accident.

"And you know what I'm gonna do? Next Christmas I'm going to give you boxes and boxes of carrots. That's what you earned for being a bitter old man and a liar."

By way of apology, Yoongi crouched down on the same level as Emmy and trying to suppress a smile, offered her a chive. Soon, they were both laughing at how ridiculous the argument had been.

Stopping her from picking up the glass, Yoongi carefully lifted Emmy up.

"I told you I wouldn't be much help in the kitchen."

"What are you talking about? They were just some stupid carrots.” He responded with his raspy voice and a smirk on his face capable of making Emmy even forget what they were talking about.

A split second was all the couple needed before they lost themselves in a kiss. Knowing that no one would interrupt them that night, and that they had truly closed the door to be totally alone, both Yoongi and Emmy decided that they would enjoy every kiss, caress, and smile with every particle of their being.

Ever since he left Emmy's house, Yoongi had daydreamed about kissing her again. Even before kissing her, the girl occupied most of his thoughts, but having tasted her lips had been like giving him just a hint of what awaited him at her side. Now, holding her in his arms and feeling how the girl responded to each caress, Yoongi kissed her with even more passion than the first time.

Even though Yoongi was not good with words, and at first sight he would have given all the signs that physical affection was not his favorite thing, to Emmy's surprise, the musician knew how to express himself perfectly well through kisses and caresses. Everything that involved making love was Yoongi's thing and Emm was about to find out that night.

Among the surprises that the musician hid was his arms' strength.

Just as the simplest thing for him, Yoongi took the girl by the legs and sit her at the table. Next, he directly attacked Emm's neck, he was devouring it with kisses that forced her to hold onto his shoulders as she moaned. If she wasn't moaning, she was sexily giggling at the tickling of Yoongi's tongue on her neck. Meanwhile, the musician's hands were trembling, desire had taken over him and he was dying to take Emmy's clothes off, but he had to go calmly, not for him, but for her.

Emmy noticed the fire coming from Yoongi's hands on her thighs, waiting for the slightest signal from her to continue, and the signal came when the girl caught him off guard and bit his lower lip. The next thing Emmy felt was the pianist's hands traveling under her shirt, caressing her abs, and catching her breasts in his hands. Soon, Emmy's shirt and bra had already disappeared, allowing the musician to drive her crazy and make her want him to continue. With perfectly measured force and pressure, Yoongi was feasting on the girl's breasts, biting and licking them.

“Yoongi…” she called before licking and gently biting his earlobe.

"Do you want us to stop?" He asked with a tone of voice that led the girl to bite her lip, she had never heard him speak more seriously and raspy than at that moment.

"Of course not." She responded making him smile and approach her neck again. "So what's wrong, you don't like it?"

"I love it, but I want you to come with me."

Getting off the table, Emm took Yoongi's hand and made him follow her. The musician was madly bewitched by her, so much so that he could have sworn that those steps between the kitchen, the stairs, and Emmy's room were torture for him. However, seeing the comfort of Emm's room, especially her bed, Yoongi understood why they were there. That night neither of them wanted to keep anything to themselves, and they would only do that by being as comfortable as possible.

The connection that Emmy and Yoongi had from the beginning in front of the piano was surpassed by the one they had that night in bed. They were both aware of how much they wanted to touch, taste, and even take over every inch of the other's body, but they would have all night for that, and at that moment, what they both wanted most was something else. Thus, without thinking of anything else at all, they took it upon themselves to disappear all the clothes, and as soon as Yoongi cornered Emmy on the bed, he gave her a stare she would never forget. If the girl had thought that Yoongi had devoured her with his gaze when they danced, that night he showed her that it had been nothing, because his feline eyes and the way he took his crotch by getting closer to her were simply unforgettable.

Arching her back, Emmy moaned as she felt how every centimeter of the musician's body enter on hers. Those first few seconds of feeling Yoongi inside her were enough to turn Emmy's world upside down. It was as if all her previous sexual encounters did not happen, as if she was starting her sex life all over again, but this time with him, with the correct person. The combination of how well the musician moved, how wonderful their bodies felt together, how exquisite it felt to have Yoongi so close, and how hopelessly in love she was led to Emmy having the best night of her life.

The musician turned out to be an incredibly passionate lover, not snapping at things or seeming to lose control awkwardly; on the contrary, each movement of Yoongi's hips, each kiss, even each moan, and glance were calculated to be unforgettable and to mark Emm's life. He didn't limit himself to one position, he had too much to prove to the girl, too much love and desire.

As he turned her back to him and positioned himself on top of her, Yoongi grabbed her hands on top of her head and smirked hearing his name coming out of her lips. With every hip thrust while he went in and out of her, Yoongi not only groaned in her ear, but also let her know that from that night on, she would be in his arms forever. Yoongi was no joking when he said he was not willing to share her; therefore, just a single thought of another person in her bed made Yoongi burn inside.

They both knew that they couldn't keep up that pace for much longer, the pleasure was too much to handle, and they were getting closer to experiencing the best orgasm of their lives.

"Turn around, baby, I want to see your face," Yoongi ordered biting her earlobe and carefully pulling out his body from her.

HE, the person who avoided eye contact the most, dreamed of being able to see the face of the girl he had fallen in love with when they had their first orgasm together. The intensity of the feelings they experienced that night as they reached their limit together and looked into each other's eyes would be unmatched by any other event in their lives. Emmy and Yoongi gave absolutely everything of themselves that night, it was not even necessary for them to speak, for the smile they gave each other when they were out of breath made it clear that they were not playing, what they had was not something casual or superficial.

Exhausted, they lay in the comfort of the pillows. Both tried to recover the normality of their breathing, but without moving away. Making any effort other than breathing was exhausting for the couple, but Yoongi managed it, and spoke in her ear.

"Emm, are you alright? It's the first time you've been silent for so long." Yoongi's question caused her to laugh very softly and raise her face so she could look at him.

"You just left me without any words." The musician gave her that adorable smile that she liked so much and almost immediately she snuggled back into his arms.

They didn't say anything for a while, just rested. The comfort felt in each other's arms was so satisfying that they were about to fall asleep, especially Emmy. Yoongi's chest turned out to be THAT place anyone wanted to rest on; it was warm and welcoming, but also firm and safe. Also, feeling the musician's fingers caressing the soft skin of Emmy's arms and shoulders was lulling. Surely the girl could have stayed there forever, and so could he, but there was something he still had to do.

"No..." the girl complained when she felt him move stealthily. "Yoongs, don't go." She begged.

"I won't leave." He assured approaching with a smile to kiss her lips. "I'll just go get something, stay resting."

He knew that if he gave her time to say something else, Emmy would convince him to stay, so he took just what he needed of clothing and left the room. A few minutes passed in which the girl remained hugging the pillow that Yoongi had been using; however, she wanted him back and ended up covering herself with the sheet to go looking for him. However, Emmy hadn't even finished adjusting the sheet when he came back in, this time with a tray with two glasses and two small plates.

“Where were you going, freckles? I told you to stay in bed."

"What…?"

"Just in time." He sat in front of her and offered the glass. Emmy hadn't realized that among all the things Yoongi brought, he had bought something to toast. "Merry Christmas, precious." He said at the same time that the clock began to chime, it was already midnight.

They both toasted with their glasses, but not even the fine material they were made of shone like the eyes of the couple. So, that was how it felt to spend Christmas with someone special... that was the thought of Yoongi and Emmy before kissing one last time and having dinner in bed.

"You didn't use carrots," the girl commented unable to avoid laughing as she saw what Yoongi prepared.

“As long as you like the food, I'll like it too. I didn't cook for myself, after all, this Christmas was for you." He responded by winking at her.

"Also for you." She replied passing her hand through the musician's dark hair. "I was thinking a lot about you, I wanted everything to work with your parents, but I also wanted you to come."

"Is that why you went to buy so many things?" Yoongi raised his gaze and fixing it on her, he observed how the freckles on Emmy's cheeks became more noticeable due to the reddish tone that her face had acquired. A few moments of silence followed in which Emmy was aware that Yoongi was struggling with himself and his lousy ability to express himself. Finally, he found the words to say what he was thinking, or at least the words that were closest to what he wanted to express. "Regardless of whether it had worked or not, it'd have come back to you, I knew you were waiting for me. This is the first time someone prepares something like this for me. No one had welcomed me like this.” Not wanting to overwhelm him with words, Emmy gave him a peck on the cheek. She understood how touched and happy he felt, there was no need for Yoongi to say anything else. "Let's eat, freckles. I hope you enjoy your carrot-free dinner."

That Christmas was the complete opposite of what they had imagined. While the girl had visualized herself eating instant soup and then looking for a party, Yoongi had resigned himself to an awkward night with his family. However, fate taught them a lesson that night about how everything could change at the most unexpected moment. Contrary to what they had anticipated, they were now enjoying a small dinner in Emmy's bed, both still half-naked and disheveled. On Emmy's neck and clavicle several of the marks that Yoongi had left on her stood out, and on his back, there were traces of Emmy's nails, from when she held on to him. But in addition to the sensuality of the scene, love filled the room, it was something undeniable.

"Yoongs, do you want to talk about what happened at your parents' house?"

Yoongi's first impulse led him to shake his head negatively; however, after a few minutes of silence, he spoke. In truth, opening up to Emmy wasn't that difficult.

“Mom's in a lot of pain, she's not having a good time. About dad…” A deep sigh interrupted his words. “He still hates music. And my brother, well, he spoke more than necessary, not with bad intentions, Geumjae would never do something like that. Anyway, I think I left home worse than the first time. Dad's so sure about my imminent failure, that sometimes he gets to make me doubt."

Emmy watched as her piano professor finished drinking what was left in his glass before fixing his dark eyes on it. Maybe, if she hadn't done what she did, Yoongi would have lost himself thinking about everything that was happening at home; but that didn't happen, since Emmy took the glass out of his hands so she could grab them.

“You're a fabulous musician. I know that things haven't been easy for you, but everything will be fine. You can get anything you set your mind to, maybe you just need to change your strategy and stop being so self-sufficient." Yoongi listened carefully as his girl played with his hands. "If you weren't such a grumpy cat, you'd notice that there are people who truly care about you and are willing to lend you a hand. Just let us do it, Yoongs. Don't give up yet, I won't let you do it and you should know me well enough by now to know how headstrong I can be." Even though he was serious, Yoongi showed her his gummy smile. “Whenever you want to talk about what's going on with your mom, I'll be here, there has to be something we can do to help her. I know very good doctors, maybe we could ask them for a second opinion. And regarding your brother... I don't blame him, I've also screwed up many things by speaking without thinking. You should know that by now too…”

Yoongi looked at his girl in a way that Emmy could swear he was capable of reading her soul. He knew that she meant everything, the help she offered was honest, but, on top of that, just the fact that she took the time to listen to him caused Yoongi's chest to feel warm.

"I like you, Emm, I like you a lot." He confessed with a sweet smile and delicately running his thumb over her cheeks' freckles. "But you should know that by now."

"Hmm... no, not really." She joked provoking Yoongi's eyes to widen, thinking that maybe he hadn't shown it enough while they were making love. “You could prove it again…”

With a smirk on his face, Yoongi put aside everything that could get in the way and dedicated all night to showing Emm how much he liked her.

Luckily, the next morning he didn't have to work, as both Yoongi and Emmy only slept for a couple of hours. Yoongi could be very calm in his day to day, and the truth was that when he slept with other girls, he didn't remember having a night like that; however, having sex with the girl he truthfully liked was a different thing.

Not long before exhaustion finally overcame them, Emmy opened her eyes when she felt the musician wrapping her up with the blanket.

"You'll leave once I fall asleep, right?"

"Do you want me to do it?" In response, the girl shook her head, she genuinely didn't want to see him go.

She was dying to ask him not to leave, but if there was one thing that terrified Emmy, it was asking for that. She had stopped doing it from a very young age, after so many abandonments, the girl simply trembled just thinking about asking someone to stay by her side again and having to see that person leave. However, the sweet look that Yoongi dedicated her, accompanied by a smile, made it clear that he was willing to stay for as long as she allowed him.

“Freckles…” he called, tucking a few strands of hair behind her ear. “We already said that we had closed the door, don't you remember? I have no intention of opening it.”

Grateful that Yoongi understood one of her biggest fears, Emm pulled him back to her side and snuggled into him.

"Thank you." She thought feeling the last kiss the musician gave her on the forehead before falling asleep.

➳ Next chapter

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